The Liberator

42 A Choice

Demons pour into the room. The whistling sound they make engulfs my senses. There are so many of them, too many to defeat. My mind spins, deciding whether to try and fight regardless.

Beside me, Aspen clutches my arm. I glance at her, at the crease between her green eyes. Understanding passes between us. We won’t make it out of here. I expect to get angry, for that anger to fill every crevice in my head. Instead, I am awash with guilt. I allowed Aspen to come with me on this futile quest.

And I’m the reason she may die tonight.

Demons creep closer as Rector struggles to stand. At last, he’s successful. I don’t know what to do. I’m not sure there’s anything to do. Rector has won. He’s wanted to destroy me ever since he learned my name. And now he has me cornered. So it surprises me when he limps toward Aspen like I’m not even in the room.

“My wicked little rose,” he says to Aspen. “Don’t be upset. You brought them here with your screams, after all.”

“Stop calling her that,” I bark.

“No,” Aspen whispers.

I squeeze her hand. It wasn’t her fault. The demons would have come eventually, the scent of our perspiring flesh guiding their noses.

Rector ignores me. “As I was saying when we first met, I have a proposal.”

“Screw your proposal.” I step in between him and Aspen. I may not be able to defeat the demons, but I can kick his ass one more time before they attack us.

“Let him talk.” Aspen’s spine is straight, and her chin is raised. She looks like a goddess.

“Smart girl,” Rector says.

I stare him down for a few more seconds, then move aside. Right now, I just want to make things better for Aspen, so if she wants to hear what he has to say, then I’ll oblige.

“Start talking, old man,” Aspen says.

Rector folds his arms across his chest and grins. “My proposal is simple,” he says to Aspen. “Dante can leave and take Charlie’s soul with him. But you will stay behind.”

My fist connects with Rector’s jaw. He hits the ground.

The demons stir. Their overgrown toenails click against the floor, and they raise their giant heads and hiss. The yellow-and-black scales smeared across their bodies remind me of bumblebees. One near the front flicks out its forked tongue. The demons are waiting for an order to strike, their glassy eyes taking in everything. If Rector weren’t here, I have no doubt they would have already overpowered us.

I step away from Rector and shield Aspen with my body. She shoves me to the side, but I don’t miss the way she grips her injured bicep.

Rector looks up from the ground like he’s not altogether surprised to be there. “Despite that very rude gesture, my offer stands.”

Aspen sobs quietly. I grip her shoulders. “I’ll never let that happen. I told you I’d never walk out on you, and I won’t. Do you understand?”

“This isn’t your choice,” she mutters.

“The hell it isn’t.”

Aspen shrugs my hands off and gulps in air. “What will you do to me?”

She’s talking to Rector, but I don’t want to hear the sound of his voice. “Don’t say a damn word to her.”

He ignores me. It takes everything I have to keep from knocking the rest of his teeth out. “You won’t be harmed,” Rector replies. “But I do think you’d make an excellent collector one day.”

Aspen bolts upright. They glare at each other, and the pair seems to have a silent conversation. After a moment, Aspen breaks off her stare and pushes herself against my chest. I’m thrown off by this. It takes me a moment to respond, but then I wrap my arms around her.

Of course Rector would want Aspen as a collector after seeing how viciously she fights. He’s misinterpreted her strength as hidden sinfulness. But why would he trade Charlie’s soul for a future collector? It doesn’t matter, I decide. I’ll never let him have her.

“Shhhh,” I say near her ear. “Everything is going to be okay.” I lower my voice. “When I give you the signal, I want you to run like you’ve never run before. Don’t stop until you get outside. Find Max and get out of here.”

Aspen steps away from me. Tears streak down her dirty cheeks. “You’re like my brother, Dante. I love you like a brother.” She turns and faces Rector. “I’ll stay.”

“No!” I roar.

Aspen tries to take my hand, but I jerk away from her. “You’re not doing this.”

Rector nears Aspen. I try to block his path, but Aspen goes to him. The collector meets my gaze. “I keep Aspen, body and soul. In exchange, I give you your life and Charlie’s soul. She has made her decision. Now go.”

My stomach heaves. My eyes sting, and suddenly the room is spinning. “I can’t…”

“Go,” Aspen says, echoing Rector. “Return Charlie’s soul.”

I move toward Aspen, but she pushes me away. The stinging in my eyes is now blinding me. “I can’t leave you,” I say, tears dripping down my face. “I can’t.”

“This isn’t your decision to make, Dante.” Aspen’s voice is cold, like she’s already out of reach.

I jab a finger at her. “I won’t let you do this.”

“It’s done.”

“Damn it, I said no! You told me you’d do as I asked down here without question. You promised!” I’m furious, but I don’t care. She has to listen to me. I won’t leave her here.

Aspen closes her eyes. When she looks at me again, there’s only resolve to be seen. She’s not changing her mind. And I can’t make her leave without getting us both killed.

“Aspen…” The word is a plea.

“You set out to make me a better person,” she says, a gentle smile gracing her mouth. “Turns out you’re a damn fine liberator. That, or I always had it in me to change.” She rubs a hand over her eyes. “You tell Sahara…you tell Sahara I did this for her. When she’s older. When she understands. Tell Lincoln he was a good friend. My best friend. And tell Blue… No, don’t tell Blue anything.”

I nearly choke as I say, “How am I supposed to do this? How am I supposed to just leave you?”

“Valery said I was important. They all said I was important. This is why—my life for her soul,” she says. “I’m staying for Sahara. And for Lincoln and Blue and everyone else who deserves a chance at a peaceful world. Now leave, Dante.”

“Aspen, please—”

“Leave!” she screams.

A ball of ice forms between my shoulder blades. Aspen’s face is red, and her hands are clenched. I turn away. I’m still not sure I can do this, but I’ll take the opportunity while I have it to get Charlie’s soul.

Rector and his demons don’t try to stop me as I head in the direction of the floating orb. Inside is the ball of light. With every step, my body yearns to be closer. Charlie’s soul is like a beacon, calling me to it. I stop when I’m an arm’s length away. My heart pounds against my rib cage, and my back arches involuntarily, pushing me forward. The way my body reacts, it’s like it’s greeting her soul, like they’re old friends. What’s more, her soul itself has pressed against the orb as if it, too, is eager to be reunited.

This time I don’t question things. I touch both palms to the ball, and it bursts like a bubble made of dish soap. As soon as the orb is gone, her soul shoots toward me. The moment it touches my chest, my arms fly open and my head falls back. A crushing sense of rightness consumes me. The demons are gone. Rector isn’t here. And Aspen is safe in her bed.

All that’s left is me and this bliss.

Gently, I touch a hand to my chest, and my knees nearly buckle. With Charlie Cooper’s soul inside me, I am fulfilled. I am whole again.

Before I lose this sense of resolution, I stride toward Aspen. I pull her into a hug. “I understand now that we must all make sacrifices,” I say. “But I will be back for you, Aspen. I’ll return and blow this entire place apart with the strength of God himself to save you.”

Aspen collapses against me and cries into my shoulder.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” I ask her one last time.

“I’m sure,” she whispers. And then, “Come back for me.”

I hold her head in my hands and know this is it—this is where I do the thing I said I wouldn’t ever do. I have to leave Aspen. I put my mouth near her ear so that only she can hear what I say next. “Your father may never know how amazing his daughter is, but I do.”

Aspen covers her face. Then with one hand, she pushes me away. “Go, Dante. Go now.”

I do as she asks. I turn from her—from my friend, my sister—to leave. But not before socking Rector in the stomach one last time. He falls to one knee.

“One day, Rector, it’ll just be you and me,” I say.

Then I run.

As a token of good faith, Rector gives me a thirty-second head start before sending the demons after me.