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P alm trees stood dead still in the windless morning. The
marine layer had settled in and hung low over the city as
they drove. Maddy and Jacks sat in the back of Sylvester’s
unmarked cruiser. Jacks wore a long trench coat, dark
glasses, and a fedora he had borrowed from the detective to
hide his identity. Maddy had taken a thick scarf and another
pair of dark shades. They looked a little oddly dressed, but
hopefully not so much so that they would attract attention.
Sylvester had the slightest of a grin, looking at the two of
them in the rearview mirror as he drove.
“It’s going to work,” he said.
Jacks watched out the window as they passed under
the huge Angel billboards. The largest advertisement of all
was of him, of course, plastered on the entire side of a building.
There he was, twenty stories high, wearing the latest
pair of Nike Wings.
“Feels different now?” Maddy asked, gazing at it too.
“Yeah,” Jacks said thoughtfully. “It does.”
After a few minutes they pulled into Union Station.
“Be safe,” Sylvester said as they got out. “Call if you
need me, but remember, no cell phones.” He wrote his number
down and passed it over. They said a quick goodbye and
walked into the terminal.
The train station was busy and loud. Maddy had, in
fact, been there before, when Kevin used to take her on day
trips to San Diego as a little girl. The station had a single,
sprawling lobby under a vaulted wood- beam ceiling, with a
marble floor and arched windows that looked out to courtyards.
It had always reminded her of a scene from an old
movie. Directly ahead stood an advertising kiosk that
Maddy couldn’t help but notice with dull annoyance. On it
was a picture of Vivian running her hand seductively
through her hair to show off a twinkling diamond Cartier
watch on her wrist. Could she ever get away from that Angel?
Beyond the kiosk, an ornate, arched hallway extended
under a tunnel that read TO ALL TRAINS.
Maddy looked on the crowded station with equal
emotions of fear and excitement. The terror of being
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recognized in such a public place fought in her heart with
the thrill of finally getting out of Angel City. With Jacks at
her side. Maddy wondered how many times she had
dreamed of this, of seeing Angel City disappear in the distance
forever. It was everything she had ever wanted, and
yet, she was surprised when Sylvester agreed to drive them
to the station that she didn’t feel more, well, excited. As
much as she tried to deny it, something was nagging her.
Again. She told herself it was just the fear of going out during
the day and the risk of being recognized, but in truth,
she knew it was something else. It was another voice in the
back of her head, like the night at Jacks’s party, speaking
words of warning she couldn’t quite make out.
“Come on,” Jacks said, taking her hand. “Just act
normal.”
They headed toward the large electronic departure
board and the ticket windows at the far side of the lobby. A
few people looked askance at their overdressed appearance,
but no one cared enough to say anything or really take a
second look. Jacks let Maddy lead the way for once. She
knew the terminal already, and besides, Jacks had only ever
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traveled in private jets; she wasn’t sure how familiar he was
with the concept of public transportation.
She gathered fragments of conversations as they
passed crowded waiting areas. Most people were talking
about them, it seemed, chatting excitedly about the scandal
and the ongoing manhunt. They intently watched flat screen
TVs distributed around the room as ANN reported on the
latest developments. Maddy tried to raise her gaze discreetly
and catch a piece of the broadcast but looked quickly
away when she noticed a little girl peering at her curiously.
The girl had on a Team Maddy shirt. Her sister was wearing
Team Jacks. Maddy couldn’t help but stare for a moment. It
was unreal. The girl looked at Maddy and opened her mouth
to say something but then was quickly pulled away by her
parents.
With a horrible jolt, Maddy thought of the demon
they had encountered just hours before. In her mind, every
person who passed was looking at them. Who could they
trust? What if this was a trap?
“Jacks,” she said under her breath. “What if the detective
is leading us into something? Wasn’t it convenient
that he arrived just as the Dark Angel was there? How did
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he know?” Maddy’s mind flashed to the maps, the articles
on Sylvester’s apartment wall. She hadn’t actually inspected
them too closely—could it have been that those were for
planning the attacks? That he was the one controlling it?
A shadow crossed Jackson’s face as she watched him
consider it. Her pulse quickened. The detective knew so
much. But wouldn’t he have taken the opportunity to kill
them right there, in the school?
“No. Maybe. It’s too late anyway, Maddy. We have to
go ahead; it’s our only hope of getting out of Angel City.”
Maddy scanned the spacious hall. Streams of travelers
moved past, not taking notice of them. She took a deep
breath and calmed a bit. Jackson was right. But she still had
that nagging feeling that there was something she was
forgetting.
“Okay.”
Maddy led him to the ticket kiosks. Sylvester had given
them a prepaid debit card to use at the machines; they
couldn’t buy tickets from the staffed windows or they would
have to show ID. They stopped in front of the electronic
boards displaying departure and arrival information.
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“I’m going to find a pay phone and call my uncle,”
Maddy said. Jacks gave her a hard look. “I need to make
sure he’s okay after last night. And... I want to say
goodbye.”
Jacks hesitated for another moment, then his face
cleared in understanding.
“Okay. Let me handle tickets, then,” he said, squeezing
her hand. “It’ll be a surprise.”
“Let’s meet on the train platform,” Maddy suggested.
“Better not spend any more time out here in the open than
we need to.” Jacks agreed.
She walked over to a row of pay phones. Each phone
was housed in its own glass booth, another relic of the old
station. She stepped inside the nearest one and closed the
door behind her, cutting the terminal noise to a muted murmur.
She picked up the phone and listened to the dial tone.
What was she going to say? What could she say? After seventeen
years of your taking care of me, I’m just leaving
forever? Nice knowin’ ya?
Through the glass, Maddy looked back to where Jacks
was standing in front of the departure and arrival board.
She watched him scratch his head as he considered
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destinations. San Diego. San Luis Obispo. Bakersfield.
Maddy sighed. It was too late to second-guess anything
now. They had formed their plan; now they had to follow
through with it. She fed in two quarters and dialed.
Kevin picked up after the first ring.
“Kevin, it’s me,” she said.
“Maddy?” His voice was ragged, as if he hadn’t slept at
all. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m with Jacks. Are you... okay?”
“I’m fine. Just a scratch on the forehead. Maddy,
where are you?”
She looked out the window at the station but bit her
lip. “I can’t tell you.”
“I need to talk to you, Maddy,” he said, his tone urgent.
“Jacks’s mother came into the diner this morning.”
Maddy froze. She had been expecting him to try to
convince her to come home or maybe go to the authorities.
She was completely unprepared for this. Jacks’s mother?
Her eyes darted back in the direction of the departure
board, but Jacks had vanished. Buying tickets, most likely,
or already down at the train platform.
“W-what?” she managed to stammer at last.
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“She wanted my help in getting a message to you.”
“What’s the message?” Maddy’s heart suddenly raced.
“Jacks’s stepfather has managed to negotiate a deal
with the Council and the rest of the Archangels. It’s a chance
for Jacks to get out of this situation Immortal and alive.
They’re willing to forgive everything so long as the two of
you never see each other again. Jacks goes home this morning,
alone, and becomes a Guardian Angel; you come home
to me and go back to being Maddy Montgomery, senior at
Angel City High. You both live out your lives separately, as it
was meant to be.” Kevin paused. “They just want this all to
go away, Maddy.”
The phone booth suddenly felt claustrophobic and
suffocating.
“We’re leaving, Kevin,” Maddy said, trying to sound
resolute. “That’s why I’m calling.”
“They will never stop hunting him,” Kevin said, his
tone abruptly hard. “They will track him down. You’ve seen
how powerful they are. We both have. Does he really think
he can run from the Angels forever? This is Jacks’s one
chance, and it’s in your hands.”
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“It’s his decision,” Maddy said quickly. “Why is it in
my hands?”
“Because you’re the one who has to leave him. He
thinks he’s protecting you, so he’ll never leave your side. But
if you stay with him, you’ll kill him.”
Maddy listened in silence to the buzz and crackle of
the line.
“I don’t understand. What is it you expect me to do?”
“Leave him.” Kevin’s words were like daggers. “Tell
him you’ve changed your mind. Get out of there, and get
him to go home.”
“How could I hurt him like that?”
“Hurt him to save him,” Kevin snapped. “If you don’t,
they will find him, and when they do, they will mortalize
him. If you care about him, you’ll do this for him.” His tone
took on a kind of naked appeal Maddy had never heard before.
“Maddy, listen to me, what do you think you’re doing?
You can never be a part of his world, and he can never be a
part of yours. He’s a Guardian Angel and you’re my niece
and I love you, but you’re just...”
“Nobody?”
Kevin sighed.
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“Normal, Maddy. You’re just normal. You’re not
meant for what he’s meant for. He’s going to be the Guardian
Jackson Godspeed and this is where he needs to be, in
the city of Angels.” He paused. “The truth is I don’t care
what happens to Jacks, but I care what happens to you. I
tried to tell my sister what I’m telling you now, and she
wouldn’t listen to me. Look what happened to her, Maddy.
Look what happened to them both. Please, don’t make the
same mistake she did. I don’t want to lose you. And if you
care about Jackson, do this for him too.”
Kevin’s words echoed in the tiny booth. Suddenly she
realized the thought that had been nagging at her since
Jacks had come up with the plan at Sylvester’s apartment. It
was the same inevitable truth her uncle was talking about:
they could never run from the Angels. It hadn’t been twelve
hours since Jacks saved her life, and they had barely made it
this far. Were they just deluding themselves by believing
they could get away?
“This is what’s best for both of you,” Kevin said. “But
of course it’s up to you. It’s your decision.”
She watched the bustle of the travelers outside. When
she spoke again, her voice was barely more than a whisper.
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“If... I did, do I have your word, and Mark’s word,
that nothing bad will happen to Jacks?”
“Yes,” Kevin said.
Maddy let the ice water of reality wash over her. This
was the only way to save Jacks. The word was out before she
could stop it.
“Okay,” she said.
“Good girl,” Kevin said. “Now where are you?”
“Union Station,” Maddy said.
“I’ll call Kris right now and they’ll send someone to
pick him up. I can be there in ten minutes for you. It’s
what’s best, Maddy. Now go tell him you’re leaving. Do it
now. I’ll see you soon.”
The line went dead.
Maddy stood there with the phone still pressed to her
ear. The dial tone droned. She pressed a hand to her temple
and leaned her throbbing forehead against the glass. Nausea
came with the pain, rolling and lapping against the walls of
her stomach. She began to tremble.
Suddenly there was a rap on the glass. Maddy turned
to see a security guard glaring at her. Her heart leapt into
her throat. Maybe this was it, and she had been caught, and
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she would be saved from what she knew she had to do. She
opened the door.
“No loitering in the booths, miss,” he said in an annoyed
tone.
Maddy nodded, moving numbly past him.
She entered the tunnel at the end of the lobby under
the TO ALL TRAINS sign. Slowly her thoughts began to
break through the brick wall of shock and to plan. She was
going to hurt him. She had to. Then she was going to go
back home and be Maddy Montgomery again, and forget
she had ever met Jackson Godspeed.
Anxiety welled up in her as she emerged onto the platform
and found herself alone. She looked around. Maybe he
had left without her. She almost hoped it. Then she saw
him, standing at the far edge of the gray platform, waiting
for her.
Standing there for a moment, Maddy just watched
him. She took a picture in her mind that she would keep
forever after this was over and she had gone back to being
just another girl. She knew she would see him on TV and in
magazines and on billboards—she had already prepared
herself for that—but this image of him would be different
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because this moment was hers and hers alone. Jackson
Godspeed, waiting on a foggy train platform next to a hissing
locomotive, waiting to whisk her away to an impossible
future they would never share.
He turned and saw her. His face brightened at her approach.
She allowed herself to bask in his magnetic presence
one last time.
“The train should be here any minute,” Jacks said. “I
tried for California, but there were only short trips to Anaheim
and Solana Beach. Anyway, I’ve never been to”—he
checked the ticket—“Kansas City.”
Maddy stood quiet.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, seeing the look on her face.
She had pushed him away so many times before, but
now she didn’t know if she could. Her head was throbbing
in protest. She met his gaze.
“Jacks, I can’t do this.”
He stepped toward her, confused.
“What are you worried about? We’re almost there.”
He glanced down the track. “I think this is it approaching
now. We can get on right here; no one will see us.”
“No.” Maddy’s tone was cold. “This isn’t right for me.”
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Jacks paused. An announcement for Kansas City
echoed on the platform.
“What do you mean?”
“What I mean is I want you to leave me alone, Jacks,”
she said tonelessly. Almost robotic. “I’m going home and I
want you to stay away from me.”
It was as though the words had physically struck him.
“Both our lives are in danger, Maddy,” he said in a
low, urgent voice, color draining from his face.
“My life is in danger because I’m with you, Jacks,” she
snapped. “It’s like Sylvester said. They will never allow us to
be together. If I go back to being a normal girl—”
“But you’re not a normal girl,” Jacks said.
“I am, Jacks. When are you going to realize that?” Her
voice was almost hysterical now. “We come from two different
worlds, Jackson, and I’ll never be allowed to be a part of
yours. You belong here, in Angel City, saving people’s lives. I
belong in my uncle’s diner. It’s just the way things are.” She
was trembling now. The nausea rose in her stomach and her
head screamed.
Jacks shook too.
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“It was you who told me I have control over my own
actions. It’s simple, remember? So I’ve made my choice. I
want to be with you. I’ll keep you safe. We’ll get away.”
He held out his hand with the ticket in it.
“Do you trust me?”
Maddy thought about the night he had held out his
hand before they went flying for the first time and then last
night, when he had held it out to her in the pouring rain.
She wanted nothing more than to take it now, but doing so,
she knew, would seal his fate.
“Jacks, I don’t want this anymore. I want to go back
to the way things were.” She said the words clearly and carefully.
His hand dropped to his side.
“Will you listen to me just this once?” he nearly yelled.
“I... I like you, Maddy. I mean, more than just as a friend.
Are you so stubborn you can’t see that? Maybe last night
meant nothing to you, but it meant something to me.” His
eyes were vulnerable, almost tortured. “Did you ever even
consider that I might love you, you stubborn, impossible
girl?”
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The words hit her. Another announcement blared
over the platform speakers. It was the final boarding call for
the Kansas City train. The words poured out of Jacks.
“You know, there’s something when you just know
you fit together. And I fit with you. I don’t care what you
are, human or anything else. It’s like a need, Maddy. So
please.” He stopped and looked at her desperately. Nakedly.
“Give me a chance, Maddy.”
She turned away. Tears threatened to spill from her
eyes; she couldn’t let Jacks see her face. She pushed the
pain violently away. She had to keep her emotions under
control. When her words came, they were unapologetic and
hard.
“You’re a superstar, Jacks. The only person you know
how to care about is yourself. You don’t love me. You’re
just... in love with the idea of loving me. It’s all about you,
Jacks, don’t you see?”
He didn’t move or make a sound. Then he spoke.
“All about me? I saved your life.”
“You did,” she said. “And now I’m saving yours.”
She didn’t need to say more. There wasn’t even time.
At that moment something huge and powerful landed on
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the platform, pushing a wall of wind past them. It almost
knocked Maddy off her feet. Panic shot through her system.
She put her hands up in defense, waiting for a repeat of the
attack at her house, for the Angel to grab her by the throat
again. But nothing happened.
A moment passed before she could open her eyes and
see the Angel who had just landed.
It was Mitch. Shrieks of surprise and fear gave way to
screams of excitement on the platform as all eyes turned toward
them.
“Oh my God!” someone on the next platform yelled,
and pointed. “It’s Mitch Steeple!”
Mitch looked at his best friend.
“Come on, man,” Mitch said. “There’s a car waiting for
us out front.”
Jacks’s eyes darted to Maddy. She watched the full
realization of her betrayal hit him.
“Jackson Godspeed!” a young girl shrieked. “OMG, it’s
Jackson Godspeed!”
The chaos was abrupt and all encompassing. People
began shrieking “WE LOVE YOU, JACKS!” and “FREE
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JACKS!” Maddy saw travelers drop their bags and push toward
them like a gathering tidal wave.
“Maddy! There’s Maddy!” someone else screamed. A
sudden mob rushed at her, pulling her away from Jacks.
“Wait!” Maddy called frantically. “Jacks!”
But it was impossible to be heard over the bedlam.
The crowd closed around her, and Jacks disappeared from
her sight. Phones were held high and cameras snapped as
the travelers pressed in desperately to get a picture with her.
Maddy shoved her way through the mob, trying to get back
to Jacks, but the more she struggled, the farther away he became.
It was like they were being carried apart on a violent
sea.
When she caught a glimpse of him again, Mitch was
pulling him away toward their waiting car. Jacks’s face was
still shell-shocked. Expressionless. Blank.
Maddy yelled his name over and over, but Jacks was
gone. All that was left was an ocean of strangers screaming
and reaching for her. Her head snapped back as a hand behind
her yanked at her hair.
“I want a picture!” a little girl demanded.
Maddy turned and ran.
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She pounded out the tunnel and into the now-empty
lobby. Behind her she could hear dozens of feet and glanced
over her shoulder to see a literal crowd of people running
behind her.
“Wait! We’re your fans!” a middle-aged woman
yelled. “Will you sign my T-shirt?!”
Maddy didn’t dare look back again. She pelted out the
front entrance and saw Kevin already there, idling at the
curb in their station wagon. Maddy said nothing as she
tumbled into the passenger seat and closed the door on the
horde of people. Kevin quickly put the car in gear and drove
away from the station, wordless.
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