AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Finally, my phone vibrates. This isn’t a trick. This is how you and your mom stay safe. Think about it, Katy. What do I gain by tricking you?
My thumbs flurry quickly across the texting keypad. It’s not about what you gain. And Sam, you should be careful about telling me to think. If I really thought about this, I’d turn back and call the cops. I said I wanted reassurance.
I send the text, not letting myself think about if I’m being too blunt. Maybe I am, but don’t I deserve to be, considering the circumstances?
I swear I’d never trick you. I swear I’d never hurt you. I’m doing this to keep you safe.
How can I trust you? I type the message but don’t send it. Instead, I just look at it, almost laughing at myself. I’m asking him for the impossible. I want him to convince me somehow that getting into a stranger’s car is a good idea. Yet there’s nothing he can say. The fact is, I do trust him, which makes me certifiably nuts.
I’m choosing to trust you, I text, which is a lie. It hasn’t been a choice so far, and it doesn’t feel like one now. It’s that sudden, inexplicable certainty.
You won’t regret that choice, he replies. I run my thumb over the words, wishing he was saying them in his husky, comforting voice, a voice that only exists in my imagination. Putting my phone away, I take a moment to steel myself for whatever happens next.
I open the back door, helping Eli inside. It takes a while, and I can tell he doesn’t like it and wishes he could do it himself. I know the feeling, which is one reason I never stopped driver’s ed, even when the bullies got their digs in, even when I had to work for extra lessons.
Returning to the apartment, I begin loading the suitcases. I’m relieved nobody has passed by and stolen them. It’s only a short walk. We could glance back and see them any time. I wanted to confirm the car was there first. It would be so nice not to have to think like this.
Once the car’s loaded and we’re all inside, I open the glove box and take out a note. It’s written in neat block capital letters, an address in a fancy part of town. I have to look it up online, and then I go to street view, staring in wonder at the cracked screen, the skyscrapers, and the clean streets.
It’s unlike anywhere I’ve ever lived or imagined I would live. It looks awesome. Despite the circumstances, which are insane, I feel an out-of-place tickle right at my center, teasing that this might be a good thing and maybe the best part of my life. Meeting this man, bonding, kissing, and more…
“Well,” Mom says, jolting me from my thoughts. “What do we have to do?”
“He says the apartment is furnished and stocked with food. There’s a code to enter the building and another for the apartment. It’s safe, he says, and also…” My belly tightens when I read these words, my mind returning to last night, my hands between my legs. “He’s got security cameras in there for our own safety, he says.”
“That’s always the way with the watching wizards. Their wounding spells are not so painful. Are they? Not if they say so,” Eli pipes in.
From the passenger seat, Mom groans, folding her arms over her middle.
“Are you going to be sick?” I ask.
She shakes her head and sticks out her lip as if making a point. “No, I’m fine.”
“Shall we get going?” I say, realizing it’s like I’m waiting for somebody else to take charge, to say, yes, let’s do it. Or no, this is just plain ridiculous. We don’t have solid proof Sam got the Bratva to back off, or that Sam is even who he says he is.
I squeeze the steering wheel hard to confirm at least that’s real. This is something that can’t be faked. Right here, this car, somebody delivered it. These keys are cool in my palm, and maybe they lead to an apartment, and perhaps that’s where I’ll fall in love.
“Yes,” Mom says after a pause.
I start the engine, pulling away from the street. Even after getting my license, I never dreamed I’d actually be driving anywhere. Owning a car, or even renting one, felt beyond me.
The farther we drive, the more alert Mom becomes. We’re going across one of the city’s gleaming, massive bridges connecting to the main island. The skyscrapers glisten, beckoning us. When we pass through some of the lower-income neighborhoods—still nicer than ours—Mom sits up as if expecting our stop any moment.
“The valley of ashes,” Eli whispers under his breath as we leave the lower-income neighborhoods behind. “Not so fantastic and nothing to farm.”
