“A pretty aunt,” Cole teased.
“Forget I said anything.”
Cole could tell his friend was really uncomfortable. “Okay. New subject. I guess it’s hard to do voices? You know, when you make a seeming?”
“Sounds are tricky,” Dalton said, seizing the new topic like a life preserver. “I can’t do them yet. Same with smells. They should work the same way as visuals, but most of us find them way harder.”
Refocusing, Cole tried to force his break-dancing toddler into existence. He strained to actually see him instead of just imagine him in his mind. He envisioned details—rustling diapers, wispy curls, pink skin with chubby little folds of baby fat. Nothing materialized.
“Your face is turning red,” Dalton said.
Cole laughed. “I’m not sure seemings are my thing.”
“I’d rather have a Jumping Sword,” Dalton said. “Those sound cool. I wish I could see one.”
“They’re awesome when they work,” Cole said. “Skye stashed them somewhere this morning. She didn’t want them to get confiscated at the Silver Lining, and she didn’t want to leave them at her mom’s place.”
Stretching, Dalton looked around. “If I have to be stuck in the Outskirts, I’m glad you’re with me. I mean, I’m not glad you’re stuck here, but, you know—”
“I get it,” Cole said. “I feel the same way. The thought of you and Jenna out there someplace helped keep me going. I don’t know how I would have been if I was here alone. Less brave, probably.”
Jace rolled over. “Less brave? You were already breaking records!”
“I thought you were asleep,” Cole said.
Jace groaned. “How can I sleep with you two babbling nonstop? Tell me more about the food you miss. Is it peanut butter most? Or cereal?”
“You wouldn’t mock it if you’d tried it,” Dalton said.
“Maybe,” Jace said. “What are hamburgers?”
Dalton made a perfect burger appear on the table.
Jace leaned forward. “What’s in the middle? Ground meat?”
“Yep,” Cole said. “Beef.”
“Okay,” Jace admitted. “That looks pretty good.”
Cole heard a noise downstairs. “Is that Skye?”
The burger vanished.
Jace grinned. “Might want to fix your hair a little, Dalton.”
Dalton glared.
“What?” Jace whispered innocently. “Don’t you want to be the favorite nephew?”
Cole heard soft footsteps downstairs. Dalton quickly ran his fingers through his hair.
Jace rolled off the couch, grabbed a heavy lamp, and crept over to where the ladder came up from below. Holding the lamp ready to swing, he put a finger to his lips.
“This is why it’s nice to have Jace around,” Cole whispered.
Skye’s head came up through the fake floor. She was momentarily startled when she saw Jace, then she smiled up at him. “Expecting someone?”
Jace lowered the lamp. “I’m almost disappointed. It’s not every day you get this good of a free shot.”
“I have great news,” Skye said, not coming all the way up. “I know the people who nabbed the guardsman. We get to go meet him right now. Don’t leave anything behind. We may not come back here.”
They wove through the streets of Merriston disguised as unremarkable people. From the quiet basement of a large inn, Skye led them into a maze of underground passages. After navigating a clever assortment of seemings, they reached a heavy wooden door hidden behind an illusionary brick wall.
Dropping her disguise, Skye slapped a palm against the door. “Let us in!”
A peephole slid open to reveal a pair of dark eyes. “Skye! Good to see you! What goes up, must . . .”
“Be higher,” she replied.
“A ringer saved is a ringer . . .”
“That owes you one,” Skye finished.
“Seeing is . . .”
“Deceiving.”
“Word of the day?”
“Lemon.”
The door opened. A tall man with brown skin and a wide smile pulled Skye in for a hug. “You’ve been too unseen lately,” he said. “Who are your friends?”
Skye introduced Cole, Jace, and Dalton. “This is Sultan,” she said. “One of the best.”
“Ben told me to watch for you,” Sultan said. “Come with me.”
They moved through two more doors and into a confusing warren of halls and chambers. Cole got glimpses of people in rooms they passed, men and women eating at a long table, an old guy petting a big dog, a woman with an eye patch studying a map. Some doors were closed.
They reached a muscular man guarding a heavy door. He stepped aside, and Sultan opened it. Inside they found a young, lean man with scruffy whiskers and very short hair. He stood up as they entered. “More visitors?” he asked.
“You told us you want to get your story out,” Sultan said.
“Not one person at a time,” the man said. “This needs to go public. Nobody gets what’s coming. Cities that don’t evacuate only make her stronger. Our leaders need to face the facts.”
Cole wasn’t sure the guy was quite sane. His earnestness and intensity seemed almost fanatical.
“Her?” Skye asked. “The monster is a girl?”
“Her name is Morgassa,” the man said.
“How big?” Skye asked.
“Your size,” he said. “More or less.”
“She’s a woman?” Skye asked.
“She looks like a woman.”
“You saw her?”
“Sure did,” the man said. “And heard her. I saw her horde. They passed by all around me.” He glanced at Sultan. “What’s with the kids?”
“This is Skye,” Sultan said. “She’s one of our top operatives. The kids are in her care. She can help get your message heard.”
“I worked at the Silver Lining,” Dalton said. “There’s no better place in Elloweer to start a rumor.”
“The kids belong here,” Skye said. “I never caught your name.”
“I’m Russell,” the man said. “Look, I don’t mean to be rude, but spreading this message is up to you guys now. I’ve done my part. Sultan already knows all I’ve got to say. He can tell you as well as I can.”
“Humor us,” Sultan said. “I want Skye to hear it from your lips.”