“How?” she demanded. Then she seemed to think better of the question as she let go of me. “Food, first, I think, then explanations.”

Thimble looked more mature in her tidy brown skirt and white blouse. She wore an apron to protect it from whatever she had been working on. With busy hands, she beckoned us into the cool shade of the cottage. I came first, Fade next, and then Stone with the brat. Inside, there were wooden chairs with brightly sewn cushions and a sturdy table, a box full of toys near the door. A ladder stretched to the loft they had promised while a doorway led to the back of the house. There was a fireplace for cooking, and windows cut on either side to let in the light. Shutters would protect them from the elements. For a few seconds, I just admired their home.

While she hurried around setting crocks on the table, Stone performed the introductions, in case Thimble and Fade didn’t remember each other. Then I said, “Is there someplace we can clean up? The river isn’t as refreshing as it looks.”

“I should’ve offered,” Stone answered, handing his brat to Thimble.

He led us to a washhouse out back, where Fade and I tidied up. Afterward, we enjoyed their hospitality, the best meal I’d eaten in weeks. Thimble fed us soft cheese and dark bread, fried fish and sliced apples, fresh greens and chopped nuts. Fade and I tried not to be greedy, but after field rations for weeks, we quietly accepted seconds and thirds. As we ate, I told our story and explained how we’d arrived in Rosemere. They were interested in everything Fade and I had to say and concerned about the horde. But with the river as a buffer, the immediate danger seemed remote.

“I suppose it’s our turn,” Thimble said, once I finished talking.

Stone covered my hand with his, tentative, as if he expected me to pull away. I didn’t. “Me first. You gave up everything for me, and I let you leave thinking I blamed you. I’m so sorry, Deuce. You have no idea how much.”

I set down my spoon. “It would help if I knew why.”

“Robin,” Stone said.

The brat glanced up from his place on the floor, where he was stacking wooden blocks. “Yes, Da?”

“He’s why. I wasn’t supposed to pay attention to him after I did my part, but I always knew he was mine. And I loved him. When they said I was guilty of hoarding, I could only think that I’d never see him grow up, never be there for his naming day, and I would’ve done anything to stay with him … even let a friend suffer in my place.”

Thimble picked up the story, seeming to sense that Stone wanted her to. “And we were both frightened of what was happening in the enclave. We hoped we’d escape reprisal if we pretended to condemn you along with everyone else. It was … cowardly. I’m sorry too.”

“Did it work?” Fade asked coldly.

I had never seen such sorrow in my friend’s eyes as she shook her head. Then she told us of the massacre down below—how my exile, along with Banner’s death—led to open insurrection. Silk put down the rebels, but by that time, it was too late, and the Freaks took advantage of the weakness and disorder to sack College as they had Nassau. She shared the rest of their tale then; after she laid the traps and Stone played bait, they escaped to an old-world shelter, accessible through the tunnels. For a time, they stayed there, letting Thimble’s foot heal and Robin recover from the ordeal. He seemed like a happy brat, so it must’ve worked.

“That was when we named him,” Stone concluded. “I didn’t want to wait until he was older. That seems like you’re asking the world to take your child away.”

Pain blazed through me when I thought of Twist and Girl26. I’d left people behind, and until this moment, I’d tried not to remember them. Looking at Stone and Thimble, I couldn’t help it. “What happened to Twist?”

Stone bent his head. “He fell in the initial fighting. Hunters cut him down.”

That seemed worse than dying to Freaks. For a moment, I remembered the small, weak Builder, who had saved our lives by providing forbidden supplies. We were supposed to leave with no food, no water, but unlike the others, Twist hadn’t been so cruel. Without him, Fade and I wouldn’t be here … and our benefactor was gone.

“Were there any other survivors?” Fade asked.

“I heard some as we were leaving, but we couldn’t save them,” Stone answered. “I was afraid a larger group would draw too much attention.”

Thimble’s expression hardened. “They didn’t help when the Freaks were chasing you. They hid and cried. If not for my traps and your speed, we’d be nothing but bones by now.”

“So others might have made it out,” I said.

“Maybe.” Stone shrugged as if he didn’t care.

I shouldn’t, but Girl26 had no say in how the elders had run the enclave. So I clung to the possibility that she was like Fade—that she’d hidden from the Freaks and crept away quietly. To what, I didn’t know, as by then, the ruins were likely overrun, but a smart girl might find a way to survive, as Thimble had proven.

“So how did you get from the shelter to Rosemere?” Fade wondered.

I was curious too. Thimble was clever and Stone was strong, but neither had any experience defending themselves, so I couldn’t believe they’d made such a long journey. Yet here they were in their own cottage, settled in the prettiest village I’d ever seen.

Stone took up the story. “Eventually the tinned food ran low and we felt strong enough to venture out. So we climbed up. Topside couldn’t be worse than darkness and filth, we thought.”

“It was so bright,” Thimble said, remembering. “It hurt my eyes, and I was so scared.”

With easy affection, Stone scooped her into his lap. “We both were. For a time, we wandered and hid. I killed birds and we ate them raw. There were packs of Freaks fighting humans, most of whom wore the same colors.”

“The gangs,” Fade guessed.

Stone continued without prompting. “Eventually we went into a building and Thimble found a useful paper. A map,” he added, as the word came to him.

“I knew we needed fresh water, so I guided us toward the blue on the page. And that was when we saw the boatmen.” Thimble smiled in recollection; and I grasped how relieved they must’ve been with food scarce, a brat depending on them, and the ruins alight with violence.

Fade touched my hand. We’d gone to the water too, but there were no boats bobbing on the waves. If we had come earlier—or later—our path might’ve been so different. But maybe our journey happened as it was supposed to, so I could meet my new family and learn to love Fade as he deserved.

Stone said, “I called out and the fisherman heard me. He told me he couldn’t risk the shallows … and that I’d have to swim to him. So I put Robin on my back and got into the water.”

A shiver rolled through me. “It’s a miracle you survived.”

“Only because of Thimble. She found a piece of driftwood and called me back. We used it to float out to the boat, and then we sailed with them up the coast and down the river to Rosemere. They promised us it was safe—”

“And we’ve been here ever since,” she finished.

“That’s quite a story,” Fade said.

“It’s the best kind,” Stone told us, smiling. “Because it has a happy ending.”

And I brought the monsters here.

Unprecedented

After dinner, I stepped outside to clear my head. Fade was eating another slice of Thimble’s honey cake, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the evil on the other side of the river. Stone and Thimble’s story was incredible, and I envied the happiness they’d found in Rosemere. I was tired of killing; I wanted to build too.

“Wait,” Stone called from the doorway.

It was dark by then, moonlight shining down. “I won’t go far. And I’ll be back soon.”

“No … before you go, please say you forgive me, Deuce.”

Such a small thing. “Of course. You love Robin so much … and that’s the way a sire should feel about his son. I’ve come to realize that the enclave was backward in so many ways.”

He hugged me tight. “Thank you.”

“Tell Fade and Thimble I’ll be back soon.”

“I will. It’s safe here, so feel free to explore.”

My head whirling, I walked through town, admiring the pretty cobbled streets and the lamps that lit them. Morrow had been right. This was the most peaceful place, and you could see it in the children’s faces as they played. They didn’t know how it felt to be hungry or frightened.

I want the world to look this way … or at least the whole of the territories.

My path led me down to the sturdy pier, where the boats were moored. Men fearlessly sailed up and down the river, casting their nets. During the day, the area was full of fresh fish and people arguing about its worth. By night, however, it was quiet, so I was unprepared for the touch on my shoulder. Reflex took over; as I whirled, I drew my knives and dodged back a step.

In the moonlight, I made out only a shadowy, hooded figure. It was impossible to glimpse his features, but when he spoke, shivers of dread ran over my skin. “You’re the Huntress.”

I had heard Freaks rasp out words before, but never with such fluency. Their voices always sounded broken and garbled, as though it hurt them to speak our tongue. But this … how can he be here? My thoughts scattered like frightened fish. At this point, terror should grip me fully, but numbness crept over me instead. My hands trembled and sweat beaded on my brow, but I couldn’t let him have the upper hand.

So I feigned calm. “I am. Push back your cowl so I can see you.”

He moved slowly, but as he did, his sleeves fell back to reveal gray skin and taloned hands. Starlight illuminated sharp, savage features. His eyes were inhuman, glowing amber-gold like a cat’s. He might even see in the dark better than me, possibly part of their continued evolution. He appeared young, his body lean and strong.

“What are you doing here?” I demanded.

Outwardly I displayed anger, but I was quaking inside. If the monsters had worked out how to cross the water and were mounting an invasion, I couldn’t bear it. Company D had scattered with my permission; I’d thought it best to give them a few days of peace while I decided what to do about the two thousand Freaks camped across the river. But now I had no way to summon them fast enough to defend Rosemere, should that become necessary.

“I came to talk,” the Freak said.

My grip slipped on my knives. Given my history against these monsters, I’d expected this was an assassination attempt, but if it had been, he could have ripped out my spine from behind. Touching me to alert me to his presence ran completely counter to any hostile aim. Since coming topside, the skills I’d learned as a Huntress down below had served me well—and despite my misgivings, I sensed this Freak was different from the rest, mostly because he chose words over violence. His fluency with our language also marked him as special, and I’d regret it if I didn’t find out what he wanted. Hands shaking, I sheathed my blades. Maybe this was madness, but I’d hear him out.