47 - CLARA

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

I watch Tyse as he reads the message on the phone that was just delivered. "What's it say?"

He sighs. "‘Call me when you get this. The meeting can't wait. I need you to come in now.'"

"What are you gonna do?"

He scoffs. "Fuck him. I don't have the whole story here, obviously. But we're leaving. And we're leaving right now." He directs his gaze to Anneeta, narrowing his eyes. "I'm warning you, Anneeta, if you do anything to hurt Clara?—"

"I won't! Geez! How come you don't believe me?"

"Because you're hiding things. And you need Clara to live. Do you think I'm fucking stupid or something? If it comes down to you or her, you're gonna save yourself. And I'm going on record right now to say, if you do that, if anything happens to Clara, I will take you out." His eyes narrow down even further now to indicate the threat is still incoming. "And it would be a very big mistake to think I couldn't make good on this. Do you understand me?"

Anneeta is frowning, but she doesn't talk back. Just nods her head. "I do. I understand."

"Good." Tyse turns to me. "OK. Let's go talk to Rodge. I'm sure the runner has reported that the phone was delivered, so I figure we've got a couple hours, maybe, before Stayn starts to panic and does something stupid."

The three of us leave the room and head downstairs to Eight. We pass right by the spark dealers and go straight to Rodge's store. It's early, so there aren't a lot of people in line, but there is a line and we have to push through to get inside.

Rodge sees us and waves us past the people. "Come, come," he says. "My favorite customer. Come tell me what you need, Tyse." He's smiling at us as Anneeta, Tyse, and I go behind the counter.

"Rodge, I know you're busy, but can we have a chat in private?"

"Sure, sure, sure," Rodge is saying. "Come into my office."

Which isn't an office, but it's on the far side of the room, so I guess it'll do. Anneeta and I stay where we are. Prisha is here, and I wave to her, but she stays at her position near the door, collecting orders.

"We should try it."

I look down at Anneeta. "What?"

"You. You should try giving me spark. Just to make sure we can do it."

"Let's wait for Tyse." But before these words are even out of my mouth, she's got a hold of my hand. I try and jerk away, but it's too late. Immediately, I am losing all strength in my legs. She drains so much spark out of me in just a few seconds, I nearly fall over.

She lets go.

It takes me several seconds before I can even speak and many more before I can stand on my own without holding on to the counter. I side-eye her. "I said wait ."

"Sorry. I just needed to know if you could do it. Because if not, then I would have to go hide. Stayn is coming for me, Clara. Not you. Not Tyse. Me ."

I'm angry. Taking my spark like that feels like a very personal violation. But I'm scared too. Because it was very easy for her. Way too easy for her.

Fourteen hours. How will I get her to Delta City without killing myself?

I'm not even sure it's possible now. Not after that little display.

I want to say more. I want to tell Tyse. But if I do, he'll put a stop to this right now and we'll leave without her. I know this. And I'm not ready to let her go. Not yet. Not until I understand what we are. Because clearly, we are something. Something powerful. And while I have spent much of my life feeling quite pretty and privileged, I have never felt… valuable .

Yes, sure, I was chosen as a Spark Maiden. But number nine? I wasn't considered anything special, just someone who squeaked in. Anneeta and Tyse make me feel... special. I want to figure this out. I want to understand, not just what I am, but why I am.

I want Anneeta to come with us so we can figure it out. Because nothing is making sense at the moment. A whole lot of things about my life feel like lies.

I'm tired of it.

I want the truth and the truth requires Anneeta.

Rodge and Tyse leave the little corner office and come back our way. Rodge looks at me, smiling. "Yes, we can do this. All you need is coin." He looks at Tyse now. "And your man has it. Let's go set it up. Prisha!" He yells this across the room. "I will be right back. Ten-minute break, everyone. Ten minutes."

A groan arises from the people in the room, but what can they do? If Rodge says he needs ten minutes, then Rodge gets ten minutes.

We leave through a back door and make our way to the other side of the tower where the spark guys are. Rodge leads the way in, telling Anneeta and me to wait near the door while he takes Tyse over to the man at the counter. Unlike Rodge's place, this waiting room is small and there are walls and doors that lead to other rooms. There is no machinery in here. Nothing that looks like a spark extractor. Not that I've ever seen one of those.

But then Tyse and Rodge disappear into one of these other rooms and it makes sense that it's all done behind the scenes. I'm not sure how one pulls spark out of thin air, but it must be a highly guarded process.

Rodge appears after a few minutes. He doesn't stop to talk, just says, "I'll be right back," as he passes.

Both Anneeta and I blow out a breath. She doesn't try and touch me again.

Many minutes go by before Rodge returns, handing me a pack. "There are ID's in here, train tickets, and robes. A veil for you. From my traditional city of Thetaiota. No one will bother you and you won't have to show your face."

"Oh. Thank you." I let out a long breath as I take the pack. Because this is getting kind of complicated. I hadn't thought about disguises and this change in clothes makes everything a little more serious than it was a few seconds ago.

"You're going to be OK," Rodge says. "I have to get back to work now. But you'll be fine. And when you get there, you send me a postcard letting me know just how very fine you are, OK?"

I soften when he places a gentle hand on my cheek. "I will. Thank you." I say it with more feeling this time. "I don't know why you're so good to me, but I want you to know I appreciate it. You've made my time here better."

"I like you, Clara. I see your spark. Not the kind that goes into jolts and jumps, either. But the other kind that lives in your eyes. Tyse sees it too. And I know that you will make it."

He gives Anneeta a glance now, then nods at her, but he doesn't say sweet things the way he did to me. "I've always known what you were. And I hope that the people of the tower have taught you things, little god. Because if you want to be a good god, you have to care about your people."

Anneeta, unexpectedly, is speechless. She just gazes up at him with big brown eyes that, I realize now, are deceptively innocent.

Rodge doesn't wait for her to find her words. Just gives me another smile, and leaves.

Tyse appears holding onto several heavy packs that he slings over his shoulder. "Come on, let's go. There are patrol officers outside the Ruin District. I don't know what they're doing here, but it's not a good sign. Is that from Rodge?" He points at my pack.

"Yes. Train tickets, ID's, and clothes to change into for a disguise."

"Good. Anneeta." He looks down at her. "We can't risk going down the stairs. Is there another way to get to the train tunnels?"

"Follow me." I think she's actually happy that she's got something to offer in the way of escape, because she takes off with light feet, looking over her shoulder at us with a smile, just to make sure we're keeping up.

She stops at a door, which, when Tyse tries to pull it open, is locked. "Don't worry." Anneeta taps her head. "I've got the key."

The next time he pulls on the door, it opens. We enter a stairwell and start our descent.

Anneeta stays almost a whole floor ahead of us, which gives me time to ask Tyse a few questions. "Are you sure this gonna work? I mean… I hadn't thought about all the details. The ID's, the tickets, the clothes. It feels a little unreal."

Tyse huffs. "It's all we've got, Clara. The only way out is through now. We don't have a choice. Stayn knows what you are. He probably knows I'm playing a part too. And he definitely understands what Anneeta is. They're trying to grow a new god for Tau City. This is a very dangerous thing. There's a reason why gods were decommissioned hundreds of years ago. None of them are good. Not even the one in Delta. He's an asshole. Trust me, we won't be trustin' him."

"Then why are we even going there?"

"Because Anneeta is right. I'm his. All the people in god cities belong to the gods. They don't keep us prisoner because they're not allowed—it was part of the Sweep Accords. But everyone in Delta is marked, including me. If we tried to take refuge at another god's city, Delta would consider me a defector. Worse, since I'm an augment, I'd be a traitor. He'd find a way to kill me for sure. One way or the other. So we have to go to him if we want any chance of getting out of this alive."

"What about the train? I mean… disguises, Tyse? It's fourteen hours. How are we going to get there?"

"Stayn has no power outside Tau City. The trains are governed by a neutral patrol made up of representatives from all the leftover god cities. They are impartial. So no one will fuck with us on the train. The problem isn't the train, Clara. The problem is Anneeta."

I sigh. I want to tell him what happened when she took my spark upstairs, but I don't. I will have to find a way to endure it. So instead I redirect the conversation. "How many jumps did you get?"

"Thirteen."

"Thirteen." I look up at him. "Will it be enough?"

He shrugs. "Less than one an hour? Let's hope so."

Suddenly, the relative quiet in the secret stairwell is broken by a faint, crackling voice, floating up from down below. Anneeta stops on the stairs below us to listen.

" Tyse Saarinen! There is a warrant for your arrest. Come out, unarmed, and no one gets hurt ."

"It's Stayn." Tyse lets out a breath. Then looks at Anneeta. "I hope you know where you're going. Because they're inside now and we need to get to the train tunnels without running into them."

Anneeta looks frightened for a moment. Then she lets out a long breath. "I do have a way. But…" She directs her gaze to me. "I don't think you're gonna like it."

"Why not?" I ask.

"Because…" She looks up at Tyse now. Her voice is small and soft. "It's where I fed."