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MOM BURST through Ray’s office door and made a beeline for me. She said my name repeatedly as she smooshed me against her. “It’s been so long. I’ve been so worried.” She held me at arm’s length to look me over. “You seem well,” she said, avoiding my creepy gray eyes.
“Thanks for coming over, Ms. Winston,” said Ray. “Where do we report?”
Mom tucked a blonde strand back behind her ear. “Report? You’re guests, Ray.” She scanned the room, and then held out a hand. “You must be Lily Raymond. You can stay with your brother at his lodgings on-site. I’ll show the rest of you to guest rooms where you can relax before tonight’s event.”
I watched as Lily tentatively shook Mom’s hand and mumbled a sweet thank-you. I was glad Lily wouldn’t be left alone in one of the guest rooms, and that she could spend more time with her brother. But I was shocked that the Gala was tonight. Already?
“What is this Gala? What is its purpose?” my father growled. “Why exactly are we here, Doreen?”
It took a moment for Mom to catch her breath before responding to my father’s grilling. He asked questions like I did—a string of them, one right after the other, each more pressing than the last.
She smoothed her palms across her skirt. “The Gala, Basileios, is a fundraiser. What you and Calla have done—your freeing of the Lost—is being celebrated and shared with those in positions of power and wealth.” Her lips pressed together as if challenging him to find fault with her explanation.
Instead of responding with his signature growl, my father’s face paled. “A fundraiser. We’re here to dance like monkeys, and the coin will go to the TSTA?”
Unsure what to say, or who to stick up for, I bit my lip and pretended to browse the books on the shelves behind Ray’s desk. Whose side was I on? My father’s? Mom’s? Or was she on ship TSTA? Mom had left me with Uncle Al to spend more time working for the TSTA. She’d continued working for them even after they’d convicted me. On the other hand, the whole reason she’d joined the agency was to be in a better position to help find my father—back when she was still in love with him. Now that we’d found him, I wondered what changes lay ahead.
Valcas tightened his grip on my hand.
Slowly, Mom inhaled a breath. Her response was firm but professional. “Yes, one of the purposes of the Gala is to raise money. The funds are necessary for the TSTA’s protection.”
Ugh. Definitely ship TSTA.
“Protection from whom?” my father said, narrowing his eyes.
Mom stared at the floor. “I’ve said enough. I won’t discuss this further. I’ll show you to your rooms.”
Valcas shrugged his lips at me.
Everyone except for the Raymond twins filed out of Ray’s office. We practically ran as we tried to keep up with Mom’s clipped footsteps.
My guest room was identical to the one I’d stayed in before my TSTA hearing. Valcas and my father had what I imagined were similar rooms across the hall.
There was a bed, a chest of drawers and a TSTA-Vision. I hoped there’d be more channels than last time. The room wasn’t as cozy as Nick’s loft, but I looked forward to having space to myself again. Even if privacy was an illusory concept inside TSTA Headquarters, where I expected a bug or camera in every corner, I was excited to have my own room and air to breathe.
I crawled on top of the bed, covers and all, and took a nap.
A knock at the door woke me after what felt like minutes. Mom stood before me when I opened it, smiling and holding a garment bag.
“I’ve brought your dress for the Gala,” she said, inviting herself in. “You’re thinner than you were the last time I saw you, but I’m sure it will be beautiful.”
I unzipped the bag and peeled back the corners. The dress was black, knee length with sequins trimming the neck and hemline.
“Do you like it? It’s a black-tie event.”
“Yes, it’s great,” I said, trailing my fingers across the fabric.
“Oh, and I didn’t forget the shoes and purse,” Mom said, pulling a box from another bag. “The strap across the top of the foot has matching sequins.”
I gave Mom a small smile. “Thanks.”
“Okay, then,” she said, straightening her skirt. “Feel free to use the ladies’ room down the hall.” She shoved another bag in my hands. “There are showers there if you need one.”
“What’s this?”
“A travel kit—with shampoo, soap, a toothbrush, toothpaste and simple makeup. I’ll be back for you in a couple hours.”
I suppressed a smile. I couldn’t remember the last time it took me a couple hours to get ready for anything. I must have looked awful. “Thanks, Mom.”
She looked me over again. This time she winced when she met my eyes. “You’re welcome.” Her gaze shifted to the floor before she closed the door to the room.
I fell back on the bed and sighed. This was going to be a long night. In an attempt to make the primping go by faster, I turned a dial on the TSTA-Vision to see if there were any music channels. There was music, but nothing uplifting. Children in black and gold robes sang in a language I didn’t understand. My shoulders stiffened. It was the Aborealian funeral choir.
Turning the dial again proved useless. The same concert played on every channel. I turned off the TSTA-Vision and began my preparation for the Gala, in silence.
***
I DEALT WITH THE FINAL touches in the ladies’ room. Sample-sized tubes of makeup covered the sink in front of me, which I dodged as I stretched to get close enough to the mirror.
Blech, I thought, twisting my hair back away from my face. The lack of sun in Susana hadn’t done anything to improve my complexion. My skin was the color of printer paper. Worse yet, my eyes—which might as well have been printed in grayscale—were horrific enough to be beautiful, in a paranormal sort of way. Calla, princess of the vampires, who drank of the waters of Nowheres. Behold the bloom of her hollowed-out cheeks, masked with the powder of... I peeked at the back of the sample-sized blush container. Fresh Petals.
A knock at the door dragged me back to reality.
I opened it, and gaped. Mom stood there wearing a longer version of the dress I had on. Her blonde hair, usually pulled back in a tight braid, cascaded down past her shoulders.
But what really caught my attention was my father, who stared at me over her shoulder, appearing both unsure and self-satisfied at the same time. I shoved the makeup leftovers in the purse and brushed past Mom, letting the bathroom spring closed behind me.
“You look amazing,” I said as I attempted to straighten my father’s bowtie, which was already perfect.
He looked just as striking as Valcas did in a dinner jacket, maybe even better. Whereas I’d tied my hair up with pins I’d found in the travel kit, my father had tied back his dark curls with a ribbon. It looked so much better pulled away from his face. His blue-green eyes stood out against his olive skin.
He wasn’t happy about any of it. “I feel like a monkey,” he said, slipping my arm in his. “And now I look like one in this attire.”
Despite his discomfort, he didn’t give Mom any more trouble about attending the Gala. She walked quietly behind us. We entered the cafeteria, but it was empty.
A TSTA official opened a door at the other end of the room. “This way for our honored guests and their family.”
By family, I figured the official meant Mom, which was weird given that she worked for the TSTA. I hoped honored guests wasn’t synonymous with those who will be given a death sentence for having fled the TSTA in Chascadia, freeing the Lost and destroying Susana.
I felt my father’s arm tighten against mine as we entered the ballroom. Sure that he was no less suspicious than I was, I said, “Don’t worry. Valcas won’t let anything happen to us. He’s probably planning an escape route right now, just in case.”
My father grunted. His eyes bounced back and forth, scanning the room, possibly in search of his own way out. I couldn’t blame him. I patted the purse which also held my pair of travel glasses; I had a plan, too.
But instead of pouncing on us as we entered the room, the people there clapped and shook our hands. Rows of powdered and perfumed guests in formalwear greeted us with smiles as another TSTA official led us to a table.
I caught my breath. So far we hadn’t been arrested. We’d been treated with respect. That made me nervous.
Mom sat down at a table and motioned for us to do the same. Dinner was already being served. To my relief, Lily, Ray and Valcas were already there, seated across from us.
Our table was one of many that circled a dance floor with a stage raised in the middle. A podium stuck out from the center of the stage. From it hung a banner decorated with spirals surrounding a navy blue clock with gold lettering, one that looked antiqued. Above the clock it said Everywhere, below Everywhen. It reminded me of the watch the TSTA had given me before my mission to find my father.
Across the room, I caught a glimpse of shine from Commissioner Reese’s oily forehead. I couldn’t help it—the light from the ceiling reflected off it and nearly blinded me. Since he was the only figure of authority I’d associated with the TSTA up until then, I expected him to give a speech.
Instead, someone else, a woman, ascended the stage and parked herself in front of the podium. The woman had red hair, streaked with gray. Her dress was cut in a severe style, almost like a suit, formal but not frilly.
Lily poked Ray in the rib and pointed. Ray touched a finger to his lips and nodded, as if they shared a secret. His earring sparkled red under the overhead lights, adding a casual touch to his tux. Lily’s dress was black with silver bows. Their clothes brought out the blue in their eyes, which greatly accentuated their twin-ness.
The woman at the podium tapped the microphone twice. When the room quieted, she set her teeth in what looked like a forced smile. “Good evening,” she said. “I am Susana Bree, your ambassador to all worlds with travelers passing through the Everywhere and the Everywhen. Also, the newly elected President of the TSTA.”