“I know.” I almost smiled at her indignant look. As if I could forget what she really was, what she had done. “But this is still the Order, and they’ll still do their best to kill us. I can’t help Riley and be worried about you and Faith at the same time.”

Ember was stiff for a moment, then nodded. “All right,” she said quietly. “I trust you, Garret. What do you need me to do?”

“Just follow my lead,” I replied. “We stay together at all times. And don’t Shift unless it’s a matter of life and death. Faith?” I glanced over my shoulder at the other girl. “Are you all right? Can you do this?”

“I’m…good,” Faith whispered, though a tremor went through her voice at the end. She took a deep breath and straightened grimly. “I’m okay. Lead on. We’re right behind you.”

We crept silently across the deserted train yard, weaving between cars and hugging the shadows, always on guard for the Order. I kept my eyes trained for movement, footprints in the dust, spent bullet casings or drops of blood. Nothing.

“Are you sure Ava said they were here?” I asked, glancing at Ember as we crouched behind a row of shipping containers a few yards from the warehouse. She nodded vigorously.

“I’m sure. Old rail yard a few blocks from the abandoned hotel.” Ember scanned the open space between the tracks and the warehouse, frowning. “She said Riley was hurt and they had to hide because the Order was coming.”

Unease gnawed at me. It didn’t make sense. If I wasn’t sure that this was the only rail yard this side of the city, I would think we were in the wrong place. Still, we couldn’t go back, not until we were certain. If Ava and Riley were here, we had to find them.

There was no movement or sound as we approached the warehouse and sidled along the outer wall, looking for a way in. Several windowpanes were out, the glass shattered and broken, but they were filthy and covered in grime and cobwebs. Nothing had gone through them in a while. Beyond the filmy glass, the interior of the warehouse was dark, with aisles of freight stacked nearly to the ceiling. Again, my soldier’s instincts recoiled. Another maze of narrow halls and tight quarters; I was liking this situation less and less. The large metal doors, where freight was presumably taken and dropped off, were closed and locked tight, and nothing short of a blowtorch or a pack of C-4 was going to force them open. My hope that Ava and Riley were here was fading fast, when Faith gave a sudden gasp and surged forward.

“Ava!” she cried, making me jerk up. “Wait!”

Before I could stop her, she sprinted forward, toward an open door I hadn’t noticed, and vanished through the frame.