TESS GETS EVACUATED FIRST—I SEE HER LIMP FORM BEING carried in the arms of a nurse as they exit the Bank Tower. I take her from the nurse’s arms as soon as they reach ground level, then carry her alongside the stream of other evacuees. She seems only half conscious, unaware of my presence, her head lolling to one side. Halfway to the shelter, I slow down. Damn, I’m so exhausted and in so much pain.
Pascao takes Tess from my arms. He hoists her up to his chest. On the roofs, sparks fly—signs of gunfire. “Get back to the Bank Tower entrance,” he yells at me before turning his back. “I’ll get her over!” And then he’s off before I can argue.
I watch them go for a while, unwilling to look away until I’m sure Tess is safely across the square. When they reach the shelter, I turn my attention back to the tower. Eden should be down by now. I crane my neck, squinting through the crowds for a head of blond curls. Has June come back downstairs yet? I don’t see her in the panicking masses either and her absence sends a jolt of worry through me.
Then, an explosion. I’m thrown to the ground.
Dust. A dust bomb, I manage to think through the pounding in my head. At first I can’t see anything through all the smoke—there’s chaos everywhere, sparks flying, and the occasional muffled sound of gunfire; through the floating white dust, I see a blur of people running toward the safety of the Republic barricades, their legs moving as if in slow motion, their mouths open in silent shouts. I shake my head wearily. My own limbs feel like they’re dragging through the mud, and the back of my head throbs, threatening to drown me in pain. I blink against it, trying to keep my senses straight. Desperately I call out again for Eden, but I can’t even hear my own voice. If I can’t hear it, how can he?
The people thin out for a moment.
And then I see him. It’s Eden. He’s unconscious in the arms of a terrified Republic nurse, one who seems to be stumbling blindly through the dust, headed in the wrong direction—straight toward the Colonies troops lining the left side of the square, opposite of where the shelter is. I don’t stop to think or shout at him, I don’t hesitate or wait for a good interval in the gunfire. I just start running toward him.