Chapter 17

I strode through the park in the academic district, making note of landmarks in my head as I passed them. The statues of the Triad stood in the center, positioned just ahead of the bench where I'd met Thane yesterday. I paused for a second to examine them, biding my time before I put myself in the path of Nero Randall's "unidentified criminal."

The Triad - Regis, Ellayna, and Divina - guided the citizens of Incipio, providing them with life, hope, health, and, eventually, death. They ensured that Incipio would stay anchored to Earth, that we as a people would prosper, and that our life cycles would continue forever, unavoidable and necessary. The statue of the Triad in the academic district was but a small tribute to the three gods. In every region of Incipio, there was a shrine to the Triad, larger than most other buildings and ornately decorated in various swaths of blue and silver and black. Most of the people of Incipio devoted regular time to pray to the Triad.

I should have prayed to the Triad a thousand times for ever speaking to Thane Flynn.

I sat down, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. All-creating, all-powerful Triad, please forgive me . . .

"Miranda." A deep, compelling voice interrupted my thoughts, at once foreign and familiar. My eyes snapped open, and I looked into the forest gaze of Thane Flynn. The hooded man. The criminal.

The criminal whose name I dared to voice. "Thane."

A smile cracked his face. "You remembered this time."

"How did you know I would be here?"

"How did you know I would be here?" he echoed.

"Seriously," I sighed, fabricated annoyance masking my trepidation and uncertainty. "Why are you here? You're obviously involved in some criminal plot against the System, but you somehow have time to start conversations with me. More than once."

"'Some criminal plot against the System,'" he repeated, giving a slight laugh. "Triad, Miranda, is that what they think is going on here? They must be brainwashing the people of Incipio even more than I remember."

"Don't say things like that," I said.

He spread his hands. "Case in point."

"What?" I asked. "Why don't you just answer the question?"

"Oh, Triad." Thane exhaled and dragged a hand through his dark hair. "They can erase memories, but they can't erase personality." He shot a sideways glance at me and, seeing my expression, laughed again. "All right. I can give you a hint."

"Let's hear it."

"I know you," he said. "Third Level."

Images crashed through my mind like a wave. I closed my eyes and pressed a hand to my forehead, but still I couldn't seem to latch onto any of them. I growled in frustration.

"That's what I thought," I said.

"Interesting." He reached out and traced his thumb across my cheek, and I jolted back. That gesture. The gesture Cas had tried weeks ago, when we'd spoken of Pairings and Ceremonies. The one that had triggered some foreign memory I still couldn't place.

"You can't do that," I said. "We're not Paired. They'll find you."

Thane drew his hand back and tossed his head. "And what if you had wanted me to do that?" he asked, his eyes defiant, his lips pursed. "Wouldn't you find that rule oppressive? Wouldn't you do anything to make them take it back?"

"Why would I want you to do that?" I asked.

"Hypothetically," Thane said. "Me or someone else. It doesn't matter."

"I still don't understand."

"Because that's what they conditioned you to think," he said. "Think of it like this, Miranda - what if you loved someone else, but you weren't Paired with him? What if you wanted to be with him for the rest of your life, but the System decided you weren't right for each other?"

"I could request a Pairing change," I said, hesitant.

"Goddamn it, Miranda," he swore. "That's not how it works."

I paused. "What did you just say?"

"Nothing." He kicked the pavement with a black combat boot. "It's outdated. Don't worry about it."

"Thane, I really don't understand," I said, my voice dropping, breathy and confused. "Why can't you tell me what your story is? And why are we allowed to talk in the open like this? Why haven't the System's Officers come after you?"

"I blocked the cameras." He gestured to the poles some distance behind him - steel structures that rose several feet from the ground, cameras mounted at the top, nearly invisible. "It's only a matter of time until they figure out this area is going unmonitored. Just depends on how efficient they are."

"Then tell me." I leaned forward, my hands sliding on my knees. "What is it? What infraction did you commit?"

"No," he said. "Not here."

"Then where?"

"Tell you what," he said. "Come to the Terminal, same time. I'll give you a week."

"You want to tell me the story at the Terminal?" I asked.

"Not exactly," he said. "Just come. I'll fill you in when you get there."

I took a deep breath. Let it out, excruciatingly slowly, waiting for the decision to come. "Okay," I said finally. "Okay. I'll be there."

"Good." Thane turned, looked partially over his shoulder at me, and met my eyes again. "There's a lot for you and me to discuss, you know."

"I . . . I know."

He continued walking down the path, vanishing when he reached the trees. I pressed my hands against my eyes and hoped I hadn't dived headfirst into deep water, but somehow I knew I had. Now I only had time left to wonder if I would be able to swim back to the surface.