long purple tails scurried beneath the boulders.
I cleaned up in the stream, compulsively washing my face and arms, scrubbing my skin raw. I felt like I’d been tainted with an invisible disease. I could feel ash in my lungs and my stomach twisted painfully.
“Why do I feel like I’ve just crawled out of a coffin?” Jazmine said, stretching her limbs
“Or been sleeping for a week?” Trevor asked.
“I hope it hasn’t been that long,” I said.
“Seriously, Em. What happened in there? I mean, all I really remember is the good food, soft sheets and the music.”
“It wasn’t real,” I said. “You were glamoured, all of you. All of us.”
“You mean that wasn’t Mrs. Hartmann?”
“It was, but... what you saw of her, that was an illusion. I found the real her, what was left of her body. I found Luke outside, April too. They were cutting themselves.”
I rolled up April’s sleeve and showed them. Her eyes widened at the deep, red cut around her wrist. The wound had clotted, but it looked infected. Luke lifted his sleeve as well, and then the others. Everyone had similar wounds, except Penelope.
I felt a throbbing in my wrist, and my fingers trembled as I peeled back a layer of clothing.
“She got you too,” Trevor nodded.
“I barely remember it,” I said softly. “It must have been before I drank the elixir.”
“We made it out, and we’re still alive,” Jazmine said. “Honestly, that’s not bad for a few days’ work.”
“It’s been at least that long.”
“Shit, we were supposed to meet Tobias in three days, what if we missed him! He won’t be able to find us again.”
“It’s too late for that,” Luke said. “He’s long gone by now.”
“He’ll wait,” Penelope said. “I know he will.”
Her pupils were wide and dark. I recognized the thirst. She’d spent the last few days in a food coma, and now she was hungry. This was going to get out of hand, fast.
“Look, the plan was to check out the king’s former residence and search for clues,” Luke said. “Mission accomplished. It was always a long shot. Jacob knew that. Now it’s time for plan B.”
“We have a plan B?” Jazmine asked.
I knew what plan B was. It was blowing up the generators and liberating the compounds; the same thing I’d just stopped the rebels from doing in Sezomp. But that was before I knew the truth. I hadn’t told anyone what Mrs. Hartman said yet. It was too big, and I wasn’t ready for any more yelling or arguing. I still felt sick – the others, who had never seen what they were really eating, were just mildly uncomfortable. But I couldn’t stop thinking about the rotten, larva-filled fruit and moldy bread.
“Jacob told me to look out for you, to keep an eye out for you. And told me to shoot her if I had to. But now that your wild goose chase is done, it’s time to regroup with the others.”
“What others?” Jazmine asked. “We don’t even know if Jacob’s alive, and Havoc is gone.”
“I know where they’re going. I’m the only one that does. Jacob gave me a rendezvous point before shit hit the fan. You need someplace safe you can keep working on the cure, and to plan the next steps.”
“Fine,” I nodded. “But we need to meet with Tobias first.”
“It’s in the other direction,” Luke frowned. We were at the edge of a deep valley. From the remains of a gazebo and pile of yellow paddle boats, it was probably some kind of lake before. Thick black smoke rose up from where ash had ignited small brush fires. A few large birds, with long beaks and legs, stood like sentinels among the dark, smoldering reeds.
A tall, crumbling bridge, loomed in the horizon, held up by giant blocks of stone. A section had collapsed in the middle, leaving a small mountain of crushed vehicles beneath it.
“Then we’ll split up,” I said, looking towards the mountains on the other side. “Just tell us where to meet you.”
“No way,” Luke said, glancing behind us at Penelope. “They’re not going to let you in with her; they don’t even know you. And even if you can control her, I don’t trust her elite boyfriend. You may think you’re some hot shit, but I’m not risking my life for you.”
“In case you hadn’t noticed,” Trevor growled, “she just saved yours.”
“If she hadn’t given away the location of Havoc to the elites, we’d all still be safe. I’m not risking another hideout to