“Are you sure you can get us in from there?” asked Rose.
“No. But I’m sure I can’t get you in any other way.”
He turned off his lantern and we were swallowed by darkness. I led the way along the corridor, every plank and panel burned into my memory. We trod carefully across the deck and climbed down the ladder.
The water was calm. Quiet too, which meant that we’d have to worry about our strokes being heard. At least the breeze was blowing toward us from Sumter.
Jerren led the way, his powerful strokes easy to follow. When we were halfway across, he took an eastward turn. I wasn’t sure why until I treaded water and caught a glimpse of the men standing atop the northernmost battlements, keeping watch. I hoped they were the same ones who’d ventured on board. Otherwise, we’d have even more people to avoid.
When we reached the rocky edge of the island, we climbed out and pressed ourselves against the fort’s perimeter wall. It was slow going, but at least we were difficult to see.
“You do this often?” I whispered.
Jerren paused. “More than you’d think.”
No wonder he felt a connection with Alice.
Finally we turned a corner. Rock gave way to a paved path that ran beside the southernmost wall. The peninsula stretched into the darkness to our left. I could just see the outline of the enclosure, though the goats didn’t stir as we stalked by.
After several yards, Jerren ran his hands across the wall. “There’s a couple gaps in the brick here,” he said. “Good footholds. Then you grab the bolts in the wooden planks up there and . . .”
“And what?” I whispered.
He looked from Rose to me. “There’s no way you’re getting up here. Not in the dark. I know where to put my hands and feet, but you don’t. And if you fall, well . . . getting caught would be the least of our worries.”
“So what are we going to do?”
He hesitated. “Okay, look, I’m going to climb over and create a diversion. Just something to distract the guards. Go around to the main gate and when the guards leave, get in quick. And I mean quick, understand? Head for the barracks. The ruins, you know? No one ever goes there at night. There should be stuff hanging up there too—maybe even blankets.”
Rose took my hand. “How will we get back to our room?”
“You won’t. Not for a while anyway. Once the guards have given up, make a move. But not before.”
Jerren began to climb. He made it look easy, but I wasn’t fooled. He was stronger than us, and knew where to put his hands and feet. When he reached the top, we approached the main gate. I didn’t recognize the men keeping guard.
We lay on the grass, partly to keep low and out of sight and also to conserve energy. Now that we’d stopped moving, I felt tired and cold. Rose squeezed my hand tightly, eyes trained on the gate. For what seemed like an eternity, the guards remained still.
What if Jerren had double-crossed us? What if he was alerting the guards? My mind swam with possibilities.
Suddenly the guards looked over their shoulders. A moment later, they ran into the fort.
“Let’s go,” Rose whispered.
We sprinted to the main gate. Luckily the guards had left it open. Once we were sure that no one was around, we headed for the barracks. We staggered through the maze-like crumbling walls, avoiding boxes and tools and clothes hung from crisscrossing lines. By the time we were safely hidden in one of the ruined rooms, the guards were returning to their post.
Rose pulled a few blankets from a drying line and spread them across the dusty ground. “We need to get these wet clothes off,” she said. “If we hang them up, they might dry by morning.”
We were shivering now, and I wasn’t sure it was just because of the cold. I began to take off my tunic, and Rose turned away. But only for a moment. Then she was standing next to me, helping me. My tunic fell in a heap beside us.
I helped her too. She raised her arms and the damp cloth slid over her skin. I glanced at her breasts, and fought the urge to touch her. I wanted so much to look at her, but I didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable. I wanted to speak, but I didn’t know what to say.
The place was already quiet again, the diversion over as suddenly as it had begun. We hung up our tunics and removed the rest of our clothes.
Naked at last, Rose curled up in the blankets.
“So was it worth it?” I asked, joining her.
She gave a nervous chuckle. “I must admit, I do feel alive right now.”
“We still don’t know what Jerren was doing there tonight.”
“No,” she agreed. “We don’t.”
“And I can’t stop thinking about—”
“Shh.” She placed a finger against my lips, silencing me. She ran the finger down my chin and across to my bare arm. “You have nice arms,” she said. “I like how I can feel every muscle.”
I felt the progress of her finger, sliding toward my hand, so light I couldn’t tell whether she was touching my skin or just the hairs on my arm. All my senses focused on that one finger. By the time she reached my hand, my pulse was racing, each heartbeat so strong, I figured she could probably hear it.
We twined fingers. She was shaking. I wanted to pull her close to me, let us warm each other. I was as scared now as I’d been on the ship.
Rose let out a long breath. For a precious moment, I allowed myself to believe that it was a contented sigh, a sign that we could stay like this. But then she released my hand, and I knew that she still felt my echo. Felt the pain of my element flowing into her. Even weak, my element could be powerful enough to divide us.
We lay side by side, facing each other but not speaking. My pulse slowed completely, but it was too late for us to touch again. Finally, Rose turned away from me and pulled her blanket around herself.
We were apart once more. And Rose wasn’t the only one crying.
CHAPTER 17
I barely slept at all. The ground was hard and I was afraid that I wouldn’t wake up before the colony came to life in the morning.
I nudged Rose while it was still dark. We dragged our wet clothes back on, shook out the blankets and hung them back up where Rose had found them.
I peered over the crumbling walls to see if the coast was clear. The guards seemed to have left their posts, so we slipped out as far as the entry to the barracks. Then I checked again. It still seemed clear.
We didn’t see anyone as we crossed the grounds and padded up the metal steps. Beyond the walls, the ship was still. Going over had been a mistake—one we couldn’t repeat. We needed to embrace our new life and win the trust of everyone at Sumter. And we had to hope no one woke up as we crept back into our room.
At the end of the walkway, we turned into the corridor and stopped abruptly. Griffin and Nyla were sitting together, backs against the wall, a lantern between them and a small book in each of their laps. They startled as they saw us, and snapped the books shut.
Even in the low light I recognized the books. They were the journals we’d found back on Hatteras Island, hidden inside the Guardians’ dune boxes. Before we’d left Roanoke Island, the journals helped Griffin uncover some of the colony’s secrets. From the way he kept the book pressed against him now, I figured he’d discovered something else that interested him.
But why had he shown them to Nyla?
What. You. Doing? I asked him.
He placed the book in his lap deliberately. Reading.
Why. With. Her?
“Because you weren’t around,” muttered Nyla, before he could sign again.
I froze. “Wait. Did you really understand all that?” I asked her.
Nyla shook her head. “One or two signs, that’s all. But I read your face well enough.” She added her book to the one in Griffin’s lap. “Look. I get that you and Griffin are close. He’s told me about you. But, you know, Griffin is the closest I’ve come to having a friend since I got here. So there’s no way I’m going to tell anyone about what’s in these books, all right? I promise.”