End of Days (Penryn & the End of Days #3)(20)

I can only blink at them, probably convincing them that yes, I was planning on asking some stupid questions. They point us to the nearest door.

‘Get back to your assigned room. Someone will be bringing food as soon as they can, and you’ll be shipped to a nice hotel room when it’s dark enough to hide the envoy.’

‘Hide from what?’

They look at me like I’m nuts. ‘The angels.’ One gives the other a look that says duh.

‘But they can see in the dark,’ I say.

‘Who told you that? They can’t see in the dark. The only thing they can do better than us is fly.’

The other guard says, ‘They can hear better than us too.’

‘Yeah, whatever,’ says the first guy. ‘But they can’t see in the dark.’

‘But I’m telling you—’ I stop when Raffe taps me on the arm. He nods toward the door and begins walking. I follow.

‘They don’t know that angels can see in the dark.’ I forgot that I know things about the angels that maybe other people don’t. ‘They need to know.’

‘Why?’ asks Raffe.

‘Because people need to know that angels can see us if we ever try to’ – attack them – ‘hide in the dark.’

He eyes me as if he read my thoughts, but of course, he doesn’t need to read my mind. It’s pretty obvious why it would benefit the humans to know the angels’ powers.

Raffe walks beside me up the steps to the doors. ‘You can talk until your lips fall off, but it won’t do you any good. These are foot soldiers. Their job is to follow orders. Nothing else.’

And he would know. He’s a soldier himself, isn’t he? A soldier for the wrong army.

It dawns on me that even though Uriel is creating a false apocalypse and is out to kill Raffe, that doesn’t mean Raffe is willing to help humans win the war against his own people. I’ve had plenty of humans try to kill me since the Great Attack, but that doesn’t mean I’m willing to help the angels wipe out the humans. Far from it.

The guards watch us until we walk into the building.

As soon as we get inside, I have to fight a wave of claustrophobia. The hallway is crammed with people moving in different directions. When you’re my size, being in a crowd means all you can see are the torsos and heads of the people nearest you.

Raffe looks even more uncomfortable than I feel. In a crowd this tight, he can’t help but have people brushing up against his blanket-wrapped wings strapped to his backpack. We can only hope that no one notices anything strange.

He stands stiffly with his back to the door without moving in. He looks so out of place that I almost feel sorry for him. He shakes his head at me.

I try to blend in as best I can. We shouldn’t have to be here long before the guards leave the area.

Obi must have his hands full with all these new people. I sprung the Alcatraz rescue on them at the last minute, so it’s a wonder he even managed to collect boats and organize people to rescue the captives on the island. Of course he didn’t have time to prepare for them once they got here.

I imagine it’s been quite a day for the Resistance. Obi’s not just running freedom fighters anymore. He’s had to put together a refugee camp full of scared, hungry people while still keeping the organization as stealthy as possible.

I have my issues with Obi. I can’t say he’s going to be my best friend or anything, but I have to admit, he’s taken on a lot that no one else would.

I consider going deeper into the building to try to see if I can find Doc or Dee-Dum. The twins are sure to know where Doc is. But it’s too crowded and chaotic in here, and I don’t like the idea of being trapped in the middle of a building full of panicking refugees if something happens.

I’m about to tell Raffe we should go as soon as the guards move on when I hear my name. It’s not a voice I recognize, and I can’t tell who said it since no one is looking at me. Everyone looks busy having their own conversations.

Then someone else says my name on the other side of the hallway. Still, no one is looking at us.

‘Penryn.’

I see the guy who spoke. He has curly hair and wears a huge shirt that hangs on his scarecrow shoulders and a pair of oversized pants held up by a cinched belt. It’s as if he’s used to being extra large and hasn’t mentally adjusted to his postapocalyptic weight. He’s several people away from me down the hallway but still close enough to hear. I don’t recognize him or anyone around him.

‘Penryn?’ asks the woman speaking to the guy. ‘What kind of name is that?’

They’re not calling me. They’re talking about me.

The guy shrugs. ‘Probably some foreign name that means angel slayer.’

‘Yeah, right. So do you believe it?’

‘What? That she killed an angel?’

How did they know about that?

He shrugs again. ‘Don’t know.’ He lowers his voice. ‘All I know is that it would be amazing to have a safety pass from the angels.’

The woman shakes her head. ‘No way would they keep their word. How would we even know if they’re really putting a bounty on her head?’

I exchange glances with Raffe at the word bounty.

‘Some street gang could’ve just made this whole thing up to kill her,’ she says. ‘Maybe she’s one of their enemies or something. Who knows? The whole world’s gone crazy.’