“Oh, just a few classes,” Kayla admitted. Like most of this school year… .
“And I’ll call downtown,” Elizabet continued. “We’ll get a regular patrol to stop through here on their circuit, plus whatever else they think is appropriate to a key witness. You’ll have to testify, Kayla. It’ll probably take a couple of days for them to get the paperwork started on this, but you will have to testify against the gang. I don’t know whether the L.A.P.D. can do anything against elves and that ogress …”
They’d better take in a platoon of Marines with them, if they try!
” … but we can certainly do something about the gangbangers,” Elizabet continued. “If we see any sign of the gang or … anything else, the police will probably want to take you into protective custody. So don’t be alarmed if a policeman stops by to see how you’re doing during the day, while you’re studying. And you’d better start cracking the books. You’ll have some serious catching up to do if you want to graduate high school with a high enough grade point average to go to college.”
“College?” Kayla glanced at her. “I can’t go to college!”
“Of course you can,” Elizabet said, smiling. “I’ll help you with the tuition. But you’ll need to get your grades into shape or you won’t be admitted. It’ll take a lot of hard work, but I think you can do it.”
“College?” Kayla repeated, her eyes wide. College … I never thought I’d be able to do that. I wonder what I’d study? I’d like to learn more about how this magic thing works, but somehow I don’t think they’ll have classes in Magic 101 at UCLA.
Elizabet laughed, reaching out to ruffle Kayla’s hair. “Of course, imp. College. Who did this to your hair? It looks like it was hacked off with a knife.”
“I like it this way,” Kayla said. “Wow … college. I never thought I’d really be able to do it.”
“We’ll get you there,” Elizabet said. “Just you wait and see. Well, we do have a few hours before I need to head into the city. Shall we go visit Billy?”
“You bet,” Kayla said immediately. “And I’d like to go looking for Liane, too. I know that no one’s seen her around, but I’d like to try to find her. I don’t know where she’d be exactly, but we could go back to Suite 230. Maybe she went back there.”
“The police have been checking there once a day or so,” Elizabet said. “There hasn’t been any sign of your friend, but we can go look if you like.”
“Yeah, I’d like that.”
Walking into the hospital was easier this time. It was the same, the overwhelming pressure of pain and emotions pouring down on her, but she was able to push it back, to hold it away from her almost without thinking about it. She moved it away from her, closing it off to where it was only a quiet, distant clamor rather than an overwhelming wave. She caught a glimpse of Elizabet’s smile as they walked through the hospital lobby.
Maybe I am learning. Maybe I’m getting better at this.
“They’ve moved him to the third floor,” Elizabet said as they walked to the elevators. “He’s doing fine, last I saw him.”
“You’ve been here?” Kayla asked, surprised.
Elizabet nodded. “I asked that they assign him as one of my cases. I also asked that they keep him here for a little while longer even though he could have been discharged from the hospital a couple days ago. Downtown, they’re still trying to figure out what to do with this young man, but Billy has his own ideas. I’m sure he’ll tell you.”
Kayla only followed Elizabet from the elevator down the hall to room 341. Through the closed door, she could hear an exuberant yell: “Yeah, go Niners!” She grinned, recognizing Billy’s voice.
“Come on, Billy!” someone else shouted. “They’re history, they’re toast, they’re outta here!”
Elizabet opened the door, leaning inside. “Is there room for two more Niners fans in here?” she asked.
“Elizabet! Come on in!”
Kayla walked in after Elizabet, a little nervously. Billy, wearing a San Francisco Forty-Niners shirt over his hospital gown, was sitting up in bed. Another boy, very thin and pale and wearing a baseball cap, was in the next bed. Both of them were watching the game on the television set high on the wall across from them.
Billy winced as one of the Niners fumbled a catch and glanced at Kayla and Elizabet. His eyes widened, and he let out a yell that filled the room. “KAYLA!”
“Hiya, Billy,” she said. “How’s tricks?”
“You’re looking all right,” he said, grinning. “The ‘do is awesome. Did you do your hair with a knife? Can I get your leather jacket if you get hit by a truck?”
“In your dreams, dude,” she said, grinning back at him.
“Shhh, come on, guys, put a cork in it, the Niners are trying for a touchdown,” the other boy said, lying back so that he was only half-visible behind the row of IVs and medical equipment.
“Chill out, Rick!” Billy shook his head. “He’s stressed out ‘cause tonight’s dessert is riding on this.” He added more quietly, “An’ the chemo’s got him down today.” Billy glanced over at Elizabet, a little hesitantly, Kayla thought. “So, Elizabet … any news?” Using both hands, he shifted his leg, encased in a heavy white cast, so he could sit up straighter. “You got any news for me?”
Elizabet sat down on the edge of his bed. “Oh, nothing much. Just a new home for you. It’s up in San Francisco and your foster parent is an engineer, just like you asked for.”
“Really?” Billy’s eyes were wide. “You did it, Elizabet! I knew you could do it!”
Kayla glanced between Billy and Elizabet, not understanding. “An engineer?” she asked.
Elizabet nodded. “We’ve been trying to do that, match kids with parents who are in the profession the kid would like to pursue. Billy told me that he wants to study civil engineering; if he can get into college, that is,” she added, giving him a stern look. “After talking with your teachers at your last high school, that may be tougher than you told me. But I think you’ll like this lady, Billy. I talked with her on the phone. She’s been working on old buildings, making them more earthquake-proof.”
“Cool!” Billy said. “That’s great. We’ll have something to talk about over dinner.”
“I didn’t know you wanted to be an engineer,” Kayla said. When did he decide he wanted this? It couldn’t have been when we were at the foster home; he never talked about it, never said anything about it… .
“Well, it didn’t look too likely when all I was doing was ditching class and trying to run away from lousy foster homes. But talking with Elizabet made me think about what I’d like to do with my life. So I’ll give it a try. If it doesn’t work out, maybe I can go work for the CIA or something. I’ve got all that experience in breaking and entering, I bet they’d hire me in a minute!”
“Don’t you even think it, scamp!” Elizabet said sternly and Billy laughed.
I never would’ve guessed this about Billy, Kayla thought. I never thought that maybe he had dreams, dreams of more than just getting through a few days without getting arrested, or how to break into an apartment quicker and faster the next time. I never thought he might want to be an engineer. He’s so different. I mean, it’s only been a week, and he’s changed so much. Or maybe he’s not so different, maybe he’s been this way all the time, and I just didn’t know it.
“Have you guys heard anything about Liane?” Billy asked, his face suddenly very serious.
Elizabet shook her head. “Nothing new.”
“We’re going to go look for her,” Kayla said. “Right after we leave here, we’re going into Hollywood.”
“Well, then get your asses out of here,” Billy said with a smile. “And I’ll go back to watching the football game. Come back and visit me after you’ve found her.” He looked down, away from them. “I’ve been worried ‘bout her. Kayla, I figured that you’d be able to take care of yourself, even if you never did before… .”
“Hey, thanks a lot, dude!” Kayla sai
d, glaring at him and then grinning in pretend anger.
“No, I’m serious! I always took care of stuff for all of us, after we left the foster home, but it wasn’t because I was the only one who could do it. You could; you always could. You just didn’t … just didn’t believe enough in yourself. But Liane’s different. I hope she’s okay.”
“We’ll find out,” Elizabet said reassuringly. “My guess is that she’s still somewhere in the Hollywood area, that she wouldn’t have gone far, which means …”
Elizabet’s voice faded, and Kayla glanced over at Billy’s roommate, now asleep. His face was very pale and drawn, white even against his pillow, only a few stringy wisps of hair visible beneath the baseball cap. Something’s very wrong there, she thought, something’s very …
Without warning, the room disappeared around her. It was as if she was falling into a whirlwind of pain and chaos, sliding between the layers of skin and muscle, until she could see the cells of his body. The cells that were fighting a hopeless battle against each other, killing him piece by piece. It was too overwhelming and confusing; she didn’t know how she’d start to heal this. It’s not just a single cut or a wound, she thought, it’s all the way through his entire body, it’s everywhere… .
She felt Elizabet’s hand on her shoulder, pulling her back into herself. “Control, Kayla,” Elizabet murmured. “Disengage from it. Control it.”
Kayla blinked and shook her head, trying to clear the image of the millions of cells fighting against each other from her vision. Then she was standing in the hospital room again, Elizabet’s hand on her shoulder keeping her from falling.
She glanced at Billy; he was staring at her.
“Your eyes!” he whispered. “Your eyes were filled with blue fire. It’s true. I thought I dreamed it, but it really happened. That scar that the doctors found, the one they said must’ve happened a few months back. Except it didn’t; I’d never had it before. It was you. What is it, Kayla?”
“We’d better go,” Elizabet said quietly, urging Kayla toward the door.
“Kayla?” Billy called. “Please, I need to know!”
Still dizzy from the magic, Kayla looked back at him. “I don’t know, Billy,” she said. “I don’t know what it is. But I’m going to try to figure it out.”
“And I’m going to help her,” Elizabet said.
“Yeah, you do that, Elizabet,” Billy said, settling back against his pillows. “Elizabet can help you figure things out, Kayla. She’s good at that.”
Kayla glanced back at her friend. It’s not the same, she thought. It’s never going to be the same. We’re different people now. “Take care of yourself, Billy,” she said.
“You, too, Kayla,” he said, and smiled. “Try to stay out of trouble, hey?”
No bets on that, she thought, walking out into the corridor.
In the hallway outside his room Kayla turned to Elizabet. “Do you know what’s wrong with Rick?” she asked. “All that craziness, everything fighting itself
“Leukemia,” Elizabet said. “That’s what Rick has.” She was silent for a moment as they walked past the nurses’ station. “Everyone has limits, child,” she said at last. “You’ll have to learn what yours are.”
“Can you do it?” Kayla asked. “Can you cure cancer?”
Elizabet shook her head. “No. You forget, child, my talents are much more limited than yours. I can’t cure a cold, not the way that you can. Some small things, yes, but I’m not in your league. Maybe you can learn how to cure cancer eventually.”
Kayla thought about it as they walked out to the car. That would be great, if I could. I mean, what am I supposed to do with this magic thing, anyhow? It’s like … there has to be a meaning to it, some reason for it. Elizabet’s the only other person I know who has this magic talent that I have, not counting the killer elves, or whatever they are.
If I go to college, and med school after that, then maybe I’ll learn just what I can do with this. If I’m a doctor, then I can help people and they won’t know that it’s magic; they’ll think it’s medicine. Maybe I can learn how to cure cancer.
She was quiet for most of the drive into Hollywood, thinking about that.
“Want to talk about it?” Elizabet asked, as they drove through the slow-moving traffic onto Hollywood Boulevard.
“It’s just …” Kayla began, then faltered. “Well, I keep thinking there has to be a reason for this, this magic stuff. I mean, why else would I have it?”
Elizabet smiled. “Thinking that you were put on God’s Earth for a reason, child, that’s ego. What you have is a gift, and you have to figure out how best to use it.” She braked as the street light changed to red and glanced at Kayla. “Where did you want to start looking for your friend?” she asked.
Kayla looked at the street, the cars moving slowly through the intersection ahead of them. It was only late afternoon, but already the night people were starting to appear: men in dirty clothes slouching against the storefronts, women walking by in high heels and tight skirts. Two motorcycle cops were parked near the intersection, watching the traffic go by.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Kayla said. “I guess we should stop back—” She stopped, realizing that she was about to use the word “home” for Suite 230. And that that word didn’t fit it anymore. “I guess we should look at the office building first,” she finished awkwardly.
“All right,” Elizabet said. She waited for the signal to change and parked in the lot at the corner of Hollywood and Cherokee.
Kayla was very quiet as they walked down the street. She led Elizabet down the narrow alley between two tall buildings and up to the broken window at the back of the office building. “Watch out, there’s some glass on the floor,” she said, climbing through.
Elizabet nodded, clambering in after her. Kayla stepped around the pile of dirty blankets and old newspapers, where someone else had obviously set up their digs, and to the stairway down the hall. A few minutes later, they were on the second floor, and Kayla pushed the door of Suite 230 open with her foot, glancing around inside.
Suite 230 looked just like it had the night when all of this started. The blankets were still piled in the corner, and the three half-eaten cans of spaghetti, the contents looking very green and moldy, were still on the sink. “I don’t think Liane has been back here,” Kayla said, looking around. She looked into the other room and saw her old backpack on the floor, open and obviously searched, then abandoned. “I don’t think she’s been in here.”
Elizabet shook her head. “The police were here, but I know they were careful to leave everything the way it was.”
Kayla pulled her jacket a little more tightly around her, not from physical cold but something else. This place looked so empty, depressing. It was hard to believe that she’d lived here. When Billy and Liane had been with her, somehow the place hadn’t looked so bad. It’d been more of an adventure than a dump. “I’m glad I don’t have to live here anymore,” she said.
“Me too, child,” Elizabet said, smiling.
Kayla bent to pick up her backpack. She unzipped the main pocket, looking inside. There wasn’t much there: half a candy bar, some change, and a bent photograph. She zipped it up again quickly, not wanting to look at the photo of her and her mom and dad in the backyard of their house, at her last birthday party. I shouldn’t have kept that; I should have left that at the house, she thought. I should have—
“Is something wrong, Kayla?” Elizabet asked.
Kayla shook her head quickly, rubbing at her eyes. “No, I’m fine,” she lied. She slung the backpack over her shoulder. “I guess we should ask around out on the street, see if anyone has seen Liane. Folks would remember that I’m a friend of hers, maybe they’d tell me.” Kayla took one last look around Suite 230, then walked to the door.
Out on the street, she saw a few people she recognized, but not many. There was the old bearded man who sat on the sidewalk not far from the McDonald’s, panhandling for ch
ange. The shopkeepers were still the same after only a couple weeks, but she’d never talked to any of them before, figuring that they’d only call the cops on her, so they probably wouldn’t be much help.
She stood on the street corner, looking around, not certain where to go next. There was the elderly man who sold hot dogs from a wheeled cart. He’d smiled at her before and given them a couple extra hot dogs for free when they’d bought from him. Maybe he’d know something about Liane.
“Elizabet, I’m going to talk to that guy,” she said.
“Sounds like a good idea to me,” Elizabet said. “I’ll go get us some Cokes from the McDonald’s.”
“Great,” Kayla said. She waited for the light to change, then walked across the street to where the old man was slathering onions on a hot dog for one of his customers.
“Excuse me, sir,” she began, then she saw Liane walk out from a bar entrance three doors down the street.
Liane!
She looked totally different. The old sweatshirt and jeans were gone—she was wearing a tight white blouse and a black leather miniskirt, with four-inch spike heels. Kayla stared at her, too surprised to say anything. She walked to the edge of the curb, obviously waiting for someone. She looked around the busy street, then glanced in Kayla’s direction.
Her eyes met Kayla’s; she blinked, staring. “Kayla?” she called, her voice mirroring her surprise. She took a few quick steps in Kayla’s direction, then stopped.
“Liane?” Kayla walked hesitantly toward her. Liane hugged her, smiling. She’s okay, thank God she’s okay… .
Kayla sniffled and rubbed at her eyes as she stepped back, looking at her friend. “Oh, hell, I smeared your makeup! I’m sorry, I didn’t—”
“Who cares? I’ll fix it! But what did you do your hair?” Liane asked. “It’s wild!”
“What did you do to the rest of you?” Kayla asked. “The way you’re dressed, you look like—”
A car pulled up on the curb with a squeal of tires—a blue Chevy. Kayla glanced at it and froze. In the driver’s seat was Nick, looking just like he had the night all of this started, wearing a white sportscoat with his hair all slicked back.
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