Wings (A Black City Novel) Read Online Free PDF Page B

into social and economic ruin because of his obsession with the Darklings. It was time for a change. Those officials are here in the base, although I barely ever see them. They prefer to keep their luxury quarters away from the “riffraff.”
    Soldiers in rust-colored jumpsuits immediately stop what they’re doing and salute my father as he walks past. Even though he’s dressed the same as them, he exudes authority. He nods at a few of the soldiers, even attempts the occasional smile with his scarred lips, but there’s a cool air around him. The soldiers keep a respectful distance.
    Dr. Craven chuckles as Elijah grabs my hand and twirls me all the way down Main Street, both of us laughing. We earn a few odd looks from the passing soldiers, but I don’t care. It’s nice to have a bit of good news after so much heartache recently. We’ve all lost people close to us, including Dr. Craven, whose son Sebastian is missing along with Ash and Elijah’s half brothers. It’s hard to care about Sebastian when he raped and murdered my sister, but he’s still Dr. Craven’s son; I understand why the doctor is worried about him. Still, the doctor’s not going to get any sympathy from anyone around here. If Sebastian turned up right now, he’d be executed on the spot, and Dr. Craven knows it. It might be best for him to stay lost.
    There’s a lot of hubbub as we enter command central—a circular room filled with military-grade com-desks and glass walls covered in digital screens, which stream live updates of the Sentry rebels’ military operations. The soldiers manning the com-desks salute my father as we stroll through the room. On one screen I notice Zeta Squad entering a munitions factory, and on another, Omicron have just destroyed a bridge. They plant a cerulean blue and black flag at the scene—the very flag that Ash designed for Humans for Unity. I furrow my brow. Elijah looks quizzically at me.
    “What are they doing?” he says.
    I turn to my father. “Are you pinning these attacks on Humans for Unity?”
    He nods. “Why draw attention to ourselves if we don’t need to? Humans for Unity are the perfect cover.” He smiles, pleased with himself. “I was worried they’d get in our way, but they’ve proved most useful, keeping Rose distracted while we undertake our own missions.”
    “We’ve been doing more than keeping Rose ‘distracted,’” I say through gritted teeth. Even though I’m technically a Sentry, I see myself as a member of Humans for Unity first and foremost. “We liberated Thrace two weeks ago.”
    “And you did a fine job, Natalie,” Father says, patting my shoulder. “But we need to focus our efforts on
strategic
targets. Things that might actually help us win this war.”
    My lips pinch together, annoyed by his patronizing tone. Did he really just say that? Father strolls over to the com-desk while I turn back to the digital screens, needing a moment to calm down before I say something I regret. One of the monitors is broadcasting the latest news from SBN, the government-owned network. A glamorous blond reporter with sea-green eyes, February Fields, is reading the news.
    “And today’s main story: Darkling Ambassador Sigur Marwick has been found guilty on charges of terrorism, for his role in the Black City bombings in which twenty Sentry guards lost their lives and hundreds of others were injured.”
    The shot cuts to Sigur as he’s being led out of court. He looks malnourished and gaunt, with dark shadows under his eyes. One eye is milky white after he was blinded in it, the other a sparkling orange. He’s wearing a gray prison jumpsuit, which hangs off his slim frame, and his rippling ice-white hair twists and swirls around his angular face, sensing the air around him for blood. I knew Sigur would be found guilty, but even so, the news rattles me.
    February Fields returns to the screen. “The ambassador’s execution has been scheduled for two days’ time. In other news,