“Good morning,” she managed, shoving the memory out of her head.
“We need to get that bracelet off.” Luke gestured toward her wrist.
Glass nodded and rose from the couch, shifting uneasily as Camille looked back and forth between her and Luke. Finally, she crossed her arms and turned to him. “Are you sure this is a good idea? What if someone sees you?”
Luke’s expression darkened. “We talked about this.” He spoke quietly, but Glass heard the note of frustration in his voice. “If we don’t help her, they’re going to kill her. It’s the right thing to do.”
The right thing to do, Glass thought. That was all she meant to him anymore, a life he didn’t want on his conscience.
“Better her than you,” Camille said, her voice trembling.
Luke leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “It’s going to be fine. I’ll take her back to Phoenix and then come straight home.”
Camille sighed and tossed Glass a shirt and a pair of pants. “Here,” she said. “I know it’s not up to your Phoenix standards, but you’ll look a bit more believable in this. You aren’t going to pass for a sanitation worker with that hair.” She gave Luke’s arm a squeeze and then slipped back into his bedroom, leaving Glass and Luke alone.
Glass stood holding the clothes awkwardly in her arms, and for a moment, they just stared at each other. The last time she’d seen Luke, she’d have thought nothing of changing in front of him. “Should I…” She trailed off, gesturing toward Carter’s room.
“Oh,” Luke said, reddening slightly. “No, I’ll just… I’ll be right back.” He retreated to his bedroom. Glass changed as quickly as she could, trying to ignore the whispers that escaped through the door, stinging her skin like pinpricks.
When Luke returned, Glass was dressed in a pair of loose gray pants that barely clung to her hips and a rough blue T-shirt that chafed her skin. Luke surveyed her critically. “Something’s still off,” he said. “You don’t look like a prisoner, but you definitely don’t look like a Waldenite.”
Glass began to smooth the sides of her wrinkled trousers self-consciously, wondering whether Luke preferred being with a girl who looked at home in these clothes. “It’s not that,” he said. “It’s your hair. Girls don’t wear it that long here.”
“Why?” she asked, realizing with a small measure of guilt that she’d never even noticed.
Luke had turned and began rummaging through a small storage bin against the wall. “Probably because it’d be too hard to take care of. We don’t get the same water allotment on Walden that you do on Phoenix.” He turned around with a look of triumph on his face and produced an ancient-looking stained cap.
Glass gave him a weak smile. “Thanks.” She took the hat from Luke, their hands brushing, and placed it on her head.
“I don’t think we’re quite there yet,” he said, surveying her with a frown. He stepped toward her and removed the hat with one hand, and with his other, reached over her shoulder to gather her hair, gently twisting it into a knot on top of her head. “There,” he said in satisfaction, placing the cap on top.
The silence stretched between them. Slowly, Luke reached up and tucked a few stray strands behind Glass’s ear. His rough fingers lingered on her neck, and he looked into her eyes, unblinking.
“Ready?” Glass asked, breaking the spell as she stepped to the side.
“Yes. Let’s go.” Luke stepped back stiffly and led her out into the hallway.
There weren’t as many circadian lights on Walden as there were on Phoenix, so although it was technically dawn, Snic"27" the corridors were mostly dark. Glass couldn’t tell where Luke was leading her, and she clenched her hands to keep herself from reaching for his.
Finally, Luke stopped in front of the faint outline of a door. He dug into his pocket, producing something Glass couldn’t see and holding it up to the scanner. The door beeped and slid open. Glass’s insides twisted as she realized that wherever Luke took her, he’d leave a trail of log-ins and access codes. She couldn’t bear to think what would happen when the Council figured out that he’d helped an escaped criminal.
But there was no other option. After she said one last good-bye to her mother, she’d wait for the guards to find her. She wouldn’t try to see Luke again. She couldn’t ask him to risk his safety for her. Not after what she’d done.
A faint light flickered wearily to life, casting a dirty, yellowish glow over machinery Glass didn’t recognize. “Where are we?” she asked, her voice echoing strangely.
“One of the old workshops. This is where they used to repair the Earthmade equipment, before it was all replaced. I came here for some of my training.”
Glass started to ask why the guards would train here, but bit back the question. She always forgot that Luke had already started his mechanical apprenticeship when he was accepted into the engineering corps of the guards. He rarely spoke about that part of his life. Looking back, Glass was ashamed that she hadn’t tried harder to learn about Luke’s world; it was no wonder he’d turned to Camille.
Luke stood next to an enormous machine, pushing different buttons, his brow furrowed in concentration. “What is that?” Glass asked when it started to hum ominously.
“A laser cutter,” Luke said without glancing up.
Glass hugged her wrist protectively to her chest. “No way.”
Luke gave Glass a look that was equal parts amusement and irritation. “No arguing. The sooner we get that thing off of you, the better your chances of hiding.”
“Can’t we just figure out how to unlock it?”
Luke shook his head. “It has to be cut off.” When she didn’t move, he held out his hand with a sigh. “Come here, Glass,” he said, beckoning her over.
Glass’s feet locked into the floor. Although she’d spent the last six months imagining Luke calling to her, she’d never thought that a piece of deadly machinery would be involved. Luke raised an eyebrow. “Glass?”
Glass took a tentative step forward. It wasn’t like she had anything to lose. Better to have Luke slice her wrist off than a medic inject poison into her vein.
Luke tapped a flat surface in the middle of the machine. “Just put your hand here.” He flipped a switch and the whole machine began to vibrate.
Glass trembled as her skin made contact with the cold metal.
“It’ll be okay,” Luke said. “I promise. Just hold still.”
Glass nodded, too afraid to speak. The humming continued and was soon accompanied by a high-pitched screech.
Luke made a few more adjustments, then came to stand next to her. “Ready?”
She swallowed nervously. “Yes.”
Luke placed his left hand over her arm, and with his right, started to move another lever toward her. To her horror, she saw that it was emitting a thin Sttient thered line of light that pulsed with dangerous energy.
She started to shake, but Luke gripped her arm tighter. “It’s okay,” he murmured. “Just stay still.”
The light was getting closer. Glass could feel the heat on her skin. Luke’s face tensed with concentration, his eyes fixed on Glass’s wrist as he moved the laser steadily along.
Glass closed her eyes, bracing herself for the searing pain, the screaming of her nerves as they lost contact with her hand.
“Perfect.” Luke’s voice cut through her terror. Glass looked down and saw the bracelet had been split into two neat pieces, freeing her wrist.
She sighed, her breath ragged. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He smiled at her, his hand still clutching her arm.
Neither of them spoke as they slipped out of the workshop and began to wind their way back up toward the skybridge.
“What’s wrong?” Luke whispered as he guided Glass around a corner and up another flight of stairs, narrower and darker than anything on Phoenix.