Thin Lines (The Child Thief #3)(69)

Her lips turned up into something that would have been a smile if it weren’t so grim.

“It doesn’t take a genius to know that once they start asking for your papers, you’re in trouble. There’s only one reason to want to see those, and it’s not good.”

“Why would the Authority be bothering you, though?” I asked, wondering who exactly she was, and why she was so important to Nathan.

She cast a glance in my direction, but evidently didn’t see anything she liked, because she whirled around and went back to the bed to continue her packing.

“It’s because of my husband,” she said vaguely. “A long time ago he did something that the government didn’t like. Then he… disappeared. Haven’t seen him since, but the government’s never stopped asking questions about him. I think it’s because they want my money.”

She gestured around the house to finish out the statement, but I narrowed my eyes. That wasn’t the truth. It was a story. A well-rehearsed story, and one that came out smoothly, probably because she’d told it so often. But it was a story, nonetheless.

She and Nathan had probably come up with it as the perfect excuse for her to have so much money but not be involved in anything illegal herself.

Code name Corona, indeed.

“So about that plan B…” I said, looking directly at Jace and willing him to understand what I was asking.

We didn’t have time to be standing around talking about Corona’s troubles with the Authority. We were here for one reason and one reason only: to secure our own escape.

Jace nodded. “I’m sorry to hear about your troubles, Corona, but Nathan had your name and address down for me to find if I was ever in danger or isolated, and… well, now’s that time,” he finished softly. “Our friends are disappearing. Our contacts are gone. Nathan isn’t responding to my calls, and neither is the rest of our team. We finished a mission and were isolated from Nathan, and now we’re out in the cold. We need help.”

She turned to Jace, her eyes narrowed.

“And you think any of that is news to me? I’ve had a trace on you right from the start—right from when Nathan told me you’d be coming to me if there was trouble. This is the right place,” she said. “I hadn’t expected to meet under these circumstances, however. After all, I’ve been hiding in plain sight for years. I don’t know what’s changed to bring my existence to Authority notice, but it’s distinctly unexpected.”

She turned and strode quickly to the large desk sitting against the far wall of the room. There she bent and jotted something down on a piece of paper, then turned and walked back to Jace, getting there far more quickly than her casual stride should have carried her. She handed it to him and gave him a grim smile.

“If you know the protocol, then you know I can’t take you until I’m sure it’s safe. I have to travel ahead of you. But you are my responsibility now. You and your friends.” She looked around at all of us, and behind her eyes I could see a compassionate and extremely intelligent being.

This was a woman, I realized, who acted as Nathan’s second-in-command. A woman who could match him, I suspected, and maybe even best him in some regards. I seriously wanted to get to know her better—she could have answers to so many of our questions.

I put it on my list of things to do. Right after we got the hell out of town.

“And what does that mean?” I asked. “You’ll have to excuse me, I don’t know the protocol. I’m more concerned with the reality of the situation.”

Corona favored me with the ghost of a smile, and then nodded once. “We have a place of refuge planned out for myself and anyone I’m going to bring with me,” she said, turning and beginning to pack again. “But I can’t take anyone there until I’ve been there myself, to make sure that it hasn’t been compromised. If I’m there alone, it will be easier for me to escape any traps. If I have a number of people…”

“The more people, the better chance of getting caught,” I murmured, understanding. We’d been operating on the same basis, so I knew what she meant. But even so… “How long will we have to wait?” I asked bluntly. “How long will you take? We've just been hiding out in the forest, barely scraping by.”

“Tomorrow,” she replied, then turned to Jace and motioned to the paper in his hands. “That address. Tomorrow at ten a.m. sharp. I’ll be there, and I’ll have traveling papers for you. If I’m not, it means you’re truly on your own.”

She paused suddenly, as if she was thinking—or listening to a voice that the rest of us couldn’t hear—and then nodded and started moving again.

“I have to go,” she announced. “I’m sorry I can’t help you right now, but you understand the reasoning. If you can stay safe for the night, I’ll get you to safety tomorrow. You cannot stay here; that much I know.” She stopped abruptly and turned back toward Jace, her face deadly serious. “There’s transportation for you in the basement, and it will get you out of here more quickly than those things you came in on. I’m afraid I can’t offer you anything more than that, except for the promise of tomorrow, and the warning that no one’s address is truly safe. No city is safe. And no one else will be coming for you. Not yet. Don’t go into any houses, because you won’t know whether you can trust the people. Avoid all people, even those you think might be your friends. Go back to the forest where you’ve been hiding. It is your safest option for the moment. I will see you tomorrow. But don’t be late, Jace Huxley. If you’re late, there will be nothing I can do for you.”