Free Redeemer by Katie Clark Page B

and continues sewing. The pain is less when I’m thinking about the mission. “Where were you going before you saw the flier?”
    “I don’t know. Anywhere but where we were.”
    He doesn’t respond as he finishes up. A dull ache throbs the length of my arm, and he quickly wraps it in clean bandages. “You’re probably not going to have a way to keep that sanitary. Get as much water as you can manage.” He turns to Isabel. “Can I trust you to help her get those out in a few weeks?”
    Isabel’s eyes widen. “Me?”
    “She won’t get any medical treatment back in 4.”
    Isabel stares for a few minutes but finally returns to her normal, assured self. “OK. I can do it.”
    He points to another area on my neck, one I haven’t seen. “What happened here? It looks like a burn.”
    I shrug, but Isabel speaks up. “She was caught in electro-grass. Got electrocuted.”
    His mouth falls open an inch, then he shakes his head and turns away. He moves to clean up his mess, but I grab his arm.
    “Fischer, what happened to you?”
    He pauses, not looking me in the eye. Finally, he turns away. “I got caught.”
    His words feel like Tasers stinging every part of my body, electrifying and painful. Whatever they did to him, it’s like he’s broken now. Not the Fischer I know.
    Icy fear slides up my back. I need Fischer. I need the him I’ve known. The one who got me involved in this fight in the first place. Who else can I trust in this bizarre world?
    Dr. Hines will return any minute, then Tucker will haul us back to the holding station. It’s now or never.
    “Tell me what you need. How to get you out of here.”
    “There’s nothing we can do, Hana. We’re stuck here, at least for now.”
    “No, Fischer!” I move toward him quickly. “There has to be something we can do. A way out of here. What are the flying transporters for?”
    He frowns and shakes his head. “I don’t know. It’s the second one they filled up and took away just in the few days I’ve been here. But Hana, you have to stop. Frost Moon isn’t going to keep letting you go.”
    I grind my teeth and turn away. “Fine, then I’ll do it without your help.”
    He grabs me and spins me back toward him. “Look at me, Hana. Do you think these bruises are a joke? They’re not, and they’ll do the same to you eventually. I’m begging you. Stop now.” He chokes up and looks away, and my anger melts into a puddle at my feet.
    My hands move to his face, and I gently finger his bruised skin. “I can get away, if you’ll help me. I can find Guard Nev in the west. I can find the other cities again, and get the Free to help.”
    He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. “Maybe we’ve been too idealistic.”
    “No, Fischer.” He can’t believe that. The only way to win is to stand up and fight. “You don’t know the things Frost Moon told me. You didn’t hear the things he said to me before sending me away. A war is coming, and being locked up in a Lesser City is no place to be.”
    I’ve piqued his interest, but he glances at the door. Time is too short, and there’s no way to lengthen our stay.
    “They’ve likely already reported you as having been caught. Frost Moon has got to be keeping close tabs on you. That means he knows you’ve escaped. He’s probably going to be waiting for you back in Lesser 4, and it isn’t going to be pretty.”
    I glance at Isabel. She watches us, still with interest, but quiet.
    Disregarding her, I step closer to Fischer and stare into his eyes. “Don’t give up, Fischer. We can find help. There are others.”
    He looks down at me, so close, and inhales. I want him to kiss me. I want him to hold me, to show me he hasn’t totally surrendered.
    But he moves away. “I’ll see what I can do.”
    The door opens and Dr. Hines steps in. “Looks like Medic Brown got you all cleaned up.”
    I attempt a smile. We must look strange, me standing in the middle of the room and Fischer standing a few feet