Page 53 of Shades of Silver City

“You didn’t have to chuck the poor little guy.”

“Little my ass.” Fire shoots through my chest, and I grit my teeth. I’m not even afraid of spiders; it just scared the shit out of me. “That thing was huge—stop laughing!”

He quickly catches up with me, and I stop to face him. Though he’s stopped laughing, his eyes still twinkle with humor.

“You’re more afraid of a harmless little spider than you are of the Scouts hunting you down.”

“Not true,” I say through gritted teeth.

“Sure seemed like it.”

“You’re an ass.”

“Sorry, sorry,” he says, chuckling again. “I’m not trying to be…”

I turn toward him, planting my hands on his chest and shoving him up against the wall. “You are infuriating, Archer Acciai!”

His smile grows.

“What is possibly funny now?”

He shrugs a shoulder. “I rather like the way my name sounds on your lips.”

Exasperatedly, I throw my hands up and continue walking.

“I’m suddenly jobless, homeless, and single. Your fault—all of it—by the way. Not to mention there’s a fucking bounty on my head now! And you’re thinking about that?”

There’s no way I’m headed back to the apartment where both Reed and Alisha are. Something tells me someone might end up with a fist in their face—and it won’t be me. Plus, my roommates would surely be the first ones to turn me in if they saw my photo blasted on the UIS.

Archer kicks at the dirt underfoot with the toe of his boot, his features pinched together. “No—sorry. I don’t laugh often, but with you…”

“Me what? You find it easy to laugh at my pain?”

“That’s not it at all.” He gives me a sidelong glance. “It’s just that, despite everything going on, being around you makes me forget the horrors of this city.”

“Well…shit.” That weird, warm tightness spreads through my chest again. I don’t admit it aloud, but I sort of feel the same way.

Even though my biggest fear is coming true—the Scouts are after me—somehow I’m not afraid.

Not with Archer by my side.

"Excluding instances of exceptional rarity—gold symbolizing purity, black denoting malevolence, and grey indicating death—subtle hue variations appear to correspond with minor variances in individual personalities, offering minimal substantive insight. Unveiling the intricate nuances between shades and personality traits necessitates an extensive longitudinal study…”

-Excerpt from the personal journal of Dr. Claude Foster, Director of Faeology at Mesmeric Labs

CHAPTER 13

FANTASIA

Ihave no idea where we’re going, but I follow Archer, opting to lean into the whole trust thing.

We emerge from the tunnels a short while later, and the rumble of cars on the road reverberates down the alleyway. Somewhere out of sight, a man sings out of tune, the words slurred. I squint against the sudden onslaught of midday sunlight. Turning, I’m relieved to see that the metal storm door we just pushed through is still in place, surrounded by weathered brick. Maybe I was confused when I thought the door disappeared last time.

“Where the hell are we?” I whisper, peering around the alley. I don’t recognize the buildings.

The cement path before us is long and wide, littered with rubble and broken glass. It leads to the street, and it reeks of rot—urine and feces baking in the sun. Muggy air grips us tight in its fist, the tall buildings refusing to let a breeze through to clear it out.

Bile rises in my mouth, but I bite it back.

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