“Her parents came home early?” Sailor gasps.
“Worse.” Jinx laughs. “Turns out it wasn’t really her house. Her neighbors were away and she figured we could sneak in there. One of the other neighbors saw us but didn’t recognize Mandy and called the cops. So there I am, butt naked, cops pointing guns at me, trying to convince them I wasn’t robbing the house. They saw the funny side eventually, but I figure that officially makes Mandy a worse hostess than you. At least you had pizza.”
Sailor is laughing along with his story and I can’t help but notice how her eyes sparkle when she laughs, and how the sound of it makes me want to join in.
We reach the edge of the forest and Mel opens up a portal and we all step through it and come out into the cabin. Nexus jumps up to greet us.
“I can’t believe you didn’t think to mention how time worked down there,” I say.
“I had no idea,” she says. “Seriously, what time is it on your clocks?”
“One thirty,” I reply.
“Yeah. The real time is just after eleven. You would have had more than enough time to get in and out in three hours if it wasn’t for the time thing.”
“What caused it? Some sort of enchantment?” Mel asks.
Nexus crosses to Sailor. She takes hold of her top.
“May I?” she asks.
Sailor nods and Nexus pulls her top aside slightly and studies her tattoo.
“Nope. That was the effect of the Soul Gem. This one has powers revolving around time.”
“So time is going to be all shot to shit for me now?” Sailor asks.
I laugh at her not-so-delicate expression. Nexus looks quite amused too. She shakes her head.
“No. You’re not powerful enough to use the powers of the time gem until you have all the Soul Gems. All of you just need to reset your watches and you’ll be fine.”
Nexus left to follow up on a lead she was being very guarded about. The rest of us are sitting around the table eating lunch that Sunday and Mel went to the diner to grab for us. No one seems to be showing any ill effects from being down in the tunnels to get the Soul Gem, and Sailor actually looks better than she has since her spell in the hospital. It’s too good to be true to think that things might be starting to work out for us, but for now, we’ve earned a small victory and we haven’t lost anyone doing it, and that’s something to be celebrated. The team are in good spirits, laughing and joking, but Sailor has gone a little quiet.
“Are you okay?” I ask her, touching her hand.
She looks up at me and smiles and nods her head.
“Yeah. I’m fine. I’m just thinking about something,” she says.
“About what?” Sunday interrupts.
“I didn’t want to say anything because I know you guys think I’m being paranoid, but you need to know,” she says.
“Go on,” Mel encourages her.
“I honestly think Raven is leading the Boundless,” Sailor says.
This gets a mixed reaction from the team. Ya-Ya’s mouth drops open, and Aziza laughs softly and shakes her head. The others just look at her in silence.
“Don’t you think it’s a bit two-faced to accuse her of that after you were all cozy with her in the hospital?” Ya-Ya says.
Sailor shakes her head and frowns.
“No, I don’t. What I think is two-faced is dating someone just to try and get information from their daughter. What I’m doing is called keeping your friends close and your enemies closer. Have you ever heard of that?” Sailor asks.
“Yeah, but it sounds like an excuse to be a bitch to me,” Ya-Ya says.
“Oh shut up, Ya-Ya. Hear her out,” Aziza says.
“So you think Raven is leading Boundless too?” Ya-Ya says, glaring at her.
“Of course not,” Aziza says. “But my reasoning for that is a little bit more sophisticated than thinking she can’t possibly be evil because she has good style.”
“Why are you so sure it’s not her?” Sailor asks Aziza.
“Honestly, Sailor, I just think it’s too convenient. The one person in town you want to hate being the leader of the Boundless is a bit of a stretch, don’t you think?”
“But what if I hate her because of that? What if it’s my Paradox side sensing her darkness?” Sailor counters.
Aziza considers it for a moment.
“Okay, let’s imagine that could be true. Why are you so sure it’s her?”
“Several reasons,” Sailor says. “First, she just always seems to be there you know. She was there when I had my episode. She was there at the hospital.”
“She was there because she cares about your dad,” Sunday says.
“Maybe. Maybe not,” Sailor says. “And this morning. There was no way my dad was going to relent and let me out of his sight today. But Raven spoke up and convinced him it was alright.”
“So now she’s the bad guy for helping you?” Ya-Ya says.
“What if she wasn’t helping me? What if she thought she was sending me into danger?” Sailor challenges her.
“The trouble with that theory is if Raven is a part of Boundless, she wants the Soul Gems for herself. Surely she would have argued to keep you indoors so she could get to the gem before you,” Jinx says.
“She couldn’t retrieve it though, could she? Not without a hair from me, which granted she could get easily enough, and Rye’s blood. Maybe she thinks it’ll be easier to have me get them and then she can take them from me,” Sailor argues.
Jinx raises an eyebrow and shakes his head.
“What?” Sailor demands.
“I just think you’re clutching at straws, Sails,” he says. “You don’t like her, so you’re making the evidence fit your
