“What if… What if she’s dead?” I stammer, my voice thick with tears.
“Dreams don’t answer questions,” Beatriz says. “They’re just stories told by your subconscious. I only gave you the first dream, the one you needed that was calm and pleasant. The others — they were your fear talking.”
“I need to know though,” I shout. Rafi squeezes my shoulder and gives me a small smile, but I can’t stop the grip of fear making my mind whirl. “I need to know if she’s somewhere asking for my help. She’s powerful, Beatriz. What if she’s using her magic to reach me? Or what if she’s…gone? How can you tell if someone’s dead?”
The room grows silent, the three Mages looking at one another. Rafi subtly shakes his head, and Luisa replies with a tired shrug.
“There is a way to find out,” she says carefully.
“Luisa, no,” Rafi says. “Not the Nox.”
“It’s our only choice. They talk to the dead. We can go right now,” she says.
Rafi doesn’t look convinced. “The HQ is closed at night. We can go in the morning.”
“That’s pointless. You know they can’t channel during the day.”
“Well, then how do we get into the building?” he asks, his hands rising and falling in exasperation.
There’s a silence, punctured only by my labored breathing.
“I know a way in,” Beatriz says quietly.
Rafi rolls his eyes. “Even you can’t just walk into MA headquarters at night, Beatriz.”
She smiles. “Who said anything about walking?”
Chapter Fourteen
Luisa and Rafi stare, mouths open, as Xavi turns from bird to man, then strides over to Beatriz and kisses her on the mouth.
The five of us huddle together outside the MA headquarters as Beatriz proceeds to explain to Xavi which chimney to fly through and how to unlock the building from the inside.
“My pleasure,” he says with a wide grin, shifting back again and shooting into the sky.
Luisa spins around. “What the fuck was that, Beatriz?”
“Friends in high places.” Beatriz picks an errant feather from her jacket and twists it between her fingers.
“Chica.” Rafi whistles. “You didn’t tell us you were getting feathered by a hot Shifter.”
“And why didn’t you?” Luisa’s entire body bristles, making it quite clear how she feels about being kept out of the loop on her roommate's love life.
Beatriz’s cheeks redden. “I didn’t get the chance.”
“Per què? Does a Wizard keep him confined to a lake during the day?” Luisa’s eyes flash with anger. “Or did you just think your friends were bigoted assholes who wouldn’t understand?”
“Easy girl.” Rafi puts a hand on Luisa’s shoulder then smiles at Beatriz. “We’re glad to meet him, either way.”
I remain silent, staring up at the starless sky. This is it. Wherever they are taking me, I’m possibly moments away from knowing what happened to Mikayla. I’ve waited two years for this.
We all jump at the sound of the metal doors creaking open. Xavi is standing in the MA doorway with a triumphant grin on his handsome face, arms outstretched.
“The key master has arrived! I’m Xavi, by the way.” He kisses Luisa, and Rafi shakes his hand warmly like they’ve been buddies forever. Xavi turns to me and greets me shyly, remembering I’ve already seen him in his birthday suit.
“Let’s get going,” Beatriz urges, in her usual businesslike fashion. Although she’s clearly pleased by how easily her friends have taken to her contraband boyfriend.
As we step inside the foyer, Rafi waves his hand, making nearby ivy grow to cover the security cameras. At the back of the entrance hall, Beatriz nods to a wall, and with a swipe of her hand it slides open. I shudder at the thought of how many other dark secrets are hiding in this building.
The staircase to the basement is dark, but at least it has a handrail and LED lights on each step so we can see where we’re going. I’m not sure what I was expecting from an MA basement, but it definitely involved more open brickwork and stored cauldrons.
“How do you know these guys again?” I whisper to Luisa.
“We play poker some afternoons.”
“Do I need to pay them or something? Like you do with a psychic,” I ask. “Do mediums accept PayPal? Because I’m not ready to give up my firstborn or make a pact with the devil.”
My words are fast, scattered. MA Witches already give me the creeps, and that’s without them being able to speak to the dearly departed.
Luisa’s hand slips into mine for a moment, and all my worries drain away.
“Chill,” she says. “Alba and her brother, Jan, are really cool...” She hesitates. “The Nox are a little lonely. They enjoy our weed and company.”
“I thought on the way here you said there were three of them.”
Silence. I don’t like her silence.
“Luisa?” I hiss.
“We don’t talk about Ramon.”
The door at the bottom of the stairs is made of metal like something you’d find in a castle wine cellar, but only if you were afraid the wine might try to escape.
Luisa knocks three times, but no one answers.
“Your friends live here?” Xavi asks, looking up at the low ceiling with wariness. I imagine there could be nothing worse for a bird than living underground.
He drapes his arms around Beatriz’s shoulders and sighs. As if merely touching her puts him back at ease.
“The Nox live in darkness,” Rafi explains, tone clipped.
Luisa knocks again, this time with a clenched fist.
“Open the fucking door, torracollons.”
With a loud crunch, the door slowly opens, revealing a guy our age in long shorts and a faded t-shirt. He blinks up at us. His hair is bright white and messy, and his eyes look grey in the half-light. Did we just wake him up?
“Oooh it’s a party,” he says to Luisa, running his hand through his long
