The Complete Lost Children Series

by Krista Street

  Falling back, I let another ten feet of distance spread between us. At the next block, the woman stopped and walked up a set of stairs to an apartment building. Her keys were out and jingled in her hand. Cradling her phone against her shoulder, she inserted a key into the lock.

  The dark-clouded man slowed his pace. He pulled out his phone again and pretended to be typing. Instead, he lifted it and snapped a picture of the woman.

  Red coated my gaze. He was truly stalking her. Not only was he following her, but he was also taking pictures of her.

  My chest rose and fell as hot anger rolled through me.

  Oblivious to everything happening around her, the woman stepped into her apartment building as cars continued to mill by on the street. She shut the door, and her bubbly laugh disappeared.

  I slid into the closest alleyway and plastered myself against a wall. Peeking around the corner, I watched the dark-clouded man.

  He took a few more photos of her building before putting his phone back in his pocket. From there, he walked down the street again.

  I breathed a sigh of relief that he didn’t appear intent on attacking the woman right then, but what he was doing was pretty obvious. He was following her, getting to know her habits, figuring out where she lived. It was only a matter of time before he returned and did something more sinister.

  Another buzz emitted from my pocket. I knew either Grace or Flint was calling again, but if I stopped to talk to them, I could lose him.

  Looking toward the sky, I sent a silent apology to my best friend and boyfriend through the cosmic void. I once again hit the Ignore button on my phone and continued following the dark-clouded man.

  CHAPTER SIX

  With each second that passed, the sun set more. Streetlights clicked on as I followed the man down the road. He seemed to be walking toward a residential area. The foot traffic grew less and less.

  My heart pounded in my chest like a jackhammer. The last time I’d experienced an adrenaline rush like this had been when my family and I had played laser tag a month ago. The twins had been in hot pursuit of me as I led them on a relentless chase. We’d been prohibited from using our powers during that game, so I had not had an advantage.

  At the next block, the man turned left. Leaves fluttered on a nearby tree. The wind was picking up as humid air swirled around. A strong gust picked up my hair and blew it across my face.

  I scrambled to push the long curls behind my ears. When I finally had my annoying hair under control, my insides froze. The dark-clouded man had crossed the street and stopped.

  He was staring at me.

  He had stopped at least fifteen yards away, but he stood completely still in the center of the sidewalk. He made no attempt to hide the fact that he was watching me. To make matters worse, he’d donned sunglasses despite the darkening hour. Since his hoodie was still pulled up, I couldn’t make out any of his features.

  Forcing myself to keep walking, I tried to act like any other pedestrian and carried on in my original direction. I felt his eyes follow me.

  My heart pounded even more.

  Losing my nerve, I turned right at the next block despite him waiting on the left across the road. Shallow breaths filled my chest when I ducked into the first store I found.

  Bright lights accosted me. Apparently, I was in a corner convenience store. Rows of snacks, commonly used groceries, and miscellaneous paraphernalia filled the aisles.

  A middle-aged shopkeeper hunkered over the front counter. An open magazine was spread out in front of him. He smiled. “Good evening, Miss. Can I help you find something?”

  I wasn’t surprised at his warm greeting since I was standing in the entryway like a deer caught in headlights. “Um . . . no, I’m . . .”

  I turned and cracked the door open behind me before peeking back onto the street. In the distance, the dark-clouded man was retreating once again. He was at least two blocks away.

  “Miss?” the shopkeeper called. “Can I help you?”

  “No. Never mind!” I called before slipping out of the store.

  I picked up a jog and returned to the intersection. The dark-clouded man was now only one block ahead of me. Trying my best to keep my footsteps light, I once again followed him.

  If I can just find out where he lives or catch a license-plate number on his vehicle, it’s possible we can figure out who he is.

  I was so busy coming up with my plan of attack that I didn’t realize he’d disappeared.

  Coming to a halt on the sidewalk, I swiveled my gaze left and right. I no longer saw him ahead of me. Did he turn off somewhere?

  I kept my vision in its altered state, hoping his cloud would appear from around a building or vehicle.

  It didn’t.

  Just as I was about to turn back the way I had come, I felt him.

  Raw, hungry, pulsing energy pummeled into my back.

  Adrenaline surged through me as I whipped around. Somehow, he’d darted out of the way and had sneaked up behind me. Does that mean he knew I was following him?

  I spread my feet wide as I prepared myself to confront him, but when I turned a one-eighty, my mouth dropped.

  Nobody was behind me.

  I followed the feel of the pulsing energy cloud. There. In the alleyway.

  He’d darted into an alley and was currently watching me from the shadows. Terror slid through me. Since I was facing him, that meant he could see my face.

  But I still couldn’t see his.

  I could barely make out his stocky frame.

  Since there was no point pretending that I hadn’t been following him, I flew off the sidewalk to duck behind a potted tree that stood by another apartment building. As I licked my dry lips, my thoughts raced with what to do next.

  But I didn’t have the opportunity to come up with a new plan. Pounding footsteps sounded in the alley, growing fainter and fainter. He was running away.

  I guess that means I’m following him.

  Just as I pushed away from the building to pursue him again, a car came careening around the corner.

  My stomach dropped.

  Flint’s cloud pulsed out of the vehicle. His energy was triple its normal size.

  He pulled the SUV to a squealing stop just across the road before jumping out. There was no point running after the man. Since I could no longer hear his footsteps, and since my boyfriend was approaching me at a menacingly fast pace, my nighttime excursion had come to an end.

  “Lena! What the hell are you doing?” Flint reached me on the sidewalk and stared down at me with hard eyes. Anger simmered off of him, but it was tinged with something else—fear.

  I wrung my hands as I gave him a look that I hoped evoked sympathy. “I had to follow him, Flint! I’m sorry. I know you’ve been worried, but I’m fine.”

  He crushed me in an embrace. His steel-like arms and scent surrounded me. “You can’t do that, babe. I know you want to catch this guy, but chasing him by yourself is not the answer.”

  The anger in his cloud dissipated as raw fear filled it. I knew more than ever that my time locked away in Marcus’s mansion still haunted him. He had the same terrified sound in his voice as he’d had when I’d been taken in San Francisco.

  I pulled back, having to pry his arms loose, before I reached up and laid a palm gently across his cheek. Heat from his skin seared my hand. “It doesn’t matter, anyway. He got away. I’m sorry I frightened you.”

  A growl of irritation rumbled from his chest, but he still tilted his head and kissed my inner wrist—right where my tattoo was.

  A shiver ran up my arm.

  “Don’t do that again,” he said. “Promise me.”

  I sighed loudly but nodded. “Fine. I won’t chase him again by myself.” I pushed my hair behind my shoulder. The wind was really picking up. “How did you find me, anyway?”

  He pulled his phone from his pocket and held it up. A tracking app was open.

  I propped a hand on my hip. “You tracked my phone’s loca
tion?”

  “Can you blame me? I have a girlfriend who is currently on a suicide mission. Of course I downloaded an app so I can track you.”

  Annoyance flared in me again, but I didn’t want to spend our time arguing about this. We had more important things to discuss.

  I ran a hand through my hair when the wind ruffled the curls resting on my shoulders. “We might as well head home. We have a lot to talk about. Because if there’s one thing I’m certain about, it’s that this guy is definitely intent on attacking that girl.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Back at our apartment, the twins and Mica listened raptly while I described my evening, whereas Di, Flint, and Raven crossed their arms and mumbled their displeasure. Amber, Edgar, and Luke all listened with raised eyebrows, shock apparent on their faces.

  “So you didn’t get a good look at him at all?” Mica asked incredulously.

  “No. All I can describe is his build and hair color.”

  “Let me get this straight.” Luke slung an arm across the couch back. His wide shoulders filled half the seating. “You’re having dinner with a friend. You see the mysterious clouded man again, so you jump up and leave the restaurant—and leave your friend—to chase him at night by yourself. He then sees you and watches you while you’re alone. Did I get that right?” His eyes flickered to golden.

  “Well . . .” I wrung my hands as Flint’s energy grew. Luke’s comment also reminded me that I really needed to call Grace. Six text messages from her, which I had yet to respond to, were currently waiting on my phone. “I suppose when you put it like that it seems a bit . . .”

  “Impulsive?” Di raised a midnight eyebrow.

  I rolled my eyes. “I know. I know. I’m still working on that lovely trait of mine, but for the most part, I don’t do stuff like that anymore. You know that, and seriously, you guys, are you really telling me I should have left it? I now know where this girl lives. We can watch her apartment building and, hopefully, catch this guy.”

  “Strong work, Lena.” Jet clapped me on the back. “I, for one, like your style.”

  Jasper and Mica snickered, which got annoyed looks from Flint and Di.

  Raven leaned forward from where he was sitting on the couch by Flint. Since he wasn’t wearing his contact lenses, his eyes were swirling colors of orange, like embers burning in a fire. “We were really worried about you, Lena. I don’t think it’s wise to do something like that again.”

  Raven’s quiet voice and levelheaded response reminded me so much of Di. Flint had said something very similar during the ride back to our apartment after he picked me up. However, Flint’s words had been a bit more heated and colorful.

  “I know, Raven. I’m sorry I worried you guys.”

  Amber nudged Edgar. “Let’s go make a snack. I have a feeling it’s going to be a long night.”

  Edgar shrugged and ran a hand over his shaved head. “Sure, love.”

  They disappeared into the kitchen of our small apartment. The sounds and scents of popping popcorn soon filled the air.

  “Oooh, I love popcorn!” Mica exclaimed when they returned carrying two large bowls. She grabbed a huge handful. A few kernels dropped onto the fake-wood linoleum floor. Mica picked them up and popped them into her mouth.

  Di paced the living room a few times as everyone else chewed popcorn. Since our apartment was a two-bedroom, it was spacious for Flint and me, but with our family added, things felt a bit crowded. Di’s energy wasn’t helping. It swelled around her, making me feel claustrophobic.

  Pulling my cloud from my shoulders, I created my protective bubble before snatching a handful of popcorn from the bowl that got passed around. Considering I’d left most of my pad thai on my plate at the restaurant, I was starving.

  “So we’ll stake out this woman’s home and watch for the dark-clouded man Lena saw.” Di tapped a finger to her mouth as she paced. “As soon as we see him, we follow him to his home or vehicle. Using that information, Jasper or Flint will hack into the DMV’s database to retrieve his information and then . . . what?” She stopped and faced everyone. “We wait for him to attack? Alert the police with our suspicions? What’s the next course of action?”

  I frowned. Now that she mentioned it, she had a point. Just what exactly did we do after we figured out who he was?

  “The police aren’t going to do anything.” Jasper brought his knees up and looped his muscled forearms around them. He sat on the floor beside Mica, who had claimed an entire bowl of popcorn for herself. “Having a suspicion that someone is going to do something won’t get their attention. We’ll need proof he’s up to something.”

  “But he is going to attack her!” My voice rose at the thought of that happening and nobody stopping it.

  “Shh.” Flint pulled me back against his side and rubbed my back.

  “But we have to stop him. Police or not. We can’t let him hurt her!” My cheeks heated. Just the thought of not stopping him made me want to scream in frustration.

  “I know, Lena, and we will.” Di put her hands on her hips as a dark lock of hair fell across her forehead. “But since we don’t have a clear course of action, I suppose we’ll have to take this one step at a time—the first step being identifying the creep, which means we’re spending the night outside of that girl’s apartment building. This would be a lot easier if we had Susannah to help us with lookout. Has anyone heard from her?”

  Jet grimaced. “No. Let’s just hope my car’s still in one piece.”

  Amber grabbed a tissue from the end table before bringing it to her nose. “Do you think she got carried away again and decided to take off on a regional flight?”

  It wouldn’t be the first time that Susannah would have lost herself while in her eagle form. While she was doing better than she had been eighteen months ago, she was still so in tune with her animal nature that she sometimes disappeared for days at a time. We didn’t worry too much. So far, she’d always returned.

  Di sighed loudly. “I’ll talk with her when she shows up. In the meantime, who wants to spend the night watching this girl’s apartment?”

  My hand shot into the air.

  Flint’s energy grew. Thankfully, my protective bubble deflected it. He raised his hand next.

  “I’ll go.” Raven raised his hand after Flint.

  “No way we’re missing this!” Jet flicked a peace sign as Jasper and Mica grinned.

  “Count the three of us in!” Mica added.

  Amber yawned just before she sneezed loudly. “Since that’s six of you, I’ll stay behind. I think I’m getting a cold, so I might go to bed early. Can I take the shift tomorrow?” She sneezed again before sniffing.

  “If you’re getting sick, then yes, you definitely stay here,” Di replied. “Luke and Edgar?”

  “I’ll stay back for tonight.” Luke pulled out his cell phone. “I’ll give Jacinda another call while these six are down there. You can count me in for tomorrow if we need to keep watching her place.”

  “Will you tell Jacinda I won’t have time to call her tonight?” I asked Luke.

  “Not a problem,” he replied.

  Edgar nodded. “I’ll go tomorrow too.”

  “So it’s settled then.” Di turned to the six of us. “You all watch her place tonight, and the four of us will go tomorrow. Hopefully, Susannah will be back by then so she can join us.”

  The twins and Mica whooped before they stood to grab their jackets.

  Flint’s eyebrows knit together while Raven’s swirling orange irises brightened.

  “Just let me do one thing before we leave.” I stood from the couch and jogged to the bedroom before closing the door behind me. Our bed was a jumbled mess of sheets, but Flint had cleaned up. The floor was clear of clothes. I pulled out my phone and tapped in Grace’s number.

  She answered on the first ring. “So you’re alive?” Her sharp tone carried through the line.

  I winced. “I’m sorry, Grace. I’m really sorry for leaving the restaurant like that.
”

  She sighed. “I’m just glad you’re okay and that you finally called me back. What the heck happened? Why did you leave like that?”

  I cradled the phone against my shoulder and debated how to answer her. The truth, obviously, was out of the question. Since Grace had no idea about my family, our origins, or what we could all do, I couldn’t exactly tell her what our plan tonight was.

  After biting my lip, I replied, “I saw somebody I knew.” I left it at that, figuring that sticking somewhat to the truth was the best course of action.

  “Somebody you knew?” She sounded skeptical. “So you raced out of the restaurant to track down this person you knew?”

  “Yep.”

  “And you didn’t bring them back for me to meet?” Her tone grew hurt.

  Guilt bit me sharply. “Oh, I know, but you know me. Sometimes I get a bit carried away.” I said the words flippantly, hoping my somewhat scatterbrained actions could be used as an excuse for my current behavior. “We got to talking, and I lost track of time.”

  Grace sighed heavily. “All right, fine, but that was still rude. Next time, at least tell me you’re going after someone before you take off like that. I was really worried about you.” A hint of irritation still coated her words.

  “Sorry, Grace. Next time, I’ll do that.”

  Popping gum sounds came through the line. “I’m still at the library right now if you want to join me. Oh, and I have fifteen dollars for you. The sixty dollars you left was a little excessive. I left an exact twenty-percent tip and kept the rest to give back to you.”

  Her pert words made me smile. I could just imagine her pulling out her calculator to calculate the appropriate tip based on the bill’s amount.

  “Keep it,” I replied. “Think of it as a gift for me flaking out on you tonight.”

  She scoffed. “Don’t be silly. I have it set aside in my wallet to give back to you next time I see you.”

  Her indignation made me laugh.

  “So are you coming down here?”

  My smiled vanished. “I can’t tonight. Don’t be mad, okay?”

  A few seconds of silence passed before she said, “Lena, are you sure everything’s okay?”