Zora, by contrast, is totally starstruck. If she were an anime character, her eyes would be literally bulging from her head. I head up the stairs slightly behind her. When we get to the top, though, Nathan addresses me first. “So, you’re the famous Lacey Chu,” he says, stepping out ever-so-slightly so he blocks the doorway. I wish Jinx were here to fire a little quip into my ear and relax me. I’ve only got Slick riding on my shoulder, and Linus is tucked into the hood of Zora’s jacket. Our bakus pale in comparison to his, and he knows it.

“Hi,” I say, barely choking out the word. Our breath streams out in front of us.

“Well, come on in,” he says, finally stepping aside—but not before giving me an up-and-down appraisal with his eyes. “It’s cold out there. You must be pumped to be here for the convention.”

“Convention? I thought it was a holiday party?” Zora asks him, her voice betraying the same curiosity (and alarm) running through my head. The annual Moncha convention is scheduled for December 27, as it is every year.

“Didn’t you hear on the news?”

“We didn’t listen to any on the way up.”

“Oh, are your bakus too low level to be programmed to give you any breaking news updates?”

I frown. If it was news about Moncha Corp, then I’ve definitely set Slick to notify me. He’s been silent the entire trip.

Nathan doesn’t seem to miss a trick, examining our faces with the continued expression of bemusement. He might look like Tobias from afar, with his close-cropped black hair and rich brown skin, but he lacks Tobias’s natural warmth and kindness. He looks like not only does he not suffer fools gladly, but that he’ll gladly point out all that fool’s faults and not let him (or her) make up for it.

As someone who can sometimes be a fool, it sets me on edge. I instantly dislike him—and it’s not just because of the stories Tobias has told me. He seems to relish holding this news over us.

Somehow, Zora seems to be immune to this. Her eyes are still starry as she looks at him. “So what’s going on with the convention?” she asks, pulling her hat off from her head now that we have moved inside the lobby and running her hands over her braids to smooth them out.

“It’s been moved up. Now we’re going to hear all about the new development on Christmas Eve instead.”

My stomach drops.

“So you’ll be here to watch it all,” Nathan continues. “And not even from the sidelines. The biggest surprise is that Eric has decided to move the announcement here. You girls are going to be right in the heart of the action.”