Page 31

With a slight tremor in her hand, Ruby pulled off her own sunglasses, revealing the faint green markings around her eyes. Ellie gasped, her face lighting up with amazement and recognition. She slowly removed her own sunglasses, revealing delicate purple marks around her eyes that mirrored Ruby’s.

Jonah’s face paled and he took a quick step back.

“Thank you for showing me, Ellie.” Ruby gestured toward the house. “I have to talk to Jonah for a minute or two about boring, grownup stuff. Why don’t you head back inside and watch cartoons with Kavya?”

Kavya gave her a weary look but the girl nodded, skipped forward, grabbed Kavya’s hand, and tugged her inside.

“How did Lucas even find these people?” Ruby asked as the door banged shut.

Jonah's face hardened. “Are the parents…?” He trailed off

“Yes,” Ruby whispered, swallowing the lump in her throat. “I can’t do this, Jonah.”

“The TCA already knows she’s here.”

“She’s just a kid!”

“I understand, but I don’t think there’s anything we can do.”

Panic tore its way through her stomach, stomping through her chest and swarming her throat. “They don’t know she’s here. They didn't even know if there were any thermies left behind. We’ll tell them the whole family was killed. Or that Edward took her. We can hide her.”

Jonah reached forward, putting his hand on her shoulder. She yanked it away, shaking her head. He sighed. “Where would she go?”

“She can stay in the hotel with me. Or, I don’t know, okay? Maybe Lucas can look after her. But we can’t let the TCA know she’s here. They’ll kill her, Jonah.”

“Okay. We’ll take her with us.”

Her head shot up. “Really?”

“Of course. She’s just a kid, we can’t leave her behind. We have to get going though, agents are never too far behind a group like ours.”

They burst into the living room, finding Kavya sitting on the couch behind Ellie, gun trained on the small girl’s back as she watched television.

Ruby knelt beside the small girl. “Ellie, I need you to pack a small bag, okay? Just some clothes, a favorite toy, maybe a book.”

Ellie’s bright eyes clouded with confusion. “Are we going somewhere?”

“What’s going on?” Kavya asked, standing and putting the gun back in her holster.

“I’ll explain fully in the truck, but we have to get out of here before the TCA arrives. They can’t know about her.”

“They already know.”

Canned cartoon laughter sounded in the background, mocking the silence that fell over the room.

“Why would they know, Kavya?” Ruby didn’t bother to hide the accusation in her voice.

“Because I texted them as soon as I walked in.” Kavya straightened her back.

She wasn’t particularly tall, especially compared to Ruby and Jonah, but she had an aura of authority, her features set in a serious line.

“Because that is my job. Because that is OUR job. We work for the TCA, the Thermophile Control Agency. That—” She pointed at Ellie “—is a thermophile.”

“SHE,” Jonah corrected, “is a little girl.”

“She stopped being a little girl the minute she was infected.”

“Enough.” Ruby stood and made her way to the kitchen, ignoring Kavya’s protests and Jonah’s worried look. She pressed her phone hard to her cheek, her voice low and fierce. “I won’t do it.”

“What?” Lucas’s tone crackled through, confused and unprepared for her defiance.

“It’s a kid,” she nearly bit into her phone, each word sharper than the last. “I’m not handing her over to be put down like a dog. She didn’t do anything wrong.” Ruby’s voice caught, but she didn’t let herself waver, summoning every ounce of resolve.

“Ruby—”

“No.” She cut him off. “I don’t care what strings you have to pull or who I have to talk to. I won’t do it. I’ll take responsibility for her once Edward is gone. Just… fix it.” Her voice was a strained whisper, the same way it had been when she’d begged doctors, long ago, for another answer.

“Let me see what I can do.” The line went dead, and she stood there. She closed her eyes and let out a trembling breath. Her stomach twisted at the thought of Ellie meeting that same end as Gerald, as Andy . This girl was innocent, a victim; she shouldn’t have to suffer for someone else’s horror.

Her phone buzzed, jerking her back to the present. Lucas’s message confirmed that the TCA would take Ellie in on the condition she enrolled in a softer version of the agent program. Ruby clutched her phone, relief mingling with lingering dread.

When she returned, Ellie clutched a bowl in her hands, chewing as she watched the cartoons. She looked up as Ruby entered the room. “Look, Ruby, Kavya reheated my mac and cheese and put on SpongeBob. I’m almost done though, so I can’t share.”

“That’s great kiddo. But have you brushed your teeth today?” Ellie nodded eagerly, but Ruby raised an eyebrow. “And your hair?”

Ellie hesitated, flashed a sheepish grin, and sprinted off toward the back of the house faster than any kid her age should be able to run.

Jonah stood beside her, watching the girl disappear down the hall. “What’s the plan?” he asked, the question softened with an implicit trust that warmed Ruby’s heart.

“The TCA will take her in,” Ruby said. Jonah’s eyes were filled with questions but no judgment as he waited for her to explain.

Kavya scoffed. “They’re enrolling her in the training program, one like I went through—but she’ll be safe.

” Ruby stared at the ground, the memory of what the agency had put her through too fresh.

“They’ll keep her away from Edward and make sure she learns to control her abilities. ”

Ellie winced, hand on her stomach. “My tummy hurts,” she whispered, and Ruby’s heart dropped. She led the girl to the bathroom, holding her steady as she retched, her face pale.

“Feel better?” Ruby asked, gently brushing Ellie’s hair back as she caught her breath.

Ellie managed a nod, leaning into Ruby’s touch.

Kavya hovered in the doorway. “Why don’t you go ahead and start getting some stuff together, Ellie?”

“Can Jonah help me? I want to bring Billy but he’s on the top shelf and I can’t reach him.”

Jonah appeared over Kavya’s shoulder. “Of course.”

The women fell silent as the child left the room.

The small sounds of Ellie gathering her things echoed through the house.

Ellie laughed from the other room and a pang of grief hurled through Ruby for the parts of herself she’d had to bury, the ways she’d been taught to hate her own kind.

Ellie shouldn’t have to grow up fighting a war against herself.

A few cartoons later, Kavya’s phone rang. Ellie popped up from the couch, releasing the braid she was attempting in Jonah’s hair.

“Elle, I need you to listen to me.” Ruby’s chest tightened. She spun the girl around, looking her in the eye. “Some friends of mine are going to help keep you safe for a while, until I can come back.”

Ellie frowned, clutching her hand tightly. “But I want to stay with you.”

Ruby forced a smile. “This is just for a little while, I promise.”

They both turned at the sound of tires on gravel as a black TCA van pulled into the driveway. Two agents stepped out. Ellie shrank back, her fingers gripping Ruby’s hand with renewed urgency.

“Ruby?” Ellie trembled, her small face pressed into Ruby’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, Ellie,” Ruby whispered, pulling her close, feeling the girl’s heartbeat racing. “These people are here to help keep you safe.”

But as the agents approached, Ellie’s face twisted with sudden panic. “No!” she screamed, surprising Ruby with her strength as she pushed one of the agents backward. He stumbled, shock flashing across his face as he hit the ground.

Ellie’s scream cut through the evening air, her terror raw and unfiltered. “These are the bad men! They’ll hurt me!” She struggled against Ruby’s arms, her small fists pounding as she tried to break free.

Ruby knelt, scooping Ellie into her arms, her heart aching with every sob that shook the tiny girl. “These are friends of mine, Ellie. They’re here to help, I swear. I’ll come back for you as soon as I can. You have my word.”

But Ellie shook her head, her fists clutching Ruby’s shirt. “No! Please don’t let them take me.”

One of the agents stepped forward, producing a small vial and a syringe. Ruby tensed, her instincts flaring, but this was protocol. She wanted to scream, to tell them to stop. Jonah’s hand clapped on her shoulder, grounding her.

“It’s only temporary,” the agent said softly, looking at Ruby with a mix of apology and duty.

Ruby nodded, her jaw clenched as she watched the agent inject the sedative. Ellie’s cries softened, her eyes blinking heavily as the sedative took effect. She reached out, her hand brushing Ruby’s cheek. “Please,” she murmured, her words slurred with sleep. “Please, Ruby. Help me…”

Ruby held her close until the last hint of awareness faded from Ellie’s eyes. She pressed a kiss to Ellie’s forehead, whispering, “I’ll come back for you. I promise.”

As the agents carried her to the van, Ruby and Jonah stood side by side, silent. The van’s engine rumbled to life, and they watched it roll down the driveway and disappear into the night, carrying the small girl away.