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AMITY

“No, stay here.”

I sit in Vale’s lap, eating the food. There’s a shout nearby and a man staggers past. He’s followed by a couple other guys, alternately cussing the man out and trying to help him get to a place to sit down.

I find myself burrowing deeper. Vale’s grip tightens around my waist, and I feel his arm as firm as the seatbelt was in the car. Even though he’s only holding me in place, it feels incredibly intimate.

I close my eyes briefly, enjoying the touch of his skin against mine.

“Vale Adamson. What’ve you got there?” Much closer this time, another drunk guy. Is this what all their parties are like up here?

“If you don’t turn around right now you’re not going to walk out of here tonight,” Vale doesn’t raise his voice but his words jolt me. I’m not used to threats, which are banned in the PS. Vale’s trying to get rid of the guy, and it works. He lurches off to bother someone else.

“Finish up, Ami. Then we’ll look around.” His eyes slide to the brick wall we’re sitting next to. According to the Forge, secure storage for the Brotherhood is in a security office on the roof.

They weren’t able to tell us whether there was indoor access—that’s part of what we need to check around and find out.

We know there’s a fire escape on the back of the building, around the corner from where we are.

I’d rather not take a super-exposed route to the roof if I don’t have to.

Especially since it won’t be getting completely dark tonight, only fading to civil twilight.

I’m done and we stand up. Vale stays glued to my side.

“Let’s head back inside. We can be seen as a couple and take a look around, see if we can find out anything about indoor access,” Vale tells me.

One idea is to check the elevator, but I’m not sure what excuse we have for using it. I’m already tired thinking about climbing up stairs or a ladder to get all the way up five floors. In an ideal world, we could get on the elevator and press R for roof and go straight there.

But nothing in Anchorage is ideal. I realize that now.

I wonder if Zeph has come to the same realization.

I might not see him before I leave. It no longer feels like he needs to be rescued.

I guess he’ll be staying here, training, and I’ll be back in the PS, training for HighClear.

It’s like we’re joining different sides in a war.

That’s silly. The PS is strictly against war. They will do what they have to, disarm the men from the Forge if they attack, but they would never kill anyone, right?

Then there’s the Forge soldiers. I’m not sure they even know what they want.

Do they really want things to go back to how they were, with people shooting each other in the face, with men forced to serve in wars and die halfway across the world?

I wish I could talk to Vale about it more. He seems…reasonable, intelligent.

Remember your mission, Ami , I have to remind myself.

Get the laptop, contact the PS, drop it off, and go home.

Vale’s got the backpack, our means of transporting the laptop.

I’ll have to get away with the backpack somehow.

My mind draws a blank when I try to imagine it, but I’ll figure something out. I’ll have to.

“What about the fire escape, should we take a look?” I ask, before we enter the building again.

Vale hesitates, thinking. “We don’t want to be seen hanging around it. Let’s leave it for now.”

He takes my hand and leads me inside. There’s a bar and someone is getting drinks for the men who cluster around it.

“Do you want anything to drink?” Vale asks me.

“Oh, I don’t drink alcohol.”

“I figured.” Is he making fun of me? “Soda water?”

“No, I’m good.”

“Okay.” Vale’s scanning the room. “Let’s head over there.” He nods towards the dance floor. He squints at the band up on the stage. “I know the bass player, actually. Let’s say hi to him after this song and maybe we can take a look backstage.”

“Okay.” Dancing. How hard can that be?

We slide through the bodies. There’s more of a mix of men and women on the dance floor. My eyes widen at how close they are dancing; plenty of couples are plastered together. Vale leads me close to the band and draws me in.

“Is this okay?” he says into my ear. The music is loud and pumping through me like blood.

I nod, peeking at him. He has a smile as he pulls me all the way against him and we sway, pressed against each other. People brush against us but he keeps his arms tight around me, turning us away from the wilder dancers, burying his face in my hair.

“Vale.” I tilt my head up to speak in his ear. No one can hear us over the sound of the band. “Is this really part of the mission? Dancing?”

“Ami.” He stares into my face, then ducks down, his lips against my ear. “I’ve wanted to do this since I first saw you at that courthouse.”

“No way,” I joke automatically. He tightens his grip in response, one hand sliding up my back, the other sliding lower, pulling me against him.

“It’s true,” he says, turning us again. “You were so different from how I remember you.”

I tip my head back to answer him. “So are you. Different.”

His smile grows a shade cocky. “In a good way?”

“Maybe. But I could tell you were up to no good,” I say, sticking with the truth.

“I wouldn’t have taken you for a girl who likes a bad boy,” he teases me.

“Shut up,” I say, shoving down the conflicting feelings that are bubbling up. I feel close to him, I trust him. Like he knows me, and knows parts of me that no one back home took the time to notice .

How am I going to leave him after this? I wonder if there’s a way I can still see him again. Maybe I’ll get sent on another mission to Anchorage? Or we can meet up somewhere in the Midwest?

But what will he think of me after tonight? He’ll think I’m a traitor, dishonest. He’ll think I was tricking him all along.

In a way I was, but so much of this didn't feel like a trick. Our chats in the alley outside the market, him finding me there every day. Swimming together, dancing in this sweaty crowd. None of it feels like a trick.

The song ends too soon and Vale starts to tug me again, heading for the stage. The band is putting their instruments down and getting ready to take a break. Vale waves to one of the guys, his friend I guess, who waves back and motions to the side of the stage.

I stay close as we head there, and look all around, scanning the area behind the stage.

“Vale!” The guy spreads his arms for a hug and Vale lets go of me for a second to give his friend a bear hug before drawing me back, sliding his arm around my waist.

“This is my girlfriend, Ami.” My stomach flops over at the words.

The bass player smiles at me, genuine. “Nice to meet you, Vale’s girlfriend.”

“Ami,” Vale corrects. Then he cringes a little. “Hey, it’s super loud.”

“Yeah,” the guy agrees. “We’re heading up to take our break, want to come?”

That’s exactly what we wanted .

“Sure,” Vale says. “Let’s go catch up.”

“Come on.” The guy shouts introductions to the rest of the band, including Vale’s last name, which gets a reaction. Everyone seems to know about his dad and the Forge. Soon we’re all cramming into an elevator to go up to the “green room.”

I check out the buttons on the elevator: 1, 2, 3, 4, and basement. Okay, so no roof. But there must be a way up there from the fourth floor, right? The guy punches three and we all crowd in as the doors shut and we head up to the third floor.

The green room turns out to be an old lounge of dusty couches and coolers full of beer.

Vale accepts one for him, nothing for me, and pretends to drink.

We cuddle on one of the couches and chitchat with the guys in the band.

Vale talks to them about coming to the Forge to play for a party there, and they’re excited to line up another gig.

I wait until they’re all engrossed in conversation and then stand up. Five pairs of eyes find me.

“Sorry. I’m just gonna find a restroom. I’ll be right back.”

“You okay on your own, babe?” Vale asks.

Babe? I want to answer of course , or maybe don’t call me babe , but I can’t be out of my character, the shy and retiring girlfriend of Vale Adamson. “Oh—uh, yeah. I saw it in the hall. You stay here, I’ll just be a minute.”

“Okay.” He and the guys settle back and keep talking about the gig. Vale’s eyes are on me as I tug my skirt, adjusting it down, and walk toward the door. Maybe I can find a stairwell .

I close the door behind me. I really did see a bathroom between here and the elevator, but I don’t need to use it.

What I’d like is to see where the other doors lead, and find the stairwell.

I’m wandering down to the end of the hall when I find a heavier door.

Through the narrow window I see a set of stairs. Bingo!