The two buildings definitely have their own personalities. One houses a refugee camp while the other holds a freedom-fighting army. Obi certainly has his hands full keeping the last dregs of humanity together during the worst crisis in history.
And I thought I had it bad trying to keep my family alive. I can’t imagine how much pressure he must feel being responsible for all these lives.
A couple of guys with construction-worker tans and muscles turn to ogle me as we approach. Beside me, Raffe makes a low growl. The guys take one look at him and glance respectfully away.
I pause to talk to them. ‘I’m looking for the twins – Dee and Dum. Do you know where they are?’
One of them points to a room down the hall. We walk over, and I push open the door without thinking about what might be inside.
‘—hotels,’ says Obi at the head of a conference table. ‘How are we holding up on food and medical—’ He glances up and notices me. He looks as tired as the rest of them, but his eyes are still bright and alert. He’s not the biggest nor the loudest, but there’s still something about him that commands attention. Maybe it’s his straight posture or the confidence in his voice.
There are about a dozen people around him, sitting at a conference table. Everyone looks haggard and exhausted, with dark circles beneath their eyes and unwashed hair sticking out in various directions. It must have been a long night of saving Alcatraz refugees, then an even longer day of getting them settled in.
The room gets quiet, and everyone turns to look at me.
So much for trying to be subtle.
17
‘Sorry,’ I say, trying to gracefully bow out.
Doc jumps up and knocks his chair back so hard that it clatters to the floor. ‘Penryn.’
‘You know her?’ asks Obi.
‘She’s the sister of the child I was telling you about.’
‘Penryn’s sister is the great secret weapon?’ asks Obi.
Uh-oh. I don’t like the sound of this.
‘Did you find her?’ Doc skirts the table and heads my way. He still looks like a college boy with his brown hair and button-up shirt, but now he has a swollen black eye. ‘Is she here?’
The twins sit beside Obi. Their matching hair is still bottle blond. I’d forgotten that they dyed their hair for kicks. They still look like skinny scarecrows to me whether they’re redheads or blonds. A couple of the others look familiar, but I don’t know any of them well.
Obi waves me in. I hesitate, not wanting to bring attention to me or Raffe. But I can’t just run for it, so I go into the room with a wave of my hand behind my back, signaling Raffe to not follow.
‘You’ve got to be joking,’ says a guy I recognize. ‘Her sister is a monstrous horror. You can’t expect her to help us.’ I realize where I’ve seen him before. He was one of the guys who lassoed Paige like a wild animal the last time she was here.
‘Martin, not now,’ says Obi.
The twins lean over in opposite directions to peer around me.
‘Is that Raffe?’ asks Dee.
‘That is so Raffe,’ says Dum.
I start to close the door.
‘No, no, no,’ says Dee. Both the twins get up and walk fast to the door.
‘Raffe, you’re alive,’ says Dum as he pushes the door open.
Raffe has his head tilted down, his eyes in the shadow of his cap.
‘Of course he’s alive,’ says Dee. ‘He’s a warrior. All you have to do is look at him to know that. Who’s going to kill him? Godzilla?’
‘Oh, Raffe versus Godzilla. Now that’s a fight I’d love to take bets on,’ says Dum.
‘Don’t be silly, man. Godzilla’s all pumped up on nuclear waste. How’s a mere mortal supposed to beat that?’
‘He’s not just a mere mortal,’ says Dum. ‘Look at him. He’s probably got some super-strength badass juice in his pocket right now. One gulp and his muscles would have muscles.’
‘Yeah, and we wouldn’t need scary little girls if we had a few like him in our army,’ says Dee.
‘What, you think Penryn’s sister can take on Godzilla instead?’ asks Dum.
Dee thinks about it. ‘Meh, probably not. Maybe her mom can, though.’
Dum’s eyes get wide. ‘Ooh.’
Dee sticks out his hand at Raffe. ‘Tweedledee. This is my brother, Tweedledum.’
‘Remember us?’ asks Dum. ‘We handle fights and manage betting.’
‘Good to have you here,’ Obi says to Raffe. ‘We sure could use a man like you.’
‘Oh, he’s no ordinary man, Obi,’ says Dee.
I try really hard not to look like a frightened rabbit, but I’m sure my eyes are wide and scared. We’re deep in the building. I don’t know how Raffe can escape.
‘We can make you a star, Raffe,’ says Dum, nodding. ‘The women would be all over you.’ He exaggeratedly mouths the words all over while he mimics rubbing his hands over his chest and body.
‘He doesn’t care about that,’ says Dee. ‘He’s a guy who hangs with angels. There were tons of girls at the aerie in San Francisco.’
I try to remember to breathe. That’s right. One of them saw him at the hotel room at the aerie.
‘Never enough, bro,’ says Dum. ‘Never enough.’
‘What do you mean he “hangs with angels”?’ asks Obi as he gets up from the conference table.
My breath refuses to move out of my lungs.
‘Remember?’ says Dee. ‘We told you that Penryn and this guy were in the hotel. Actually talking with angels.’
‘Penryn’s not the only one who knows stuff about them.’ Dum nods.
I let out a deep breath. They remember Raffe, but only as a human.
Obi walks over and waves Raffe into the conference room. ‘That’s great news. We can use all the help and information we can get.’ He puts his hand out for Raffe to shake. Raffe doesn’t.
‘Hello, Obi,’ I say, waving to him.
‘Penryn,’ says Obi, looking over my way. ‘If I wasn’t so exhausted, I’m sure I’d remember whatever unfinished business we have. Instead, I’m just glad to see you alive and well.’
He steps over and hugs me.
I stand there, stiff and unsure. Raffe’s face is expressionless as he watches us.
‘Thanks.’ I hover in front of the door. I remember our unfinished business. Obi locked me and my mother up in a police car, and we escaped in the middle of the night. But despite that, he’s glad to see me.
I admit, after all I’ve been through, it’s sort of good to see him and his gang too. Some people might call that messed up. I call it dealing with family. Not that he’s family, but if things keep going the way they have been, I’ll be glad to see any human being.
‘Where’s your sister?’ asks Doc. He reaches for the door as if he suspects I’m hiding her just outside.
‘Funny you should ask,’ I say, lowering my voice. ‘Can I talk to you for a minute? Outside?’ I have a wild
hope that Doc, Raffe, and I might be able to sneak away.
‘No need for privacy,’ says Obi. ‘Doc told us all about his work on Alcatraz and his hopes for Paige. We’d all love to hear about your sister. Is she all right?’
I look at the faces around the table. All of them are older than me. Some of them look like grizzled veterans from previous wars. Others look like they’re recently off the streets. What would they do if they knew they had an angel in the room?
‘What do you want with her?’ I ask. I can’t help but sound suspicious.
‘Doc tells us she might be our best hope.’
‘Doc is an optimistic guy,’ I say.
‘There’s no harm in seeing, right?’
‘The last time you took a look at her, you had her tied in ropes like a rabid animal.’ I can’t help but glance at Martin. His hand still looks rope burned as he drums a pencil against the fingers of his open hand.
‘That wasn’t me,’ says Obi. ‘I came on the scene just before you did and was trying to figure out what happened. Look, people make mistakes. We’re driven by fear and exhaustion and outright stupidity sometimes. We’re not perfect like the angels. All we can do is rely on each other and do our best. I’m sorry for how your sister was treated. We need her, Penryn. She could turn this war around.’
‘Not if she starves to death,’ I say. ‘Make Doc fix her, and we’ll talk about what she can do for you.’
‘Fix her?’ asks Obi.
I glance at Doc.
‘I’ll see what I can do,’ says Doc. ‘I need to make sure she’s all right first, which means I need to see her.’ He gives me a pointed look.
‘Can you bring her to us?’ asks Obi.
I shake my head. ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea.’ I glance again at Martin, who is watching us with intense eyes.
‘Fine,’ says Doc before Obi can object. ‘Take me to her.’
I turn, hoping for a quick escape, but Obi calls out my name.
‘There’s been a rumor about a teenage girl who killed an angel,’ says Obi. ‘They say she has a sword that might be disguised as a teddy bear.’ He looks at Pooky Bear dangling off my hip. ‘You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?’