Take Back the Skies (32 page)

He smiled back reassuringly, passing her a towel.

‘No problem. Wait here, I'll just go and grab a clean shirt. Won't be a moment,' he promised, ducking out of the room.

Cat looked down at herself; there was blood on her clothes too, but she didn't think she could bring herself to move. All she could see in her mind was blood dripping from her fingers.

When Fox returned, he was only in his undershirt, a clean blue shirt slung over his arm. He led her by the arm out of the washroom, shrugging on the shirt as he did so. He was still buttoning it when they entered the galley. The rest of the crew were sitting with Alice, eating ravenously.

‘Sit, both of you,' she urged.

Cat sank down on to the bench between Fox and Matt, leaning her elbows on the table. She stared at the children gathered in the room. The situation felt bitter-sweet; she was glad to have saved them, but her mind dwelled on all the kids they were too late to save. By the look on Ben's face he was having similar thoughts, though she expected that these were focused on one child in particular. Harry began to explain to his wife what had gone on at the
compound after she'd left, only to be interrupted when Matt let out a triumphant noise.

‘I can hear again!' he exclaimed happily, making Ben snort.

‘Damn, I was enjoying your silence.'

Cat smiled at the pair, setting her spoon down in her empty bowl and wearily leaning against Fox's shoulder. He slid an arm around her so she was less likely to fall off the bench.

‘And when did that happen, then?' Alice asked, eyeing them pointedly.

Cat blushed, but didn't move. ‘Earlier today, actually. After … after the talk with my father.'

Alice's smile faltered at that, but she recovered quickly, grinning.

‘Well, it's about time! I thought I was going to have to watch you two sniffing around each other for months.'

Cat's blush darkened, and Fox chuckled, sheepish.

‘Yeah, well, no worries. You don't have to knock our heads together,' he assured the older woman, his hand comfortably on Cat's waist.

Harry cut in, bringing them back on topic. ‘We need to figure out where to start looking for this government skyship. Flying in circles over every inch of Anglyan airspace will take weeks. And that's assuming they're even
in
Anglyan airspace,'

‘Any information was probably destroyed in the blast, though,' Matt pointed out with a frown.

Cat's expression grew thoughtful, and Fox raised an eyebrow at her.

‘Oh, I know that face – that's your thinking face. What is it?' he asked.

She looked at the rest of the table.

‘Well …' she began, ‘the files in the government compound might have been destroyed, but the files in my father's office at home are perfectly fine. And now he's gone, there's no one stopping me from going back to the house for a visit. I mean, I'm the sole heir so that makes it
my
house, doesn't it?' she pointed out with a smile.

Fox stared at her for several beats.

‘You genius!' He leaned forward, kissing her.

James grumbled under his breath about overt displays of affection, which Cat and Fox both ignored, too busy grinning shyly at each other.

‘You're still in the same house? The Hunter house?' Mary asked. ‘You never moved to the Ingate house?'

‘No, Nathaniel refused, even if it was bigger. I think it went to a second cousin or something. Why?' Cat queried, not sure why that mattered.

‘If I remember correctly, the Hunter house is big enough to accommodate all of these children. If you're going after this skyship, you can't take them with you – it's far too dangerous. So, you could take them to the house, and keep them there while you finish things,' Mary suggested, looking at the children filling the galley. Cat did a quick headcount.

‘Will we be able to get that many kids into the government district without anyone noticing?' Matt asked.

‘Have a little faith, Mattie,' remarked Cat with a grin. ‘I've been sneaking around government since I was old
enough to reach the door handle. I'll manage it.'The tree was the easiest way to get in, but it wasn't the
only
way.

‘That sounds like a plan, then. Now, the sprogs look a little sleepy. What say we herd them downstairs for the night? We've got plenty of space in the storage rooms, and I'm sure we can rustle up some blankets for them,' Alice suggested. At her prompting, the group stood up and collected the empty bowls from the children.

‘Can I see my mum?' one boy asked, reaching out to Cat as she passed, and she sighed forlornly at his wide-eyed expression.

‘Sorry, but you're all going to have to stay with us for a little while. The men who took you from your families are still out there, and we need to keep you safe until they're gone. But I promise you, it won't be for very long.'

Most of the children were listening to her, and there was a groan of dismay from several of them.

‘Will we be safe here?' a girl asked, her dirty dark hair escaping from its scruffy ponytail.

‘Of course you will,' Fox said with a reassuring smile. ‘We'll take you to a safe house in the morning. We won't let the government get to you.' The girl beamed at him, her cheeks dimpling.

‘It's bedtime now, dears,' Alice called out. ‘You need your rest.'

‘Come on, bratlings,' Matt urged from the doorway, drawing several shy giggles. ‘Follow us, we'll get you all tucked in for the night.'

The children wearily followed Matt and Ben out of the room. Cat drew closer to Fox, frowning.

‘Storms, can you imagine how many are out in the Greaves?' she wondered sadly.

Fox's hand briefly touched her waist, his eyes meeting hers.

‘Then we'll go out to the Greaves when this is over and find them,' he promised, pressing his lips to her forehead. ‘Come on, you need your sleep.'

Cat sighed, pulling away from him and ushering the last few children out of the room. She could see Ben up ahead, helping children down the manhole. She couldn't hold back her smile when he picked up a nervous young girl, dropping her down the hole to where – she hoped – Matt was waiting to catch her.

They followed the group of children down to the third floor. Matt was directing them through to the storage room opposite the engine room and, peering in, Cat raised an eyebrow. Alice and Mary were busy distributing furs to be used as blankets and allowing children to huddle together in groups of five or six, settling down to sleep in puppy-piles dotted around the room.

‘They're so small,' Ben murmured, he and Matt drawing closer to the teens. ‘It's hard to imagine anyone would consider them potential soldiers.' His face was tense, the scar on his cheek red where he'd been rubbing it anxiously, and Matt clasped his shoulder firmly. Cat doubted Ben would get much sleep.

Unable to help herself, Cat yawned widely.

‘I'm going to head up to bed, if I'm not needed here. It's been a long day.' The three men nodded sympathetically, and Matt ruffled her hair affectionately.

‘G'night, girlie. Get yourself some rest, you need it.'

Fox wound an arm around her waist, tilting her head up to press a soft kiss to her lips.

‘I'll see you in the morning. Sleep well,' he said quietly, bringing a shy smile to her face. She still wasn't used to being able to kiss him like that.

‘Goodnight, all of you.'

Squeezing Fox in a last hug, Cat turned back towards the manhole, climbing lethargically up the ladder. Her eyebrows rose when she saw James waiting in the hallway, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. He pushed away from the wall as she drew closer, eyeing her with a look that set her on edge.

‘What do you see in him?' he asked, and she resisted the urge to groan.

‘James, I'm tired, I've had a terrible day, and I want to go to bed. Argue with me in the morning, if you must,' she said irritably.

‘Just answer my question,' he insisted. ‘What do you see in him?'

‘What isn't there to see in him?' she retorted. ‘You've known him for two days, barely. You don't know what he's like, so how can you judge whether he's right for me?'

‘He seems like a cocky idiot,' James said sullenly.

She rolled her eyes. ‘You don't know him
or
me. It's been years, James. We're not six years old any more. We're not best friends any more.'

‘I'm not jealous,' he denied feebly, and Cat snorted.

‘Please, you've been looking at me since the moment your mother told you of her betrothal plans. I'm telling you
now, I don't care. No contract was signed, and I don't want to marry you. So please, leave me be.'

He raised an eyebrow at her.

‘You know it won't last,' he said evenly. ‘You gallivanting about with the crew here. When this is all over, you'll be required to take your rightful place in society. You're the heir to the Hunter family, the last survivor of the Ingate family – it's your job to restore the legacy of both families.'

She growled under her breath. ‘The Hunter legacy can go to hell for all I care. My father dragged it through the mud and it's best to let it die.'

‘The people won't let you do that, though,' James continued. ‘Especially not after they find out everything you've done for them. My mother taught me all my life what would be expected of me if we ever got out of that prison, and I can't imagine you getting away with much less, being who you are. They'll expect you to become one of the new leaders – and marrying some low-born skyship boy won't fit in with that.'

Cat was incredibly close to slapping James, but she restrained herself; however irritating he might be, he was still royalty. Moreover, if they succeeded, he'd no doubt be ruling the country in a decade or so when Mary grew too elderly.

‘When will you understand that I don't care what the people expect of me? I never have. Who I marry is none of their business, and it certainly isn't yours!' They were interrupted by the sound of footsteps on the manhole ladder, and Ben's head popped up, his smile dropping when he saw them.

‘What's going on?' he asked curiously.

‘Nothing,' James insisted shortly, turning on his heel. ‘Goodnight, Catherine.' He stressed her full name, giving her a pointed look, before disappearing into a spare bedroom. Ben came up beside her, looking at her with a frown.

‘What was all that about?'

She sighed, shaking her head.

‘Don't worry about it. James is just trying to remind me of my place in society,' she sighed. ‘I'm fine. I just wish I didn't have to deal with him on top of everything else.'

Ben's long arms wrapped around her, pulling her close to his chest.

‘Ignore him,' he soothed. ‘He's just trying to figure out
his
place now he's escaped from the compound. Think how confusing it must be for him right now, Cat. He's never seen more than his mother and a few guards since he was a wee'un, and suddenly he's surrounded by people – and all of them commoners. He's lived on his mother's stories for too long. But once this is all over, he and Mary will go off to Latham Castle and take their rightful positions, and you'll likely not hear much of him after that. And no matter what, you'll always have a home with us.'

‘Thanks, Ben. I hope you're right,' she said softly, before stepping out of his embrace. ‘I'll see you at breakfast.'

‘Goodnight, sprog,' he replied fondly.

She slipped into her room and collapsed on the bed with a bone-deep sigh. She crawled beneath the blankets, curling up in a tight ball. She didn't think she'd quite processed everything that had happened during the day; it felt like a lifetime had passed in only a few hours. She'd gone from
being a runaway with two parents to an orphan girl, and suddenly, their rebellion wasn't so secret any more. She wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come, and all she could feel was an overwhelming sense of detachment. As if everything had happened to some other girl, and she was just reading about it in a book.

She looked over at the picture of her and her mother tucked behind the mirror, glad she'd taken it from her old room. Something to mourn besides the few hazy memories of her mother when she was well, and the far more solid memories of a frail, bed-bound woman. All the same, that frail woman had been there to listen to her troubles – when she was awake – and hold her hand while she raged about her father and the unfairness of life. She had given her the best advice she'd ever had and while she'd found a new family … it wasn't the same.

A choked sob escaped her lips, but her face stayed resolutely dry, and she squeezed her eyes shut, attempting to feel
something
. Still there were no tears, and she bit her lip painfully. Maybe the shock just needed to subside. In the meantime, she could at least get some sleep.

For several moments after waking, Cat was confused as to where she was. It was only when she opened her eyes and saw her bedroom that she remembered the events of the day before, and recognised the odd, dull pain in her stomach. She'd experienced more than enough emotions for a lifetime.

Glancing at the clock on the desk, she sighed, reluctantly drawing herself out of bed and into some fresh clothes. She wished she could stay curled up all day and mourn the loss of her mother, but she had work to do.

Their job wasn't done yet.

Entering the galley, she was surprised to see she was the last one up; all the children were spread about the room, and the crew were at their usual table with Mary and James. Seeing a gap on the bench between Fox and Matt, she crossed the room to join them, kissing Fox on the cheek. He smiled at her, shuffling over to allow her to slide into her place between the two men.

‘Good morning, sleepyhead,' he greeted her quietly. ‘How are you this morning?' His tone was light, but there was concern in his eyes.