by Ivy Baum
Time to stop pretending. “Syd…your father attacked me tonight. I’m somewhere safe now, and I’m not coming back.”
“Is that some kind of joke? My dad would never—”
“He did. He’s not who you think he is.”
Her voice was shaking now. “That’s messed up, Kes. He’s always treated you like a daughter. How could you say something like that?”
She seemed genuinely upset by the accusation. But that didn’t mean she was innocent.
“Are you on drugs or something?” Syd’s voice had grown more agitated. “Just tell me where you are. You obviously need help.” There was a soft noise, like a quiet sob. “Please—let me help you.”
Just tell me where you are.
Dr. Sotheby would want to know my location, too. Was that what this call was all about?
Staring out at the dark vista beyond the parking lot, I made a decision. I’d give her a false location. Something plausible that would throw them off the trail—
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of movement.
The shape moved so fast that I barely had time to process the fact that Sol had come out of his room.
Before I could react, he snatched the phone out of my hand.
I watched, dumbfounded, as he turned it off and shoved it in his jacket pocket.
“I wasn’t going to—”
“That was incredibly stupid.” His face was a mask of anger. “So stupid, in fact, that I didn’t think I even needed to tell you not to do it. Clearly, I was wrong.”
“I didn’t tell her anything. And you said she didn’t have anything to do with—”
“She’s his daughter, Kes.” He practically snarled the words. “And he’s not above using her. For all we know, he told her I kidnapped you.”
“I didn’t tell her where we were,” I protested—but it sounded like a weak excuse, even to me.
Sol’s voice was ice cold. “Did you consider that maybe he told her to keep you on the line as long as possible so that they could track your location?”
I knew I was staring like a deer in the headlights. “They can’t do that—can they?”
“We don’t know what kind of technology or connections they have.”
My cheeks had begun to burn.
“I’m sorry. I—I didn’t know.”
For one horrible moment, I thought Sol was going to tell me to pack my bags and leave—to go back to White Falls.
But when he spoke, his voice was measured. “You’re acting like this is some kind of magical field trip. Well, it’s not. We’re on the run and people are trying to kill us. Try to remember that.”
Halfway down, another door slammed. Deo was approaching, and Clover was close on his heels.
When I saw his face, the pit in my stomach grew. Something was up—and whatever it was, he wasn’t happy about it.
Sol seemed to sense the same thing. “What’s up?”
“We may have a problem.”
Sol tensed. My mind was racing. Was this because I’d picked up the phone? But surely it couldn’t have happened that fast—
Deo said, “I sensed something. It’s faint, and it still feels pretty far from us. But if someone’s following us…”
Sol’s eyes narrowed. “Could they have followed us from White Falls?”
“If they did, then they’ve got a very good Distorter. I didn’t sense anything until just now.” For the first time, he seemed to notice the tension between me and Sol. He frowned. “What’s going on?”
“Sydney called her. And she answered.”
I felt their eyes go to me, disbelieving.
“I didn’t tell her where we were. And I didn’t say anything about you guys.”
Sol said, “What do you think? Is this something the good doctor could use against us?”
Deo frowned. “You mean could he track her phone? I doubt it. Most purebloods are pretty hopeless when it comes to technology. But…”
He raised an eyebrow, and Sol nodded.
“Right. We don’t want to take any chances.” He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. “Okay, change of plans. We’re checking out early.”
Deo simply nodded, stone-faced. But Clover was glaring at me. If there was a hole I could have crawled into, I gladly would have done so.
“Deo, get the van ready. Clover, go get Junie and tell her the news. We’re getting back on the road until we shake these guys—whoever they are.”
The others turned to go. I started to follow, but Sol stopped me. “Oh, and Kes?”
I turned. Reluctantly. I really didn’t want to get another lecture.
But when I saw his expression, I knew it wasn’t going to be that. There was a half-smile on his lips and a glint in his eye that made me acutely self-conscious.
“Yeah?”
“You might want to put on something a little warmer.”
Chapter 16
I dozed fitfully. When I woke up, we were in South Dakota.
We had stopped for gas, and there was a pink glow over the horizon—sunset.
Somehow, I’d slept away the better part of the day.
I’d never been this far west. The landscape stretched in all directions, so flat that it seemed there was more sky than land. It was vast and impressive in a lonely sort of way.
There were seven hundred miles between us and Sanctuary.
As darkness fell, the others gathered around the front console. Deo was driving again. Driving duty rotated between Sol, Deo, and Junie.
When there was a lull in the conversation, I asked, “What do we do when we get there?”
There was a pause.
Sol said, “You mean other than celebrate the fact that we’re still alive?”
There was an edge to his voice.
Junie said, “We don’t have to do anything. We’ll be safe there. We can just…live our lives.”
I nodded, trying to look enthusiastic. Grateful.
But I couldn’t help but wonder—what kind of life did I have left?
Going to Sanctuary was starting to feel like I was entering some kind of magical witness protection program.
I asked, “Is there some kind of half-blood government?”
There was a pause. Deo muttered something from the driver’s seat. It didn’t sound complimentary.
Sol smiled. “Government? No, that would be a bit of an overstatement.”
Junie added, “There are leaders, but they’re not—”
“Competent? Relevant?”
Junie gave Sol a look. “Sanctuary leadership encourages us to keep a low profile.”
Sol looked like he wanted to debate this, but after a moment, he simply shrugged and climbed back up to the front passenger seat.
Junie turned to me with a sympathetic smile. “It’s going to take some adjustment—getting used to your new life. But—”
She stopped. She was frowning, her attention trained on Sol and Deo.
“What is it?”
“I don’t know.” She moved toward the front.
I was crawling up behind her when I heard Sol say, “We’ve got a problem.”
A shadow passed over Junie’s face. “Major or minor?”
“I don’t know…moderate?”
Clover had crawled up from where she was napping.
“Whoever’s following is back—and he’s getting closer.” Sol made a face. “Chances are they’re driving something with a little more pep than this thing.”
That was probably true. The van, I had noticed, started to sway and shimmy once it hit seventy miles an hour.
Sol said, “At this rate, they’re going to catch up to us.”
“When?” Junie’s face was studiously blank, but I could hear the tension in her voice.
Sol consulted with Deo. When he turned back, his face was grim. “A few hours. Tops.”
I stole a glance at Clover. She looked as terrified as I felt.
Junie said, “What are our options?”
“We c
ould fight. Which certainly beats the alternative of offering up our lives without protest.”
I found myself taking a mental inventory of our strengths as a group. We had two people with non-offensive powers—Deo’s Sniffing and Clover’s Distorting—and one with a decidedly powerful but non-physical gift—Junie’s Voice.
And I still didn’t know what Sol did.
I thought back to that first night—the party at the Lofts. One of the men had called Sol a Null. It was a term, I had come to learn, that referred to those of magical lineage with no apparent power.
Sol had denied being a Null. But I’d never actually seen him do anything.
Had he been bluffing?
Junie said, “Do we have a less suicide-y option?”
Sol was a silent for a long moment. “We could make a run for the nearest Dead Zone.”
Dead Zone? I didn’t know what that was, but the name wasn’t exactly encouraging.
Junie frowned. “Isn’t that a little out of our way?”
Sol smiled sourly. “Yeah. By a couple hundred miles or so.”
“I don’t suppose we could just gun it for Sanctuary?”
“We’d never make it.”
There was another long silence. I glanced at Clover again, trying to see if she understood what they were talking about.
Finally, Junie heaved a sigh. “Right. I’ll get the map.” She headed for the rear of the van.
I finally got the courage to meet Sol’s eye. “What’s a Dead Zone?”
To my surprise, he grinned. “Don’t worry. It’s not as bad as it sounds.”
Junie, who had returned with a map, said, “A Dead Zone is a place where magic doesn’t work.” She began to unroll it on the console.
I studied it over her shoulder. It was a regional map that showed several states, and was distinctly non-magical looking.
There were, however, numerous pencil markings. The most prominent of which was a single large area shaded in gray.
I pointed. “Is that it? Just north of us?”
We’d been driving steadily west through South Dakota. The gray area was in North Dakota, an oblong that stretched up into Canada.
Junie nodded, and my heart sank. It was well out of our way.
But it looked like we didn’t have much of a choice.
Sol was conferring with Deo. He turned back to the group. “All right, buckle up. Looks like we’re taking a detour.”
Junie raised an eyebrow. “How long will it take us?”
“Looks like we could get there in a few hours. Longer if we have to get creative, but…” Sol shrugged.
I stared in dismay. “So what do we do? Just go to the Dead Zone and wait it out until they stop chasing us?”
Junie said, “Pretty much. They won’t be able to sense us there.”
“And how long will that take?”
Sol turned and caught my eye, and I blushed. I must have sounded like a petulant child to him.
But he gave me a lopsided smile. “We’ve all been through it. It’s part of being a half-blood. From now on, every day you wake up, someone will always be out there wanting you dead.”
Chapter 17
By the time we got to the Prairieview Motel, it was well past dark and everyone was in a bad mood.
We’d passed into the Dead Zone hours ago, but finding a motel had been no small feat. We’d spent hours on desolate country roads with nothing on either side of us but the flat, scrubby terrain.
It was my turn for the cot—but this place didn’t have cots, so I was going to have to share the double bed with Junie.
I was so exhausted I wasn’t sure I cared.
But after I’d brushed my teeth—and emerged in another hideous pair of pajamas—I felt strangely restless.
I wasn’t the only one.
Junie had turned on the television and was mindlessly surfing cable news channels. Clover had quietly slipped out to the boys’ room while I was in the bathroom.
I pulled on a sweatshirt and slipped on my shoes. “I’m going to check out the vending machines.”
As I opened the door, a gust of cold wind rushed in.
Junie looked up. “I don’t think there’s anything out there.”
But I already knew that.
I found Sol sitting at the top of the stairs. Though it was dark, I recognized the broad outline of his shoulders under the leather jacket.
He glanced over as I settled down on the bare concrete next to him.
“I couldn’t sleep.” I tried not to wince at the cold seeping through my flimsy shorts.
His gaze went back to the parking lot, and the dark, empty field beyond it. “Is Junie snoring again?”
“No. Does she really snore?”
“You’ll find out.”
He didn’t seem to be in the mood for conversation. But I found myself unwilling to give up. “Why are you out here?”
“It was getting a little crowded in my room.”
It took me a second to understand. Then I felt my cheeks grow hot. “Deo and Clover…are they—?”
“I told them I was going for a walk. Not a long walk.” He looked pointedly at his watch.
“So they’re a couple?”
He was back to staring at the field again. “You’d really have to ask them that. We don’t do prom in the magic-blood world.”
Ouch. The old Kes would’ve taken the hint and left.
Actually, she never would have come out here in the first place.
“Can I ask you a personal question?”
“Depends on the question.”
I was probably breaking some kind of rule of magical etiquette. But for the moment, I didn’t care. “What’s your Source gift?”
He narrowed his eyes in a way that seemed to be a substitute for a smile. “Ask me something else.”
“But—”
“Trust me. You don’t want to know. With any luck, you’ll never have to witness it.”
So he wasn’t a Null. But for whatever reason, he didn’t want to share what his power was.
Maybe I could ask Junie when he wasn’t listening.
“What’s Sanctuary like?”
He glanced over, one eyebrow raised.
“I mean, that’s where you live, isn’t it? When you’re not out rescuing half-blood girls?”
I was shocked to hear the flirtation in my voice—and even more shocked to realize that I’d done it on purpose.
He gave me a long, level stare. “I grew up there. I’m one of the lucky ones who never had to run away from the Hunters. Well, except by choice.”
There was a ghost of a smile on his lips.
“There used to be a lot of us. Maybe two thousand, in the glory days. Now that number is probably under five hundred.”
I didn’t ask where they’d gone.
“It’s underground.” The corner of his mouth twitched. “Hope you’re not claustrophobic.”
I laughed, and this seemed to surprise him. Sydney always used to tell me that I didn’t laugh enough. You have to laugh at a guy’s jokes. They get discouraged if you don’t.
The thought of Syd sent a lance of pain through my chest—followed quickly by residual embarrassment at the phone call incident.
Sol still hadn’t returned my phone.
“And no one knows it’s there? I mean, how do you keep it secret from the—” I’d been about to say humans. But I was human, wasn’t I?
He smiled faintly. “A combination of magic, common sense, and the fact that it’s in the middle of freaking nowhere. And did I mention that it’s underground?”
I glanced down and saw that Sol’s hand was only inches from mine. The realization made my stomach drop like I was on a rollercoaster.
“How did they end up as a couple? Deo and Clover, I mean?”
“None of my business. And none of yours, either.”
His sharp tone took me by surprise, and I was momentarily speechless.
He said in a softer tone, “It’s just..not s
omething I’d recommend. Not if you want to stay alive. Relationships are a distraction.”
He was giving me a graceful exit.
Only I found I had no desire to take it.
“I could use a little distraction right now.” I moved my hand until it brushed Sol’s.
He pulled it away.
“Go to bed, Kes. We have a long day tomorrow, and it starts early.”
“Sol, I—”
“No.” He turned to face me, his face animated—and angry. “This isn’t a game. There’s no going home at the end of the day. You understand that, don’t you?”
“Of course I do.”
But he wasn’t done. “People are going to die. People you care about. Oh, and in case you were wondering, you’re not special. Bad planning and shitty luck will kill you just as fast as everyone else.”
I swallowed hard. “I know that. I just need to learn how to use my powers. Isn’t there something I could do? Some way to practice?”
“Oh, you want a magical training montage! Sorry, but it doesn’t work that way.”
“There has to be something. Techniques or exercises or something.”
“Jesus, Kes.” He let out an exasperated breath. “This is magic we’re talking about. It’s not like it’s a sword and you’re going to hold it upside down.”
I wanted to believe him.
But my magic didn’t feel like a sword. What did it feel like?
Like I was hollowed out, an empty vessel through which power inexplicably flowed…
Sol was watching me with a strange expression. I had the unnerving sense that he could read my thoughts.
“Look, I hate to break it to you, but magic isn’t something you’re guaranteed. Not even as a half-blood. Lots of us have one good fireworks show in us—then nothing.”
There was a word for that. Null. But neither of us said it out loud.
I said, quietly, “I have power. I used it.”
“Right. The fireworks show at the dance—”
“No. Not just that.” I forced Sol to meet my eyes. “When I was waiting for you, Dr. Sotheby found me. He tried to make me come with him. I hit him with something. Magic, I guess.”
Sol’s expression hardened.
“You want to know the truth? Most half-bloods get picked off by the Squads long before they learn to harness whatever piddling gifts they might possess. Don’t think you’re any different.”
