The Gender End by Bella Forrest (the giving tree read aloud TXT) 📕

three gunships aiming at you. Drew and Mags took their people into the city to start clearing out the gangs that had formed. We’re just trying to get them to stand down, if we can, and if they refuse, well, Mags and her team have started a collection of Porteque gang members, and the ones that did not go peacefully are not happy about their decisions. Alejandro’s niece is tough as nails, I’ll give her that. We’ve also encountered only a handful of enhanced people, but Dr. Tierney gave us some tranquilizer guns to help knock them out until we get them secured. We’re still working on a long-term solution to that… Anyway, I’ve got some landing coordinates for you. It’s going to be a tight fit, but it was the best place we found inside the city that was big enough to hold everything. Don’t worry, I’m sure it won’t take you too long to feel quite at home.”

He fed me the coordinates, which I repeated to Vox, checking them twice, and then checking my watch. “I think we’ll be there in another hour or so, but I’ll radio when we get close, okay?”

“Okay. And Viggo?”

“Yeah?”

“Damn good to hear your voice, boy. We’ll see you soon. Looking forward to hearing about The Outlands.”

OceanofPDF.com

14

OceanofPDF.com

Violet

The red-brick, three-story building drew larger as Logan slowly lowered the ship. A tall fence ran the perimeter, creating a wide yard in the front. The space was currently filled with heloships parked wingtip to wingtip, with barely any room in between. It was dark, but I could make out movement down below as people went about their business in between rows of ships.

I felt my breath catch as the proximity alarm went off and I saw how close we were to the other ships, convinced we were going to crash into them. Logan flicked it off, even as Viggo’s arms came around me, holding me close to him. The deck shuddered as we touched down, and Logan immediately killed the engine.

“And the crowd went wild,” he announced as he dusted off his hands.

“We’re not here to stroke your ego,” yawned Amber, picking herself off the floor and taking a moment to stretch her back. “You got us on the ground, which was your job, so if you’re expecting a thank you…”

“Would it kill you?” he asked, spinning the chair around to look at her.

She met his gaze flatly as she lowered her arms. “It might,” she retorted. “Especially before a hot meal and a shower.”

“Well, I for one am saying thank you,” Viggo said. “To both of you. You are both excellent pilots, and I am grateful for your help in recovering Violet.”

He squeezed me a little tighter, and I smiled. “Same here,” I told them.

“Anytime, you know that,” said Amber. “Now let’s get off this thing before the collective might of our B.O. causes it to melt.”

I snorted and followed her toward the tail of the ship, eager to get back onto solid ground. Amber hit the button to open the door, while I checked on Solomon. He was still out, but the pink goop that had been placed in his wounds was looking more and more skin-like—like a freshly scarred wound rather than gaping holes. I touched the area around one of the wounds lightly, and the skin felt cool and firm. I wondered about it for a moment, still not really comprehending what had happened at the tower. The miraculous cure seemed like a daydream, impossible to believe, and their weaponized sunlight like a nightmare.

“We need to get him to the infirmary,” I announced loudly. “And we should really—”

“Take a break,” ordered a familiar voice from below, and I turned to see Ms. Dale standing at the bottom of the ramp, flanked by two people. “Gary, Matthew, can you take Solomon to Dr. Tierney?”

The two men—I assumed they were part of one of the rebel cells—moved up the ramp and began to unhook the wounded man from the straps buckling him in. Ms. Dale followed and stood in front of me, her blue eyes taking me in. I couldn’t help it— I rushed toward her and threw my arms around her.

“It’s so good to see you,” I breathed.

She dropped her arms around me and squeezed back, then let go of me to cup my face, looking me over, even going so far as to take my arm and prod at the new cast.

“Looks like you had a pretty interesting adventure,” she said. “And I wish we could spend more time talking about it, but we’ve been holding off a meeting with Drew and Mags until you, Viggo, Amber, and Logan returned.”

Logan gave a little salute as he moved past her. “I assume there’s a place where I can grab a shower?” he asked, and Ms. Dale nodded.

“Thomas managed to get the water treatment plant up and running, as well as the power facility. So we’ve got water and heat, although it’s only a short-term fix, and the government will have to put more work into the infrastructure later. Matthew will show you where you and your men will be staying. I assumed you wanted to be placed together.”

“That’ll work,” Logan replied. “I’ll see you in…”

“We’re giving you all an hour,” she cut in. “So you can get yourselves together. I wish we could let you rest, but there’s been no sign of what Elena has in store for us next, and we’re just moving a bit too quickly to put the brakes on.”

“I want to check on Jay,” I said. “Is he okay?”

“He’s… okay. Quinn and Tim have been watching over him, and Dr. Tierney has him stabilized, but…” Ms. Dale paused, her gaze dropping to the floor as sadness seemed to envelop her. “There’s a chance he might not be able to walk again, Violet. The bullet is lodged dangerously close to his spine.”

A hollow formed in the pit of my stomach, and it felt like the temperature had dropped