Chapter Thirty-Two Noah

He staggered out of the tunnel into the hub, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the light. Seconds later, a pair of arms closed around him. As he buried his head in his ma's neck, the scent of his childhood overwhelmed him.

"Shh." Her hand smoothed down his back. "Come sit down."

As she eased him onto one of the benches, Noah glanced around. It was good to hold his head up high. The hub was quiet. It was early, and most of the women were still in bed. His ma had always been an early riser, and he'd never been more grateful.

It had been a terrifying night. After fleeing the hospital, he'd been terrified he might not reach the library. Thanking his lucky stars it was already dark, he'd crept through the shadows of the city. With every step he took, he expected one of Danforth's guards to leap out and arrest him.

But it hadn't been as difficult as he'd anticipated. Some streets were deserted, with no evidence of citizens or guards. Other districts of the city had been very different. Ignoring the curfew, large numbers of women had taken to the streets, painting slogans on walls, chanting things, some openly arguing with Danforth's guards.

Noah had skirted the disturbances, grateful that they were keeping the guards occupied. By the time he'd reached the library entrance, though, he'd been on the verge of collapse.

Wiping the back of his sleeve across his face, he swallowed hard.

"M-a." He choked on the word, then tried again. "You know about… about Flynn?" Her eyes clouded over. "I tried to…"

"Wait. You were there?"

He gave a tight nod. "But I couldn't–"

His ma shook her head. "Of course not. Not when the whole of the Resistance couldn't…" She gripped his hands tightly. "You're just one boy… one man."

Appreciating the correction despite his grief, he returned the squeeze. "I'm so sorry."

"I know." An expression Noah had never seen flashed across her face. "He deserved better."

"Are you alright?" He leaned back, staring into her dark eyes. "Did you sleep?"

"Not really." She shrugged, her shoulders taut. "Danforth," her voice snapped on the word, "has a lot to answer for."

"His intentions were peaceful," Noah managed. "He didn't deserve–"

"Shh," his ma soothed. "I know. We know. Madeleine's as angry about this as I am. And though the memorial didn't go as planned, what Faith did, what she said…"

Noah closed his eyes at the name, dread taking hold of him again. When he opened them, his ma was watching him, her gaze steady now. Patient as ever, she waited for him to continue.

"Ma, Faith is..." He fought to keep the panic from his voice "They took her to the hospital. I was going to try and get her out but…"

"I'm so sorry." His ma squeezed his hand gently before pulling away. For the first time, she took in his dishevelled state. "Tell me what happened."

"They arrested her, after the memorial fell apart." His voice was steadier now. "I found her in the Emergency Department, but I think… I'm pretty sure they'll have taken her to the fertility wards by now."

"Why did you leave the hospital?"

"I had no choice." He shook his head. "Harden turned up. He was–"

"Harden was there?"

"Pretending to be a drudge. Like me." Noah sighed. "Only badly."

His ma rubbed a hand across her chin. "Jacob must be desperate. What did he want?"

"They heard Faith was there. Thought an extra hostage would help their cause." Noah ran a hand through his hair. "I tried to warn him… to get him out, but…"

His ma smiled bitterly. "Let me guess. He didn't listen?"

"He did, actually. I think he was scared. But…" Noah dropped his gaze, "by the time we got to the exit, it was too late."

His ma braced herself. "He's dead?"

"No. But… the guards caught him." The flash of terror which crossed his ma's face told Noah she was thinking of Flynn. "I had to run, or..."

"They would have got you too." His ma's eyes were wide.

"Yeah." Noah considered the potential evidence he'd left behind in the hospital. Papers that would link Danforth to the experiments. He closed his eyes. "I didn't even manage to–"

"How did you even make it back?" His ma shook her head. "The streets… they're–"

"I know. I saw." He paused, thinking back to the women on the streets. "It helped me, actually. Kept the guards busy. But Ma, people are–"

"They're listening. It's exactly what the Resistance has been working towards." She bit her lip. "Pity it came too late for Flynn and Robyn."

"And for Sophia."

They lapsed into silence. Noah leaned against his ma, laying his head on her shoulder. He was glad, at least, they were together in their grief.

"Ma," he bit his lip, "if Danforth has Faith, she's going to–"

His ma grimaced. "I know."

"And Helen, and the academy girls." He fought the rising panic. "Even Harden! It's not like we can talk Madeleine into helping him. I mean… she couldn't even rescue Flynn, and it's not like she'll be enthusiastic about helping someone who's on Jacob's side. Not now he's–"

He broke off, his hands curling into fists.

"Why do you care? About Harden, I mean?"

"I don't know." Noah shrugged. "I just… the lives of so many people are in Danforth's hands right now. I don't want there to be any more death."

"I'm afraid there may be a lot more death before this is finished." She reached for his hand again, as though she might soften her harsh words. She was shaking. "But at least you're not–"

A noise at the far end of the hub startled them. The door to Madeleine's office had opened. Blake was standing there.

"You're back." She eyed Noah. "Why?"

"Long story." He pushed himself to a standing position, his limbs aching. "I can't go back, though." He took a step towards her. "Blake, Danforth has–"

"Faith. We know. She left a note. After I found it, we tried to get to her before…" She shook her head, a heaviness weighing her down. "But we were too late. Are you up to coming to speak to us? We need to discuss our next moves."

Behind him, his ma tensed.

Turning, he laid a hand on her arm. "I'm fine. Come with me?"

Reluctantly, she nodded.

When they reached the office, Blake was pacing the room. Madeleine sat in the chair behind the desk. Noting that Evelyn had taken Robyn's usual seat, Noah dropped his gaze.

"Your cover's blown, then?" Madeleine began.

"It is." Noah didn't waste time apologising. "Do we have any new information about Faith?"

Madeleine gestured to Blake, who tapped on her datadev, bringing up a familiar image. "These are from earlier today."

"That's–"

"The room where they held Sophia." Blake cut him off. "Yes. They have Faith in there now. They haven't started her on the drugs yet, but we don't think it will be long."

"Then we have to get her out." Noah's voice notched up an octave.

"That's what we're here to discuss. If we–"

"You don't understand. The metraxilone…" Noah fought to keep his calm. "It's the reason Sophia died. A drudge friend of mine at the hospital overheard the medics discussing it. Once a patient starts receiving it, they can't just be taken off it. It leads to huge–"

"Withdrawal symptoms!" his ma exclaimed. "I should have known."

"So we have to rescue her as soon as possible." Noah stepped forward. "And the academy girls. Today, if–"

"Patience." Madeleine frowned. "There's more you don't know."

"Sit down." Evelyn gestured to an empty chair.

His ma guided him into it. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. When he opened them, Blake had navigated to a message thread.

"See this?" She jabbed a finger at the screen. "First contact we've had from Kemp in several days. She's obviously been unable to contact us. They may be watching her more closely than usual. This has been sent from a student address, but she's used a code which tells us it's her."

Noah leaned forward, trying to read the words on the screen.

"I'll sum it up for you." Blake interrupted. "Someone at the academy questioned the fact that the girls on the metraxilone weren't suffering any of the expected side effects. They sent a sample pill to the lab."

"The long and short of it is, they know the pills they've been distributing are placebos." Madeleine grimaced.

Noah's heart sank. "So they've started the girls on the real drug?"

"Not quite." Evelyn sat forward. "When Kemp and Arden took in the placebos, they dumped the entire supply of real metraxilone."

"So the school doesn't have any to give out right now?" Anna asked. "Do we know how long until they get a new supply?"

"Well as you can imagine they're eager to get the girls started on it." Blake tapped a finger on the desk. "Kemp thinks they've scheduled a large delivery for tomorrow."

"Do we know where it's coming from?" Noah asked. "Could we intercept it?"

"I'm afraid not." Madeleine huffed out a breath.

"So our only option," Anna wrinkled her lip, "is to get the girls out of there as soon as possible."

"It would seem so." Blake said. "But there are a lot of them."

"Plus Faith," Noah reminded them.

"And," Blake sighed, "we have very little time."

"You're right, it won't be easy." Madeleine shook her head. "But we have to act fast. If Noah's right, the moment a girl is given metraxilone, we have no idea how to help her."