The Pledge by Derting Kimberly

Author:Derting, Kimberly [Derting, Kimberly]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Published: 2011-11-15T08:00:00+00:00

The first thing I was aware of was the darkness. It wasn’t complete, this darkness, but it was broken only in places by the flicker of lanterns and the pale glow of handheld lights. Definitely not enough to see where I was walking.

Once again, I was thankful for Max’s pocket light so we could pick our way through the overcrowded platforms in search of a place to rest.

That was the second thing I noticed: the people. Everywhere. Crammed together.

It was quieter down here, below the streets. Away from the sirens. But there was a hushed desperation that filled every ounce of space, every recess, making even the air feel thicker and harder to breathe. I could smell the worry.

We stepped carefully, avoiding legs and feet in our path, the small light’s beam scanning for an opening where we could stop and rest. When I could bear it no longer, I set Angelina down, squeezing her fingers tightly in an unspoken assurance that I wouldn’t release her. I pushed her in front of me, keeping her back pressed against me, my free hand on her shoulder to guide her.

When it became clear that we wouldn’t find a spot on the platforms, Max turned his light downward, onto the oily, dirt-caked tracks below. Faces stared back at us from the shaft of light, and Max moved it quickly over them, scanning, searching.

“There,” he finally said, pointing the light toward an opening. Although it was less an opening than it was a slight gap in the mass of people huddled atop the gravel on the far side of the unused tracks.

I agreed, it seemed the best we’d be able to do. And even though it would be a tight fit, at least we could all stay together.

Max dropped down from the platform, his feet crunching in the loose rocks below as he found a narrow space to stand between the bodies. He reached for Sydney’s hand, and I hated the twinge of jealousy I felt at seeing them touch again.

But I didn’t have time to dwell on it, because next he was reaching for Angelina. She went to him, this time without hesitation, and I was surprised by her willingness to trust him so easily, so soon. She was normally reserved, careful with whom she let down her guard. Yet her instincts were infallible.

Even in the shadows, I saw the sliver of a smile on her lips as Max set her gently to the ground. And then she reached for Sydney’s hand while she waited for me.

If not for the fear of stepping on someone below me in the darkness, I wouldn’t have waited for Max to help me down—I would have jumped myself. But I couldn’t see where I would land, so I was forced to place my hand in his.

He pulled me toward him and I landed in his arms, my body sliding down the length of his. Suddenly I was aware of everything about him, his strength, the heat of

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