“Really,” said Fang.
I paused, trying to frame our activities in a positive light. “We just went to as many places as possible where people might meet, where kids might want to go…”
“It may have been thirteen patisseries,” Dylan added unhelpfully. “But we also hit a lot of schools. We saw at least two DGers hanging out at schools, scoping out the students.”
“Checking the schools was my idea, since they seem most interested in kids,” said Gazzy, helping himself to more bread and butter. In France, plain old bread and butter were just about the best things on earth. “The patisseries were Max’s idea.”
“Of course,” said Fang, but I didn’t react.
“Dude, quit playing with her,” Ratchet said. “Are you gonna tell them what we found or not?”
Fang cocked an eyebrow at me, and I scowled.
Maya took a flyer out of her pocket and unfolded it so we could read it. “Yeah, we actually already knew about the D-day thing,” she said. “But we got the inside info.”
Fang smirked, and I kind of wanted to punch him.
Instead, I tried to act mature while reading the flyer, calmly seething. “Day after tomorrow,” I said, shocked. “That’s… soon.”
We were all solemn as we pondered that thought. Until Gazzy broke the silence with, “No duh.”
“We’d better make plans…” Fang began, but he didn’t get very far.
Boom!
60
BOOM! THE WHOLE restaurant was suddenly rocked by a huge explosion that seemed to come from right beneath our feet. People screamed, the lights went out, and we heard glass breaking and walls crashing down.
“Stay together, everyone!” I yelled. “Let’s get out of here!”
Carefully, we began to edge past hysterical people, relying on Iggy’s extraordinary sense of direction, since most of us couldn’t see anything through the smoke.
Le Cinq had a big freaking hole in its outside wall, and we made for it. I pulled my shirt up over my nose and mouth and kept hold of Nudge’s arm. I also held onto Angel’s hand as she yelled, “Calm down! Follow us! We’ll get you out! No pushing!”
People around us were panicking, climbing over tables, screaming. But I heard one unmistakable voice above it alclass="underline" “Max!”
In an instant, I felt his breath on my neck, his hands on my shoulders. “I’m okay, Dylan,” I called. “Get a grip.” I found myself shrugging off his touch. At least he gives a crap, I thought. Unlike someone else, who was, mind you, out of sight.
Together we climbed over the rubble and through the hole, into the street. Sirens were already wailing. I quickly counted heads and felt a weird twinge when I saw Fang doing the same. All of us were safe.
Gazzy sniffed the air. “That’s explosives. It smells like Christmas!”
Okay, so we’ve had somewhat untraditional Christmases. With explosives.
Suddenly, there was another explosion from deep within the building. The blast made us stagger, even from across the street. Down the block, the hotel’s front doors opened and people poured out, panicked and screaming.
“We’d better move back,” Dylan said. “The whole building’s going to collapse.”
“Au secours!” a voice wailed.
“That means ‘help,’ ” Nudge said, looking around quickly. “Over there!”
Thirty feet away, a woman was pinned beneath a large chunk of building. I tried to lift the huge piece of rubble but couldn’t budge it. Kate, one of Fang’s gang, the girl who looked like a supermodel, hurried over.
“We need a crane or something!” I told her.
“No…” Kate bent her knees and placed her hands carefully to get a good grip on the boulder. I tried not to roll my eyes—at least she was making an effort.
In the background I heard another scream, a woman’s voice, yelling for help too, but we could only do one thing at a time.
“We really need something big—” I began, then stared as she easily shifted the enormous piece of debris. She didn’t even grunt or anything.
“Max!” Nudge yelled, then ran over.
“Help me!” I told her, and she and I carefully moved the woman out from under the rubble.
“That was amazing!” I told Kate.
“Max—” Nudge began.
Kate shrugged and blushed. “DNA splicing will do that for you,” she said.
“Yeah, no kidding.” I was still looking at her in awe.
“Max!” Nudge broke in again. “Angel’s in the hotel!”
61
“NO SHE ISN’T,” I said. “She came out with us!”
Nudge shook her head. “She’s trying to save someone—she flew up to the top floor and went inside!”
“Mon fils!” a woman cried nearby, pointing.
I gaped at Nudge, my mind reeling as she pulled me toward the hotel. Nudge pointed to the spot Gazzy was staring at: there, on the top floor of the hotel, a small boy was leaning out an open window. One window over, flames were lapping out, eating the expensive silk curtains. The boy was crying and shouting for his maman, reaching for her.
“Aidez mon fils!” the woman screamed, pointing.
“Angel!” Gazzy cried.
Maya and Fang were already up there, hovering outside the window. Angel was in the room with the boy, but he was terrified and wouldn’t listen to her. She kept gesturing to the window, but he wouldn’t budge.
“Why doesn’t she just control his mind?” Gazzy asked, watching fretfully.
“The kid might be too upset,” I said, not taking my eyes off Angel.
The little boy looked about four. I watched Angel talking to him earnestly. Then I saw flames enter the room and whoosh across the ceiling.
“Get out of there!” I shrieked.
Fang and Maya were beckoning to Angel and holding out their arms. A fire truck rounded the corner just then, sirens blaring, lights flashing.
Now the fire was very close to Angel and the boy. He was sobbing. On the street, his mother was wailing and wringing her hands. Then a billowing cloud of thick smoke rolled through the room, hiding the boy and Angel from us.
My mouth gaped in horror as I shot out my wings and started flying toward the window.
Fang and Maya were coughing from the smoke.
Suddenly, two figures jumped from the window.
“Angel!” I yelled.
Her once-white wings were dull and gray. The boy’s weight was making her sag as she flew, but she held him tightly. They were both gasping for breath and coughing.
Fang and Maya went closer. Angel looked at them and nodded. With one forceful stroke of her wings, she shot away from the building—just as the room exploded in flames, showering the sidewalk below with glass and debris.
I flew along the sidewalk beneath her, and with Fang and Maya flanking her on either side, Angel landed well down the block, setting the boy down gently. His mother raced up, shrieking in French, and grabbed him. He was coughing and sniffling but managed a smile as he motioned to Angel. The woman tearfully thanked Angel, who nodded wearily and then headed over to me. I met her halfway.
“Way to go, hero,” I said, giving her a high five.
“Thanks.” She smiled, her teeth bright white against her soot-covered face. “I bet you were dying to come get me.”
I laughed ruefully. “You know me too well. I was going crazy.”
Angel smiled again and took my hand. It was like old times.
62
I BASKED IN nostalgia for about a minute and a half, then my reverie vanished.