“He tried to recruit me to his cause.”

She slouched back. “You should have signed up. They’re in charge now, you’d have saved yourself a lot of trouble.” A wry smile twisted. “Sorry. I forgot who I was talking to. Trouble is exactly what you crave. I just want peace.”

Anger flared. I banged a fist on her desk. “I wanted peace, too. And you know what happened while I sat around mooning over our state of affairs. I don’t crave trouble. It’s just one of those unfortunate side effects when I finally decided to take action.” I leaned in close to her—almost nose to nose. “If Hank has Logan, then I know exactly where he’s being held. Are you going to sit around moping or are you going to help me?”

“It’s too late.”

“That’s such a load of crap. It’s never too late.”

A spark of ire flashed. “What more proof do you need? My brother’s dead body? Would that convince you it’s too late?”

“No. Not Logan’s. Not Riley’s. Not mine or yours. They haven’t won, Anne-Jade. They just think they did. Which gives us the advantage.”

She laughed. “You’re insane.”

“That’s certainly debatable. But give me another chance.”

“Another chance to do what?”

“Prove to you it isn’t too late.”

She snagged her lower lip with her teeth and chewed. “I don’t have any resources. They took everything.”

“Everything?”

She nodded.

“You mean you don’t have a few loyal lieutenants who would take a risk for you?”

“Well…”

I sensed a small victory. “And you didn’t keep a few weapons hidden away just in case?”

“I might have.”

“Might? When will you know?”

Anne-Jade huffed in annoyance. “All right. I’ll make you a deal. If you rescue Logan and get him to a safe location, I’ll help you.”

“I accept.” I shook her hand, sealing the deal.

I turned on my mic and hailed Riley, informing him of Logan’s disappearance and my plans to rescue him. He had given me another microphone and receiver. They worked on a specific frequency so it was very difficult for Hank and the Outsiders to pick it up.

“Do you have the diamond wire?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Do you need backup?” His voice held a nervous edge.

“I’ll take Zippy.”

“I’d be happier if you took a dozen armed men and women along.”

“And I’d be happier if the Outsiders decided to leave us alone.”

“Point. Be careful…please.”

“I will.”

The problem with using a diamond wire to aid in my escape became apparent right away. Wires ringed the bars covering the air vent to Logan’s cell. Wires that I assumed would set off a loud alarm if I sawed through them.

I hadn’t called attention to myself just in case Logan had company. It was interesting how fast my ability to crawl through the shafts without making noise had returned. Either that or just the amount of time I’d been spending traveling through them had sharpened my skills.

Logan sprawled on his back on the thin mat. His cell was a mirror image of mine. I called his name when I was certain he was alone. He jerked and scrambled to his feet.

“Trella, don’t touch the—”

“Bars, I know. I can see the wires.”

He slouched against the wall and rubbed his face. “I think I’m stuck for good this time,” he said in a tired voice.

He didn’t appear to be injured, but I knew what the Outsiders were capable of. “What happened?”

“My keepers made a surprise visit,” he said. “I didn’t have time to hide all my toys. They were strewn all over. I guess I shouldn’t have been so relaxed about them. Another mistake caused by overconfidence.”

“Another?”

He waved a hand. His right one still covered his eyes. “The whole Outsider fiasco could have been avoided.”

“How?”

“If I had kept track of all communications, I would have spotted Hank’s link to the Outsiders.”

“Why didn’t you?” I asked.

“Privacy. I didn’t want to spy on the Committee members or others.”

“Exactly, Logan. You didn’t want to be like the Travas and Pop Cops, monitoring all our activities. You’re not to blame.”

“I’m not helping, either,” he said. Clearly miserable, he massaged his temples.

“Did you meet the Outsiders?” I asked.

He straightened, dropping his hands. “They’re here?”

“Only a couple. I’ve met them both.”

“You? When?”

“Long story. I’ll tell you later. First, we need to bust you out of here.”

“How? The heating vent has the same trip wires. All you have to do is touch them and they’ll set off the alarm.”

“How?” I asked.

“There’s a weak electrical current going through the wires. If you touch it with your finger, you’ll block the current and that sets it off.” He began to pace. “But if you touch it with both hands, the current will travel through you and back to the wire. I could cut the bars… No. Won’t work. You’d be stuck holding the wires. No way for you to move once the bars and wires are cut. Unless we made a connection with a separate wire and some metal clamps, which we don’t have. Plus we would need one bypass for each bar, unless the wire is continuous.”