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  He grunts at me, one eye opening before he sighs and closes it again.

  Beckett is already at my side when I rise.

  “We're slowing down.”

  It had to happen sometime. “We must be nearing the station.” A moment of panic takes me. I reach out, clutching at Beckett's arm. He doesn't react, only stands there and lets the sensation pass.

  I drop his arm when the moment is over. He reaches for my hand, squeezing my fingers again in sympathy and understanding.

  “Let's go find out.”

  Vander settles beside Poppy and the dog. “I'll watch over her,” he says.

  Socrates grabs the lantern, but Beckett takes it from him. “Stay here, both of you. We'll be right back.”

  Socrates looks furious, but Beckett doesn't give him time to argue, already turning and striding off toward the forward car. I squeeze the boy's thin shoulder, offering a shrug before following Beckett.

  We pass through the next car, lights now low, most of the crew asleep. Just as well. I'm not looking forward to another confrontation, especially considering we have Chime to deal with on the other end.

  My body shudders in fear as we exit through the sliding door onto the open step and follow the open path around the side of the coal car. The scent of the fuel makes my stomach churn, or is it the crosshatch walk way open to the rushing ground below stirring my nausea?

  A large boiler blazes at the front of the car, one of the many retrofits created by the train's brilliant young engineer. No longer housed in the main engine, the giant boiler roars with fire as two of Chime's crew feed it coal. They watch us pass, now leaning on their shovels, faces filthy from the dust of their job. Steam puffs above us, streaming back into the night, the giant water tank on the other side of the boiler sloshing, near empty, the sound of the water slapping the plastic drum just loud enough to be heard over the rattle of the train.

  I breathe a sigh of relief as we reach the end of the walk and Beckett shoves aside the entrance to the locomotive.

  Two faces turn toward us, one dark and furious the other cheerful and freckled. There is plenty of light from two shining bulbs in the cab of the train, almost as bright as daytime, almost too much. I would have liked some darkness to partially mask the blame aimed at me from Chime's eyes.

  “You're not welcome up here.” Chime turns toward us, whole body threatening, but her companion smiles.

  “B-b-best p-p-part,” Ande says with a grin, like this is the most fun he's ever had.

  Chime turns her scowl on him, but he's already busy at knobs and dials, his thick red hair standing up in an unruly mess around his face as he coaxes his train into doing what he wants. Hoses and metal tubes run from where the coal engine used to sit, housed in the center of the locomotive, now a central console controlling our progress. I'm momentarily alarmed by the cobbled-together appearance, the first time I've really looked at what Ande's created. It's as though some ten-year-old patched together parts of his parent’s appliances in an attempt to create some make-believe Frankenstein monster.

  And yet, it works, is working, as he presses buttons and pulls levers scavenged from who knows where. The train continues to slow, the harsh sound of metal on metal telling me the brakes are easing on.

  “Are we almost there?” Beckett addresses Ande directly, ignores Chime, much to her obvious fury.

  “A-a-almost,” Ande says with a wide wink as he swivels on the bar stool he's installed for his comfort. The cracked black leather looks odd yet fits with the crazy outfit Ande's put together to keep the train running. “The s-s-switching station is about a mile out, so I'm l-l-letting her ease back with lots of s-s-space.” I'm almost mesmerized by his slow, steady stutter as he pats the console as if it's a living thing. “We can load more water and s-s-supplies there. It's our l-l-last known outpost, so we'll have to be s-s-sure to take on everything in s-s-sight.”

  Chime crosses her arms over her chest, planting herself between Beckett and Ande. “Who says we're going on?” Not for the first time I wonder who the real leader is. But when Ande looks up and smiles at her, I have my answer.

  “Of course we're g-g-going on,” he says. “We can't g-g-go back. So forward it is.”

  Chime's body vibrates and, for a moment, I sense her fear. The source of her anger, I'm thinking. She turns it on Ande.

  “Keep your damned mouth shut about our supplies.” She makes no move toward him, no physical threat, and from the continuing smile on his face, he doesn't seem to be afraid of her.

  “They're g-g-going to find out in a few m-m-minutes,” he says. “What's the harm in kn-kn-knowing now?”

  Chime lets out a big huff of air, dropping her arms and storming past us. Beckett follows, but I hold back, staying with Ande as the train puffs steam into the night sky.

  ***

  Chapter Five

  Ande fiddles with a few more things while I look for a good place to stay out of his way. A window leaks fresh air into the cab and I lean out for a moment to check the track ahead. It's still dark, not much to see, just passing scrub and more moonlight over the quiet desert.

  “Don't mind Ch-ch-chime,” Ande says as I turn back and meet his eyes. “She's r-r-really a good person. Just... well, we're all k-k-kind of freaked out by the Crawlers being af-f-fter us.”

  “I'm sorry,” I start to say, but he shakes his head, hopping down to join me at the window for a full breath of air expanding his skinny chest to almost comical proportions. He gently punches my arm with his little fist. He's bony, almost like Socrates, but more gangly as though he will end up very tall and very slim when he's done growing.

  If he gets the chance. I try not to think that way.

  “I'm actually ex-x-xcited,” he says, eyes locked on a pressure gauge as he turns back and retakes his seat, continuing to alter the train's power output. I ease closer, in awe of what he's been able to create in this museum engine while he goes on. “I've been d-d-dying to find out what's past the b-b-barrier, but Chime's b-b-been too nervous.” Ande leans sideways, gesturing with his chin while his hands are busy. “Can you p-p-pull that lever?”

  I look down at the tall metal arm sticking out of the floor, before grasping it and pulling toward me.

  “Perf-f-fect,” he says as metal under the train grinds louder. “Final brakes.”

  We've slowed considerably by then, the train moving perhaps only as fast as I can walk, chugging softly into the night air. I'm amazed at Ande's ability, how the entire engine seems simply another part of him, how he moves with absolute confidence from one act to the next, a dance in tune with the pulsing, burning heart of the train.

  “Are there more trains like this one?” Perhaps I'm being obvious, but Ande doesn't seem to notice. “Not like this one.” I have to laugh. I don't imagine there will ever be another train like this. “But steam engines?”

  “Not that I've s-s-seen,” he says. “Though who knows what's out th-th-there?” Ande turns to grin at me. “Though I d-d-doubt any of them work as well as my g-g-girl here.” Again he pats the engine wall. “My modifications have maximized her f-f-fuel efficiency.” He starts to explain in technical terms and I find myself shaking my head and laughing.

  “Save it for Socrates,” I say and Ande laughs with me.

  “I'm r-r-really wanting to try different fuel s-s-sources,” he says as the train slows further. “C-c-coal is so scarce, there has to be another way to p-p-power the train. Something that is s-s-self-sustaining.” His face is so serious, almost adult, I find myself smiling so much my cheeks ache.

  “Solar,” I say without thinking. Where did that come from? Before I can tell him I don't know why I spoke, he spins to face me, eyes huge.

  “Solar.” I can see the cogs churning in his head even as he continues on autopilot, shutting down the train. “The sun.” His freckles almost glow as his cheeks flush with excitement. “T-t-trio, you're a genius! Heat the w-w-water with sunlight...” Ande turns away from me, muttering to himself as the train r
ocks forward before coming to a final hissing halt.

  “You're welcome.” I don't know what else to say.

  Ande turns from the console, crossing his arms over his thin chest, eyes alight. “S-s-see? This was a good thing. I n-n-never would have come up with that w-w-working for the Crawlers.”

  My heart thuds heavily once, skipping a painful beat. “You work for the Crawlers?”

  He shrugs. “W-w-why do you think Chime's so p-p-pissed? They are—were—our b-b-best customers.”

  Socrates couldn't have known. If he had, there's no way he would have approached Chime in the first place. And now that I know, what to do? The likelihood she'll betray us just increased. And yet... “Why did she run, then? Why not just turn us over?”

  Ande makes a face, like I don't know anything. “We do their heavy hauling,” he says. “In exch-ch-change for our freedom. But if we did an-n-nything to piss off the Crawlers? You can b-b-bet they'd just take the train and k-k-kill us.” I have no idea why he's suddenly smiling again. “You sure kn-kn-know how to make a m-m-mess, Trio.”

  I shift on my feet, uncomfortable, almost as if his casual words are a chastisement. “I've been doing that a lot lately.”

  “I've n-n-never agreed with Chime's need to p-p-pander to the Crawlers,” Ande says, leaning past me to look out the window. I follow his gaze, spot a dark structure just outside, the glow from the two bulbs casting some light over the dark and lonely station. “It's time we w-w-were independent. The Crawlers are s-s-spooky and untrustworthy, s-s-say one thing, mean an-n-nother. Take more than they s-s-say they will.” I find his stutter hypnotic, the prolonged time it takes him to speak actually taking on a rhythm. He turned his head, face very close to mine. “They st-t-t-teal kids sometimes, n-n-never own up to their promises. B-b-but there's nothing we c-c-can do about it.” Ande takes a step back, his smile returning. “W-w-we can just hope there aren't any Crawlers out th-th-there.” He waves beyond him, further up the tracks.

  Before I get a chance to agree with him, Chime reappears, slamming her way through the sliding door.

  “Last stop,” she growls at me. “Everybody off.”

  ***

  Chapter Six

  Rather than retreating the length of the train to meet up with my friends, I step down to the platform from the locomotive, Chime behind me. She doesn't speak to me further, pushing past toward the door to the station while her people pile off the train and follow her, lanterns held aloft. I spot Beckett and the others heading my way, the dog loping forward to catch up with me.

  The building is concrete and glass, remarkably intact. The interior of the station crawls with shadows as the crew from the train go about their work among the stacked boxes and pallets. I'm immediately grabbed, my arms loaded with a stack of what looks like tin cans in sleeves of plastic before I'm turned bodily around and sent back out toward the waiting train.

  I have no idea how much time passes while we load the cars with supplies, but by the time we're done my back and arms ache from the strain, new bruises ready to bloom and the lanterns have faded, fuel almost expended.

  Time to pause, reflect. The place feels like a ghost town, as though the people who used to travel here left imprints of themselves behind. I look around me, at the modern station, glass still intact but aged and ugly with filth, as though the place itself caught the Sick and wonder what we're going to find on the other side of the barrier.

  I do a slow turn and spot the barrier itself. Its metal skin is pitted with rust and flakes old paint like colored tears. Someone managed to weld giant sheets of tin together, parts letting go in places to flap back and forth in the growing breeze, the scraping sound of metal on metal setting my teeth on edge.

  A feeling of total and utter isolation fills me, makes me gasp for breath. I'm alone here, in this hopeless place, with memories of what the world should look like and no hope, no hope of bringing it back.

  Her face wavers in my mind, the holographic image of the woman I love, though I can't remember her past the fact she is my heart. Her memory reminds me I'm not alone after all.

  Clone Three. There are two more out there, just like me. Who know what I don't, perhaps. Pieces in the puzzle, at least. She told me to find them, my sister clones, and why else would she say so unless they can help me?

  Determination and need replace my desperate sadness. I will find them, Clone Two and Clone One, and together we will find a way to make things right again.

  I turn at the sound of gurgling, see Ande unhooking a large hose from the tanks on the coal car, now filled to the brim with water. Which means the train is now stocked and ready. But for what? I approach slowly as Ande winds the hose, Chime and her people standing, staring, while my friends face them down, an invisible line between the train and the station holding Beckett and the others back.

  “We're leaving you now,” Chime says. “I don't care how much coal you found us, nothing is worth pissing off the Crawlers.”

  “You can't just leave us,” Socrates growls at her. “We had a deal, Chime.”

  “I can,” she snaps back. “You'll get us all killed with your stupid ideas.” She glares at me as I join my friends. “She's not worth it.” Chime meets Socrates's eyes again, a flash of desperation crossing her face. “If we turn around, hand her over... the Crawlers will forgive us.” Her tone begs him to believe her. No. Begs to believe it herself.

  Chime's people sway like young trees in the wind. I know they want to trust her. So do I. But after the talk I had with Ande, I know better. If they go back, the Crawlers will kill them and take the train.

  I'm not in a position to convince them of anything, but they don't need me for that. They have Ande.

  “It's t-t-too late,” he says with clear simplicity. “And everyone here knows it. Like th-th-the Crawlers are understanding and s-s-such.” The crew groans softly in answer. “We have n-n-no choice anymore. We h-h-have to go on.”

  Chime hesitates, her fear returning while Beckett speaks up.

  “The Crawlers won't let you just go back,” he says with just enough derision to make her angry again and for a moment my own rage is focused on him for working her up.

  “You don't know anything about us or them,” she says.

  “B-b-but I do,” Ande says, one hand on her arm. “What's d-d-done is done, Chime.” His smile lights up his face, the last of the lantern light casting a deeper red to his hair and freckles. “We chose to l-l-leave, to be free of them. Now, let's f-f-find out what's beyond the b-b-barrier.”

  She wants to argue, it's written in every inch of her. “What about fuel?” Her voice is soft, almost weak even as he continues to smile at her, as though only the two of them exist and I wonder how much she really relies on the little engineer without being aware of it. “Food and water? We have no idea what's out there.”

  “We'll f-f-find what we need along the w-w-way,” he says with so much confidence I believe him and even Chime sways.

  “There's no promise of that.” Her words are hollowed out, almost empty. He's winning. And when he turns to the others, young face so full of promise, I know it's from true belief he speaks.

  “The Crawlers have betrayed us in the past,” he says, suddenly free of his stutter as the leader in him emerges. “We could try to convince them. Go back, live this life again, if they'll let us. But for what? So we can catch the Sick at some point? Do their bidding while they get stronger and we get weaker?” He releases Chime, pointing at the metal barricade, soft stutter returning and I find I've missed it. “Or we can take a ch-ch-chance, choose the adventure, and s-s-see what happens.” I'm smiling back at him with pure delight as he winks at me, a boy, not the master of the train. Just a kid looking for something amazing to do. “I'd rather p-p-pick my own d-d-destiny.”

  Chime caves in a breath, nodding slowly, hands deep in the pockets of her coveralls. For the first time since we've met, I see weariness in her face, humanity. But when her chin lifts and she catches my eyes, that glimpse o
f the person Chime could have been flickers and dies out in favor of flat disgust.

  “Fine,” she says while her people sigh and Ande pumps his fist with a grin. “But you lot, you pull your weight. And stay the hell out of my way.”

  I'm happy to return Ande's high five as Chime stalks off, shouting orders to return to the train.

  ***

  Chapter Seven

  I'm surprised we're not moving off immediately, following Ande as he makes his way to the sleeping car. He gestures for me to join him, Beckett and the dog at my side. I hadn't noticed they came with me. I feel the glares and stares of Ande's people, but he ignores them, dishing out three big bowls of stew for us before filling a fourth for the dog, offering his glossy fur a gentle pat as Ande sits to eat.

  “Have to w-w-wait for daylight,” he says as if knowing exactly the question I'm about to ask. “As m-m-much as I can't wait, we need to. No idea what's out there, r-r-right?”

  “What about the Crawlers?” I sample the stew and find it delicious. “Won't they follow?”

  Ande flicks his fingers at me like he's shooing an ant. “No w-w-way they can catch my t-t-train.” He winks before going on. “Chime's s-s-sending a few crew over the barrier to m-m-make s-s-sure there's track at least.”

  Beckett grunts over his stew. “She should do it herself,” he grumbles.

  Ande shrugs, chewing and swallowing. “She's n-n-not as mean as you think,” he says, defending her for the second time. It's almost a natural reaction for him. How long has he been telling people she's a better person than she appears? “I love her, r-r-really. She's my b-b-best friend. Chime's just got this b-b-big temper, that's all.” He takes another bite before speaking through a mouth full. “She s-s-saved my life, you know that? T-t-took me in, protected m-m-me when nobody thought I was w-w-worth anything.”

  Socrates joins us, a bowl of his own in his hands. Beckett raises his eyebrows at him, but the smaller boy ignores him. “She took you in because you're smart and she knew it.” He shovels in his own meal while Ande grins, bits of food in his teeth.