Matched

Once I close the front door behind me, I run down the hal to my room as fast as I can. No one from my family sees me, for which I’m grateful. With shaking hands I tear open my closet door and push the sets of plainclothes along the rack until I find the pair where I’ve hidden Ky’s artifact inside the pocket. I open the brown paper envelope and tip it so that the arrow in its case slides out. I shove the envelope into my pocket; I grab the compact from the shelf and look at the two items in my hands.

Golden and beautiful. In spite of myself, I’m tempted to give Xander my compact instead of Ky’s spinning arrow, but I put the compact onto my bed and close my hand over Ky’s artifact. Saving my compact would be selfish. It would only save a thing. But saving Ky’s artifact saves both of us from questioning and him from becoming an Anomaly. And how can I let them take the last piece of his old life?

This is safer for Xander, too. They don’t know Ky’s artifact exists, so hopeful y they won’t miss it. My compact wil be accounted for and taken away, as expected, so they won’t look for it or wonder if I’ve given it to someone else.

I run back down the hal and open the front door.

“Xander, wait!” I cal out to him, trying to make my voice light. “Aren’t you going to kiss me good night?”

Xander turns, his face open and natural. I don’t think anyone else could see the glint of cunning in his eyes, but I know him so wel .

I skip down the steps and he holds out his arms to me. We embrace, his hands at the smal of my back and my arms around his neck. I place my hand just under the col ar of his plainclothes and open my fingers. The artifact slides down his back and my palm lies flat against his warm skin. We look each other straight in the eyes for a moment and then I lean close to his ear.

“Don’t open it,” I whisper to Xander. “Don’t keep it in your house. Bury it or hide it somewhere. It’s not what you think.”

Xander nods.

“Thank you,” I say, and then I kiss him right on the lips and I mean that kiss. Even though I know I’m fal ing for Ky it is impossible not to love Xander for everything he is and everything he does.

“Cassia!” Bram cal s from the steps.

Bram. He’s going to lose something today, too. I think of Grandfather’s watch and anger rises in me. Do they have to take everything?

Xander breaks away from our embrace. He has to hurry to hide the artifact before they get to his house. “Good-bye,” he says with a smile.

“Good-bye,” I cal back.

“Cassia!” Bram cal s again, fear in his voice. I glance back down the street, but I don’t see any Officials yet. They must stil be in one of the houses between mine and Em’s.

“Hi, Bram,” I say, attempting to sound casual. It’s better for us al if he doesn’t suspect what Xander and I have done. “Where’s—”

“They’re taking the artifacts,” Bram says, voice shaking. “They cal ed Papa in to help with the col ection.”

Of course. I should have realized. They need someone like him to help determine if the artifacts are real or false. Another fear strikes me. Was he supposed to take our artifacts? Did he pretend mine was lost? Did he lie for Bram or me? How many stupid mistakes is he wil ing to make for those he loves?

“Oh no,” I say, trying to act as though al of this is new to me. Hopeful y Bram won’t find out that Em told me earlier. “Did he take ours with him?”

“No,” Bram says. “They won’t let anyone col ect from their own families.”

“Did he know this was going to happen?”

“No. When the cal came over the port he was shocked. But he had to report right away. He told me to listen to the Officials and not to worry.”

I want to put my arm around Bram and comfort him because he is about to lose something, something important. So I do. I hold onto my brother and for the first time in years he hugs me back, tight, the way he did when he was a little boy and I was the big sister he admired more than anyone else in the world. I wish I could have saved his watch, but it was the wrong color, silver instead of gold. And the Officials know about it. There was nothing I could do, I tel myself, trying to believe it.

We hold on for a few seconds and then I pul away and look Bram in the eyes. “Go get it,” I say to him. “Go look at it for the last few minutes you have and remember it. Remember it.”

Bram doesn’t pretend to hide the tears in his eyes now.

“Bram,” I say, and I hug him again. “Bram. Something bad could have happened to the watch even without this. You could have lost it. You could have broken it. But this way you can look at it one last time. It’s never real y lost to you as long as you remember it.”

“Can’t I try to hide it?” Bram asks. He blinks and a tear escapes. He brushes it away angrily. “Wil you help me?”

“No, Bram,” I say gently. “I wish we could, but it’s too dangerous.” What I risk has a limit. I won’t risk Bram.