Then she was quiet. That late, the city and the hotel too were hushed. We sat together a long time, saying nothing. The moon was reflected in her glasses, two smears of pale white light.
“Loving and loathing and losing,” she’d said. “Do you share my madness?” Were those just pretty words from a book or something that was true and really mattered? How would I ever know? I loved to listen. When she talked it was like walls and curtains and veils fell, and I could see what was real behind them. As soon as the words stopped, though, everything was hidden again.
The silence flowed in, and what I was sure of, again, was danger, somewhere beyond my sight. Django might be telling us amazing secrets. The Alien Drift might really slide through me like sunbeams through glass. But Anna Z’s brother was still out there in the city. Lukas was real flesh and blood. He knew who I was and where I lived. And he wanted Anna Z back.
I said maybe I should stay with her that night. She shook her head and said, “That wouldn’t be a good idea. I’ll be fine.” The door locks were solid. Nobody had a clue that she up was there anyway. And she was right: it would be better to keep things normal. If anyone noticed I hadn’t been in my room, like Sabina or one of the maids, they might wonder what was going on and start asking questions. This made sense. Until we had a better plan, I should act as though nothing had changed.