for this. He didnât care about me. He doesnât give a damn about anyone. He just thought I could help him get to you. And it turned out he was right.â
Her voice had been growing weaker with every word. The last few came out as barely a whisper. âSo I didnât choose a side, Kyle. I didnât even know there were sides. I wasnât given that choice to make.â
She looked away and hung her head.
I should hate her. I wanted to hate her.
So why couldnât I hate her?
âChoose.â
She lifted her head and blinked. âWhat?â
âChoose,â I said. âIâm giving you the choice he didnât.â
Ameena sniffed and brushed the hair out of her eyes. âThereâs no choice to make. Itâs you, Kyle. It will always be you.â She tried a smile to go with it, but it didnât amount to much.
I held out a hand and was surprised to find it was as steady as a rock. Her fingers trembled as they slipped into mine and I helped her back to her feet.
âSo, weâre OK now? Do you, like, you know? Forgive me?â
âNo. I canât. I mean, not yet, anyway. I want to believe you. I want to trust you again, like I did. But I canât. Not yet.â
She gave a resigned shrug. âMaybe someday, huh?â
âMaybe someday.â
Ameena followed me over to the window. The whole village was in chaos, with more fires burning and more grotesque shapes lumbering through the streets.
âThereâs no snow,â I realised.
âYeah, donât really know what happened there,â she admitted. âDonât even know where it came from in the first place. It was nothing to do with us.â She looked at me guiltily. âI mean, you know? Him. He was as surprised as you were.â
I filed that bit of information away. âWhere is he now?â
âIâm not sure,â she admitted. âBut heâs planning on setting himself up in power. He likes the idea of being in charge.â
âIn charge? Of that?â I said, motioning at the rampaging creatures below. âHow can anyone take charge of that?â
âNot everyone from over there is a monster,â she said defensively. âTheyâre the minority. A very vocal minority, Iâll give you, but still a minority.â
âWhat about Billy? Where did they take him?â
âI donât know.â
âWell, think,â I told her. âYouâre my person on the inside.â
âI thought I was your trusty sidekick?â
âWell, now youâre both. Think. One of Docâs porters took him from the church.â
âHospital then, probably.â She caught my next sentence before it came out of my mouth. âNot this one. One that you didnât magic into existence. Could be his own hospital, but probably just the closest one; it wouldnât make any difference to him now.â
âThe town then,â I said, looking out at that orange-tinted sky again. The hospital where theyâd first taken my mum after sheâd been attacked by the Crowmaster was in the next town. It was only a few miles away, but with the streets the way they were, it may as well have been on the moon.
âWeâve got to try,â I said, speaking the end of that thought out loud. âWe canât just leave him.â
âWell, we could,â Ameena said, then she caught my expression. âNo, of course we canât. What was I thinking?â She chewed her lip. âWhy canât we leave him again?â
âBecause heâs one of us. Heâs on our side. Heâs ââ I stumbled over the words â âmy friend.â
âWell, alrighty then,â Ameena said. She gave a slight bow, then gestured towards the door. âAfter you.â
I turned and took a few steps towards the door. A familiar figure was creeping cautiously along the hall towards us.
âKyle?â she
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