"Land now or you will be shot down," a voice circles out from the lead lift.
I know the voice.
I look out my window to be sure. Ace is staring back at me. His expression is hard, and his eyes are like steel. I can't tell if he's serious or not. I know his desire to serve his city is strong. He doesn't want anything to happen to the people. He knows that if a lift leaves the city and the rebels get hold of it, more people will die. It'll be like the attack in the gardens all over again. I don't know if his desire to save them is stronger than his desire to protect me. I have put him in a difficult position. I'm sorry for it, but I can't stop now. I'm closer to Max than I've ever been.
I look over at Willem. He's clutching at the harness and looks terrified. He's finally stopped sniffing. Around his terror and trembling, I see a man who matters to the government. His work keeps the immigrants in line. His science makes us obey. He matters to them more than Honey does. She can be replaced. Replacing Willem is harder. They do not know of his quiet rebellion. It's all the leverage I need.
I push the speaker system.
"I have Willem Bakas, Honey, and Benny," I say, my voice cascading out of the lift's speakers. "Let me pass and I'll let them go."
"Release them and I'll let you live," is Ace's counteroffer.
I glare at him through the windshield. He glares back. I have no idea what to do. The data in my brain isn't helping me. It's just running over the specifications of his lift. It has a better turning radius and acceleration. It's meant for chases and maneuvers. My lift is meant to take people from one place to another as peacefully as possible.
Before I can make up my mind, there is a dull thud followed by a loud whoosh. I bank to the left as the ceiling of the facility blows out around me with fire and steel. The explosion has caught up to us. Ace and the other two pilots are forced to bank right. The explosion rattles my lift. Alarms blare at me as we rise up and fall down chaotically. The others yell from the back for me to do something. My hand moves off the yoke with the movement. I find it a second later and keep us from crashing into the ground, but only just.
I fly over the fences and keep the lift low as I point us in the direction of Max. My heart is racing and my mind is thinking about a thousand things at once, but my hand is steady. It's instinct rather than application. My body is moving in a way that has nothing to do with choice. Max is my north star, and I am willing to do whatever it takes to get to him.
I dodge around buildings and fly directly over the heads of running people. There are flashes of white and red uniforms. The police and RFA are running to the facility to help with the explosion. More lifts rise up into the air as I pass the RFA headquarters. The soldiers are looking for a fight. I hope the explosion distracts them long enough to make my escape.
Willem whimpers next to me when I bank or make a turn just a second too late. He's very close to throwing up. He wants me to land. I definitely plan on it. I reach the adult facility and touch down on the roof. I know it's just as well-guarded as the junior facility.
"Where's Max being held?" I ask Willem.
"He's in the bottom level, where the guards-in-training stay."
"Has he started the game?"
"They were going to start the adults tomorrow," he says.
"I'm going in," I decide.
"You need hostages," Willem tells me. "They'll shoot you on sight."
"I don't want you to get hurt," I say.
"Then take Honey," he says.
I laugh. It's the first bit of mirth I've had in days.
"That's a very good idea," I say.
"Hurry," he says. "Ace won't be far behind you. Don't make him shoot you."
I nod. I definitely don't want to see Ace again. I don't know how to avoid a confrontation with him. He has to maintain the illusion of being the government's perfect solider. He can't let the RFA find out what he's been up to. He'll be killed. I don't want him hurt anymore than I want Max hurt. I jump out of the pilot's seat after opening the back with a push of a button. I pull Honey out of her seat and tell Nathan and Sam to leave the lift and find a safe place to hide.
"Are you crazy?" Nathan asks. "We're coming with you."
"I can move faster without you," I say. "And the RFA will find the lift in another minute. It's best if you aren't here."
"We'll wait for you..." Nathan looks around the building. He spies another building across the way. It's a government building, but it has far less guards. "We'll wait for you over there. If you aren't back in thirty minutes, we'll leave. How's that?"
I don't have time to argue with them. Seconds matter.
"Good," I say impatiently.
I force Honey out of the lift and Nathan and Sam follow me. I don't look back at Benny. He can't move. He's strapped to his chair. He watches his mother with wide eyes until we are out of sight. Nathan and Sam climb down a ladder while I march over to the government emblem in the middle of the roof. I put my hand directly in the middle of the emblem and tap twice. I override the commands on the platform and it starts moving. I hold the rifle I took from the lift closer to my chest and my hand tightens on Honey.
Metal walls pass us by for what feels like forever. They're shiny and make me feel claustrophobic, despite being wide enough for a lift. After everything I have been through, I am headed back underground. It's a trap I cannot avoid.
The platform opens out into a large room that looks like the one I just left. The adult facility is very similar to the juvenile facility. The only real difference is that it's larger. Adult immigrants are more numerous. The second the guards standing on the ground level see me, they open fire. The platform is still in the air and I have a hostage, but it doesn't matter to them. They have heard of the explosion. I hit the deck and try to pull Honey down with me. She's arrogant. She doesn't think anyone will hit her. She's wrong. Three bullets tear into her chest. Her knees turn wobbly, then she hits the ground next to me.
My only way safely through the building has just been taken from me. I don't waste time feeling sorry for her death or my involvement in it. I have bigger problems. A red light swirls around the space and an alarm blares. The guards have been waiting for me. And the platform is entirely surrounded.
"Hold your fire!" a voice calls out. I recognize it immediately. My heart skips a beat and my stomach clenches. The voice is magic. I can listen to it all day. "Hold!" Max adds.
The firing dies down as the platform stops moving. I jump to my feet, my rifle raised, and see Max directly in front of me. He's wearing a red jacket with a gold pin at his collar. He has earned some rank. The truth hits me a second later. His eyes are dead. He is like the dead-eyed man. He has lost all sense of emotion and love. He has not ordered them to stop firing because he wants me to live as his sister. He wants me alive because those are his orders.
"By order of Councilor Feng, you are under arrest," he tells me, his rifle pointed directly at my chest.
I know he won't miss. He's always been a better shot.
"Max?" I question softly.
I can't believe it. After everything I have lived through, all the pain and suffering I have endured to get to him, he doesn't remember me. They have put him through the game. Am I a day too late? Hours? Tears fill my eyes. I don't want the tears to be there while surrounded by so many angry people, but I can't help it. It's Max. And he's gone.
Max blinks several times in surprise when he hears me speak but the deadness does not fade. The brainwashing still holds him.
"Drop your weapon and come peacefully," he says. "There will be no second warning."
I realize with a jolt that I'm pointing my rifle back at him. I haven't lowered it despite my surprise. The need to survive is strong. But what am I surviving for now? Max is gone. I give myself a mental shake at the thought. No, he isn't dead. There has to be a way to get rid of the brainwashing. Everything has a reverse. I just have to find it. I can't give up on him now. I have come too far, and I love him too much.
I
look around the room. I don't have a lot of alternatives. The guards are everywhere. I count twenty around me. And I hear the lifts above my head. Ace has reached us at last. The RFA will not be shy about storming the adult facility. There are no explosions to keep them out. Is there even a way out? My new brain works through the specifications of the building and all my possible escape routes. It tells me yes.
I lower my rifle. I have to get close to Max. It's the only way.
As I drop the rifle, there's an explosion from the far wall. I jump and stare as a second and third explosion rattles the building. The wall trembles and starts to fall. No one knows where the explosions are coming from, but we know we need to run. The wall teeters on the edge of falling. The guards run in the opposite direction, suddenly more focused on escape than me.
My focus is Max.
I run straight for him. As I run, I tear an electric stick off a man's belt. He is too focused on running away to notice my theft. I step in front of Max as he ushers people away from the crumbling wall. Even brainwashed, his desire to look after people is strong. Not everything can be taken. I take a deep breath and touch him with the shock stick. He screams and falls to his knees. I keep the shocker on him. His eyes roll back in his head and he stops moving entirely. I bend down and check his pulse in sudden fear. Did I kill him?
His heart is still beating. It's strong, like him. I sigh in relief as I look down at him. He's unconscious, but I can't carry him back to the lift. I'm not even certain the lift is still safe. The RFA has most likely taken it. My options are limited.
The trembling wall finally collapses with a roar of noise. A lift is on the other side. I look directly into Ace's eyes again. Sam and Nathan are firing up at him. Their bullets ricochet off the front of the lift. The glass cracks near Ace's face. If Nathan and Sam continue to fire, they'll kill him. Ace's face is full of concern. It's not for himself. It's for me. I know why he's attacking Nathan and Sam. It's to give me an exit. He's still protecting me. He's found a way to make it look like he's doing his duty.
The guards start firing at Nathan and Sam as the rubble of the wall clears. They duck behind a lift as they fight. Ace sets his lift on the ground and RFA soldiers jump out immediately. Ace follows them. He keeps his rifle braced against his shoulder as he steps over a large section of wall. The others with him start firing at me. I have no weapon, save for the shock stick; my rifle is out of reach. I run and hide behind a lift.
Nathan and Sam keep firing. They're working their way to the elevators. I have a feeling they have a destination in mind. I am behind the lift for only a minute when a man appears around the opposite side. I jump aggressively, my anger returning as I turn to face him, but it's Ace.
He kneels next to me, his eyes intense and his body language radiating with violence. "Are you okay?" he asks me.
I stare at him. I can't believe he's asking me. It doesn't feel real. After everything else I've been through, it just doesn't compute.
"I don't know," I reply.
"You didn't think this through, did you?" he asks.
"No," I say.
"You're supposed to be smarter than that," he chastises me.
"Thanks a lot," I say.
"You need to steal my lift," he says.
"I can't get Max to it by myself," I say.
Ace lowers his eyes sadly. "You know he's gone, right?" he asks quietly. "You're trying to save someone who doesn't want to be saved."
"He's still alive," I reply stubbornly. "And I'm not giving up on him. Haven't you ever loved anyone enough to risk everything?"
He finds my eyes again. His expression is full of shock. He doesn't know what to say. I don't really know why.
"They're going to have a full military lockdown in two minutes," Ace tells me slowly. "You need to go now."
"I can't make it out of the city, can I?" I ask quietly.
Ace frowns. "If you go east, you might have a chance. They don't guard that section of the wall nearly as fiercely, because the rebels don't typically hang out in the ocean."
"Kill them! Kill them!" I hear a new voice yell.
I look around the edge of the lift cautiously. Gib has arrived. He's shooting along with the others and looks mad with his desire to fight. He reminds me of the rioters. He's eager to hurt something. He has no compassion. It reminds me of the fight in the woods. He would have killed me then. He'll definitely kill me now.
"And then there's that," Ace adds.
I assess the situation coldly. "Twenty feet from Max to the lift. Twenty miles from here to the wall. One drone per two miles on average. Three hundred and thirty lifts in the RFA, not including personal lifts for the city that can be used in an emergency. Over ten thousand police officers. Twenty thousand RFA soldiers in the city, another five thousand who are stationed at the wall. And me. That's what I'm looking at," I tell him.
"How do you know all that?" he asks.
"Something happened while I was in the game. It was like a data dump of some kind. I know all these things I shouldn't now...I know the city and its secrets. I don't know why or how. And then there's this...anger. I feel so..."
It's impossible to explain the rage. I boil with it. It's taking all my willpower not to hurt someone.
Ace is staring at me. He's working through my words and figuring out what they mean for me. He knows I have to escape. The city will never let me live with its secrets in my head. He grabs my arm and his expression hardens. I don't know what the expression means, but I know he means business. He pulls me up with him and then takes a deep breath. It's the sort of breath a person would take before jumping off a tall building. He's preparing to do something impossibly stupid and reckless. It must be an expression I wear a lot.
He steps around the edge of the lift and opens fire. The RFA seek cover as the bullets fly past. He doesn't hurry. He doesn't move like the others who run past us. Everything about him is measured and steady. He knows exactly what he's doing. I don't. I can't believe he's shooting at his friends.
"What are you doing?!" I demand as I follow him.
"Saving your dumb ass," he tells me.
"Don't!" I try to warn him. "It's stupid."
"I'm tired of being smart," he replies, shooting several more times at his friends. Though his aim is good, he's careful to miss. He doesn't want to hurt anyone. "I'm ready to run toward the danger, like you always are."
"You shouldn't want to be like me," I tell him angrily. "I mess everything up."
"It's too late," he tells me calmly. "Cover me."
He tosses me a pistol. I open fire as he grabs Max by the back of the jacket. He pulls him up easily and continues to shoot with his free hand. He keeps his unit pinned down with expert precision. Nathan and Sam continue to add to the chaos.
We reach the lift and Gib steps in front of us. He has his rifle aimed at Ace and his expression is gleeful. He's not sorry to see Ace betraying the government. They're not friends. They're enemies who pretend to like one another. The jealously has always been clear on Gib's face. I saw it the first time they looked at one another.
Gib points his rifle at me and starts to fire. Ace doesn't hesitate. He shoots first. Gib hits the ground, a bullet in his shoulder. He screams in pain and Ace walks past him without looking back. He loads Max into the front of the lift and gestures me forward. My eyes are on Gib. My rage has found an outlet. I can no longer deny it.
With a snarl of hate, I bend down next to Gib and punch him in the face. He can't fight back. The hole in his shoulder has taken his strength. I hit him again. I picture Riley's face. I picture the people at camp. I want Gib to understand my hate. I want him to feel my pain. The only way I can express it is physically.
My mind has gone blank. I think of nothing beyond the rage that found me in the game. I lose track of time and space. My only focus is Gib as his face becomes unrecognizable with my hits.
Then a hand is wrapped around my stomach and I'm pulled away. I try to fight, but Ace is stronger. He throws me
into the front of the lift and climbs in after me. His eyes are what stop me from continuing my attack on Gib. They're full of fear. He can see the madness in the depth of mine. He worries that I'm losing my mind. I'm afraid he's right. I stop fighting and look at him in shame. I don't look at Gib. I don't want to feel the rage again.
Ace doesn't let the moment of fear linger. He has to hurry if we're going to escape. He crawls over me and sits in the pilot's chair. He pushes several buttons to start the lift. He's calm and precise. I wonder if I will ever see him panicked.
I look down at my hands. They are covered in blood - mine and Gib's. I look at Max next. He's next to me. He's still out cold. I'm numb. The anger has been replaced by shock.
"I just tried to kill Gib," I say dumbly.
"That's okay. He's an asshole," Ace replies.
His words bring me out of my shame and guilt. I laugh. Then I remember Sam and Nathan.
"We can't leave the others," I say.
Ace ignores me. The lift roars to life and he puts his hand on the yoke confidently.
"Sam and Nathan are down there," I say.
Ace looks over at me, then down at Max. "It's them or Max," he tells me.
It's not a choice I like. I stare at him. We have a minute left before everything goes sideways. The RFA will not let us leave. They'll blow up our lift and kill us. I turn away from him without answering. Answering means I've left Nathan and Sam to their deaths. He grimly turns back to the front and the lift rises off the ground.
It's like someone has kicked me in the head. I can't see how Nathan and Sam will get out of the building alive. They're going to die. And it's my fault.
I catch a glimpse of Willem on the roof as we ascend. He's surrounded by the RFA, who are checking on him and Benny. He looks up at us as we pass by. His eyes are full of two conflicting emotions: pride and concern. He knows that Ace has made a choice he can't take back. He is proud of him for making it. He believes that Ace has chosen properly, but he fears for his life. He knows that such a choice does not come without consequences. I don't know why Ace is helping me, and putting his entire underground network at risk in the process, but I'm glad he is.
He's finally stopped hiding from the world. He's showing them what he's capable of.
So am I.
We tilt to avoid a building, only to have four lifts appear in the sky ahead of us. Ace takes a deep breath and looks over at me. Despite the danger and sense that we will not survive, he has a smile on his face. I have a similar smile on mine. We're about to do the stupidest thing possible in our present circumstances and we're both excited as hell about it. I climb onto the co-pilot's chair and strap myself in.
"Ready?" he asks me.
I nod and he lowers the nose of the lift. We skim the ground as the other pilots circle and then catch sight of us. They fall in behind us. They don't fire. They don't want to damage the city on a wayward missile blast. They'll wait until we're in open territory to make their move. It's why Ace has made the choice to keep the lift low.
I lean forward in my seat as Ace accelerates. He makes a sharp turn to the left. One of the lifts chasing us hits the wall behind me. The pilot couldn't make the turn fast enough. Ace takes another sharp turn, then climbs up the side of a building with a quick flick of his wrist. We skim the top of the roof, bank to the right and then make another sharp turn. Another lift crashes into the roof behind us, the passengers screaming as the pilot is forced to make an emergency landing. Two lifts down, two to go.
Ace dives back down to the roads. Pods and trains race across the city. Our part of the city does not have any citizens walking around like normal. They have found shelter inside. They know better than to get involved in the fight. Ace takes full advantage of the clear streets. He flies low and fast. The other pilots struggle to keep up with him. Ace has earned his nickname honestly. He's very good. He's finally showing me exactly what he's capable of while in a pilot's chair. I'm entirely impressed.
We take a blind turn and the lifts follow. Ace makes another turn and then puts on the breaks. The two lifts fly over us. One of the lifts clips the building and spirals off into the sky. The last lift is going too fast to stop. Ace turns down another street and accelerates again.
I take a deep breath at the reprieve and look down.
Max isn't moving, but he's there. I can actually reach out and touch him. I have him again and we're halfway to safety. We aren't out of the city yet, but I trust Ace. He'll get us out. He made the choice to help us, and I know he does not make such choices lightly. He commits to them fully.
I'm uncertain if I will ever really have Max back, but I'm closer to him than I was an hour ago. We still might die, but at least we're going to die on our terms, without being told what to do or how to live. I won't let them rule me any longer. I won't keep what I am capable of hidden. They're the ones who came to me. And I'm finally ready to show them that they picked the wrong person to mess with.
I look at Ace again. Maybe they have picked the wrong people to mess with. Ace is not the kind of person I want as an enemy. And for some reason, he's on my side. I'm dying to know why.
Chapter 30