only humans will put themselves in danger for total strangers.”
“But honestly,” Sam said, “I’m glad you passed our little test. Jacob has told me a lot about you, and what happened to Havoc, and I’ve been curious to meet the legendary Thorn Bearer.”
“The what?” I asked.
“It’s what they called you in Havoc,” Jacob said. “Because of your marks, and because you’re a thorn in the king’s side.”
“More like a pain in the ass,” Luke sniped.
“All lies, I’m sure,” I said. “What else did he tell you?”
He gestured for us to follow him, and we walked into his cabin, shutting the doors behind us. It was a modest little one room house, with a wood stove, stairs that lead to a sleeping alcove, and homemade furniture. For the first time in days, I felt like I could let my guard down.
It was clearly meant for one, or a small family, and it already felt crowded with all of us. Jazmine crawled onto the sofa, resting her head in Camina’s lap, and the rest of us sat or stood around the table, which was already furnished with eight or nine mismatched chairs, and full of dirty dishes, sketches of the landscape, notes and cigar butts. In the back, a spiral staircase led up to a shallow loft and sleeping space.
“So, what else did he tell you?” I said.
“Let’s see... that you were chosen by the king’s son, moved to the citadel, joined the rebels, survived a slagpaw attack, then broke out of the citadel, with the rebels, after winning the trials. On the back of a fucking slagpaw, no less.”
“That would be me,” Trevor said, raising his hand.
Sam’s eyes widened, looking back and forth between Jacob and Luke.
“So there’s more to the story,” he said.
“Would you have believed me? Also, I’m not entirely to blame for that version of your legend.” Jacob said, taking a long drink. “Curate Marcus can never stop talking about you on his visits.”
“You’ve seen him?” I asked eagerly.
“No, not since he went back. He left before Havoc fell. I have no way of getting in touch with him, and he doesn’t know this place exists.”
“You forgot about the part where she ruined the royal wedding and blew up half the citadel,” said a young woman with red hair, pouring us glasses of water. She was several months pregnant, and carrying a toddler under one arm.
“That wasn’t me!” I said, rolling my eyes.
“But you were there,” Jacob said. “You were seen. It’s part of your legend, whether or not you accept it, everyone else will believe it.”
“I also heard you lost your mother recently,” Sam said, leaning forward and putting his hand on top of mine. “I’m sorry.”
“She wasn’t even my real mother,” I said, feeling a stabbing pain in my breast that made my eyes water. It happened weeks ago but the loss was still fresh. I didn’t feel like I deserved it, like it belonged to me. Especially when her real children had been taken, as collateral damage.
“If you loved her, then the pain is real, regardless of blood.” Sam said gruffly. I nodded, grateful that someone finally understood.
“Jacob also told me about your quest. That you’re working with a scientist.”
“I’m not all that,” April said. She blushed, leaning forward until her dark hair hid her face like a curtain.
“Even so, I’ve had the men foraging in anticipation of your arrival.” He gestured towards a small workbench in the back, with shelves and a small first aid cupboard. I thought it was just a healing center at first, but then I saw the medical equipment and machinery.
Half a dozen black tablets were plugged in next to a computer, with a monitor.
“You have power out here?” April asked.
“Only in the cabin; we’ve got a small generator under the falls. When the men go out, sometimes they’ll find an abandoned car with a bit of gas in it.”
“What’s with your phone obsession?” Jazmine asked, nodding to a pile of black devices stacked in a tower against the far wall.
“Communal library,” Sam said proudly. “Most of them are useless, but sometimes if we can get them to charge up, they’ve got all kinds of stuff on them. Most of the data is corrupted, but the ebook files are easiest to parse, and we might get lucky and find a handful of new books. We put them all on the computer, we’ve got thousands now, and then let people check out phones or tablets to read them.”