Starlight in Crystal City (Book 2)

22: Hope Is (Not) Overrated

Taliyah's hands were tight with mine as she dragged me behind her. Her expression darkened to reflect the red light of the alarm drowning in her irises.

"We should split up," I suggested, although I could no longer hear myself. "I'll find Lexi."

No time! her voice shouted in my head. She led me through the gap she'd formed in the wall, and we scrambled out. It was a series of hallways connected by the dust hanging in the air.

Which way is out? Taliyah's voice asked. I glanced at her. Her chest rose with every breath she took, and her fingers curled around mine. A cord of adrenaline tightened around my veins.

"Left," I said, willing myself to sound as confident as I could. In reality, I had no clue which direction was correct, but I kept it to myself.

Taliyah nodded and turned left. Pipes traced the ceilings above her head. Water dripped from it and formed a puddle on the floors that streaked with dull blue oil. The hum of electricity roared in my chest. It was the only factor I was conscious of, besides my heartbeat sprinting in my chest, and the numbness in my mouth.

She asked, Do you trust Lyndon?

I didn't know how to answer that. I hadn't yet processed the realization that he had powers, and I was certain he knew who I was. My shoes splashed through the water, smearing a clump of soil across the top. At least I had that.

"Yes," I settled on saying. "But we couldn't... we had to..."

I gulped down a breath and kept walking. Taliyah touched a hand to my shoulder wordlessly, matching her pace to mine.

I know. She cut her gaze away, tracing it across the surrounding walls. I'll come back for Lexi. She's like a mother to me. I owe her for teaching me about my powers. She's not a hero—but maybe she is, in her own special way.

I craned my head to look at her. She was about Vivian's height, or maybe an inch taller. The sharp edge of guilt secured its grip on my heart. I missed Vivian and Jax, but I wanted to turn around and save everyone. I wanted to feel like I was helping—I wanted to feel like it wasn't for nothing. I'd made so much progress with fighting, but I wasn't prepared for this, and it stung.

A distant vibration rolled through me. It chugged like a train; rhythmic tones blending together, interspersed by the occasional pause. I stopped and pointed at the section of the ceiling from which the noise had come. "There's... a train!"

The subway? Taliyah said, shifting toward the direction I'd indicated. Her lips sprouted into a grin, and she sprinted ahead of me. I sped up, jogging alongside her.

At her direction, I kept focusing on the subway as it hurtled above our heads. My legs were a blur as I ran, strands of my brown hair invading my eyes as I struggled to force myself to move faster. I barely had the time to breathe as Taliyah dodged around the corner and came to a barricaded wall.

The cold metal loomed over her. A rectangular outline of a door bore a sign that read: Electrical Only.

Steeling herself, Taliyah said, That's where the sound is coming from?

"Through there," I confirmed. "It passed above us. Now it's getting further..."

Her eyes fluttering shut, Taliyah clenched her fists and focused. She motioned for me to stand aside and stretched her fingers outward. The wall wobbled and exploded in a rainstorm of broken shards. I squished myself against the floor, feeling something slice across my arm.

Sorry! Taliyah shouted distantly.

I touched a fingertip to my arm. Blood dripped from the wound. The dirt lining my fingertips caused it to throb like a fresh paper cut. I pinched it, hoping it would clot.