to heal, which meant you had to skip several weeks of renewal to get them to set right.
“Fine,” he said gruffly. “I’ll walk you back up. Jacob wants to talk to us.”
Finally.
I followed Trevor to a new area, in what looked like a laboratory. I remembered the one the king had set up, near his underground lake of the dead. This one was darker, with pipes coming out of the ceiling and cement walls, but it had decent lighting and an array of tools. Chairs facing mirrors were lined up against the wall, but they’d been pushed aside to make room for medical equipment. It looked like a cross between a workshop and an emergency room, which it probably was.
The antique chest was on the table, resting on a white sheet, like a sick patient waiting for treatment.
“I’ve tried everything I could think of,” April said. She was still in sweats, but with a heavy apron and glasses, and thick rubber gloves. “We even tried an old-school x-ray. Check it out.”
The picture showed the complex inner workings of the lock, with gears and springs and coiled tubes.
“Basically, if we pry or cut it open, it’ll ignite a combustible gas. Not too dangerous, but everything inside will be vaporized. Whoever built this, didn’t want to take any chances.”
“So there’s no way to open it?” Jacob asked.
“Not without the key,” she said. “And who knows where that could be.”
I frowned at the narrow keyhole, framed by swirling patterns engraved in brass. They reminded me of something I’d seen before.
“I know where it is,” I said suddenly. All eyes swiveled towards me.
“When I was in the capital, I went through Damien’s books. One of them was hollowed out, with a key inside. I think the patterns were similar. It has to be the same one.”
“And what if it’s not?” Jacob asked. “There’s no way to sneak back into the citadel right now, the guards are on high alert since the trials and your escape.”
“What about the royal wedding?” Trevor asked. “Lots of guests and traders, entertainers. More activity than usual. We met some on the road. The citadel will be crammed full of people. Maybe we can sneak in wearing disguises.”
Jacob looked towards Marcus, who shrugged.
“Everyone will be at the ceremony,” he said. “It’s their best chance to get in.”
“They barely survived retrieving the chest, from a supposedly abandoned compound.”
“There won’t be slagpaw in the citadel,” I said.
Probably.
“Just a few hundred elite,” Jacob crossed his arms. “And we don’t even know what’s in there.”
“They won’t even notice us. And if we had the antidote, we’d finally have a real weapon to use against them. Isn’t that worth the risk? We had one skirmish with one elite, and the five of us nearly used up all the elixir you gave us, just to get away.”
“Your war is doomed to fail without this,” Marcus added quietly. “There’s no way forward, and you know it.”
“Fine,” Jacob conceded. “But I can’t give you more of our stolen elixir. You can take some from the elite before you leave.”
“Her name is Penelope,” I said. “And she’s no good to you dead. Someone is going to have to feed her, and soon.”
“The girl has a point,” Steve said. He’d been silent until now, leaning back in a reclining chair, picking his teeth with a pair of scissors.
“She’s basically our own personal elixir factory. The more blood we feed her, the more powerful the elixir.”
“That’s not what I meant,” I frowned, crossing my arms.
“And just where is this blood going to come from?” Jacob asked.
“I don’t care. Ask for volunteers.”
“When do we leave?” Jazmine said, pushing into the room.
“You’re still hurt,” Trevor said, nodding to her arm.
“I’m fine. And we’re not going to fight, right? You need people who know the city, and you might need a distraction. I can be very distracting.” She fluttered her eyelashes.
“You aren’t going for the party,” I said. “It’ll be dangerous. Luke, are you in?”
“Will there be cake?” he asked.
“There’s always cake.”
“Then let’s go crash a wedding.”
6
We left at dawn. The ashfall was thick, so we kept our masks on and wrapped thick shawls around our necks and noses.
Marcus couldn’t risk getting caught with us, so he went ahead alone.
That left Jazmine, Trevor and I. Which was fine by me. I could move faster on my own anyway. It was a risk, since any of us could be recognized, but we knew the citadel.
We didn’t speak and moved quickly through the dark woods, keeping