He gave a nod and took off along McDonough Street with her right behind.
Storm hung close to the walls. When he reached an older neighborhood surrounded by woods, he padded up to a two-level brick apartment building. Judging by the simple window and door trims thick with paint, the structure had probably been new in the ’80s.
Evalle waited at a spot where she could see both entrances to the apartments while Storm searched around the building. When he headed back to her, he nodded.
The Alterants were here.
But the real confirmation had just stepped out from the far entrance behind Storm.
Tristan held an umbrella for a young woman he had his arm around. She had brown hair—nothing like his blond locks—and wore hers in crazy curls piled on her head. When she lifted her head, Evalle saw a blink of bright green eyes. Neither Tristan nor his sister had Evalle’s night-vision eyesight, or they’d have been wearing sunglasses to hide their eyes in the dark.
Evalle waved Storm off to the left before he reached her. He could meld into the dark pocket of thick bushes surrounding the corner of the building.
When he hesitated, she mouthed the words,You promised.
Storm conceded and backed into the dark, watching.
She called out to Tristan when he got within twenty feet of her. “Don’t be a fool thinking VIPER will not get you.”
His head jerked up, green eyes shining in the night. He shoved his sister behind him. “Get out of my way, Evalle.”
“I can’t go back empty-handed, and you have nowhere to run. Stand and fight with me, just like I did with you today.”
He handed the umbrella around to his sister. “You’re wrong. I can take us far away from here to live safe.”
“The only way you could do that is by flying, and I heard people in the subway station talking about Harts-field being covered with the fog.” Big lie, but he wouldn’t know that.
Tristan’s sister stepped up beside him with a hand on her hip. “That’s just bullshit.”
He scowled at her.
Evalle looked his sister over. An attractive young woman, if someone liked petite and mouthy. “I guess you’re Petrina.”
The young woman gave her a duh look. “I guess you’re the ass-wipe that wants to use us to buy your freedom.”
Snotty little twit. Evalle ignored her. Tristan drove the decisions for his group. “The Tribunal will give Sen freedom to hunt you himself. His philosophy is the only good Alterant is one that is never seen again. And that doesn’t even take into account the Nyght Raiders.”
“Who?” Tristan asked.
“A black-ops group run by a man who lost his best friend to an Alterant. They’ve had a kill-on-sight policy for much longer than VIPER. You’re putting your sister and the other two at more risk than you realize.” She looked around. “Where are those two?”
Petrina started to mouth off again, but Tristan squeezed her. He said, “They’re busy.”
Evalle changed her tactic. “You can risk your life and your sister’s, but it’s unfair to jeopardize Webster’s and Aaron’s without giving them a chance to have their say.”
Tristan snapped at Evalle, “You’re holding me up. Move aside. We’re leaving.”
“When we were in the maze, you said you’d share information and help me once your sister was safe.”
“She’s not safe yet.”
“Neither of you will ever be if you don’t work with me.”
Indecision finally entered Tristan’s face.
Evalle jumped on her opening. “Let me at least take Webster and Aaron with me if they agree. Give me enough information to plead for the three of us. I won’t go anywhere without them, and they’ll be safe from the fog if they’re at VIPER headquarters.”
Maybe Brina could argue that Evalle had brought in two of the three escaped Alterants that were still alive. How could the Tribunal expect Evalle to deliver a dead Alterant?
