They might view parkour as a sport or way of life, but she considered it another weapon in her arsenal.
Shay looked past Aaron toward the alley, trying to anticipate possible handholds and sources of momentum.
Window ledges on both sides in case he needs a handhold, only a few stories high. Bet he’s gonna head up to the roof.
Aaron sprinted into the alley and charged a wall. He leapt up and pushed off it toward the other. He alternated between them as he climbed the side of the building, and Lana followed. Shay gritted her teeth and rushed forward, passing several club members.
She was tired of bringing up the rear. Even if she was still new at parkour, she’d honed her body into a fine instrument for over a decade. She knew the limits of every muscle and every bone. She could do this.
Shay jumped toward the wall and twisted before catapulting herself toward the opposite wall. She pushed away all thoughts except ascending the building. She hit the top in what felt like seconds and grabbed the edge of the roof to pull herself up.
Aaron and Lana were already almost to the far edge of the roof. Everyone else was still ascending.
Third place, huh? I’ll take it.
The tomb raider hurried after the other two, ignoring them as they leapt from the roof and landed on the next. She launched herself from the roof and flew through the air, tucking into a smooth roll at the end. When she popped up, she’d lost none of her momentum.
Shay risked a glance over her shoulder. The rest of the club members were close behind. She’d need to push if she wanted to retain her third-place position.
Her side ached a little, but when she’d checked her wound that morning it was healing well enough.
Another reason to not see James for a few days. Don’t want him asking questions about where and how I got injured when I wasn’t even supposed to be on a job.
Another roof-jump pushed the thought out of her head, but it quickly returned. Guilt was still a novel feeling for her. She didn’t like lying to James, even by omission.
Concealing the truth of the existence of other alien artifacts and the government conspiracy from the bounty hunter was at least arguably for his own good. She was protecting him from a head trip that might cause him to do something stupid against a group he couldn’t beat.
Not telling him about Lily was a different matter. Part of it was to protect Lily’s privacy, and part was because she just didn’t want to complicate things between her and James.
Well, he did try to get Peyton to not tell me about that woman using my likeness and the AET shit.
Shay continued to follow Aaron and Lana. She leapt from the roof onto the landing of some metal stairs and rushed down toward the street. Their heavy footfalls echoed in the morning air.
A few secrets keep everyone happier and healthier. I’m sure someone has said shit like that. If not, then I’m saying it.
Sweat dripped down Shay’s face. Running several miles would have been tough, even without all the jumping, grabbing, and rolling.
Shay looked over her shoulder again. Still third place.
This time third, next time second, and soon I’ll be the one in the front all the time.
She let any concerns about Lily, James, and her relationship fade. For now, the only thing she needed to care about was moving fast, efficiently, and freely. She embraced the mobility.
Her interest in parkour might have started when Marcus showed her up, but things had changed. She charged across another roof with a huge grin on her face.
Damn. I love this.
Two hours later, steam filled the room as hot water pounded onto her head and shoulders from her shower head. The run had gone well. Even if she’d fallen into fourth place by the end, she’d still proven that her skills had improved.
Would she ever be able to pull off the kind of stunts she’d seen the tunnel kids accomplish? She didn’t know. From what Lily had told her, every single one of her friends had a magical heritage, and powers, even if unreliable.
That might have meant they tapped into their special abilities somehow when they performed their parkour stunts. On the other hand, they might just be brave kids who were used to having to run from the police and dangerous criminals. Desperation could accomplish amazing things even when compared to careful training.
Shay rubbed shampoo into her scalp as she listened to the news report on the radio.
“Police are still baffled by a series of recent robberies in the Old Bank District. Although tight-lipped, the authorities have admitted that the thieves have disabled surveillance equipment during the robberies with what was likely a commercial-grade jammer.
“In all cases, the thieves have entered the buildings from top-floor windows, but several of the buildings have locked roof access, leading the police to believe magic might be involved.”
Shay scoffed. This wasn’t magic. She knew a thief who could move quickly and gain access to the top floors of buildings without any magic at all. The whole thing screamed of Marcus.
She still owed him for humiliating her the night they met. It wasn’t like she planned to kill the man. Beating her at parkour wasn’t an executable offense, but she did want to chase him down and prove to him that no one could beat Shay Carson forever.
Shay rinsed her hair as she considered her victories and defeats in recent months.
She didn’t feel any shame at some, such as having to run from the invisible army in Ohio. Her defeats at the hands of Marcus, Francois Durand, and Yulia burned the most.
Her jaw clenched at the thought of the Ice
