me. I… let's talk about something else."
Grateful for the reprieve, and struggling against a fresh flurry of emotions, I nod gratefully and turn back to my coffee. Girlfriend. Landon used the word girlfriend, and I agreed. Do the others think of me that way, I wonder? Would things be different if I weren't already spoken for? "How long have you been fighting the humans?" I ask, deciding to switch tacks.
"Long enough," Theo replied. "I was never forced to go to their Academy, but I've seen enough of what they do to our kind to last a lifetime. They want us silent and complicit. Our needs have never—will never—matter to them. Which is why I've built this community," he goes on, "I will do whatever it takes to see it remain safe."
I bite my lip. If there were ever a time to bring up Hawthorne and Edith, this would be it. "About that," I say, straightening up in my chair. "This isn't easy for me to say, Theo, but there's a strong possibility that your community is already in danger."
Theo raises his eyebrows, looking ready to reply, when something over my shoulder catches his attention. His expression suddenly darkens as he runs a hand through his white hair. "I'm afraid we will have to postpone this discussion, Millie," he says in a stony voice. "We seem to be attracting undue attention."
Adrenaline floods through me as my eyes drift to the side, and immediately I see what he's talking about: a duo of uniformed officers is standing just outside the window of the coffee shop, the badges on their jackets are frustratingly familiar. "What do we do?" I ask.
Theo gets to his feet, holding out his hand to me. "We're not far from our building," he replies. "Stay behind me, and do as I say."
I nod and take his hand, allowing him to pull me to my feet. I’m not oblivious to the feeling of his thumb smoothing over my palm.
He positions his body in front of mine, which assuages my fear, but only a little; clearly they're closing in, if there are Academy agents this near to the apartment.
"Stay calm," Theo instructs. "Don't draw any attention to yourself."
"Okay." He leads me to the door, our drinks forgotten on the table, and in moments we're back out in the bright sunlight. My heart is racing in my ears. The two officers are within spitting distance, and I can feel their eyes on me despite my attempts to seem relaxed.
Theo's grip on my hand tightens a little as he makes a sharp right in the opposite direction of the apartment.
"Can we lose them?" I whisper.
"We can try," he replies as he leads me down the street in the direction of a busier street. If we can draw enough attention…
But almost as soon as we turn onto a connecting road, Theo stops dead in his tracks, his white eyes narrowing. At the other end of the alleyway are another two agents, and they're looking right at us.
"Look who just turned up," one of them remarks. "We've been looking for you for a while, Theo."
Without a word, Theo turns back around, but the other end of the alley is already blocked off by the other two officers, who must have been following us from the coffee shop. Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
"New plan," Theo announces, his eyes already beginning to glow with power. "Time to put that new training to use, Millie."
Chapter 14
The Academy soldiers don’t seem to care that Theo is transforming, nor does it seem to matter to them in the slightest that we’re in broad daylight in the middle of a busy district. I have time to wonder how many people they’ve paid off in order to stop any interference from the public, but that’s the only rational thought that crosses my mind as they close in on us without any warning.
I know better than to try to use my powers, considering how close they are already, but in spite of the countless hours I’ve spent in the gym and on the roof, I suddenly feel like all of Shade’s and Landon’s lessons have gone out the window. Paralysed, I stand there, eyes wide, as the two agents at the end of the alleyway charge us, only thinking to get behind Theo at the last second.
My experience with hybrids has been, up until this point, restricted to my own abilities, so you can understand my surprise when Theo’s entire body seems to light