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When I got out, I stared hard at myself in the mirror, but I could see my freaky liquid flames only if I looked directly at them. It felt like my face should look different, but it was the same old Evie--cute but not gorgeous, button nose, pretty mouth. And my pale, pale gray eyes.
But then something hit me--something horrible. If I could see what was paranormal about myself only by looking directly at it, I had no idea if there was something my face was hiding. I could never look into my own eyes without a mirror and, for all I knew, I'd been glowing my entire life. Maybe that's what was so weird about my eyes that Lend couldn't imitate. Suddenly my face felt like a mask, hiding whatever I really was underneath.
It was a terrible thought. A terrible thought that I had no way to either confirm or deny. That was the great thing about being one of a kind. No answers. Ever.
Upset, I dried off and pulled on my biggest, softest sweater. It was a pretty pale blue and the sleeves came down past my hands. That was a bonus, since I didn't have to see my wrist. I braided my hair and grabbed my communicator. When I walked into Central Processing, Lish practically slammed herself into the glass in her urgency to talk to me.
“Evie, are you okay? I have been so worried. ”
I smiled weakly. “Yeah, it's been kind of a sucky couple of weeks. ”
“Please, sit down. You have not visited me much lately. I missed you. ”
I dragged over one of the rolling chairs, sitting down and pulling up my legs.
Lish made me recount everything that had happened with Reth and then the hag. Being with her now made me realize how much I had missed my best friend. Between all the extra attention Raquel was giving me, the increasingly botched and dangerous jobs, and Lend, I had been busy. Lish, being a very clever amphibious immortal, narrowed her eyes in a sly smile.
“And this Lend--who saved you from Reth--is he very. . . cute?”
I laughed. “He can do a perfect Landon. ”
“Landon from Easton Heights? Oh, then you really must be in love with him. ”
I shook my head. “No, his real face is nicer. And he's funny, and nice. Don't tell Raquel, but I do kinda like him. . . . ”
Lish nodded, still smiling. “Is he a raging bundle of human hormones like Landon?”
I laughed at the absurdity of her question. “Umm, I'm thinking no. I'm kind of glad, too. ”
“Ah yes. Too much--” Lish paused and winked one clear eyelid at me exaggeratedly “--baggage, right?”
“You know me--I like to pack light. ”
Lish blew bubbles laughing. “See how good I am getting at metaphors?”
“You're a pro!” We practiced metaphors and cliches a lot; it was important to her to be able to relate to me in spite of our differences.
“The most vital question, though, is does he like you?”
“Umm, probably not. I'm the girl who keeps getting him fried, remember? And he's stuck here because of me, too. He shouldn't be. It's stupid that they're keeping him. ”
“What else can they do?”
“I don't know--listen to him, help him! Wherever he's from, they know what's going on, too. If IPCA wasn't so concerned with bagging and tagging and tracking and all that other nonsense, if they'd treat him like an equal or an ally, they could probably work with Lend and figure this thing out before any other paranormals end up dead!”
Lish looked proud of me. Maybe she wasn't as pro-?IPCA as I'd always assumed.
“Have you talked to Raquel about this?”
“Not really, no. ”
I had been too nervous. I used to be secure in my place at IPCA, but knowing I was a Level Seven made me worry that everything I did would be suspect. Paranormals weren't equal around here--they were always, always other. Pushing for Lend's freedom was about as suspect as anything I could do right now.
But then I realized I was sitting there, worried about whether or not Lend liked me as more than a friend (if he even liked me as a friend), worried about my status with the normal humans at IPCA, worried about myself. Always about myself. Just like when I ran sobbing for my life and left Jacques alone. Paranormals were dying. It was easy to forget about hags and vamps being killed, but Jacques didn't deserve that. It had to stop.
“I'm going to talk to Raquel about it. Whatever they're doing isn't working. ”
Lish smiled with her eyes. “Good girl. ”
