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And for that, I aarden day?" the Pilot asks, and I look up For a

"I don’t know," I say "I don’t remember"

"What does the paper say?" Xander asks

"I haven’t decoded it yet," I tell him

"I can save you the time," the Pilot says "It reads, ‘Cassia, I want you to know that I’ braver than I was’ It’s froe And Bram encoded it for hilance down at Bram’s code to make sure the Pilot has translated the note correctly, but then the Pilot interrupts h until recently," the Pilot says "It appears that after it left your family’s hands, the trader involved fell ill When it did coe as well"

"Who gave this to you?" I ask

"I have people atch out for things they know ht interest me," the Pilot says "The head Archivist in Central is one of those people"

She has betrayed ain "Trades are supposed to be secret," I say

"In a time of war, different rules apply," the Pilot says

"We are not at war," I say

"We are losing a war," the Pilot says, "against the mutation We have no cure"

I look at Ky, who doesn’t have the ency of the Pilot’s words We can’t lose

"You are either helping us to find and ad our efforts"

"We want to help you," Xander says "That’s why you’re taking us to theyou to the mountains," the Pilot says "What happens to you when you arrive there is sohs "If you’re spending thiswhat to do with the three of us when there’s an incurable virus raging through the Provinces, you’re either stupid or desperate"

"The situation," the Pilot says, "is long past desperate"

"Then what can you possibly expect us to do?" Ky asks

"You will help," the Pilot says, "one way or the other" The ship turns a little and I wonder where we are in the sky

"There are not very many people I can trust," the Pilot says "So when two of thes, that worries me One of my associates thinks that the three of you are traitors who should be imprisoned and questioned away from the Provinces, out where I’m certain of the loyalty of the people The other thinks you can help me find a cure"

The head Archivist is the first person, I think But who is the other?

"When the Archivist drew my attention to this trade," the Pilot says, "I was interested, as she kneould be, both by the nae included on the paper Your father did not side with the Rising What, exactly, did you do that he didn’t dare to do? Did you take things one step further and strike against the Rising?

"And then when I looked s worthy of notice"

He begins reciting the naone crazy, and then I realize what he’s saying:

Newrose, oldrose, Queen Anne’s lace

"You wrote that and distributed it," the Pilot says "What does the code represent?"

It’s not a code It’s just my mother’s words, turned into a poeive it to him? I meant for it to be shared, but not like this

"Where is the place over the hill, under the tree, and past the border no one can see?"

When he asks the question like that, it sounds complicated, like a riddle And it was only supposed to be si there?" he asks, his voice clear and even But Ky’s right The Pilot is desperate There’s no undertone of fear when he speaks; but the questions he’s asking, the way he’s ga some of his precious time on the three of us--it all makes me cold with fear If the Pilot doesn’t kno to save us froue, who does?

"No one," I say "It’s a poe"

"But poems often do," the Pilot says "You know this"

He’s right I’ve thought about the poem with the Pilot’s name in it and whether that was the one Grandfather really avethe Hill, of hisforbidden poems to him What did Grandfather want ather people at the Gallery?" the Pilot asks