***
As it gets closer and closer to the end of Biology, my last class of the day, I begin to suspect that the clock is gradually slowing down. It isn’t helping that my teacher is droning on like Ben Stein, and not in the good way, because let’s be honest, the monotone thing only works for Ben Stein. Usually, I barely notice either issue because I’m buried in the pages of a book. At long last, the bell rings, and the class lets out a collective sigh of relief; it seems I wasn’t the only one suffering as a result of Ms. Lancaster’s monotone.
I spot Nick waiting for me outside the main entrance, and make a beeline for him, wrapping my arms around his middle the moment I get the chance. He embraces me just as tightly, and we stand there for a moment, enjoying the fact that we’re actually together for the first time in weeks. I can’t tell which of us lets go first, but I do notice it doesn’t take long for Nick’s fingers to find and wrap around mine. Without saying a word, we both turn to walk downtown, and set off at an easy pace, away from the stream of teenagers gushing through the doors behind me.
We take turns talking about how our respective days went, only to discover that they’ve both been mostly uneventful. Nick’s been at home, watching movies with Krystal, who’s been too paranoid to even leave the house since we last spoke. I, on the other hand, have spent my day sitting in various desks, attempting to retain any and all information thrown at me with a low success rate. We almost walk right by a Barnes and Noble, but Nick says he wants to browse around inside. We separate briefly to pass through the revolving door, but our hands find each other again as we head up the escalator.
The store is unsurprisingly busy, but Nick steers us away from the more densely populated shelves, toward the Art section. “Landon’s birthday is coming up,” he says, “so I figured I could buy him a book full of selections from his favorite artists.”
I shrug, and help Nick browse the shelves, but I still suggest, “You could just take him to the Met?”
“That’s true. He practically lives there already, though. I’d rather get him an art book, or some supplies.”
“Then why aren’t we in an art supplies store?”
“The man practically bleeds paint, I don’t think he needs any more of it.” Nick grabs a book full of Georges Braque paintings, and asks, “Do you wanna look through a couple of these over Starbucks?”
I select a book full of Picasso works, and say, “Sure,” then wrap my arm around his as we head towards the in-store Starbucks.
Nick doesn’t order any coffee, naturally, but he still offers to pay for my hot chocolate. I decline, as I usually do; when people pay for my things, I feel like I owe them. Nick and I take a seat by the window once my drink is ready, and sit flipping through our books in comfortable silence. Every once in a while, a painting will catch my eye and I’ll show Nick to hear his opinion. He knows as much about art as I do, which is to say almost nothing, so his response is rarely any more elaborate than, “It looks kinda blocky.”
To which I simply respond, “I think it’s supposed to.”
We continue looking at the strange art in the books we’ve chosen until I notice a familiar face over Nick’s shoulder. She makes her way towards me, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she walks. When she’s within earshot, Alyssa half-shouts, “Before you say anything, I…” Then she notices Nick sitting across from me. They look at each other for a moment, and she lets out an exasperated, “Oh,” before turning on her heel and walking the way she came.
Chapter 27
Without hesitation, I push my chair from the table, and follow Alyssa at a brisk pace. Surely, she can hear my footsteps, but she makes no effort to slow down or acknowledge me. It isn’t until I’ve caught up to her, and we’re walking side by side, that she turns her head to face me. Alyssa pulls me into a nearly empty aisle, then finally stops, and asks, “What?”
She’s fighting to keep her face blank, but there’s no hiding the hurt in her eyes. I take a deep breath, and ask, “What are you doing here?”
“I was looking for a copy of Canterbury Tales, but since you’re here, I guess I’ll have to settle for social interaction.”
“I was worried about you.”
“Yeah, right. If you did think about me at all the past few days, it’s only because I promised to help you find whatshername.”
“That’s not fair.” I glance around us, at the people quietly browsing shelves, or checking their phones. Making sure no one’s listening to us very closely. “I care about you, just not in the way you want me to. If you wanna punish me for that, fine. I understand. But you did make a promise, and someone’s life could be at stake for all we know.”
Alyssa lowers her gaze, and says, “I know. And I’m a woman of my word. I just thought some time away from you would do me good.”
“What’s going on?” Nick must have silently left the table, because the sound of his voice and the sudden feeling of his hand on my shoulder startle me. It also reminds me of his heightened senses; how much of our conversation has he been able to hear? He looks at the two of us with a hint of suspicion, but that could easily be because we’re trying to avoid being overheard.
Alyssa frowns, and says, “I was just discussing something with your girlfriend. That okay?”
Before Nick can answer, I decide to introduce them and get it over with. “Alyssa, this is Nick, my boyfriend. Nick, this is my friend Alyssa. We were talking about Rachel’s disappearance.”
“And about how I plan on helping you guys find her,” Alyssa adds.
Nick’s grip on my shoulder tightens as he asks, “Really? How?”
“Well, it’s hard to explain. I’d have to show you.”
“So show us. Right now. If you really can.”
Alyssa looks from me, to Nick, then back at me, before saying, “Fine! I will. But we’ll have to go somewhere that this girl frequents, to get a good read on her aura.”
“Would her room work?” Nick wraps his arm around me from behind, as if he intends to protect me from Alyssa.
“Yes. Her room would be perfect, actually.”
“Alright. Heather, you know where Rachel lives. We’re following you.” Alyssa rolls her eyes, but allows me to lead the way out of Barnes and Noble, with both her and Nick following closely behind. Before we walk down the steps to the subway, Nick whispers in my ear, “I don’t know exactly what’s going on with you and this girl, but I expect you to explain everything after we find Rachel.”
Shit. So, he heard enough to guess that my relationship to Alyssa has been more than platonic in the past. The truth was bound to come out eventually. He sounds more disappointed than angry, which makes me feel even worse. It seems like I only ever manage to hurt the few people who actually want me. I nod, and begin steeling myself for the inevitably painful conversation.
The ride to Rachel’s house is made nearly unbearable by both the sheer volume of people on their way home from work and school, and the clear hostility between Nick and Alyssa. They make a few attempts at polite conversation, but it quickly becomes clear that neither is happy about being stuck in the other’s presence. I busy myself during the ride by playing solitaire on my phone, and wishing I could be anywhere else with any other pair of people.
The last time I walked around in the Bronx, I felt exposed, unsafe. What a difference a few months under Krystal’s tutelage has made; now I walk the streets without a hint of fear, almost daring someone to test me. It helps that I’m not alone this time, as well. Nick and Alyssa follow me closely as we cross the threshold into Rachel’s building, and wait silently with me for the elevator that will take us to her floor.
It takes me a few seconds to remember exactly which apartment is hers, but we eventually find the right door, and spend at least five minutes knocking on it, and getting no response. At the very least, her parents should have been home from work by now. I glance over at Alyssa, who then snaps her fingers, and we hear the locks on the other
side of the door sliding open. I push open the door, and ask her, “Have you ever considered a life of crime?”
Alyssa just glares at me, and pushes past me into the apartment.
Evidently, whoever left last was in a hurry. The lights are all on, as well as the television in the living room. I show Alyssa where Rachel’s room is, while Nick and I split up to inspect the rest of the apartment. Something doesn’t feel right. It’s almost as if Rachel’s entire family disappeared in the middle of their lives. Her parents’ bed is still unmade, the washing machine is still full of sudsy clothes, and a half-eaten sandwich rests on the kitchen table, slowly being devoured by multicolored mold. It’s only when I stop to take a closer look at the kitchen that I notice tiny drops of blood on the otherwise spotless floor. Something definitely happened here, but what?
Alyssa steps out from Rachel’s room, and announces, “I’m done. Her energy is faint, but I think I figured out where she is right now.”
“Great!” I look up from the bloody tiles excitedly, and ask, “Where is she?”
“That’s the bad news… from what I can tell, she’s in one of the abandoned tunnels that run under Grand Central.”
“Why’s that bad news?”
“Because they’re not entirely abandoned. Have you ever heard rumors about the Molemen?”
I have. From what I can remember, there was once a secret society living in the tunnels under New York City, popularly known as the Molemen. Thousands of homeless people, driven underground by poverty, addiction, and desperation, eking out a living right beneath our feet. I haven’t heard anything about them in years, but I nod.
Alyssa continues, “Well, they’re only partly true. There are a few people living down there, sure. But Selene is the one that thought to spread rumors about the Molemen, so that no one would guess at what was actually going on down there. Mostly, my clan uses those tunnels as a secret meeting place.”
“Oh…” The pieces are finally beginning to come together. Rachel disappearing on her way home. Her parents never answering when Jenna and I called. The signs that the apartment had been left in a hurry. The blood on the floor. Rachel, in the tunnels, where Penumbra meets frequently. Taken as a whole, all the signs point to members of Penumbra abducting the entire O’Connell family, which can only mean one thing. “This is a trap. For me.”
Alyssa confirms my suspicions with a nod. “It looks that way.”
Nick has been silent since we forced our way into the apartment, but now he leans against a wall, and asks, “What are we going to do?”
My pulse races as I weigh our options, of which there are few. There’s only one alternative that I can see to letting Rachel and her family rot underground. “Isn’t it obvious? We spring the trap.”
“What?” Nick looks genuinely surprised by my answer. “Heather, that would be suicide. These people want you dead!”
“Which is exactly why they won’t expect me to barge right in. I’ll grab Rachel and her family, and help them escape before they even realize what’s going on.”
Nobody speaks for a moment, as my surprisingly simple plan takes root in their minds. It’s crazy. It’s dangerous. But it’s either this, or we leave my best friend in the tunnels to die. I know Nick well enough to know that he’s against the plan, merely because it puts me in danger. Alyssa, on the other hand, mutters, “I’m in.” Both Nick and I look at her in shock. She shrugs, and says, “There’s probably no stopping you at this point, and there’s no way in hell I’m letting you go down there alone. Besides, I’m a hundred percent sure I know those tunnels better than you do.”
I turn my attention to Nick, and say, “That’s two to one. We’re doing this.”
Nick runs his fingers through his hair, and frowns at me. In the end, he relents. “Alright. I’m in, too. But I’m calling Krystal. We need as much help as we can get.”
Nick walks off into the living room to make his phone call, leaving me and Alyssa alone in the entrance to the kitchen. She peeks around the corner, presumably to check whether or not Nick is looking over at us, and then places her hand on my wrist. One second, I’m standing in Rachel’s apartment. The next, the world around me has gone completely dark, the sound of Nick’s voice replaced by crushing silence. As calmly and quietly as I can, I ask, “Did you just do what I think you just did?”
“I had to get us out of there,” Alyssa answers. “Your boyfriend was pissing me off.”
“He was right though, we need more than just the two of us if we want this plan to work.”
“They’ll catch up. In the meantime, we should focus on what we came here to do.” Alyssa lets go of my wrist, and seconds later, a ball of light appears in the palm of her hand. I’m nearly blinded by the piercing brightness, and I use my arm to block most of the light while my eyes adjust to it. Alyssa looks around for a moment to get her bearings, then beckons me to follow her. I suppose I don’t have much of a choice, now. Alyssa takes the lead, holding the ball of light she conjured above our heads as we explore the tunnels.
I don’t know if it’s the fact that we’re so far underground, or that I keep expecting someone to lunge at us from around every corner, but being in the tunnels makes me uneasy. Every once in a while, the walls around us shake slightly, and bits of dust rain down on us from the low ceiling. I have to remind myself that it’s just the rumble of trains passing overhead to keep from freaking out. Alyssa leads us through what seems like a maze, until we turn the corner into a massive chamber. She directs her ball of light higher, since there’s more room above us now, to better illuminate the space. “This is it,” she mutters. “She’s in this room, I’m sure of it.”
Alyssa suggests that we split up to cover more ground, but I stay by her side as we sweep the room. At first, it seems empty, save for a few empty barrels and the stone pillar in the center. Then, I hear the sound of ragged breathing coming from my left. I turn to look, and my heart sinks. There, hunched against the wall, chained to it by their wrists, are Rachel, her parents, and her younger sister. Aside from a large scab on her father’s forehead, and the cloying stench of people who haven’t had the chance to bathe in several days, they appear to be in decent shape. Judging by the empty plates littered around them, I’d guess that someone comes down here to feed them at least once a day.
They seem to be asleep, but when I reach down to tug at her chains, Rachel’s eyes flutter open. She blinks, and in a raspy voice, asks, “Am I dreaming?”
“Nope.” I give the chains binding her to the wall another futile tug, before crouching down next to her. “We’re busting you out.”
Rachel lets out a faint, “Okay,” before fading out of consciousness again, and slumping against the wall. There’s a heavy padlock dangling from the chains looped around her wrists, and the wrists of her fellow prisoners. Alyssa decides that we don’t have time to look for the keys, so she severs the chains with a spell. We’re silently debating the best way to get these people out of the tunnels when I start to feel that we’re no longer alone. I’m not sure what alerts me to the presence of others, but I turn around to check, and nudge Alyssa until she does the same.
A crowd of people at least a hundred strong has amassed in the room behind us. Each of them has conjured their own miniature ball of light which they hold at eye level, giving their faces an eerie, unnatural glow. The symbols on their arms are glowing brightly as well, each of their individual auras adding a different hue to the spectrum.
They stand watching us in silence, before parting to let one member pass from the back of the crowd. Selene approaches until she’s standing directly in front of the rest of her clan, with her hands on her hips. “Well,” she says with a smile, “I’m surprised it took you this long to find your friend, Heather.”
Chapter 28
Up until this point, I’ve had no personal quarrel with Selene. I may have been dragged into the feud between her and Krystal, but I’ve never felt any need to hate her. After seeing w
hat she’s done to Rachel, though, it takes every ounce of restraint I have to keep myself from ripping Selene to shreds. The temptation is strong, but I stay my hand. I have questions, and only Selene has the answers. I keep my eyes locked on hers, and ask, “What did these people ever do to you?”
Some of Penumbra’s members start to move towards me, but she motions for them to stay put. She eyes me with what I assume is curiosity, and replies, “Would you believe me if I said I just don’t like gingers?”
“Not for a second.”
“Fair enough. I grabbed them in order to get to you. I knew you’d come running to save your friend like the hero you think you are, and that if you couldn’t find her on your own, Alyssa would lead you here. The poor girl’s so in love with you, it’s almost hard to watch.”
For a moment, I glance at Alyssa, who looks mortified. That explains why she wasn’t told about Selene’s plans for me; she must have guessed that Alyssa would warn me the second she got the chance. I bring my attention back to Selene, whose clear blue eyes are still fixed on mine. “Alright, but what do you want with me?”
Selene’s cherry red lips curl into a smile, before forming her answer. “I just want you to stick around for a while.” My confusion must show on my face, because Selene goes on to explain, “I’m just trying to get to Krystal, but she’s a hard woman to find. Since all of her friends are dead, the only way I had to drag her out of hiding was to get my hands on you. Her student.”
In a strange way, I can almost understand Selene’s rationale. What happened between her and Krystal was horrible, and neither of them was prepared for the consequences of their actions. They’ve both been wounded, and they’ve both made irrational decisions as a result. And while I understand her thought process, or think I do, I can’t say I agree with it; I wouldn’t have let my yearning for vengeance over the death of my family drive me to kidnap someone else’s.
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