Everland(9)

“I’m sorry for your loss, too,” I say softly. Another uncomfortable silence hangs in the air. Finally, I notice the book of matches in Bella’s hand and snatch it from her. “But that doesn’t mean you can take our supplies.”

“Gwen?” Mikey whispers from around the corner of the shelves.

“I told you to hide,” I hiss. An injured expression crosses his face, and he shrinks back into the darkened corner, hiding behind the dirty teddy bear. I immediately regret snapping at him. When did I become so quick to hostility?

“Gwen?” Pete asks, looking at me quizzically. “That’s not much better than Immune, if you ask me.”

Glaring at him, I grab another item from the shelf, a photograph of my family. “How did you two survive, anyway? Most of the children have been abducted or fled with their families. I haven’t seen anyone in months,” I say.

Pete peers over my shoulder at the picture without answering.

“Hmm, you have a sister, too? She’s cute for a Little. Is she hiding in here also?” Pete asks, stealing the photo from my hand. “Come out, come out, wherever you are, Little.”

Searching the bottom shelf, Bella groans and tosses a thimble, which she seems to deem useless. She stashes a sewing kit into her satchel.

“A Little?” I ask, reaching for the photograph. Pete holds it out of my reach, inspecting it carefully.

“That’s what Pete calls all the kids who aren’t teenagers,” Bella says, peering over his shoulder. “Kids like me. At least until next year.”

“So where is she?” Pete asks, his brows raised.

“She’s not here,” I say, snatching the photo from Pete’s hand. I glide my finger over the familiar face in the picture. Joanna’s curly hair hangs haphazardly in her face. She smiles brightly as she leans her head on our Newfoundland puppy, Nanny, another casualty of the war. A lump grows in my throat and tears spring to my eyes. I shove the photo into my pack and swallow back the pain. There’s no time for tears.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but Joanna’s been taken.” I brush Pete aside, sheathe my dagger, fling my rucksack over my shoulders, and take Mikey by the hand. “Now if you’ll excuse us, we need to find our sister.”

I swing a leg over the window ledge, but a hand jerks me back, sending me crashing to the floor. When I look up, Pete has my bag in his hand. He kneels, his eyes drilling into me.

“You’re coming with us,” he says matter-of-factly.

“What?” I stare at him, stunned. Anxiety prickles my skin like a swarm of fire ants, and my fingers graze my daggers.

His face draws close to mine. “You don’t plan to march into the city and rescue your sister with a couple of dull daggers, do you?”

“I’ll find another weapon on the way.” I grab for my pack, but he brushes my hand aside.

“Do you really believe you and your kid brother can get her back all by yourself? It’s only a matter of time before you’re caught, too.” Pete hands me my bag. “Most survivors have learned the two rules to staying alive. Number one: Don’t leave behind a footprint. Bella and I stick to the rooftops. Others, those that are skilled with weapons and can run fast …”

“And have stomachs of steel,” Bella interjects, wrinkling her nose.

“Those Scavengers utilize the sewage systems,” Pete finishes.

“There are other people?” Mikey asks, tugging on Pete’s coattail.

“Of course there are others,” Bella says with exasperation in her voice. “Lots of them. All kids, obviously. You don’t think the four of us are the only ones left in England, do you?”

“Where are the other kids?” Mikey asks, his expression wild with curiosity.

Pete beckons us to the window. Mikey follows and, with reluctance, I join them. In the distance, the crumbled buildings of Everland rise toward the sky like steel, concrete, and brick tombstones. The navy-blue hues of night have faded into lavender as the sun on the horizon chases away what is left of the evening stars. Only two twinkling points remain. Pete points to the west.

“Second to the right,” he says. “Just below it.”

“You’re telling me there are children hiding in Everland?” I ask in disbelief. “Why would they remain in the city? That’s the first place the Marauders would search. The children are practically right under Kretschmer’s nose.”

“Not Kretschmer. Hook,” Bella corrects.

Pete rubs his stubbled chin. “Quite literally under his nose, in fact. They’re not in Everland, they’re beneath it.”

Staring out into the distance, I try to imagine orphaned children living underneath the decimated city. “How is that remotely possible?”

Bella shrugs and says, “We live in the Underground and within the Lost City.”

“The Underground? As in the railway? I thought the tunnels were destroyed during the war,” I say.

“That’s only partially true,” Pete says, sitting on the frame, his legs dangling outside the window. “Many were destroyed, but some of the tunnels survived the bombing. A few of the secret bunkers are still intact, too.”

He leans forward, his eyes gleaming. “The bunkers and tunnels are much more than concrete holes in the earth now. We have a team of Tinkers, engineers who have built an entire city beneath Everland. A city in which a hundred kids thrive. Clean water, food, shelter.” He glances down at Mikey. “Safety.”