Read Online Lark Ascending by Meagan Spooner - Free Book Online

spectacle, but this time I was ready. More ready, anyway.
    I drew breath, hunting for the right words with which to make my first impression on these poorly led people. Before I could speak, however, a cry rose up at the back of the crowd.
    Though I couldn’t hear the words called, those closer did, and the whole crowd surged away, erupting into cheers. “They’re back!” I heard one man shout, and I realized that the “brass” Tamren mentioned must have returned.
    â€œShe’s here—” Another voice, cut off by the jostling crowd.
    â€œThey found her!”
    â€œThank god, we’re saved.”
    The crowd pressed in around us, the current carrying us forward as they rushed to greet their returning leaders. I lost sight of Kris in the surge, and Oren kept by me only by grabbing me around the waist and pressing close.
    The crowd must’ve gotten confused, thought that the brass were the ones who brought me here. It was a coincidence only, but the overflowing relief and excitement of the crowd was too strong for me to shout over them, so I let them carry us along until I saw a gap in the crowd.
    Oren and I battled our way forward until we could stumble free, into a ring cleared around a number of people who’d just emerged from one of the tunnel entrances. I fought for breath, hanging onto Oren’s arm and blinking as I tried to focus.
    There were maybe half a dozen people there, two of whom seemed to be injured but still standing, wearing bandages spotted with crimson. There were men and women, and one figure wrapped up in a robe and a blanket over the shoulders. At the head of the group stood a man who—I stopped, staring.
    I recognized him, but only barely. His once-feeble mustache had spread into a thick beard concealing the lower half of his face. One eye was covered by a brown patch tied on around his head, and he looked about a decade older than I remembered. As a child I’d found him intimidating—now he was utterly terrifying.
    His one good eye swung over and landed on me, then widened. “Lark?” he whispered hoarsely.
    I swallowed, my throat so dry I nearly choked. “Caesar?”
    My older brother and I stared at each other for a private eternity as my mind raced with questions. What was Caesar, the Institute’s most loyal Enforcer and the man who betrayed his own sister for them, doing at the head of the resistance? Was he a spy? Did the others know he’d once been an Enforcer? Did they know the role he’d played in my flight from the city?
    Before either of us could speak, one of the other members of the team stepped up and murmured in Caesar’s ear. He muttered a curse and turned to look at the robed figure, then straightened, eyes passing over me so he could address the crowd.
    â€œMembers of the resistance,” he bellowed, summoning an instant hush. “Many of you know that we embarked three days ago on a mission to infiltrate the Institute.”
    Though there were a few gasps, most of the crowd just murmured and nodded, leaning forward, hanging on Caesar’s every word.
    â€œWhat you don’t know is why we risked so much to get inside—we couldn’t risk any of them learning our true purpose. Well, friends, I have the great honor of telling you all that our mission was a success. We’ve found her—our savior. We can win this fight.”
    Where had this orator come from? I remembered Caesar as a lazy, petty man. But listening to him speak, I felt my own heart stirring. Even I believed him when he said they’d found her.
    I blinked. Found her? Was Caesar talking about me? Baffled, I looked around until I spotted Kris, who had emerged on the opposite side of the crowd and was staring at me. I wanted to ask him what Caesar was talking about, and how he could claim I was the product of their mission, but he was too far away. Still, as I watched him, something about the set of Kris’s