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“I thought I’d saved everyone,” I said in a small voice.
Jonah touched my hand, his brown eyes intense. “Willow, you saved so many,” he said. “You saved me, for that matter – I had five on me at once, but they couldn’t grab hold. ” When I didn’t respond, he added, “We all would have died, you know. Just like the attack at your base. ”
“And you know what else?” Nina said, her expression fierce. “We are going to have the celebration to end all celebrations today – because the angels are gone, and that’s what we’ve all been fighting for. ”
Wrestling with pain, triumph, confusion, I hugged her again, unable to speak. Then I pulled away. “Have you seen Alex?” I asked urgently.
Jonah shook his head. “I got a glimpse of him during the battle. He was up on a roof at the far end of town, holding off – well, an entire army of angels. He must’ve killed hundreds. ”
Alex. He’d been the reason why the army hadn’t reached me in time – the reason I was still alive. “Is…is he all right?” I got out.
“I don’t know. I lost sight of him—”
“Jonah!” shouted an urgent voice. Rachel came panting up. “It’s Seb. We found him behind one of the houses – he looks pretty bad. ”
My heart gave a sickening lurch. Following Rachel’s gaze, I saw a small knot of people carrying someone on a makeshift stretcher. The next second I was running across the square as fast as I could, with Nina and Jonah right behind.
A girl I hardly recognized was crying. “I didn’t mean to! I was trying to hit the angel attacking him—”
I skidded to a stop on the damp ground and fell to my knees. Seb lay with his head to one side, not moving. A dark bruise stained the left side of his face. Blood was everywhere – in his curls, mixing with the stubble on his face, staining his green jacket.
“Seb – no. ” I gripped his hand; it felt cold. With my other hand, I touched his face, trying not to shake. “Seb, please. ”
Rachel was pale. “He was up on a roof – he got hit with shrapnel from a chimney and fell off. We know you’re not supposed to move someone who’s injured, but…but we couldn’t just leave him…”
I couldn’t take my eyes off Seb’s face. “I have to get him to Schenectady,” I said in a rush. “He needs a doctor. ”
Nina stared at me. “But Schenectady’s an Eden! Even if the angels are gone now, won’t—”
“It’ll be fine,” I said shortly. I was certain of it, though I couldn’t begin to explain why just then. The girl who’d shot at Seb was still crying. Resisting the urge to slap her, I jumped up and fumbled in my pocket for my keys.
Nina and Jonah looked at each other. Nina said, “Okay, I’ll come with you—”
“Willow!”
My head jerked up. Alex was running across the square towards me. The relief was too deep to fathom – I held back a moan as he reached me and swung me into his arms. “You’re all right,” he whispered against my hair. “Oh, thank Christ, you’re all right. ”
Suddenly it felt as if I’d forgiven him everything – all I wanted was to wrap my arms tight around him in return. Confusion reeled through me. Shakily, I pulled away, hugging myself and avoiding the sudden hurt in his eyes.
“I’m fine, but – but Seb isn’t,” I said. “We’re taking him to the hospital. ”
Alex crouched hastily beside him. “Oh, shit, man – I told you to stay alive,” he muttered. He pressed two fingers under Seb’s jaw. “His pulse is weak. I hope this looks worse than it is. ”
We loaded Seb gently into the back of my truck, trying to keep him as steady as possible. Alex took the keys from me without asking, and I crawled in beside Seb. Nina got into the front, asking, “Do you know how to get to Schenectady?”
Alex’s gaze met mine in the rear-view mirror; he had a scratch over one eye. “Yeah, I’ve been there,” he said. “You’ll have to give me directions to the hospital, though. ”
As we headed out of Pawntucket and onto I-90, Seb’s hazel eyes flickered open. “Meggie?” he whispered.
My heart broke for him. I rubbed his hand between both of mine. “No, it’s Willow,” I said softly. “But you’re going to be with Meggie, Seb. I promise. ”
He gave a groan as the truck lurched around a curve, and seemed to pass out again. My throat clutched as I held his hand tightly. The two of us had taken so many wrong turns together these past two years. But he was the brother I’d never had – and I hadn’t had him in my life for nearly long enough.
Nina twisted around in her seat, her eyes wide. “Willow, what happened up there, anyway?”
I swallowed hard and stroked back Seb’s curls. And, still staring down at him, I explained.
I’d used the energy field to alter everyone on the planet. It was now impossible for angels to feed from humanity. And though I couldn’t change it if someone had been physically hurt by the angels…I’d taken away people’s delusions about them. I’d tried to do it as gently as possible, but the whole world knew the truth now, and that the invaders were gone for ever. I’d managed to heal the ether in the angels’ world a little; it might last long enough now for them to figure out a different way to save themselves.
But they couldn’t get back here again – ever. I’d sealed off our dimension for good.
As I finished talking, Alex was staring at me in the rear-view mirror. When he faced forward again, his expression was dazed.
“So it’s really over,” he murmured finally.
Silence fell; I could see him and Nina trying to come to grips with all this. It still felt dreamlike to me: nowhere near as real as Seb’s hand, cold in mine.
Or Alex’s dark, tousled hair as he sat in the driver’s seat. I swallowed. “What happened with you?” I asked. “Jonah said he saw you up on a roof holding off hundreds. ”
Alex shrugged, still looking stunned. “Yeah, trying to. When they finally got past, I thought I was dead, but they couldn’t get hold of my aura. ” His eyes met mine again. “Was that you?”
I nodded. I was so overwhelmed by what he’d done that my voice came out too formally: “Thank you. If you hadn’t held them back, I never could have done it. ”
I saw his flash of hurt. “Christ, Willow, you don’t have to thank me. ”
None of us spoke again. When we got to Schenectady Eden, the main gates were open – there was already a flow of traffic heading out. Crowds of people stood just outside in small clusters, talking intently; some were crying. No one paid any attention as we drove through.
When Schenectady Hospital came into view, we pulled up to the ER and a pair of attendants came racing out with a clattering gurney. “Here,” I cried, sliding open the door to the back.
A few minutes later, we were all sitting in a crowded waiting room. Seb had been taken away down a long corridor. A nurse came over and held out a clipboard. “I know everything’s kind of upside down at the minute, but could you fill this out for us?”
I stared blankly at the form, not even able to take it in just then. Alex was sitting across from me; he leaned over and took it. “He’s not an Eden resident,” he said, scanning the sheet.
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