“You have until the count of three. One.” He lifted a hand. The officers lifted their guns.

Fear fluttered to life in Candace’s chest. She could fly away, but would she be fast enough? And why the hell did they want to shoot her? She hadn’t done anything to them, just kept ’em from hurting the people.

“Two.” His voice echoed in the night. Around them people had stopped and started shouting, pointing, calling out for them to leave her alone.

“Th—”

BOOM!

The front of one of the nearby buildings erupted. A cloud of fire and glass burst into the air. Shards rained down on screaming pedestrians, concrete chunks pelted bystanders. Everyone who hadn’t dropped to the ground ran. Candace, who’d been sent tumbling through the air, righted herself. Her ears rang, and her whole body felt like she’d hit a brick wall. Shaking off the feeling of someone holding her head under water, she searched the newborn chaos for signs of Mr. White. Nothing. She couldn’t see him. “Shit . . .” A shrill beep sounded in her ear.

“There you are!” Candace called.

“Sorry, sorry!” Ari panted over the device in Candace’s ear. “Had to run interference with your folks. How’re things out there?”

“Wild,” Candace murmured as she hovered as close as she dared to the building for a better look. “First National on Elm just exploded.”

“Exploded?” Ari sounded as disbelieving as Candace felt, even as she faced the inferno.

“Kaboom. Yeah. Oh, that was after your pops tried to kill me.” She looked at the officers, who seemed to have forgotten all about her as they rushed to get injured bystanders to safety. Still no sign of Mr. White.

“W-what?” Ari tripped over the word. “Is . . . are you both okay?!”

“Fine,” Candace grumbled. “I’ll explain later. I got a situation.” She dropped to the ground, where she spied a few people trying to lift a stone slab off an old white woman. Waving them aside, she gripped the edge of the concrete, and lifted. Her muscles strained but held, burning slightly as she hauled the slab up high enough for the others to help pull the woman out. With a grunt, she let the slab drop once everyone was clear.

“Take her to get medical attention!” Candace called above the roar of flames and the scream of approaching sirens.

The woman sobbed a thank-you as she was carried off.

Candace whirled to face the building. “Are there people inside?” She searched the giant panes for any signs of life.