Cole paused. “I guess we’ll have to go with her.”
“Not necessarily,” Jace said slowly. “I won’t leave her. But you don’t have to stick around. She’ll have help. You’re not from here. This isn’t your battle.”
Cole frowned. Jace was giving him an out. Did he want one? Kind of. How were they supposed to beat some huge creature made of pure shaping power? Cole didn’t want to let Mira down, but he was also worried about finding Dalton and Jenna and figuring out how they could get home. It sounded like Declan might have some ideas that could steer him in the right direction. He would make sure to bring it up tomorrow.
Jace had never been particularly nice to him. What was he up to?
“You don’t want me around?” Cole asked.
“I don’t really care,” Jace said, although it sounded like maybe he did. “It’s up to you. I’m just saying you don’t have to feel trapped.”
“What about Twitch?”
“I talked to him already,” Jace said. “He’s not too excited about it, but it looks like he’s coming, more out of duty than anything. He doesn’t want the High Shaper to get away with what he did. But I think partly he doesn’t want to be on his own as a runaway slave with the legion and the Sky Raiders on his tail. If you go your own way, there’s a chance he’d join you.”
“You just want to be alone with her,” Cole realized.
Jace reddened. “What are you talking about?”
“I can’t believe it,” Cole said. “Even after all this, you’re mostly worried about your crush.”
Jace took a deep, angry breath. “Don’t try to push your feelings onto me. Just because—”
“My feelings? Are you serious?”
“Cole, don’t mess with me about this.”
“I might have to if you’re trying to talk me out of coming.”
“This isn’t up to me. The choice is yours. I’m just not sure I’d try to force my way into a situation where I wasn’t wanted.”
“What?” Cole exclaimed. “You get that she was going to leave with me. We were going to sneak away tomorrow morning. Then the legion showed up.”
Jace grew very still. “You’re such a liar.”
“Why do you think she knew about my friends who the High King enslaved? She was going to help me find them. You heard us talking about it. Go ask her.”
Jace looked away, his lips twisting. He flexed his fingers. “This is hilarious. What are you saying? That I’m the intruder?”
“No. I’m saying that Mira and I were going to run away and help each other. She told me her secret because I saved her life. She decided she could trust me.”
Jace gave a stiff nod. “Then you want to come?”
“Not really,” Cole said. “I don’t know how we’re going to beat that creature. If it kills her, sounds like we’ll get to see what explosions look like up close.”
“It’ll have to go through me first,” Jace said.
“I get it. You’re brave. You really are. She’s lucky to have you. She needs all the help she can get. Working together got us this far.”
“You’re coming, then?”
Cole thought about it. Did he want to abandon Mira to her problems? She was the only real friend he had made in the Outskirts. And Jace and Twitch were the next closest. Could he leave Mira to their care? He had promised Durny to look after her, but Mira had told him he could go. Did he want to be on the run alone? Not really. But what about Jenna? What about Dalton?
“I don’t know,” Cole said. “My friends have nobody helping them.”
“Right,” Jace said. “So what does that mean?”
“It means I need more information. I want to hear what Declan knows. My friends really need me.”
“Got it. Good to know where we rank.”
“Weren’t you just trying to get rid of me?”
“Maybe. Cole, I don’t like her how you think. We just found out she’s more than any of us have a right to dream about. She’s a real friend. I appreciate her. It’s not like . . . I just don’t want anything to happen to her.”
“Okay.”
“You better not say anything.”
“I get it,” Cole said. “I won’t.”
Jace looked calmer. “All right. See you in the morning.” He let himself out.
Cole walked over and flopped onto the bed. After all they had been through today, he could hardly believe that Jace wanted to add more drama. Jace obviously had it bad for Mira, but so what? They all had way bigger problems for now.
Cole buried his face in a pillow. Was he really going to ditch Mira? Maybe . . . if it meant saving Jenna and Dalton. But what if they were fine? What if they were becoming good shapers? What if they liked working in a palace? Thinking about the decision made him ache with doubt.
There was another knock at the door. Cole sat up. Could it be Mira this time? Or was Jace coming back with more inspirational thoughts?
Cole crossed to the door and opened it to find Liam waiting on the other side. “May I come in?”
“Sure,” Cole said, stepping back.
Liam entered. He wore loose blue pajamas. It was the first time Cole had seen him not on his disk. “I did this room,” Liam said.
“It’s weird,” Cole replied.
“Thank you. Mind if I sit?”
“No.”
Liam plopped down on the couch, making it wobble. “How is Happy?”
“The face on the wagon? That was you!”
“One of my early semblances,” Liam said. “I was glad to hear he’s still out there. I wonder how many people have found him over the years.”
“He still talks about you.”
“And here we are talking about him. Did he cheer you up?”
“Actually he did. I was having a bad day.”
“Anyone in that wagon is having a bad day.”
“True.” Cole sat down on a chair near the couch. “Did Declan tell you about our conversation?”
“No, I spied.”
“What? I thought nobody could spy on that room.”
“Nobody can penetrate it from the outside. I had Lola the Pig leave behind a tiny rendering. It sent vibrations to an earpiece that I wore. Nobody else could have overheard. I take a greater interest in current events than Declan realizes.”
“Then you heard about Mira,” Cole said.