Edge of Mercy (Young Adult Dystopian)(Volume 1) (The Mercy Series) by C. C. Marks Read Free Book Online

both on the Council, but Peter’s father Jonas was head councilman, which put them above everyone at the table when it came to status in the community. No one dared oppose Jonas, and Peter was slated to be head councilman someday, which made him all the more difficult to deal with. Anyone who went against either of them suddenly ended up with nightwatch duty.
    Nightwatch was the most dangerous of all the duties, and boys given this duty had been known to disappear without a trace because they were the last ones outside at dusk. It was the job of the nightwatchman to secure all the outside barriers, including the four towers that surrounded the property. If the unlucky watchman started duty too late, it was near-to-impossible to make it to the fourth tower and down the tunnel below, leading back into the fortified sanctuary underground. If it were a cloudy day, the duty was almost impossible to complete before the creatures began to creep onto the grounds, but only the fourth tower had access to the tunnel, so if one were stuck inside another tower, the odds of surviving alone all night were next to none. As a matter of fact, for as long as I’d been here in the community, only a handful of boys volunteered for the job, and all but one had returned, but no one knew what had become of him.
    “Zeke knows all about nightwatch, don’t you?” Cody, a thin fourteen-year-old, who hero-worshiped Zeke more than I did, rarely spoke, but the group accepted him though he was so much younger.
    I expected Zeke to glibly agree, pushing his awesomeness out there like he usually did, but he just took another bite and shrugged.
    “The way you demolished those two Draghoul at the year’s start…I wished I’d been there to see it, not just hear about it later.”
    The year’s start? That’s when he carried my mother and me through the gates. Two Draghoul? Why hadn’t he mentioned the incident? He bragged about everything else.
    “Well, no one here’s on nightwatch tonight, so shut the hell up and eat your meat before I do.”
    I was surprised by Zeke’s harsh tone and silence on the subject. For some reason I couldn’t guess, he didn’t want to discuss it. How odd.
    Other than forks hitting the plates, uncomfortable silence dominated the table. I finished most of the food on my plate, including the meat, which was a little dry, but once again, I wasn’t complaining.
    “Hey, Zeke, will you help me carry plates down to the guards and Quillen? I told them I’d bring them some.”
    “They’re still downstairs? Losers.” Everyone laughed and the tension eased around the table.
    “The Council’s still meeting about something.”
    Zeke smirked. “Ah, too bad. Guess the Council misses all this deliciousness.”
    Thomas cleared his throat, thrust his chin out, and leaned in, and when one of his eyebrows rose, I saw his deep satisfaction. He loved to correct his cousin. “They already ate. It was delivered to them in chambers, and they were the first to be served.”
    He knew things before the rest of us, and though he probably thought he was helping, it came off a little know-it-all.
    “Must be nice to be council,” Michael sulked.
    Jacob, another boy about my age I’d talked to a few times, grinned stupidly and poked Thomas. “You’ll know soon, won’t you, Thomas. You know, when you’re a member of the Council.”
    Thomas clenched his jaw tightly and gave a quick nod. It was the first I’d noticed anger toward anyone else but me. He seemed ticked his soon-to-be council position was even mentioned. Everyone else would have reveled in it, would have taken full advantage of the position, trading favors for future promises. Yet, somehow I knew Thomas didn’t appreciate the added attention and wouldn’t abuse the situation.
    With a slight smile, I met Thomas’s gaze. I wasn’t sure why, but I felt a need to show sympathy for his plight. The urge came over me, and I acted on instinct, and unexpected warmth settled in the