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The municipal building was slightly fancier than the other buildings around, having clearly once been a church. While well-kept, its stained-glass windows betrayed its age, giving it an unintentionally foreboding feeling.
As we drew near to the church, I caught sight of a man sitting on the steps out front. He seemed to be unaccompanied. The closer we got, the more I noticed details about him—first was his extremely short hair, second came the aviators on his face, third was his tanned skin, fourth was the thickness of his muscles, and the last was his impeccably-pressed outfit. He looked like a military man that had dressed up in finery for the day.
Was this the distinguished Leader, sitting alone on the steps of an old church while guests came to him?
Once we were just a few steps away, the man lifted his head. I was close enough to see my own reflection in those sunglasses.
My bond with Sariel suddenly pulled taut. I looked over at him to see his brow furrowed hard and his jaw clenched tight.
You know him?I asked.Is he an enemy of yours?
No,he snapped back, surprisingly aggressive. I could tell right away that he wasn’t angry with me.My angel’s just going nuts. He’s not pissed off, but he won’t calm down enough to tell me why.
I tugged gently on the bond.Hey, over there. Remember what we talked about? Use your words.
While the Leader rose to his feet, Sariel said to me, clearly baffled,He’s just telling me to ‘look, look’ over and over again.
So, he did look. He looked hard. Even though his angel wasn’t messing with him anymore, he didn’t calm down any.
He looks familiar, actually,he admitted.But I… I don’t know why.
Keep calm, Sariel.
The Leader, hands in his pockets, strode over to us. I kept a careful eye on him, and despite his confidence, I could tell that there was some hesitation in the way he moved. My wolf growled a little, but not in warning—it was like she was trying to communicate something with me.
Now that she’d alerted me, I realized that I felt he was kind of familiar, too. It was a faint feeling, but definitely there.
I know why he looks familiar,Sariel said again. The panic within him went down the bond and manifested in his wide eyes.The person he reminds me of… it’s not possible.
Sariel, you’re freaking out.
You don’t understand, Aria. He reminds me of—
“Greetings, Leader,” Zuzanna suddenly said, ignoring our seconds of mental conversation. “These are the two you requested to see.”
The Leader was quiet for a beat. “Thanks, Zuzanna,” he said by means of dismissal.
She hopped away. I had been expecting the Leader to go into some kind of leaderly lecture or demand something from us, but he just stood there silently. I couldn’t see his expression past the glasses nor what he was looking at.
That voice…Sariel said to me, distant,It can’t be.
What are you talking about, Sariel?
He just shook his head, eyes never leaving the Leader’s face.
I couldn’t tell what had him so freaked out, so I was going to have to be the one to talk. “Hello,” I said in greeting; the man’s staring was making me nervous. “Have I… met you somewhere before?”
Sariel’s eyes finally snapped to me, as if he was expecting me to have an answer to the man’s identity.
The Leader smirked a bit. “I’m surprised you remember that,” he said softly. “What do you think? Ambrose really was overcompensating for something with that design, right?”
My eyebrows jumped up.
“You’re that guy I talked to outside of AMH,” I said in wonder. “You’re the Resistance Leader? What were you doing there?”
“Scoping out the enemy,” he replied simply. “I didn’t think the random girl I met would be you, either.”
I could still feel Sariel’s gaze burning into me in question. At least he didn’t seem to be jealous that I’d talked to this guy before meeting him, though I really couldn’t help him with who this man was.
