The Gender War (The Gender Game #4)(21)

“Well, I thought… I can reach out to the Porteque gang under my old alias. They would probably be willing to meet us and smuggle us in. I don’t have any money on me, but I bet I can scrape by on credit…”

“I’m sorry,” said Viggo, scooting next to me. I wasn’t surprised he had been listening in—it wasn’t like there was a lot of space in the small area. “Did you say Porteque gang? Like how you got in last time?”

I nodded at Viggo, but then returned to shaking my head at Owen. “It won’t work—we don’t have any costumes!”

Owen fidgeted, throwing Ms. Dale and me apologetic looks. “It will if we tell them we botched it. That we were trying to grab you, Violet, and got her by mistake.”

“She has a name and can hear you,” Ms. Dale called, from where she was helping a dazed Alejandro sit upright.

The older man was massaging his jaw with his hand, his confusion palpable. “What happened?” he grumbled, and I caught a guilty look from Viggo on my left.

“Violet?” said Tim, overriding Alejandro’s question. “Who’s Porteque? Why costumes?”

“Not you—just Ms. Dale and myself,” I said.

“Why?” Tim demanded.

I moved to one side while Viggo went to kneel next to Alejandro, speaking in hushed whispers to the older man. I assumed he was apologizing. Beckoning Tim over, I met his gaze with my own.

“We have to pretend that Owen, Viggo, and Alejandro are going to sell Ms. Dale and me. It’s called a cover, and we—”

Tim cut me off before I could get further. “Sell?”

I couldn’t contain the buried anger I felt toward the Porteque gang as I was forced to explain. “Tim, in Patrus, some men… they kidnap women from Matrus and sell them to other men as wives. And… worse.”

Tim’s face went from curious to alarmed within moments. “NO!” he shouted angrily. “Won’t pretend.”

I gave him a pleading look. “It won’t be real, Tim. It’s the only way. We have to get to Patrus now.”

“Leave,” Tim rebuked.

I shook my head and sighed. “We can’t, Tim,” I said.

“Why?”

“Because of Cad. Because of our family. And because… because a lot of people will get hurt and die if we don’t try. We have to warn the king in time to stop the war. And we’re going to have to do things that aren’t easy.”

Tim gave me a dubious look, but didn’t say anything. I turned back to the others in time to see Alejandro’s watery eyes and trembling hands. Maybe he’d forgiven Viggo for hitting him, or maybe he was just so overwhelmed with everything that it didn’t really matter anymore.

“My boat,” he said, his voice thick with sadness. “I have to… I have to get home. Jenny will be worried about me.”

“Are you sure?” Viggo asked him gently. “I mean… how are you going to get back?”

Alejandro took his arm out of Viggo’s hand and gave him an irritated look. “I’m not a wanted criminal, and I’m a Patrian. All I have to do is find the nearest border crossing and tell ’em my boat sank. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m glad,” Viggo said. “But… Alejandro—you need to get to Jenny, and then run. Take only what you can carry, and get out. We don’t know what will happen out there.”

“Alejandro,” I interjected, and Alejandro looked at me as I approached, his eyes wide. “I’m sorry, but I need a favor from you. If you could find my family… My aunt and uncle are Sarah and Kurtis Thorne. And my cousin’s name is Cad—Cad Thorne. He might be married, he might not—at one point he was seeing a girl called Margot, but I don’t know. Just please… please tell them Violet said to run.”

Alejandro nodded solemnly. “I’ll do it, girl. I’ll find them for you.”

The gratitude I felt was overwhelming, and I pulled the old man in for a hug. “Thank you,” I whispered into his ear, and he nodded, patting me gently on the back.

We said our goodbyes quickly and quietly as Alejandro began to trudge south through the long grass. I felt a moment of apprehension for him—after all, it was going to be dangerous where he was going. I had no idea when Elena was going to strike, or how she was going to do it—all I knew was that it involved the king. Maybe if we could prevent what she had in mind for him, it would put a stop to her entire plan.

I turned back to the group, my mind whirring. Sitting on the grass here gave us a break from all the rushing around for a moment, and everything felt almost possible again. I could keep my fatigued body going for a few more hours… and if I could, I knew the rest of them would follow my lead. “Owen, get ahold of your Porteque contact. It’s our best plan, and we can’t afford to wait.”

“I’m on it,” he replied. “It shouldn’t take too long if they’re out here—if not, we might have to try something else.”

“It’ll have to do. What’s our weapon situation?”

“It’s not good,” said Ms. Dale, crossing her arms. “I’ve got a pair of pistols and two extra clips.”

“I’ve got one pistol and one clip,” added Owen as he pulled out his handheld and moved away from the group.