As he struggled, she turned to me. “Do something! God, you guys can be useless sometimes.”
Rafe threw open the door. He looked first, but the truck was gone. He scrambled out. He yanked on the driver’s door, but it seemed jammed. I squeezed into the gap between seats. The driver’s dart gun had been propped beside him and was now on the floor at his feet.
I glanced at Dr. Inglis. She was slumped forward as her bag deflated. I crawled to the gun, tugged it back, and managed to get out a dart. As Rafe raced around to try the passenger door, I jammed the dart into the driver’s leg. I followed it with a second. Rafe got Dr. Inglis’s door open as the driver stopped struggling.
“She’s out cold,” Rafe said. He pressed his fingers to Dr. Inglis’s neck. “Or . . . worse. I can’t—”
“It can’t matter,” I said. “We only have a few minutes before they send someone. Time to move.”
THIRTY-ONE
WE’D BARELY GOTTEN BEHIND the nearest house before I caught the distant roar of a motor.
“The truck coming back?” Hayley said.
Rafe shook his head. “If whoever hit the van wanted us, they’d have stayed. Whatever’s going on, it’s not a kidnapping. If we’re lucky, that’s a random passerby. If we’re not . . .”
“We haven’t been too lucky so far,” I muttered.
He nodded. “We should split up. It’s easier for one person to hide and it triples our chance that someone will get away.”
“If you do, go to Stanley Park,” I said. I gave them directions to our camping spot.
“Do you really think Corey and Daniel would still be there?” Hayley said.
“No, but I hope they’ll check back or leave a note.”
We each picked a direction and ran.
The vehicle I’d heard never materialized. I’d barely set out when I realized the engine was moving farther away. That didn’t mean I headed back, though. The goal right now was simply to put distance between myself and the wreck . . . and hope Rafe and Hayley were doing the same.
I’d chosen backyards as my escape route. Easy enough, given that there weren’t fences separating them. But it was too open. And piles of debris and construction holes made it far from a fast—or safe—choice.
I raced down one street, ready to dart across when I heard the squeal of tires. I hesitated. From what I could see, the next row of houses was the last one, meaning if I could get there, I’d be out of the subdivision and . . . And what? Into an actual neighborhood, where people could spot me running through their yards? Or open ground, where I wouldn’t have any shelter? I couldn’t see what lay beyond the next road, which meant I couldn’t take the chance. I needed to get a better look.
I backed up to the nearest two-story house. It was less than half finished, with limited hiding places, but the two flanking it weren’t any better.
I picked my way through the debris to the front door—or the opening where the door would be. There weren’t any front steps, either, which put the doorway a meter off the ground. I grabbed the frame, swung in, and nearly fell straight into the basement. The framework for the floor hadn’t been covered yet. Same for the wall studs. It was like being inside a house built of matchsticks. Absolutely no place to hide. Wonderful.
Floorboards had been added to the second story, though—or part of it. I made my way up the risers that served as a temporary staircase. The interior walls weren’t finished, but if I stayed on the floorboards, no one would see me from below. And I’d be gone before they brought in a full team to conduct a complete search. This was just a way station while I got a good look at the situation.
Getting that good look meant checking every window until I found one that gave me a partial view of the street where we’d crashed. There was an SUV there now, lights on, doors opening, dark-garbed figures spilling out.
I strained to listen and caught only the faintest murmur of voices, nearly drowned out by the crack and snap of tarps caught in the wind. I could see the tarps, too, ripped white flags of surrender dotting the abandoned houses. It was an eerie sight from up here—the rows of houses, the empty windows and doors like pits of darkness in blank faces.
I moved to the other side of the house and looked out the way I’d been heading. It seemed like scrub land beyond the last street. Pretty open. Too open? It was hard to tell.
When I heard a creak, I crept toward the stairwell, staying down on all fours and peering out from behind a partial wall. No one was there. I waited. Still nothing. As I turned to go back to my post, I caught what looked like a blur of motion, but when I spun, I saw nothing.
My hands started to itch. I rubbed them hard and inhaled deep breaths. This really wasn’t the time to shift.
Or was it? I could move lower to the ground as a cat. I could climb and balance better, too. If someone came after me, I could disappear into one of these houses and be on the roof before they navigated across the first level.
But they didn’t need to get close to me to fire a dart. Earlier today, I’d had the foresight to change into the darkest clothing they’d provided, in case Antone’s “opportunity” came knocking. In cat form, I’d be easy to spot with my tawny fur.
So I needed to calm down before I shifted. Which was easy, because in contemplating which form was better, I had calmed down, and the process reversed.
I chuckled to myself. Good thing I hadn’t decided I wanted to shift. I crawled back to the open window frame and was rising to look out when a floorboard creaked behind me. I whirled and saw that same strange blur, now coming straight at me. I dived to the side. Hands grabbed my ankle. I wrenched and got my foot free. I scrambled to the side and started leaping up, but something hit my side. Not “someone.” Something, like an invisible force that sent me staggering.
When I caught a glimpse of my attacker, I stumbled back in surprise.
“Dr. Inglis?” I said.
“Your father entrusted me with your safety,” she said. “I’m not going back and telling him you got away.”
“No, he . . .” I stopped myself. If he hadn’t told her he was behind this, I needed to protect him.
“He might not want me to come back,” I said quickly. “After what happened with Nicole, he . . . didn’t seem so convinced it was the right place for me.”
A flash of guilt crossed her face. Then her eyes narrowed and I felt a chill. I wanted to brush it off. This was Dr. Inglis. I’d known her all my life. She may have played a key role in the experiment, but she’d always seemed genuine about wanting to help us.
“What did he say?” she asked.
“N-nothing. It’s just . . .” I swallowed. “It wasn’t safe for me there. You saw that.”
“I saw that you were having trouble, Maya. Serious trouble, however much your father wants to deny it. You’re reverting.”
“No, I’m—”
“Stressed? Anxious?” She shook her head. “You forget how well I know you, Maya. You’re strong and you’re capable and you’re one of the most level-headed young women I’ve ever met. If you haven’t broken after everything that’s happened, you’re not going to break now. You’re reverting. Deep down, you know that. If I let you leave, you could endanger your friends. What would that be like, finding Daniel, feeling relieved that he’s alive . . . only to lose control and attack him.”
The first heat of anger washed through me. They all knew my weakness and they’d exploit it every chance they got.
“How about Rafe?” Dr. Inglis said. “You could hurt him. Or your brother, Ashton. Or Corey or Hayley.”
“I’m not going to hurt anyone,” I said, and charged her.
I didn’t plan to attack her. Just knock her out of my way. She didn’t move. Just started saying something I didn’t understand. When I was within striking distance, I froze, just like I had in the alley.
“It’s called a binding spell,” she said. “Yes, I’m a witch. I tried to tell the Nasts that my sensing spell was good enough to find you, but they insisted on
sending in their own witch. I am going to take you back to your father, Maya. He hasn’t told me otherwise, so I can’t be faulted for my efforts, can I? And I’m not about to let you slip away.”
As she spoke, I struggled against the spell. I knew why the Nasts had called in their own witch—because Dr. Inglis wasn’t good enough. We’d faced off outside Salmon Creek, and she hadn’t used her spell. Or she’d tried and it hadn’t worked. Now, as I fought it, I felt one of my fingers move. Then another.
Dr. Inglis continued, oblivious. “You’re my best work. You and Daniel. The others may catch up eventually, but for now you two are the shining examples of everything I promised the St. Clouds when we started Project Phoenix.”
As she spoke, a man appeared behind her. Just . . . appeared. Like he’d been zapped there. I’m sure I wouldn’t have been able to hide my shock . . . if I’d had more control over my body. The beefy blond man looked at me and smiled, then lifted a syringe and pointed at Dr. Inglis, his other fingers going to his lips.
She tensed, as if she’d sensed something. I managed to get my mouth open.
“Nicole,” I said quickly, my voice muffled, jaw barely opening. “You drugged her. That’s why you offered to test her. To hide the fact that you drugged her and let her into my room to kill me.”
The man eased forward.
“No, Maya. I was listening in. I would have interfered if she hurt you, but I knew you’d save yourself.” Dr. Inglis gave a faint smile. “You always do. You’d save yourself and we’d prove Nicole was unstable, and make sure they took her far from you.”
“Really? Because it sounded to me like they were planning to ship her out anyway. I think you did it to make sure they added more security to me. You knew I’d escape eventually if they didn’t, so—”
The man jabbed her with the syringe. She spun. The spell broke and I toppled as she started another incantation. I leaped to my feet and raced across the floor. I was almost to the stairs when a two-by-four came sailing from nowhere and cut me off at the knees. I fell on all fours. Before I could spring up again, a hand lifted me off my feet. I twisted to see another big man—this one with brown hair—holding me in midair. Behind him, Dr. Inglis lay on the floor, unconscious. The blond man was bent over her, checking her pulse.
I took a swing at my captor. He just held me out to arm’s length and laughed.
“Claws in, little cat,” he said, still grinning. “Just like a cat, aren’t you? Rescue you and get scratched for my trouble.”
His smile was genuine, his tone light, amused. I stopped struggling.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“I’d say ‘friends of your father,’ but that’s not exactly true. Just a couple of half-demons with special skills for hire.” He set me down but kept his hand wrapped in my shirt. “You seem to have walked away from the accident all right. I hit you guys harder than I’d hoped. It’s tough to plan stuff like that.”
His partner walked over. “The doc’s out cold. We’ll just leave her here.”
“So you’re the ones”—I struggled to form the words—“my father hired. Now what?”
“Now nothing,” said the one holding me. “This is what your daddy paid for, so now you’re on your own, little cat. Except for this.” He fished a wad of cash, a metal key, and a tiny voice recorder from his pocket. He slapped them into my hand. “Top-secret instructions. Listen, then eat the evidence.”
“Thanks.” I turned to the stairs.
The brown-haired one called, “Not even going to ask for help getting away? You are an independent little cat, aren’t you?”
“No, I just don’t think I could afford your fee. Even with this.” I waved the bills.
Now even the blond guy chuckled. “We’ll get you to the city. If we spot one of your buddies, we’ll give them a lift, too, but only if we see them on the way.”
The brown-haired man nodded. “Can’t get caught while we’re cruising looking for strays.”
I tried to argue, but they were right. We left the house. The blond guy explained that he would take me in the SUV he’d used to draw off attention, while his partner got the smashed truck to safety.
On the way to the SUV, I caught the faint smell of Hayley in the breeze. The half-demons let me go after her and bring her back. There was no sign of Rafe, though, and I didn’t push for them to search. He might not be as street smart as Ash, but he’d been on the road with Annie for a couple of years, so he was capable of taking care of himself out here.
THIRTY-TWO
I LET THE HALF-DEMON drive us to North Vancouver. That meant we’d have a five-kilometer hike to Stanley Park, but it was as close to our destination as I dared get. There was, I knew, always the possibility that this was a grand scheme to make me lead them to Daniel, Corey, and Ash. Given the complexity of the plan, I doubted it, but I was still being careful. The bigger risk was that these guys would decide they could make more money by turning us all over to the Nasts—or the Cortezes.
So the guy let us out in a North Vancouver strip mall, wished us well, and drove off. Hayley and I pretended to head north. Once the taillights vanished we changed course, staying hidden behind and between stores in the commercial strip along the highway.
As we walked, I explained more of what was going on. Then I took out the voice recorder and pressed Play.
“Maya,” Antone’s voice began. “This is . . .” A hesitation, then “Calvin. If you’re listening to this, then you’ve gotten away and you’ve met the men I hired to facilitate that. I’m sorry if you were hoping for more assistance. I don’t think you were, but I’m sorry all the same. I’m treading carefully here. If you do return to negotiate, I can’t help if I’m being held in the Nast jails for treason.”
“Return?” Hayley said. “Negotiate? What’s he talking about?”
I whispered that I’d explain later.
Antone continued. “Later on this tape, I’m going to tell you more about Project Genesis. You already know some of that—you asked me about Elizabeth Delaney the first time we spoke. You may have heard that a small group of those subjects escaped. That’s not entirely true. They did, but they were found again a few months ago. The St. Clouds have been monitoring them. I’ve provided information on their whereabouts. You need to go to them and tell them that the St. Clouds are watching them. Then you need to convince them to turn themselves in.”
“Seriously?” Hayley whispered. “Is he nuts?”
I shushed her again.
“I told you that you need leverage to negotiate, Maya. So do they. Separately, you’re just two groups on the run. Join forces and you will all have enough leverage to negotiate a return on your terms.” A pause. “That return will include the Delaneys.” Another pause. “Your parents. I know that’s what you want and I know that’s what you need.”
We’d all get our families back, he promised. Then he told us everything we needed to know to get to the Project Genesis kids.
When the tape finished, I braced for Hayley’s outraged protests. Instead, she was quiet for at least a half kilometer. Then she said, “Okay. So what are our other options?”
“We run.”
“Run where? We’d need a goal, right? We can’t just run forever.”
“There’s that guy they mentioned in the car. Lucas Cortez. We could go to Portland, find him, and see if he’d help.”
“But his dad is CEO of another Cabal. One that’s at least as powerful as the Nasts. I’m getting the impression these Cabals aren’t exactly charitable organizations.”
“Agreed. It’s a possibility, though. Or we can find the Project Genesis group, tell them, and run with them.”
“And then what?” She sighed and shook her head. “That’s really what it comes down to, doesn’t it? And then what. Calvin’s right. We can’t run forever. We don’t want to. I want my mom and my dad and my sister back. And, yes, I want some kind of normal life back. I know that makes me sound like exactly what you’d expect—a spoiled cheerl
eader—but it’s what I want.”
“Me too.”
She looked at me, surprised.
I shrugged. “I know that ‘totally normal’ is out of the question. I don’t think we ever had that anyway. But I want my parents and I want a life. Plus, we have medical issues—Annie’s reversion, Corey’s headaches, and possibly more we haven’t found out yet.”
“Then this really is our only option.”
“It seems so.”
When we reached the park, I started getting anxious again, thinking about Daniel. Would he be here? How badly was he hurt? Had Rafe made it? Soon my hands started itching, my muscles bunching, my nails thickening.
“You know, that could get really inconvenient,” Hayley said as I rubbed my hands and tried to refocus.
“Tell me about it,” I muttered.
“Do you know what causes it?”
“Stress. Fear. Anger. Right now, it’s door number one.”
My arms started throbbing. I rubbed them. Hayley noticed and sighed.
“Okay, change of subject. Let’s—” She stopped. “Um, explain to me why we don’t want you changing into a big cat?”
“What?”
She gestured at my pulsing arms. “Why not let you change? You can move faster as a cougar. You can see in the dark better. You can sniff them out better.”
I stopped rubbing my arms. “You’re right.”
“Don’t sound so shocked.” When I protested, she cut me off. “In the van, did you really think I was taking a nap? I was faking it so they’d relax and maybe we could escape.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, oh.” She rolled her eyes. “Go on and do your shape-shifting thing.”
As usual, I passed out to shift. When I got to my feet, I was still groggy enough that I let out a yowling squawk when a voice behind me said, “Wow.”
I twisted to see Rafe there.
He crouched to eye level. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I thought I heard voices earlier, so I jogged over and Hayley said you were in here. She made me wait until she could be sure you weren’t naked anymore.”
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