Transparent (18 page)

“Are you sure about this?” Seth asks.

I take a deep breath. “Stay here.”

“What? No way.” His brows are set low over his eyes.

I swallow the lump in my throat. “Look, I appreciate the chivalry and all, but you can’t get mixed up in this any more than you are. It’s better if you just go home and forget about everything.”

Then if I get taken, everybody else will be safe. It’ll be like I was never here. If I have to leave, that’s how I want to go.

“It’ll be fine.” He turns off the truck and gets out.

“Wait!” I follow him to my door, blocking it. “You are
not
coming.”

“Yes, I am. You asked me to help you figure this out.”

I put my hands on my hips. “I asked you to help me find a place to stay! I didn’t ask you to throw yourself in harm’s way.”

“Isn’t it the same thing? Aren’t I already in danger?”

I pause, angry that he has me. “Just … don’t talk. It’s bad enough if anyone sees your face.”

He straightens, his full height almost intimidating if he weren’t so thin. “Fine.”

I reluctantly open the door. The cold air seems fitting for the empty living room. I step in slowly, scanning the dark. There’s not a single sign of life. Not even coffee in the coffeemaker. My heart beats harder. They’re not here. They really did get taken. Graham and Dad were probably celebrating, or plotting how to find me. I force myself to keep looking, since I don’t have solid proof yet.

“What’s that?” Seth whispers.

“I thought I told you not to talk.”

“I know, but … is that music?”

I stop in the hall, trying to listen over the blowing air conditioner. There is something, and a flicker of hope rushes through me. I head for the garage door, ripping it open.

Mom’s hippie-dippie music blares out. She bobs her head as she waves her graceful hands. A clay pot twirls in mid-air, growing at her will.

I sigh in relief. At least she’s not tied up. Maybe we still have a chance. “Mom!”

She jumps, spinning around. But her eyes don’t find me; they zero in on Seth. “Fiona! Who’s this?”

“Is Miles here?”

She sets down her pot. “I think he’s still sleeping. Is something wrong? You sound worried.”

“I saw Dad.”

“What?” she shrieks.

I run to the guest room, part relieved and part angry that Miles slept through both my messages. Mom follows, begging me to explain, but I’d rather not have to repeat myself. I push my brother’s door open and throw on the light.

Miles shoots up. “Damn, Fiona, where’s the fire?”

I toss him a shirt. “We have to go. I saw Dad in Saguro.”

His eyes go wide. “Shit.”

Mom shakes her head. “There has to be some kind of mistake. What were you doing in Saguro anyway?” She eyes Seth, and my face heats up.

“I saw his bike, and then I saw
him
through the diner window eating lunch with Graham.”

“I knew it.” Miles pulls the shirt over his head. “I’m gonna kill him.”

“No …” Mom puts her hand over her heart, like the information is physically painful. “There must be an explanation. He said—”

“He was lying, Mom!” I stamp my foot, frustrated that even with so much proof she believes Graham over me. “I told you he was bad! But we can get out of here. We still have time.”

Miles stands. “I have a full tank. If we leave right now, we can at least get a head start.”

Mom wipes a tear from her face. “Graham said to stay here at all costs. He said he’d protect this house.”

My chest tightens, but this time it isn’t anger. It’s sadness. She’s so messed up. After all those years of being manipulated, how could she not be?

“Mom, he
lied.
”

“He didn’t! Why would he keep us safe this long just to turn us in? Why would he get me a job? Make sure my employers keep quiet? It doesn’t make sense.”

“No, it doesn’t, but there has to be some kind of reason.” Miles folds his arms. “Whatever it is, it’s not good.”

“You’re wrong!” Mom holds back tears. “It’s always been you two against Graham, but he’s not a monster. He’s my son—your brother. He wouldn’t give us all of this just to take it away. He was probably distracting your father from looking in this area. They weren’t
here.
”

I can’t believe she’s doing this. I thought maybe she had changed, that I’d misjudged her. “You really do want to go back, don’t you?”

She stares at me, searching for my eyes. “No.”

“You’re hoping Dad comes here! You want him to find you, because that means he still loves you.” I force my hands to stay at my sides, so they don’t find anything to hit. “News flash, Mom. He doesn’t love you. He never has! I don’t care if you love him—you’re just a tool!”

Her mouth drops open, but she doesn’t say anything.

“He doesn’t want you back because he misses you. He wants you back because he needs your ability to pad his pockets. He … doesn’t want me, either.” The thought hurts, even if I don’t want it to. “He wants his invisible henchman.”

Mom looks at her hands, the hands that have stolen millions. “You think I don’t know that?”

“Then let’s go while we can.” I hold out my hand. “Please, Mom.”

She stares at my sleeve, and then runs a hand through her wild hair. “Fiona, I can’t. That’s not—”

“Fine. I get it.” I want to scream—she’s being such an idiot—but at the same time I fight back tears. Suddenly I understand what Seth was saying about answers. No matter what I do, I can’t fix my mom even if I try. But she’s not dragging me down with her. Not this time. “I’m out of here. Have fun with Dad.”

I head to my room and grab the biggest bag I have. I can feel Seth behind me, but he doesn’t say anything. Miles, on the other hand, does. “Where are you going?”

“Either with you or back to Bea’s, I guess.” I hate taking advantage of the Navarros’s hospitality, but it’s the only other place I feel safe.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like you to stay with The Pack. I have … a contact I need to see, and she doesn’t like strangers.”

I raise an eyebrow at him. “Who?”

“Fi.” Miles’s face is so serious it scares me. He hardly seems like the brother I know. “You know who.”

“Spud?” It comes out in a whisper, as if even my voice can’t believe he personally knows the most infamous hacker alive.

He nods. “I have an idea, but I don’t know if it’ll work until I talk to her.”

“What about Mom?” I hate the idea of leaving her, but what else can I do?

“I’ll stay with her today, see if I can convince her it’s not safe. Hopefully Dad won’t show up.”

“Please just go now.” I shove in every dress I brought. Forget pants. “I couldn’t stand it if you got hurt for not telling them where I am.”

“I don’t know where you’re going, do I? So there’s really no reason for a beating.”

I know he’s trying to be funny, but it isn’t working. “That won’t stop them. And could you please answer your freaking phone? It would have been nice to know you were alive this morning.”

“Will do.” He pulls it from his pocket and winces. “It died. Oops.”

“Good one, Miles.” Why is it that I’m the only one panicking? Maybe it’s because I stand to lose the most if Dad comes strolling through the door. Stupid me, getting attached to this place.

“Don’t be like that,” Miles says. “You’ll be safe. That’s what matters most to me. Seth, you better take care of her, at least until I can get more information.”

“I will.” His voice is soft.

“I told you what’s really going on. Graham is ratting us out to Dad right now.” I sling my bag over my shoulder. I’m determined not to say good-bye, but Miles grabs me into a hug.

“That’s why it’s time to pull out the big guns. Lay low; I’ll email you when I know more.”

“Whatever.” I nearly choke on the word. Why won’t he just get himself out? He might be worthless to Dad, but that won’t keep him safe. He has to know that.

“Love you, Fi.”

I can’t say it back. I won’t cry. The only thing I can do is squeeze him tighter, and then I let go and head for the door. Seth starts the truck. We’re almost to his house before he says, “What are you going to do?”

I’m not really sure. I don’t want to leave Madison, much as I should. The idea of never seeing Bea or Seth or Brady again makes my heart ache. “I should probably run.”

“Maybe … maybe you could stay.” He parks the car, but his hands still grip the steering wheel. “What your mom said could be true. Graham could have been throwing him off the trail.”

My jaw drops. “You’re siding with my mom?”

“No!”

I glare at him. “Then what?”

“I guess I’m just saying give it a few days before you disappear. Maybe it
is
a misunderstanding, and …” Seth bites his lip.

I’m not in the mood for these pauses. “And?”

“There are lots of people here who’d miss you if you just upped and left. I’m assuming I’m sworn to silence here, but Bea would probably rip my balls off if she found out I knew you were running and didn’t try to stop you.”

I wince at the image. “Jeez, can you be more graphic?”

“I’m serious. You think the Navarros let people in like that often? Well, they don’t. They care about you. We all do.”

I stare at him. He might not be looking at me, but I can see the worry in his brow, the desperation in his locked jaw. He … doesn’t want me to leave. My heart warms, even if I know staying for a boy is about as reckless as it gets. But I already wanted to, and this seals it. I have to at least try. “Two days.”

He nods. “Fair enough. But if there’s any word that things are safe, you have to promise to stay.”

I sigh, wishing I had the willpower to say no. “Okay.”

“Bea should be back home now. We’ll tell Rosa you’re having family problems. It’ll be okay.”

I follow him to the Navarros, hoping he’s right.

It’s Tuesday. Day two. I check my email after school, since I don’t dare use Seth’s or Bea’s internet connection. Nothing more to tie them to me. Seth sits at the nearest table, eyeing me. Even if he can’t protect me, I feel safer with him nearby anyway.

As I log into my account, my fingers feel slick against the keys. There are three messages, two of which are spam for ability-enhancing drugs. Radiasure may be illegal, but that doesn’t stop people from making new, “safer” things that supposedly boost powers. Either they don’t do anything, or they’re really bad for you.

The third message is from HotMulletMan1. I click it, my heart pounding. Please be good news.

BritBunny, The Big Man never showed. The Lap Dog left yesterday, according to Mom. He was waiting for you—he’s not happy that you don’t come home at night. He started asking a lot about where you’re going, who you’re with. He thinks he should keep better tabs on you to make sure you’re “safe.”

I’m back in Tucson, and I’m meeting up with my contact in the next couple days. Tell me if there are signs of trouble. For now, it seems like you’re safe. Just be careful.

I hate to say maybe he’s not lying (I know that’ll piss you off), but I can’t rule it out. I just don’t know why he’d want to protect you so much. I’m gonna dig deep this week, promise. (And no, I’m not gonna get killed so chill out.)

Love, HotMulletMan1

(P.S. Bag the phone. Lap Dog grabbed mine and saw your messages on it.)

I let out a long sigh. It doesn’t feel like enough, but Miles did say I’d be safe. I guess that means I’m staying for now, but I’m not sure how long this can last. There’s no way Dad’s given up—not even Graham could convince him to do that.

The second I log out, Seth’s in my face. “So?”

I pull out my phone and drop it to the ground. My flip-flops definitely won’t break it. “Could you crush that for me?”

“Um, sure.” It cracks under his tennis shoe.

“Hey! There you are,” Bea calls from the library entrance. She looks between Seth and me with a sly smile. “Did you two forget about tutoring? Everyone’s about to leave.”

“Oh yeah.” My shoulders slump. “Math. Forgot.”

Bea’s smile fades. “Is something wrong?”

“She’s …” Seth gently puts his hand on my shoulder, and I savor the sensation. He keeps touching me like that,
and I wish he’d just say he liked me so I wouldn’t have to wonder if we’re more than friends or not. “Not feeling well. Maybe we should take you back to Bea’s.”

Bea raises an eyebrow. “Seth, are you actually saying you’re going to ditch tutoring?”

“No.” His face goes red. “I … maybe.”

“I can deal. Don’t worry.” I head for the math room, not particularly interested in explaining myself. Seth has the sense not to ask, but he does spend most of the class working with me, since my test is tomorrow. I wish I could say I cared more—at this point I’m mostly doing it because Seth thinks I can, and he actually smiles when I manage to get a problem right. I owe him at least that after all I’ve put him through.

Besides, he’s really cute when he smiles.

“Ugh.” I put my head on the desk after he excuses the others. The thought of doing this for another hour is physically painful.

“How are you feeling?” Seth puts his hand over my apple-green bangle, and even that gets me all fluttery.

“Do I have to stay longer? My brain is fried.”

“You’ve been drilling her like crazy, Seth,” Bea says. “She deserves to go swimming or something. We should all relax.”

Floating in the water, letting the stress wash away for a second. “Sounds nice.”

Seth purses his lips. “Well, you did manage a C on this worksheet, so theoretically you should pass tomorrow. But …”

“But?”

“You’re going to take this test, right? You won’t play sick to avoid it or anything?” He gulps, and I realize he might think I’m leaving. I did have him destroy my phone.

“Oh, yeah, I’ll be here. Whether I want to be or not.”

He smiles, seeming relieved. “We could go swimming, then.”

“Really?” Bea looks between us suspiciously.

Seth shrugs. “Sure. I’ll go get Brady and meet you guys there.”

“Okay, see you!” Bea drags me out the door, as if she’s worried Seth will change his mind. “I don’t know what you’ve done to him, but thank you. I’ve never seen him so happy.”