Hes empty, Whitney said. Something bad happened to him, a long time ago, poor thing. Mother Earth cant lay a finger on him.

But you can.

Well, yeah. Whitney sounded surprised. You got to know how to do it, thats all.

I decided I really didnt want to know. I was tired, beaten up, filthy, and David was . . . was really in need of help. Where are you taking us?

I must have sounded so miserable that even Whitney was moved, very slightly, toward pity. Someplace safe, she said. You rest, now.

I didnt want to, but the Djinn reached out and past me, putting a hand over Davids shoulder. David let out a sigh and slumped against the car door. The bleeding from his side slowed, and I saw his color start to return to normal. Whitney, working her magic through her supernatural surrogate.

The Djinn let go and reached for me. I knocked his hand away. No, I said sharply. Ill stay awake.

Suit yourself, Whitney said, back to her old bad attitude. Want me to pinch you if you drop off?

Bite me, Whit.

The Djinn made an unsettling teeth-snapping noise, and I looked sideways at him, scooting a couple of inches closer to David. When I was sure I was safe- ish, I looked back at Kevin and Cherise.

You two okay? I left it an open-ended question, and it was up to them whether that applied to injuries, mental instability, shock, or just plain hating the world.

I dont want this, Kevin said, again. I didnt ask for this. It feelswrong. He licked his lips, his eyes haunted under the emo flop of hair. It hurts when it comes out. I dont think its safe.

That made sense. In fact, I thought it was a credit to Kevins strength that it only hurt, because using the power of a Djinn Conduit would probably have torn apart most normal people. Even many Wardens. I wasnt sure what it had done to him, but Kevin didnt scare easily, and I felt for him.

Sorry, I told him, and reached over to touch his arm. He jerked away. Well find a way to do this. I swear.

Well, I dont mind, Cherise said. Because controlling the weather is awesome. I want to do more.

Well, youre not going to, I said, which sounded sternly authoritative but was a wet paper sack, so far as enforcement might go. Cher, you need to stay away from it as much as possible. It may not seem like its hurting you, but it probably is. I dont want anything to happen to you.

She normally would have smiled in response to that, but instead she just looked away out the window. You say that until you need me. Then its all bring it. That didnt sound much like Cher, and it bothered me.

Hey. I tried to catch her eyes, but she kept looking away. Cher, you know I care about you. You know I dont want you hurt.

This time she did look at me, squarely and calmly. I know, she said. Until you dont have a choice, and then youll do anything you have to do. Its what I always like about you, Jo. That ruthless streak under all the girly polish.

We had that in common, I realized. Cherise was sweet and compassionate, funny and talented . . . but she was also, deep down, a survivor, with a broad streak of ambition and a little bit of larceny baked right in. In another age, she might have been a charming criminal, holding up coaches at midnight on deserted roads and kissing all the pretty young men.

We do what weve gotta do, she said. Right?

Right, I said softly. But until weve got to do it, dont. Please.

That won a smile, finally. Sure, she said. Have all the fun yourself, then. Now She yawned broadly and bundled herself more comfortably against Kevin. Now I need some beauty sleep. And a shower. But Ill settle for sleep.

The experience must have been overpowering, I realized, because both she and Kevin dropped off in under a minute, dragged down by exhaustion. Made sense. Their bodies werent made to take that kind of strain. I remembered how it had felt in the beginning, when my powers first began to surfaceit was like hormones on crack. Id been hungry and tired and bitchy all the time, prone to mood swings and fits of pouting, complaining about how hard everything was when I wasnt griping about how nobody ever trusted me enough to do things myself.

Cherise had a lot to handle. Kevin, even more.

I checked Davids side. His wound was healed, but still red and inflamed; bruises were forming, and evidently Whitney had decided that bruises werent anything requiring first aid. He was sleeping peacefully. Ahead of us, the road unspooled, lit by furious stabs of lightning and the glow of the headlights. The Djinn kept a machinelike precise grip on the wheel and a foot on the pedal.

And before I knew it, Id joined the rest of them in sleep.

Chapter Five

I woke up with the sun on my face, which felt nice, but the good feeling faded fast as I blinked and looked around, out the cars windows.

We were still on the roadnot a surpriseand I supposed with a Djinn at the wheel we didnt need to stop for gas. Cherise and Kevin were still deeply asleep. David, however, was awake, and as I moved my head off his shoulder, he reached out for my hand. That felt nice.

What wasnt nice was the world outside our speeding car.

We were traveling close to the coastlineI could see the gray smudge of the ocean through occasional hillsbut what was most noticeable to me was the thick, gray pall of smoke that hung in the air. I could smell it, thick even through the filter of the cars vents. It gave everything outside an unreal, unfocused look. Its snowing? I said as flakes brushed across the windshield.

No, David said quietly. Its ash.

I swallowed. Can you see the fire?

Not yet. But its got to be huge to produce this kind of effect.

The radio suddenly slid channels. I expected more homespun passive-aggressive advice from Whitney, for which I really was not in the mood, but instead it landed on a news station. Even before I started getting the sense of what they were talking about, I could hear the tension in the broadcasters voice.

. . . continues with major flare-ups to the west of I-95, including the Cumberland State Forest area, the Amelia Wildlife Management Area, Masons Corner, Flat Rock, and Skinquarter. There are unconfirmed reports of a major explosion and uncontrolled burn near Chesterfield Court House and the Pocahontas State Park. If you are anywhere in this area, immediate evacuations are under way. Do not remain in your homes; this is an extremely dangerous situation that is overwhelming emergency services. It is only one of several emerging situations that are splitting the resources of our fire, medical, and police throughout the area. Reports are also coming in of significant damage in the Midwest due to torrential rains and flooding, as well as seismic activity along critical fault lines. The Red Cross is

Without warning, the voice dissolved into blank, white static. I waited. It didnt come back.

I reached out and switched off the radio. I couldnt help it; the feeling of doom was overwhelming. I could hear the suppressed panic in the reporters voice; I could feel my own heart pounding uselessly, trying to trigger some kind of survival response.

There was nowhere to run. Not anymore. I was certain that if the broadcast had continued, we would have heard more. A lot more, from all over the country. It was starting in the rural areas, but moving toward the cities, and when it got there . . .

Faster, I said aloud, to the Djinn. Whitney, if you can hear me, for the love of God

The radio clicked back on. You brought this on yourselves, she said. Dont go dragging God into it. You were warned a million times that if humanity got to be too much of a threat, it would get dealt with. Day of reckoning, Joanne. Its here. Should have spent more time listening to those preacher-mennot that any of that would have headed it off, I suppose.