Roman frowned, unsure. The idea of releasing even five rogues was horrifying. But maybe Candle was right. If Sparks could be an Adrenalite but not a heartless killer, then maybe others could be as well. Maybe these five men, just like Sparks, didn’t deserve what Juliette was doing to them.
Candle sat back down. His sudden burst of emotion quickly disappeared. “If you promise you release my friends, then I’m in. If you don’t, just kill me now, and good luck getting to Juliette without my help.”
“And how can I trust you won’t kill us as soon as I activate you? How do I know you won’t try and free them all?”
Candle shrugged. “You just going to have to trust me.”
Roman bit back his response. A week ago the idea of trusting the word of an Adrenalite would have been laughable. But Roman found himself believing Candle. The Adrenalite spoke with a conviction that made it feel like it was impossible for him to lie. But still, Roman was reluctant.
He turned to Ruby and Caleb. “This isn’t just my decision to make. We’re not bounty hunters anymore, so I’m no longer the leader. I’m not going to make this deal unless each of us is sure that we can live with the consequences.”
There was a long pause as Ruby and Caleb considered.
Caleb spoke first. “I reckon we can trust him. Besides, I don’t see a whole lot of other options.”
Roman nodded. “Ruby?”
She strode past him, crouching in front of Candle. “Do you swear that you only killed one man?”
Candle nodded. “One man, before the ministry took me. After I escaped… a lot more.”
“And your friends, were any of them captured three years ago, after going on a killing spree through the eighth district?”
Roman knew why she was asking — Stevens had been killed in the eighth district. There was no way she was going to help the Adrenalite who had murdered her brother.
“No,” Candle said, looking her in the eye. “I don’t know who you’re after, but it wasn’t them.”
Ruby slowly nodded. “I believe you.” She stood and turned to Roman. “I’m in too.”
This is really happening then. Roman stepped forward and offered Candle his hand. “So we have a deal?”
Candle shook it. “Death to the Captain.”
Roman paused, then repeated, “Death to the Captain.”
38
That evening, Ruby woke up as the sun was setting.
They had been too exhausted to bother finding a better place to rest, so had slept in this forsaken building. Ruby groaned, rubbing her eyes. She knew she needed every minute of sleep she could get before morning. That’s when they were going to attack the Ministries. They had all decided it was best to strike sooner rather than later, and Caleb hadn’t wanted to leave Sparks in Juliette’s hands any longer than he had to.
Ruby sat up. Her body felt so stiff she wondered if she had slept through the whole day, night, and the next day as well. Her hand still throbbed, but she was getting better at ignoring it. She checked the cut on her leg again. No sign of infection. Good.
Looking around the room, she saw Candle lying curled up in the corner, muttering in his sleep. Caleb sat against the wall, his new gun in his lap, his expression blank as he watched Candle. Roman was gone.
“Where is he?” Ruby whispered.
Caleb shrugged. “He’ll be back.”
Ruby lay down and tried to fall back to sleep. No luck. Her head was too full of thoughts. She got up, grabbed her bow and wrapped her quiver around her waist. “I’m going for walk.”
Outside, the dying light cast a golden glow over the city. A cool breeze blew through the crumbling streets. Ruby inhaled a deep breath through her nose, letting the tension fall off her shoulders. She walked down the middle of the road, away from the station, gracefully scaling the piles of rubble.
Her thoughts felt scattered. Was she sure that killing Juliette was the right thing to do? What about freeing the Adrenalites? Would it make anything better?
This is what I wanted. This is why I convinced Roman to buy Sparks. I wanted him to realize they’re not all evil. And it worked, didn’t it? He’s going to risk his life for Sparks. He’s letting go of his anger, slowly.
Or he’s taking it all out on Juliette instead.
She circled the block once, twice, three. Finally, she sat on the footpath, taking out two arrows and sharpening their heads against each other. A three-legged cat limped past, glaring at her like she had somehow offended it by being here. Ruby nocked an arrow and aimed at the cat as it retreated. She took a slow breath as she steadied the shot, then slowly released the tension on the string and put the bow down.
Ruby shook her head, clearing her thoughts. It was useless to second guess now. Roman had made his decision. There would be no talking him out of it now. All she had to do was make sure he didn’t get himself killed.
Heavy footsteps. Ruby looked up to see Roman approaching, his frame outlined by the setting sun. He was holding a shovel and had a sackcloth bag slung over his shoulders. He looked different somehow. He sat down beside her, putting down the shovel and pulling half a loaf of bread from the bag, offering it to her. “Here. You look like you need this.”
Ruby’s stomach rumbled at the sight of food. She eagerly tore off a chunk and shoved it into her mouth. It was fresh. Roman watched her in silence as she ate the whole thing. He offered her a waterskin and she took a dozen long gulps.
When she was finished, Ruby asked, “You stole all that, didn’t you?”
“Yeah. I guess I learned more from Tan than I thought.”
“Roman: the bread thief. I think you’ve found your next career.”
“Doesn’t sound suicidal enough for me.” He reached into the bag again and pulled out a cloth and a bottle of whiskey. He motioned to her bandaged hand.
She clutched it to her chest. “I can do it myself.”
Roman didn’t withdraw his hand. He stared at her, his face impassive. Ruby eventually offered her hand to him. He slowly pulled off the stained bandage, gasping when he saw what was underneath. “Ruby… I’m sorry, I—”
“I let Gavin get the jump on me. It’s my fault.”
“No. It’s mine. I shouldn’t have let you come to the Haven.”
“I chose to, remember?”
“I shouldn’t have given you the choice.”
“Like you could have stopped me.”
He frowned as he washed her wound with water, then splashed whiskey on it. Ruby stuck an arrow in her mouth and bit down, refusing to let herself flinch. Roman wrapped the new bandage.
“Listen, Roman,” Ruby began carefully. “I’m not some delicate child you have to protect. I’ve been the one saving your arse, remember?”
“I know. But after Harry… and Tan… Well, following me seems to get people killed. I won’t let that happen to you.”
Ruby grabbed the bottle of whiskey and took a sip. It stung at her throat, but not nearly as bad as it had stung her wound. “Thanks, Roman. I mean it.”
He gave a half-smile, accepting the whiskey from her and taking a lot more than a sip. “Just don’t die. Okay?”
“I promise.”
They sat in silence, alternating drinks, as the sky darkened and the shadows grew longer. By the time Ruby could count a dozen stars, they had finished half the bottle.
“So…” Ruby spoke at last, “How do you want to tell me that I was right? Do you want to just say it, make it a poem, carve it into one of Caleb’s forearms?”
“You were right about what?”