Winnie avoided any mention of her own dream. Her crew was still reeling from Cait’s death and didn’t need another mystery to occupy their minds.

  “I’m glad you were able to help them. Maybe you can show me what you did so I can help the next time.”

  “Sure thing, Cynthia. We’ll have to find some time over the next few days.”

  The tech smiled and nodded, then continued setting bread on the tables. Danny nudged Winnie. She turned to see the twins enter the room from the corridor leading to their room.

  Winnie waved them over to join her and Danny.

  The children skipped over. Winnie was glad to see them in such happy spirits.

  “Hi, Winnie,” Jacob said. “Something smells good, what’s for breakfast?”

  “Eggs and ham, or you can have an omelette if you want.”

  “We like eggs,” Fiona said, sitting across from Winnie and Danny.

  Jacob climbed up onto the chair next to his sister.

  “How did you two sleep after I left you the second time last night?” Winnie asked.

  “We did alright,” Fiona said.

  Winnie sensed fear in her voice. She pressed forward with her questions. “Do you remember your dream last night, Fiona? The one that scared you?”

  The girl nodded, but said nothing.

  “Have you and your brother had that dream before?”

  Again, Fiona nodded. Jacob sat silent beside her.

  “I’ve had a similar dream. In fact, I had one sort of like it just last night.”

  Jacob leaned forward. “You did?”

  “Yes. Mine was scary, too, but not as scary as yours.”

  The kids seemed to relax, seeming to appreciate someone else sharing their worries.

  “I have a question for you if you’ll let me ask it.” Winnie waited for them both to nod. “Have you seen that place in your dreams before?”

  Fiona said, “It’s a bad place, Winnie. We keep seeing it and don’t know why.”

  “I see it, too, so you’re not alone,” Winnie reassured her. “Has the shadow monster been in your dream the entire time, as well?”

  “No, Jacob made the monster come,” Fiona said.

  “I did not.”

  “Yes, you did. It came when you tried to touch the sword,” Fiona explained. “The monster told you to stop. He said that it didn’t belong to you.”

  “I didn’t know,” Jacob said, more subdued.

  “It’s alright, Jacob. I touched the sword in my dream, too, and a scary voice wanted me to stop.” Winnie didn’t tell them that she’d nearly pulled it free.

  “Do you know where the scary room is?” Jacob asked. “Do we have to go there?”

  “That’s a good question,” Winnie replied. “Let’s make a pact. Let’s agree to tell each other whenever we have the dream about the scary room and if anything seems different. Then we can face it together. How does that sound?”

  “We’d like that, Winnie,” Fiona said.

  Jacob nodded, agreeing with his sister.

  “Good. Now eat up. You need your strength. My friends will be working with you over the next few days — we’re going to see what you can do with your magic. It’s going to be busy, but I’ll make sure we have time to eat together each morning.”

  Winnie thought about what she hoped to learn from the children about their magic.

  She only hoped they could regroup and gather their strength in time to pull it off.

  Chapter 33

  The following two days passed quickly with the team at The Pike taking stock of Colten’s stashed supplies, preparing for a long stay while the country was looking for them. Winnie learned of successful raids on the other camps by her allies. Daily reports detailed the destruction of the other Harvester towers and related machinery. While they couldn’t evacuate chanters from the camps, they could ensure they wouldn’t all be murdered by the Director’s evil machines.

  Winnie spent several hours each day working with the twins, learning what they could do. She was surprised to find that their powers relied on each other. Alone they were unremarkable in power and ability. She suspected with training and exercise, she could bring out their innate solo abilities, but Winnie focused on what they could accomplish together for now.

  Fiona was more talkative. Jacob was the better listener. If Winnie could explain herself and what she wanted in a way he understood, Jacob could explain it to his sister using their unspoken channel. It was strange, speaking to Jacob but getting questions from Fiona. Still, they progressed and she found ways to trigger their matter creation if she posed her request in a way that conveyed genuine need. This was how they must have survived for so long on the streets alone. If they needed something like food or clothing, they made it with their magic and a series of thoughts.

  Garraldi took over Cait’s duties as Winnie’s head of security. She felt her friend’s absence the most during these meetings. They all did, but for her and Tris, it was the most profound. The three of them had been inseparable since childhood. Cait had to watch out for the younger girls until she joined the Army. Then, of course, she resumed the role upon her return. Without her watching out for them, even with Garraldi’s capable input, Winnie couldn’t help but feel vulnerable.

  On day four at The Pike, Morgan and Victor came to join the meeting with the four chanter team leaders. Winnie had been wondering how to broach the next part of her plan — the assault on the Department headquarters — and decided to work up to it slowly, cover the mundane stuff with team leaders first.

  They were seated around one of the tables. “What’s the status of your team, Tris,” Winnie said. “Everyone settling in?”

  “There’s been a bit of grumbling about the accommodations. James complained that we all had hotel rooms in Baltimore. Don’t worry, I shut it down. Nothing to worry about. They’re just complaining because they’re bored.”

  “Maybe we could try and repair one or two of the rides,” Winnie wondered out loud. “At least that would give them something to do.”

  Tris smiled. “That might just work. Katie said she wondered how the big carousel in the center of the park worked. It might be worth a trip to check out its condition.”

  “Good. That will keep them busy for a while.”

  “Sounds like you have a plan for what we do next,” Tris said.

  “I’ll save that for the end of our meeting,” Winnie dodged the question. “Danny?”

  “The vans are all in good shape. They all have at least a few bullet holes, but none of the bullets hit anything vital. So everything’s running. We might draw some attention, especially in the security team’s van. That one took the most damage. I’d like to see if we can get Colten to supply us with some other transportation. Then maybe we can drive into the city without inviting too much attention.”

  “I’ll reach out, get him on it,” Winnie said, adding a note to her clipboard. “Cricket?”

  Cricket laughed and leaned back in his chair. “Our supply situation is great for now. We’ve enough canned goods in a variety of types and flavors to last us months. Colten also laid in a supply of military-style MREs. That gets us good for up to a year. I worry most about fresh food to supplement our supplies. If Danny can get us some transport from Colten that won’t stand out, I’d like to head into Philly to try and buy more eggs, vegetables, and meat.”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll get Colten to expedite the additional transport options,” Winnie said. “Garraldi?”

  The big man shifted in his seat, still getting used to his leadership role. “The Pike is a great place to hide. There’s no one for miles, and since it’s been abandoned for years, there’s no reason for anyone to come out here. As long as we don’t do anything to draw unwanted attention, we should be fine for the time being. I’ve still got watcher and alarm spells, gear spread around the perimeter. If anyone comes snooping, we’ll have enough time to reach the underground shelters.” He paused, seeming to struggle, then, “Cait filled me in on her plans, and taught me a few of her camouflage spells before we — well just before everything happened. I’ve got us covered from anyone snooping around if we have to hide in the shelters.”

  “Great work, Garraldi. Keep me up to date with any security concerns. That’s our first priority.”

  Winnie turned to Victor and Morgan. “How are things in the city?”

  “There’s been a bit of a backlash against the Assembly. Officially, we’re calling the demonstrations against deportations ‘peaceful town hall meetings’ but they’re often contentious and the people want to know what’s happening to their chanter friends and neighbors. A good number of people aren’t buying the government bull.”

  “What about the reaction from the Department about the raids?” Winnie asked.

  “They’re not saying much, even in the Department’s official back channels,” Morgan explained. “Victor might be able to tell you more. He’s plugged into the leadership more than I am. But for street cops and Red Legs, it’s mostly out of sight, out of mind.”

  Winnie looked to Victor. He shrugged.

  “Like I said, everything is officially peachy at the camps. No problems at all. Unofficially, the city chief inspectors are questioning the entire process. Of course, they don’t know about the Harvesters, so they’re wondering about the need for camps at all. They felt it was better to keep chanters in the cities than ferry guards to some remote location in the middle of nowhere for weeks at a time.”

  Winnie saw her opening. “Looks like the unrest has set things up rather nicely. We’re in a good spot to move forward with part two of our plan. If we don’t expose Kane, he’ll just build another Harvester. We need to be proactive, not reactive.”

  “What did you have in mind?” Danny asked.

  “Artos helped us on our raids. He gave us the supplies we needed from his stash, aided us with planning and getting the resources to need to move forward. But he did that because he needs our help to expose Kane as a fraud.”

  “Yeah, but how do we do that?” Tris asked. “He’s holding all the cards.”

  “I know, but that also makes him vulnerable. Arrogance will be his downfall. Artos told me that Kane has always kept meticulous records about his various projects and plans. They’re quite detailed apparently, and would expose him as a chanter if released to the public.”

  “You’re telling me he kept a record of his plans and experiments somewhere we can get to them?” Tris pressed Winnie. “There’s something you’re not telling us.”

  “He keeps these records somewhere at the Department of Magical Containment in the capital, because that’s where they’re most secure.”

  Everyone spoke at once, spouting objections and concerns over the proposal. Winnie raised a hand to shush them. “I didn’t say it would be easy, but after our raid, I think we have the team here to pull it off.”

  “Don’t you remember how we lost Cait in that raid?”

  Winnie flinched at Tris’s comment as if it were a punch to her gut.

  “You think I’ll ever forget? I’ve spent hours since we got back second-guessing what we did.” She swallowed her bile, looking from face to face among the leadership team. “This is a war, people. We might have started as petty criminals, but we’ve turned into the only armed resistance willing to fight a genocidal maniac. We must be willing to take a few risks. Kane has foolishly kept proof of his true identity a secret from the Assembly. I’m sure a few of them know, but the bulk will be shocked. We have to stop him. We owe it to Cait and every chanter he’s killed. Whatever it takes.”

  Victor shook his head and looked up at Winnie. “It’s nearly impossible to get into the Department if you’re not a Red Leg or staff member. Even Assembly members are required to have escorts while inside.”

  “That’s why you and Morgan are going to help. We need Red Leg uniforms for the entire team, and for the two of you to gather all the intel possible on the building’s layout, and where Kane is likely to have hidden his secret files.”

  Everyone looked at the renegade Red Legs. Victor glanced at Morgan. She reached out to grab his hand.

  He sighed and turned to Winnie. “What did you have in mind?”

  “It’s going to be complex and require the whole team. I want to do it during Kane’s upcoming address to the Assembly on the state of the nation.”

  “That’s five days from now,” Victor cautioned. “Will we have enough time to get everything together?”

  “I think so,” Winnie said. “A lot depends on you getting the uniforms and IDs required to get us all inside. Can you do it?”

  Victor looked at Morgan.

  She shrugged. “The uniforms might be tricky, but I can pull off the IDs easily enough. I think we can do it.”

  Winnie nodded, then went over the plan, refining it until everyone knew what they needed to do. Afterward everyone scattered, leaving Winnie alone. She walked outside and looked up at the moon, peeking through the swirling orange clouds above. Another five days and this would all be over.

  If everything went according to plan, Kane wouldn’t know what hit him.

  Chapter 34

  Nils sat at his desk and replayed the video again.

  He watched Winnie Durham crossing the open ground towards the Harvester building at the center of camp number one.

  He saw the moment when the Harvester became too much for her, and drained, she fell to her knees. Somehow she kept crawling forward, making it to the building’s entrance before collapsing outside.

  Then the feed went black as raiders inside the building broke through his defenses to destroy the Harvester yet again.

  He’d come so close to defeating her, and yet somehow she and her gang of criminals had pulled off the impossible. He backed up the video to the beginning and played it again.

  The girl was so powerful. He’d checked the other videos — the other chanters in the surrounding camp areas were all overcome by the Harvester. Several of the weaker chanters died. But Winnie Durham was too tough for that. She pushed through no matter what he threw at her and even succeeded when she, herself, was beaten. It was infuriating.

  Nils remembered what Ellie had said when she came to confront him. He’d done some checking on her claim that Winnie was his daughter. Though the timeline was right, he wasn’t convinced. He needed to meet the girl face-to-face again to confirm her identity. That wouldn’t be easy to arrange. She’d never accept an invitation to chat.

  After some consideration, Nils tried the one thing he’d been avoiding, the option he could only use once. The spell he’d placed in Daniel Barber had a hidden component, and Nils was still reasonably sure he could breach the boy’s mind to read his thoughts. But it would only work once, unless he got the chance to reinforce his connection.

  He leaned back in his padded leather chair, staring at the ceiling before closing his eyes. He drew in the magic required to power his connection to the boy and reached out with his mind, searching for Barber.

  The search took longer than expected. Nils was about to surrender when a spark lit the darkness around him. Homing in on that light, he soon found himself inside the Barber boy’s mind.

  He searched his recent memories and soon found that there’d been a meeting of some sort. He peered through the hazy connection, replaying Danny’s perception of the event.

  The boy spent most of the meeting with his eyes on Winnie — not surprising given their relationship. Then the conversation turned to talk of Kane himself and the Director paid special attention to what was being said.

  Long moments later, Kane opened his eyes and looked around his dark office. So, they planned on coming here, right into his clutches. He’d been surprised to discover Victor Holmes was working with Durham and her gang. He supposed that Bennett girl — the chanter’s supposed sister — had something to do with it. It would be a shame to try the chief inspector for treason, especially when Kane himself had promoted him. Still, it would be interesting to let them believe they were succeeding, then catch the whole gang, including Holmes and his floozy.

  Nils stood and crossed the room. He reached the wall of shelves behind a sculpture, then reached up and removed the book, The Magical History of Europe. There was a small lever behind it. He reached up and tugged it with two fingers.

  A faint click then the latch released. A small section of shelves popped open to a small room. Stepping inside, Nils surveyed the stacks of journals set on the table. Years of research. Experiments on unsuspecting middlings like Barber’s parents, in order to perfect his ability to control the ordinary humans around him. There was also the schematic he’d created to siphon magic from other chanters, the machine that eventually became the Harvester.

  It was foolish to keep such records. Winnie was right — the revelations in this room could ruin him, politically and personally. But he was reluctant to destroy them, even knowing her plans, because he wanted to leave a record of his achievements behind. Future generations should know who had saved the world. Nils would go down in history as mankind’s savior.

  Nils smiled, leaving his secret room intact, closing the bookshelf door behind him. He might even let Durham get that far before pulling the rug out from under her. It would bring such great satisfaction to see the look on her face when it all fell through and she knew without doubt that all for her was lost.

  Chapter 35

  Artos sat watching the news reports on Kane’s recent activities. The reporter had unprecedented access to the Director and asked him during a walking tour of the Department headquarters what he wanted as a result of his new reforms and the creation of the safety camps.

  “Sally, that’s a great question,” Kane said, walking alongside her down a long marble hallway. “My greatest hope is that we can somehow find a solution to our current troubles that allows our chanter neighbors to return safely to their homes. Many have depicted me as a terrible man who hates chanters. But nothing could be further from the truth. My driving goal has always been the overall safety of our great nation. If we can somehow find a way to stabilize magic again, I want everything back to normal as much as the next man.”