Coldmaker(76)

‘Good to see you too.’ Cam smiled at me, although it was more like a wince. ‘You look happy.’

My face was still flushed with excitement from setting the Glassland Blue in place on my latest invention. I still couldn’t believe all the things I had to tinker with in the main chamber alone. ‘Well, you’re to thank. You’re the only reason I’m here.’

Cam leaned back against the bannister on the stairs. He sighed. ‘I just wish I could do the same for all the others in here. I try so hard, Spout, a compliment here, or a smile. I sneak them food and medicine, but most of them won’t take it. No one wants to trust me.’

I nodded, unsure if I had anything to add.

‘It’s just— I’m so sick of how things are,’ Cam said, clenching his teeth. ‘The more I look, the worse it gets, and I’m completely powerless to help.’

I was almost afraid to ask, as a part of me had been waiting for the hammer to drop. ‘Is it really getting worse out there?’

Cam swallowed, looking at the wall of instruments Leroi had displayed. I hadn’t touched most of them: I’d blown over a few of the pipe sets but the sound had plucked my heart with thoughts of Moussa and I’d had to stop.

I tried to meet Cam’s gaze, but he looked at the floor instead. ‘It’s okay. You can tell me,’ I said.

Cam paused. ‘There was another Cleansing yesterday.’

I tensed up. I’d gone a few hours without worrying about Abb, but now I was flooded with anxiety. ‘Any word on …’

Cam nodded, still not meeting my eyes. ‘Mama Jana says he’s alive.’

My ears popped with relief, but my heart was still heavy.

‘Was the Cleansing because of me?’ I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

Cam suddenly gripped my shoulders, facing me with a fierceness I hadn’t seen in him before. ‘This is all because of the Khat. Never forget that. Ever.’

I nodded, wishing that were possible.

Cam clucked his tongue. ‘Is Leroi still in his study?’

I nodded, my stomach still trying to unknot. ‘For going on two days straight now. He moved in all these machines and materials so he could make those anklets.’

Cam nodded, brushing down his hair. ‘How do I look?’ he asked archly.

I lifted an eyebrow. I hadn’t failed to notice how silent both cousins became when I brought up the anklets. ‘Don’t change the subject.’

‘Sorry, Spout.’ Cam sighed, his hand going to the necklace under his shirt. He started pacing. ‘I’d rather not talk about it now though.’

I shrugged, unsure of what to say.

Cam started pacing awkwardly around the room. ‘How are you getting on then?’

‘Well, I’m making some progress on something at least.’

Cam stopped pacing long enough to give me a quizzical look, pushing his glasses back up his nose. ‘Flying?’

I shook my head. ‘No, that might take me a while. Especially if I’m working on my own while Leroi’s working on those mysterious anklets …’

Cam’s lips pinched into a thin line.

I held my hands up. ‘Sorry, sorry. I’ll drop it. Want to see what I’m working on?’

‘Is it something new?’

I gestured for him to follow. ‘Always. You’re not the only one sick of the way things are.’

‘I’m intrigued. Lead the way, young Tinkerer!’

I smirked, hopping towards the large platform with the giant fan mounted on the back, and the cabinet with the silver medallion-like trinkets.

‘So I was thinking,’ I told Cam, shifting around the table I’d claimed as my workspace. ‘There’s got to be other helpful things that I could make while I’m trying to figure out the big stuff.’

Cam sank into a chair on the other side, picking up the rubber strip I was going to use for tension. ‘I’m all for that. What can I do to help?’

‘Listen and watch.’

Cam sighed, leaning over so he could look at all the gears and springs I’d laid out, still toying with the rubber. ‘Fine. But when you discover how to scoop Cold out of the sky and the whole World Cried knows your name, you be sure to tell them mine too.’

I put a hand over my heart. ‘Fair trade.’

I tapped on the sheets of parchment I’d drawn the design on, glad that I finally had paper to work with. Being able to extract the ideas from my mind and plan them properly had uncovered a whole new layer of my creativity.

‘This is the Decoy Box,’ I said, gesturing to the various materials laid out on the table, gleaming and ready to be assembled. ‘I was thinking about all of us Jadans who sneak out at night. Whether it’s trying to find food, or escape something in our barracks, or even things that I don’t know about—’ I thought of Abb and me wandering out onto the dunes, and turned back to the table, my throat dry. ‘A lot of us are out there crawling on the rooftops at night, and it’s not safe.’

Cam nodded solemnly. ‘I can only imagine.’

I plucked off the thick piece of Glassland Blue and the brass rod from their places and began rubbing them together slowly, easing out the horrific sound. I’d discovered this phenomenon by happy accident, a few nights back when once again I couldn’t sleep and had wandered the raw materials stacks of the tinkershop instead, testing things.