Page 25 of The Towering Sky

Rylin nodded. “Same.”

Nadia, did we ever find out what Leda had on Rylin?

She stole drugs, Nadia informed him.

Watt didn’t have to ask Avery’s secret, because he already knew what it was. Her relationship with Atlas.

He glanced over at Leda. Her secret—the fact that she had killed Eris, no matter that it was an accident, and had then tried to cover it up—was as dangerous as his. Maybe even the worst of all.

“We’re all in this together,” he said, which was true. The three other people in this room had once been strangers, but now their lives were inextricably bound with his.

“I have to go,” Rylin said abruptly. “Keep me posted if anything happens. And be careful.”

Leda was still pointedly refusing to look at Watt. “Thanks for letting us meet here, Avery.”

Watt nodded good-bye to Avery before following quickly on Leda’s heels. “Leda,” he called out, but she just kept walking down the Fullers’ long entryway, her footsteps quickening. Her heels echoed on the white marble tiles with their black border.

She’s avoiding you, Nadia pointed out unnecessarily.

Watt started running. “Leda!” he tried again, not that it would be any use—the elevator doors were opening, and she was hurriedly retreating inside.

He just barely managed to squeeze into the elevator before the heavy brass doors shut behind him with a resounding click. Hedidn’t have much time. Just the length of a single elevator ride, to convince the girl he loved that they had to see each other again.

“Hey, Leda.” He said it nonchalantly, as if he hadn’t just chased her down a hallway after a discussion about amurder investigation. As if it wasn’t a big deal that they were alone in the same space for the first time in months. Close enough to touch. Breathing the very same air. “We need to talk.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Not aboutus.” Watt attempted to force a beat of normalcy into his voice, which was pretty much impossible. “I meant about this Mariel stuff. I want to help.”

“Thanks, but I’ll be fine. I only wanted to warn—”

“Warn us, yeah, I got it.” Watt leaned forward, bracing his arm against the elevator’s wall so he effectively boxed Leda in. “You need my help, Leda.”

“No, Idon’t,” she insisted, ducking under his arm and retreating to the opposite side of the elevator. “Besides, Watt, this isn’t something you can hack your way out of.”

“Sure it is,” Watt said automatically, though he wasn’t actually sure where he would start. “Unless you already hired another hacker? Tell me who it is, so I can sabotage them.” He meant it as a joke, but the delivery was all wrong.

“I can’t afford to be spending time with you,” Leda said quickly. “It’s too risky—it could spark all my problematic behaviors, and if I spiral out of control again, my parents will send me to boarding school. I don’t want to risk it, okay?” A vein pulsed in her throat.

“Look, I’m sorry that I’m some kind of human trigger.” Watt sighed. “But you should know that I’m going to keep working on this either way. You’re not the only one who has a lot to lose, if those secrets get out.”

“I really am sorry. I never wanted you to get involved.” Ledaseemed a bit softer. She’d been all sharp angles when he first stepped into the elevator, but now some of those angles were sanded down.

“I am involved, like it or not,” Watt said, trying to focus on his words and not how maddeningly close she was. “We can work separately on this, or we can combine forces. You know what they say, two brains are better than one.” In this case, maybe three were better than two, if you counted Nadia.

They reached the 990th-floor landing with a soft click, and the doors hissed open. Leda didn’t get out yet.

“All right,” she said, as gloriously prideful as ever. “I guess we can work together on this. You can be useful when you want to be.”

Watt knew that was the most eloquent request for assistance he was likely to get. Leda Coleneverrevealed vulnerability, and she never asked for help.

He felt a flush of eager excitement. No matter what she said—no matter the circumstances in which they were seeing each other again—he refused to believe that they were over. He was still Watt Bakradi, and she was still Leda Cole, and they deserved another shot.

He was going to take advantage of every minute he got to spend with her. Whatever it took, Watt swore, he would win Leda back.

AVERY

“THANKS FOR COMINGwith me,” Avery said softly, as she and Max walked down the high-ceilinged gallery of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.