he tells me, reaching out his hand. My breath catches in my throat, thinking he’s going to touch me, but he grabs the doorknob to shut the door behind me. The lock clicks.
I run back to our meeting place, my heart beating wildly in my chest. Glasses Girl and the other two are there, though Savannah is not. I tell them I’ve found Neil, and we wait. The minutes tick by, and I wonder if I made the right decision to come back. Occasionally we hear shouting, but no one comes our way.
Finally Savannah shows up, smiling and puffing her hair. We celebrate not being jailed and jellied. I lead them back, perform my secret knock, and Neil lets us in.
We sit on the mats, laughing and talking. Once in a while the main doors open and others come join us. Then Pastor Joe comes in to tell us the game is over. The soldiers, including Andy, march in behind him, looking dejected. The chosen one was never caught, and the Christians win this round. I cheer as loud as anyone else.
We spread our sleeping bags onto the mats in the gym, and although we’re told to pipe down, the room never gets totally quiet. We’re too pumped up.
A knocking sound. Long , long, long. Short, short, long. My eyes pop open, and a hologram screen shines above me.
“Where is she?” It’s a melodic voice, but demanding and cold. I freeze.
“She’s up there, powering up in a chamber,” Julian answers nonchalantly. I must not be in danger. Relaxing slightly, I shift my position in the console so I can spy on the new arrival.
Tall and imposing, she’s as striking as a runway model. Her pink hair is cropped in a pixie cut, and she’s wearing a strapless, sliced-up silver ball gown over a pair of skinny black jeans and six-inch silver stiletto boots. “Get her down. You’ve been due back for more than a week. Eli wants to prepare phase three.” Her words are sometimes a little too clipped, sometimes a little too slurred, an accentthat sounds vaguely Scandinavian. Icelandic maybe.
Julian starts up the stairs, but I slip out by myself and gingerly make my way over to the top step. I feel so underdressed in my plain white shift, though I guess nothing I could conjure up from my earthly wardrobe would rival this girl’s funky elegance. Might as well not even try. Probably don’t have enough power yet anyway.
“You must be Felicia,” she purrs up at me, her voice as soothing as honey. She saunters over and drapes her arm around Julian. “I’m Mira, a friend of Julian’s. Are you ready to go?”
Mira’s presence raises a ton more questions, and her unexpected friendliness gives me the courage to ask one. “I’ve been wondering something.”
“Yes?” Mira narrows her violet eyes and retracts her arm. Her shift in demeanor is dramatic.
“How did you and Julian get out of your hives? I tried forever to get out, and I never found a way.”
Mira and Julian exchange a significant look.
“We were recruited by the rebellion, the angel underground,” Mira says.
“Angels?” I gape at her. “Wait . . . so angels are fighting the guardians who are enslaving us here?”
Mira laughs. It’s like the tinkling of a thousand tiny bells. “Julian, dear . . . how much have you told her?”
“Not much.” His answer is gruff.
“I can see that.” Mira gestures at me to come closer. I descend until I am standing on the second stair fromthe bottom and looking straight into her eyes.
“Forget everything you have heard about angels. That they are some kind of celestial beings who only want the best for you, who want to protect you. True—some are like that. Like the rebels.” She reaches out and takes my hand, guiding me down the last two steps.
“But then there’s the Morati.” She says it sadly, like a lament. “Enemies of good, unhappy with the job God gave them as guardians of this realm. And they want you.”
CHAPTER 9
“ME? WHAT DO THEY WANT WITH ME?” My body wobbles, and I might fall if not for Mira’s hand on my
I run back to our meeting place, my heart beating wildly in my chest. Glasses Girl and the other two are there, though Savannah is not. I tell them I’ve found Neil, and we wait. The minutes tick by, and I wonder if I made the right decision to come back. Occasionally we hear shouting, but no one comes our way.
Finally Savannah shows up, smiling and puffing her hair. We celebrate not being jailed and jellied. I lead them back, perform my secret knock, and Neil lets us in.
We sit on the mats, laughing and talking. Once in a while the main doors open and others come join us. Then Pastor Joe comes in to tell us the game is over. The soldiers, including Andy, march in behind him, looking dejected. The chosen one was never caught, and the Christians win this round. I cheer as loud as anyone else.
We spread our sleeping bags onto the mats in the gym, and although we’re told to pipe down, the room never gets totally quiet. We’re too pumped up.
A knocking sound. Long , long, long. Short, short, long. My eyes pop open, and a hologram screen shines above me.
“Where is she?” It’s a melodic voice, but demanding and cold. I freeze.
“She’s up there, powering up in a chamber,” Julian answers nonchalantly. I must not be in danger. Relaxing slightly, I shift my position in the console so I can spy on the new arrival.
Tall and imposing, she’s as striking as a runway model. Her pink hair is cropped in a pixie cut, and she’s wearing a strapless, sliced-up silver ball gown over a pair of skinny black jeans and six-inch silver stiletto boots. “Get her down. You’ve been due back for more than a week. Eli wants to prepare phase three.” Her words are sometimes a little too clipped, sometimes a little too slurred, an accentthat sounds vaguely Scandinavian. Icelandic maybe.
Julian starts up the stairs, but I slip out by myself and gingerly make my way over to the top step. I feel so underdressed in my plain white shift, though I guess nothing I could conjure up from my earthly wardrobe would rival this girl’s funky elegance. Might as well not even try. Probably don’t have enough power yet anyway.
“You must be Felicia,” she purrs up at me, her voice as soothing as honey. She saunters over and drapes her arm around Julian. “I’m Mira, a friend of Julian’s. Are you ready to go?”
Mira’s presence raises a ton more questions, and her unexpected friendliness gives me the courage to ask one. “I’ve been wondering something.”
“Yes?” Mira narrows her violet eyes and retracts her arm. Her shift in demeanor is dramatic.
“How did you and Julian get out of your hives? I tried forever to get out, and I never found a way.”
Mira and Julian exchange a significant look.
“We were recruited by the rebellion, the angel underground,” Mira says.
“Angels?” I gape at her. “Wait . . . so angels are fighting the guardians who are enslaving us here?”
Mira laughs. It’s like the tinkling of a thousand tiny bells. “Julian, dear . . . how much have you told her?”
“Not much.” His answer is gruff.
“I can see that.” Mira gestures at me to come closer. I descend until I am standing on the second stair fromthe bottom and looking straight into her eyes.
“Forget everything you have heard about angels. That they are some kind of celestial beings who only want the best for you, who want to protect you. True—some are like that. Like the rebels.” She reaches out and takes my hand, guiding me down the last two steps.
“But then there’s the Morati.” She says it sadly, like a lament. “Enemies of good, unhappy with the job God gave them as guardians of this realm. And they want you.”
CHAPTER 9
“ME? WHAT DO THEY WANT WITH ME?” My body wobbles, and I might fall if not for Mira’s hand on my
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