Resonance by Erica O’Rourke Page B

any Walks they took together . . . ,” Eliot said.
    I leaped up and grabbed Monty’s journals from the living room.
    â€œRead me the frequencies from each trip,” Eliot ordered, and I obeyed. He crossed out batches, pen flying over the paper. “I’m dropping any world they both visited, even if it was at different times.”
    â€œDo you think she really went to these places?” I asked when he was done.
    â€œHard to say. It’s possible she wrote down frequencies that fit the code, rather than places she visited.”
    We stared at the list in silence.
    Eight frequencies in all. I wrote them on a fresh piece of paper, but they still didn’t reveal their secrets.
    â€œI’m not seeing it,” he said around a mouthful of Oreo. “Are these a map? Was this her escape route? A list of worlds with Free Walker outposts?”
    I stared at them, trying to discern a pattern. “We could check them out. See what we find.”
    He sprayed crumbs across the table. “That’s a terrible plan. We don’t know what we’re looking for. You want to show up with a sign that says ‘Honk if you’re a Free Walker’?” He shook his head. “Not to mention, neither of us is licensed. I’m not going to let you—”
    â€œLet?” The warm, easy feeling between us vanished. “You don’t ‘let’ me do anything. You’re not my mom. You’re not even Addie.”
    His shoulders tensed. “No. I’m just the guy—”
    The back door slammed open with a noise like a gunshot. “Damn it, Del! Have you completely lost your mind?”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN
    A DDIE STOOD IN THE DOORWAY, vibrating with outrage.
    â€œI take it you talked to Mom and Dad,” I said.
    She stomped inside, Laurel behind her looking amused and resigned in equal measure.
    â€œCocoa?” Eliot asked her. “This part takes a while, sometimes.”
    Laurel stifled a laugh.
    Addie ignored them. “You should not be working for Lattimer.”
    â€œYou are,” I pointed out. “You asked me to help, remember? How is this any different?”
    The project is done. I’m back to regular apprenticeship work.”
    I hadn’t known that. “Did you have any luck? Find any Free Walkers?”
    Her complexion cooled from feverish to impassive ivory. “No. We ran out of leads to follow.”
    The best lies look identical to the truth, only better. It’s not about telling people what you want them to think—it’s abouttelling people the story they want to believe. Addie was too straightforward to be any good at it; she assumed a lie was truth’s opposite instead of its mirror. I’d had years of experience. I knew better.
    Eliot did too, thanks to my terrible influence, and didn’t bother to hide his skepticism. “You didn’t find anything?”
    Her eyes were a murky green instead of their usual jade. “Nothing we could pursue. The point is, you shouldn’t be working for Lattimer.”
    â€œWhy not?”
    â€œBecause you’re a kid. You don’t even have a license.”
    I stifled the urge to remind her she was no longer in charge of me. “I will soon. Aren’t you the one who wanted me to think about my future? If I do this, I can write my own ticket.”
    â€œTechnically speaking,” Eliot put in, “we all work for the Consort. This is a specialized assignment.”
    â€œThis is Monty,” Addie snarled. “And a terrible idea.”
    â€œWhat does he think Monty knows?” Laurel asked. “Even if he had been working with the Free Walkers, they would have scattered as soon as he was arrested.”
    Her tone made it clear she knew the truth about the anomaly—­and Simon. I glared at Addie, who nibbled a thumbnail and avoided my eyes.
    â€œA weapon,” I said into the sudden quiet. “The Consort thinks