The Girl Who Dared to Think Bella Forrest (best classic literature txt) 📖

make us feel welcome, but I was still adjusting to my new life here. Still learning who everyone really was—and how life was going to be from here on out.

Yet none of the work or bonding ever fully distracted me from the worry I felt for Zoe, Eric, and Alex. I was so scared at how worried I’d made them, a part of me fearing that when they found out I was okay, they’d never forgive me for abandoning them like that without so much as a word of what was happening.

No matter how many times I tried to remind myself that there hadn’t been any time to do any of that, it still didn’t ease the anxiety I was feeling. Which would probably explain why I leapt out of my hammock and onto the floor when I saw Cali descending the stairs, Roark in tow.

I moved over to intercept them, climbing the stairs. “Hey,” I said when I was close enough. “Is it time?”

Cali nodded and looked at Roark. “You’ll need to take Paragon before you go,” he said, holding out a pill. “Just in case.” I took it and swallowed it immediately and impatiently, raring to go.

“I already took mine,” Cali added, glancing at Roark from the corner of her eye. “Of course, it’ll be impossible to tell whether it works until we’re outside.”

“It works, you shrew,” Roark said, and Cali chuckled, not at all offended by the rough edge of Roark’s tongue.

“All right, all right—I trust in you and your work, okay? Liana, I’ll meet you in the dining room in ten minutes.” It wasn’t a question, but I nodded anyway, immediately turning down the stairs and racing back to the sleeping area.

It didn’t take me long to strip down, get my harness on, and get dressed again. I made sure to thread the lashes through my belt, opting for safety rather than speed, and fingered the new beads at the tips. I’d tested them in a limited capacity inside, but I hadn’t been able to give them a real trial run.

Testing them out would keep me distracted until we got to wherever we were going, to speak to whomever Cali’s contact was in the Eyes. The one who was going to help me find a way to Zoe. He had to.

I finished getting ready and hurried to meet Cali up front. She was already waiting there, Maddox standing next to her with her arms crossed, a displeased expression on her face. As soon as Maddox saw me, her eyes narrowed into slits.

“I should go with you,” she snapped, her head swiveling toward her mother.

Cali’s mouth pressed into a thin line that reminded me of my mom when she got angry, but, to my surprise, her voice was soft and patient. “Three have a bigger chance of attracting attention, and you know it. Liana will back me up if anything should go wrong.”

Maddox’s bright green eyes found mine and stared at me, hostility glistening in them. “She’d better,” she said, not even bothering to disguise the threat in her voice.

I blinked as she stalked by me, turning on my heel to watch her go, and then turned back to Cali.

“I’m, uh, sorry if I caused you two to fight,” I said, feeling a bit awkward. I didn’t feel bad about going with Cali—I needed to hear whatever her contact had to say—but causing strife between mother and daughter wasn’t my intention, and I did feel bad about that.

“Don’t be,” she replied, smoothing her clothing. “I tried to raise my daughter to have more fun, but she’s got too much of her father in her. He doesn’t trust easily, either.”

I frowned. I’d assumed Maddox’s father was dead, since he wasn’t a fixture, but she’d just referred to him in the present tense. Which meant she thought he was still alive. Maybe she’d had to abandon him when she and Maddox had fled?

It was hard to tell; while I had gotten closer to Cali, she was tight-lipped about her past. I had tried asking her a few questions about her experience in the Tourney—after all, she had won a few of her own battles (not that that had affected much, as Devon had still become Champion over her). There hadn’t been a real Tourney in my lifetime, and it was unlikely there would be one either. I had hoped she’d want to talk about it, but she didn’t, much to my disappointment.

Cali began climbing the ladder leading back up to the entry, and I waited a few seconds before following so I could collect myself.

Outside, it was dark, the glow of the moon barely penetrating the deep shadows below. Soft lights ran along the handrails of the catwalks, helping to illuminate the path, but their light was muted and practically non-existent after a few feet. The visibility out here was downright dismal.

I looked at Cali, ready to ask her about it, when I noticed her pulling something from her coat that flopped around in her hand. She took hold of it with both hands, and a second later the one thing became two as she pulled it apart.

As she held one up to me, I realized they were goggles—much like the ones Quess had been wearing, but with red lenses. I took the pair she offered and followed her lead, fixing them over my eyes.

The haze immediately lessened, and my vision improved dramatically. The lights were brighter, clearer, burning like little white suns in the night. I tilted my head around, amazed, and then noticed something bright green from the corner of my eye. As I adjusted my gaze, I realized that it was a mark, and that there were several of them, not just in green, but also in pink, purple, and blue. I looked over at Cali in question, and saw her smile knowingly.

“Tian’s a living and breathing map,” she told me as she pulled her lash ends. “I swear, she never gets lost, no matter where