Soleil by Jacqueline Garlick

Author:Jacqueline Garlick [Garlick, Jacqueline]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Children's Books, Science; Nature & How It Works, Literature & Fiction, Genre Fiction, Historical, Children's eBooks, Science Fiction; Fantasy & Scary Stories, Science Fiction, Dystopian, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy, Coming of Age, Steampunk
Amazon: B01F0TRN78
Publisher: UNKNOWN
Published: 2016-07-31T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Six

C.L.

WE FALL THROUGH THE front doors of the Palace, Masheck and Pan and I. We’re winded and coughin’, spewin’ smut from our guts. My tongue burns from the arsenic-laced taste of Vapours. I guess I underestimated ‘ow much of the vile stuff was actually gettin’ through. It takes us a good bit to get the front door to close up.

We fall with our backs to it, the winds outside, bayin’ and barkin’ like a hungry wolf, circlin’ the building over and over. A biting shiver runs up my spine. My skin lifts from me bones. I’ve not felt a storm like this since—the memory of the twister that hit the Freak Train comes to mind.

I shake it off as Masheck drops to the stone floor beside me, coughin’ and chokin’, overcome by the fumes. Pan topples from my shoulder and collapses on the stone floor, and I join ‘er.

Silently, I wish the castle ‘ad a cleansin’ room, like the one back home at the Compound. I don’t understand, amid all this lavishness, why the Ruler never built one. Surely ‘is technology is as good as ours. I look around. It’s more likely ‘e believed ‘e ‘ad no reason to fear the reach of the Vapours from where he sat, considerin’ the magnitude of the force field ‘e built ‘round ‘is city. Guess ‘e never figured on that system failin’.

Though ‘e did order the bunkers built, didn’t ‘e.

Masheck and I try to stand, then melt down the walls onto our weary bottoms, coughin’ like wild fools. Pan lies next to us on the floor.

Iris comes a runnin’, ‘er shoes clappin’ stone, her frantic progression echoin’ off the foyer walls. She gasps when she sees us—her eyes jam-jar wide—and nearly drops the wash bucket she ‘s carrin’. Her gaze finds Pan and she gasps again—this time in relief—rushin’ forward and scoopin’ ‘er up in ‘er ‘ands. Iris bends ‘er ‘ead and pulls her close. Pan coos, and dizzily nuzzles Iris’s jawline.

Where did you find her? Iris signs to me.

“We didn’t. Pan found us. Isn’t that right, Masheck?” I swat his back.

Masheck grunts and spits up more Vapour residue.

Iris pulls back, spying the bump on Pan’s ‘ead ‘er eyes bug curious wide.

“Windmill,” I tell ‘er. “Whacked her noggin good, comin’ in for a landin’. The winds are ridiculously wicked out there, and gettin’ worse by the minute.” I gaze back at the door frame. Another wild lick slaps against the doors. It’s howl’s ‘eard round the room. I think briefly about Eyelet and Urlick out there in the woods, ‘ow they might be fairin’, surrounded by Vapour and criminals, and scads of Infirmed. I gulp. Flossie’s gonna be a picnic when they find ‘er, after fightin’ their way through all that.

I’ll get Pan some soup, Iris signs as she stands, and wrap ‘er up warmly.

“Good idea, but be careful,” I caution. “She’s still a little stunned.”

Iris nods and ‘urries away, then doubles back. She drops the bucket she’s been ‘oldin’ at my feet.

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