Rise An Eve Novel

already apparent. Why hadn’t I heard news of it? Had my father known and kept it from me?
    My eyes fell for a moment on Maxine, on the cotton taped to the inside of her elbow, covered with dried blood. I couldn’t bring myself to ask about what had happened in the building, about the journey she’d taken here. I couldn’t pretend we were close now, this girl I’d talked to only in passing at School, to hear whatever gossip was unfolding inside the compound walls.
    I turned to go but she stopped me, her hand clamping down on my arm. “You knew,” she said. She tilted her head to the side, looking at me as if for the first time. “That’s why you left. You helped them escape, didn’t you?”
    “I’m sorry” was all I managed.
    The soldier stepped inside the room, trying to gauge what was happening. Maxine released me, her eyes drifting to the rifle clutched in the woman’s hands. I turned to go, stepping around the cots, covering my face with my hair so as not to be recognized by the girls who sat up, startled by Maxine’s voice. I didn’t breathe until I was outside.
    “How was your friend?” the soldier asked.
    My hands were shaking. The hallway smelled like a mixture of dust and chemical cleaner. “Thank you for your help,” I said, not answering the question. She opened her mouth to say something more, but I started down the stairs, not stopping until I heard the door lock behind me.
    They were gone. It was what I’d wanted, but now that they were beyond the School walls I had no way to reach them. Their best chance was Califia, that much I knew, but it would’ve taken them more than three weeks to get there. I didn’t know how Pip or Ruby would be able to travel, if Arden was pregnant, when they’d left or how. For a moment I wanted to return to Maxine, to ask her everything, but her words came back to me. I had chosen to help them, even if it meant leaving others behind. Who was I to go to her now, to expect her to help me? Who was I to even ask?
    At the bottom of the stairs I spotted Beatrice. She was clutching a girl with short, straw-colored hair that was messy in the back, as if she’d just woken up. The girl’s face was pink, her eyes swollen. Beatrice rocked on her heels, pulling the girl closer, and for a moment, my loneliness lifted. “I found her,” she said, catching my eye. “This is my Sarah.”

three
    “THESE ARE THE OLD ENCYCLOPEDIAS YOU ASKED FOR,” MOSS said, placing the stack of hardcovers in my arms, “and one novel I thought you’d enjoy.” There were three volumes total, each two inches thick. “The ones that were missing from your collection. W and J. I hope you’ll find them useful, for looking up werewolves and the like.” He tapped his finger on the top of the first cover, signaling for me to open it.
    I lifted it gently, taking in the small packet of white powder nestled inside. A few of the pages had been cut out, creating a shallow recess. “Would you mind giving us a few moments alone?” I asked, looking to the corner of the parlor. Alina, the maid who’d replaced Beatrice, was arranging delicate cups on a tray, clearing the morning tea. She was short, with curly brown hair and small, wide-set eyes. She nodded before starting toward the door.
    I knew this was one of our final meetings, that things were coming to fruition, the power slowly, secretly shifting to the rebels. It was difficult to be hopeful, though; a heaviness had settled in after seeing Maxine. I worried about my friends, wondering where they were—if they could survive. Ruby and Pip were nearly five months along, maybe more. Why hadn’t Arden sent word through the Trail?
    When the door was shut tightly behind Alina, I unstacked the books, peering into each one. Inside the J encyclopedia was a folded map and a crank radio similar to the ones used on the Trail. “Funny,” I said, opening the thick novel set on top, its title unfamiliar. A knife sat inside, the metal glinting in the light. “ War and Peace . I get it.”
    Moss smiled as he sat down in front of me. “I couldn’t help myself,” he whispered. “It felt appropriate. I’m working on getting you a gun. But with the siege close, supplies aren’t as easy to come by. People aren’t eager to part with the weapons they have.”
    Moss was happier than I’d ever seen him. I couldn’t help but be jealous. My nervousness had grown. Most mornings I was weighed down by exhaustion. My hands shook, and there was a