The Whisper by Emma Clayton

Author:Emma, Clayton [Emma, Clayton]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Scholastic Books
Published: 2012-02-01T05:00:00+00:00

17 The Wrong Place

The boy Luc breathed steadily.

His face was calm.

His arms were out of the blankets, hands open and relaxed at his sides.

Oliver sat on the chair by the lamp, and Kobi sat at the end of the bed. He tilted his chair back so he could lean against the wall and huddled down in his coat with his hands in his pockets. They were both silent. Oliver stared at the implant, as if he was trying to understand the adults who’d done such a thing. Kobi listened to The Whisper, which now flowed through his mind like a story. After sitting with the boy for a couple of hours, he knew everything the army knew: where they were, why they were taken, and what they were trying to do.

Then he had to pass through all the emotions they’d felt while he sat there in silence, with Oliver. The shocking truth about The Wall hit him like ice. The outrage that followed made him want to punch something.

His mother had been killed by the rich living on the other side of The Wall, and by a corrupt government that knew the truth but still left them to rot in darkness!

Kobi burned in his black coat, waiting for his anger to pass. For that implanted boy wasn’t sleeping so peacefully for nothing. The army of children was about to rise and set this mess straight.

When his rage passed, he began to feel the more subtle emotions, the wonderment that forests still existed and the fear that they would burn before he saw them. And he felt a sense of alignment too. He’d come from a similar mold to Mika’s; he’d always felt there was something wrong with his world, and now he knew he was right. That he could trust his instincts and stop wondering if there was something wrong with him. Beyond The Wall were forests and rich people.

It made sense. Perfect sense.

Then something else occurred to him. This boy was waiting to wake up in the wrong place.

In the worst place.

If he woke up here, in The Shadows, alone, the adults would pounce on him and pump him for information.

He must not wake up here, Kobi thought.

Now he was desperate to speak to Mika.

He felt in his pocket and realized he’d left his companion upstairs on his bed.

“Oliver?” he said.

“Yeah?”

“I’ve got to go back to my room for a minute. Will you stay here and watch the boy?”

“OK,” Oliver replied.

“If he wakes up, run as fast as you can and find me. But don’t tell any grown-ups, just me. Do you understand? It’s really important.”

“OK,” Oliver said gravely. “I won’t tell anyone, I promise.”

Kobi sprinted up the stairs to his room and grabbed his companion.

“Call Mika again,” he told her. “It’s really urgent now, Anais. I have to speak to him.”

He paced up and down while he waited.

“I still can’t get through,” she said. “I’m sorry.”

“Frag it!” Kobi cursed.

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