Page 37 (2/2)

She felt herself shudder, the words twisting in her like a knife

In that moment, Tally made a deal with herself Eventually she would have to tell David what she had unwittingly done Not now, but sos better, fixed part of what she had destroyed, o after them," she said "Rescue them"

"Who? My parents?"

"They caht? So that’s where they’ll take them And Shay and Croy, too We’ll rescue theainst a bunch of Specials?"

"They won’t expect us"

"But hoe find them? I’ve never been inside a city, but I hear they’re pretty big More than a million people"

Tally took a slow breath, once again re her first trip out to Dr Cable’s office The low, dirt-colored buildings at the edge of the city, past the greenbelt and ae, misshapen hill nearby "I knohere they’ll be"

"You what?" David pulled away from their embrace

"I’ve been there Special Circumstances headquarters"

There was a ht they were secret Most of the kids who come out here don’t even believe in them"

She went on, quietly horrified that another lie was coo I pulled a really bad trick, the kind that gets you special attention" She rested her head against David again, glad that she couldn’t see his trusting expression "I snuck into New Pretty Town That’s where you live right after the operation, having fun all the tilies aren’t allowed in, right?"

"Yeah It’s a pretty serious trick Anyway, I wore this rabbed a bungee jacket"

"Which is?"

"Like a hoverboard, but you wear it It was invented for escaping tall buildings in a fire, but new pretties use it rabbed one, pulled a fire alarm, and jumped off the roof It freaked a lot of people out"

"Right Shay toldyou were the coolest ugly in the world," he said "But all I was thinking was that things uess so"

"But you got caught? Shay didn’t mention that"

The lie took for on as ht I’d gotten away, but they foundA few days later they took me to Special Circumstances, introduced e there It was the first time I’d ever seen Specials"

"Are they really that bad up close?"

She nodded in the dark "They’re beautiful, absolutely But in a cruel, horrible way The first tih They warned ain Or if I ever told anyone That’s why I never mentioned it to Shay"

"That explains a lot"

"About what?"

"About you You always seeerous it was here in the Smoke Somehow, you understood what the cities were really like, even before my parents told you the truth about the operation You were the only runaway I ever ot it"

Tally nodded That et it"

"And you still want to go back there for ht? To risk your mind?"

A sob broke in her voice "I have to"To hter, tried to kiss her She had to turn her face away, tears finally co"