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A second later, a chorus of children’s screams filled the air.
5
JADE
Jade blinked in the utter darkness, but her eyes couldn’t adjust. There wasn’t enough light coming in from the night sky for her to see anything.
“Let’s move,” Rafe said. “Now.”
Before she could react, he was rising, grabbing her hand. He was obviously much more comfortable in the dark than she could ever hope to be.
“Hold onto the back of my armor,” he told her. “Do not let go, no matter what.”
“It’s just an electrical problem, right?” she asked, wrapping her hand around the leather with the hand that wasn’t cradling Gus to her chest.
But he led her into the aisle without answering, moving them swiftly toward the door between cars.
She still couldn’t see anything, but all around her, she could hear movement and sounds of worry.
Miss Boone was whispering encouraging words to the little girl she had taken to the refresher. They must have stopped into another set of seats when the lights went out, leaving the aisle mercifully open.
“The conductor will have the lights back on in a minute,” the teacher said.
“But I’m scared now,” the girl whispered back.
Rafe led them through the door before Jade could hear Miss Boone’s reply. She didn’t envy the teacher, having so many charges to look after in a crisis. Jade was barely holding it together for her one child.
In the space between cars, the frigid air and the rattling of the train on the tracks made Jade feel a little queasy. The starlight out in the open was just enough to give her flashes of the night tundra before they were indoors again.
She followed Rafe down the carpeted aisle, which now seemed to be between walls rather than seats.
“Not too much farther,” Rafe told her when they reached the next door.
She was more prepared this time for the jarring experience of moving between cars, but it still took her breath away, and she was relieved to be back in the relative quiet of a darkened car again.
“This is us,” Rafe said softly.
She heard the sound of a hand hitting a sensor and then a door released. The locks must have been running on some kind of auxiliary power. Which made sense. The lights going out was one thing, but having everyone onboard locked out of their quarters would be much worse.
Rafe pulled her inside, then closed the door behind them.
“Close your eyes,” he whispered.
She did as she was told, not that it changed much.
“Open them,” he said.
When she did, there was a soft light emanating from behind him. He moved his hand forward to reveal a tiny, glowing orb in the palm of his hand.
“I wasn’t sure how bright that would be to Terran eyes after so much darkness,” he explained.
“Very thoughtful,” she told him. “Do you actually think we’re in danger, or was all this just protocol?”
“Danger here for us would be unlikely,” he said crisply. “But not unheard of. And if you wanted to snatch an Imberian whelp from his mother’s arms, but she was guarded by an Invicta, what would you do first?”
“Create chaos,” Jade realized out loud.
“Very good,” Rafe said, looking impressed. “Killing the lights created chaos, and it also removed one of your senses.”
