Page 12 (1/2)

Chapter Twelve

The waro of shadow and light, and I stretched The crackle of a fast-food bag re up Feeling fuzzy, I openedher attention between the busy urban street and the clock she was trying to change It must have been the beeps that woke me up Apparently we’d crossed into another tihteen But I felt like it was nine Soave me a quick, neutral ss on either side, wishing I had lasses We were off the interstate, and there were pal wasn’t right, either

The street was busy, clogged with traffic and people Pedestrians were everywhere, and uys dressed in velvet capes Va, to be sure, but they were Gothed to the as," Trent said fro, I sat up and looked a little closer Oh yeah Where else would you get a pyra over, I found the ht ere headed for LA" Which probably had va the streets in capes as well, corip on the wheel as if I’d brought up a sore subject Her professionalis thin, and the petite wo 40 to Bakersfield," she said through clenched teeth "We’re going the long way"

My gaze went to Ivy in a question, and she shrugged "What’s wrong with Bakersfield?" I finally asked, feeling the tension between Vivian and Trent

"Nothing" Vivian frowned, but she still looked cute Tired, but cute "It’s 40 I’man, and ould have run out"

"Soht person could "

Vivian , and ht The people there don’t want anyone driving through Going to Vegas doesn’t add et to the West Coast as soon as possible"

I hid a s along, either Settlinglike the Midwestern goober I was I’d never seen sotheir differences It was easy to pick out the tourists with their pale faces and caht of myself as a conservative person, but this was like Halloween and Mardi Gras lu as we don’t stop," I said, thinking it would be easy to lose a day here

"We’re stopping," Ivy said, voice low and confident

From behind me, Trent muttered, "She speaks, so we ," Ivy said,Vivian and Rachel didn’t, and Rachel fought off a deree heat We can stop for an hour" There was a hesitation, followed by a soft "Besides, I’ressive teenage girl "But e get back in the car, I’ood, and worried about the backseat dynaer or so a tall, blond va down the sidewalk in six-inch heels, her clothes hardly covering her iet out of here, the better"

"Burgers?" Trent’s voice dripped disdain, and as This is the first ti that passes for food, and you want burgers?"

I turned in my seat, surprised by how tired he looked, washed out and worried Trent was never worried Not enough to let it show, anyway "Dude, why don’t you stop and think about what your htly

"Children," Vivian said, not entirely joking, "if you don’t stop arguing, I’h"

I turned back around, and Trent hed

"And the hotel," he added, and she growled in annoyance

I suddenly felt a whole lot ickier And hungry Leaning forward, I began tidying the front seat, tucking theup trash More Milk Duds boxes? "Jenks, you okay?" I asked, still not having seen him It wasn’t like hi on Trent, and he wasn’t on his usual seat on the rearview mirror

"Peachy," came his voice from under the napkin draped over the open dash ashtray

"He’s altitude sick," Ivy said

I resisted lifting the napkin, but just "Are you okay?" I asked again, eying the white square "You don’t sound good"

"Leaveover the ri to the floor of the car "I’ll be fine"

"You want so to say In a flurry ofto an eainst his back as he retched

"Oh God!" Trent exclaiain"

"Jenks!" I exclaimed, almost frantic I mean, when someone throws up, you’re supposed to hold their hair back orto do either

"He’s fine," Trent said so callously that I glared at him "There’s some honey on the dash It helps"

I was ready to sstaff was really hard He’ll be okay"

"I don’t feel so good," Jenks said, flying wobbly as he got back to his nest

I shoved the cup in the bag with the rest of the trash, really worried I knew Jenks tried to hide it, but if he didn’t eat every couple of hours, he suffered Throwing up could be a big problem "Are you sure you’re okay?" I asked as I tore open the packet and set it next to hi pale, he pulled a pair of chopsticks fro a bit, he sighed, sluht on the Strip, but worried about Jenks, I couldn’t look up to see the sights

"Better," he said with a sigh, then gave me a look of clarity before the honey kicked in "I’ll be okay Just keep the honey co"

I exhaled, relieved He’d tell me if there was a real proble a sht in"

"Not if I eat it slow enough," he said, easing back, looking relaxed but worn out "Crap, now I have to pee"

My smile turned real, and I looked out theat the people I wished I had my camera, but then I’d stick out Well, stick out more than titches, a vamp, an elf, and a pixy in a powder blue Buick with Ohio plates already did But then I saw the pack of Weres trotting down the sidewalk, and I decided we didn’t stick out at all

"I said, I have to pee," Jenks said again, louder this tio in a cup

Vivian leaned forward as she made a turn "Hold on I know a quiet hotel off the Strip"

"Off the Strip?" Trent co on all of us "We are not stopping at some Were-bitten hole in the e can stay at a decent establish as she pulled et chain with very little neon on the sign "We’re not staying," she said when Trent voiced his disgust "We’re taking a break, and we’re stopping here because you won’t get past the front desk of one of the big hotels without being recognized" She turned to hinized?"

Trent said nothing, and satisfied, she put the car in park at the front office "You’ve been nothing but a pain in the ass," she said as she grabbed her purse, just about the only thing she had since we’d kidnapped her "No wonder Rachel doesn’t like you I don’t like you, and I like everyone"

His hand went to his chin, and Trent silently looked out the , clearly peeved but seeing her logic Ivy, though, was stirring, putting her boots back on and grabbing her purse

"Is that Elvis?" I had to ask, seeing a Were in a white leisure suit and gold boots co in the shadows Theneon, and he had a Chihuahua in his ar’s collar was neon, too

Vivian reached for the door handle, barely glancing at him "That’s Bob and Chico," she said shortly "I lived here before I moved to the coast Well, not here, exactly, but just outside town The ley lines are spectacular"

Really? I thought as she opened her door and got out I’d heard they were nuht it was part of the sell line

"Everyone stays here, okay?" she said fro harassed, a hand on her hip and her clothes rumpled She hadn’t put on any makeup, and her once-slick hair was more like stra It et a roo to eat," she said, eyes narrowed in annoyance "I don’t need a bunch of you in the office without, and Vivian gave her a tired look "I don’t trust you," Ivy said with absolutely no res"

"None taken," the small woman said with the sas hummed, but he didn’t ruether, Vivian looking sht

"I really have to pee," he said again, this tily on mine

I cranked theall the way down, and he rose unsteadily into the air "When did Vivian beco path outside "Stay close, okay?" I said, noticing that he didn’t have a scrap of red on hi to the sheared rose the path to the door

I watched hih Silence descended, and as the insects buzzed, I became keenly aware of Trent, in the back He had su demon He said he’d done it to help I wanted to believe hiic, and he was doingto see Trent, I said, "We need to talk"

His eye twitched Without a word, he unlocked his door and pushed it open, his foot catching the heavy door as it bounced back into hiainst it, his back to me as he looked toward the Strip, a few blocks away

Peeved, ht now to push the issue After I had a burger, I’d pin hih ere off the Strip, there was a definite flow of people headed for it, passing us with either a fast pace with loud chatter or silent with a dull drudgery The high- red, but the lethal- what Vivian had said, I reached for a ley line to see how some little city in the desert stacked up to my Cincinnati

"Oh ht headache beca, and short, crisscrossing in a chaotic mess in every compass direction It looked like soas was on a daether Awed, I shookover the desert sand, then pro in ht as I wiped my nose, but the sun was still up, so there was no reason not to answer Al, if Al it was Leaning over to the driver’s seat, I popped the trunk and got out

"What are you doing?" Trent asked belligerently as I shuffled through the trunk forhim an insincere smile as I pulled it out

"You ever useto bust it over your head," I said "And we are going to talk We could all have gotten killed back there, or worse Leave the ic to the professionals Businessman"

He frowned as he took inthere with his arht flush to his cheeks Daain as I sat down, leaving my door open for the cross breeze

Trent turned to watch lass seeh my jeans The silver-and-wine color threw back the haze of the setting sun, looking more beautiful yet Another sneeze shookTrent as he moved around the car to better spy onram I connected to one of the s Al, coht dryly

The link for Son of a bitch! echoed inintoto ht, confused as flashes of power and half-understood spells roared through my consciousness, too fast to be realized My lips parted, and I pressed lass Furious Latin uncoiled from his mind as he twisted communal stored spells They rose fro a ti been roused and thrust into existence with no warning Black and sickly, I felt the me in Al’s memory of what it was like to be in pain and how to crush another with one’s thoughts

Al! I screaht turn on h ood even as I tried to cut hiht as he finally heard me, but then his splinter of awareness jerked away, and his howl at a burst of energy created to liquidize fat burned itself intoht, but I must have said it aloud because Trent’s shadow coveredon?" Trent asked, more irritation than concern in his tone

Heat exploded in my chest, and Al and I both reacted-hi ertips could leave the glass

Line Give rip and letting the energy flow through roaned in relief My hand was treunreal Past the car s, the sky had gone hazy with red, and the gritty as blowing Soas as if it was on fire It looked like hell, the casinos and buildings burning, cruain It had to be fro was stable I stared, transfixed, as, in the back ofspells so coe

"Rachel, what’s going on?" Trent asked again, his voice a faint buzzing as I struggled to hold ht Al was fighting hand-to-hand, teeth clenched as he struggled to keep so the line into hi it into his attacker’s face Outside the car, an explosion in the ever-after ripped off the corner of a building I watched in awe as it fell in slowfrom the impact In Al’s kitchen, I felt hierymy lips pull back in a snarl

I blinked, and I was suddenly seeing reality-the de up, the s glittering with neon

Trent touched my shoulder, and I jue explosion shookfro into asped as Al pulled on not onlythe ball of death he’d pulled froainst a quick black figure with silver hair The attacker hit the wall, the tapestry that I hated going up in green fla air, the figure attacking Al vanished On the floor, the tapestry shrieked and writhed as if in pain

Trent’s yelp of shock echoed in me as he pulled away Stunned, I sat alone withblackness had risen, and I felt it settle over Al as he huddled on his cold black floor, whispering, I take this, I take this, before the smut could hurt him I shivered as the s like a living thing before it slid back to Al

Sweet everlasting shit We’re in trouble, I felt in our joined thoughts

The attacker was gone, and I cut off the energy flowing between us Al? I cautiously offered, and I felt his consciousness gather, trying to pretend that he hadn’t almost just died

Rachel, he started, and then we both clenched in pain A new rush of adrenaline poured into hts, You little runt!

There was another grunt of pain, and I doubled over With a pop, I felt Al’s thoughts leave mine It wasn’t the snap of disconnection because I could still feel what he was feeling It was so, and this ti At all

"Al!" I shouted, forcingasped as ht There was the burst of an expanded awareness, and then the awful division of self when I was again alone in the universe A ping of fear lit through h the nearest ley line, stukitchen A thick haze of dust in the air, stinking of burnt a froed out of the raised circular fire pit where Al twisted his larger curses More chunks of rock fro littered the floor If it ood, it was charred If it was glass, it was broken The tapestry was silent, a liquid black dripping fro askew, half on the floor

Before the s froashes as he lay before the black fireplace And over him was Pierce, a black ball of death in his hand

"Pierce!" I shouted, and he turned, shocked

"What are you doing here?" he exclairoaned Pierce spun to hi from him fast as Al’s eyes opened in fear

I didn’t think, just ed at Pierce, knocking hi front first across the derunt in pain as ut Alotten to his feet as well, the invoked curse still in his grasp

For an instant, our eyes locked, and then, after shaking his head, he threw the spell at Al

What is he doing?

"Rhohinto the broken reer peaked

"Are you addled?" Pierce yelled, his blue eyes showing his anger as he stood, his hands bereft of roaned, and I felt a twinge on my awareness as a red-sheened sheet of ever-after coated hier bleeding

"I had hi "I bloody had hi with you, wolanced down at Al gazing up at me Holy crap, had I just saved Al’s life? "Uh," I stammered as Al levered hi to the floor and his dark hair covering his eyes

"I had one chance!" Pierce shouted, shaking as he stood by the fireplace "And-"

"Septiens," Al wheezed, and Pierce collapsed, seizing as if having hit an electrical field