Please, please, please call me when you can. We need to talk!
She'd talked to my dad? How in the hell had she managed that? I wasn't exactly on talking terms with him right now, given his decision to betray Mom and marry a succubus by the name of Kassallandra. My finger hovered over Katie's number. If I could contact anyone, it would be her. She knew about me and the Overworld, thanks to bad timing on her part and a pack of overachieving hellhounds who'd chased Elyssa, Dad, Katie, and me all the way to downtown Atlanta. Maybe it would be okay to call her and ask about my other friends. On the other hand, what if Mr. Gray or one of my other enemies found out about my normal friends and used them against me?
I tucked the phone in my pocket and decided to think about it.
"Don't look now, but we're being followed," Elyssa said, using the shiny surface of her phone like a mirror.
Despite the warning, I almost glanced behind us before turning the motion into a casual stretch of my arms. "How do you know?" Though the walkways weren't teeming with people, they were congested enough to hide any followers.
"I took us through a few side streets we didn't need to use, but the chubby guy with the long black coat and bowler hat is still following us."
I sighed. "We can't have whoever it is trailing us back to Shelton's hideout. How long has he been following?"
"Since we left the Orange store."
"Any idea what kind of super he is?"
She shrugged. "Only one way to tell."
My mind rifled through several plans—run, turn and confront, or act casual. Between Elyssa and me, we could handle most threats short of an angel or manifested demon spawn. Using a nearby shop window as a mirror, I spotted the unkempt form of a chubby man close to my height as he regarded us. His expression verged on boredom.
Elyssa led me through a wide alley. We emerged in Founder's Square. Towering effigies of the supernatural founders of the Overworld bordered the sprawling plaza. The massive statue of a demon spawn drew my eye to it and its neighbor, an angel with outstretched wings, hands held low to the sides as though in welcome.
Something seemed off about the two statues. I'd only been to this place once, but the sight had etched itself firmly into memory. "Wait a minute," I said. "The demon spawn statue doesn't have horns anymore, and the angel's wings aren't curled up."
"And the statue of Ezzek Moore is now raising his staff in the air," Elyssa said, pointing out the statue of a man in robes. "These are life statues. They actually move into different positions over time, depending on how the Arcanes charmed them to pose."
"Can they walk?" I imagined turning the Statue of Liberty into a life statue and freaking out the noms.
She nodded. "Sure, I guess."
A crystal-sheathed representation of Earth hovered in the center of the square, rotating slowly. I looked up at the house-sized globe as we passed beneath it, then used the chance to steal a glance back. The man was still following us, not even bothering or trying to hide. Something very strange was going on. Groups of people sparsely populated the wide boundaries of Founder's Square. Enough so if the man were hostile, we could call for help if need be.
I touched Elyssa's arm to stop her and turned to face our stalker. His face never changed expression, nor did he break his ambling stride, walking right up to us and holding out a white marble to me. His irises were so pale as to be almost pink, and his pale skin seemed doughy in spots and rubbery in others. I glanced uneasily at his unnatural-looking fingers and decided I didn't want to touch them.
"That's an ASE," Elyssa said, her brow furrowing.
"A what?"
"An all-seeing eye. Templars use them for holo-recording."
I fixed a stern gaze on the large man, but made no move to take his offering. "Who are you and what do you want?"
The man removed his hat to reveal a shock of bristly white hair, and bowed. "Miss Ivy done sent me, Your Grace," he said in a rough cockney accent.
A hot flush raced through my body. Ivy had sent him? I reached for the all-seeing eye.
Elyssa gripped my arm. "Wait, Justin. It might be a trap."