Revolution (Chronicles of Charanthe #2)

  *

  Lauren had been given a small room with no windows, a makeshift cell converted from an old coal cellar in the eastern rebel district. She lay on the sleeping pallet with her eyes closed until she heard the door.

  “I thought that code word was supposed to help me, not get me arrested,” she said, sitting up when she saw who it was.

  “It kept you alive, which was the primary goal,” Eleanor said. “But you’re not a prisoner – shall we take a walk?”

  “Okay.” Lauren stood and stretched. “It’ll be nice to get some exercise.”

  “We just have to get you out of that uniform first. It’ll only cause problems.”

  She’d brought a spare outfit of her own old clothes and turned away while Lauren changed. The trousers were a little short on her but she looked passable and, importantly, no longer stood out as a Shadow would. In the heart of a rebel district like this, the Shadow Corps uniform would guarantee trouble.

  Two of the Second Revolutionary Guard Corps flanked the door; when Eleanor and Lauren walked out they nodded an acknowledgement to Eleanor and let them go without question, not needing to understand why their captive was suddenly walking out from under their noses.

  “You say I’m not a prisoner,” Lauren said. “That’s not how it’s felt.”

  “They don’t know what the code words mean.” Eleanor motioned over her shoulder, waving dismissively back towards the guards. “They don’t need to. They just know what to do.”

  “Which in this case involved locking me up.”

  “Don’t take it so personally. They have a list of code words, and when they hear one they take certain steps. The first thing is to be suspicious: the codes are given to spies, we expect that some might leak or be guessed. The guards take custody, and they’re under instructions to be very careful. Then they send word back to the Association, guard their guest, and wait.”

  “Guest. Right.” Lauren almost laughed. “Am I free now?”

  “Absolutely. They were just waiting for me to verify that you were who we expected, so now I’m here, you’re fine. You don’t even have to stay with me if you don’t want.”

  “Thanks.”

  The last of the evening sunlight filtered through the turning leaves, warming their faces as they walked.

  “So do you want to tell me what happened?” Eleanor asked.

  “You mean they didn’t even pass the story along to you? I assumed they would.”

  “When you invoke a code word, everything else is irrelevant detail. The code word comes to me; you’re taken somewhere safe. That’s all that matters, and it’s safer to keep the process simple.”

  “I was just walking home. I’d been – well, it doesn’t even matter. I was out in uniform, I was walking near the edge of this district, and I walked into a gang who thought they’d get points for a Shadow scalp.”

  “How many? I would have thought you could handle a few stray ruffians.”

  “Oh, I was winning. Easily. That wasn’t the problem. I didn’t have much choice left: end it with the code word, or... do what a real Shadow would have done.”

  “It’s a pity. You were useful in there. I was hoping we’d be able to keep you in place for a year or two.”

  “You wouldn’t have preferred me to...” Eleanor watched as fascination and horror played across her face. “No, that’s unconscionable. Impossible.”

  “You made a decision. And given how little time you must have had to make it, I could have understood either argument.”

  “Are you seriously suggesting... what I think you’re suggesting?”

  “I’m not suggesting anything. Things work differently in war. You could certainly have argued that your value – right then, with where you were embedded – was more than theirs.”

  “Anyway, it’s happened now.” She shook her head as if to clear out the images she didn’t like. “So here I am.”

  “It was a fight that did for me, as well, with my brief stint in the Shadows. But I was in Ivan’s unit, when his job was to hunt and kill whatever remained of the Association, so I could hardly avoid a battle.”

  “I can imagine.”

  “Anyway, we’ll have to replace you. Was there one of your colleagues who you think we could turn?”

  She shook her head. “We didn’t really talk about it. It’s not safe to talk about things like that when you’re in the Empire’s sights. Even within the Shadows, no-one says what they really think.”

  “Okay. We’ll get on to it soon.”

  “Besides, you said I shouldn’t try to get to know them on a personal level.”

  “That’s probably for the best. Are you ready to come back to the Association with me tomorrow?”

  “You need me to come back with you?”

  “Well, only if you want to. What were you thinking of doing next?”

  “I don’t know, but... Association? I assumed I’d find somewhere to lodge in one of the districts, and then...” She hesitated. “I hadn’t really thought beyond that. Revolutionary guard, or something.”

  “You’re virtually one of us – you’d be wasted on guard duty.”

  “True.”

  “So you’ll come?”

  “Oh, I’ll come, if you’re sure they’ll have me.”

  “I can’t give you a seat on the council, but you’ll have a lot more freedom than you ever did in the military. And I could really use your insight when we get down to planning the next steps of our attack.”

  Lauren nodded. “Where’s the Association based these days?”

  “It’s not far from Woolport, we’ll set out in the morning. Do you have any business you need to tie up first?”

  “I disappeared from the Shadows without a word. I doubt there’s much of my old life left to attend to, and I can hardly go back for my things.”

  “No, you can’t go back. Do you want to buy anything before we leave the city? We’ve our own tailor, but it’ll take a few days for him to kit you out.”

  “I could do with a change of clothes – these are a little small.”