"Seren?" I repeated in disbelief. "What did she say?"

"She asked you to stop with the false accusations, and to give yourself up to the Andekas," Elizabeth relayed.

That only served to increase my confusion. That didn't sound like something Seren would do.

"Did it look like she'd been given the Ravim?" I asked, concerned that perhaps she'd been captured and compelled to perform under its influence.

"No," Elizabeth affirmed. "She looked lucid."

"What exactly did she say?" I asked slowly. "As much detail as you can remember. Anything at all."

"It was just a short message," the redhead replied, deliberating. "But it was played on the screens more than once, so I think I can remember most of it. It was something like, 'This is a message for Matthew Sullivan. Matthew, I don't know why you're inciting such damning allegations against our benefactors, but please, as your friend, I'm asking you to stop and turn yourself over to the Andekas.'"

I took a minute to contemplate what she said.

"She called me Matthew?" I checked. "Not Matty?"

"Definitely," Elizabeth confirmed. "I may not remember the message word for word, but she certainly didn't call you Matty."

"She must have been speaking under duress," I concluded.

"Are you sure?" the redhead asked, apparently looking for further confirmation.

"I'm sure," I nodded. "If she was genuinely trying to send me a message, she would have called me Matty. She also knows exactly where to find me, so if she wanted the Andekas to have that information, all she'd have to do was tell them where I was. No, she must have been speaking under pressure, doing the minimum possible to make sure the Andekas don't suspect that she knows my whereabouts. She must be protecting this sanctuary. Safeguarding the Katki that live here. I strongly suspect she was being coerced into making that transmission, in which case, the Andekas are likely to be holding her against her will."

"It sounds as though they're using her to get to you," Elizabeth cautioned.  

"Perhaps," I mused, concern creeping under my skin. Anxiety for my pregnant friend started to build and turn to fear. What impact would her distress have on the unborn child? "I can't let her stay incarcerated there, though."

"You can't possibly be thinking about giving yourself up?" the redhead asked, but that's exactly what I was contemplating.

"It's me they want," I reasoned. "Not Seren. If I hand myself over, there's no reason for them to hold her anymore."

"That could be exactly what the Andekas want you to do," she pointed out. "You might be playing right into their hands."

I considered my options carefully. Being trapped in the fort without access to my lab didn't give me too much I could work with anyway.

"I've done everything I can here," I rationalised, as I became increasingly worried. "We've uncovered the truth and found a way to let the people know what the Andekas have been doing. And even if the Andekas now fix the pipe that was pumping progesterone into the water supply, we've done as much as we can with it to offer evidence of their deception to the civilians. We've ruined the majority of the sinine plants. All I'm doing now is hiding while they're detaining my best friend. My pregnant best friend." Saying the words out loud made me realise that I had to put the welfare of an innocent child first. "Elizabeth, do you have the means of getting a message to the Andekas from me? That I'd be willing to come forward if they promise to ensure Seren and her baby are unharmed and allowed to go free?"

"I can, but Matty, that's a big risk you'd be taking," Elizabeth warned me. "Even if they agree to release your friend, there's no guarantee they'll go through with it."

"What's the alternative?" I asked her. "I can't see that we have many options. The Katki in this sanctuary aren't fighters, and I won't ask them to be involved when they're just trying to live out their lives peacefully. I started this dispute, it's only right that I'm the one that ends it."

Elizabeth sighed, evidently giving the matter some consideration.

"There might be a way to find out whether they can be trusted to keep any pact they make," she contemplated. "I think I told you before about a contact in our network, a sympathiser inside the walls of the Kinnisvara who has access to some useful information. We don't talk often, but I think this may be a good time to ask her for a favour. She'll probably be able to at least find out whether the Andekas are likely to do what they say they'll do. And if they are, are you absolutely sure this is what you want?"

"I have to try," I sighed, anxious for the safety of Seren and her unborn baby. "I can't see any reason for them to detain Seren if I'm in their custody. The only reason they'll be holding her is to get to me, so they can make sure I don't cause them any more problems. I don't know what else we can do."

A moment of silence passed before the redhead nodded.

"All right," she agreed. "I'll make the necessary arrangements to get your message to the Andekas. I'll also talk to my friend who works inside the walls to see whether she's able to verify their likely intentions."

"Thank you," I said as she departed, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Handing myself over to the Andekas after everything I'd done was certainly a terrifying prospect, since I had no idea what would happen to me.

But I knew it would be wrong to stand by and leave Seren's fate in their hands when I'd been the one to instigate the hostility. I was the antagonist here, and while she may not have been completely impartial in her conduct, she'd not caused anywhere near enough discord to justify the abrasive treatment she was likely to receive if I did nothing.

Sighing deeply, and aware that I needed to relay this new development to the one that would be most impacted by it, I retraced the worn path back to the fort to find the porcelain angel.

"Let me get this right," Tobi said incredulously after I'd explained the conversation I'd had with Elizabeth. "We've just managed to successfully evade the Andekas, and now you're planning to give yourself up?"

"This isn't something I'm taking lightly," I replied, trying to remain calm and logical. "The Andekas have my best friend, and I can't stand back and do nothing, especially since I'm the reason she's being held at the Kinnisvara."

"I understand," he conceded with disdain. "But this? This is insane! You can't just let them have you, Matty. There has to be another way we can get her out. We got inside the walls covertly once, I'm sure we can do it again."

I admired Tobi's positive attitude, but I knew it was going to take more than optimism to handle our latest predicament.

"What you're proposing is infinitely more complex than sabotaging a pipe," I reasoned as delicately as I could. "Planning a rescue operation will take time and resources, Tobi. We're short on resources and time is a luxury we don't have. She's in trouble now, and every minute she stays there is one minute too long."

"We have people," he challenged animatedly, gesticulating around to the residents of the fort. "They all know how hard you've fought for this cause, and I know they'd be willing to offer help in return."

I didn't doubt him, but I could see his proposal was based more on hope than on any rational assessments. Realistically, I couldn't see that we had anything concrete we could work with that would be useful.

"The last time we infiltrated the Kinnisvara, it resulted in us being on the run," I countered a little more vigorously. "I don't want these people to lose their homes too. Besides, previously we caught the Andekas unawares and we also knew exactly where to find what we were looking for. We don't even know which part of the Kinnisvara to look in to find Seren. We've also lost the element of surprise – now the Andekas are expecting us to do something, their security will be doubled or even tripled. I can't see how we'd be successful in any kind of infiltration, even with our new comrades. The Katki that reside here have lived a peaceful life, Tobi – many of them are parents or children – they're no match for those guards, especially when we don't have access to weapons or technology that could help us. There's no point in more innocent people being put in danger or risking the Andekas finding out about this place."

"It's not like you to just give up like this," he insisted, with tears forming in his eyes as he spoke.

"I took them on before because I felt there was reason to think we'd be successful," I contested. "This time I'm not so sure. I can't justify involving this peaceful community in a conflict that I initiated, knowing that there's a high likelihood something will go wrong. But neither can I sit back and do nothing knowing that Seren may not be safe."

"Then I'll make sure I find a way to get you out again!" he insisted, clearly distraught.

"No, you won't!" I cried, outraged as he tipped me over the edge. I was unable to fathom why he'd even suggest something so ludicrous. "It's far too risky. I can't have anyone else being hurt because of me. Not Seren, and especially not you. I don't want to be the reason that any more Katki suffer!"

"Ah, so that's it?" raged Tobi, as the tears rolled unfettered down his pale cheeks. "You still blame yourself for the death of your first Katki? Not everything is your fault, Matty! You're not responsible for keeping every single Katki safe! Why don't you let us help you? We're capable of making our own decisions and taking our own risks. Isn't that the whole reason you wanted to set us free? So that we could make our own choices? Follow our own path?"

I winced at the accuracy of his inferences.

But although the truth of his words cut through me, I couldn't let him or any of the others lose what little autonomy they had left, and that meant staying in this sanctuary. The safety of the Katki was a priority. The idea of Tobi jeopardising the freedom we'd fought so hard to achieve was unthinkable.

I also cared about this man deeply, and the thought of him taking those kinds of risks in some futile crusade sent a cold shiver down my spine.

"I won't let you put yourself in danger," I insisted defensively.

Tobi's eyes narrowed and he took up an aggressive stance as fury seemed to take hold of him.

"You won't let me...?" he seethed, clearly riled by my defiance. "All my life my decisions have been made for me. You took me off the Ravim so I could have the freedom of choice, and now you're going to take those decisions away from me again? Away from all of us? By unilaterally deciding what's best?"

My teeth clenched as my anger bubbled to the surface. Why couldn't he understand how vital his safety was to me?

"I can't lose you!" I cried out in frustration.

"We're going to lose each other either way if you do this!" he fumed back loudly. "We'll never see each other again if you give yourself up, Matty! I'd rather go down fighting together, than watch you play straight into their hands!"

"But we can't win, Tobi!" I yelled viciously as I tried to make myself clear. "We just don't have the resources! It's over! If we try to fight them together, we'll lose each other anyway! At least this way I'll know you're safe!"

"And how will I know whether you are?" he shot back angrily. "Or have you decided that that doesn't matter either?"

Hands fisted and tears flowing, Tobi turned on one heel and stormed away from me through the remains of the castle's brickwork.

Watching him leave, my body turned to ice, and I sunk on my knees to the grass as my heart shattered into a thousand tiny pieces. Wrapping my arms round my stomach, I desperately tried to hold the broken fragments together as the bitter sting of his animosity pierced my soul. Breathing felt like razor blades were moving through my airways, and I allowed my head to sink between my knees as tears stung the back of my eyes.

It was the first time that Tobi and I had ever argued to that extent, and it hurt. His brutal words left acute anguish and an emptiness so vast and deep that it seemed impossible to escape.

Running my hands to the back of my head, I grabbed my hair and pulled it vigorously as I silently wept, reflexively rocking back and forth as I did so. But no matter how hard I pulled, it wasn't enough to drown out the pain of our brief but intense dispute.

Lamenting over our heated disagreement through the muted tears, I collapsed into a ball and wondered whether there would be any way of resolving our differences, or if this is how we'd say goodbye.