I look at her, wondering about her, remembering how well she healed, how hard she fought for Corinne’s life, how she managed through sheer willpower to turn a band of healers and stragglers into an army that might have toppled the Mayor, just like she said, had the Spackle not come.
But I remember the bombs, too.
I remember the last bomb.
“You tried to kill me.”
“I tried to kill him,” she says. “There is a difference.”
“Got room for more up here?” says a voice behind us.
We all turn. It’s a dust-covered man with a ragged uniform and a sly look in his eyes. A look I recognize.
“Ivan?” I say.
“I woke up at the cathedral and there was a war a-going on,” he says.
I see other men behind him, heading for the food tent, the men who tried to help me and Todd overthrow the Mayor, the ones knocked unconscious in the Mayor’s Noise attack, Ivan the last to fall.
I’m not actually sure I’m pleased to see him.
“Todd always said you went where the power was,” I say.
His eyes flash. “It’s what’s kept me alive.”
“You’re very welcome here,” Mistress Coyle says, like she’s in charge. Ivan nods and heads off to feed himself. I look back at her, and I can see her smiling at what I’d said about power.
Because he came to her, didn’t he?
[TODD]
“It’s the smart thing to do,” the Mayor says. “It’s what I would do in her place. Try to get our new residents on her side.”
Viola called me first thing and told me all about the Answer showing up on the hilltop. I found myself seeing if I could hide it from the Mayor, trying to keep my Noise light, trying to do it without any effort at all.
He still heard me.
“There ain’t no sides,” I say. “There can’t be no more. It’s all of us against the Spackle now.”
The Mayor just makes an mmm sound with his throat.
“Mr President?” It’s Mr O’Hare with another report. The Mayor reads it, his gaze hungry.
Cuz nothing’s happened yet. I think he expected a new battle at first light but the cold sun rose and nothing happened and now it’s closer to midday and still nothing. Like all that fighting yesterday never happened.
(except it did–)
(except it’s still happening in my head–)
(I am the Circle and the Circle is me, I think, light as I can–)
“Not particularly illuminating,” the Mayor says to Mr O’Hare.
“There’s reports of possible movement to the south–”
The Mayor shoves the papers back at Mr O’Hare, cutting him off. “Do you know, Todd, if they chose to come at us with full numbers, there’d be nothing we could do? Our weapons would eventually run out of ammunition, our men would eventually die, and there would still be more than enough of them left to wipe us out.” He clicks his teeth together in thought. “So why aren’t they coming?” He turns to Mr O’Hare. “Tell the men to go in closer.”
Mr O’Hare looks surprised. “But, sir–”
“We need to know,” the Mayor says.
Mr O’Hare stares at him for a second, then says, “Yes, sir,” before leaving, but you can tell he’s unhappy about it.
“Maybe the Spackle don’t think the way you do,” I say. “Maybe their goal ain’t just war.”
He laughs. “Forgive me, Todd, but you do not know our enemy.”
“Maybe you don’t neither. Not as much as you think.”
He stops laughing. “I beat them before,” he says. “I will beat them again, even if they’re better, even if they’re smarter.” He brushes some dust off his general’s trousers. “They will attack, mark my words, and when they do, I will beat them.”
“And then we’ll make peace,” I say firmly.
“Yes, Todd,” he says. “Whatever you say.”
“Sir?” It’s Mr Tate this time.
“What is it?” the Mayor says, turning to him.
But Mr Tate ain’t looking at us. He’s looking past us, across the army, where the ROAR of the men is changing as they see it, too.
The Mayor and I turn to look.
And for a second, I truly don’t believe my eyes.
{VIOLA}
“I really think Mistress Coyle should have a look at this, Viola,” Mistress Lawson says, her worried hands rebandaging my arm.
“You’re doing fine on your own,” I say.
We’re back in the little makeshift healing room on the scout ship. As the morning went on, I really did start to feel unwell and sought out Mistress Lawson, who nearly fell over herself with concern when she saw me. Barely pausing to get permission from Simone, she dragged me aboard and set about reading the instructions for every new tool they landed with.
“These are the strongest antibiotics I found,” she says, finishing the new bandage. It feels cool as the medicine sinks in, though the red streaks are now stretching in both directions from the band. “All we can do now is wait.”
“Thank you,” I say, but she barely hears me as she goes back to inventorying the scout ship’s medical supplies. She was always the kindest of the mistresses, tiny and round and in charge of healing the children of Haven, always the one who wanted more than anything to stop other people suffering.
I leave her to it and head back down the ramp from the bay doors onto the hilltop, where the Answer’s camp is already looking almost permanent with the hawklike shadow of the scout ship watching over them. There are rows of orderly tents and fires, supply areas and meeting places. In barely the space of a morning, it looks almost like the camp they had back at the mine when I first joined up with them. Some of them were happy to greet me when I walked through it, but some wouldn’t speak to me at all, unsure of my place in all this.
I’m not too sure of my place in it either.
I had Mistress Lawson treat me because I’m going back down to see Todd, though I’m so tired right now, I’m not sure I won’t fall asleep in the saddle. I’ve already talked to him twice this morning. His voice on the comm is tinny and distant, and his Noise is muffled, overwhelmed on the tiny comm speakers by the Noise of the army around him.
But seeing his face helps.
“Are these all friends of yours, then?” Bradley says, coming down the ramp behind me.
“Hey!” I say, walking right into his hug. “How are you feeling?”