Page 47 of Choosing Jenny
We all stared at her, still unable to speak, even though many at the table tried.
“The orbs they’re collecting, they can hold ghosts, right?” she went on, as if she were thinking things through. “Well, if Surge could manage to catch Justice’s ghost before Noc can do so, then no one else has to die. Only Justice has to die, if you can escape, Longshot.”
She lowered her hand, and the room filled with noise again. Those who wanted to speak could once again.
A useful trick, whatever it was. Contra power? Or something more?
Fear and doubt clouded my judgement, but Deacon looked relieved by Sarah’s plan. Hope glimmered in his eyes.
“That would be better. One death to spare the city, and maybe even spare Longshot...” He nodded to Sarah, deeply grateful. “We should try for that, before we go with my plan.”
But Longshot was as doubtful and concerned as I was. I saw it in his eyes.
He smiled politely, though, and offered a supportive comment. “If anyone can make this idea work, it is Surge Footwick.”
The rest of the room began to chat about Surge’s abilities, as though no one thought twice of Sarah silencing us all. Longshot watched her suspiciously and silently.
Afterward, I pulled Longshot aside with a plausible excuse that we’d tour the grounds and scout for any signs of Justice’s sabotage. We were, after all, the resident experts on all things Justice, so no one questioned us. But the truth was, I needed to talk some sense into the man who was equivalent to my brother.
Our two suns high above told me the breakfast and our strategizing had taken longer than I’d thought. The manor was naturally fortified. Gardens stretched to the rear until they met the base of a mountain, and dense forest wrapped around both sides. The only opening was the road out front, leading back toward the city.
Longshot freed Rhonda fromCheesecake’scaptain’s quarters so she could get some air, and she wrapped contentedly around his left forearm. Her scales glittered in the sunslight, casting light in every direction.
As we made a slow lap around the manor, I asked the question that was gnawing at me, and probably him, as well. “Do you think Sarah’s silencing trick was because she’s the contra?”
“I do not.” His pace didn’t falter. “I believe she stole it somehow from Silence.”
I nodded in agreement. “The same thought occurred to me. If she can steal abilities, that makes her even more dangerous, but more useful in this fight.”
“Yes, but she is unwilling to go to Orhon,” he replied. “Not that I blame her.”
“True. Maybe she needs to steal more abilities before she could go there safely.”
“Perhaps.”
We walked a few more steps in heavy silence, but I couldn’t take the quiet for long. I stopped in my tracks when the tension inside of me threatened to snap. Longshot stopped, too, staring at me.
“You can’t do this.”
He blinked at me. “Do what?”
“Don’t play coy with me, Longshot,” I said, bracing my hands on my hips. “You forget how well I know you. I recognize the look you gave them, along with that placating comment about how if anyone can make their stupid plan work, then it’s Surge. You were deflecting so they would think you weren’t going to sacrifice yourself. But I know better. You’re going to try to kill Justice yourself the moment you get the chance, aren’t you?”
He stared off into the distance and exhaled a long sigh. “I should have done it years ago.”
He sounded so resigned, and something in my chest cracked. “You can’t be serious.”
His gaze met mine again. “I am always serious.”
I shook my head. “There are other ways—”
“You are being a child about this,” Longshot said, poised as ever. “You know I am right.”
“What I know is that you’re being a stubborn asshole!”
A mocking glint sparked in his eyes. “One might say I have been influenced by those around me.”
I slugged his Rhonda-free arm, and he winced. The strigella glared at me like I’d insulted her personally. “You can’t do this, Longshot. You are mybrother.”
