He looked up from his wrist. "What? Those nuts? Hell, no."
I almost pointed at the girl but decided it would be best not to make any sudden moves. I settled for a nod in her direction and noticed all the locks on the door had been undone. I'd been so caught up in the struggle with Marcus that I hadn't heard them. "Really? Then how come one of them just saved you?"
"I'm not really one of them." She spoke almost casually, but the gun contradicted her tone. "I mean, I guess I kind of am. . . ."
"Sabrina's a spy," explained Marcus. He looked much more at ease too, now that I wasn't assaulting him. "A lovely one. She's been undercover with them for over a year. She's also the one who told me about you."
Once again, it was hard knowing how to respond to that. I also wasn't sure if I bought this spy story. "What exactly did you tell him?"
He shot me a movie star smile. His teeth were so white that I wondered if he had veneers. It seemed out of character for a rogue who lived on the run, but nothing about this day was really turning out like I'd expected. "She told me about this Alchemist girl who defended a Moroi and then helped lead a dhampir raiding party."
Lead? Hardly. No one - notably Stanton - had felt the need to enlighten me about that raid until I was in the middle of it. I didn't want to tip my hand too early though. "The Alchemists sanctioned that raid," I said.
"I saw the way you spoke," said Sabrina. Her eyes flicked between Marcus and me, fierce for me and admiring for him. "It was inspiring. And we watched you for a while, you know. You spent an awful lot of time with the Moroi and dhampirs in Palm Springs."
"It's my job," I said. She hadn't really seemed inspired at the time. Mostly she'd looked disappointed at not having a chance to use the gun on me.
Marcus's smile turned knowing. "From what I heard, you and those Moroi almost looked like friends. And then, here you are, looking for me. You're definitely the dissident we'd hoped for."
No, this was not turning out at all like I'd planned. In fact, it was pretty much the opposite of what I'd planned. I'd been so proud of my ability to track down Marcus, little knowing that he'd been watching me already. I didn't like that. It made me feel vulnerable, even if they were saying some of things I'd hoped to hear. Needing to feel like I was in control, I tried to play it cool and tough.
"Maybe there are other Alchemists about to show up," I said.
"They would've been here already" he said, calling my bluff. "They wouldn't have sent you alone . . . though I did panic when I first saw you. I didn't realize who you were and thought there were others right behind you." He paused, and that cocky attitude turned sheepish. "Sorry about, um, punching you. If it makes you feel better, you did something pretty serious to my wrist."
Sabrina's face filled with concern. "Oh, Marcus. Do you need to see a doctor?"
He tested the movement of his wrist and then shook his head. "You know we can't. Never know who might be watching at a hospital. Those places are too easy to monitor."
"You really are hiding from the Alchemists," I said in amazement.
His nodded, almost looking proud. "You doubted? I figured you'd know that."
"I suspected, but I didn't hear it from them. They deny you exist."
He seemed to find that funny. In fact, he seemed to find everything funny, which I found slightly irritating. "Yup. That's what I've heard from the others."
"What others?"
"Others like you." Those blue eyes held me for a moment, like they could see all my secrets. "Other Alchemists wanting to break free of the fold."
I knew my own eyes were wide. "There . . . there are others?"
Marcus settled on the floor, leaning against the wall and still cradling his wrist. "Let's get comfortable. Sabrina, put the gun away. I don't think Sydney's going to give us any trouble."
Sabrina didn't look so sure of that, but after several moments, she complied. She joined him on the floor, positioning herself protectively next to him. "I'd rather stand," I told them. No way would I willingly sit on that filth. After rolling around with Marcus, I wanted to go bathe myself in hand sanitizer.
He shrugged. "Suit yourself. You want some answers? You give me some first. Why'd you come looking for me off the Alchemist clock?"
I didn't like being interrogated, but what was the point of being here if I wasn't going to engage in a dialogue?
"Clarence told me about you," I said at last. "He showed me your picture, and I saw how you'd tattooed over the lily. I didn't even know that was possible." The tattoo never faded.
"Clarence Donahue?" Marcus looked genuinely pleased. "He's a good guy. I suppose you'd be friends with him if you're in Palm Springs, huh?"
I started to say we weren't friends but then reconsidered. What else were we?
"Getting this isn't easy," added Marcus, tapping the blue tattoo. "You'll have to do a lot of work if you want to do it."
I stepped backward. "Whoa, I never said that's what I wanted. And why in the world would I do it anyway?"
"Because it'll free you," he said simply. "It prevents you from discussing vampire affairs, right? You don't think that's all it does, do you? Think. What stops it from exerting other control?"
I pretty much had to just give up on any expectations for this conversation because every topic was crazier than the last. "I've never heard of anything like that. I've never felt anything like that. Aside from it protecting vampire information, I'm in control."
He nodded. "Probably. The initial tattoo usually only has the talking compulsion in it. They only start adding other components with re-inks if they've got a reason to worry about you. People can sometimes fight through those and if they do . . . well, then it's off to re-education."
His words sent a chill through me, and I rested a hand on my cheek as I flashbacked to the meeting I'd had when I was given the Palm Springs assignment. "I was re-inked recently . . . but it was routine." Routine. Normal. Nothing like what he was suggesting.
"Maybe." He tilted his head and gave me another piercing look. "You do anything bad before that, love?"
Like helping a dhampir fugitive? "Depends on your definition of bad."
Both of them laughed. Marcus's laugh was loud and rollicking and actually pretty infectious - but the situation was far too dire for me to join in.
"They may have reinforced your group loyalty then," he said, still chuckling. "But it either wasn't very strong or else you fought through it - otherwise you wouldn't be here." He glanced over at Sabrina. "What do you think?"
Sabrina studied me with a critical eye. I still had a hard time believing her role in all of this. "I think she'd be a good addition. And since she's still in, she could help us with that . . . other matter."
"I think so too," he said.
I crossed my arms over my chest. I didn't like being discussed as though I weren't there. "A good addition to what?"
"Our group." To Sabrina, he said, "We really need a name for it, you know." She snorted, and he returned his attention to me. "We're a mix. Some are former Warriors or double agents like Sabrina. Some are ex-Alchemists."
"And what do you do?" I gestured around us. "This doesn't exactly look like a high-tech base of operation for some covert team."
"Look at you. Pretty and funny," he said, looking delighted. "We do what you do - or what you want to do. We like the Moroi. We want to help them - on our own terms. The Alchemists theoretically want to help them too, but we all know that's based on a core of fear and dislike - not to mention a strict control of its members. So, we work in secret, seeing as the Alchemists aren't fans of those who break from the fold. They really aren't fans of me, which is why I end up in places like this."
"We keep an eye on the Warriors too," said Sabrina. She scowled. "I hate being around those nuts, having to play along with them. They claim they only want to destroy the Strigoi - but, well, the things I've heard them say against the Moroi too . . ."
I thought back to one of my more disturbing memories of the Warrior arena. I'd heard one of them make a mysterious comment about how someday, they'd deal with the Moroi too.
"But what do you guys actually do?" Talking about rebellions and covert operations was one thing, but actually effecting change was another. I'd visited my sister Carly at her college and seen a number of student groups who wanted to change the world. Most of them sat around drinking coffee, talking a lot and doing little.
Marcus and Sabrina exchanged glances. "I can't quite get into our operations," he said. "Not until I know you're on board with breaking your tattoo."
Breaking your tattoo. There was something sinister - not to mention permanent - about those words, and I suddenly wondered what I was doing here. Who were these people, really? Why was I even humoring them? Then another, almost terrifying thought hit me: Am I doubting them because of the tattoo's control? Is it making me skeptical around anyone who questions the Alchemists? Is Marcus telling the truth?
"I don't really understand that either," I told them. "What it means to 'break' the tattoo. Do you just mean putting ink over it?"
Marcus stood up. "All in good time. Right now, we've got to get out of here. Even if you were discreet, I assume you used Alchemist resources to find me?"
I hesitated. Even if these guys were legitimate and had good intentions toward the Moroi, I certainly wasn't going to reveal my involvement with magic. "Something like that."
"I'm sure you're good, but we can't take the chance. This place has been compromised." He cast a wistful glance around the studio. Honestly, I thought he should be grateful I'd given him a reason to leave.
Sabrina rose as well, her face hardening. "I'll make sure the secondary location is ready."
"You're an angel, as always," he told her.
"Hey, how did you know I was coming?" I asked. "You had time to hide and call her." What I really wanted to know was how he'd seen me through the invisibility spell. I'd felt the magic fill me. I was certain I'd cast the spell correctly, but he'd discovered me. The spell wouldn't work if someone knew to look for you, so maybe he'd happened to glance out the window when I was scaling the fire escape? Worst timing ever.
"Tony warned me." Marcus flashed me another of those dazzling grins. I think he was trying to make me smile back. "Good kid."
Tony? Then I knew. The boy in the parking lot. He'd pretended to help me and then sold me out. He must have spoken to Marcus while I climbed the fire escape. Maybe Marcus only answered to some secret knock. At least I had the comfort of knowing I'd cast the spell correctly. It simply hadn't worked because Marcus had advance warning that some girl was coming after him.
He began packing up his meager belongings into a backpack. "The Catcher in the Rye is a great book, by the way." He winked. "Maybe someday we'll have a literary discussion."
I wasn't interested in that. Watching him, I saw that he kept favoring his uninjured wrist. I couldn't believe I'd caused damage like that and felt a little guilty, despite everything that had happened. "You should get that taken care of," I said. Sabrina nodded in agreement.
He sighed. "I can't. At least, not through conventional means. The Alchemists have eyes everywhere."
Conventional means.
"I, uh, might be able to help you get it healed through unconventional means," I said.
"You know some off-the-grid doctor?" asked Sabrina hopefully.
"No. But I know a Moroi spirit user."
Marcus froze, and I kind of liked that I'd thrown him off guard. "Seriously? We've heard of them but never met one. That woman they had - Sonya? She was one, right? She was gone before we could find out more."
Talking about Adrian made me nervous, but Sabrina probably already knew he existed if they'd been watching me. "Yeah, she was one, and there's another in Palm Springs. I could take you to him and let him heal you."
Excitement lit Marcus's features. Sabrina looked at him in horror. "You can't just go off with her." Was that concern or jealousy in her voice?
"Why not?" he asked. "She's taking a leap of faith with us. We can't do any less. Besides, I'm dying to meet a spirit user. The safe house isn't that far from Palm Springs. You make sure everything's in order and then come pick me up later."
Sabrina didn't like that, not at all. Maybe I didn't understand the dynamics of their group yet, but it was obvious she regarded him as a leader and was insanely protective. In fact, I suspected her feelings for him were more than professional. They went back and forth on whether he'd be safe or not, and I listened without a word. All the while, I wondered if I'd be safe heading off with some unknown guy. Clarence trusted him, I reminded myself. And he's pretty paranoid. Besides, with Marcus's wrist out of commission, I could probably take him.
He finally convinced Sabrina to let him go but not before she snarled, "If anything happens to him, I'm coming after you." Apparently her hard-core character in the arena hadn't been entirely faked.
We parted ways from her, and before long, Marcus and I were on the road to Palm Springs. I tried to get more information out of him, but he wouldn't bite. Instead, he kept complimenting me and saying things that were only one step away from pickup lines. Judging from the way he'd bantered with Sabrina too, I didn't think there was anything particularly special about me. I thought he was just used to women fawning all over him. He was cute, I'd give him that, but it took a lot more than that to win me over.