The Rift Uprising Read Free Page B

I wish we were two normal people who met by chance, and who decided that they would like to get to know each other better. It’s a selfish thought. We are a thousand light-years away from normal and the answers he wants won’t bring him anything but pain.
    It hurts me to think about that, and I start to wonder when in the past couple minutes I stopped being a Citadel and started acting like a teenage girl.
    Never mind the fact that I am a teenage girl . . .
    He looks me up and down. “What are you trained for, then?” he wonders out loud. Is he flirting with me? I’m so crap at this kind of thing, I have no idea.
    â€œI’m like”—I fish for a word—“a guard.”
    â€œYou’re a girl,” he says flatly.
    Now it’s my turn to narrow my eyes. “A girl can’t be a guard?”
    â€œA woman can, sure—a female—but you’re a girl . How old are you?”
    His words sting. He thinks I’m a child. I imagine pickinghim up by the collar and holding him in the air. He’d change his mind pretty damn quick about me being a little girl.
    Definitely back to being a Citadel again.
    â€œI’m seventeen,” I say, trying not to sound defensive or pouty. “How old are you?”
    â€œEighteen. Technically an adult. And last time I checked, you had to be an adult to be in the military, especially if you’re guarding something like that,” he says as he points to the huge shimmering green pool in the sky. “So again, where are we?”
    â€œWe’re in Washington, like I said.” I have to move things along now. They aren’t going to give me forever to get this guy to trust me.
    â€œYeah, but where exactly in Washington?” he asks—not in a cocky way, but in a way that says he’s not going to be distracted from getting an answer.
    â€œBattle Ground,” I say.
    He jerks his head up and takes a slight step away from me.
    â€œI mean, this isn’t a battle ground—at least, not always . . .” I bite my lip. I’ve never done anything like this before—gone in alone and made first contact without my team. Boone is better at this kind of thing. Way better. “The name of the town we’re in is Battle Ground, though actually, technically, we’re at Camp Bonneville Military Base.”
    â€œAnd why would a seventeen-year-old girl be in charge of a cosmic anomaly?” He cocks his head, almost daring me to answer.
    â€œI’m not so into the tone you’re using when you say the word girl —just gonna put that out there,” I snap back, and he gives me a half smile.
    â€œSorry. Why would someone so young be guarding something so . . . I don’t know, what’s a synonym for terrifying, but, like, way, way more?”
    Now it’s my turn to give a hint of a smile. “Have you ever heard of the Multiverse Theory?” I ask tentatively.
    â€œRyn!” Applebaum barks in my ear. “Enough. You do your job and let the experts do theirs for the intake. You have sixty seconds,” he warns.
    â€œYes, the Multiverse, heard of it, go on,” he says warily.
    â€œOkay, so that thing is a portal to different versions of Earth. Some versions are similar to yours and mine and some are different?” It’s weird that I’m framing this as a question. Am I trying to be cute? I am not cute. Applebaum is yelling objections through my earpiece and it’s throwing me off. I need to take charge here. “I have a very particular skill set to deal with the ummm . . . more dangerous variations of other Earths.” I do not take charge with this statement. I sound ridiculous.
    â€œA particular skill set?” he counters immediately with sarcasm. “Like Liam Neeson?”
    â€œWell, no, but yes, I mean, that’s great. You have a movie star Liam Neeson on your version of Earth and so do we. We’re getting