The Calling (Darkness Rising 2)

"Who promised me I could be a parent to my children, then robbed me of that right after I found you again. Yes, I found you. I'm the one who tracked you down in Oregon. Then the St. Clouds set up a phony job interview for Rick Delaney and decided you were too attached to your adoptive parents. So they moved your whole family to Salmon Creek, while keeping me on the line, promising I could be part of your life as soon as you were ready to know the truth. It took me awhile, but I eventually figured out that was a lie. So I left."

"And took your story to a rival Cabal. Sold us out. Told them where to find us."

Silence. Then, "You've figured out a lot, Maya. You're a very smart girl." A small laugh. "I'd like to say that means you take after your father."

"No, I take after my parents. The Delaneys."

I turned off the radio, and looked at the others, who were staring at me.

"There isn't another exit, is there?" I said.

"Got a trapdoor over here." Corey waved us into the storage room. He pulled aside a filthy carpet. The trapdoor had been secured with a padlock, but he'd manage

d to pry the whole latch off.

"Does it lead anywhere?" Daniel said.

"No. It's just a hole where they stash the beer and smokes. Big enough to hide in, though."

Daniel shook his head and we walked back into the store, where the radio was buzzing again.

"If you don't answer that, he's going to come in here," Sam said. "They all are."

"And if she does answer, they'll come in anyway," Daniel said. "He was hoping she'd lead us out peacefully, but obviously that's not happening."

"I could fake it," I said.

"He'd know you were up to something."

They talked--Daniel, Corey, and Sam. I was having trouble concentrating. That damned buzzing radio didn't help. I went behind the counter to see if I could turn it off. As I picked it up, the newspaper fell to the floor. It flipped over and a headline caught my eye.

Bodies of Local Teens Recovered.

Before I could take a better look, Daniel said something about causing a distraction.

"That's probably our only hope," I said as I straightened.

"The question is how to pull it off."

He told us his idea.

"No," I said when he finished. "Absolutely not. No one sacrifices themselves for this."

"We don't have time to argue," Daniel said. "I'll be fine--"

"But we won't," Sam said. "We need you to get us out of here. It has to be someone else."

"And you're volunteering, right?" Corey said.

Sam opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

"Thought so." Corey turned to us. "I'll go. Play the hero for a change." A forced smile. "I hear chicks really go for that kind of thing."

"It should be me," I said. "That ... guy. He wants me. I can distract--"

The crash of breaking glass had us all hitting the floor. Another crash as a second window smashed, glass tinkling. Shouts sounded outside.

I looked up to see brown liquid running down the wall under the broken window. Some kind of solidified gas? Sedative?