They put her back in the fucking room. Marcie sat at the foot of the bed, watching her muscle fibers expand and twirl around, searching for tissue to reconnect with. It was so easy to get transfixed by the process every time it happened. Her epidermis reattached itself to reform the arm she’d purposefully broken in two.

  Hunter and Grant paced around the room. It was understandable that they were so on edge, considering that Marcie’s method for pulling herself out of a panic attack was to injure herself in ways that would cause an experienced surgeon to take the rest of the day off, but their expressions were so full of pity and worry, it made her sick. She didn’t want to think about how rattled she was by the dark. She didn’t need pity. She needed a pn.

  The first obstacle was Mrs. Ruiz, who was stationed in the room with them.

  “I know that mischievous look, Marcel,” the woman said sternly.

  Marcie feigned ignorance. “What look?”

  Mrs. Ruiz clicked her tongue. “I saw it on you every day you came to my shop thinking you could py the cute card to get free hedo from me.”

  “It worked, didn’t it?” Marcie said. The smile she fshed was admittedly mischievous. But how could she not be a little smug about winning free ice cream, or even more so about her newly hatched pn to jump out of Tío’s window as soon as Mrs. Ruiz turned her back.

  “Marcel. You weren't listening, were you? If someone sees you it could get them killed.” Mrs. Ruiz shot down any pyfulness between them.

  “No one will have to know it’s me,” Marcie protested.

  “No one?” Mrs. Ruiz snapped, “What about your friend here?”

  “He shouldn’t even be here!”

  Hunter responded softly, without even stopping his pacing. “We didn’t know. I’m sorry Grant.”

  Grant didn’t respond. He just shrugged his shoulders and nodded comfortingly at Hunter as if to say, ‘It’s fine. I deserved it.’ Both of them continued to walk in rhythmic circles.

  Marcie snapped her finger at them. “Could you guys stop walking like that? You're going to make me sick.”

  “You know I pace when I’m stressed!” They both said in unison.

  Marcie ignored them. “I had to stare Grant in the face and expin to him who I was before he recognized me! I’ll be super covert!”

  “Yeah, but I’m stupid,” Grant chimed in.

  “Not helping,” Marcie waved him off.

  Mrs. Ruiz sighed deeply. “This is not a risk we’re willing to–”

  Bang. Bang. Bang. Someone pounded on the front door, causing Mrs. Ruiz to perk up– sort of like a dog. Apparently that analogy wasn't all that far from the truth. She narrowed her eyes towards Marcie before stepping out of the room.

  If she was going to escape, now was as good a time as any. Marcie walked over towards the window. Tío’s apartment was on the second floor, meaning she’d definitely survive the jump, but Hunter and Grant wouldn’t be able to do the same unscathed. She’d be the only one leaving, it seemed. The window was easy enough to slide open slowly. One story down, only a few members of the Watch were patrolling the ground level. Well, she didn’t know that it was the Watch. They could have just been regur dogs, but Marcie wasn’t willing to make optimistic assumptions.

  “Marcie. Don’t,” Hunter held on to her wrist.

  She gred back at him. “What, you’re gonna stop me? Keep me inside again to rot?”

  “No!” He shook his head. “It’s just…we said we’d do things together now.”

  She almost let go. She almost made the decision to rip her arm away and let herself fall and get herself out of this dump.

  Marcie closed the window. “You’re right.”

  Hunter pulled her into a hug. She followed the inhale and exhale of his chest up and down, the rhythm of it calming. “So what’s the pn?” Grant asked. “...other than you two getting a room.”

  “We’re already in a room. You can leave.” Marcie whipped her head around and shot him a nasty gre.

  “Easy, girl.” Hunter flicked her forehead. “What was your pn?”

  Marcie found herself wondering the same thing. What was she going to do once she threw herself out of the window? It was hard to think. Something was scratching at her leg, loose in her pocket. Reaching in, she found the small red bow she’d dug up on the beach.

  Determinedly, she said, “I’m gonna go talk to Annabelle. I think she can help.”

  “Annabelle? What the hell do we need Annabelle for?” Hunter asked.

  “She would be our best bet at any info. She hates Julie,” said Grant. “Though, I think she also hates you, dude.”

  “That’s fine.” Marcie motioned to Grant. “You can do the talking.”

  “Nuh uh.” Hunter waved his hands in a stopping motion. “None of this is fine! Grant is one thing, but I don’t know if we need to keep roping in the worst people we’ve ever met.”

  Grant threw up his own hands. “Okay, that one’s a bit harsh. I’m just trying to help.”

  “Hunter,” Marcie said as calmly as she could. “Marty knew something, but he might be dead, and Grant, who’s ‘trying to be helpful’, has been no help at all. My avaible options for furthering Operation Figure Out How I Died are dropping like flies!”

  “May I remind the room that you guys wouldn’t even know where to start if I hadn’t told you?” Grant argued.

  “He’s right,” Hunter agreed.

  Marcie nearly broke into a yell. “And dear God, why do you keep defending him? What makes him any better than Annabelle?”

  Hunter had no answer for her. He simply shut his mouth and blinked in frustration.

  “You can’t seriously believe I'm as bad as Annabelle.” Grant tried to defend himself.

  “Not helping.” Hunter nudged him.

  As they fell into a tense silence, they heard furniture moving and voices conferring about something in the other room.

  Tío’s voice said loudly, in a panic. “Rafael, can you hear me?”

  Rafael? Her Papa?

  Marcie, instead of running towards the window, ran towards the door, then thought twice about throwing it open. Mrs. Ruiz’s words of warning echoed in her mind. Out of everyone, even behind the eye patch and new clothes, her own father would certainly recognize her. So she stayed put.

  She shushed Grant and Hunter and listened. They did too, all of them pressing their ears to the wood, trying to make out the conversation beyond it.

  “Who…who else is here? … No one? But I thought I heard– …I saw that boy who’s been missing. Martin Gillman,” Papa said. Hearing his voice again nearly made her cry; the st time she heard him was the night she’d come back to earth and she hadn’t yet realized just how much she’d missed him then.

  Then, she noticed the quiver in his voice. It sounded as if his whole body was shaking when he rambled on. “He–he talked to me. But something was wrong with him. His voice sounded like…waves. He was the one who vandalized Marcel’s grave. I know it. He said the words that were written on her gravestone. Lapdog…Pendejo. And he kept going on about needing someone…Annabelle. I think he was looking for her.”

  “Marty’s actually alive?” Hunter asked with surprise.

  “Shhhh,” Grant and Marcie quieted him.

  Marcie heard the muffled voices of Tío and Mrs. Ruiz comforting her father before he spoke again. “I have to get back to the docks or the station. I’m not sure. Thank you Jesse.”

  “Rafael, you should stay and rest,” Tío said.

  “No. No. I have to go.”

  The front door opened and shut again. Marcie, Hunter, and Grant all traded gnces. For many moments, they stayed still and silent, making sure it was truly safe. Then a knock came at their door.

  Tío spoke firmly. “I know you were listening. Your father and–this Annabelle are in danger.”

  Marcie opened the door slowly. She’d never seen Tío so serious. He was always the funniest guy in the room, never without a smile or a joke locked and loaded. Even at the table, the command he held still had his fvor of friendliness. Now, he wasn’t smiling. And nothing about this was funny. The look he gave her made her wither with guilt. She didn’t know it was her father that came to the apartment, but if he had found her…

  “Milton called. He sensed two major sources of supernatural energy headed towards downtown. The Gillman boy…he’s no longer human and he’s dangerous. Rafael wasn’t made aware of this so he wasn’t harmed this time. He got lucky, but there’s no telling if that will change for him or anyone else looking for Martin. I’m going to take the rest of the Watch to slow him down. You should st–”

  “I’m not staying here!” Marcie challenged. “If my dad is in danger, then that’s all the more reason we should help!”

  “I wasn’t going to ask you to stay,” said Tío. “Gah, you are just as stubborn as your father. I can take care of Rafael. I need you to start locating a girl named Annabelle. I’ll give you the key, but you should return here with her. You’ll be safe.”

  Grant raised his hand. “We were already going to do that, sir.”

  Hunter side-eyed Grant, but knew that any argument he’d previously had was nullified.

  “Perfect. Once you do, take her to this location.” Tío handed a piece of paper with an address on it to Hunter and then looked squarely into Marcie’s eye. “Stay out of sight. Your only job is to keep them safe. Got it?”

  “Okay, okay.”

  All four of them began to make their way out of the apartment. Mrs. Ruiz and the rest of the dogs that had been patrolling the lower level had already left for downtown. Tío changed into his canine form as they all headed on their missions. His hands shrunk to paws, his joints bent into hind and forelegs, and his face morphed into a snout. Marcie thought that he would have been pretty cute as a hairless Xolo dog, if only she wasn’t afraid of what he was capable of.

  They went their separate ways, Tío following after the Watch, and the three of them heading towards where they’d most likely find Annabelle.

  “She works at Vivi’s Fashion Finds, on Mission Avenue. I think she has a shift tonight,” Grant had said.

  As Marcie closed the passenger door to Hunter’s car, she couldn’t help but feel a little bad. It was clear on his face he wasn’t thrilled to be going. “Sorry. For forcing you into this…and getting upset.”

  Hunter sighed, his stress evident in the way his shoulders hiked and then sank, and the way his jaw clenched with tension.

  “We said we’d do things together,” he said begrudgingly.