At dusk I no longer have the nervous tingle in my gut over seeing Steel again; I simply feel defeated. We move the van to another area of town and send Tinkle into the spectrum world to see what he can find. I insist on hitting the pavement this time if for no other reason than to stretch my legs. I’ve been camped in that van for over a day.
We walk the streets and alleyways as a group. I’m not the only one with energy to burn. Sterling begged off computer duty as well. A smattering of snowflakes sprinkle from the sky, but the fall isn’t dense enough to accumulate on the ground. Every flake is a pinprick of cold when it lands on my face.
“Why does it feel so much colder here? The temperature isn’t even as low as it gets in Colorado, but I feel the chill down to my bones.” Ash hunches farther into her puffer jacket. She’s from Arizona and doesn’t know what wet cold feels like.
“It’s the humidity,” I explain. “The dampness in the air makes it feel colder than it actually is. Your clothes are less insulating here as well.”
“How do you know that?”
“I’ve spent a lot of time outdoors.” I had a vested interest in learning about weather conditions and the elements since I spent extended periods of time without proper shelter.
“Oh.”
It falls quiet after that. The only sound is the shuffling of our feet as we walk down the sidewalk. Which is weird, because it’s not that late in the evening. It’s as if everyone ran out of this part of town when the sun went down. I can understand why. The buildings around us are creepy. At least half of them have For Rent or For Sale signs taped in the front windows. The ones that don’t are dark inside. A few even have the windows knocked out of them.
I think I hear an engine rev and stop walking. The other four angel-born continue trekking down the street, but I stare down the road on my right. There’s no one there, but a muttered curse echoes off the buildings. The hair on the nape of my neck starts to tingle.
The group is a solid block ahead of me when I turn and start down the street. Another muffled curse has my feet moving faster, and it’s no time before I’m rounding the corner and skidding to a halt.
He’s there.
Chapter Seven
Steel’s hunched over his motorcycle, riffling through the saddlebag. All he has to do is glance up and he’ll see me, but his attention is elsewhere. It’s so much like the last time I laid eyes on him.
But also . . . not.
I take quiet steps forward until a jolt works its way through Steel’s frame. His hands stop moving. His whole body freezes, and I follow suit. The only movement I detect is a muscle twitch along his jawline.
My heart thumps in my chest twice, and then his head hinges up. Slowly.
His face is a stone mask. But his eyes. His eyes contain emotion enough for his entire body.
Steel is furious.
We stand a car length away from each other, but it might as well be mere inches. His anger hits me in the face like the heat from a raging fire. I suspected he wouldn’t be overjoyed to see me, but this reaction is a bit extreme.
In a very Terminator move, Steel stretches to his full height and stomps toward me.
His usual swagger is gone. His moves are stiff, like his muscles won’t contract enough to allow his joints to bend fluidly.
And me. I’m just standing. And staring. Completely mute.
“She’s this way,” Sterling’s voice calls out. The sound of feet beating against the pavement follows his announcement.
I know the instant they round the corner because Steel’s eyes finally leave my face and track over my shoulder. Frustration replaces a measure of fury in his gaze.
“You told them,” he sighs in resignation.
A pang of guilt strikes my heart, but I won’t be sorry for what I did.
Tipping his head to the stars, Steel exposes the full column of his neck. He doesn’t look back down until the rest of the group surrounds me.
“You just had to come, didn’t you?”
“Did you expect any less?” Greyson asks his brother.
“What I expected was for you all to stay out of this.”
“If you really wanted that you wouldn’t have kept making stalker phone calls to your girl, bro.” Sterling lifts both eyebrows. “Seriously, you know how easy it was for me to track you?”
Steel flicks a glare laden with accusation at me. I cross my arms over my chest. This is not the reunion I’ve been hoping for.
Taking a small step back, I blend into the group. Nova and Ash stand slightly in front of me. Steel’s gaze roams in my direction more than once as he bickers with his siblings about whether or not we’ll be staying to help or returning to the academy.
“Listen, Steel,” Greyson finally says. “We either stay here and help you take care of our family issue, or we head back and Emberly goes on a little trip to the Council’s compound.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We were able to get away under the guise of escorting Emberly to her big Council meet n’ greet. If you force us to return without you, we’re going to have to actually take her to the Elders at their compound in Egypt. Do you really want that on your conscience?”
Clearing my throat, I purse my lips at Greyson. That’s not exactly the truth. He’s using my situation to manipulate Steel, and I’m not sure I’m on board with that.
A prickle of awareness skitters across my skin. I’m being scrutinized.
Sure enough, Steel’s teal eyes are locked on me with an intensity that borders on obsession.
Nova steps forward, breaking our staring contest.
“Don’t be a blockhead about this, Steel. Your chance of success only increases with our help.” Tilting her head, she gives him a solid once-over. “From the looks of it you’re not in a position to refuse us right now. You look awful. Unless you’re going for heroin-chic, in which case you nailed it.”
“Thanks, Nova. That was delicately said,” Steel deadpans.
“Anytime. I enjoy throwing truth bombs. I like the sound they make when they explode.”
Ash takes a half-step away from Nova, a concerned frown pulling down the corners of her mouth. I squish my lips together and hold a straight face. Nova’s scary sometimes, but her bark is worse than her bite. I hope.
After scrubbing a hand over his face and muttering for a solid thirty seconds—I catch words like “nuisance” and “family” and “annoying”—Steel finally relents.
“Come on, let’s get you guys settled in the same dump I’m at. I’ll update you on the situation when we get there.”
When we arrive back at Steel’s motel, Nova and Sterling firmly refuse to even entertain the idea of renting rooms there.
I keep my mouth shut, not seeing the problem. The rooms have a bed and a bathroom. Check and check. What more do we need?
But Nova insists she’ll catch bed bugs, and Sterling goes on about how he’s worried his hair dryer will short-circuit the whole place.
A fiery round of arguing ensues until Steel agrees to move to a different location. We settle on a low-budget hotel in a seedy part of town that still looks cleanish.
We grab adjoining rooms with two queen beds in each. Keeping the door between rooms open, we convene in one. Ash and I sit cross-legged on one of the beds. Nova props herself up against the headboard of the other. Sterling and Greyson settle on the floor.