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Sam had seen too; Alex could practically feel him twitching for his gun. “Steady,” he whispered to him.
The AKs moved down the central aisle, their feet echoing on the marble floor. Kara gazed dreamily up at the domed ceiling with its newly-painted pink and white rococo angels that soared between the round windows. Alex knew he couldn’t do the blissed-out look as well as she was; he just tried not to look like he completely hated this place.
To either side, the space where chapels to individual saints had once stood was devoted to different aspects of the angels’ love. Pretending to be showing them the “love for our planet” chapel, Kara led the AKs to a painting of three angels holding a globe of the world between them.
She pointed upwards, as if indicating a detail of the artwork. “Okay, don’t look now, but that door behind me leads to the main administrative offices,” she said to the team. Alex had seen it several times before; he took a sideways glance anyway at the dark, arched door in the corner.
“You can see the keypad right beside it,” went on Kara. “Like I was just saying to Alex, we’ve got the code now and it shouldn’t be changing again till Thursday – and from what I’ve seen, there’s a few times during the day when we might be able to slip in without being noticed. Evening service is the main one – everyone seems pretty distracted then. There’s another issue that’s come up though. ”
Alex had been standing with his back to the stone wall as he listened, pretending to look at the cathedral while he kept an eye out for angels. The two that had been feeding were gone now, at least in their angelic forms. Scanning, he didn’t sense any of the creatures in the main space – but a tingle crawled up his spine at the number of them in the unseen office area.
He bent his head towards Kara. “Jesus, how many of them are back there?” he muttered.
“That. . . is the problem,” said Kara. Her eyes met his. “It’s a new development we have to deal with – ’cause I’ve got a bad feeling it’s here to stay. Come on, let’s give the rest of these guys a quick look around at the layout, then maybe we can all go to a cafe or something. I’ve seriously had enough of this place for one day. ”
They exited the cathedral about twenty minutes later, climbing up its worn stone steps into the late afternoon. As they crossed the road and started across the square, Alex took out his phone and texted Willow: Home in a while. We’re OK. I love you. Her response came promptly, making him smile: Hurry back, I miss you!
He’d bought cellphones for the rest of the team the day after Seb arrived, not wanting to ever again be in a position where someone was missing and he had no idea what was going on. Now he and Willow often sent a few texts back and forth during the day – tiny notes that made him feel more laid-back about Seb’s presence in the house. Not that much more, though, if he was honest.
Alex shook his head at himself in disgust as he walked. He’d never thought he was a jealous person – and he trusted Willow completely. But knowing she and Seb were alone together all day, even though all they were doing was working on her aura, nagged at him like a pebble in his shoe. Not to mention that he’d lost count now of how many times he’d walked in on them having one of their long, intimate conversations. Just a few nights ago, he’d found them up on the balcony; Willow had been wearing Seb’s sweater draped across her shoulders as they talked. Though they’d been sitting at least four feet apart, the sweater had irritated Alex far more than it should have; he’d found it an effort to even be civil to Seb. It wasn’t the kind of thing you could mention though, without sounding like a jealous jerk.
But he couldn’t have held back what he had said to save his life – the words had finally burst out of him, after two weeks of biting them back. “So you know he’s in love with you, right?” he’d asked once Seb had gone back inside, leaving his sweater on Willow’s shoulders.
Alex had been sitting beside Willow on the cool concrete floor with his arm around her. She’d gone still as she stared up at him. “I know he cares about me a lot,” she said finally. “But Alex, we’re just friends. I told him that the first day. ”
“Willow. Come on, seriously – haven’t you noticed? The way he looks at you all the time – plus, you must feel it, right? With both of you being psychic?”
Her cheeks had tinged with pink. She’d fingered the sweater’s sleeve with one hand, apparently unaware she was doing so. With an effort, Alex had managed not to yank the thing off her shoulders.
“No, not really,” she said, her voice soft. “I mean, once or twice maybe, I guess I’ve gotten a flash of something, but—” She stopped; then seemed to notice she was holding the sleeve and dropped it, rubbing her hand on her jeans. “We’re friends,” she repeated. “He knows that’s all it is. ”
Alex had stared down at her, taking in the short spikes of hair that looked almost cherry-coloured in the half-light. Right then, they’d almost matched her cheeks. And looking down at her face as she gazed out over the courtyard, Alex had longed to be psychic himself – to be able to just reach into her head and find out what she was thinking.
Walking across the Zócalo now with the rest of the team, Alex told himself for the hundredth time that he was being ridiculous – because he knew how much Willow loved him. And unlike she and Seb, when they were alone together they didn’t sit four feet apart. Just that morning, they’d managed some time in his bedroom: soft words; Willow’s body against his; her lips as she kissed his neck, his tattoo, his chest. He went warm, remembering. . . and tried not to dwell on the fact that if she didn’t talk to Seb so much, they could be alone like that more often.
Alex’s phone beeped again in his jeans pocket. Pulling it out, he saw another text from Willow: Did I tell u I love u, by the way? It was a HUGE oversight if I didn’t.
His irritation over Seb faded. Christ, he really was an idiot. Oversight corrected, he texted in response. Did I tell u that I want to kiss u for a very long time later?
Her reply came in seconds: That’s definitely a plan I can get behind.
Alex smiled as he put his phone away, but felt slightly wistful too. He wanted it all with Willow, everything – and he’d never realized it more than in these last few weeks, with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance. If they managed to defeat the angels, the only thing he’d ever want would be to live the rest of his life with Willow. Marry her, if that’s what she wanted. Just be with her, for ever.
But for now the present was all they had, and the only promise he could make was that he loved her. Because the reality was that no plan they put into place would be foolproof: when the AKs made their strike, there was a very real chance that he and the team could die. Alex didn’t let his thoughts go down this path very often; the idea of any of his team being hurt was agony. He shoved his hands in his pockets, trying not to think about it now.
Anyway, maybe he didn’t know what the attack on the Council would bring – but at least now that the team was trained he could leave them on their own without worrying too much. And so, for just one night, he and Willow were going to have some real privacy, like he’d promised. Alex’s blood quickened at the thought. She didn’t even know yet; he wanted to surprise her.