I bent to help Fang pick up the pieces of glass from the shattered window, and I couldn’t help staring down at the havoc Dylan was already wreaking on our little paradise. The place had gone from zero to sixty in minutes, and I watched as he herded dozens of hysterical kids into the ultra-secure underground cave system.
Abuse of privileges. Mom was gonna freak.
“Gazzy!” I shouted when I spotted him moving along in his bobbing gait. “Nudge!” Iggy was with them, consoling Ella as they hurried toward the caves. Even Total was barking anxious orders at Akila in their dog language. “You guys, he’s delusional. Cuckoo. There’s nothing to worry about!”
In the chaos, they didn’t seem to hear me.
“Oh, no,” I fumed. “This. Will. Not. Stand.” Making a mess was one thing. Hijacking my flock was another. “Wait, where’s—”
“Angel.” Fang pointed at the ragged-looking ball of feathery fluff zooming toward us through the trees.
She was sobbing as she crashed into my arms.
“Whoa,” I said, cuddling her close. “It’s okay, Ange. You’re okay.”
Angel shook her head, her soft curls framing her tear-streaked face.
“You guys have to get to the caves,” she said, hiccupping. “It’s coming. Dylan saw—”
“Yeah, I’m going to put a stop to that,” I reassured her.
“No!” she wailed, her blue eyes wide with fear. “Dylan knows what he’s doing. I saw things when I was in that lab, Max. Horrible things.” Her little face contorted, and my mother-bear instincts raged. As soon as we get off this island, I swore, I am going to hunt down those sickos who hurt my baby.
“But we’re never going to leave here, Max. We can’t leave. You promised!” Angel cried, reading my mind.
I wiped the tears from her face and cupped her tiny chin in my hands. “It’s okay, sweetie. Deep breaths. What did you see in the lab?”
“I saw trees falling over like dominoes. This place, coated in ash. The light comes first, then the sound. And you and Fang, blown out of the sky.” Fang’s dark eyes flicked to my face, but he didn’t move. “When we landed, it seemed familiar, but I wasn’t sure. It all makes sense now, though. Dylan is right—the sky is falling.”
It’s time, the Voice inside my head said. Listen to her, Max.
82
THE WORLD WAS ending, and we were in paradise.
I knew I should join the others, kiss away the rest of humanity, and spend the next fifty years snuggled up to my winged prince charming, finally free.
Fang and Angel were both studying my face closely. I shook my head slowly. I knew this was the decision that would define my life.
I just didn’t have it in me to die like a coward.
“I’m flying back to the States,” I said. “Now.” I stepped past them, out onto the limb between the tree houses. Below, the jungle was quiet, the leaves rustling softly. Except for a few small figures I could see at the cliffs in the distance, everyone was already safe in the caves. If I was going to do this, if I was going to walk away from my flock, maybe forever, I had to go before I lost my nerve.
“What?” Angel looked horrified.
“Are you sure?” Fang asked, his face trusting and true.
I nodded, trying not to look into his eyes, trying not to think about what I was leaving behind. “If the toxin has been engineered like my mom said, there has to be an antidote. Or maybe Mark was lying. Maybe the contagion hasn’t been released. Maybe we can stop the psychopaths before they release the bug. But if it is released… Well, at least we can warn people.”
Angel shook her head. “Max, you don’t understand what you’re up against.”
“Look, it’s not like the odds haven’t been stacked against me before,” I said, trying to sound reassuring. “I always come out all right in the end, don’t I?” I didn’t say what everyone else was thinking: that it might actually be the end this time.
“Please don’t do this now,” Angel pleaded, reaching for my arm. “We have to get to the caves. Fang, tell her! We’ll be safe, I promise. Just come with us.”
Listen to her, the Voice repeated. Go.
I’d been obeying my Voice for so long, trusting whatever it said, even when it seemed to be mocking my existence. But I couldn’t do it this time. Not when the consequences were so major.