The Shadow Crosser (The Storm Runner 3)

“She flew off to take Marco some food and make sure he was okay,” Ren said. “I hope the time rope isn’t messing with him.”

Oh. Right.

“I’ll go find her,” I said, frustrated that she would leave us when every second mattered.

Jazz came in and leaped over the back of the sofa, landing with a thump. “We better hurry. Once Prince arrives, no one else will be getting on that boat. I heard he brings his own security.”

“Brooks and I will meet up with you guys,” I said. “Where do you keep your boat, Jazz?”

“Betty’s parked at the Marina del Rey docks,” Jazz said. “About two miles south. Just be quick. I gotta be at the arcade.”

A few minutes later, I arrived at the bench where we had left Marco. But no Marco. Seriously? I was going to incinerate the guy! All he had to do was sit there and keep hold of our ride home. The crowds had thinned to a few stragglers cruising down the boardwalk and beach. I scanned the area and didn’t spot him or Brooks.

Where could they have gone? As I hooked a right down an alley, I collided with someone.

“Zane?” Brooks said. “What are you doing here?”

“Me?” I said, trying to hold my annoyance in check. I mean, who cared that she wanted to feed the son of war and thought he was the strongest? I couldn’t think about that right now. Time was running out.

“Where the heck’s Marco?”

“I found him on the beach,” she said, like it was totally okay that he had left his post. “He’s up to his ears in sand.”

“What do you mean?” Was he building a sandcastle or something?

“He said the rope was messing with his head, trying to make deals with him, so he buried himself so he wouldn’t have to listen anymore.”

“Do you think we can count on him to stay put?” I said, handing her the Obi-Wan costume.

“He won’t let us down,” she said.

Those five dumb words made my stomach twist into a million knots.

“Come on, Obispo,” said Brooks as she changed into a hawk. “Let’s go find some gods.”

We touched down on the dock in Marina del Rey, instantly spotting our crew, which wasn’t hard to do, since they were all dressed like Obi-Wan Kenobi. Even Jazz was playing the part, and he had what looked like a real lightsaber—or maybe it was just another one of his zapping tools.

Betty was a small navy-blue motorboat with bench seating behind the wheel. Jazz seemed to know his way around the controls, because a minute after we boarded, he zipped into the open water. The sea looked like black glass, shiny in the half moonlight. No one said anything. We all just kept our eyes on the water as if pretending that we weren’t about to do what we were about to do. Rosie propped her front paw on the gunwale and let the wind hit her face like she used to back in New Mexico, when she rode in Hondo’s truck. For half a second, I could see her as the dog she used to be.

Jazz said, “Check it out,” as he flicked a switch and the motor went silent. But we were still cruising.

Adrik got to his feet. “How did you do that?”

Looking over his shoulder, Jazz wiggled his eyebrows. “I told you she was souped-up. Like the Millennium Falcon. Maybe someday I’ll figure out how to make her jump to light speed.”

“Wow,” Ren said. “You’re really smart. I mean, I know you’re an inventor—” She stopped herself, throwing me an oops look. I couldn’t even be mad. I mean, it was hard to forget everything we knew about Jazz’s future and who he would grow up to become.

“I like that,” Jazz said, nodding. “Inventor.” A minute later, he brought the boat to a stop and faced us. “I need some insurance.”

“Huh?” we all said at the same moment.

“You say you’re magicians,” he said. “Prove it. Show me some magic.”

Ren shifted in her seat before drawing a long black shape out of the water. “Shadow magician,” she said.

Jazz seemed impressed. Then he turned to me and Adrik. I flashed some fire. Adrik? He just said, “Sorry, dude. My magic is in the dream realm.”

Jazz folded his arms across his chest. “All magicians can do at least one trick.”