Chapter 08 — Around the World in Eighty Minutes

  Still at the Whittier campus, Josh ducked into the hallway next to him. If he followed it, he'd end up right in the middle of the quad. With the sheer force of what he might be following, Josh didn't exactly want to expose himself—he might be unknown to most of the world, but around the awakened, it was a different story. Every newcomer to the site, every new awakened they contacted dealt with Josh in some way or another as he grew his network.

  None of them should be in Norwalk, or Whittier. Was I followed out here? Is somebody trying to track me down? I mean, it's not insane to think somebody else from my town awakened… but it's hella unlikely. From what we can tell, Scraps are barely starting to migrate out of the Pacific Northwest, however the hell they move. This is way too far south for any of them to drift.

  He glanced around, trying not to look too suspicious, relying on his training from Boris. Vague glances, nothing jerky, glazed eyes as if he were just distracted. No sudden moves when they didn't make sense.

  The campus seemed totally mundane. What I wouldn't give to have Nikki back right now…

  Josh dug into his pocket. He might be nowhere near as adept as his girlfriend, but he could perform the spell. It felt like trying to shove his lungs out through his throat, and he'd never manage to pull even the slightest picture, but he hoped the scant traces he could conjure might be enough. Reaching into his Laushire-provided bag tied at his waist, Josh dug for the stash of amethyst he kept on-hand for Nikki.

  The massive wall awaited him as his mind slipped away from reality. Josh could already feel the overwhelming pressure beginning to crush him from the inside-out, but he only needed a few seconds. Focusing on the essence he'd just felt only a few minutes before, Josh hurtled just far enough to get a sense of their location.

  Come on, come on… Got it.

  "Are you okay?"

  Josh's mind snapped back into his head to find a very concerned coed watching him hacking away, coughing all over the brick wall holding up him.

  He nodded, still wheezing. "Just… swallowed something wrong."

  "Need help?"

  "Nah, thanks." Josh forced a smile, desperately holding onto the fading sense of direction he'd gotten from the spell. Fucking knowledge magic... "All good."

  Despite the pain in his chest, Josh forced himself to start walking away—directly toward the essence, as best he could manage. Problem was, the campus was crowded with people gearing up for the term on Monday, moving back into dorms and hanging out for the end of their winter break. A vague sense of direction didn't exactly help much, and Josh didn't want to risk actively trying to seek the essence.

  Who knows what they can do? If they feel me searching, might spook them… or worse. I definitely can't take them in a fight. Nikki could track them without being noticed though. We tested it with Hailey and Kendra, even they couldn't feel it. Only Grey-eyes, apparently.

  Am I chasing down another god?

  He had to assume not. The Three Gods were only that way because they'd been able to read the whole book—or at least, most of it. Meanwhile, the natural awakened obviously used something besides the Scraps the rest of them awakened from—maybe pages from the original book? He didn't exactly want to pursue the theory further though. Last thing the world needs is more people with that kind of power. If they've still got their method, I hope to God nobody ever finds it.

  Sure would be nice right now though… how the fuck am I supposed to find this person without Nikki? Knowledge magic just had to be so goddamn rare… oh, duh.

  Seconds later, Josh's private cell was in his hand—the encrypted one, rather than the new one for his normal mundane life. "Hey."

  "Hi… Josh," crackled Will's voice, far away in B.C., or wherever Rachel might have moved him to. "What can I help… you with?"

  "I don't just call to check in?" Josh winced. He didn't want to just use the poor guy. "Shit man… sorry."

  "It's… fine. With what happened, I'm not sur… surprised."

  Josh sighed. "Anyway, yeah. I need help down here. You know where I am, right?"

  "Rachel filled… me in. Norwalk, right?"

  "Close enough. Whittier College. And I just felt something massive."

  Will coughed before responding. "I felt it too. Really powerful magic."

  "So you already tried to track them?" asked Josh hopefully.

  "Yes… but I couldn't." Another pause and the telltale flat sound of the phone being muted. Will returned a few moments later. "They must be… like Hailey and the Gods. I can… feel their spells but not them."

  He never learned Nikki's direct scrying method… and it's not my place to teach it. She wanted it kept private. Too powerful. "And we don't have a clue who it is."

  "No." Will paused. "Want me to… get Rachel?"

  He was calming down now after talking to Will, and getting confirmation he hadn't mistaken what he'd felt. Josh shook his head, though of course, Will couldn't see it. "Nah. I'll keep an eye out, but if we've never heard of this person before, they're obviously trying to lay low. No need to provoke anything."

  "Sounds… good. Keep us in the loop?"

  "Of course. This is a two way street, you know that." Josh leaned against the nearest wall, still letting the aftereffects of the scrying attempt ebb away. "And if you feel any more big spells in this area, tell me ASAP. Whatever this person's up to…"

  "You got it. I'll try to… narrow it down." Another mute, and then Will came back on. "I'm watching everybody right now. Just in case."

  "Everybody?"

  "All the awakened. Rachel and the President want to… be aware of potential hotspots. It's helping the DTA be proactive."

  Josh sighed. "Getting on the way to that police state again, dude. Don't take it too far."

  "You sound like Ri—"

  "Anything I should know about?" Josh interrupted.

  "...Well, I can tell you that warehouse fire didn't… set off my senses. Rachel thinks otherwise. We're going to get a few DTA… people down there."

  He frowned. "Does the DTA have awakened members, then?"

  "Of course. Wouldn't be… very good at handling our affairs if it… didn't, would it?"

  "...What warehouse fire?" asked Josh, realizing he actually didn't have a clue what Will was talking about. Normally, when somebody brought something up and he wasn't sure, Josh always waited a few seconds, assuming the needed information would float up from the recesses of his mind if he just kept talking a bit longer, picked up more clues, but Will was obviously talking about something recent.

  "Last… night. Mettis Freight warehouses in Tacoma. The warehouses all… burned down. They thought it was a gas leak at first, but it's… getting bigger because of what they found."

  "Why didn't I hear about this?" Josh wanted to put Will on speaker so he could start scrolling through his feeds, but he couldn't risk it in a public place.

  Will muted again for a few moments. "It was only local news until they… found some of Omega's stones there."

  Josh swore under his breath. "Fuck… So they're saying, what, Mettis was funding and sheltering some of Brian's guys?"

  "Something like that. Investigation's on… going."

  "It's bullshit." He started walking, heading off campus as fast as he could, back to his place. Josh needed to be connected, right away. The world was tilting off its axis again—like it always fucking is. Shit never ends… "Mettis is on our side, at least a little. He's been working with Maddie and Courtney, funding some of Courtney's outreach programs for awakened. They're giving him some beneficial treatment so it's not altruism or anything, but still… Mettis isn't one of them."

  "Looking that... way right now. What do you—"

  "Josh."

  Josh looked up, startled. A voice had just spoken from around the corner that absolutely should not be anywhere near California. Unless, of course, she decided to portal herself there, as only she could. He turned to find one of the Laushire twins standing just behind a fence, a wooden door sprouting out of the empty wall next to her.

  "Looks like I'm getting called in, Will," muttered Josh.

  "What?"

  "Hi…" said Josh aloud, trailing off—he was pretty sure it was Lily, though he couldn't place exactly how he knew. He didn't try to guess, to avoid being rude.

  "Lily," she confirmed. "We need your help."

----------------------------------------

  As Josh stepped through the door into the void and back again, it wasn't the change in temperature or humidity, the daylight or even the smell of the place which struck him most. Instead, it was the taste. There was a taste to the air in the Los Angeles area, even out in Norwalk, quite distinct from the Olympic Forest. London likewise had its own taste, and to Josh, it wasn't exactly pleasant.

  Or it could be the goddamn heights… holy shit.

  Emerging through the doorway, Josh found himself in a huge office. The most handsome desk he'd ever seen sat at one end, with an apparently asleep Kendra Laushire seated behind it. Tasteful wooden bookshelves lined the walls, a cart laden with whiskey sat at the ready, and comfortable chairs lay on a stunningly impressive rug. Portraits of the Laushire line filled the space between the bookshelves, though Josh noticed not a single one stood of either Thomas Laushire or his daughter.

  Of course, he didn't notice any of it, as his eyes were transfixed on the practically invisible glass window behind the desk… and the seven hundred foot fall to the ground.

  "Welcome to my London office," said Kendra, opening her eyes as he stepped in. Lily closed the door behind them, before moving around to sit at Kendra's side. A chair simply materialized there as she did, nearly-identical to the one Kendra sat in.

  Josh walked over to the chair opposite them and sat down, keeping his eyes averted from the giant window. Thankfully, once he was seated, the perspective wasn't quite so daunting anymore. Instead, it was actually rather pleasant, a view over the city beyond which he'd never normally get to enjoy.

  Sitting in their office, Josh had never been more aware of just how rich the Laushires really were. Sure, this was probably combined with their father's wealth, but still… Josh would probably never in his life make even a fraction of this extravagance.

  Since when did I care? Extravagance just gets you more noticed. I don't want to be noticed. Neither does Lily… wonder if that's what this is about? I know they plan to reveal her soon, too many rumors from the kidnapping to stamp out.

  "Looking to hire a chef?" he asked, deadpan. "I hear I'm better than the locals."

  Kendra glanced at Lily, who only smiled. She sighed. "I wish it were the case. The events of last night have put a damper on our intentions."

  "Yeah, I just heard," said Josh. "You guys were investing in Mettis Freight, right?"

  "Not just investing," said Lily.

  "We intended to purchase it outright," added Kendra. "Howard Mettis plans to move his own capital to automated shipping startups. He likes to pick safe technology trends, and self-driving lorries certainly seem a sound investment."

  "So why buy his company?" asked Josh, raising an eyebrow.

  "I have a more immediate need for trucks and large shipments," said Lily.

  Josh didn't miss the first-person distinction, but Kendra continued speaking without a moment's hesitation, almost as if to cover up the indiscretion. "Given the deadzone Natalie created and the continued growth in the region, we expect a lot of short-term gains in shipping, particularly in that area. Mettis Freight already built up a chain of logistics, in addition to strong contracts with local delivery options, and were under their maximum shipping capacity regularly."

  "We were to utilize the extra capacity on each truck for supplies, to be delivered via manual courier out to the Olympic camp," concluded Lily.

  "Were," Josh noted.

  "Mettis broke off negotiations with L. Wilmore this morning," said Kendra.

  "He had already surmised our identity to some degree, most importantly our status as awakened and our ties to the awakened community," added Lily.

  "Given our… aggressive intent to purchase, I believe he saw the attack as a tactic to devalue the company and acquire it for much less than our ask. After all, changing ownership and name of the company would deflect accusations of terrorist support."

  "We haven't heard from him since," said Lily. "I—"

  The door behind them opened. Josh held still, not wanting to show his face in case it were someone attentive and nosy—which is everybody in a rich high-power business firm, right? With the virtually invisible window, he couldn't make out their reflection either.

  Except there's two Kendra Laushires in the room… if it's somebody not in the know, they'll have something way more interesting to gossip about than the black American dude visiting.

  "Ah, sorry," said a male voice, a bit awkward. "I wasn't aware you were in a meeting."

  "That's quite all right," said Kendra gently.

  "We'll be late to lunch. Please give mother our best."

  Josh was too curious to pass up the chance, particularly since the guy wasn't surprised by the pair. He glanced around behind him to find Sir Thomas Laushire himself, in the flesh with the door half-ajar. Thomas stared for a few seconds, clearly perturbed.

  "Father, this is one of our friends from Rallsburg," said Lily patiently, with no words forthcoming anywhere else in the room.

  "Josh," he said finally, seeing no reason to delay introductions any further. He stood to shake the man's hand, not wanting to seem rude.

  Thomas shook it, and the firm action seemed to breathe life back into the man once more. "Any friend of my daughters' is most welcome. Apologies if I appear rude, I wasn't expecting guests."

  "Especially not ones who got forty stories up without being noticed?" Josh grinned. "Don't worry, sir. I'll leave the same way I came in."

  "And how would that be…" Thomas trailed off. He shook his head, exasperated. "Perhaps it's better I don't know."

  Josh shrugged. He turned back to the Laushires. "If you guys got plans, there is somebody else in town I've been meaning to contact."

  "...A certain snake?" asked Lily, only the faintest trace of venom in her voice.

  "That's the one."

  Kendra glanced up at their father. "We'll be down shortly. Could you ask Collins to bring the car around? He'll know where."

  Thomas left without another word. As the door clicked behind him, once again shutting out the rest of the world, Josh raised an eyebrow. He glanced between the two Laushires. "He seems way different from what I've seen on the news."

  Lily smiled slightly. "Our father would not normally act so deferent, but I believe he's trying to atone for past slights… and he hasn't the slightest on how to understand me yet."

  "We're probably enjoying it more than we ought," said Kendra in a tired voice, shooting her sister a look.

  "Back to business," said Lily, turning to Josh, "Mettis will likely blame the awakened for the attack. We'll need a response—ideally one where we can produce a real culprit."

  "Do we know who set the fire?" asked Josh. "I literally just found out about it twenty minutes ago."

  "We do not," said Kendra. "But the fire has no apparent cause nor accelerants, as I understand it."

  "Signs point to magic." He sighed. "Got it. I'll put out feelers." Tezofarl bringing the site back online on Tuesday will help a lot there. Most of the people I need to reach should still be active on it, except the ones stuck in the deadzone. But they probably didn't set fire to Mettis' warehouses anyway.

  I hope.

  "And your meeting with Viper?"

  "Do you know where he is?" asked Josh, standing up again.

  "In his cell, but likely to receive house arrest soon enough."

  "That bastard gets bail but not Hailey?" Josh shook his head. "No justice."

  Kendra frowned. "Viper seems truly repentant. Should we wish unfair judgment on him simply because our friend faced the same?"

  "I don't believe him," said Josh simply.

  "Nor do I," added Lily quietly, surprising them both. Josh couldn't remember the pair ever disagreeing, not over anything noteworthy at least. After all, they were the exact same person for over thirty years. Kendra stared at her for a few moments, but neither said a word.

  Finally, Lily got to her feet and murmured something. The door reappeared in a blank space on the wall, the very same spot Josh had originally walked through. He stood to leave, stretching out as if to run a marathon.

  "Josh," said Kendra suddenly—in quite the exact same cadence as Lily had back at Whittier.

  "Yeah?"

  "If you're reluctant, we know this seems like it's purely about money and our own self-interest—"

  Goddamn… they think I'd turn my back just for that? I mean… I guess I don't have the best history here. Lily's seen how brave I am in real danger. But fuck that, I'm not that guy anymore. "It's way bigger than that," said Josh.

  Kendra faltered, and both of them looked at him with confusion.

  Josh shrugged. "It's family. You two got screwed and I'm gonna find out why. You're my family."

  Lily smiled, Kendra a half-second and a half less enthusiastic behind her. "Thank you," said Lily firmly. She nodded to the door behind him. "Shall we?"

----------------------------------------

  As Lily led Josh around the cobblestone circle in the void, he glanced out into the endless empty black and sighed. "Couldn't you put in, like, stars or something? Some people get serious vertigo in here." Nikki, for one.

  "There is no vertical space, so there are no heights to fear," said Lily.

  "The brain doesn't agree." Josh looked back, where Lily had stopped in front of one of the doors. As far as he could tell, they were all practically identical, but of course the Laushires alone knew which led where. "Where's this go to?"

  "Viper's cell."

  Josh sighed. "Really think he's going home soon?"

  "I would not be so certain." Lily smiled coldly. "His crimes were not so in dispute. There will be no leniency for Stefen Gearhardt."

  "Never gonna get used to that name," mumbled Josh.

  "Josh," said Lily suddenly. "Are you all right?"

  "Huh?"

  "Back in our office, you seemed upset," said Lily. She frowned. "Was it our summoning—"

  "No," said Josh firmly. He shook his head. "I'm on board with you, seriously. This is major."

  "But—"

  I'm a goddamn coward and I'm trying to make up for it. "I'm good, Lily."

  Lily's face broke into a tiny smile. "Do you know… almost no one ever calls me Lily aloud, apart from my sister?"

  "Really?"

  "Not even my parents. Everyone is too worried about offending us to use my name, and after identifying myself, no one feels the need to speak it anymore." Lily's eyes glazed over a little. "Natalie could tell us apart, though I never knew how. Even Rachel was unable, despite her incredible mind. Do you know what it is like, to never hear one's name?"

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  "But," said Josh slowly, feeling on unsteady conversational ground, "wasn't Kendra your name for decades first?"

  "...I won't take offense," said Lily, an exhausted expression crossing her face and vanishing again an instant later, "but to imply such means Kendra and I truly are the same person. We might be born from the same genes, the same DNA, the same source of energy itself—does that make me any less my own person than you, born from the same energy that once created your mother and father?"

  Josh raised an eyebrow. "That's a lot deeper than I've ever thought about it, honestly."

  "I think about these things every day," said Lily with a sigh. "I don't know the answer either, if it eases your mind. I act on my own, have my own thoughts, and believe myself an individual, but… who can say? Descartes and I should sit for tea sometime."

  "So, what you're saying is—"

  "It's nice to hear my own name, as rare as it occurs," said Lily. She glanced at the door between them. "I wonder how Viper feels about his own."

  "I'll be sure to ask him," said Josh, resisting a smirk.

  Lily smiled. "Are you ready?"

  Josh nodded, and Lily opened the door. A veil hung in the portal, like a filter of thin black cloth, and a plain concrete cell sat beyond. Viper himself lay on the cot within—back to the wall, glasses-clad and book in hand. Josh couldn't make out the title, but Viper certainly seemed engrossed in it. Both arms were fully functional as he turned a page, seated in perfect solitude as he awaited a life in prison.

  If there's any fucking justice in the world.

  "Viper," said Josh, taking a page out of the Laushire playbook.

  The man didn't react in the slightest. Josh deflated a bit. After a few seconds, Viper turned the page, scratching his stubbled chin as he did.

  Josh glanced at Lily, who shrugged. He tried again. "Viper. We need to talk about what you're doing next." Make sure you're actually gonna follow through, and not slither out of helping Hailey and… everybody else.

  "So talk," said the man, not lifting his eyes. "I went to your last damn meetin', and fuck if it weren't a waste of everybody's time."

  "We saved lives."

  "Yeah? Way I hear it, awakenings are done, the entire damn Olympic Forest's blacked out for good, the girl ain't reunited with her dad, and there's still a movement of people who'd love to burn all our bodies at the fuckin' stake." Viper turned the page. "Feel much better in my cell, thanks."

  "A cage fit for a rat," said Lily, and her tone could have frozen lava.

  Viper shrugged. "Won't disagree with you, Laushire. I fuckin' deserve it. All of it."

  Josh was taken aback. Even at the Summit, Viper hadn't seemed so… beaten. His arm was finally fixed, but even newly-whole, Viper seemed like the last threat to worry about.

  "It's my damn fault," said Viper finally.

  "What is?"

  "Magic. Well, I ain't so self-centered to say it's all my fault. But still, I fuckin' contributed. You think Grey-eyes bailed cuz one awakening went bad?" Viper finally set his book down. "Nah, it was a whole pile of shit. And I'm one of them. My boss… fuck it," he shrugged, sitting up to face them. "We tried to capture her."

  "You tried to…" Josh's mouth fell open. "The hell?"

  "I didn't know that was the plan, but damned if I didn't ignore the obvious fuckin' signs. Corny tried to taze the damn goddess of magic, catch her for study. If he had succeeded…" Viper smiled. "Can't say that girl isn't terrifyin' when she wants to be. Tore the whole building apart with the flick of her pinkie."

  "Madness," murmured Lily.

  "Beyond madness. Man was cacklin' like the devil when I carried him out of that lab," said Viper. He shook his head. "The moment he heard about magic… that was it, you know? That was the moment he changed. Once, he pulled me out of 'ghanistan, practically smuggled Rook into the UK so she could come with me. We were a family. Every mission, every job, every fuckin' thing we did together, I never doubted him. Then Rallsburg."

  Viper sighed. "You know we weren't even there to hunt magic?"

  "I just assumed we'd slipped somewhere," said Josh with a shrug.

  "Nah." Viper grinned. "Boris fuckin' Morozov. I was there to track the man down, get some of the intel he'd pulled out of the Soviets when he defected. Somethin' caught Corny's eye, I dunno what exactly. Rook and I searched the town up and down, never found a thing from the Soviets. Instead, we spotted a weird light in the forest, and… you know the rest."

  "No kidding," said Josh, wincing. He'd been the one to meet Viper in the forest, after the man stumbled onto one of Cinza's rituals. They'd cleared the area, but he hadn't accounted for a special forces mercenary with that kind of training.

  "Corny knew better than us what we'd stumbled on, and it changed him forever. Man already owned the world, but… greed, guess you could name it. Grade-A fucked up greed. If I just hadn't made that call…" Viper shrugged. "Who knows where we'd be now?"

  "With one more Jessica Silverdale," said Josh.

  Viper nodded. "And I wouldn't be in a goddamn cell in London, and Rook wouldn't be…" He frowned. "Where the fuck is Rook, anyway?"

  "With Natalie."

  "Really…" Viper raised his eyebrows. "Huh."

  "She awakened, and she met up with Natalie somehow. No clue how that happened." Josh shrugged. "Ditched Lani, ditched everyone, and now she's… hell if I know. Natalie's knight in her new queendom, I guess."

  "Fuck is a queendom?"

  "You're in a queendom," Josh pointed out.

  Lily glanced at him sideways. "The United Kingdom is always thus, regardless of Her Majesty's gender."

  "Well, isn't that just a bit fucked up?"

  She shrugged. "We prefer our traditions. Besides, it would be rather tedious to switch the letter K out for a Q everywhere."

  Josh shrugged. "Anyway, point is, Natalie's building something huge in the ruins of Rallsburg, and Rook's her guardian angel. Them two, Hector Peraza, and whatever animals Natalie's made friends with by now." He shook his head. "I don't get it either."

  "You might not, but trust me," said Viper, leaning back with a satisfied expression, "makes a whole ton of sense for her. Rook'll keep that town safe 'til the end of time, long as she's got her guns." He smiled. "Thanks."

  "For what?"

  "Deliverin' the news. I get real fuckin' bored in here, and the library's runnin' thin." Viper glanced at him pointedly. "So what did you want? This ain't a short commute, after all, even considerin'."

  "To take your temperature."

  Lily glanced sidelong at Josh, concerned, but Viper nodded. "I'm still lined up to testify against Corny here. Gonna be hell to pay when I do… there's a line you don't cross as a merc, and I'm leapin' it on international TV. Stabbing my best friend slash employer, a man who owns me and who saved my life, in the back. But I'm crossin' it all the same."

  Face-to-face, from the mouth of the man himself, Josh believed him. In only a single short conversation, in a jail cell in London over five thousand miles away from where Josh had stood only an hour before, he finally trusted the man. He wouldn't forgive Viper—hell no—but trust? That one, Viper had earned.

  "Good," said Josh. "Thank you."

  "Gonna need some help though," said Viper suddenly, glancing up at him. "Need some evidence… testimony."

  "What for?"

  "I wasn't there when Malton gave the order. Didn't witness it. You need Piller."

  "Who is Piller?" asked Lily, glancing sidelong at Josh.

  "Only one of my three guys on the ground who made it," said Viper.

  "The man who killed Jessica," added Josh darkly.

  Viper shrugged. "Can't say for sure if it was him, who the fuck knows what happened on the ground that night?"

  "It was him, and even if it wasn't, he's gonna take the blame anyway with the other two dead. Hailey killed Sykes—"

  "Put her fist through his damn face," agreed Viper with a grim expression.

  Josh nodded. "—and Stebbins shot Mauer. Piller got arrested by Jeremy though. Last I heard, he was being held indefinitely by the FBI as a domestic terrorist. Buried as far as you could get, everybody pretty much assumes he's long-dead."

  "Squares with what I heard." Viper shook his head. "Fuckin' Napowsky, told me he was dead on the ground. I left a man behind."

  "Serves him right."

  "Fuck you," Viper snapped. "Man followed orders. Even if those orders turned out to be fucked up, he did his goddamn job in the middle of a warzone. You weren't there."

  No excuse. You don't follow orders you know are batshit evil. Josh shook his head. "So what do you want?"

  "You know people in the government, and I'm sure as shit you're still in contact with DuValle. Get Piller in contact with me, at this number." Viper reached over to the little desk in his cell and scribbled out a London telephone number. "Only way a man like that ever testifies is if I order him to. You'll need him if you want Corny to see a moment of jail time." Viper hesitated. "Might need to give him some incentives, too."

  Josh didn't want to take the number. It went against every fiber of his body… but his brain knew better. Malton was the real criminal, the real danger. Piller was just a soldier, like Viper said. A minor piece of the puzzle. After a few agonizing moments, Josh reached out and took the slip of paper, his hand briefly passing through the black veil. It felt like a curtain of frozen air as he passed through, a brief wave of terrifying chill that slid up and down his arm when he crossed the threshold.

  The chill wasn't anywhere near as cold as the one filling his brain. Only one incentive a man like that is gonna want… God help me if Hailey ever finds out I let Jessica's killer free.

  "Thanks, Viper."

  The man nodded. "Oh, 'fore you go?"

  "What?"

  "In case you were thinkin' I forgot, I'm still there to help out your girl Rika. Might need some help gettin' to D.C., but I can give her the alibi she needs. Just say the word."

  Josh sighed. "...Yeah. We'll let you know." He turned to Lily. "You good?"

  Lily stared at Viper, an expression Josh couldn't read stamped across her beautiful features. "Good luck, Stefen," she said finally. "I hope you find some peace."

  Viper seemed seriously taken aback. He didn't say another word, just gazing back at Lily with an odd expression of his own. Finally, Lily turned away, and the door slid shut of its own accord. The veil disappeared, leaving them back in the void once more with only the slip of paper clutched between Josh's fingers.

  "Well… that was something," said Josh slowly.

  Lily nodded. "Do you wish to join us for supper?"

  "Nah, thank you. I had an early lun… hang on," said Josh slowly. Timezone confusion notwithstanding, something was off. As Lily walked him to the door back to Whittier, he remembered what he'd seen—and what he hadn't. "Something you two should know."

  "Yes?" said Lily, hesitating with her hand on the handsome brass knob.

  "There's another one of you out there. Another true awakened."

  Her hand fell away from the door. She frowned. "That seems highly unlikely… Hailey and Jessica were the last of the eight."

  "Isn't it possible, though? I mean…" Josh shook his head. "I don't know how any of it works. Maybe you do. Eight might be just a number, we don't know if it's really how many true awakened out there."

  Lily glanced away, toward the open door back to London. It had remained open—and Lily inside the void—to keep her connection with her sister alive. As Josh understood it, the void threshold counted as no space at all. As long as a door remained open, Lily and Kendra were no further apart than the nearest portal. In this case, Kendra back in her office.

  Josh wondered if they could go through two portals. He assumed so, but he'd never seen them try. Given the immediate, deadly consequences of such a magical strain, he couldn't blame them for caution. Keeping Lily alive at a distance had already nearly killed Kendra once, and that was a gradual build-up… to do it again willingly in a nebulous instant?

  I don't think I could do that, even if I had their magic. How the hell do you just… sustain somebody like that, day-in day-out? Gotta be careful never to go too far away twenty-four seven. It sounds brutal, always tied together like that. I need to be able to go anywhere. Be alone.

  "...There were eight," said Lily slowly. "Perhaps… with two of the eight deceased, a new one has awakened?"

  "Must've been weeks ago, before Grey-eyes stopped awakening people," mused Josh aloud. "Some dude in south California who's got no idea what kind of power they just stumbled on. Crazy."

  "Mmm." Lily nodded. "Thank you for letting us know. If you discover anything further—"

  "You'll be the second person I call," said Josh with a nod.

  "Second?" she asked, a vague smile touching her lips.

  "Gotta call our fearless leader first," he shot back, smirking. "You know how she feels about being left out."

  Lily's smile broke out in full. "It is always good talking to you, Josh. You must come to our estate for dinner sometime."

  "Count on it."

----------------------------------------

  When Josh walked back into his bedroom, his mother happened to open the door at the exact same moment.

  "What on earth—" Violet cried out, dropping the bundle of sheets she'd been carrying.

  "...Bye," said Josh abruptly to Lily, who thankfully remained hidden behind the black veil. The door closed and vanished a moment later, leaving Josh with his very confused mother staring at a blank wall.

  Can't lie… magic is really fun sometimes.

  "What's for dinner?" he asked, deadpanning as much as he could.

  "...Josh, where… what just happened?"

  "I was visiting a friend. They gave me a ride home." He shrugged. "Not much more to it."

  "But there was a door there… wasn't there?"

  "Yeah, there was. It took me to their place and brought me back." Josh wanted to be honest with his parents, but revealing Kendra and Lily wasn't quite kosher with him yet. Eventually. Even beyond the notion of awakened, his parents were both plenty aware of the financial world, and the identities of the Laushires long before their recent Cinza-related headlines.

  "Magic… right?"

  "Yeah, Mom. Magic."

  It took her a few more moments to finally pull herself together. She sighed, gathering up the sheets. "Honestly, Josh, some heads up would be nice."

  "I couldn't exactly call…" Josh smirked just slightly. He couldn't resist. "I was in Europe a couple minutes ago, and I don't have an international plan."

  Violet gaped at him. She looked about to drop the sheets again, but managed to hang on. After closing and opening her mouth a few more times, she finally managed a simple, "Dinner's at seven."

  Josh walked forward and gave her a big hug, figuring it would do better than words. Sure enough, she returned it, and everything seemed normal again for a while. He helped her put the new sheets on his bed, talking about his trip to Whittier that morning and the classes he signed up for.

  "But you already took that in Rallsburg, and from a Laushire no less," said Violet tersely. "Why don't you have the credit?"

  "Well, even if they could get the records from the school—which, y'know, doesn't exist anymore—I'm trying to avoid telling anybody there I'm that Josh Miller." Josh shrugged. "Don't need that kind of attention."

  "Can't you just take a placement test or something?"

  "Not that kind of class, Mom." Josh checked his watch. He wanted to make a phone call, but he'd been waiting for her work day to end before he got in touch. Now seemed good enough. "Hey, I gotta make a phone call here, and I might have to take care of a few things too. Okay if I see you at dinner?"

  "If you insist," said Violet, putting the last pillow on his bed and gathering up the laundry basket. "Who are you calling… or do I want to know?"

  "A senator," he replied. "She's expecting me."

  His mother just sighed. "Where'd my little Joshua go, huh? When did my little boy turn into this big, well-connected man doing a job they don't even have a name for?" She frowned. "What are you doing, anyway?"

  "Saving the world, I hope." Josh shrugged. "Or if not, the people I care about."

  "Sounds like a good set of priorities." She waved as she left the room, kicking the door closed behind her. "Let me know if there's anything specific you want for dinner!"

  Love you, Mom… I missed you so much. Josh smiled, then pulled out his phone and dialed Maddie. She picked up within just a couple rings, to his surprise. Sure, it was later in D.C.—and Maddie was in D.C. now as far as he knew, but still… didn't she have anything better to be doing right now?

  Works for me, whatever it says about our damn government… anyway.

  "Hey Maddie."

  "Bout time you said my name," shouted Maddie. Josh yanked the blaring phone from his ear. She sounded like she was in a wind tunnel. "Hang on, lemme pull over."

  "Driving with the top down or something? Isn't it freezing in D.C. this time of year?"

  "Nah, riding." A whistle of wind, and suddenly it vanished as an engine growled down to a low purr. "Didn't Jere-bear ever tell you? I'm the fuckin' foul-mouthed liberal-shit biker-girl senator of Washington."

  "...Have I ever told you I wanted to vote for you? 'Cause I'd sure do it again for real."

  "Damn straight," said Maddie. "What's up? How's California?"

  "Funny story, I spent most of the day in London."

  Maddie laughed. "You know, with your travel plan, you oughta get out more. London's fine, but you know there's a whole fuckin' world out there." She paused. "So, how much am I gonna hate what you're about to say?"

  "Dunno. You ever heard of a guy named Piller?"

  "...Maybe," said Maddie, suddenly cagey. Josh heard the motorcycle engine flick off entirely. "What do you want with that motherfucker? Assuming I know who he is."

  "So you do know where he is."

  "I didn't confirm that."

  Josh rolled his eyes, wishing Maddie could actually see it. "We need his testimony in London, and I'm almost certain he's being held in some basement by the FBI where Jeremy stuffed him before he quit."

  "Testimony for what?"

  "To put Cornelius Malton away for life. Piller was the guy on the ground, Malton gave him the order." Josh paused. "The order to go hot, the reason Jessica's dead."

  "Fuck…" Maddie hesitated. "I'll see what I can do. Is this in exchange for Rika or something?"

  "Viper genuinely wants to put the guy away. He's doing it for the greater good or something." Josh glanced out his window, staring at the clouds drifting by. "I didn't see it coming either."

  "So we still get his testimony with Rika either way."

  "I've gotta go, Maddie," said Josh suddenly, standing up. "You'll do what you can to get Viper and Piller where they need to be?"

  "...Yeah, will do. Take care, Josh."

  "Don't tear up the streets too bad."

  "Fuck if they couldn't use a bit of tearing up," Maddie shot back. "See ya."

  Josh set down his phone and closed his eyes. Suddenly, he felt exhausted. It was barely three in the afternoon, but then again, he'd spent the afternoon on another continent and ran around the college for a while before that. All he wanted to do now was… sleep.

  His mother had just put fresh sheets and pillows on his bed, and it was neatly made. What better time?

  In moments, Josh was out like a light, concerns buried for the day. He'd spend the rest of the weekend with family. Too much of his life was already dominated by the awakened world for which he'd somehow become responsible. He could use a break.

  Josh managed his goal through the whole weekend. Of course, by Monday, Josh was right back at it. Through breakfast, his phone lit up more than once with a text message from Will or from Maddie. Each time he glanced at it, his mother took a tiny breath, as if worried it might explode. The rest of the family didn't notice.

  The messages persisted through his first set of classes, and here, they were almost a joke to Josh rather than a source of tension. He sat in a standard micro-economics class surrounded by freshmen and sophomores, while his phone lit up with text messages from senators, senior presidential advisors—hell, even a couple quick messages from the Secretary for Thaumaturgical Affairs himself. Josh hadn't built up a strong relationship with Wesley yet, but Rachel had passed along his number.

  They all wanted his advice, kept him in the loop on important goings-on, used him as a go-between. Josh was the connecting thread between so many wayward strands, from the Greywood to the Laushires, from Rachel and Maddie to the patchwork community of awakened scattered across the Northwest—even a line to the Goddess of Kent herself flying all over the country. Josh was clued in on the movements within Mettis Freight, the investigation by the Governor's office into the newly christened awakened vigilante group, and upcoming policy decisions being considered internally at the DTA.

  Guess since they can't contact Cinza, I count as consulting her. Josh laughed aloud, drawing attention in his calculus class. He quickly buried his head in his textbook, though in truth he was reading the message on his phone. Wesley Gatiss had just sent him a snippet of language that speechwriters were considering for the president, and asking if the Greywood might have any objections.

  I'm a fucking college kid in California being consulted on presidential speeches about the biggest thing to happen to the world since, I dunno, goddamn electricity. What the fuck is my life?

  Case in point, he was sitting in class when his phone lit up—what was he gonna do, ignore the call of a National Guard captain at ground zero for magic? Josh made a quick excuse and bolted from the room, just in time to catch it.

  "Hey, Captain."

  "Josh," said Hoskins. "How's California?"

  "Y'know, everybody asks that. To be honest, I know way more about what's going on in your neck of the woods, D.C.—hell, I know more about what's going on in the damn streets of Westminster than I do my home state."

  He laughed. "Good to hear from you."

  "From you, more like. What brings you outside the zone?"

  "Needed a good cup of coffee." Hoskins sighed. "Wish I hadn't… I heard about the fire."

  "Yeah," said Josh. "Culprits still laying low, best we can tell. We're looking, but nothing yet."

  "So I gathered. We've got our own search ongoing, actually. Going on a week now."

  Josh frowned. "...Search for what?"

  "Who. Zoë Portman and Melody Savana. They went missing New Year's, nobody's seen them since. Ryan's worried."

  "Ryan's worried? Damn."

  "You'd be surprised," said Hoskins, and Josh could hear his smile through the phone. "He really took them under his wing in their support group. We don't really have anybody disappear around here anymore."

  "Gone home maybe?"

  "One possibility, part of the reason I came out to check. I called Daryl Portman at his office, they haven't heard from Zoë in months. Think I scared Melody's family…" Hoskins sighed. "I'm not good at the family thing, to be honest. Only thing I ever learned was bringing them next-of-kin notifications."

  "Shit… not the mood you wanna project there."

  "Right." Hoskins said something muffled that Josh couldn't make out, then returned. "I doubt they'd leave the camp, but I can't cover both sides of the fence here. Keep an ear out?"

  "Running out of ears," Josh laughed. "Yeah, will do."

  "Thanks, Josh."

  "Anytime, Captain."

   As Josh hung up, a cute girl sitting on a bench nearby stared at him with raised eyebrows. Damnit, gotta pick my phone call spots better...

  He shrugged. "Video game."

  "Uh-huh…" she muttered, going back to her textbook.

  Well, no shot with her… should probably figure out what my relationship is with Nikki. Her curiosity did remind him of something… a reason to keep an ear out at Whittier specifically. Josh had more to do here besides take classes. He'd been getting updates from Will on any major sources of magic, but nothing else had popped up in California lately—except for the burst whenever the Laushires created a portal, of course.

  Nothing at all… whoever this person is, they've gone quiet.

  On the one hand, Josh didn't think that was so bad. He really didn't feel like rolling the dice on a new true awakened. They'd been damn lucky only one of the eight had gone off—and Alpha wasn't exactly much better than his counterpart. If this person wanted to fade away and never use magic again, Josh would breathe easy.

  On the other… he knew he hadn't imagined it. Will had confirmed it moments later. There was somebody in this area with power rivaling the rest of the eight, maybe more. Josh couldn't let such a possibility lay sleeping in wait. If there was going to be hell to pay, better he know up front.

  I tried sitting back last time, and nearly died. No fucking way I'm doing that again.

  Instead, with a free period ahead of him, Josh decided to put himself on the line. He drew in some energy of his own, summoning magic from his core, and cast a spell—nothing special, just a brief burst of warmth to heat up his freezing hands. A tiny vent of steam appeared, but nothing that couldn't be easily missed or ignored. Nothing alarming.

  Plenty of magical aura though, which was exactly what Josh wanted. Something only another awakened could recognize. Josh did it again, and again a few minutes after that.

  Come on… come find me.

  As the clock ticked by, and his free period dwindled, Josh sighed. He'd been hopeful, but either the other person was far more cautious… or wasn't even here.

  Try again tomorrow, I guess—holy shit.

  There it was. A pulse, strong and clear. It wasn't strong-strong, not anything that'd set off Will… but it was a clear pulse of magic nonetheless, and it was the same essence as Friday.

  Josh cast his own spell, waiting, breathless.

  Another spell in return.

  That way. Josh hurried forward, firing off another pulse himself. In turn, he got a pulse back. They circled each other, firing off tiny bursts of magic like echolocation. Josh twisted and turned through the campus, doing his best to not look like a freak as he jerked around several times. Tracking by magic wasn't exactly a science—hey, maybe someday—and he kept getting turned in the wrong direction.

  Finally, one clear burst, straight in front of him. Josh put his hand on the classroom door… and hesitated.

  Behind this door is somebody stronger than me and almost everybody I know put together. If I walk in blind, who knows what the fuck might happen?

  If I don't go in… will I ever find them again? The world sure seems to revolve around all the true awakened. Will they too get wrapped up in Brian's movement, turn against us, and give them a fucking terrifying weapon to hunt us down?

  Cost-benefit analysis, pros and cons, opportunity cost, whatever. Fuck this. I take it all back, I don't enjoy this shit anymore. Can I just go back to teleporting around the world, fucking Nikki, and spending Christmas with my family?

  Josh opened the door and walked inside.

  The classroom was totally empty, frozen cold, air totally still, A few rows of empty desks faced an empty whiteboard. Sitting atop one of the front desks, bag over his shoulder, was a young Asian guy—Chinese, if Josh had to guess. A faint smile cracked on his lips.

  "So… you too, huh?" he asked.

  Josh shrugged. "Me too what?"

  "Awakened. Duh."

  "Yeah."

  Josh made a tiny flame appear in mid-air, what had become the typical greeting-and-verification method used by awakened in the 'mundane world', as Cinza termed it. A second later, that same intense force burst through his aura. He had barely any technique, but there was raw power to rival anyone Josh had ever met.

  The flame leapt out of his control, tripled in size and spun around the guy, before puffing out.

  "Josh," he put in, after a beat.

  The guy sighed. He glanced at the door before answering. "I'm Ian. Nice to meet you, I guess."