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I race after Jorgen, my heart pounding in my throat. “I can’t take my motorbike. It’s still at the Snow estate, and even if I had it here, Dr. Johnson might be able to track me.”
Jorgen grunts. “That only mattered when you were trying to hide that you weren’t in the building, and didn’t want them to know where you’d gone.” He punches open the door to a service stairway, and we descend another flight of stairs to a back hall. “But Johnson is going to know where you’re heading, whether she knows exactly when you arrive or not. As for leaving the bike at Snow’s place, Blanc road it back here to drop off the jammer. But she’s claiming it as hers after this mission until you replace it.”
I flinch. Fair enough. “Is she coming with me?”
“No. She’s with the other NEL, trying to track down Johnson.” A minute later, Jorgen leads me to a familiar side entrance where my bike waits beside the door. “Get ready to go.” He gestures with his melded, silvery arm to the bike before starting back into the building. “Ebs should be here shortly, but your changeling is probably already at the ball. So don’t dally around once he gets here.”
She could be dancing with Maria, planning to hurt her...
The five minutes it takes for Ebs to come down with a uniform feels like hours, and I don’t bother waiting for him to return inside before I change. The only thing that matters is that I get to Maria Snow and that I have a chance to protect her. I can’t protect her very well in a dress, not if my changeling also has toxins, and I guarantee she does.
Dr. Johnson was far too proud of that weapon not to use it. I consider putting my spare vials from the bike’s storage hold into my wrists, then dismiss the idea. While they’re not likely to harm me, since I placed them here before Dr. Johnson went on her rogue streak, that also means they aren’t likely to hurt my changeling, either.
Then again, it’s possible she anticipated me taking the bike and had Kay swap them out before our joint mission.
I grab the spare baton instead. I want to have at least some kind of weapon on hand.
I turn to thank Ebs for his help, but he’s already gone back inside to help Saito.
Suited up, I hop on the bike, start the engine, and zip onto the city street. It’s late enough that the traffic has cleared, so it’s easy to maneuver with a motorcycle, but so busy that I don’t fear the ball is over yet.
I’m more worried about how soon my changeling is going to make her move.
