The Waking Moon

Chapter Thirty-Eight

We didn’t have time to think much about it. The alarm wailed, and the flickering lights in the stairwell made me frantic and nauseous. If I had to shoot our way out, then so be it. But we were going to get out. I turned and headed back up the stairs to the door marked 1, the only door in the stairwell I hadn’t opened. Rhodes crept close behind, putting one hand on my back to let me know he was there. I pushed open the door and peeked out.

It led straight into the strange atrium recently constructed at the front of the building. The air was cool, making me more aware of the sweat-drenched clothes sticking to my body. The alarm resounded on the multitude of glass panels all around. It was a beautiful, bright room filled with ficus trees, umbrella ferns, and flowerbeds. At the center was a white fountain where a gentle cascade of water fell onto an up-lit bed of blue moon stones. Cheerful yellow lamps simulating sunlight were artfully hidden around the room, beaming warmly onto a quaint collection of benches and tables. The black tinted glass of the ceiling was being painted royal blue, like a cloudless summer sky. But the work was only half finished, and the yellow scaffolding was an eyesore in an otherwise perfect setting.

 A redwood plank walkway led through the garden to the two tinted glass doors at the other side of the atrium. And just beyond those doors was daylight. I led with the barrel of my gun, turning constantly to check all sides. Rhodes scurried along close behind. The alarm was so loud, it rattled my brain until I could barely think. What’s going on? I wondered. Where are they?

All at once, the alarm stopped. The new silence was jolting. The serenity of the room became apparent, with the soothing gurgle of the fountain. Our feet seemed to thunder along the planks, and Rhodes’s whistling breaths sounded loud to my ears. We picked up the pace, moving with single-minded focus toward those two front doors.

“Now where are you off to? To see the wizard?”

The husky voice was close behind us, and I recognized it immediately. We spun around so quickly that Rhodes lost his balance again and buckled heavily onto the walkway. Juliana stood not fifteen feet away, arms crossed, a voluptuous silhouette against the artificial sunlight. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail, and she was wearing only a tank top and yoga pants, as if she’d been sleeping. But she still managed to look as glamorous as a runway model.

She was flanked on both sides by Noirs—identical twins who were tall, menacing guys with hard-eyed stares. They were also dressed in black trousers with black shirts and black baseball caps. At my feet, Rhodes made a low hissing sound, as if he were literally deflating.

I immediately set my sights on her, but before I knew it, something that moved like a blur came up from behind and yanked it from my hands. I looked over my shoulder. Five Noirs, all young and imposing, were lined up across our path. They were all dressed the same, black-clad with baseball hats. One held the rifle in his hand. He stepped forward and pointed the muzzle at my forehead. I held my breath and squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the sound of the final blast. But there was only a metallic click as the Noir threw on the safety switch. Then I watched him bend the barrel of the gun like taffy.

“Now why do you look familiar to me?” Juliana said, taking several steps toward where I was sprawled on the wood planks. She stared at me, a vague smile on her face. Then her expression darkened. “Wait a minute. You’re the sparrow that flew away.”

“Listen,” Rhodes said from where he sat, frightened, on the ground. “Whatever you’ve got going on here…that’s great. Brava. I wish you all the best. I do. But whatever it is you want from me…I’m sorry. I just can’t help you. I’ve got a lot going on right now…my seemingly endless adolescence, for example…and I just want you to know that I will keep this whole… episode…to myself.”