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“No, it’s not possible,” he says, calm. “She can’t be the Singularity. It doesn’t make sense.”

  “But how did she steal my Allure?” I point out.

  His brow furrows. “I’ve heard of that. My parents like to talk about the old days, and I remember them mentioning a Charm that could absorb magical energy. It might be something like this.”

  “This must be it then!”

  “No, no…” Connor says. “The Sister could only absorb magical energy when the source was dying.”

  I remember what Mum told me about the magic being part of oneself. Indivisible. Unless, it seems, if you die. Then the energy abandons you—

  I grab Connor’s arm. “She was doing a ritual while I drowned!” I yell.

  Connor becomes livid, not because of my revelation, but worried about the Veil. He looks around nervously even though we are in a sea of cars with no one within hearing distance.

  “Tell me that again,” he asks.

  “That’s what Jane was doing to me! That’s why she didn’t stab me with her knife: she needed me to live for a little bit while she absorbed my energy!”

  Connor’s eyes twitch when he makes the connection.

  “Bollocks,” he says.

  “Indeed,” I say.

  “Let’s see her,” he says, pulling my arm so I follow him. I have flashbacks from when we were together. His commands and his hands-on attitude.

  I shake his hands off, but I say, “Let’s.”

  We enter the hospital, cross the lobby, go up the escalators. In some hallways we pass gurneys with people. Those are the minor victims of the earthquake—the lucky ones.

  When we are halfway to the ER, I see Drake running toward us.

  “Mona is gone!” he says out of breath. “I mean, not in her room. They took her for exams but now nobody knows where she is!”

  I’m unable to process the information. I look at Connor, who only says, “Let’s see Jane.”

  The three of us rush through the hospital, back to the ER, toward Jane’s room on the other side of the huge building. When we enter the ER waiting area, I already know the truth. I can’t feel anyone besides Connor. We cross the area, ignoring the protests coming from the nurse’s station.

  Connor arrives first at her room and swings the door open.

  Jane’s gone.

  Chapter 55: Drake

  I thought my brain would be murky, numbed by Mona’s disappearance. Instead, what I get is a clear mind. I turn to the nurse who came complaining after us.

  “You’ve got two patients missing! Do something! Lock down the hospital.”

  The nurse is as shocked as we are and mumbles, “I’m not sure we can—”

  “Do it! Now!” I yell at her. Nurses have always been scary to me. Not anymore. She must have seen something in my eyes, because she goes running back to her station.

  I point to Connor. “You, make sure they close the hospital.”

  To Skye, I say, “Call 911, and then search this floor. Maybe they’re still around.”

  They say something back, but I’m too busy running to the stairs. I rush down, reach the garage, and frantically look around.

  The traffic in the garage is heavy; many people are coming in with earthquake-related injuries. I run to the main exit and walk backwards from there, scanning cars and faces.

  The sounds I’m expecting don’t come. Where are the sirens, the clang of heavy steel doors closing? Why is it taking so long?

  After a few minutes, I see my search is fruitless. And they still are letting everybody come and go! I rush back up to the ER.

  As soon as I open the stairwell’s door I see Connor at the station, talking to the nurse. “Why aren’t we in lockdown?” I yell at him. I couldn’t care less about the shushing sounds from staff.

  He comes to me. “They can’t do it. Because of the earthquake. Too many people need access to the hospital. Besides, they close it only if a baby is missing, or a nutter is on the loose.”

  “Jane qualifies!” I say.

  He shakes his head. “Not to them, she doesn’t. They told me they lock it down if there’s a shooting, or an escaped convict or something like that. But they sent some staff to look around. They are concerned patients might be missing. But they think they’re just misplaced. It’s been a busy day.”

  Skye comes to us. “Didn’t find them,” she says out of breath. “911 took my call, but the woman said they have their hands full now, and we’re low priority.”

  “She’s a kid! Missing!” I say. I don’t know what to do. My fingers go through my hair repeatedly. This is not happening.

  “The police said they might be in the hospital, somewhere, lost in the chaos.”

  I look around the waiting room, and I see many other desperate faces. I’m not the only one concerned about a loved one tonight.

  “Okay,” I say, trying to compose myself. “The three of us know Jane took Mona. Right?” I glare at Connor, challenging him to contradict me, but he just nods. “Let the staff look for them here at the hospital. But Jane took Mona somewhere.”

  “Her house?” Skye asks.

  Connor says, “You mean her condo? In Fremont?”

  Skye and I exchange glances. “She’s got another place,” I say. “Connor, go to this Fremont condo. Skye and I will go back to Greenwood. That way we have witch radars on both places.”

  Connor looks at me sternly, but says nothing.

  We spend a few minutes exchanging phone numbers with the hospital staff.

  “Are you calling your father?” Skye asks.

  Dad! What am I going to tell Dad? “Not now,” I say. He can’t do anything right now.

  Chapter 56: Skye

  Drake is driving like a madman, daring any police officer to stop us.

  “Do you trust Connor?” he asks. “He’ll help us, right?”

  I don’t understand. “He is helping us.”

  “I mean, doesn’t he have a hidden agenda? He won’t make a deal with Jane or something like that, right?” Drake takes his eyes off the road for a second. “Do you trust him?”

  I remember Connor’s second Charm is Trust. People tend to believe him. Drake asking me this means he doesn’t trust Connor—at all.

  My answer is not direct. “He’ll do the right thing.” He will, because the most important thing to him is finding the Singularity.

  Drake keeps silent while overtaking two cars using the right lane.

  He looks at me twice. “Your looks are coming back,” he says with a frown.

  “What?” I look for the vanity mirror. He’s right. My old face is returning.

  “Was it temporary, then?” Drake asks.

  This is weird. Okay, I think I got it. “It seems Jane can absorb magical energy, including Charms. But it’s temporary unless she absorbs the magical energy leaving the body of a Sister.”

  “Leaving the body?”

  “When a Sister dies,” I say. I explain to him that’s probably what Jane tried to do to me at the pool.

  “I get why Jane fled the hospital,” I add. “All Sisters felt the energy during the earthquake, and Jane might think she has a chance of identifying the Singularity.”

  “Really? Even if you didn’t?”

  “Maybe Jane was close to the Singularity when the quake hit.”

  “But why would she take Mona? Does she want to get back at me?” he asks me.

  “It can’t be just that. It would accomplish nothing.”

  Something is nagging me, and I can’t put my finger on it. It’s an idea bouncing inside my head.

  “Mona is a tough cookie,” Drake says. “When she awakens, she’ll fight back. She may escape from Jane.”

  I think Drake is just giving himself a pep talk, but I humor him. “Yeah. She might do that. Where would she go then? Who’d she call?”

  “I don’t know. Me, I hope. Or Pain.”

  Here comes that idea again. And again it flutters away.

  Drake stops the car in front of Jane’
s house. All the lights are out. The whole street looks dark.

  “Do you feel anything?” Drake asks.

  I shake my head. “What now?”

  “Call Connor,” Drake says. I’ve never seen him so serious.

  While I call him, I look at the abandoned house. I shiver when I recall the violence there. What if those two guys are waiting for us again? Jane must be weak after the injury. She probably knows we are coming. She must become stronger.

  “Unless Jane wants to get more energy,” I say, my words forming almost at the same time as my thoughts.

  “What?” Drake asks.

  But Connor picks up. “Hey, Skye. No luck. Jane’s not here. I’ve talked to a neighbor who said she hasn’t seen anyone today. What about you?”

  “Same here,” I say, hurried. I put him on the speaker so Drake can hear him too. “Listen, do you know where Jane had the accident?”

  “Yeah, they gave me the address; her bike is still there. Do you think she might go back to get the bike?”

  “Just give me the address!” I say.

  “Hold on,” he says. I imagine he’s searching his pockets. “Corner of 45th St and Queen Anne Ave.” I look at Drake.

  He says, “Connor. Can you think of any other place Jane might take Mona?”

  “No,” comes the answer. “I’m drawing a blank.”

  Drake says in a nice way, “Please go back to the hospital then. Help them search. Can you do that?”

  Connor sounds puzzled. “Really? Don’t you want me—”

  “Thanks, man,” Drake says, turning off the cell.

  “What was that about?” I ask.

  “The address. That’s like two blocks from Pain’s,” Drake says.

  The realization hits me. “Jane was there. Or close to them.” I turn to him. “Why did you hang up?”

  His face is inscrutable. “Still don’t trust him.”

  “What happened at Pain’s? I mean, don’t you think it’s odd, the two of them unconscious with no visible wounds? And how did Jane get knocked out?”

  Drake looks rattled. “What do you mean?”

  “Think about it! Three of them passed out with no injuries!”

  He mumbles, “Jane had injuries…”

  “She got hurt falling from the bike, and the rest was my doing the other day. Actually, Jane probably fell down when she felt the energy. She must have been close to the source.”

  Suddenly Drake’s eyes bulge, and his face goes livid.

  “Mona!” he says. “She was looking fantastic when I saw her at the hospital.”

  “And?” I can’t see why this is relevant.

  Drake is frantic. “Skye, she was looking magically fantastic.” He points at me. “Like you.”

  In my head, all the puzzle pieces fall into place. “Allure,” I say. “Mona has Allure. Mona is a Sister.”

  Chapter 57: Drake

  We went through an earthquake and a kidnapping today, but this one revelation is what shocks me the most.

  “How? How can Mona be a witch?” I ask. I can’t even comprehend the words I’m speaking.

  “She could be,” Skye says. She’s thinking hard, putting things together. Good, because I’m in no condition to do that. “It’s not hereditary—not necessarily. Your mother could even be a Sister.”

  I really don’t need more information; I can’t handle it. My head is spilling facts and conjecture. “Let’s focus on Mona right now,” I say, almost pleading. “Can she be the one you are looking for?”

  She nods. “Whoever the Singularity is, I’m pretty sure she created the earthquake. It’s too much of a coincidence with the quake and the release of magical energy happening at the same time. If Mona is a Sister, she would be releasing a signature—unless she is the Singularity.”

  “This is not happening…”

  “And even if Mona isn’t the Singularity, even if she’s a regular Sister, Jane probably wants to get Mona’s energy.” She utters the last few words in an increasingly low voice, looking at me expectantly and putting a hand on my shoulder.

  I make an effort to hide my anger and focus on the practical side. “Where are they? Can you turn on your radar or something?”

  She shakes her head. “We’d be wasting time if we just rode around hoping to catch Jane’s signature. Where else could Jane go and have some privacy?”

  “Brianna’s!” I say.

  “Good!” Skye says. “Let’s go!”

  ***

  I drive even faster than before. The police are probably too busy with the quake emergencies to bother with a speeding old car. I try to map the fastest route in my head. I could really use a GPS right now.

  Brianna lives close to I-5, on Corliss Ave. Our school’s street, the 92nd, is the straightest path there. When we’re about five blocks from Brianna’s house, Skye grabs my arm.

  “I’m sensing her!”

  “How many?” I ask.

  “Just one,” she says. “But it’s getting strong quickly.” She bites her lip.

  It takes me a while to put it together in my mind. Jane is probably already absorbing more energy. Which means…

  I can’t put it in words. I just hope I’m wrong.

  We speed past our school grounds, and I glance briefly to my left, seeing the school’s pool, my pool. A thought zaps through my head: I want to go swimming, forget the world, forget all this.

  “It’s too strong!” Skye says.

  I hit the gas harder.

  “Wait!” she says. “It’s weaker now!”

  Something clicks inside my head. I slow down and hit the brakes.

  “What?” Skye asks.

  I put it in reverse and back up, guiding myself through the rearview mirror.

  “It’s getting stronger again,” Skye says, looking at me.

  “Jane is inside the school,” I say, my teeth clenched.

  I reach the lot’s entrance, put the car in gear again, and cross the lot without slowing down. The Volvo hits the curb and goes airborne for a second. I cross the grass and paths in front of school, avoiding trees, and I stop short of the entrance stairs.

  Skye and I leave the car at the same time, climbing the steps two at a time, but by the large door, she pulls my arm.

  “We’re too close,” she says. “Jane is sensing I’m here. She can feel me.”

  “Screw her. When I’m done with her, she won’t feel anything,” I reply.

  The door is locked. Without thinking, I kick its glass part, hard, harder than I’ve ever hit anything. It’s all a blur to me, but a few more kicks create an opening big enough for me to slide my hand inside and open the bolt from the other side.

  We reach the dark hallway. I turn to Skye. “Where?”

  She points to the other side of the building. The gym. We run there.

  When I turn a corner, I see a blurry shape moving toward me. I duck instinctively, slowing down. Skye is right behind me, though, and something hits her before I have a chance to warn her.

  She lets out a yelp and tumbles to the floor. I see another shadow, this time a person running away from us. Even in the dark corridor, I recognize Brianna.

  I turn to Skye. She’s unconscious. Breathing steadily.

  She’s sleeping!

  Crap.

  I shake her a few times and even give her one hard slap. Nothing.

  I leave her there and start toward the gym. I’m more cautious now, aware of the danger of thrown potions.

  Jane must have sensed Skye and sent Brianna to attack us.

  Skye would have sensed where Jane is. But I don’t have this radar, and either Jane or Brianna—or even those two guys from the house—can surprise me.

  But nobody ambushes me. I stop by the gym’s closed doors and look through the glass. The door is close to one of the corners. From where I stand, I can’t see the whole basketball court.

  But I see enough. In the center circle, Mona lays down on the half-court line, still wearing her hospital gown. I can’t see her f
ace.

  Kneeling next to her is Brianna, searching for something inside a backpack. She has a numb, happy expression on her face, like a peaceful zombie. It’s creepy.

  But Jane’s nowhere to be seen.

  I glance over my shoulder—maybe she’s coming from behind me—but nobody’s there. I don’t know what to do.

  Brianna makes the decision for me.

  She removes a handcrafted, ancient-looking black knife from the backpack. Then she looks straight at me.

  I pull my hood over my head, squint my eyes, and take a deep breath. I have no idea how these potions work, but I’ll try to minimize contact with them if someone throws one at me. I open the door, expecting the worst.

  Then I rush inside, half-ducking, just in case Jane is in my blind spot ready to attack me.

  She isn’t, but Brianna yells, “Stop!” Brianna pulls Mona’s inert head up and holds the knife’s blade close to my sister’s throat.

  I halt right underneath the backboard.

  Jane is in the other corner of the court, the one I couldn’t see from the door. She sits cross-legged, with closed eyes and hands resting on her knees: the same pose she used when she tried to kill Skye in the pool. A ritual pose. Since she doesn’t move, I turn to Brianna.

  “Please let my sister go, Brianna,” I say in a calm and soothing voice. “She’s a kid.”

  Brianna looks at me as if I’m mad. “A kid? Have you seen what she did? She created an earthquake!”

  “Don’t hurt her. It’ll accomplish nothing,” I say. Things just come out of my mouth. How do you reason with a person willing to commit murder? How do you think straight when your sister’s life is on the line?

  Jane starts chanting. She’s in a trance-like state, and I wonder if she can even hear us. Taking a cautious step forward, I point to Jane. “Jane wants her power. Jane would be the one creating earthquakes then. Mona didn’t know what she was doing.”

  “That’s the point, idiot,” Brianna says. “Jane will know what to do; she can control all this power.” Brianna doesn’t move the blade even an inch away. She’s stalling. Why?

  I step ahead again. “What’s it to you, Brianna?”

  “Jane will turn me into a Sister.”

  Another step. I’m about at the free-throw line now. “No, she won’t. It can’t be done. Skye told me.”