Crossed

Hunter helps Ky transport a boat for two people from a storage cave to the township—which will help those interested get to the Rising. Ky doesn’t look in Cassia’s direction, too ashamed to meet her gaze. Eli gives Ky a tissue sample. Ky gasps when he reads the name on the tube.

Later, Ky follows a diagram to wire the explosives for the library cave. He offers to be the one to light the fuse, as Hunter is deemed too essential to take the risk. The landslide of mud, rocks, and trees covers the cave entrance without losing momentum.

Hunter, Cassia, Ky, Indie, and Eli start a miserable, muddy hike out of the Carving. They take shelter in a cave to wait out the rain. Cassia asks Ky why he hates the Rising so much. He says he doesn’t trust the people who left his village behind: “With the Rising, rebellion ends in death for you and the people you love. Anyone who survives is left behind to turn into someone else” (314).

Hunter redraws the blue lines on his arms and tells the story of how he almost joined the Rising (but ultimately didn’t due to his lover being the township’s leader).