Shay chuckled. Given what she’d learned from Lily, who was one of her inspirations for the lecture, the tomb raider couldn’t help but wonder if some hidden Oriceran magical train used to run in the tunnel system, and once humans started poking around, they’d decided to move to a new line. The existence of magic might be out there, but the magical community still kept plenty of secrets.
I better leave that little tidbit out of the lecture. Lily hasn’t betrayed my secrets, so I don’t want to betray any that might get people poking around where she lives.
Shay grinned. She’d just play up the mystery. Everyone loved a little mystery.
A couple hours later, with the lecture notes well prepared, Shay finished brushing her teeth. She was grateful to be at home and away from any gangsters, gang members, or gnomes. She fell face-first into her bed and let out a long sigh.
She’d been too busy to see James for the last few days, and she missed her man. Calling him might be too clingy. They each had their own lives, and he’d accepted that. So had she, or at least she thought she had.
She snorted. The guy managed to be both high- and low-maintenance at the same time. He was used to living alone and doing his own thing, but he didn’t understand anything about women. It made even the simplest romantic conversation an interesting adventure, if not a frustrating one.
Her phone sat on her nightstand, almost taunting her, telling her to call or text James.
“No, if I’m gonna keep being a tomb raider, I need to know I can handle a few days without calling or seeing the man.”
The dawn sun had barely crawled above the horizon when Shay found herself in the middle of a park in her tank top and sweatpants. The other members of Free-to-Move, the parkour group she’d joined, stood around, stretching in preparation for their run.
The crane stunt from the night before popped into Shay’s head.
She stretched her arm across her chest. “Ever wonder how far you can take all this?”
Aaron, who was stretching his quads on the ground next to Lana, laughed. “Always. Why do you ask?”
Shay considered her words carefully. She wanted some feedback on the awesome moves she’d seen Harry’s and Lily’s friends pull off, but she had to be careful not to get them too much attention. Admitting that she’d seen anything strange was a bad idea. People were naturally curious—just like she was.
“Just wondering.” Shay shrugged. “I mean, imagine jumping off a building, then pushing off while you’re falling and catching the metal lattice on a crane or shit like that. Next-level parkour.”
Lana shook her head. “Oh, that’s just movie stuff. The problem is, people forget what parkour is and what isn’t.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s about mobility, freedom, and movement. It’s kind of a movement martial art, almost. It’s not about being a daredevil. There are plenty of daredevils on the net doing stupid crap that I would never try, and it has nothing to do with me not being good enough at parkour.”
Shay stretched her other arm. “But it’s not like there’s no overlap. Sure, half the time we’re just running on ground level, but when you’re jumping from rooftop to rooftop, it’s dangerous. We’ve all done dangerous stuff that might get normal people killed.”
Lana sighed. “What you’re talking about goes well beyond that. It’s crazy, or magical, or maybe both. It’s not something I’d even attempt. It’s not about mobility and freedom.”
Well, it’s about the freedom that comes with escaping from gang members.
Aaron stood and surveyed the gathered people. Everyone appeared to be ready to go.
“Sure,” he offered. “It’s not that we never do dangerous stuff. It’s just that if you start getting into your head that parkour is about the next stunt, you’re missing the point, and you’re going to get hurt. Confidence is key, but overconfidence is a killer.”
Lana furrowed her brow. “I guess there are the Night Spiders.”
Aaron rolled his eyes. “They’re just an urban legend.”
“Night Spiders?” Shay asked.
“I’m not saying I’ve seen them,” Lana began, “but I’ve heard about them. Supposed to be a group of kids who roam the streets at night pulling off stunts like you’re talking about. Stuff no one should be able to do.” Lana shrugged. “It’s like Aaron says… No one has any video of them, so maybe it’s all an urban legend. I’m not sure I believe they are real.”
Aaron shook his head. “I definitely don’t believe they are. If some kids had magic and could do badass parkour, I don’t think they’d hide it. No reason to.” He gestured and took off at a jog. “Let’s get going.”
Shay followed, along with Lana and the others.
Oh, they have their reasons to hide, Aaron.
Shay was disappointed that Aaron and Lana didn’t seem to believe in the possibility, and surprised that a group of parkour practitioners wouldn’t be more excited about someone taking their sport to the next level. If she pressed them on the issue, though, it would only make them suspicious. Anyway, it wasn’t like they wouldn’t have a lot of time to chat while they were on their run.
I need to push myself harder. Get faster. I need to do more than just keep up with them, I need to be better than them. They might be afraid of that edge, but you can’t get stronger until you work up the guts to take the step over it.
Aaron headed straight for a bench and used it to launch himself over a wrought-iron fence topped with sharp points. Lana followed, then a few others before Shay.
Not gonna die from that, but could have still gotten hurt. You’re all more into danger than you’ll admit.
All of the runners landed with a fluid roll, including Shay. Aaron cut across an empty street and headed toward a narrow alley between two small buildings.
Shay had not
