he asked me.
“We’ll see.” I did smile now as Dylan tossed the ball to me and picked up the bat that we’d found among the palace’s sporting equipment.
“If you practice lots and lots, maybe we can teach some of the others and we can have an actual baseball game.”
“It’s a deal,” I told him.
“Awesome.” Dylan grinned. “You know, I like hanging out with you the best out of everyone else in the palace.”
“Is that so?” I grinned right back at him, even though it was physically painful to do so. Even though Dylan had clearly Tracorian features, he must have looked a lot like his mother because there were so many times when I saw Maya in him. His mannerisms, his facial expressions, and even in those expressive eyes.
I sighed, rubbing at my chest, the familiar ache making it tight. Sometimes it was so bad it was hard to breathe. If I didn’t hear from her soon, I would just head to Tracorox and storm the gates anyway. This was the part I hadn’t liked—the unknown in an otherwise solid plan. But we’d agreed that if she didn’t find a way to make contact within two weeks, we would make our move anyway.
“Is that because I’m the one who spoils you the most?” I asked him.
Dylan shrugged, thankfully not noticing all the turmoil that was going on just beneath the surface. “Nah. Everyone spoils me here.”
True story. The boy had been given anything and everything he could possibly ask for since Brittany had brought him home with her last week, me most of all. I wanted him to be happy here, and I knew better than anyone just how acutely he was feeling Maya’s absence.
“I just happen to be your favorite then?”
Dylan laughed, then, almost as if he could read my thoughts, said, “Well, yeah. I mean, you love Aunt Maya and miss her as much as I do. Of course you’re my favorite.”
I tossed the baseball back and forth between my hands, gearing up to pitch to Dylan, when suddenly his bright eyes went wide.
“What’s wrong?” Worry and fear pierced my heart. After everything this boy had been through, I couldn’t help jumping to the worst conclusion at the slightest indication that something was terribly wrong.
But I couldn’t have begun to prepare myself for what came out of his mouth.
“It’s Aunt Maya,” he gasped. “She’s in trouble. Soren, she…she’s trying to contact you!”
My stomach pitched. Was this it? The signal I’d been waiting for? I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I rushed to Dylan’s side, dropping to my knees in front of him.
“What is it, Dylan? What do you know?”
Dropping the bat, Dylan reached inside the collar of his shirt and pulled out something that was shimmering bright silver, almost glowing.
I stared at the shining metal, realizing that it was the charm that Dordus’ daughter Gulray had given Dylan when the Raiders had visited last month. The little wing was strung on a chain around Dylan’s neck.
“I’ve been wearing this since Aunt Maya left,” Dylan whispered, staring down at the charm now as it glowed brighter and brighter. “I gave her the other half. I have one wing, and she has the other. Dordus said it was for safety and luck, and I figured Aunt Maya might need them while she was away.”
I frowned, leaning in to get a better look at the Soldering wing. Dylan yanked the chain over his head and extended his arm, holding the charm out flat on his palm.
“I can feel Aunt Maya,” he breathed, his eyes wide with fear as he stared at it. When he met my gaze, he swallowed hard. “She’s asking for you, Soren. Asking for your help. I know it sounds crazy, but you have to believe me.”
“I do, Dylan. I do,” I said urgently. My heart was pounding in my chest. Soldering was a powerful metal, and it wasn’t something to be taken lightly. Not after what we’d seen happen to Dylan himself with the band of it that had been adhered to his arm.
This was it, then—Maya’s signal. And from the urgency in Dylan’s voice, and the fear shining bright in his eyes, there wasn’t a moment to waste.
Quickly, I folded his fingers around the charm. “Hang on to this. Keep it safe. Let’s go.”
I gripped his other hand, and we ran back toward the palace as fast as we could. Along the way, I spoke urgently into my wrist communicator, sending a message to my