Three (Article 5 #3)(84)

He looked more serious than I’d ever seen him.

“They took Chase,” I said.

“I know.” For a second he didn’t say anything, and then he grabbed my shoulders. “He’s my friend, too, Ember, but you can’t stay here. You have to come.”

“I have to find him.” He made a noise of frustration, but I could see in his eyes he’d expected this answer.

“You’d better hurry,” said Cara.

Something about her tone made my blood turn cold.

“Why?” She hesitated, and I kneeled beside her. “Why, Cara?”

She took another swig of pills and in a flash of fury I slapped it from her hand. What few remained spilled across the dusty carpet.

“The walls are about to come tumbling down.”

I rose slowly.

“We’re going to bomb Charlotte,” she said. “Just the way they bombed us in Chicago. Just like they did with the safe house.”





CHAPTER


21


IT took a moment for her words to sink in, to push past the buzzing in my brain.

“We have bombs?” Sean asked.

“They have bombs,” she said. “Long distance explosive devices. We have access to their control panels.”

And access to the census reports for each base, as I’d seen documented in the radio room. We knew how many soldiers in each region would be attending to Charlotte for the chief’s party. The amount of damage we could do took my breath away.

“Three has people working in the FBR,” I said, remembering what Rocklin had told Chase and I our first night there. “It’s how they assured that Endurance wouldn’t get bombed like the safe house or Chicago.”

Some good that did. They found Three’s base anyway.

“That doesn’t make sense,” said Sean, crossing his arms over his chest. “If that were true they wouldn’t have let the safe house get hit.”

“We had no choice.”

Sean and I turned to find Jesse, his face and clothing smeared with grime, striding through the door. He wiped his palms on his pant legs as he crossed the room to where Cara lay.

“Hey, Jesse,” she said, eyelids heavy.

They knew each other. How, I had no idea.

“What does that mean, no choice?” asked Sean.

When Jesse didn’t answer, Sean blocked his path, standing between him and Cara. Next to Sean, it was clear how much taller and physically imposing Jesse was. The tattoo on his neck glistened under a fine layer of sweat. For a moment I thought he might fight Sean—his bloodshot eyes flashed with something feral and dangerous—but when Sean lifted his chin in challenge, Jesse rocked back on his heels and put his hands on his hips.

“The location of the safe house had already been compromised. Our men on the inside had no choice but to follow the Bureau’s orders and take it down.”

“What are you talking about, our men?” I gripped my side, feeling weak, as another piece fell into place. “You knew they’d bomb the safe house. That’s why you weren’t there.”

He didn’t answer. He didn’t even look at me.

“All those people died,” said Sean. “You’re saying that Three killed them?” He sent a dark glance my way, confirming that every suspicion he’d had about this place had been true. The triple scar on my chest tingled uncomfortably.

“Three didn’t kill them, the Bureau did,” said Jesse, passing Sean to reach Cara.

The Bureau may have killed them, but Three let it happen.

“They could have at least warned them. They could have tried to evacuate.”

Jesse twitched. “I tried to warn them. I wasn’t fast enough.”

He’d told us he’d been in the woods. Sarah had been by the beach. He’d saved her, she’d said.

“How long have you been with Three?” I asked. The location of the president’s hideout in the mountains. The men Jesse had killed in Chattanooga. The soldier in the cage at the cemetery. He’d known all along Endurance would be there, that they’d bring us in without question.

Cara snorted. “Oh, I’d say awhile, huh, Jesse?”

He kneeled beside her, picked up the nearly empty pill bottle and with a grim look stuck it in his pocket. “There are choices we have to make that aren’t easy. Save the safe house, or save the mission. Either way we lose good people.”

“You could have stopped it,” Sean said.

“And lost the chance to strike back,” countered Jesse. “Right now our people are outside of Charlotte, waiting for it to fall. Ready to claim our victory.”

This had been the plan all along, the orders that the fighters would receive once they arrived. Without knowing it, I’d called the people to join them.

“Chase could be in Charlotte.” My knees grew weak, and I leaned against the side of the couch for support. “Your nephew could be in Charlotte.”

Jesse stood rigid, filling the whole room.

“Yes,” he said.

“You’re going to stop it, then. You’re going to get him out.”

“It’s too late.”

I did not believe that. I would not believe it. But the evidence was thick and heavy and filled me with dread.