Souls Below - Rebellion

Chapter Twenty-Six

The city bustled below as I moved across a string of familiar rooftops and walkways, avoiding the streets as much as possible. Down there, I’d get swallowed whole. In the tunnels below, I had even less of a chance. I’d be lost in the maze in minutes.

I was done being rescued like some clueless Upper.

With what I’d learned about the restricted sector, I needed to talk to Krane. After I told Calian everything, I couldn’t shake the feeling that none of it had surprised him. Then Jerard’s meeting had ended, his gravel-thick voice calling Calian back to the office and cutting our conversation short.

Uncertainty churned in my chest. Trusting Calian too much meant walking blind. But not trusting him at all meant treating him like everyone else down here—with suspicion and bitterness.

I climbed down a ladder bolted to the building opposite Krane’s place. The flickering sign outside the workshop told me Strem was already back at it. Fast, as always. I’d wanted to confront Jerard about Krane’s theory that the two men were brothers. But that meant also confronting him about his daughter. I needed more information before opening that particular not-so-exciting door.

As I approached the house, the workshop door swung open and a small girl darted out, trailed by a tall, lanky man. My breath caught when I saw her. Zinnivia—her hair now dyed pink—spotted me and lit up, waving frantically.

“Amira! Hi! Hey! What are you doing here?” Her energy slammed into me like a gust of wind, and despite myself, a smile tugged at my lips. She glanced between me and Krane’s front door. Her grin wavered. “Do you know Krane?”

I nodded toward the house. “Yeah. He’s my best friend.”

She fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “Oh. He never mentioned that. Are you… how long?”

I tilted my head, a little surprised by the question. “Since the attack four years ago.” I smiled, but it felt thinner now.

“Oh.” Her gaze dropped, then shifted back to the door.

“You friends with Krane?” I asked. He had a few friends, some were girls, but never mentioned one that fit Zinnivia’s description, let alone someone from another sector. Something twisted low in my stomach, uncomfortable and foreign.

Zinnivia looked down. “Not really. I only see him when Dad and I come by for the work he paid Strem for.” She hesitated, voice dipping. “He’s… not here today.” She sounded disappointed. “We could hang out instead? You said next time I was here we could.”

Her sudden switch in mood caught me off guard, but I managed a polite smile. “Sorry, Zinnivia. I’ve got a few things to do today.”

Her face fell. Without another word, she turned and ran back to her father, her usual bounce suddenly gone. He looked at me briefly with something unreadable in his expression. I knocked on Krane’s door as they disappeared down the street, the shift in Zinnivia’s energy still sitting strange in my gut. A few moments later, the door creaked open. Krane’s eyes scanned the street like he was expecting an ambush.

“She’s gone,” I coughed, trying to hide my laugh.

His shoulders sagged in relief, and he yanked the door wider. “Get in. In case she comes back.” The laugh escaped before I could hold it in.

“She’s done it before,” he muttered. “She’s persistent.”

“Someone’s got an admirer,” I teased, stepping inside and heading toward his room.

He groaned. “I was just trying to be nice. She seemed shy at first. Now she won’t quit.”

I flopped onto his bed. “You’re just mean. I think she’s sweet.”

He gave me a wounded look. “You’d feel differently if she followed you around like a shadow.” He sat in his chair, spinning slightly to face me. “What’s going on?”

I sat up, tension tightening in my chest. “I want to get back into the restricted sector. Sooner than we planned.” He stiffened, focus narrowing. “I think you might be right about why they sealed it off.”

I told him everything Old Woman Merla had said at ration pickup, and how Calian hadn’t looked the least bit shocked. Krane’s expression soured the moment I said Calian’s name.

“So the Upper gets to hear it before I do?” I rolled my eyes. Their rivalry over who got my attention first was exhausting.

“He knows things we don’t, Krane. And whether you like it or not, he saved our lives.”

“Maybe,” he muttered. “Still think he’s hiding something.”

I hesitated. “Me too. He doesn’t act surprised by anything. It’s like he already knew. Or maybe he heard rumors, came to confirm them himself.”

Krane arched a brow. “So you think searching for his ‘friend’ is just a cover?”

I shrugged. “I think he’s looking. But I don’t think that’s his only reason.”

He leaned back. “So how exactly are we supposed to get into a restricted sector? The card we used is gone. Could take another year to steal one.” I frowned, mind rewinding. I could still see the moment we’d scrambled through that door. The card was in my bag… but Calian had swiped something on the reader.

“What if we didn’t need to wait?” I started slowly. “What if… we already have another P.I.P. card?” Krane looked confused. “I think Calian has one.” His jaw clenched, green eyes darkening. “That day—when you two closed the door—the card was still in your bag, but I saw him swipe something.”

Krane hissed through his teeth. “I knew it had been too easy. Asshole had one the whole time. Figures. Probably how he’s avoided getting caught.”

“I’ll ask to use it, if he does.” I said. “He said he wants to help. This is how he can.”

Krane scoffed. “He’s got his own reasons, Mira. You can’t trust him.”

“We need him, Krane,” I argued softly. “You don’t have to trust him. I just need you to trust me.”

He leaned forward, elbows braced on his knees. “Of course I trust you,” he replied gently. “I just… I don’t want to see you hurt. Especially not by some Upper playing a game we don’t understand.”

He moved to the bed, sat beside me, and took my hands in his. The warmth of his fingers sent sparks racing up my arm. I looked down at them, at the way his thumb brushed gently over mine. That dizzy feeling was back. The one I got when Calian stood too close, when his touch lingered just a second too long, like my stomach had been filled with fireflies.

Krane slipped a finger beneath my chin, lifting my face. His cheeks were tinged pink, his eyes locked on mine. We froze like that—breathless, suspended.

He leaned in.

My heart stuttered.

But at the last second, he turned, pressing a soft kiss to my forehead.

I blinked, reeling. My heart ached with something I didn’t yet understand. Krane let my hands go and stood, heading back to his chair, not looking at me. Pieces of my feelings shifted into place in ways that scared me.

He cleared his throat and started typing. “If we’re going back, we need to be smarter about it. I’ll try to find blueprints of the district—something we can use to plan a better route.” He glanced back over, eyes sharp. “Tell your Upper, if he wants to help, then he better be ready to fight.”

I nodded, unable to speak around the knot in my throat. A ghost of a smile curved his lips before he turned back to his screens. I left quietly, heart hammering, thoughts tangled in a storm that followed me all the way home.

When I arrived, the house was quiet—eerily so. The only sign of life was the dim light glowing beneath the office door. I called out to Jerard, but there was no answer. He must have gone to run errands. My footsteps echoed softly through the stillness as I approached the door, my pulse ticking a little too fast.

I paused, hand resting on the frame, steadying myself.

What we were about to do was dangerous. I knew that. It wasn’t just risk—it was betrayal, defiance, and stepping into the unknown with nothing but a cracked map and blind faith. I would be putting everything I cared about on the line. If something happened to me, Jerard would be crushed. But the lies and secrets, the silence and fear—they were stacking too high. Sooner or later, everything would come crashing down. And I couldn’t stand in the rubble pretending I hadn’t seen it coming.

Is this what the rebels felt like, right before they chose to act? Did they carry this same trembling weight in their chest? Or was it only the ones making the impossible decisions?

I reached up, fingers absently playing with the pendant at my neck. Fear, hope, doubt, longing—they all spiralled in me, battling for space. I wanted answers. I needed them. I’d been chasing ghosts and whispers for years. Jerard had done what he thought was right, hiding me from a world that could destroy me. But what about the world that was already crumbling? Who would protect us when the lights finally went out? When the Tower stopped humming?

I pushed open the door.