I had a really bad feeling about splitting up. Something in my stomach twisted at the thought. Dad was already heading for the front room, ready to go, but I balked. Tate saw my expression and shook his head. "My dad's as stubborn as you are. He's not going to budge."

   "If he's just as stubborn, then you know I won't, either."

   "Only when you have reason to budge, yes, I know. But he's right. We need new clothes, and we need to clean up. When else are we going to have a shot?"

   I looked at him sharply. "We?" He acted like he was coming with me after I dropped them off at Death Valley.

   Tate pursed his lips and looked towards where his parents had headed toward their room. Realizing he didn't want them hearing, I grunted and marched towards the front room. Dad opened his mouth to speak. I grabbed his arm, tucked the staff under my arm, and snagged Tate's wrist as he got closer. 

   Seconds later and we appeared outside the mall. Dad spat out another cough. Tate shook his head at me. I let both of them go and tossed away my staff. "Yes, Tate?"

   His eyes flicked at my dad. I narrowed my gaze. "Really?"

   Tate nodded. What did he want to be so secretive? I didn't understand. Annoyed, I looked at the front doors to the mall. They opened at six. A check of Dad's watch said it was three minutes until they opened. The sky was very faintly pink. Seeing as it was early September, I suspected that the sun would be rising within the next half hour.

   Cold air nipped at our skin until a mall worker appeared at the door. She'd been halfway through a long sip of her coffee cup when she saw us. Her eyes widened and she choked on her coffee. Right. I'd forgotten my clothes were covered in blood and shredded. Tate's were, too. And Dad was wearing Super Drama Llama pajamas.

   She fumbled with the lock and pushed the door out. "Y'all aren't criminals, right?" Her voice was so thick with a Southern accent that I had trouble figuring out what she'd said.

   "No."

   The girl shook her head. "Just don't rob the Starbucks and I won't care." She pushed the door further open. I snagged the side and pulled it wider, stepping inside. Stores were just now starting to open up. I caught sight of a store I knew I could fit into the clothes and headed that way. Tate followed, his bare feet padding on the floor. 

   "I'm just going to grab a change of clothes," I said. Tate nodded, handing over the debit card. I disappeared into the store, making a bee-line for the clothes.

   I ended up snagging a pair of cargo pants and a random shirt. It was long-sleeved and thick enough to protect against any cold winds. I bought them from a startled guy at the counter and changed clothes in the fitting room. With the old clothes in a bundle, I left the store and dumped them in the trash on the way out.

   Dad pointed down the hall as I approached. They had sat down to wait for me. "There's a Levi's over there. It ought to be able to fit us both."

   I tossed Tate the card. "I only took about fifty bucks. The price of long-sleeved stuff . . . they were thirty-five bucks and the cheapest in the store."

   Tate grimaced. "And we all need shoes, too. A good pair of shoes is fifty dollars alone. Are you going to want another backpack?"

   My hand reached for the strap and met air. Right. It was sitting under the tree in the Ghost Realm. I'd left it there when I went to intercept the hunters. I shook my head. "No. I can store anything I need magically."

   Dad was already in the store. I saw him grab a pair of jeans without looking, snag a random sweater, and hurry for the changing rooms. I sent Tate an exasperated look. He shrugged and entered the store.

   I sat on the bench outside and waited. My eyes drifted around the mall. Considering it had opened maybe ten minutes ago, it was still pretty empty. Only employees seemed to be roaming the lit hallway. The window at the end of the hall showed that the sky was still getting lighter.

   I hung my head over the back of the bench and paused. Intrigued, I sat up and turned around to look in the window of the shop. There was a leather jacket on a sale rack within, and the only reason I gave it a glance was because it was dark red. Crimson, actually. Shaking my head, I turned back around and busied myself by pulling out the tie holding my braid together. The strands were occasionally stuck together with mud and dried blood, but I was able to braid it back into a somewhat-controlled state.

   It took about fifteen minutes for Tate and Dad to exit. Dad was wearing jeans, a white sweater, and crocs. I felt like smacking my forehead. What an outfit. Tate, meanwhile, had chosen a navy long-sleeve and jeans. The jeans looked too large on him while the shirt was too small. His arms looked like they were going to bust the seams.

   When he saw my expression, he grimaced. "Any other jeans need a belt and suspenders or choke the living daylights out of me."

   "That shirt just about is, buddy."

   "It's the biggest size they have."

   I shook my head, amused. "Okay, okay. You still probably need suspenders for those pants."

   "I beat him to it." Dad pulled a pair from the shopping bag. His pajamas were folded neatly inside. Tate made a face. Dad scowled. "You look like an idiot without them. Quit shaming your entire species and just wear it."

   A few minutes later and Dad had Tate wearing the suspenders. Tate pulled at them, irritated. I looked down at our feet. "Okay, shoes. Where's a good place for shoes?"

   I stared at my shoes, debating mentally what to do. They weren't in that bad of shape. I actually loved my converse. But the left one was falling apart because of the wolf, and they weren't good for running either. Resigned to replacing them, I picked up the box of shoes I'd already tried on and followed Tate to the check out.

   As I walked, my eyes caught sight of someone as they headed down the other aisle. They had been wearing a hoodie with the hood drawn up. And sunglasses. Sunglasses? It was 6:30 in the morning. The sun had barely risen.

   The hairs on the back of my neck raised. I shifted my gaze to the nearest security camera. With two fingers, I sent a small ribbon of scarlet up the wall. The camera turned so that half of the store was out of sight.

   Tate saw what I'd done from the counter. His eyes flicked between the camera and me. I nodded. Tate grimaced and I saw him subtly move his arm closer to the sale rack next to him, as if he were preparing to throw it. The cashier scanned the tag on his wrist and continued with the items in front of him.

   Backing up a step, I turned and moved down the aisle. Dad was somewhere, trying on a new pair of shoes even though he'd already bought crocs. I quickened my steps, trying to be as silent as possible, and turned the corner. The person in front of me halted. I did the same, immediately recognizing them. 

   My lip curled into a faint smirk. "You don't look too good."

   It was the fae from the Ghost Realm. I had no idea how he had survived Tate dragging him to the bottom of the lake, but he was alive. I also had no idea how he'd found me. The fae's lip lifted to expose a sharp canine. That explained the sunglasses, though. His eyes were an unnatural neon blue. The hoodie covered his pointed ears.

   I crossed my arms, amused. "So, what was your plan here? Ambush me -- alone -- in public? In the Mortal Realm? You can't be that stupid."

   "Oh, I'm definitely not," whispered the fae, flashing his teeth. Two other shapes appeared in my peripheral vision. My spine clenched slightly. One of them was the demon from the Ghost Realm. The third looked to be another shifter. She was covered head-to-toe in muscle, her hair bright white. A growl faintly echoed from her chest.

   I looked back at the fae critically. "Three against one? Don't you think that's a little unfair?" And I didn't mean unfair for me.

   I never gave him the chance to speak. I jumped forward and snapped my fist forward, boxer-style. The punch hit his nose and rattled his brain. My knuckles ached and popped because of the lack of gloves. The two others converged on me instantly. The shifter's foot slammed onto my knee and sent it buckling forward. I embraced the hit, my knee aching, and rolled forward.

   As I started to come up, I jerked my hand forward. A thin rope appeared and tripped the shifter, sending her stumbling into a shelf. I popped upright and grabbed a shoe box. The box sailed directly through the demon, who gave me a deadpan look. 

   "Tate," I whispered fiercely, knowing he'd hear me. "Get anyone out of my way. I'm going off in a minute."

   In other words, I was done playing nice. This room was going to be dripping with magic the moment I knew no humans were nearby to see. It was up to Tate to get that done, because I didn't care all that much if anyone saw me. Not if I got what I wanted.

   In the meantime, I had to be subtle. I grabbed another shoe box and launched it at the demon. He had disappeared. My eyes widened. He'd gone invisible. Skidding to a stop, I saw the fae straighten, wiping off his bloodied face. He snarled lowly and reached for the black straps on his wrists. With a sharp motion, he drew two daggers. The fae dropped into a crouch with the blades held downwards in his fists.

   The shifter cracked her neck and black claws extended from her nails. I paused, calculating my best option, when they both lunged forward at the same time. I ducked the slashes from the shifter and danced backwards to avoid the daggers. My fist swung into the ear of the shifter and I grabbed a fistful of her hair, dragging her head into my knee. 

   The glint of metal sent my arm up reflexively. Dark red magic seeped from my forearm and hardened into an armguard. The dagger struck the magic and sparks flew everywhere. I wrenched the knife to the side and twisted to the side, snapping my foot into the fae's gut. He blocked the hit and I deflected another stab for my gut.

   What the hell was taking Tate so long? I backed up a step to look around the shelf. It became pretty obvious why Tate was distracted. His eyes were narrowed and I recognized his pose from when he was defensive. His fingers flexed. Tate's head snapped to the side as if he heard something and then an invisible fist crunched into his stomach. Tate jumped backwards with a cough and swung at where the demon must have been, but he hit air.

   The human was staring at him, bewildered. I growled and ran out from behind the shelf. Bones started to crack from behind me. I sprinted for the counter. The cashier glanced my way just as I jumped over the side and grabbed the back of his shirt. He yelled. "What the -- get off me!"

   "Just move!" I wrenched him forward and kicked open the door behind the desk. The boy spluttered as I threw him inside. Slamming the door after him, I grabbed the sale rack and shoved it in front of the door. I didn't even bother with the fact that the door didn't open outwards. Just when I was somewhat sure the human was contained, I turned around. A fist crunched into my nose with the force of a train.

   Stars exploded in front of my vision. My back hit the rack and I slipped, falling directly onto my rump. A hand fisted in the front of my new shirt and I was hauled up. The fae's eyes were smoldering with anger. "It's three against one, just as you said, Reilly. What made you think you ever had a chance?"

   I spat out a bit of blood and smiled. "It's not me that I'm worried about." Crimson was rapidly pooling into my hand. The fae looked down and realized why I'd been locking up the human.

   The blast connected with his gut. He flew across the store and smashed into a shelf. It went down with a crash. I dusted myself off and jumped over the counter, lifting my hand. Ribbons wreathed around it as my staff appeared and I caught it. A malevolent smile twisted my face.

   "So which one of you wants to tell me where Dani is?"