Page 29 of The Flame

“What does that mean?”

He blinked at me. “Ah, right.” He shrugged. “Well, it’s just the night nurses and there’s an on-call doctor, although he doesn’t always stay at the center. It’s a short ride if he needs to come in.”

“No one at reception?”

Axel’s radar finally went on alert. He gave me a narrowed look and took a bite of turkey sandwich.

Had I blown it? I laughed and brought a forkful of pasta to my mouth. “I’m just curious about how this place runs. Too curious for my own good. That’s always been my downfall.”

“Are you kidding me?” His brow hiked. “You’re legend. You took out the council in, like, one night. That was so sweet.”

It was my turn to blink at him. “Sweet?”

“Epic.” He leaned over, lowering his voice confidentially. “You have a huge following, you know that, right?”

I shifted in my seat, really awkward now. “A following?”

“Well…” He glanced around to check we were still alone. “Me and my friends, we’re not fans of the council. And we’re not the only ones. But it’s not like any of us had the guts to do anything about it. Some of that council bullshit…it’s sick, you know?”

I nodded. “They hid a lot from us.”

“Yeah, and it’s not just that.” He took another bite of sandwich, chewed, and swallowed. “I shouldn’t be saying this…”

“Saying what?”

“This is strange, right?” He looked around again. “Suddenly we can say things that would’ve gotten us locked up in here.”

His gaze swung around to me. “Not you, though. You just went ahead and said it all, right in their faces. That was so sweet.”

It was definitely time to set him straight. “It wasn’t my decision to go public with those screenings. I didn’t even know the Sisterhood was going to do it. If I had, I’d like to think I’d have been okay with it, but I’m not sure I’m that brave.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

My father’s words flooded me. “I’m not kidding, Axel. I’m not this great hero, or leader, or whatever you’re making me out to be.”

“You went over the wall,” he said firmly. “You went to The Smoke. And you came back to tell us. If you think you’re nothing special, that’s sad. There are loads of us who think you rock big time.”

Well. “Thanks?”

“Don’t let the system take your juice, you know?”

His manner of speech was making me slightly dizzy, and it wasn’t just the overly zealous enthusiasm. “Juice?”

“You’ve started a whole movement,” he said. “That’s you. We’re done with the old crap. Like, take my mom for instance, she’s awesome. Smartest lady I know. Much smarter and tougher than my dad. No one should be telling her when she can and can’t leave her house or how she’s allowed to use her time. She would have loved to be a nurse, you know? She’s the one who made me passionate about it.”

Something wasn’t adding up. “If you feel so strongly about this, how come you work here?”

He snorted. “I apprenticed at the Medi-Center. I was hoping to get assigned there, or at any of the clinics. But we don’t get a say in our placements.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“Nah, it’s all good. I mean, it’s not like they’d close the place down without me. This way, at least I could keep an eye on the women on my watch.” He leaned forward again with a smirk. “Hey, I heard the councilmen were admitted to Ward Red this morning. What’s up with that?”

Geneva was moving fast, that’s what. “What happens in Ward Red?”

“Sick shit, that’s what.”

My heart picked up an unnatural beat. Not that I cared about Julian Edgar and his council cronies, but Daniel would be next. “Axel, I’m serious.”

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