Chapter 14
Jane
“You’re coming with us,” Kiri said again. And again. “You’re starting to act weird. You clearly need a break.”
Kiri wasn’t wrong. And the fact was, Jane couldn’t afford to be thought of as weird. Not with the Program and definitely not with her headaches. And if her own best friend was pointing it out, it wasn’t a good sign. “And you’re not wearing that,” Kiri added firmly.
Jane glanced at the dress she was wearing. “What’s wrong with it?”
“You’re famous now. You need to be noticed.”
“I don’t actually like being noticed,” Jane pointed out.
“I know.” Kiri shrugged. “Adapt or die, Highgate.”
“You’re so warm and fuzzy,” she said drily.
“You don’t need warm and fuzzy, you need fun.” She shoved a beaded dress at Jane. “Try this one.”
Jane blinked. “I can tell you right now that I don’t have the boobs for that.”
“I’ll be the judge. Put it on.”
Grumbling, Jane did as she was told. Kiri just tapped her foot unsympathetically. “Jane, if you fade into the background, no one will root for you in this disgusting Garden thing. You’ll end up with Asher. Be a rose, not a weed.”
“Now you sound like the adverts.”
Jane couldn’t tell her that viewer votes wouldn’t make a difference. Blood tests and Directorate genetic plotting for Green Jacks were the only thing that mattered. Still, if she didn’t let Kiri believe what everyone else believed she’d be putting her in danger. Kiri was never one to back down. It might get her killed this time. Because of Jane.
Jane smoothed the dress down. It wasn’t the neckline that had her concerned suddenly, it was the length. “Where’s the skirt?”
“Stop being such an old lady. You look hot.”
Jane finally took a closer look at Kiri’s skintight silver leather leggings. Her matching tank top glowed against her brown skin. “Where are we going?”
“The Rings,” Kiri said.
Jane sighed. “Kiri, the last time you went into the Rings you nearly got arrested.”
“’Nearly’ doesn’t count.” She waggled her eyebrows. “Let’s see if I can do better.” She linked arms with Jane. “Now shut up and let’s go have some fun. Blake and Lee are waiting outside.”
So was her armed guard but he didn’t say anything. She didn’t recognize this one; he must be new. He didn’t speak at all, not on the way to the gates, and not on the train over champagne and candy-coloured madeleine cakes. They took a private transport to the Rings which were on fire with lights and music. Kiri dragged them to the entertainment district, bypassing the shops and restaurants for the clubs. Line ups snaked down the street and customers were offered drinks and Gingerbread, entertained by dancers in giant birdcages hanging over their heads. The Elysians were obvious with their copper microchipped bracelets and lean faces. The Enclave society folk were just as obvious, and not just because they had to pay for their entertainment
Kiri bounded up to the man at the door. He barely glanced at her. She pushed Jane at him, along with a handful of Enclave credits. “She’s famous, you have to let us in.” He glanced at Jane and then, surprisingly, did just that.
The screens behind the bar played Garden episodes, the first dates, statistics, interviews with excited viewers. Jane groaned. Kiri shoved a glass full of sparkling green liquid at her. “Drink this.”
She sniffed it. It smelled like limes. “What is it?”
“Medicine. Bottoms up.” Kiri was on her third. Her next glass was shaped like a lily and filled with something pink. Jane sipped her drink cautiously. It was tart and light and made her want to giggle. She knew she was as trapped as ever, but it seemed to matter less.
Three girls came to the bar and squeaked at her. “You’re Jane Highgate!”
Jane took another fortifying sip. Kiri grinned. “Want her autograph?”
Jane shot her a glare but it was too late, pens and various body parts were being shoved at her. “I’m not signing that.”
Kiri just laughed and pulled her onto the dance floor. Jane was full of music and the taste of sugared limes and for a long perfect moment, she was just a girl out with her friends. The lights changed colours, flashing off glass beads and silver embroidery and the faded torn clothes of Elysians. She recognized the boy from the Blessing Day, the one with the violent friend with the three black braids. Killian. His coat was creased and tattered at the cuffs. Jane felt a brief twinge of guilt but then there was another drink and this one tasted like sunshine. She kept dancing until she was out of breath and sweaty and the top of her spine burned.
Reality pinched her. The top of her spine prickled again, burning into her head. She stumbled, waving off Kiri’s look of concern. She eased through the crowd, pressing herself against the wall to steady herself. Too many people looked her way. Not now. Not here.
Her head throbbed and tingled and there was nothing she could do to stop it. A pink moon, a field of crocuses.
The boy form the Blessing Day was walking in her direction, heading for the bar. The lights flashed off his copper bracelet. The pink moon, red dust on broken roof shingles. A building on fire.
The dancers moved around her, further disorienting her. She focused on Killian again. A building on fire, the girl with the three braids.
The omens were for him. The building on fire flashed again until her eyes teared up, feeling the heat. She pushed through the dancers, grabbing his elbow. He tensed, turning sharply. Caution turned to surprise. “Do you remember me?” She asked.
When he nodded, she pulled him down closer so no one would hear them, even as she yelled over the music. “Your friend with the braids,” she said. “She’s in a building on fire, something to do with a tattoo. The fire’s good though.”
When Killian grabbed her shoulders, Jane’s guard knocked him back. “It’s okay, I know him,” Jane said.
“You know this Core rat?” he asked dubiously.
“He was thanking me for the Blessing Day omens,” she replied smoothly. Killian inclined his head and darted away.
“He’s cute,” Kiri said, draping her arm over Jane’s shoulder. “Too bad he’s not in the Wheel.”
“We should head back,” Lee joined them. “Blake is outside throwing up.”
Kiri wrinkled her nose. “Ew.”
Jane was surprised at how late it was when they found him clinging to a lamppost and grinning idiotically. The Rings pulsed with artificial daylight but it was the middle of the night and Jane felt a little bit like she was floating. “Admit it,” Kiri said as they piled onto their transport parked at the edge of the main entrance to the Rings. “I’m a genius.”
The explosion sent Jane flying out of the transport before she could answer.