Into the Fire (Flame in the Shadows Trilogy #1)

10. Mel

CHAPTER TEN

MEL

I’m at the center of a small, empty room, unlike any I’ve been in before. The walls and ceiling are striated rock. Lanterns hang on iron spikes, washing the cell in warm yellow light. The stone floor is smooth. Unnaturally so. There’s only one way out: a heavy metal door, currently closed. There are no windows.

It reminds me of a dungeon.

My middle-aged captors watch in silence from either side of the exit. There are two of them, a man and a woman. The man looks like a soldier, an impression reinforced by the stern twist of his face, not to mention the bulk of his arms.

An enforcer. Someone who knows how to break people.

The woman’s face is kinder. Something about her expression, the way she avoids my gaze, makes my breath catch.

She looks guilty.

I try to catch her eye as footsteps approach outside. She meets my stare for a second, then drops her attention to her boots.

The thick door swings forward, revealing Cait and a brown-skinned woman with round, wire-rimmed glasses, soft curves, and a cloud of curly black hair. She looks like a teacher, or possibly a librarian. Not a terrorist.

Strange. These people aren’t what I expected from the Organization. Well, except for the enforcer with the bazooka arms.

The new woman’s jaw drops. She turns to Cait, dark eyes ablaze. “What have you done?”

“I didn’t have a choice.”

“There is always a choice.”

The woman prods Cait into my cell, pulling the door closed behind them.

“No, Lisa, there isn’t.” Cait crosses her arms, the picture of defiance.

She looks tough, sure, but I’m impressed she doesn’t take a step back. Lisa projects an aura of power that makes her wrath feel especially dangerous.

“Explain.”

My thoughts tangle in confusion. The way they’re talking doesn’t make sense. It’s like I’m not supposed to be here.

Bewildered, I watch in silence.

“I went to check on her, like you asked. She was gone by the time I got to her place, so I broke in and looked around. No sign of a struggle, but it was clear she left in a hurry. At first, I thought she skipped town.”

Cait throws me a hard glance. “That would’ve been the smart thing to do. But as I was leaving, I noticed her purse hanging by the door. I went through it. Everything was there: IDs, credit cards, car keys, phone. Obviously she hadn’t left town, so I wondered whether the Organization had taken her.”

I shift in my chair. Aren’t these people from the Organization? I open my mouth to ask, but a glare from the enforcer has me snapping it shut again.

Cait’s still talking. “I checked the area around the condo for clues, which wasn’t easy in the rain, let me tell you. She’d gone into the woods, alone. I tracked her in. I kept off the trail, and good thing I did, because I found another person following her too. By the time I caught up to them, they were deep in the wilderness. She was hoping to find us, I guess. Why else?”

Lisa’s eyes narrow, but Cait keeps going. “I couldn’t let the tail go. Mel had given up too much information by trekking out this way. I eliminated him.”

She eliminated him. My tail.

Not Tommy.

My chest caves in as she flips her long plait over her shoulder. I’m not responsible for Tommy’s death. He’s alive.

With a shake of my head, I force myself to focus. I can’t afford to miss one second of Cait’s story.

“I didn’t feel safe reporting back after that. What if the Organization got to Mel while I was gone? Or what if she’s a spy? Leaving her, even for a few hours, seemed dangerous.”

Cait glances at me again. “On the other hand, she could be innocent. I didn’t feel right taking her out. So, here we are.”

She shrugs, and my stomach tightens. If these people aren’t from the Organization, they must be the Resistance.

A great spark of excitement flares in my chest.

Lisa’s dark eyes flash. “Bill. Jess. Please get Tommy.”

Tommy! This has to be the Resistance!

The spark explodes, burning away my fear like mist in the sun. I beam through a veil of fresh tears as the guilty woman and the enforcer exit the room.

Lisa and Cait both stare at me.

If this is the Resistance, they won’t hurt me. They’ll let me go as soon as I convince them I’m not a spy. But before I leave, I need to find out what happened to my parents. They know. They must.

Turning my attention to Lisa, I ask, “Are you with the Resistance?”

Lisa’s mouth pulls down on one side. She doesn’t answer. Instead, Cait says, “What are we going to do with her now?”

“I won’t tell anyone about you,” I interject. “I won’t ever think of you again. I just wanted—no, needed to find you. I have to know what happened to my parents. Reyna and Max Snow. Did you know them?”

Lisa sighs. She turns to Cait. “I don’t know. This is poor repayment for Reyna’s sacrifice, no matter what happens now.”

A shiver runs through me. “You knew my mother.”

I expected as much, but having it confirmed tugs at my heart.

“Yes,” Lisa says simply.

“Please. I have to know what happened to her. To them both. I moved here, all the way from California, specifically to find out. I left my friends, my only family, my home… Please.”

Lisa shakes her head. “I’m sorry. I can’t tell you that.”

No way am I giving up so easily.

“I’m not leaving here without answers. If you toss me out, I’ll just find you again.” I raise my chin, mouth set.

“Oh, you weren’t anywhere near us,” Cait sneers. “You’ll never find us again.”

I throw her a frosty glare. “Either way, I don’t think you want the Organization watching me search. You’re obviously somewhere in the forest, and I know the general direction.”

The smirk drops from Cait’s face. Her jaw clenches, and she glowers like she wants nothing more than to light me on fire. Turning to Lisa, she says, “How will we get rid of her if she insists on dragging the Organization out here?”

Lisa shakes her head slowly, as if in a daze. “With the death of her tail, they’re bound to be suspicious. Even if she leaves town, they’ll target her.”

I bite my lip. If I want information, I need to offer the Resistance something in exchange. Something they can’t refuse. There must be a way I can help them. I’ve been on-site at Levett Tech, after all.

“I have a solution,” I say. “In exchange for information about my parents, I’ll help the Resistance. I will do whatever you ask and tell you everything I know about Levett Tech before I sneak out of New Hampshire. Then I’ll start over somewhere else and never bother you again.”

Lisa’s face twists like she swallowed something sour. “That isn’t an offer to make lightly. Once you’re a part of this, there can be no starting over. You’re here for life, or until the Organization falls. You will no longer be able to work. You can’t live elsewhere. You can’t be seen in public. You must dedicate yourself fully—mind, body, and soul—to our mission. It’s the only way to ensure our safety, and yours.”

I gape. Either I give up my life on the outside, forever, or I never find out about my parents?

Lisa’s expression softens. “It’s a lot to lose. Perhaps we can find some way to let you go. I have many connections; we might be able to set you up with a false identity. If you leave now, you can start over somewhere else. Live a normal life.”

My gaze wanders. I remember all too clearly the excitement I felt coming to New Hampshire. Starting a real job, getting my own place…

I see myself in a cute little house by the sea with shrubs along the walkway and bright flowers that spill from boxes under the windows. I’m twirling in the whitewashed kitchen with a dark-haired baby on my hip, watched by a handsome man with warm eyes and a kind smile. The man gives me a kiss and scoops the baby into his arms. I laugh as I grab my briefcase and pull on my jacket, ready to head to work, maybe at a literary agency or publisher, or even better, writing my own stories at a cute local coffee shop, my name shooting up the NYT Best Sellers list.

Tears threaten as the vision fades, the colors bleeding away until I’m left in freezing darkness. Empty. Alone, like I have been since my parents died. Even surrounded by people, I’m alone.

This picture is what I wish my life were, not what it is. I have no life, only a barren future to match the past five barren years. I can’t move on without knowing the truth.

Mom and Dad wouldn’t have died for it unless it was important.

“I will join the Resistance in exchange for information on my parents. I don’t care about life on the outside. I want to help.”

Lisa’s expression darkens. I cringe into my chair.

“You will get no such information unless you earn it. If you prove you’re no threat to us, and if you serve us well, maybe then I will consider you a part of this and share some details with you. Maybe.”

Chills run over my skin. Lisa doesn’t want me here, that much is obvious.

“Cait,” Lisa barks, eyes still trained on me. “Please alert the others. I don’t want them alarmed to see a new face in the caves.”

Cait’s staring at Lisa. “But … you don’t mean … what if…”

“Go.”

Without another word, Cait turns on her heel and stomps out. She slams the door behind her.

I’m left pinned in Lisa’s livid stare. I want to say something, but my courage has evaporated in the face of her loathing.

“You are not to go outside until you’ve proven yourself both loyal and capable. You will train on different tasks around the caves until we find what you’re best suited to. Here, everyone has a job. You will contribute in whatever way we find most useful.”

I want to ask more about the caves, but I bite my tongue. Lisa’s revulsion fills me with horror.

This all happened so quickly, and now I’m part of something I know nothing about. A fog of dread descends over me.

What have I gotten myself into?