A Fractured Light (Beautiful Dark)

us apart—whether the universe was plunged into chaos or meticulously controlled for the rest of eternity, or if something new took over and overthrew the system, forever changing the course of fate—that was up to me.

Chapter 28
    T he next couple of days ran together like rain.
    In a moment of weakness, everyone’s parents and Aunt Jo huddled together, and Aunt Jo finally agreed to chaperone a trip to the cabin because she had wilderness training. “But only in case someone gets hurt,” she said. “I don’t want to have to hang out with all of you around a campfire at night.”
    We agreed. We would have agreed to anything. We all needed a vacation. Or maybe I was speaking only for me.
    Everyone was excited as we planned our trip to the cabin. Asher and I didn’t leave each other’s side. It made Aunt Jo uncomfortable, but now I understood that she was afraid it meant losing me to the Rebellion rather than college. It also explained her weird animosity toward Asher—Rogues resented Rebels, even if they didn’t quite know why or who was a Rebel in the first place. She was especially nice to me, baking me my favorite cookies and making all my favorite meals like she did when she’d get back from long trips in the backcountry. Whatever happened, I was grateful that she knew what I was going through.
    As for me, I couldn’t shake the feeling that my days with Asher were dwindling along with the frost. I was terrified that every second we spent together was one second closer I came to losing him.
    One day, the two of us were sitting on the floor by my locker between classes. Gideon ambled over and sat down with us.
    “I had an idea,” he said. “About the trip.”
    “Oh?” Asher’s eyes slipped from Gideon’s to mine, but he didn’t say a word.
    “You’re not going to like it,” Gideon said.
    “Work on your salesmanship a little, Gid,” said Asher.
    “Right. Well.” He paused. “We have to ask Devin to come.”
    “ What? ” I cried. “No way.”
    “Think about it. If he’s with us, then he’s not helping them plan an attack. And they won’t strike.”
    “I guess . . . ,” I said.
    “Plus, I want to work with you more, on blocking your mind to the Guardians. If he’s with us, Asher and I can see how his presence affects you. We can tell if he’s manipulating you.”
    “Whoa,” said Asher, holding up his hands. “Leave me out of it.” When he looked at me, his eyes were strangely subdued. I wondered where all his usual fiery hatred for the Guardian had gone. Was there an ulterior motive here? Were they testing me?
    “He isn’t manipulating me,” I said. “I can feel it.”
    “Or maybe that’s just what he wants you to think.” Gideon’s features drew in on themselves, and I knew he was remembering. “Either way, we’ll know. Don’t you want to be sure?”
    Did I, at this point? I almost wondered if I’d rather never know the truth.
    “You would be the bait here,” Gideon prodded. “He’d come if you asked him.”
    I wasn’t so sure he would, but I could never tell Gideon that. Beside me, I could feel waves of tension radiating off Asher. But why isn’t Asher fighting him on this? I wondered. The Asher I knew wouldn’t even be able to sit through the suggestion.
    “Fine,” I relented. “I’ll ask him.”
    “Good.” Gideon smiled ruefully. “‘Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.’”
    Great , I thought. I wasn’t sure how much closer I could handle getting.
    Still, as long as I was working with Gideon on my cognitive and precognitive abilities, it might be useful to have Devin there. In the woods, there were opportunities to be alone, to slip away from the cabin. I could ask him more about the Sight. He could help me figure out, once and for all, if what I was seeing could, in any way, be the future.
    In the end, that’s what I told Devin. “We don’t have to tell anyone what we’re working on,” I pleaded. “It can be our secret.”
    And he agreed.
     
    I packed for the changing seasons. Winter was thawing—we could all feel it—and there was a shift in the air. The breeze brought the smell of budding earth, and with it, a sense of renewal and upheaval. Spring wasn’t quite here yet. But it was coming.
    Layers were key. Things you could easily take off and put back on again. Moisture-wicking tanks and lightweight sweaters, waterproof rain pants and wool socks, an under-layer. At the top of my pack, I carefully folded in the