Angel Fire (27 page)

“Aura,” I realized.

“Yes, aura. You shouldn’t show your true aura out in the open this way – the angels might see you.”

Time slowed as I remembered how he’d seen the angels too. The truth hit me like a blow, so that all that existed was the two of us, standing on the bridge. Focusing on Seb, I brought his aura into view. It was pale green with darker green lights.

“Show me,” I whispered.

He understood what I meant without me having to explain. A smooth rippling – and his aura changed. Silver, with forest-green lights gleaming through it. In a dream, I put my hand out, running it through the gently-shifting colours as if I could catch them; watching as they played on my fingers. Seb stood very still. I felt him shiver and realized he could feel this, just as if I was stroking his skin.

I lowered my hand, but couldn’t stop staring at the beautiful, silvery lights. My eyes were full of tears – the words almost wouldn’t come.

“You’re half-angel,” I said. “I thought – I thought I was the only one in the world.”

Seb let out a breath that was almost a sob. “
Yes
. Yes, me too...me too.” He tried to say something else; couldn’t seem to get out the words. He reached for my hand, squeezing it hard.

I stood with his fingers gripping mine as we stared at each other.
I should pull away,
I thought...but instead I was holding onto him tightly too. I could sense his energy again, and now it all made sense. It felt so warm and familiar, because, for the first time ever, I was touching one of my own kind. The sensation of like touching like was indescribable, something I knew now that every human being on the planet took for granted. But to have never experienced this at all, and then to suddenly
find
it, after seventeen years...oh god, it was like sinking into a warm bath and not knowing where my skin ended and the water began.

Seb’s eyes were so full of wonder that he looked almost frightened, and I knew he was feeling exactly the same thing. Other knowledge came too: snapshots from his life, swirling through my head. The orphanage he’d been abandoned in, life on the streets, a young offenders’ place that was so horrific I found myself wincing in pity. More than that, I got a sense of
him
. His inner strength. The teasing sense of humour he’d somehow hung onto, the charm that hid the utter loneliness he felt sometimes. He’d known he was half-angel since he was a small child – had felt alone for most of his life. He’d searched for so many years. So many.

And underneath everything, steady as a heartbeat, was an emotion so intense it took my breath away.

No, I have to be wrong about that,
I thought in confusion. He couldn’t feel that way about me – it didn’t make any sense. We’d only just met each other.

“How did you find me?” I asked finally.

Seb looked down at our hands together; his fingers tightened. “You dreamed about me,” he said huskily. I stiffened. Oh my god, how did he know that? “You dreamed we were in a park in
el DF
, so I came here,” he went on. “I’ve been coming to Chapultepec for weeks, trying to find you.”

“But—”

“I’ve got your shirt, your picture. I saw it was you, and I—” His hazel eyes rose again, and my chest clenched at the expression in them, so that other questions suddenly seemed meaningless. He swallowed; in slow motion, he reached out and touched my hair, as if it were something fragile and precious. “Willow, I’ve been looking for you for so long. I can’t tell you how I felt when I saw your picture for the first time – what it meant to me. I—”

The sound of running footsteps came from the path behind us. “Willow!” called Alex’s voice, and suddenly I was hotly aware that I was standing there holding a stranger’s hand, staring into his eyes. I pulled away from Seb as Alex came jogging up, but I knew that he’d seen.

Alex stopped in front of us, dark hair ruffled from the run as he looked at me in bewilderment. His glance at Seb was tinged with suspicion. “Willow, what’s going on? Who
is
this guy? I saw you running off with him, and I thought...are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” I said, touching his arm. The pure human energy rushed through me; it took me a second to adjust, and then it was only Alex again, warm and familiar. “I’m fine,” I repeated. I started to try and explain, then remembered in a rush. “Alex, the Council’s arrived! They were part of that flock that was just overhead!”

His jaw dropped. “The
Council
? Are you sure? They’re not supposed to be here for another five weeks!”

“Yeah, it was definitely them – twelve shining angels, just like in my dream. They flew into the top of that tower.” I pointed, shading my eyes from the sun.

“The Torre Mayor,” muttered Alex, staring upwards. “What the hell are they doing
there
, instead of the Nikko?”

“The plans have changed, I guess.” Feeble, useless words. “Or maybe they’re going to the hotel later?”

Alex let out a strained breath, still gazing up at the gleaming pinnacle. “God, let’s hope so. We don’t know
anything
about that place – no floor plans, nothing. My team’s not even fully trained yet.” He shoved his hands through his hair; I could feel how shaken he was.

There was a pause, and then he looked down at me, and back at Seb again. Confusion crossed his features. Slowly, he said, “Okay, so...who is this guy, anyway? Why were you—” He stopped.

Holding hands with him
. My cheeks flushed. Seb stood leaning against the statue’s base, listening. I could sense how disappointed he was that we’d been interrupted, and in a daze, it hit me just how easily I could read him already. I’d never felt such a strong instant connection to anyone in my life before.

“Alex, this is Seb. He—” I broke off. “Seb, is it okay if I tell him?”

“Tell me what?” Alex’s dark eyebrows had drawn together. “Willow, what’s going on?”

I glanced at Seb; he gave a resigned shrug. “He’s half-angel,” I said.

Alex couldn’t have seemed more stunned if I’d smashed him over the head with a mallet. “He’s
what
?” He looked sharply back at Seb; there was a rapid shift as his consciousness rose through his chakra points. “His aura’s green, not silver. But his energy feels...” His eyes widened. “Christ, you really are one. What’s the deal with your aura?”

As clearly as if I was thinking it myself, I knew how much Seb disliked Alex knowing this; the fact that he could change his aura was something he’d always kept secret. You wouldn’t have guessed it from his body language, though. He looked like the definition of “casual” as he stood there against the statue.

“You can see auras,” he said. “Most humans can’t.”

Most humans
. The words gave me a start – Seb didn’t see himself as human. And I still did, somehow, even though I so clearly wasn’t.

“I’ve been trained,” said Alex shortly. “Answer the question.”

Seb flicked a glance over him; you didn’t have to be psychic to see that he didn’t like being ordered around. “It isn’t smart, with angels around,” he said at last. “So I changed it.”

“Wait – you can change your aura?” repeated Alex, his eyes narrowing. “Like, at will?”

Seb’s forehead creased; Alex said something in rapid Spanish, and he nodded. “Yes, at will.” A wry smile. “Your Spanish is very good,
amigo
.”

Alex gave him a look at the word
amigo
, and I knew he was still thinking of Seb holding my hand. “Yeah, thanks,” he said. “So are there lots of half-angels, or—”

“No,” said Seb and I together. “No,” I went on, clearing my throat. “Seb – he’s never seen another one. He’s spent most of his life looking.”

I could see Seb realizing the depth of what I’d gotten from his hand.
Did he get anything from mine?
I wondered suddenly. Did Seb know me just as well as I knew him now? At the feel of his steady gaze on me, my face warmed; I couldn’t meet his eyes. God, what was wrong with me? Why was I getting all flustered just because some half-angel boy held my hand?

Alex had fallen silent. I could almost see him turning all this over in his head. “Another half-angel,” he murmured. “Jesus.” Watching Seb carefully, he rested against the railing of the bridge with his arms folded over his chest. The sleeves of his blue sweatshirt were pushed up, showing his toned forearms.

“How did you find her?” he asked finally.

“Someone stole your things in Chihuahua,” said Seb, speaking to me rather than Alex. “Some clothes, and a picture. I bought them at the marketplace, and when I touched them I could see...everything.”

I have your shirt, your picture
. It all became clear. Seb had seen my dream from my shirt – I’d been worrying about what it might mean for hours the last time I’d worn it.

“And after that?” asked Alex after a pause. “How did you know where we’d gone?”

Seb glanced at me. My heart sank as I remembered: I hadn’t told Alex about the strange boy in my dream; it had just seemed too surreal. But even though how I’d felt in the dream had been ridiculous, what would Alex think when he heard about it now – when the strange boy had been holding my hand, touching my hair?

To my relief, all Seb said was, “She was thinking that you needed to come to
el DF –
I touched her shirt, and I felt it. So I came too.”

“
El DF
is a big place,” pointed out Alex dryly.

“Yes, I get feelings sometimes. I got a feeling today that I should come to Chapultepec.” Seb smiled; there wasn’t much humour in it. “Any more questions?”

Still leaning against the railing, Alex gave a soft snort. “Oh, sorry, am I being too nosy?” The traffic droned past below as he crossed his ankles, keeping his gaze on Seb. “I get like that when I find some guy hanging onto my girlfriend. Weird, huh?”

Seb arched an eyebrow.

“Alex, it wasn’t like that, honestly!” I burst out. From somewhere outside of myself, I was shaking my head in amazement that these two gorgeous boys seemed to be having some kind of stand-off over me. From
inside
of myself, it felt awful. “It was just...this moment of realizing that we’re both half-angels, that’s all.”

Still watching Seb, Alex started to say something else, then stopped. He blew out a breath and shook his head. Glancing at me, he held an arm out; we hugged tightly. I could sense Seb’s dismay as he watched, and I actually felt
guilty
for a second. It was insane: I’d only known him for about half an hour. Angrily, I tried to shove this weird hyper-awareness of Seb’s feelings out of my mind.

Alex’s arms were warm around me. “I’m sorry,” I said against his neck. “I know it must have looked—”

He kissed me, halting my words. “Hey, come on; you know I trust you,” he whispered.

I had a feeling he wasn’t including Seb in that sentiment. Not that I could really blame him. Then I thought of something; I peered around us. “Wait, where are Sam and Trish?”

“They’re going to meet us back home with Kara and her group,” said Alex. “Sam really wanted to come with me, though – he thought I might be beating up whoever this guy was.” From his expression as he glanced back at Seb, he didn’t think it was the worst idea he’d ever heard. There was more, though; I could tell he was turning something over in his mind.

“So,” he said finally, keeping his arm around my shoulders. “What now?”

Seb looked a question at him.

“See, I’ve got this really bad feeling that we’re not going to get rid of you,” said Alex. “Call me crazy, but I don’t think you’re planning on heading back up to Chihuahua now that you’ve met another half-angel.”

Seb’s gaze went to me...and all at once I knew that no power on earth would make him leave. Now that he’d finally found me, he’d die before he ever let himself be separated from me again. And to my alarm, what I felt wasn’t far off from that. It made me shaky to admit it, but it was true – something primal that I couldn’t even control. Seb might be the only other half-angel I’d ever encounter. There was no way I wanted him to go back to Chihuahua.

“No, I’m not going anywhere,” said Seb. “Not unless you want me to,” he added to me.

I was so conscious of Alex standing beside me, of what he might be feeling about all this. “No, I don’t want you to go,” I admitted softly.

Alex glanced down at me in surprise. I tried to tell him with my eyes that this had nothing to do with him and me, and everything to do with needing to know another of my kind. To my relief, I saw understanding cross his face. He didn’t look happy, exactly, but I could see that he got it.

“You were holding his hand,” he said after a pause. “What did you get? Can he be trusted?”

Remembering what I’d seen, the question almost made me laugh. Seb had been a thief for years; he’d picked more pockets and stolen more cameras and purses than he could count. But I
did
trust him, I realized. I’d trust him with...anything.

“Yeah, he can be trusted,” I said.

Alex seemed to make up his mind. “Okay, look,” he said to Seb. “If you came back with us, could you teach Willow how to do that aura thing?”

Seb’s eyebrows shot up. “You don’t know how?” he said to me.

I shook my head, shocked that Alex was even suggesting this – though on second thought, it made perfect sense. My half-angel aura put me in danger every time I went outside; I knew how much he worried about it. “I’m not usually that aware of auras,” I told Seb. “I mean, I can see other people’s if I try, but I’ve never seen my own unless I was in my angel form. Trying to change it never occurred to me – I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

Seb’s hazel eyes were concerned. “Yes, I’ll teach you. It’s much safer.”

I nodded, my emotions so mixed I could hardly make sense of them. Part of me was still stunned that Seb was even
real
, much less that he was coming back to the house with us.

There was no sign now of Alex’s own mixed emotions about Seb, though I knew he must still have them. “Good,” he said, sounding like he was talking to any member of the team. “And you know what we do, right?”