The Golden Lily Page 0,97

can't have her be part of some accident or mistaken identity." Eddie nodded and looked impressed that she'd suggested it. "Agreed." Amazing, I thought.

I left soon with my carpool and swung by downtown to drop Adrian off. As I pulled up in front of his building, I saw something that made my jaw drop. Awe and disbelief rolled through me. In what was probably the most ungraceful parking job I'd ever done in my life, I brought Latte to an abrupt stop and was out of the car the second I pulled my keys from the ignition.

The others followed moments later.

"What," I breathed. "Is that?"

"Oh," said Adrian casually. "That's my new car."

I took a few steps forward and then stopped, afraid to approach it in the same way someone hesitated before royalty. "It's a 1967 Ford Mustang convertible," I said, knowing my eyes were probably bugging out of my face. I began walking around it. "The year they did a major overhaul and increased the size to keep up with other high-powered competition. See?

It's the first model with the concave tail lights but the last to have the Ford block lettering up front until 1974."

"What in the world is that color?" asked Eddie, not sounding impressed at all.

"Springtime Yellow," Adrian and I said in unison.

"I would've guessed Lemon Chiffon," said Eddie. "Maybe you can get it repainted."

"No!" I exclaimed. I tossed my purse over onto the grass and carefully touched the car's side. Brayden's beautiful new Mustang suddenly seemed so ordinary. "It's been touched up, obviously, but this is a classic color. Which engine code is this? C, right?"

"Um... not sure," said Adrian. "I know it's got a V-8 engine."

"Of course it does," I said. It was hard not to roll my eyes. "A 289. I want to know what the horsepower is."

"It's probably in the paperwork," Adrian said lamely.

It was at that moment that I really processed Adrian's earlier words. I looked up at him, knowing my face must be filled with disbelief. "This is really your car?"

"Yup," he said. "I told you. The old man spotted me the money for one."

"And you got this one?" I peered in through the window. "Nice. Black interior, manual transmission."

"Yeah," said Adrian, a note of unease in his voice. "That's the problem." I glanced back. "What is? The black is great. And the leather's condition is fantastic. So is the rest of the car."

"No, not the interior. The transmission. I can't drive a stick." I froze. "You can't drive a stick?"

"Neither can I," said Jill.

"You don't have a license," I reminded her. Although, my mother had taught me to drive before I had a license - both automatic and manual transmission. I knew I shouldn't be surprised the stick was a lost art, as savage as such a lack seemed to me. That paled, of course, in comparison to the other obvious problem. "Why on earth would you buy a car like this if you can't drive a stick? There are dozens of cars - new cars - that have automatic transmission.

It'd be a million times easier."

Adrian shrugged. "I like the color. It matches my living room." Eddie snorted.

"But you can't drive it," I pointed out.

"I figure it can't be that hard." Adrian sounded remarkably unconcerned about what I found blasphemous. "I'll just practice taking it around the block a few times and figure it out." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "What? Are you out of your mind? You'll ruin it if you don't know what you're doing!"

"What else am I supposed to do?" he asked. "Are you going to teach me?" I turned back to the beautiful Mustang. "Yes," I said adamantly. "If that's what it takes to save it from you."

"I can show you too," said Eddie.

Adrian ignored him and focused on me. "When we can start?" I ran through my school schedule, knowing I'd have to make talking to the Alchemists about the Warriors of Light my top priority. Then, the obvious hit me. "Oh. When we see Wolfe this week. We'll take this out there."

"Is that really to help me?" asked Adrian. "Or do you just want to drive the car?"

"Both," I said, not embarrassed to admit it.

Angeline's clock at school was ticking, so the rest of us had to leave. I'd driven three blocks away when I realized I'd left my purse on the grass. With a groan, I looped around and returned to his building. My purse was there, but the Mustang was gone.

"Where's