Burning Day

Chapter 26

I wasn't sure I was seeing straight, so I rubbed my eyes. And still I couldn't be certain the buildings towering over me at hundreds of feet weren't hallucinations, their glass shimmering in the summer sun. Some were pointed upwards like needles, while others were basic rectangles. Some were completely random shapes altogether, like a child had mishmashed together a heap of blocks. Bright lights flashed from the top of dozens of billboards and signs, all announcing products they claimed we needed in our lives. Honks filled my ears, and the only thing louder was the sound of the hundreds of people talking, yelling into cell phones, charging through the sidewalks.

There wasn't a single plant in sight, and pieces of trash bounced around my feet with the breeze, swirling around the concrete. It made me yearn for Fayfield's flowers, but the city was already so much more than I ever could've imagined.

My chest clenched—this was too much to handle at once, like everything was closing in around me. I'd never seen a city like this one before, and if Danchester had felt overwhelming, how the hell would I survive Osipyan?

"Hey, Owen!" Aaliyah called toward the parking lot against the wall to our left. She waved down a navy blue police car before it could turn to our opposite side. A sign hung from the fences of the parking lot, reading Border Control.

The dark-skinned driver's face lit up at the sight of Aaliyah, and he turned his car out of the parking lot to drive up to the curb. Rolling down his window, he held a hand out to Aaliyah.

I froze. Again, the same tattoo.

She grasped it and gave it a quick shake.

"Hey Aali, what's up?" His light brown eyes fell to Gwen and I at her sides. "Who are your friends?"

Aaliyah opened her mouth, but seemed to think better of it before shaking her head. "Later. Mind giving us a ride?"

Owen raised a brow, but he nodded, and the doors of the car clicked. "Welcome aboard."

"Thanks." Aaliyah pulled the passenger door open and climbed inside. By the time she realized Gwen and I hadn't moved an inch, Aaliyah had already buckled herself in.

Gwen's hand hovered over the car's door, and mine stayed firmly behind my back.

"It's alright sweeties, c'mon in," Aaliyah said, smiling reassuringly.

Gwen and I exchanged nervous glances, but she popped the car's door open, and the two of us filed in.

"Can—where are we going?" I asked, embarrassed at how small my voice felt as the car rolled onto the street.

Aaliyah twisted to face Gwen and I through the black grate separating our seats. I wondered, for a moment, if it was there because they thought they needed protection from us.

I wondered if that made me proud or ashamed.

"We're off to see one of my friends. She's the Imperator of this city," Aaliyah explained.

I nodded. "Okay." Again, the quiet voice. What was wrong with me?

Gwen obviously shared none of my shyness. She crossed her arms, voice as cool as you please. "Yeah, okay, but why the fuck are we going there? Is she Gifted too?"

Owen snapped around, slowing the car for a second. "Too? Are they from...?"

Aaliyah only shrugged. "Don't know yet. But probably."

Swallowing the hesitancy in my stomach, I leaned forward, frowning. "Okay...not weird at all, but we asked a question? Why are we going to what's-her-face?"