“By locking me up in a Shine facility? Thanks, Blake. But I’m through with your help. Where are the others?”
“I told you, I’m alone.”
“Nice try. I’m not buying it.”
“Fine,” he finally admitted. “My parents are in the car. You happy? We’ve been following you all day.”
This, surprisingly, was no lie. “Your parents?”
He nodded.
I eyed him. “Are you here to bring me back to that psych ward?”
“I’m here to talk to you.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it.”
I didn’t trust him—not by a long shot—but he seemed sincere.
“What did you want to talk about?”
He peeked inside the door, as if he really wanted to come in. “Can’t I just—”
“You’re not coming in. We’ll talk outside if it’s really that important.”
“It is important. Life or death important.”
I scrutinized him, but didn’t detect any dishonesty. Although his heartbeat told me he was afraid of something.
“There’s a forest behind the hotel. Meet me there in five minutes. Come alone, Blake. Or I swear I’ll never speak to you again.”
“What about my parents?”
“What about them?”
“I think they should meet with you.”
“Why?”
“Do I have to explain everything? They’re worried about you. They know things about Memphis. It would be in your best interest to listen to them.”
What did they know about Memphis? I pondered Blake’s request. Could I trust his parents? Mrs. Adelaide Hawthorne I didn’t worry about. She was too proper to cause a stir. His father I also trusted, though he seemed stressed most of the time.
“All right,” I answered. “But no one else.”
“Got it.”
I closed the door.
Naomi eyed me as I pulled on my hoodie.
“You’re going out there?” she asked.
“Looks like I don’t have a choice.”
“Take my knife,” she said. “And watch your back.”
“I will.”
I pulled on my jeans, grabbed Naomi’s knife, and cracked the door open.
“Good luck,” Naomi offered as I crept outside.
Bluish pools of light shone over the parking lot as I crossed to the forest. I shoved my hands in my pockets, feeling a chill seep into my skin. Blake better not be setting me up. I clenched the knife tight and hoped I wouldn’t have to use it.
I entered the woods. The moonlight failed to illuminate through the dense brush, so I stopped on the edge of the tree line. Crickets chirped around me, accompanied by the hoot of a night owl.
My hands felt clammy on my blade. I heard the clatter of my heart.
Blake appeared, followed by his mom and dad. Mr. Hawthorne smoked a cigarette, the coal a bright ember in the dim light. Blake’s mom walked with a straight back and darting eyes, her hair in its usual coil around her head, her dress simple, yet refined. I’d never seen her in pants.
“June,” Mr. Hawthorne greeted me.
“Hello,” I answered stiffly.
“June, sweetheart. Are you all right?” Blake’s mom clasped one of my hands. Her fingers felt as soft as delicate tissue, and were ice cold. Her heart beat lightly in her chest, a thump, followed by a half-beat. She had a slight murmur. I’d never mentioned it to her.
“I’m fine.”
“Are you sure you’re okay? We heard you’d been kidnapped.” She spoke with a slight southern drawl.
Yes, I was kidnapped. By your son. Against my will.
“Mom,” Blake interjected. “She’s okay.”
She held my hand a second longer, and then released it. Mr. Hawthorne took a draw from his cigarette.
“Are you with Memphis voluntarily?” he asked me.
“Yes.” I crossed my arms. “I’m with him because I choose to be.”
“You realize we’re paying for you to attend one of the finest Shine rehabs in North America?”
I held back a laugh. “I’m aware of that.”
“And you choose not to?”
“That’s right. I don’t really like your son’s tactics. Being held against my will isn’t my thing.”
“Ah,” Mr. Hawthorne said, eyeing the motel through a gap in the trees. “And you thought coming here would be a better way to rehabilitate?”
“No disrespect, sir, but it’s my life. I can do whatever I want with it.”
He smiled, making his mustache twitch. “I see.”
“June, dear,” Mrs. Hawthorne said. “Wouldn’t you like to come back with us? Your parents will be worried sick once they’ve found out you’ve left New York.”
She spoke with compassion, reminding me of my own mom. For a moment I almost considered her offer. But I couldn’t leave. Not now. “I’ve got some things I need to take care of first.”
“But what could be so important?”
I couldn’t tell her. Not with the other Revens out there. “I’m helping someone.”
“Helping Memphis?” Mr. Hawthorne asked with an edge of hostility in his voice.
“How well do you know him?” Blake’s mom asked.
I swallowed. “Well enough.” I was glad they couldn’t hear my heartbeats.
“And you know how dangerous he is?” Mr. Hawthorne asked.
“Dangerous?” I’d seen him fight like a demon. He’d taken me out in less than three seconds, which never happened. He had almost super-human reflexes. “Yes, I know he’s dangerous.”
“Do you? Did he ever mention that he’s ex-Special Forces? He was trained to kill terrorists? He was dishonorably discharged?”
“He didn’t mention it.”
“He’s a criminal,” Mr. Hawthorne said, “and not just for what he did in the military.”
My stomach knotted. “There’s more?”
“He’s a thief. And a liar,” Blake’s mom said. “I don’t know what he’s told you to make you follow him, but don’t trust him. If you value your life, you’ll come with us back to New York.”
I couldn’t believe I was hearing this. I’d never heard Mrs. Hawthorne speak an ill word about anyone. What had Memphis done to make her think so poorly of him?
Confusion clouded my thoughts. If they hated Memphis so much, why had they allowed him to capture me and bring me to the Shine facility? There had to be more to the story.
“I’ll be careful,” I told them. “But I can’t leave.”
“Think about it first,” Blake’s mom said.
“We’ll be nearby should you change your mind,” Mr. Hawthorne said.
“I won’t.”
“You’re sure?” Blake asked. “Haven’t you heard anything? Your life could be in danger.”
“And I said I would be careful. I appreciate the concern, but I can take care of myself. Are we done?” They must have thought I had lost it, but I knew I’d made the right decision. I couldn’t keep fighting Revens in New York. I had to stop them at the source, even if it meant following Memphis into the heart of the enemy’s territory.
Blake’s mom stared at me with worry. Moonbeams highlighted the tightened lines on her face. “Do you know where he’s taking you?”
“I have an idea.”
She glanced at her husband. “Are you going to Arizona?”
I surveyed the woods, wondering if anyone else listened in on our conversation. Memphis would be furious if I told them of his plan. “I’d rather not say.”
“Listen to me,” Blake’s mom said. “There are some very bad people out there—people who want to hurt you. You must be careful.”
“I will be.”
She nodded, but didn’t seem convinced.
Feeling a chill, I crossed my arms. “It’s late,” I said. “I should go.”
“Of course,” Blake’s mother said in her customary lady’s voice.
They followed me out of the forest. O
ur feet crunched over twigs and leaves until we stepped onto the paved parking lot. I felt their eyes on my back.
I heard their car engine start as I opened the door to my room. Naomi stood by the window with a pair of binoculars in her hand.
“Were you spying on us?” I asked.
“I was observing.”
I sat on the edge of the bed and tried to sort through our conversation. Nothing made sense. How did the Hawthornes know about Memphis’s past? How did they know him in the first place? And what was going on in Arizona that was so dangerous? Was it the Revens they were worried about? Or something else?
“They’re leaving,” Naomi said as she peeked out the window. “You must’ve scared them off.”
“Good.”
“What did they say?”
I chewed my lip, debating how much I should tell her. “They wanted me to come with them back to New York. They think Memphis is dangerous. Arizona is dangerous. Death is imminent, blah, blah.”
“And you dismissed them, I gather?”
“They didn’t scare me off, if that’s what you mean.”
“Sometimes I wonder if you get scared.”
“Only when I need to be.”
Naomi put her binoculars away. She climbed into bed. I did the same. With another long day on a bus, I’d need the rest.
“Maybe you should listen to them,” Naomi said.
“No. I’ve had enough warnings. I’ve made up my mind to help Memphis. I intend to follow through.”
Naomi sighed. “You can’t say you weren’t given a proper warning.”
“You’re right, as usual.”
I drifted off, my dreams clouded with visions of fires in the desert.
CHAPTER FIVE
The heat stole my breath as I stepped off the bus. Eight o’clock in the morning and it must have been ninety degrees.
“It feels like I walked into a bloody oven,” Naomi said as she stood next to me.
Memphis shouldered our bags and gazed around the crowded parking area. Exhaust from the buses choked the air with noxious fumes. I glanced back at the Greyhound, its sweat-soaked vinyl seats, its permanent smell of raw sewage, and I vowed never to set foot on a bus again.
We headed for the area marked TAXIS. The crowd pressed in around us. I avoided eye contact, thinking that any one of them could be a Reven waiting to take me.
We found a taxi, made it to another cheap motel, and unloaded. I stood in the parking lot, staring across the hazy sun-baked landscape.
Aside from a few cacti dotting the cracks in the road, the area seemed devoid of life. My mouth felt dry as I breathed in the moisture-starved air. I squinted at the sun high overhead, wondering what I was doing in this place.
A vision popped into my head.
Memphis’s sister, Alexa, lay in a bed. Clear plastic tubes stuck out from her wrists and arms. More tubes were attached to her temples.
She screamed, and the hot desert air muffled her cries.
I blinked. The image faded. The sun must have scorched my brain. Now I was hallucinating.
No, I was only imagining what Alexa was likely going through. She must have been scared to death. I wanted to find her soon, and then get back home to my own sister, who needed me almost as much.
I turned toward the motel. I crossed the cracked asphalt and stared at the dilapidated neon sign buzzing overhead. I wouldn’t have been surprised if Norman Bates strode out of the office.
Memphis called me from the hotel door, and I went inside, thankful to be out of the heat.
Memphis sat on the bed and spread a blueprint across the bedspread. Naomi, a scowl on her face, sat beside him.
“You’ll never get in,” she told him.
“Not by myself. That’s why I invited June to come with me.”
“So she can take the fall while you find the map?”
“So she can get us inside.”
I sat on the bed. “Are you certain I’ll be able to?”
“Only the elite are invited to things like this. Your dad’s a senator. It’s the best I could do.”
Naomi narrowed her eyes. “Aren’t you supposed to have a proper invitation? You can’t just show up and expect them to let you in.”
“This is an open house for the governor’s mansion. No one will look twice at me if I show up with a senator’s daughter.”
“So she’s your date?” Naomi crossed her arms.
“Yes.” Memphis looked at me. “She’s my date.”
I cleared my throat, then tapped the blueprint, trying to ignore my fluttering heart. “So where is the map?”
He smoothed his hand across the paper. “Here.” He pointed at a room marked Basement Level Four. “They keep all the records on Shine facilities here, even the ones that aren’t official. We’ve got to get to this room and find the map to the facility my sister’s in.”
“How do you know which place she’s being kept at?”
“The phantom I told you about—le Tueur Revenant—it’s one of his facilities. I suspect it’s not far from the mansion, which will make our job easier.” Memphis pointed to an oval marked Veranda. “Beyond this is the governor’s garden. There’s a network of tunnels beneath, built back in the fifties in case of a nuclear disaster. The tunnels aren’t common knowledge, but my guess is that’s where the Shines are being kept.”
“How do you know about the tunnels?” I asked.
He eyed me. “I have my ways.”
“Sounds too risky,” Naomi said. “June, if they catch you stealing government documents, you’ll be jailed for sure. And then they’ll take you to a facility.”
“I can handle myself.”
“But you’ve been trained to fight, not to hide,” Naomi said.
“I’ve hidden my Shine for years.”
“But not by yourself.” Naomi leaned in. “Let me help. Let me make so much of a fuss, they’ll have to pay attention to me, and not you.”
“A distraction?” Memphis asked.
“A catastrophe. Something so out of this world, it’ll blow their bloody minds.” A glimmer lit her eyes.
“You’re scaring me,” I said.
“No.” Memphis crossed his arms. “We don’t want attention. If you do something, make it seem like an accident, something quiet, but strange enough to draw them away.”
“What do you have in mind?”
He studied the map, seeming lost in thought. I could almost hear the cogs in his head clicking. “A glitch,” he said finally.
“Glitch?” Naomi asked.
“Something screwy with their security system. They’ve got cameras blanketing the house. I wonder what would happen if they all went out?”
“And how would I do that?”
Memphis pointed to the Security Quarters. “The controls for the video feed should be in this room. I’ll let you figure out how to disrupt it.”
She crossed her arms. “Razor.”
“And then what?” I asked.
“We’ll only have a few minutes to get to the basement, retrieve the documents and find the facility’s location. Naomi, after you shut down the cameras, you’ll be on your own.”
“Not a problem. I’ve done this sort of thing once or twice.”
He raised an eyebrow. “This may not be as simple as you think.”
“It won’t be simple for you, perhaps.”
“Believe me, I’m prepared for everything.”
“Really?” Naomi asked. “Everything?”
He shot us a sly grin. “Everything,” he answered. “Down to the last sequin.”
“Sequin? You’ve got to be kidding.”
“Hey, I knew you’d need something to wear. I stopped at a thrift store while we were in Indy.” He lugged his duffel bag onto the bed and unzipped it. I held in a gasp as he pulled out a wadded hot pink formal. Actual pink feathers fanned from the sleeves. My jaw almost hit the floor.
Naomi covered her mouth as she held in a snicker.
“What?” he asked.
“It’s hideous.”
“This was the best I could find.”
“It’s as old as my grandmother.”
Naomi tugged on a feather. “I feel sorry for the flamingo. Poor bloke must be running around without his drawers.”
“I thought we were supposed to blend in.”
Memphis eyed the formal. “I suppose it is a little bright.”
“Bright? I could outshine Times Square with this thing.”
“Times Square? You could light up the northern hemisphere,” Naomi added.
“I was pressed for time,” Memphis said. “If you want to find something else before tomorrow night, be my guest.”
“How much money do I have?”
“None.”
“That would be a problem.”
The sequins rustled as I ran my fingers over the garish fabric. Honestly, how could anyone find this attractive? The motel curtains would make a better gown. Maybe I’d go Maria von Trapp on the window coverings and make something decent.
“If only I hadn’t ruined my prom gown.”
“Surely there’s some money left. What about the reward money?” Naomi asked.
“Can’t use it. The Revens can track it.”
“So I get to go to the ball dressed as the clown. Razor.” I sighed. It could be worse. Children were starving in Africa. It could be worse.
“How is this okay?” Naomi asked Memphis. “You want June to do your dirty work, you want her to be inconspicuous, and you think dressing her in this rangy troll’s outfit will help with that?”
“I’m a Reven, all right? Not a fashion designer. Give me a break.”
Naomi grabbed her purse off the end table. “You left me with no other choice.” She pulled out her credit card. “June, you’re getting a proper dress.”
CHAPTER SIX
Department stores aren’t my favorite place to shop. If it were up to me, I’d sew all my clothing. This dress looks nice but the beads are too bright. That one’s okay but the skirt is too full.
After scouring the mall, Naomi and I finally ended up at one of those forgotten boutiques that used to be a restaurant or shoe store. Quinceniera gowns took up most of the space, with their lavish colors and enough frills to cover an elephant.
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