the pine tree. “We can’t do this. Your parents will kill us. Or at least, my dad will kill me.” He didn’t sound like he was kidding. Not even a little.
They were beside the shoreline of the lake, and Hope tugged her bike away from the stairs. “All we hafta do is walk the bikes to the boat launch, and we can ride to town from there.” The small town was only a couple of miles away, and she knew the patrol schedules, so it should be easy to avoid the guards.
Pax grabbed his bigger bike, already following her with Libby next to him. “We have missiles, land mines, and a bunch of other stuff that protect headquarters. You’re gonna get us blown up.”
She snorted. “We’re gonna stay right off the road on the trail, Pax. Geez.” Yeah, there were probably land mines there too, but they weren’t armed. It was too dangerous. Somebody had to flip a switch in the main control room, and nobody was gonna flip a switch without lots of warning or an attack. Why did Pax worry so much?
Vampire and demon headquarters were located about a mile apart on a very cool lake in Idaho, and she went in the opposite direction from both. If any patrolling soldiers saw them, they’d be stopped.
Good thing no one expected them to ride to town by themselves. She was almost eight years old, and everyone still thought she was a baby. For today, that was a good thing.
So long as they didn’t get caught.
They kept their heads down and slid between trees until they hit the trail alongside the road. She felt tough as she jumped on her bike and started riding, letting the fall breeze behind her push her along. Libby scouted up ahead, as usual, unable to ride slowly. Pax stayed right behind Hope, his worry smelling like lemons in the fall.
Why didn’t he understand?
Hope’s mama and daddy had met in a dreamworld, and one day they’d saved everybody. Then they got mated and had Hope. While she never wanted to mate anybody—like, gross—she wanted to be Drake’s friend, and they met often in a dreamworld. The dreamworld was there for a reason, and not just to hold a special green book that she knew was hers, somehow. It was her job and Drake’s job to find peace for the Realm and the Kurjans. That mattered. It was why she was a prophet. Well, probably. Maybe it was just one of the reasons.
The trail slanted down, and she could ride faster. The wind burst through her hair, and she laughed, having fun. It felt good to sneak to town. That was probably bad.
They entered town along the lakeside, away from traffic, and rode to the park in the middle. It had swing sets, teeter-totters, and a whole wooden jungle gym. She ditched her bike and climbed the stairs, using the rope. This was where she had told Drake to meet her.
She got to the top, which was covered by a thatched roof and should be safe for her friend. A building with an overhang for bathrooms and picnic stuff bridged the space to the parking lot, so she knew he’d be safe from the sun if he came that way. She gulped in air and looked around. Tunnels, yellow and big, spread out in both directions, going to slides and other climbing areas. Had he gotten confused?
Libby leaped on top of the nearest one and perched there just like a cat. How did she do that? Paxton, his bluish silver eyes dark, leaned against a railing and glared. When he got cranky, there was no talking him out of it. “We should go,” he muttered, the wind lifting his black hair.
“Hi.” Drake pushed himself out of the nearest yellow tube and stood. He dusted off his jeans. His black hair was long and straight, and his eyes were even greener than in the dreamworld. His face was paler too. He stayed safely out of the sun.
Hope couldn’t speak for a minute. She was standing there, in real life, with Drake the Kurjan. The future leader of the Kurjans and the boy Pax wanted to punch. She looked wildly around, but there were no grown-ups close. And she didn’t sense any other power in the wind, which she usually could. They were alone. At least for now. Her hand shook, but she held it out. “Hi.”
He took her hand, shaking gently with his much larger one. His