Free Resonance by Erica O’Rourke

so.”
    I’d agreed to help, thinking I could find out the truth aboutthe Free Walkers. But now I had the truth—and zero desire to help the Consort do anything except self-destruct. “Isn’t that what the Cleavers are doing? Why do you need me?”
    The doors slid open, depositing us in a familiar black-and-white-tiled hallway. Lattimer ushered me past the Chamber of the Minor Consort, the formal meeting room where they handed down their decisions, and directed me to a nondescript door at the far end of the corridor. “The Cleavers are dealing with the effects; we would like your assistance in rooting out the cause.”
    â€œIn return, you’ll have our thanks,” Crane said. “Which outweighs any ranking you might hold in class.”
    A bribe, same as they’d done with Addie. Offer us a treat to do their dirty work.
    Lattimer swiped the key card again, punched in a code, and the lock turned over with a thunk.
    â€œI don’t think—Mom?”
    The room was smaller than the Chamber, but equally stark. Plain white walls, black-and-white-tiled floor, no doors except the one we’d passed through. And sitting on the far side of the table, clasped hands visible under the glass tabletop, were my parents.
    â€œHi, kiddo. Sit, sit.” My dad patted the chair next to him, but I stayed standing, trying not to look like I was about to run.
    Behind me, Lattimer locked the door again. Running was out.
    At the head of the table sat the third member of the Consort: Councilwoman Bolton, the scientist, her smile a sliver of white against her dark skin. “Apologies for interrupting your training, Delancey. Especially on your first day back.”
    I nodded, not sure how I was supposed to respond.
    Lattimer remained standing, and everyone’s attention shifted to him—a wordless acknowledgment of who held the power. His silver hair was swept back, his pale eyes shrewd. He was old, but there was nothing frail about him. Unlike Monty, his age gave him an air of command, of cold iron will and calculation. “You were reinstated more than a week ago.”
    â€œDel’s been through a lot,” my father said. “She needed time to recover.”
    â€œA prudent course,” Crane agreed, settling in at the end of the table. “The Consort is grateful for your help in apprehending your grandfather. I know it was a difficult time, but you handled it as a true Walker should.”
    â€œThank you,” I said, the words stiff and ungainly.
    â€œTell us again about the moment you realized he was dangerous,” Lattimer said, smooth as a well-honed knife.
    A command, not a question. Typical Consort-speak.
    Addie, Eliot, and I had all given reports about what had happened, making sure our stories were straight, concealing the truth about Simon and my solo Walking. We’d rehearsed it like a sonata, and now I performed it again.
    â€œWe went to the school for more training.” We went to the school to fix the anomalies Simon kept triggering. “Mom had told us to stay out of the Echoes, but we thought we’d be safe.” We knew time was running out. “The inversions were spreading so quickly, we decided to fix them on our own.” Telling you would land us in prison and get Simon killed. So we did it ourselves. “The TrainWorld inversion was too big for us to handle, but Monty refused to let us tell you, or cleave it.” He’d told me to run there with Simon, and then everything fell apart .
    â€œYou became suspicious,” Lattimer prompted, but his eyes narrowed.
    â€œEliot distracted him while Addie and I went through to stabilize it, but . . .” I lifted my hands helplessly. “The inversion was out of control. Addie figured out the anomaly was somewhere within that branch just as the threads split. We escaped, and Addie performed an emergency cleaving on the Key World side. Monty was furious, so I knew