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"Help me, Cinder"

"I can’t" The words were softer than a whisper at her side

She was close when she noticed the stone wall It was so unexpected, rising ah above,her free hand on the rough surface She had to feel it to be sure it was real She followed it, keeping close enough that her shoulder dragged against the wall, until she caate A screen was e a device from her world here on the outside

She swiped her hand across the dusty screen "I need help! I need Marron!" Her breath cah above her

"Help!"

So sky She heard distant shouts A few moments later, the inset screen flickered on A man appeared, his face plump and fair and blue-eyed His da

A disbelieving sate opened with a rumble that clattered in her kneecaps

Aria wobbled into a broad grass courtyard, her shoulders screa Cinder on his feet Cobbled streets linked stone cottages and garden plots In the distance, still within the wall, she saw pens with goats and sheep Slanced at her, more curious than surprised It looked like a keep in a Medieval Realray box, not a castle

Ivy grew along its walls but did nothing to soften the cement structure There was only one entry, heavy steel doors that slid open smoothly as she watched The round-faced raceful as he hurried toward her A youngenough that the gate behind her began to close

"No!" she said "There are two rine and Roar I was told to find Marron"

"I’aze toward the door "Perry is out there?" By then, shouts of "Croven" rained down fropeople to take posts on the wall, others to head downhill to help Perry and Roar

Two men came forward and took Cinder from her side Cinder’s head fell back limply as they picked him up

"Have him taken to medical," Marron told them When he looked back to her, his expression softened He pressed his hands together beneath his soft chin, a s in his eyes "Blessed, blessed day Look at you"

He tucked her neatly under his arm and ushered her toward the square structure Aria didn’t protest She could hardly walk She let herself be cushioned to his soft side Perfume flowed into her nose Sandalwood Citrus Clean smells She hadn’t smelled perfume since she’d been in the Realh an explanation of the Croven as he led her inside They crossed an airlock cha the purpose for which it had been designed A wide cee room

"I sent my best people to help We can wait for them here," Marron said

It was only then she realized Marron earing Victorian clothes A black tailcoat over a blue velvet vest He even had a white silk puff tie and spats

Where was she? What kind of place had she stu Three-dimensional wallscreens, like people had before the Unity, frareen and lush Birdsong twittered through hidden speakers The other walls were covered in richly patterned fabric Every few feet, glass cases housed collections of odd ite jersey with the nuazine, the dinosaur illustration on the cover fra, like in ancient museums, so that Aria’s eyes traveled from one burst of color to another

At the center of the room, several lush couches were ordered around an ornate coffee table with curved legs Aria’s brain flashed with recognition She’d seen a table like that in a Baroque Realm A Louis XIV piece She peered at Marron What kind of Outsider was he?

"This is my home I call it Delphi Perry and Roar call it the Box," he added, with a quick, affectionate smile "There’s so much I want to know, but it’ll have to wait, of course Please have a seat You look so very tired, and standing won’t bring them here any faster, I’m afraid"

Ariaself-conscious She was filthy and Marron’s hoet off her feet overpowered her She sat down, a gasp of relief escaping fro against her back and her legs She brushed her hand over the chocolate-colored fabric Unbelievable A silk couch Here, on the Outside

Marron sat opposite her, twisting a ring around a pudgy finger He appeared to be a 4th Gen, but there was a childlike curiosity in his eyes

"Perry is hurt," she said "His hand is burned"

Marron issued more orders Aria hadn’t even realized there’d been other people in the room until they sped off "I have a facility here We’ll take care of hiets done"

She guessed Slate was the tall young man who’d just been outside "Thank you," she said Her eyes were closing on their own "I didn’t knoouldn’t have left hione before I knew it" She spoke without realizing it

"My dear," Marron said, looking at her with concern "You need rest What if I have you informed theoff a wave off exhaustion "I’et here" She folded her hands in her lap, recognizing the gesture as her et there

Any second

Chapter 22