Jubilee strode past a line of flowering cherry trees on the sidewalk, their blossoms scenting the evening air. She spared the open blooms above her a glance before ducking into a mall with Detective Law, some paces behind Zhengyi Yang and the demon. There was no time to appreciate nature's beauty.

It was a Friday in early April, and Law had scheduled a stakeout for that evening. Jubilee had spent the past six weeks acclimating herself to school and building a tentative acquaintanceship with Zhengyi while Law wrapped up another case he'd been working on. Now it was time to get back to business.

Nothing of note had ever occurred during class, where the demon was always by Zhengyi’s side, though sometimes just a blur to Jubilee’s vision. Tonight would be her chance to observe the girl in another environment and determine whether or not she was willingly interaccting with the demon. But how was Jubilee supposed to do that—without the possibility of wrongfully incriminating Zhengyi to the detective—if he was just going to follow them both everywhere?

Her thoughts screeched to a halt as she ran into his back. He'd stopped at a long line in front of a tea stand. Across the way, Zhengyi was seating herself inside a small noodle shop.

"Let's stop here for a moment," the detective said in Mandarin, then added pointedly, "To see what else is around. Oolong for you?"

Jubilee hesitated, then nodded. He must've noticed the tea she often poured for herself at his office. As they slowly shuffled forward in line, she turned to discreetly observe the young woman.

Zhengyi sat by herself at a table by the entrance, waiting for her order as the demon loomed over her from the side. Jubilee squinted. The creature appeared to be talking—which wasn't necessarily unusual. Jubilee had seen demons whispering into the ears of unwitting humans before, even touching them as they passed…though she'd always tried her best not to notice. Zhengyi, for her part, gave no indication of hearing anything. Her bowl of noodles soon arrived, and she began to wolf it down, her expression calm though her actions were hurried.

Reaching the front of the line, Law ordered tea for them both. "Well?" he said, handing Jubilee her cup of oolong. "What do you see?"

"You keep asking me that, and I keep telling you the same thing—I'll let you know when I see something worth sharing." Accepting the tea with a nod of thanks, Jubilee added dryly, "Is tailing someone always this exciting? All I see is Zhengyi eating noodles."

The detective's brow furrowed. "Is your ability not working?"

Jubilee corrected herself. "Okay, Zhengyi eating noodles with a demon. But that's it."

"That's considerably more eventful than ninety percent of most stakeouts," Law said. "You didn't think your first one would be something out of a spy movie, did you?"

Jubilee sighed and sipped her tea. They'd been following Zhengyi from a distance for several hours already, since the end of her final class. The girl had gone from campus back to her apartment, and Jubilee and Detective Law had waited outside before she'd finally emerged again, her backpack replaced with a large handbag. After that, the girl had made her way here for dinner. The entire time, she'd done nothing to suggest any awareness of the demon, at least that Jubilee could discern.

She decided to say as much. "You know, so far, there's been no evidence to prove that she's guilty of anything." Which was a relief if Jubilee were honest.

"There's been no evidence to prove that she is innocent, either," the detective replied smoothly, drinking his Earl Grey.

He was right, which frustrated Jubilee. She was no closer to finding any information she felt ready to share with him.

Maybe because you're unwilling to share what you already have, Hellenos piped up from beside her.

Jubilee flinched with irritation. It was the most he'd said in weeks, and she'd nearly forgotten he was there.

“She’s moving,” Law said. “Don’t stare. You’re being conspicuous.”

Jubilee flashed him a look. “This coming from the guy who’s wearing sunglasses indoors?”

He raised a finger to indicate the fluorescent bulbs overhead. “It’s very bright in here.”

She turned away, suddenly feeling like a jerk. Maybe he wasn’t being weird but really was that light-sensitive because of his albinism.

“She’s heading to the restrooms,” he continued.

Jubilee looked up. “Should I follow her?”

“No. She would recognize you, and that could raise her suspicions. Hang back for now and wait.”

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Jubilee sighed again. It made sense, but it seemed like there was a whole lot of waiting in this job. She found a bench with a view of the restrooms and sat, drinking her tea. Hellenos grinned and settled in beside her. Detective Law remained standing, sober-faced.

Fifteen minutes later, Zhengyi finally emerged...and Jubilee nearly dropped her tea. The girl was dressed in an entirely different outfit—a tight red dress paired with black, strappy high heels—and makeup had been applied heavily to her face. Jubilee fought a sense of deja vu. She used to use public bathrooms to get dolled up in too, after Alyssa had grown increasingly concerned over her roommate’s overly-frequent visits to the club. That was clearly where Zhengyi was headed now.

They were more alike than she cared to admit.

“Interesting,” Law said, snapping Jubilee out of her reverie. “Let’s move.” He took quick steps after the girl as she made her way to the mall exit, the demon trailing after her.

Jubilee swallowed her unease. Clubbing wasn’t a crime. It didn’t prove anything against either Zhengyi or herself. She hurried to follow Law out of the mall.

Half a dozen blocks later, she, Hellenos, and the detective stood across the street from a bolstering nightclub.

“You’re not going to make us go in there, are you?” she asked.

Crowds of young men and women, dressed in sleek suits and glitzy dresses, lined the street by the club’s entrance. Some laughed flirtatiously with one another; others argued loudly as they waited their turn to pass the door bouncers. The tumble of their different auras assaulted Jubilee even from across the street, giving her a headache.

Detective Law didn’t spare her a glance. “Hardly. I would obviously stand out, even if both of us didn’t fall woefully short of the dress code. We’ll observe as much as we can from out here.” He gestured discreetly at where Zhengyi was standing in line. “Do you still see the demon with her?”

“Yes.” Jubilee hid her relief at his directive. She didn’t want to get swallowed up by that sea of madness, and she’d had enough of the party scene for one lifetime. “Nothing worth noting,” she added. “They’re just standing and waiting.”

“Do you see anything different about her?”

“Different?” Jubilee’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean? Besides being all made up, she looks the same. And she’s still got the same haze over her as befo—” She stopped short and blinked. Had Zhengyi’s aura always been that dark? Bits of the blackness shrouding her looked fuzzier and more opaque than usual, like paint that hadn’t been spread properly. Jubilee rubbed her eyes and squinted. No, it had never been this dark before. Was that an indication of something happening in the spirit or her ability malfunctioning?

Stop squinting, Hellenos said. It’s not your physical eyes that see it, so you’re just giving yourself wrinkles.

You’re being really mouthy today, she thought. How about telling me what’s going on here then?

“Well?” Law prompted.

Jubilee waited for Hellenos to answer, but he didn’t. Figured. “I was just saying that I still see the dark haze around her,” Jubilee said. “Other than that....I’m not sure. It’s kind of hard to see.”

Law gave her a scrutinizing look, then went back to observing the scene across the street. “See that man near the front of the line?” he said after a minute. “The one in a navy blue dress suit, talking with several other men?”

Jubilee looked. The man in question had a light mustache, and his aura was as smoggy as the city air. “What about him?” she asked.

“That’s Liu Xiaozheng. He’s the CEO of a major business dealing in corporate real estate and owns several malls. Bit of a powerful figure in the business world. And reportedly a womanizer.” He nodded towards the group of men. “The man on his left is Fong Yu, the owner of China Capital Airlines, and on his right is Huang Jingshan, whose family manages a chain of top-tier hospitals both in Beijing and overseas.”

Jubilee waited for the detective to say more, but he didn’t. “Yeah?” she finally said. “So?”

“It is good to make observations of the suspect’s surroundings,” Law said. “Remember, Zhengyi is likely to be taking orders from someone. Perhaps even someone in this crowd.” He indicated the men across the street again with a tilt of his head. “What can you see about them using your ability?”

“They’ve all got kind of a greasy, muddy-looking aura,” Jubilee answered. “But that’s not much different from a lot of other city businessmen I’ve seen, so that in itself isn’t particularly noteworthy.” The mustached man—Liu something or other—advanced further in the line, and she observed him more carefully. Was his aura also getting darker, or was her vision still acting up? Resisting the urge to squint, she closed her eyes for a few seconds, then looked again. Whereas the other two men’s auras remained unchanged, the brownish haze surrounding the mustached man seemed to clot up in places, like dirt turning into mud. Her brow furrowed. She glanced back at Zhengyi. It was too subtle to be absolutely sure, but it looked as though the auras of those two might be doing the same thing. Was it possible they were connected, somehow?

The thought dissipated as the man disappeared into the club and Jubilee lost sight of him. Moments later, Zhengyi and the demon entered too, vanishing into a dark interior lit only by sporadic flashes of strobe lights. The sight triggered a sudden, unwanted memory—of deep bass music thumping through Jubilee’s veins, strangers sidling up close to her in the dark as she danced, and alcohol on their breaths and on hers. Jubilee shoved the memory down deep and looked away. She suddenly wanted to go home.

Turning, she found the detective observing her carefully. “Well, nothing else to report,” she told him. “Are we done here?”

“No,” he returned, his gaze unblinking. “Don’t you know the definition of a stakeout?”

She stared at him. “But who knows how long she’ll be in there? Don’t know if you’re aware, but people sometimes party until four AM or later.” She checked her phone and held it up to his face. “And it’s not even ten yet.”

The detective’s face remained expressionless. “A great deal of this job is being patient. Which is something you’ll need to learn.”

Hellenos, to Jubilee’s great annoyance, chuckled at that.

“How are we going to stay awake that long?” she asked. She’d gotten used to lights out by eleven and waking up by six at the orphanage.

The detective raised his cup of Earl Grey. “That’s why we’re drinking tea.” He took a sip and then indicated the establishment next to them. It was an internet cafe. “We’ll wait in there. I know the manager.”

He strode over to the entrance, and Jubilee, after a moment, reluctantly followed him in. This was going to be a long night.