Gabby was the hardest to shop for. I didn’t want to get her something trite, but I couldn’t get her something overly romantic either.
She’s your Councilman , I told finally myself after wandering through the shops twice. What would you get your Councilman?
I bypassed the clothing booths as being too practical. She wasn’t my sister. The jewelry assortment felt too personal. The creams and perfumes also felt like something a beau would give her.
Which left me with food. Gabby loved to eat. Satisfied, I decided to wait and purchase her gift on my last day in town, so it could be as fresh as possible. Throughout the next several days, I sampled as much as I could from the food vendors. I ate bison burgers, and candied ginger, wild sassafras dumplings, and enough aled coffee to keep me buzzed for weeks.
On the last day of the festival—also my last day in Hesterton—I returned to a bakery stall that boasted the best breakfast pastries in town. Cream cheese existed in abundance, and everything was glazed.
I bought Gabby a wild cranberry fritter with cinnamon glaze. I asked the baker to wrap it for travel, and I set my sights toward the southern gate. If I flew on my air, I could make it back to Tarpulin by nightfall.
I’d be returning a day earlier than anyone expected me, but I didn’t care. I felt more rejuvenated now than I ever had.
Weaving through the streets, I nodded and smiled at several people. Nearing the southern gate, the crowds thinned, and the people became locals. Up ahead, a tall man with broad shoulders hulked down the street. His clothes were well-worn, dirty, and frayed on the edges. He stopped to speak to a woman sweeping the sidewalk in front of her shop, and I slowed my pace.
Not sure why, but knowing I needed to see the man’s face, I casually walked past him, stopping to examine the display in a shop next door.
I looked at him, sudden recognition flooding me. My blood ran cold at the sight of Theodore Wellington—Alex’s Airmaster.
I stifled the gasp and spun away from him. He’d recognize me too, no doubt. I hadn’t aged enough to look that much different than I had a year ago. I practically ran to end of the street, ducking behind the building just as I heard Theo’s footsteps resume.
He passed directly in front of me, and there was no mistaking him. The previous Supremist’s Airmaster was in Hesterton. Davison had said he’d dispatched her Council—all of them.
So how was Theo alive?
I touched down in Tarpulin weary and windburned. I’d spent the better part of the morning following Theo, trying to figure out his purpose for being in Hesterton. When I couldn’t learn the reason, I created an air cushion and headed for Tarpulin as fast as I could stand the wind whipping my face.
Airmaster Rusk met me on his balcony and helped me to the chair in his office. “Tell me everything,” he said.
I’d sent an air message ahead of me, claiming I’d seen a presumed-dead, potentially dangerous Airmaster in Hesterton. I told him about Theodore Wellington, and how I knew it was him.
My mentor listened, his eyes rapt, just as he always did. When I finished, he helped me stand. “I will take this information to Davison. You need to rest.” He escorted me back to my quarters, where we thankfully found Isaiah sleeping alone.
My bed felt uncomfortable and unfamiliar, though I’d been sleeping in an strange bed for over a week. I tossed, unable to make my thoughts settle. They circled around Theo, and what his existence meant. Finally, I got up, collected the pastry I’d bought for Gabby, and soared to her balcony.
The blasted door was locked. Of course, I wasn’t set to return until tomorrow. I employed my sentry skills and picked the lock, entering Gabby’s apartment a moment later. Immediately, the sound of her deep breathing helped the tension in my shoulders ease. I settled on her couch and fell asleep in seconds.
I woke when someone touched my forehead. I jerked to a sitting position, my eyes searching for the culprit, my hand reaching for the knife I kept in my boot.
“Just me,” Gabby said, jumping back. “At least I know how not to wake you up now.” She stood before me, showered and dressed. She held the bag with her pastry. “Is this for me?”
I took a deep breath to calm the frantic pulsing of my heart and ran my hands through my hair. “Yes,” I said. “I bought that in the annual fall festival. They had the best food ever.”
She took a bite, and her eyes rolled back in her head. “Mm.” She didn’t need to say any more. I watched her eat, and then she said, “What are you doing home? I thought you weren’t coming home until tonight.”
I didn’t want to tell her about the Airmaster sighting. She’d only worry, and this situation wasn’t something she could help. Still, I’d been working on full disclosure with her—it was one of my diplomacy lessons. Because the Airmaster and the Firemaker counseled together so often, we needed explicit trust.
“I saw someone,” I said.
“Someone who?”
“Alex’s former Airmaster.” I didn’t look at her. “He was reported as being killed, but…well, he was very much alive in Hesterton.”
She wiped her fingers on her jeans. “What does that mean?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I reported it to my mentor, who’s counseling with Davison.”
She nodded as she stood. “I have a meeting with Liz and her mentor this morning. She’s getting the details of her internship to Rhyss.” She reached her hand toward me. “Do you want to come?”
I took her hand, half tempted to pull her onto my lap and continue what we started before I’d left. Instead, I allowed her to help me stand. “Sure,” I said. “Let’s go.”
I tried to pay attention during Liz’s meeting, but my mind kept wandering to Airmaster Rusk and if he’d learned anything new about Theo. The sharp worry kept squeezing my stomach until when we took a break, I pulled Liz aside.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “But I need to go see my mentor.”
She didn’t hear the fear in my voice, or notice the way my eyebrows pulled too tight. She hugged me, said she was glad I was back, and turned back to the room. Gabby, however, saw everything.
She slid her fingers between mine and squeezed. “See you at lunch?” she asked, and her eyes enticed me so much I suddenly didn’t need to see my mentor. She held worry and compassion in her expression, and I pulled her into an embrace.
“See you at lunch,” I confirmed, my voice only catching on the last syllable. I turned and left before she could hear any more weaknesses.
I found Airmaster Rusk in his office, the balcony wide open to the air outside. “Ah, Adam,” he said as if we hadn’t met in the middle of the night. “I believe we agreed we wouldn’t start lessons until Monday.”
“I know,” I said. “I’m just wondering what Davison said about Theo.”
He reached into the pocket of his robe. “He said he would find out what he could.”
“How is he going to do that?”
My mentor looked at me with caution in his eyes. I wanted to read his mind, but I knew it would be fruitless. “Tell me,” I pleaded. I didn’t know why the issue of Theo mattered so much to me, only that it did.
“Another of Alex’s former Councilmembers is still alive,” Airmaster Rusk said slowly. “He is a mentor here at the Academy.”
I flopped into the chair, momentarily stunned. “Here?” I managed to say, followed by, “Who?” Already my mind spun around the idea of meeting with him and asking what Theo was up to.
“Davison has already done that,” my mentor said, reading my thoughts. “You are a partially trained Airmaster. Your focus should be on Liz as she prepares for her internship—and on completing the list you provided me.” He turned his back on me to gaze out the window. “This is not your concern.”
His words rang true, and yet fear still twisted my insides. “But what if—?”
“Davison is the most powerful Firemaker this Union has ever known. He is wise and forward-thinking. Let him handle the situation.” The finality in Rusk’s
tone prevented me from speaking further.
The wind came into the room, joyful and vibrant, only to leave subdued. I could not stand this silence between us. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I will focus on my own tasks.”
“I’m happy to hear it.” Airmaster Rusk faced me again, his grin in its proper place. “Now, I believe you were going to do something upon returning from your vacation. Before we resume lessons on Monday?” He arched his eyebrows.
True fear squirmed through me now. “Yes,” I said, and cleared my throat. “I have scheduled a visit with the dungeon master to see my brother tomorrow morning.”
Rusk nodded and sat behind his desk. “Is there anything you need before you go?” His voice was kind, soft—the way I imagined a father would speak to his son.
A rush of gratitude welled in my throat, so I only shook my head.
He nodded again, and I escaped his office to dine with my Council. I hadn’t told anyone about the visit with Felix. As I watched Gabby laugh with Liz, I knew I should. But I couldn’t bring myself to dampen their mood, or add to her already full load of responsibilities. However, before the lunch hour ended, she stood and gestured for me to come with her.
Underneath the shade of the same tree I’d led her too several months earlier, she asked me how things had gone with Rusk.
“Fine,” I said. “Davison is handling it.”
She studied me like I might be lying. I knew that was still a sore spot between us. I’d like to believe that she trusted me, and I did. But I knew she still held back a part of herself. Our trust wasn’t complete.
“What else is there?” she asked. “I know you’re not telling me something.”
I exhaled and looked up from the ground. “I am going to visit Felix tomorrow.”
Her eyes widened, fear leaching the beauty from her face.
“Don’t worry,” I said hastily. “He’s in the dungeons. He can’t hurt me. He’s….” I looked down the street. “He’s part of my list.”
“I’ll go with you,” she offered.
I whipped my attention back to her. Her voice had been small, timid, but the strength I found in her shoulders, in the set of her mouth, made me love her more than I already did.
I tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. “I know you will,” I said. “But I have to do this myself.”
“You’ll come tell me all about it?”
“Right after,” I promised.
The next morning, I dressed carefully. I didn’t have much, but I had emerald green Council robes that I hardly ever wore. They weren’t practical when practicing with my Element, and we’d had no official business so I usually wore jeans with a plain tunic. Today, though, I put on my sentry blacks and my polished boots, before covering everything with my Council robe.
I tucked the knife into my boot and straightened to look at myself in the glass. My hair fell across my forehead, something Felix would absolutely hate. I’d shaved, and I rubbed my jaw, remembering a time he’d slugged me during a sparring session. My mouth had dripped blood—and I’d learned I couldn’t stand to watch myself bleed. Or the sight of anyone’s blood.
I’d passed out, but when I woke, I learned that Felix had covered for me by saying he’d hit me too hard. He never disclosed that I was squeamish around blood—if he had, I certainly wouldn’t have advanced as fast or as far as I had in the sentry program.
I shoved the memories away. They would not serve me well in the dungeons.
“Good luck, Gillman,” Isaiah said as he joined me in the bathroom.
“Thanks,” I said. I left, making my way to the dungeon master’s office with purpose. Airmaster Rusk believed I was ready to face my brother, and while I didn’t want to do it, I knew I needed to.
The master explained that Felix would be chained, and that he was still recovering from the burns Gabby had inflicted upon him.
“Really?” I asked. “It’s been months.”
“Burns are incredibly difficult to treat,” the master said. He flexed his beefy arms, and I was glad to be going down to the dungeons with him at my side. “He’s had the medics come every day, and still there’s some skin that will not regrow.” He unlocked the door to the dungeon and entered first.
I followed him, my flesh pimpling the lower we went. He unlocked a door on every level until we reached the visiting cell. Sconces hung on the walls, providing the only light. I couldn’t breathe down here with the metallic scent combined with the distinct smell of decaying straw and sour milk.
When the dungeon master stepped back so I could enter the cell first, I saw Felix sitting in a chair behind a single table. The only other piece of furniture was a chair opposite him, across the table.
My brother wouldn’t look at me, but focused on a spot in the corner above my head. I took a deep breath, though the foul smell made me want to throw up, and entered the room.
“Half an hour,” the dungeon master said, letting the door drift toward closed. He didn’t let it shut all the way, and I didn’t hear his footsteps retreat. I didn’t think I’d need him so close, not with a knife in my boot, my airmaking Element much more developed, and Felix chained to both the chair and the table.
I moved into the cell and sat down. “Hello, brother.”
He didn’t acknowledge me. I wasn’t sure what else to do or say, so I examined him. His clothes and person looked clean and cared for. He looked like he was eating well, though I was sure he didn’t have exactly what he wanted. The dungeon menu certainly couldn’t have been as plentiful or as varied as the dining hall.
The skin on his throat, chin, and lower half of his face was disfigured and stretched from the burns. In some places, the skin looked transparent; in others, it was an angry, bright pink. His beard grew unevenly because of the scarring, and he didn’t seem to be able to close his mouth all the way.
An awful wheezing noise escaped his lips each time he exhaled. Looking at him, I realized I didn’t hate him. I had expected to. He’d lied to me for a long time, concealed key information, and then hunted me across the United Territories. He’d tried to rape Gabby, even after I’d told him she was important to me, that I would kill him if he hurt her at all.
I’d carried so much anger toward my brother, for so long.
But now, in a dungeon cell that smelled like the last visitors had used it as a latrine, I only felt sorry for him. I’d seen what his life was like before—I’d coveted his position, his apartment, his power.
Comparing it to the man and living conditions I saw before me now only made my stomach sick, my heart heavy.
I let my hatred leave. It took the anger with it, and I leaned forward. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I should’ve done a lot of things differently. Maybe if I had, you wouldn’t—”
He growled, a low, dangerous sound that froze my words in my throat. He finally drew his eyes to mine, and I found loathing and pain within.
“You don’t get to apologize,” he said, the words warped coming from his nearly ruined mouth. “I don’t want your pity.”
I didn’t know what else to say. I’d been foolish to think he’d accept anything from me, least of all my kindness. Still, he’d accepted my visitation request. I brushed my hair away from my eyes, and Felix followed the motion of my hand.
He eyed my robes. “So you’re an Airmaster now.”
“Yes,” I said. “I was an Airmaster in Gregorio too.”
He scoffed, and it sounded like a cough. “You were pathetic in Gregorio.”
I didn’t need the rest of the half-hour. I’d come to feel and say what I needed to. I stood, scraping the chair across the stone floor. “I’m sorry,” I said again, ignoring the angry grinding in my brother’s throat. “I’d like to come see you again, but not if you’re going to insult me.”
“I will say whatever I want to say,” he yelled. “You’re weak, and delusion—” His voice cut off as I silenced him with a stream of air. His eyes widened when I turned and showed him how I held my hand up, controlling th
e air pressing against his still-injured windpipe.
“I am an Airmaster,” I said. “A very good one. And I don’t care if you approve or not. This is who I am, and you can either accept it or not.” My chest heaved. I had never spoken to my brother like this.
“I’m sorry,” I said for a third time, honestly feeling nothing but sympathy for Felix. “I hope you’ll let me visit again soon.”
I took the stairs two at a time to escape the dungeon as quickly as possible. When I burst out of the law enforcement building, the fall sunshine greeted me like an old friend. I sucked at the air before I started laughing.
I didn’t wait for Gabby to get up from the couch. “I did it,” I said, too excited to sit. I paced in front of her balcony door. “He was mad; he wouldn’t let me apologize, but I said it anyway. Three times!” I laughed again. “He hates me, I think, but I couldn’t feel any of that toward him. All I felt was sadness. You should see him.” I finally glanced at Gabby, who had reseated herself on the couch. She wore a sexy smile that made me want to kiss her.
“What?” I asked.
She waved at me. “I’ve just never seen you like this.”
I took a deep breath, enjoying the adrenaline rush that came from releasing the pent-up fear, anger, and hatred I’d been harboring against my brother. I felt so free—much like I had when I’d given up the guilt over Hanai’s death.
“I’m going to request another visit in a few weeks. See what he does.”
Gabby’s smiled faded. “How did he look?”
Tornadoes. I hadn’t considered how Gabby might feel because of Felix’s injuries—which she had caused.
“He’s healing well,” I said evasively.
“You’re not as good at lying as you used to be,” she said, standing. She went into her kitchen and threw away her banana peel. “I got some lunch for you.”
We settled at her table, and I started eating the curried shrimp she’d taken from the dining hall. “Thank you,” I said after a few minutes of silence.