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By Root 351 0

said, sounding desperate. “I know some of them are Shadow Knights. I think Mark Rider is, but that’s only because—well, I don’t have any proof. Maybe I think he is only because he’s one of those guys you know would run over you then sue you because you ruined their tires. And you don’t have to be a Reincarnate to become a Shadow Knight; they’ll recruit anyone who’s a magician, so even if he is a Shadow Knight, he might not be a Reincarnate. Reincarnates are the most powerful, but anyone who is a sorcerer is useful. So Mark Rider could be a new recruit, he could be a Reincarnate, I could be completely mistaken about him. I mean, the only way I can find out for sure is to get close to them, and if I do, and it’s someone I recognize and a Shadow Knight, then that person will recognize me, too, and then they’ll know I’m more than just someone with a Gift.” She looked up at Spirit, shivering again. “If they do that, I’m dead. Either they’ll kill me because they can’t get me to join them, or they’ll—well, it won’t be me anymore, so I might as well be dead.”

Suddenly, she raised her head. “There’s someone coming. I can’t be found here.”

She was on her feet faster than Spirit would have believed, had the door to the room open and was out into the hall before Spirit could react.

Spirit jumped out of bed and ran after her. She paused in the hall, trying to remember which way Elizabeth’s room was. Before she could remember, she heard footsteps and a flashlight shone in her face.

“Spirit, what are you doing out here?” Kelly Langley demanded.

“I thought I heard something.” Lame, but it was the only thing she could think of. “Like someone dropped something out here.”

Kelly panned her flashlight around the hallway, which was, of course, empty and clean. “You were having a nightmare or something,” Kelly said firmly. “Go back to bed. Now.”

There wasn’t exactly a choice. Spirit nodded, and went back into her room. She thought about trying an e-mail to Elizabeth, but … well, probably not a good idea. Besides, Kelly was probably waiting outside the door to make sure her light went out. With a sigh, she got back into bed and turned it off.

Fat chance getting any more sleep tonight.

* * *

“Merlin. And Arthur.” Burke shook his head. “It sounds like a bad fantasy movie.”

“Or a manga, or an animé, they’ve got plots that screwy,” Muirin said. “Ha. Park Place, Addie. Pay up. Seriously, Liz needs to market herself to Japan, they’d eat that kind of thing up with a spoon.”

“I know but…” Spirit had woken up this morning with the conviction that, as utterly unbelievable as it had all sounded, that was exactly the reason why it must be true. If Elizabeth had been making something up, she surely would have gone for a story that was a lot more plausible.

“Look, Spirit, if it makes you feel any better, how about if I go find her?” Burke asked. “I’ll go get her right now, we can talk to her, and we’ll—” he paused. “Not interrogate her, but if she really made all this stuff up, unless she’s psycho, we can probably point out enough holes to make her admit it.”

“It’s already got more holes than Swiss cheese,” Muirin muttered.

“No, I’ll go,” Addie said, getting up. “I’m almost out of Monopoly Money anyway, what with Moneybags Muirin there owning every property on the board that I land on. If she’s in her room, you couldn’t go there anyway, Burke. I’ll try there first.”

But Addie came back only five minutes later, and she had a very strange look on her face.

“What?” Spirit demanded.

“She’s gone.” Addie shook her head. “I mean, completely. The name tag is gone from her door, the room’s been cleaned out. And there wasn’t any announcement or anything—”

“Well, there’s your proof she was delusional, Spirit,” Muirin said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “I bet Kelly caught her wandering the hall looking for Excalibur, sent her to Doc Mac, and he shipped her away. I mean, think about it. Mark Rider said we’re under attack, and the last thing you want here is someone damaged like that. She wouldn’t be safe here, and who knows what she’d do if she