I nod.
He lifts one hand and signs, ‘Zane has been acting strange. No one believed me, but I caught him going through Cielo’s bag at the gym a few weeks ago.’
My body jolts. ‘For-for?’
‘I don’t know. But the other day, I saw him coming out of the barista room, so I followed him. By the time I caught up to him, he was in the employee locker room. I wasn’t allowed in there, but when he was coming out, he was on the phone. He didn’t see me.’
I take a moment to process all of this. ‘Okay. And?’
‘I saw him say Cielo’s name, so I started recording. The only thing I was able to catch was a time and something about a portal key.’
My heart leaps in my chest. ‘Show me the video.’
Luca hits the button, and when it begins, I can see Zane, but only for a second. He’s sweeping past Luca, not looking his direction. His blond curls are unmistakable, and he’s clearly on the phone.
“Yeah, I’ll meet you at nine tonight in that alley behind Angelo’s. No, I’m not sure where it is, but I know the portal key can open it. We just need…right, exactly. No, he definitely won’t help. He’s got himself a cute little monster fucker he’s loyal to now.”
Me. Zane means me.I’mthe monster fucker.
“Yeah, don’t worry. I’ve got it now. I’m going to sneak out of here as soon as I can. Yep. See you soon.”
The video ends, and Luca stares at me. ‘He was turned away from me for most of the conversation, but I saw where he was going to meet the person. Tell me what they say. I want to know all of it.’
I replay it and interpret what I hear Zane saying, and the more I sign, the angrier he looks. ‘Tell me what happened to you,’ I demand when I’m done.
Luca lets out a frustrated groan. ‘I followed him. He worked a couple hours at the juice stand, then got off early and got into his car. I jumped in mine and followed him to his apartment. I waited there for hours, and I thought maybe I made a mistake,so I sent the video to you, but he came out just after eight, and I followed him again.’
‘That was dangerous, you asshole,’ I sign and then smack him.
He lets out a painful noise and winces. ‘I know. I tried to be careful. I parked down the street and walked the rest on foot. It was fine for a while. I watched a car pull up, and Zane gave them something. I must have made a noise. I didn’t know.’ He looks upset now, and I hate that for him because it’s not his fault. ‘They saw me. I saw Zane say my name, so I started to run.’
I swallow heavily. ‘And?’
‘I didn’t get far. The car hit me from the side.’ His hand falters, and then he signs the rest slowly, his hand shaking slightly. ‘The tire ran over my thighs, and it felt like everything inside me shattered. But I got up and kept running. Adrenaline.’
I let out a trembling breath and remind myself that he is okay. That he is safe, and here, and healing. ‘How did Eissa find you?’
‘He didn’t.’ He huffs and rubs at his swollen eye, then cries out from the pain. ‘I found him,’ he tells me. ‘Unlocked door in an alley. I crawled into an office, and Eissa was in there.’
“He collapsed on the floor,” comes a voice from behind me. I spin to find Eissa there, signing as well as speaking. “The building he found was the clinic, and the unlocked door was part of the administration offices. I had zitha in my desk.”
Luca’s eyes follow Eissa’s signs almost angrily, and he huffs, but when he looks back at me, he nods.
“Thank you for saving him,” I say, then sign.
Eissa walks over and leans his shoulder against the wall. He looks so different from Rathyn and Cielo. I’d say it’s because he’s been on Earth for so long, but he’s not like Quilliyn either.
He doesn’t wear as many clothes as humans do, but the robe he has draped around him is less sheer than what Rathynwears, and he carries himself like someone I could see in a royal household.
But I know he’s not that either.
He stares at my brother for a moment, and then says and signs, “We have a bigger problem than Luca’s injuries. He was seen. Identified.”
“By who?” I ask.
“A member of the human rebellion. We keep track of hate groups on your internet,” Eissa explains. His voice is steady, and his hands move through signs formally, but clearly like a man who has been using the language most of his life. “In recent years, they’ve started to organize.”
“What does that mean?” There’s a tremor in my voice now because this sounds serious.
