“I’m here,” I shouted, even though he couldn’t hear me.
Sunshine started, which made me laugh. “He’s over there,” he replied, gesturing to me.
Seth turned in my direction and waved shyly. “Hey.”
“Hi. What are you doing today? Anything fun? I hope you are doing something fun,” I said, bouncing, and Zoltilvoxfyn dutifully translated.
“I’m going to see Wyn and have a conversation with NAID in front of a group of scientists.”
“That sounds awkward.”
“It is,” Seth said as his free hand burrowed into his hoodie pocket.
I couldn’t know for certain, but from the bright sun and cloudless sky, I assumed it was too hot for a hoodie, but maybe he was one of those people who was always cold.Thathad never been my problem. I was a born and bred Californian—flip flops and shorts forever.
You’d never know from my jeans, t-shirt, and tennis shoes. I hated that I couldn’t change my clothes. It wasn’t like I’d known I was going to die that day or that I’d be stuck forever in the same clothes.
“Can I come?” Wyn would be there, but more than that, NAID was there. While she wasn’t Nana, NAID wore her face and had her voice. It was better than nothing, and nothing was all I’d had previously.
Seth tensed, clutching the potted plant to his chest. “You want to come?”
“It sounds fun.”
He stared at the ground, not responding. Zoltilvoxfyn glanced at me, and I shrugged. I didn’t have to force my way in; if I followed along, they would never know I was there, but it would be more fun if Zoltilvoxfyn came along to translate my words.
“Maybe this will help Caleb find his tether,” Sunshine offered.
“Tether?” Seth asked.
“To move on, he needs to find what ties him to the mortal plane, so he can break it and depart.”
“How will this help?” Seth asked.
“My thoughts exactly,” I added. Zoltilvoxfyn glared at me, and I chuckled, understanding. He was trying to force Seth to let me come.
“I do not know,” he answered.
Seth squeezed the plant to his chest, studying the ground, clearly planning on saying no.
“It’s okay. I can come another time,” I relented.
“N-no,” Seth said, though he looked like he wanted to take it back the second the word was out of his mouth. “It’s fine. I need to take the plant to my apartment first.”
“We can follow you,” Zoltilvoxfyn said. “Or meet you at NAID’s hub.”
“I’ll meet you there.” Seth slipped into the trees in the direction of the palace. A drakcol with dark gray scales, who was staring at a screen, peeled off from behind a tree and followed along. Neither Zoltilvoxfyn nor Seth noticed or they didn’t care. Their glazes slid over him, as if they couldn’t see him.
Maybe he was a ghost like me? I immediately rejected that thought. The drakcol had a tablet, and Zoltilvoxfyn would’ve known if that dude was a spirit. Still, no one paid any attention to the drakcol as he followed Seth from a discreet distance.
Shaking it off, I moved to Zoltilvoxfyn’s side, and his tail flicked in my direction, hovering near my ankle before sliding away. I wanted his tail to touch me, even though I wouldn’t perceive it.
“I feel bad,” I commented.
“Why?”
“Seth didn’t want me to come, but we forced our way in.”
Sunshine pushed his long hair behind his tapered ear. I swallowed, eyes locked on his elegant fingers, then to theearrings he wore. The golden cuff on the inner part of his tapered ear was oddly sexy and highlighted its length.
