Naomi Grim (The Silver Scythe Chronicles) Part 1 (9 page)

Instead of answering, the woman rounded the
corner to another tent. We followed.

"Nila! Nila!"

Another woman dressed in black rags stumbled
out of her tent. "What? What's the matter with you?"

"The boys, the boys! They took them to
Gattica!" Claudia shouted.

Nila, who I assumed to be DeCarlo's mother,
buckled. Chase caught her and held her up.

"Gattica? For what? They're good boys. They're
good boys!"

From what I could tell, Starkin and DeCarlo had
only been trying to protect the honor of their city, so I believed
Nila.

"Fighting," Claudia answered. "You better
believe, if they were taken in for that, they were fighting someone
outside of Litropolis."

DeCarlo's mother nodded. "Yes, and they would
never leave the city so someone was in here who didn't belong." She
looked at us accusingly. We were where we didn't belong as she
spoke.

Chase grabbed my arm. Overcome with guilt, I
turned away from the women. If Bram hadn't come here to get a
tattoo, their sons wouldn't have been taken away.

The three of us, holding hands, started to make
our way back to the exit. I was grateful I hadn't come
alone.

"You tell your Lord," DeCarlo's mother shouted.
We stopped and turned to her. "You tell your Lord, it's only a
matter of time. We will have our day of vindication. Justice will
be served!"

Two days left.

I didn't know what the lady in Litropolis
meant, and I didn't want to know. I needed to focus on the task at
hand. We were spending one more day going over academics, and I had
learned nothing so far.

"They're going to think you're stupid, Nay,"
Dorian said as he flipped through a chemistry book.

"Let them. I hear that's kind of cool
anyway."

Bram sat at the kitchen table with a cup of
coffee. The night we came back from Litropolis, Father had flipped
about Bram's ear gauge plugs and Dorian's black eye. I didn't even
want to think about what Mother would say when she came back. Bram
had yet to reveal his tattoo. That would be a whole new
episode.

"Feeling good, kids? The day after tomorrow
you'll be on your way," Father said, entering the kitchen with his
tablet.

This was all Father had talked about lately. He
was already planning how he would decorate our mansion in the Upper
Estates. I wanted to tell him what the woman had said in
Litropolis, to ask him what he thought it meant, but if he and Bram
knew we had gone back, they'd kill me.

Bram blew on his coffee. "Can't
wait."

"I hope I have a science class," Dorian said.
Then he caught himself. Worrying about a science class wouldn’t
impress Father. "I mean, I can't wait to collect all those
lives."

"Do you think Mother will be back before we
go?" I asked.

Father kissed my forehead. "I don't know,
Darkness. I hope so, but I wouldn't count on it."

The doorbell rang, and Dorian ran to answer it.
Mr. Dunningham entered with his dogs and assistant. It was going to
be one of those days. Doyle arrived minutes after.

Thankfully, Father found a way to coax
Dunningham to his study to look at some research he had been doing.
Even though I often asked what he was studying, I was always told
that it didn't concern me.

Keira and Josh arrived, and we took our places
in the living room. Neither Keira nor I had talked about what
happened the day before. It was best to keep it a
secret.

After another day of looking through textbooks,
Chase, Keira, and I went to Brickman's.

"I got dispatched. I'm leaving in an hour,"
Chase announced.

I was bummed that I wouldn't be able to see him
tomorrow.

Chase slurped the last of his soda. "This might
be the last time I see you guys. Ever."

Keira picked at her chipped black nail polish.
"What?"

"I'm going on assignment. Who knows how long
you guys are going to be gone? What if I'm on assignment when you
come back and you move before I come home?"

I sighed. "Chase, we've already been through
this. We will come to visit you all the time."

Chase slid down in his seat like he didn't
believe me, but I meant it. I had no intentions of making new
friends in the Upper Estates. Chase and Keira were all I
needed.

Speaking of the Upper Estates — the bell above
the door rang as Sable walked in with two other girls. Sable had
lived in Farrington up until a few months ago. An earthquake had
earned her family enough money to move out of Farrington. Sable had
been all right when she lived here, but once she moved, she changed
into an entirely different person. I vowed not to let that happen
to me.

I was surprised they were in a place like
Brickman's. They had their own upper-crust hang-outs in the Upper
Estates.

Sable sauntered over to our table. She had dark
features like every other Grim, but her extraordinary cheekbones
made her stand out. I tried not to stare as she stood over us, her
long black hair falling over her shoulders.

"So I hear there's going to be a reunion soon,"
she said as her friends sat at another booth.

"A reunion?" Keira asked.

"Yes. We'll be able to be friends again once
you guys move to the Upper Estates."

Keira rolled her eyes. "There was never
anything keeping us from being friends, Sable. You can come here
anytime you like."

"Yes, of course, but that's just not the way it
works there, girls."

Chase cleared his throat as if to say, "I told
you so."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Chase," Sable said. "I'm sure
you're going to miss them, but who knows? Maybe one day your family
will make it over the wall."

"Chase doesn't have to wait for one day," I
said. "We'll be seeing him every day."

Chase slid out of the booth. "I have to go. I
have an assignment. Good luck, guys," he told Keira and
me.

Sable took his vacated seat. "What's his
problem?" Neither Keira nor I answered. "Look, girls, I'm sorry.
You'll understand once you get over there. Oh, it's absolutely
amazing. We have the best shops and restaurants. The houses are
spectacular. You'll have servants and drivers. I hardly walk
anywhere—except when I come here."

Cars were forbidden in Farrington, but everyone
had one in the Upper Estates.

"And the guys. Your parents can hook you up
with the créme de la créme. You won't ever have to worry about
anything—running out of years, money, anything. Dunningham really
looks out for us. Don't even get me started on the parties and
balls.”

"Is that so?" Keira asked, sounding completely
uninterested.

"I can't believe you guys. You should be
ecstatic, and you're acting like you don't even care."

"We care," I replied. "What do you want us to
do, turn cartwheels?"

"I'm sure Bram is happy," Sable said slyly.
Every girl I knew had to work Bram into the
conversation.

"Why are you worried about Bram?" Keira
asked.

Why was she worried about Sable being worried
about Bram?

Sable sighed. "I can see you guys are in bad
moods, so I'll leave you alone. You'll come crawling to me once
you're in the Upper Estates and you need someone to show you the
ropes."

She and her friends left without ordering
anything. Clearly, she had only come to offer us her expertise on
the Upper Estates.

One day left. Everyone was present for our last
and final lesson—Father and Dunningham included.

Doyle placed five black velvet boxes on the
coffee table.

"What are those?" Josh asked.

Doyle stood in front of us and picked up one of
the boxes. "You can't walk around a school with your scythes, but
you can't collect lives without them." He opened the box and held
the contents out for us to see. It was a silver chain with a tiny
silver scythe charm on it. "So we had these made for you. When
you're wearing them, they will possess the same powers as your
scythe. You must never take them off. They are just as sacred as
your scythes."

Dunningham's assistant handed us each a box. I
removed my necklace, letting my fingers run over the cold metal. I
loved jewelry. I wished we could wear these all the time instead of
walking around with the heavy scythe that could sometimes be a
nuisance.

Dunningham stood and took mine from me. "Here,
let me." I turned a little so he could fasten it around my neck. My
body shivered from his ice-cold touch, and I wanted him to move
away. "There," he said and thankfully went back to sit in Father's
chair.

Doyle sat also. "Now this is the most important
part. You must return to the residence each night. None of the
humans can know where you live. You cannot bring them
there."

The residence. It was going to be weird with
just us kids living together. I was used to being away from home
for long periods of time when on assignment, but I was always
alone—just me and the human I was following. A smile spread across
Bram's face. I knew he was already thinking it was party
time.

"Now, Bram," Doyle continued, "I will be
dropping in from time to time, but when I'm not there, you're in
charge."

Had Doyle never met my brother? What kind of
idiot would leave him in charge?

"You will be in charge of making sure everyone
is home by their curfew each night. Make sure they are following
the Covenant. Keep the humans out of the home. Get as close to the
humans as you can without blowing your cover. Is that
understood?"

Bram nodded. "Yes, sir. Don't worry. I'll keep
these kids out of trouble."

I tried really hard not to roll my eyes. Who
was going to keep him out of trouble?

Mr. Dunningham stood, hopefully to leave.
"Young Grims, I have entrusted you with a prestigious task—a task I
would only offer to the best of the best. Govern yourselves
accordingly."

That night, Father gave us a long lecture
before we went to bed about how our future in Nowhere was riding on
this. How this assignment was going to open so many doors for us.
In other words, we couldn’t mess up. We turned in early to get a
good night's sleep, although I never fell asleep. I was anxious
about being a high school student among the humans, and I wasn't
sure if I could pull it off. What if everyone hated me? What if I
fell prey to a bully? Then I reminded myself that I wouldn't be
alone. My brothers and best friend would be there. Everything would
be fine.

The following morning, Father made us a hearty
breakfast. This was unusual because he hardly ever cooked. We
munched on scrambled eggs, sausages, potato cakes, toast, and
melon. I was stuffed, but my plate was still half- full. Father
told me I needed to eat it all so I could start the day off on the
right foot. I didn't think vomiting would be the way to do
that.

I dressed in my usual attire—black boots, black
jeans, a black tank top, and my black hoodie. Keira and I had
decided that we would see how the other kids were dressed first and
then we'd adjust our wardrobes. I slid my new backpack on my
shoulders. I'd never had use for one before. I grabbed the duffel
bag filled with things I had packed and went downstairs.

We stood at the pantry/transporting chamber.
Father handed us each an envelope filled with money for various
expenses. It was American money, a different currency from the
silver coins we used in Nowhere. Bram's wad was twice as large as
Dorian's and mine. He would be in charge of keeping the house
stocked with food and other necessities.

We loaded our things into the chamber before
giving Father a final hug. He gave me an extra kiss on the top of
my head. "Take care of them," he said to Bram as the door of the
chamber slid shut.

We began to move up like in an elevator. Doyle
had said there would be a vehicle waiting for us. I'd told him that
none of us knew how to operate a vehicle, but Bram had insisted
that he did.

The chamber opened up to a forest clearing.
There was nothing but trees and a black SUV, a nice one with
black-tinted windows. It was big enough to carry us and all of our
things. The trees formed a nice shaded canopy over us. I was happy
for that. The human world was much too bright for a Grim's
eyes.

"Nice!" Bram said as we carried our bags toward
it. The doors were unlocked. We threw our duffle bags in the back
compartment. I climbed into the passenger seat. Bram slid in front
of the steering wheel, where the keys sat in the
ignition.

Dorian got in the middle row. "Bram, don't
wreck this thing, okay?"

"Relax. I know what I'm doing."

But he didn't. It took him a while to start the
car and get it out of park. We lurched forward. Bram slammed on the
brakes and I almost hit my head on the dashboard, prompting me to
pull the seatbelt around my waist. I wasn't so much worried about
us, but I didn't want Bram wrecking our only source of
transportation.