"This is the shop you were all so excited about?" Neil asked Brian curiously.

"No ..." Brian feigned surprise. "I thought it was the other Helena's, the one that sells ... cookies."

"Well, we're going in," Claire said emphatically. "How about if you guys go do something else for a few minutes?"

"Great idea," Brian and Neil responded in unison. They took off like a shot.

Claire and Erica pushed open the gla.s.s door, triggering a motion sensor that chirped melodiously. Soft, atmospheric music drifted from speakers above. Sun-, moon-, and star-shaped ornaments of all sizes hung from the ceiling, and several shelves of books stood at the back.

"Okay. This is... ," Erica began.

"Lame?" Claire finished under her breath.

"I was going to say cool."

"You're into this kind of stuff?"

"Not really. But I'm trying to get into the spirit of things. This could be promising! It's much more likely that you'll find a psychic here than in a clothing store or a cookie shop."

They moved to the long gla.s.s counter, where silver jewelry was on display, and a middle-aged woman with frizzy red hair and flowy clothing was affixing price stickers to a stack of glittery picture frames. Claire smiled at her. "Nice store."

"Thank you."

Claire deflated a little as she realized the woman didn't have a British accent.

"We just opened a couple of weeks ago," the woman continued with a smile. "I'm still trying to get things in order. Are you looking for anything in particular?"

"No. We're just browsing," Erica said.

"I'm curious, though," Claire added, "about the name of the store. Are you Helena?"

"Oh, no. Helena is my kitty." She gestured behind the counter to a basket at her feet, where a large calico cat was resting.

Claire and Erica exchanged a look. Was this what had brought them here? Claire wondered. A psychic cat?

"Can I pet her?" Claire asked.

"Sure. My Helena loves people."

Claire scooted behind the counter and crouched down by the cat's basket, then hesitated. What would it be like to get a vision off an animal?

The cat stared back at her. As Erica knelt down beside her, Claire tentatively extended her hand and began stroking the animal's soft fur. It purred contentedly.

"Anything?" Erica whispered.

"Nothing," Claire whispered back. "I think it's just a cat."

"Maybe we were wrong. Maybe it's not a person-or animal-named Helena after all. Maybe it's the store itself, at this mall, that you were supposed to visit. There might be something here that's important."

"You think?"

"Why don't you try touching some other stuff and see what happens?"

Claire stood up, remarked how beautiful the cat was, and began wandering around the shop. She picked up merchandise randomly but didn't get a reading off anything.

The entry chime sounded as Neil and Brian entered. "So, have you two found anything cool?" Brian asked, eyeing them meaningfully.

Claire shook her head. "Just a nice cat. Named Helena."

"Ah," Brian responded with a nod.

The entry chime chirped again. Claire turned and couldn't help but stare at the new arrivals: two guys and a girl who looked to be in their early twenties, all of whom had a bunch of piercings and tattoos. It was as if the whole atmosphere in the place changed with their presence. They reminded Claire of rock stars. They exuded confidence, and for some reason she felt drawn to them.

The trio glided into the store and instantly separated, like fighter planes breaking formation. As the two guys browsed, looking a bit bored, the girl strolled in Claire's direction, nodding at her with a friendly but commanding smile. "Hey."

"Hey," Claire responded. The girl was tall and breathtakingly beautiful, with long, inky black hair that flowed down her back. She wore a tight, red plaid dress over black leggings, dark lipstick, heavy eyeliner, black nail polish, and lots of dangly silver jewelry. The girl casually studied the merchandise, pausing when she reached Claire's side. Feeling self-conscious that she'd been staring, Claire glanced away.

The girl plucked a small, silver dream-catcher pendant from a display. It was decorated with turquoise beads and tiny silver feathers. "Have you ever used one of these?" Her voice was soft, rich, and elegant, like molten chocolate. And it was decidedly British.

Claire's pulse leapt. She darted a look at her friends, who seemed equally mystified that this G.o.ddess was chatting with her. "No," she answered.

"They're like spiderwebs," the girl replied, twirling the pendant in her fingers. "They trap your nightmares, so only the good dreams filter through. When the morning sun hits the net, all your bad dreams are instantly burned to ash."

"Like a vampire net?" Brian said.

"Kind of," the girl replied with a raised eyebrow, as if she considered that a strange question.

"That's cool." Claire nodded.

The girl fixed her eyes on Claire for a long beat, almost studying her. "I think you should buy this. I think it will help you."

"Why do you say that?" Claire asked, taken aback.

"You look like a very intuitive person. Like someone who dreams a lot-even when you're awake. This would protect you."

Claire almost gasped. Protect her? Oh my G.o.d, she thought. This must be the person she'd been searching for! She had a British accent and everything! It wasn't as raspy as the voice in her vision, but that warning had been very garbled. Did she have a message for her? Claire exchanged a look with Erica, who was clearly on the same page and silently acknowledged her excitement. Before Claire could respond, however, Neil piped up brightly, "You are definitely the most persuasive salesperson I've ever met. Do you work here?"

The girl laughed politely. "I don't believe in work."

The two boys joined them, flanking the group on either side.

"How're you guys doing?" one of them asked with an inviting smile. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with colorful tattoos covering his neck and forearms, his shoulder-length black hair pulled into a ponytail. A heavy silver chain dangled from the studded belt that held up his strategically ripped jeans.

"Celeste, who're your new friends?" added the other. He was shorter and stockier, with a shaved head and bushy goatee, and piercing dark eyes in a bulldog face. Both guys wore black T-shirts stretched across their muscled chests.

Celeste? Claire thought. Then she realized it didn't matter what the girl's name was, if Helena's was just the place where they were supposed to meet.

"We haven't been properly introduced yet," Celeste said with a slow smile, as she replaced the dream catcher on the jewelry rack with a smooth, manicured hand. "I'm Celeste. The tall one's Javed. The other one's Rico."

"I'm Claire. This is Erica, Brian, and Neil."

"So what are you guys doing later?" Javed asked, still smiling.

"Do you like hockey?" Rico added.

"We won seven rink-side seats to a Kings exhibition game tonight, and four of our friends just bailed," Celeste explained. The threesome spoke in such quick succession, it was as if they were completing one another's thoughts.

"Oh, wow!" Brian exclaimed.

"I've always wanted to see the Kings!" Claire heard herself say. She glanced at Erica, sensing that she understood how important this could be. If she was in some kind of danger, and these people knew something about it, it made sense for her to go with them-didn't it? She couldn't explain it, but even though they'd just met, she somehow felt connected to all three of them. They had a carefree, casual manner, but still seemed genuine and sincere. On the other hand, she didn't know a thing about them. Why didn't she feel more nervous?

"I'm sorry if we're coming on a little strong," Celeste said, as if noticing Claire's wary expression. She grinned, flashing her perfect white teeth. "You guys just seem cool."

"If we left right now, we'd make it downtown in time for dinner," Rico added.

"They make great nachos at Staples Center," Javed chimed in.

"What do you think, Erica?" Claire said slowly. "You're our chauffeur."

"I'd love to go," Erica replied cautiously. "We probably need to check with our parents first-school night, and all. But I'm sure they'll all be cool with it."

Yeah, as if my mom would ever be cool with it, Claire thought.

Surprisingly, Neil reached over and put his arm around her with a warm smile. "It all sounds great. How about if we follow in our car?"

Before Celeste could answer, the door chimed yet again, this time accompanied by the sound of heavy footsteps. Claire's eyes widened in surprise.

Alec strode toward them, halting only a few feet from Claire and Neil. He was wearing a hooded black leather jacket that fell midway to his knees. It hung open to reveal an olive green army surplus vest, its multiple pockets full of-something. His black canvas guitar case was slung across his back like a knapsack.

And he looked really, really p.i.s.sed.

fifteen.

"What are you guys doing here?" Alec asked quietly.

Fury simmered within him. He'd followed Neil, waiting for a glimpse of an aura. He'd hoped that nothing would happen, but had geared up just in case. It had been bad enough to be forced to witness Claire hanging on to Neil's arm as they made their way up the escalator, and to find them here in a similar pose. But now this trio, of all people, had to appear and complicate things.

Celeste had a knack for smelling out the newly Awakened, and they were particularly susceptible to her charms. Alec knew in his gut that Celeste was out trolling for one now. Had she gotten wind that a possible Halfblood was on the loose? Is that why she'd zeroed in on this group?

"We're just ... browsing," Claire said hesitantly. "What are you doing here, Alec?"

"I wasn't talking to you," Alec replied. He saw hurt and surprise in Claire's eyes and quickly refocused his gaze on Celeste and her cohorts.

"Alec?" Celeste said nonchalantly, her voice dripping honey, just the way he remembered. "Long time no see."

"We knew Vincent was here," Javed added with undisguised interest, "but didn't expect to see you."

"Out on a little shopping spree, are you?" Alec pressed calmly. If he was lucky, maybe they'd reveal who they were after. It occurred to him that it could be Neil or Brian; they were both talented singers.

"Alec, how do you know these guys?" Claire asked. "Is something wrong?"

Before he could reply, Celeste interjected, "Don't mind him. We've known Alec for years-and he's never been any fun at all." To Alec, she added innocently, "Stop scowling, would you? You're scaring our new friends."

"MacKenzie, what's your problem?" Neil asked, baffled, his arm still around Claire. "These guys have tickets to a hockey game. We're meeting them there."

"Great," Alec replied stonily. "I'm in the mood for hockey." To Celeste he added, "Let's go outside. I can ride with you."

Celeste's eyes darted to the guitar case slung over Alec's shoulder, and she frowned.

"Hey, kids," the owner of the shop interrupted, moving out from behind the counter with concern. "What's going on? Is everything all right?"

Celeste turned to Claire with a little sigh. "I'm sorry, sweetie. I just remembered, our tickets are for tomorrow night. Maybe we'll run into you again sometime."

"Don't even think about it," Alec said, his tone threatening.

"Whatever." Celeste waved her hand as if shooing a fly, then swirled up to him and whispered privately in his ear, "I can't believe the great and powerful Vincent had to call you in as backup to rein in one little filly, even if it might be half-thoroughbred."

A cold feeling stirred in the pit of Alec's stomach. Filly?

"Ciao." Celeste exchanged a sharp look with her two counterparts. "Boys?"

The trio sauntered out the door, leaving a deathly silence in their wake. Alec's heart lurched as the terrible truth dawned on him. Filly? They were after a girl? From the way Celeste had been cozying up to Claire, it wasn't hard to guess which one it was.

"Dude, what is up?" Brian muttered, perplexed. "Did you used to bang that chick or something?" As Erica swatted him, Brian added defensively, "What? She was hot."

Claire broke away from Neil and marched up to Alec angrily. "Alec! What just happened? What did you do that made those guys leave?"

"Be glad they did," Alec replied, struggling to keep his voice even. "Believe me, they're not the type of ... people you want to a.s.sociate with."

"What kind of ... people are they?" Erica asked, mimicking Alec's tone and emphasis.

"They're extremely dangerous," Alec replied tersely. Dear G.o.d. Claire. He'd been so focused on looking for a boy, it hadn't once occurred to him that Vincent might be wrong about the target's gender. And yet, he realized now, Claire had always been more likely than Neil, who'd been in choir for years. Claire's newfound ability to sing just days after a surge on the grid would be a startling coincidence, if it wasn't a full-blown sign.

"How do you know they're dangerous?" Claire demanded. "Just because they had some tattoos and a few piercings?"

"Their appearance is irrelevant," Alec said.

"I wanted to talk to that girl!" Claire insisted. "Now she's gone and I didn't get her number or anything!"

"Listen to me," Alec warned. "Should that girl-or either of the others-ever approach any of you again, promise me you'll walk as fast as you can in the opposite direction."

"Why?"