At sixteen in Oklahoma, she was stuck with a hardship license valid only for going to and from school. (And work, in the unlikely event that she ever found a job that wouldn’t drive her insane.) It was also after eleven o’clock, so Rex was being ultracautious and guiding her through the back roads. He didn’t want to meet any police, in case Sheriff St. Claire had decided to launch some sort of curfew crackdown.

Jonathan’s trip to jail had spooked Rex. In a way, Clancy St. Claire scared him more than anything in the midnight hour. When it came to fat, nasty sheriffs, there was no lore to turn to.

Jonathan’s weekend disappearance had been alarming for Melissa too, but for different reasons. All Sunday’s secret hour she’d been casting on her roof, mostly watching the growing darkling activity but partly wondering why Jonathan had never appeared. Normally she could taste him shooting across the landscape. He was easy to spot, faster than anything else in the midnight psychic terrain, even a flying darkling.

His absence had worried her more than she would have thought. When she found out on Monday morning that he’d only been in jail, surrounded by opaque steel, it had been a relief. Rex might have sheriff-phobia, but there were worse things than getting busted.

She smirked. A night on the ground might even have done Jonathan some good. He’d tasted a little more humble this week.

“Tahnright.”

Melissa turned right.

She was starting to recognize the neighborhood. “Okay, we’re not far. I’ll park somewhere.”

Rex looked up at her, nodding agreement.

“Ow! Blind me, why don’t you?”

Rex pulled the flashlight from his mouth. “Sorry.” He began to fold the map.

Now that they were almost there, Melissa was glad they’d driven. Riding their bikes in the blue time wouldn’t have taken that long, but they would be exposed to whatever the darklings threw at them. Without a stack of Dessquality weapons it wouldn’t have been safe, and this was one trip she and Rex wanted to keep secret.

They had never told Dess all of the lore about mind casting. It would be hard for anyone else to understand the mistakes they’d made when they were young. Dess always walked around thinking she’d been left out, never appreciating how much easier she’d had it. Back when it had been just Rex and Melissa, they’d had to learn the rules of midnight the hard way. Those years hadn’t been all fun and games.

Melissa shivered and brought her mind back to the present.

She brought her old Ford to a stop a block or so away and pulled up her right sleeve to check her watch. Three minutes to spare.

Rex noticed her black-gloved hands. “You’re looking very commando.”

She smirked. “So what’s this girl’s name again?”