Read Online Vanquished by Katie Clark - Free Book Online

sugar. We rarely get sweets because sugar is so expensive. It’s regulated by the government.
    I see Jamie at another table further down. She smiles and laughs, and then I realize she’s talking to Easton. He runs a produce table along with his dad. No wonder Jamie likes coming to market so much. How did I not realize this before?
    Curiosity hits me again, and I weave in and out of the small crowd.
    Easton’s dad says something to Jamie, but I’m too far back to hear him.
    Jamie throws back her head and laughs. It appears she’s more familiar with him and his family than I knew. Maybe I should just leave them alone.
    I step back into the crowd, deciding to keep an eye on her from a distance.
    It looks like she’s bought a basket of eggs. Too bad I didn't think of that before I spent my allowances on grain. Sometimes I try to talk Dad into letting us get a chicken with our food allowance, but so far he’s said no. I don’t know what the big deal is, since it would save us in the long run. We’d always have eggs available, and we wouldn’t have to spend allowance on them. Not that we ever go hungry. Resources may be tight, but the Greaters make sure all the Middles get an even share. Even the Lessers get an even share among themselves, though I think they could probably have a little more. It might motivate them to make more of themselves.
    At the last minute, I remember I wanted to look for something for Mom. My allowance is gone, and guilt settles in my stomach. It’s silly because really, what can I buy Mom, food-wise? She’s on a strict diet, and the hospital provides her meals. I’ll use my entertainment allowance to buy her more books instead. She’ll appreciate that more.
    I finish browsing the other tables and look around to find Jamie. Not surprisingly, she’s still talking to Easton.
    “Hey, are you ready to go?” I ask.
    “Sure,” she says. “Mr. Denzine, this is my best friend, Hana.”
    Easton’s dad and I smile at each other.
    “Hey, Hana,” Easton says.
    I smile at him, too, but we don’t speak beyond that.
    “I guess I’ll see you later,” Jamie says.
    Easton nods. “Right. See you later.” His eyes dance and his lips are shaped in a full-fledged smile.
    I frown. There’s something about this that I don’t like. We start back toward home, and I can’t keep my questions to myself. “Are you meeting him later?”
    Jamie’s head whips to look at me. “What?”
    “He seemed to be getting at something when he said he’d see you later. It just bothered me.”
    “Hana, don’t worry about us. We’ll be OK.” She barges ahead, and I have to race to keep up with her longer steps.
    “Sorry,” I say. “I don’t mean to butt in. I just don’t want anything bad to happen. What if you get caught?”
    She doesn’t look at me when she says, “We won’t get caught, Hana. You don’t have time for me, and I understand that, but you don’t understand some things. I wouldn’t have to sneak around with him if you were ever around to hang out with us. I’ve always done that for you and Keegan, you know.”
    I stop like I’ve been hit in the gut. Is that how she’s always looked at it? I was using her so I could hang out with Keegan?
    She goes a few steps before she realizes I’ve stopped. She looks to the sky and lets out a long, pent up breath. “I’m sorry,” she finally says. “That was selfish and stupid, and I know it.”
    I watch her back, which is still turned to me. “Is that all you were doing? Being a buffer for me and Keegan? I always thought we were hanging out because we were friends.”
    She turns now. Tears gather in her eyes. “Of course not. We were all friends, I know. It’s just that I wish you could share that with me and Easton, too. I know you need to be with your mom.” She shrugs. “I just wish it was different.”
    I want to shout, you wish it was different? How do you think I feel? But I’m not really mad at her. I love my best friend. Instead of