The Immortal Crown (Age of X #2)(98)
Author: Richelle Mead

Ava seemed to accept this and move on. “I didn’t know there were woman soldiers.”

“There are lots of them where I’m from. Where I’m taking you.”

“Why are you taking us there?”

“Because it’s where you belong,” said Mae fiercely. “You were taken from there when you were young. It’s your home.”

“Dawn says you’re a demon.”

Mae laughed at that. “Dawn’s gone. Do I look like a demon?”

Ava shook her head. “Will we live with you in the new country?”

“I don’t know,” said Mae. Certainly the other girls wouldn’t, but Mae didn’t know how Ava’s custody would fall out. The Nordics wouldn’t take her, but there was a chance Ava’s plebeian father might want her, once she was identified. Mae had no clue what kind of man her sister had had her fling with but felt confident of one thing.

“Wherever you end up, it’ll be better than where you came from. You’ll be safe. No one will hurt you, and you’ll have all the choices in the world. Now go get some rest.”

The next day was less upbeat. Strict rationing took its toll once more, as did the mental exhaustion of these long, arduous days. The landscape didn’t change, remaining open grasslands with scattered clusters of small trees. It left Mae on pins and needles, especially since the amount of aircraft increased—and she was almost certain they were military machines. The upside was that the more frequent aircraft and her calculations strongly supported the idea that they were nearing the border. Further confirmation came that night when the girls had made camp again near the best group of trees Mae could find, which wasn’t saying much. She hadn’t seen anything before the sun went down, but now, in darkness, she could make out lights on the horizon.

A chill ran through her. The border.

She gathered Monica and three of the oldest girls. They didn’t have the zeal of Clara and Cecile, but they’d warmed up to her, and Mae couldn’t trust this next task to anyone younger. She paired the foursome off and quickly explained a watch schedule, instructing the first pair to stay awake until the moon was at a designated point, then wake the other pair and switch.

“Where are you going?” asked Monica.

“To do some scouting. I’ll whistle when I come back. If anyone else comes by, make no noise, even if they call out to you. Stay hidden.”

Mae didn’t bother giving instructions on what to do if the girls were seized because really, there was no advice to give.

She set out at a light jog, the implant and hope working together to charge up her tired body. This was it. They were almost there. The lights grew bigger and brighter, and Mae soon had a sense of what she was looking at. There were two military outposts, one on each side of the border, Gemmans and Arcadians mirroring each other. It was what she’d expected—and feared. Each side wanted to watch the other, which made sense but meant she had to get through the enemy to get home. She knew the rest of the border was marked with some kind of nasty fencing, barbed wire or electrically charged, maybe both.

Whatever it was, it wouldn’t be the cakewalk she’d had at Carl’s or the salon. Both sides wanted that border up, and both would have sensors going off if anyone tried to cut or cross that fencing. There would also likely be random patrols on both sides. She sized up the situation and made her decision, then hurried back to the sleeping girls.

The second watch had just started, and Mae had them help her wake up the others. The girls were groggy and grumpy and not happy about another trek after so little sleep, but Mae’s stern tone soon brought them in order. “This is it,” she told them. “Move quickly and quietly, and soon you’ll have all the food and clean clothes you could want.”

She shepherded them over the fields, shushing any questions that came along. She kept away from the outpost’s borders but knew they were within a range where they might encounter a patrol. Even in the night, the border fence was a formidable sight for the girls, with its wicked spikes and scattered red lights warning of electric shock. Mae settled the girls into a small group near a patch of darkness and ordered them to silence before taking Monica aside.

“Don’t move. Say nothing, even if you hear someone approaching—on this side. If you see soldiers on the other side, call to them in a whisper. Tell them you’re seeking asylum, that you’re kidnapped Gemman citizens and have a chipped Gemman with you that way.” Mae pointed to the direction she intended to go. “Do you understand?”

“I-I think so.” Monica’s eyes were large and fearful in the moonlight, as though she understood just how high the stakes were.

“What if soldiers on this side find us?”

“They won’t,” Mae lied.

She left them and walked along the fence toward the outposts, hoping to run into a Gemman patrol. She was placing a bet that either she or the girls would encounter friendly soldiers, a bet that might very well backfire if she ran into Arcadians first.

Ten minutes into her walk, that fear was realized.

There were two of them, and she saw them a fraction of a second before they saw her. Using her gun as a bludgeoning weapon again, she leapt out with praetorian speed and knocked out one of them before he could attack. The other immediately started firing, forcing Mae to drop to the ground to dodge the barrage. Grabbing hold of his comrade’s rifle, she swung out and slammed the gun into the man’s legs, forcing him to stumble and briefly stop shooting. She used the lull to spring up and take him down, incapacitating him with a blow to the head as well.

It was all done neatly and efficiently—except for the gunfire which had alerted both sides to her presence.

Mae set off at a hard run, hoping the Gemmans were faster. She knew if she got close enough to the outpost, a sensor would pick up her chip and identify her. Otherwise, she’d have to talk her way in. Luck held with her part of the way, and her heart leapt as she saw a group of Gemman soldiers come charging in her direction down the other side of the fence.

“Stop!” she yelled. “Stop, I’m a Gemman citizen!”

Two flashlights and five guns pointed at her. “Put down your weapon,” barked one of the soldiers.

Mae immediately complied, slowly raising her hands in the air.

“Where’s your chip sensor? I’m a citizen, and I have a group of citizens with me, a mile east down the fence.”

One of the soldiers, a middle aged woman bearing a sergeant’s rank, stepped forward, her gun still fixed on Mae. “The main sensor’s a mile west. The nearest one’s a portable one out with another patrol.”