Page 55

“It’s dead,” Lucy reported. She tucked it into her pack.

“It’s not just the local grid that has failed. The amber in our weapons and the flashlight aren’t connected to the city’s power station. Something has killed all of the amber-based energy in this part of town.”

“I’ve never heard of anything that could do that,” Lucy said.

“Neither have I. But this is Illusion Town. Some very powerful forces were unleashed here a long time ago, forces that were strong enough to rip holes in the Wall and topple the towers in the Dead City.”

“And now we’ve started opening up the Ghost City down below,” Lucy said. “Maybe we’ve disturbed those forces.”

“If so, I’m going to be very glad I didn’t invest in a lot of new furniture.”

“Is that another example of Guild boss humor?”

“Sorry.”

Screams echoed in the night.

Lucy stiffened.

Gabriel listened for a few seconds. “Relax. It’s just the people trapped on the roller coaster.”

Lucy shuddered. “They’ve got a right to scream. I’d be screaming, too. Looks like it’s going to be a long walk home, but at least we’re on the ground and can actuallywalkhome.”

“True. I’ll secure the vehicle.”

“How? Everything in the car is amber-powered. We’re lucky the doors are mechanical.”

“Standard safety feature. Don’t worry, there are other ways to protect a vehicle like this.”

He slipped the mag-rez back into the shoulder holster, opened the door, and went around to the rear of the SUV. Lucy jumped down to the pavement, Otis tucked under one arm. She watched curiously.

“What are you going to do?” she asked.

“Leave a note on the car requesting people not to steal it when the power comes on,” he said.

“A nice little noterequestingpeople not to steal it? You really think that will work?”

“It usually does.”

He rezzed his dissonance talent. Because the Dead City Wall was so close, there was plenty of energy available. A small ball of green ghost light burned in the night and quickly coalesced into a miniature fireball about six inches in diameter. He positioned it above the license plate.

Lucy whistled softly. “Okay, that will certainly send a message.Guild boss’s car. Don’t touch.No smart car thief is going to risk stealing it.”

“That’s the plan. The flaw is that not all car thieves are smart.”

People climbed out of nearby cars to see what was going on.

“It’s the new Guild Boss and his girlfriend,” a man said.

Lucy whirled to face the small crowd. She raised her voice. “The name is Lucy Bell. I’m a weather channeler currently under contract with the Guild.”

“Jones and that weather channeler were on the front page of theCurtainthis morning,” a woman exclaimed. “Looks like the press is right. They’re dating.”

“No,” Lucy said. “This is a business relationship, damn it.”

Otis chose that moment to wriggle out from under Lucy’s arm and hop up onto Gabriel’s shoulder.

“He knows an audience when he sees one,” Lucy said.