Edden chewed on his lower lip, clearly not having thought it through that far. The I.S. would have, though. Ivy looked tense, and I was glad I had friends who’d sit with me on the hard road and protect me from helpful mistakes. A guy with an armful of bottled water went past, and I eyed it thirstily.

“If anyone would bother to look,” I said softly, voice edging into accusation, “they could see my safety charm hasn’t been triggered. It’s probably another misfired charm. Have you listened to the news today? No one’s brain dissolved. We got off easy.”

Edden shook himself out of his funk and looked over the surrounding heads. “Yes, we did. Medic!” he called, and I waved the woman off as she looked up from putting an ice pack on an officer’s swollen hand, probably crushed when they were getting the people out of their cars. “I’m fine,” I said, and Edden frowned. “I could use some water, though. You don’t know where my car is, do you?”

Edden’s frown vanished. “Ahh . . .” he said, looking everywhere but at me. “The I.S. took everything south of the midpoint.”

Jenks’s wings clattered from Ivy’s shoulder. “Hey, hey, hey. Good-bye.”

Tired, I sighed. I was not going to take the bus for the next twelve months while they figured out whose insurance was going to pay for this.

“I can get you home . . .” Edden started.

Ivy put a hand on my arm, pulling me from my souring mood. “It’s okay, Rachel. My car is just off the bridge in the Hollows.”

That wasn’t the point, and I shivered as Ivy’s hand fell away with the feeling of ice. The light was seriously hurting my eyes, and even the wind seemed painful. It was almost as if my aura had been damaged, but Jenks said it was okay. Why had it gone white, and right before the misfire? “Edden, I had nothing to do with it,” I complained, not entirely sure anymore. “I can’t tap a line over the water, and the I.S. knows it. If I could, I wouldn’t have gotten stuck in that . . . whatever it was. It was all I could do to get out! This is the second misfire I’ve been in today, and I want my car!”

Edden jerked, his eyes coming to mine from the man with the water. “Second?” He whistled, and the guy turned. “Where was the other one and why haven’t I heard about it?”

Jenks’s wings hummed, swaggering, if someone flying could swagger, as he landed on Ivy’s shoulder. “Out at the golf course,” he said, and Ivy’s eyes remained steady, telling me he’d already told her. “Someone almost nailed Trent with a ball, and she blew it up instead of deflecting it. Made a new sand trap out on four.”