15

THERE WERE TOO MANY PEOPLE. Everywhere they looked bright colors and sticky smells and people, people, people. It had turned from enchanting to dizzying and Lottie could hardly move in her yukata, not used to walking in geta, traditional wooden sandals. She’d tried calling Jamie on his phone, but there was no response, so she’d left one simple message: “Jamie, please come back.”

“They have to be here somewhere,” Saskia said. “Jamie wouldn’t just leave unless—”

She stopped herself mid-sentence. Jamie wouldn’t leave unless there was a threat, unless Leviathan were here.

“Anastacia, stay close to me.” Saskia no longer tried to blend in with the crowd. Her sash had come loose, and she pulled off her yukata to reveal a navy catsuit. Lottie should have realized Saskia would be just as prepared as any other Partizan. Prickles of fear brushed Lottie’s skin. This was the Saskia who’d kidnapped her, the one who’d taken Julius’s eye out; she was formidable and deadly. Could they really trust her?

“Someone’s coming,” Saskia said, pulling Anastacia behind her.

“HARU!” Lottie called.

The Japanese Partizan appeared through the crowd, running full speed and with a dark, terrified expression that made Lottie feel sick.

“Jamie!” Placing his hands on Saskia’s shoulders, he gasped for breath. “Jamie saw someone from Leviathan here at the festival. He went after them but I lost him. He disappeared so fast.”

It was impossible to take in anything after the word “Leviathan.” All of Lottie’s worst fears had followed them to Japan. They were not safe anywhere. Leviathan were a virus that was spreading around the world, and she was a host. Worst of all, now they might have Jamie! The stupidity of her own self-absorbed concerns slapped her in the face. They’d left Jamie behind. They’d done this. Ellie and Lottie had lost their Partizan.

“The motorbikes,” Lottie said, fighting back tears. “It has to have been them.”

“We don’t know that,” Ellie protested, and everyone stared at her, unbelieving.

“I know which way he went.” All eyes focused on Haru, his words lingering. He didn’t realize how loaded they were.

Ellie was the first to speak. “I’m going after him.”

“But Ellie!” Lottie felt horror at what she knew she had to say, and she leaned in to whisper in Ellie’s ear. “Our job is to keep you safe. What if you get hurt?”

Everyone’s gaze was on them, and they turned for a little more privacy. Haru seemed to be the only one oblivious to the problem.

“I can’t leave Jamie behind,” Ellie whispered quickly. “He can hate me as much as he wants, but I have to go after him. We shouldn’t have left him!” A furious storm grew at the back of her eyes, and Lottie knew she felt the same guilt. “I’m giving you permission to do the irresponsible thing.”

Lottie grabbed Ellie’s hand like it was a weapon, and, turning back to the others, she said, “Show us the way.”

They were going to find Jamie together.

Haru didn’t miss a beat. They followed him into the crowd, weaving between the happy festivalgoers. They were ghosts, flying past everyone in the real world. But it was impossible to keep up with Haru, and Lottie kept tripping over her sandals, relying on Ellie’s strength to hold her up.

“Here!” Haru called eventually, turning around on the spot. “I lost him here.”

They were at the edge of the festival. Stone steps led down to alleyways that gave way to exposed streets, and the glowing neon lights of the city reflected in wet patches on the pavement.

None of them said a word as they descended, the dizzy decadence of the festival melting away behind them. The alleyways were alive with fingers of shadows wrapping around their skin, enveloping them in darkness. Lottie could feel Haru behind her. It made her feel both nervous and brave, like having a great beast at her back. One step into the alley and the world turned cold, nothing but dank wall and dripping gutter. Saskia stopped them in the middle, halfway between the street and the safety of the festival. “Okay, I think—”

“Argh!”

“Haru?” Lottie turned to where Haru had been, to be confronted with . . . nothing. Only darkness greeted her. He’d vanished.

“What was that?” Saskia asked, her voice as cold as the wall they were pushed against. “Where’s Haru?”

“He’s gone,” Lottie whimpered, unable to stop from shaking.

“Then we need to get out of here.” Saskia grabbed Anastacia and signaled for them to follow her, all of them hurrying down the alley. They emerged into the gleaming lights. It was the end of a street, with another tiny alley opposite them as skinny as a crack in the floor.

“Wait!” Lottie jerked away from Ellie, who was pulling her hard toward the open street. “This feels wrong.”

Saskia, their only remaining Partizan, nodded, narrowing her eyes. “I agree. We need to—”

“No!” The storm in Ellie was simmering, electricity leaking into the air. “You . . .” she growled, her teeth glinting like fangs. “You persuaded me to come to the festival. You said it was a blessing.” Her ebony eyes sparked. “Is this your plan, Saskia? After all this, we thought you’d changed, and you’ve led us right back to Leviathan.”

“How dare you?” It wasn’t Saskia, but Anastacia who stepped forward. “Saskia’s protecting us. She was brainwashed. She’s a victim.”

“Why don’t you let her speak for herself?” Ellie barked.

All eyes turned on Saskia, and they waited. Nothing. She didn’t respond, just stood there, head bowed.

“Saskia?” Lottie asked, trembling, the air around them feeling cold. “Saskia, what’s—”

The sound that followed was like nothing Lottie had ever heard. A metallic whizz so close to her that she swore she felt the metal graze the down on her face. Saskia reacted before any of them even knew what was happening, pulling the fan out of the back of Anastacia’s yukata and catching the knife between the patterned paper, stopping it moments before it could hit her right between the eyes.

“It’s not me,” she said calmly, pocketing the knife. “But you were right to be suspicious.”

Everything turned blinding white from car headlights blinking on at the top of the street. Lottie had to cover her eyes with her arm as she faced the vehicle. Leaning against the door of the shiny black car was a mountain of a man with an eyepatch and a cowboy hat.

Julius.

“You can all make this easier for yourselves and hand over the princess now,” he drawled. His voice sent shivers up Lottie’s spine. “Or if you’d rather, I can take that eye you owe me, Saskia.” He waited for a moment. “Come now. Let’s not make this harder than it needs to be.”

Lottie desperately willed her heart rate to slow down, her whole body going into a strange moment of calm, and then she heard a sound . . . a noise she’d heard once before.

A low electric hum sent shivers through the ground. It grew louder, like an approaching storm, roaring, pounding, and pulsing through the night. It growled in the moonlight, wheels screeching like a beast, and then she appeared. The Pink Demon.

Spray from the puddles billowed around her like a shield, pleated trousers flying at her side, her motorbike thundering beneath her legs.

Four mystery bikers, blue, yellow, pink, and purple, cut off Julius’s car, bats raised, daring him to move forward.

“I knew they weren’t with Leviathan!” Ellie practically squealed.

But they weren’t safe yet.

Julius scrambled into his car, revving the engine, the fury in the sound cracking the air. One of the bikers turned to them and nodded their helmet, tapping the back of the bike.

“Everyone get on!” Saskia called.

“Really?” Anastacia spluttered.

“It’s either them or Leviathan—your choice.”

Lottie didn’t need to be asked twice. Ellie helped Lottie scramble onto the back of the blue bike, and then, with eyes ablaze, she ran to saddle up with the Pink Demon.

“Let’s go!” Ellie screamed.

Lottie clutched her hands around the waist of the helmeted figure, the ground trembling. As they tore away, it was impossible to stop the tears that streaked down her cheeks. She glanced over her shoulder once more as they weaved between traffic.

Jamie was still missing.

Jamie was lost somewhere and he was still so vulnerable.

She just had to hope this mysterious gang could help them.

“I don’t know who you are,” she called against the wind as they powered on through the city. “But I trust you.”