The diary flew in slow motion, its pages fluttering like a bird’s wings. Amanda caught it and stuffed it into her purse. She turned and ran.
Luowski pulled back his right arm, loading it with purpose. He planted his feet and delivered the swing from low to high—a punch designed to deliver the most impact while, at the same time, snapping his opponent’s head back. It was a roundhouse punch, meant to clock Finn unconscious.
A second before, Finn felt his entire body tingle like a limb that’s fallen asleep. He’d done this enough times to understand that now he’d fully crossed over. So he stood there, chin out, awaiting the full brunt of Luowski’s fist.
The blow failed to land. Luowski’s knuckles went right through the space that should have been Finn’s face. Luowski fell forward and, off balance, onto the ground. As Finn ducked back, the fear of the moment overcame his ability to cross over and he transitioned. Mike Horton would swear he’d never seen someone move so fast, convinced that Finn must have somehow ducked the punch. Eric Kreuter would claim that Luowski hit Finn squarely in the jaw, but that nothing happened. For this, Luowski later punched Kreuter in the jaw, knocking him down and asking him if he still thought nothing had happened.
Finn mounted the BMX and was speeding away before Luowski had regained his balance.
“Get onto the seat!” he called to Amanda, who had turned to witness everything.
He slowed. She swung a leg over and slid onto the seat, reaching out to Finn’s waist as he stood, driving the pedals faster and faster. The bike wobbled and then sped away, Luowski cursing and shouting that he would do things to Finn that, technically speaking, were impossible.
“You’re insane,” Amanda said, her legs dangling on either side, her hands gripping him all the harder.
But the way she said it he could tell she didn’t mean it. She meant it as a good thing. A good insane.
Finn pedaled all the harder.
8
FINN STUDIED THE PAGE in Jess’s diary while the buzz of conversation swirled around him and Amanda. The Frozen Marble enjoyed a rush of middle school students each afternoon, loading up on chocolate, doing homework, teasing, conversing, and generally annoying one another. Their table was near the back, but Finn kept one eye on the front door in case Luowski happened inside.
Finn had put a shout-out—a text—to the other Kingdom Keepers to join them if possible. They attended schools spread throughout Orlando, so Finn doubted that Philby would make it—he had the farthest to travel—though he thought Charlene and Maybeck might show up. To his surprise Philby was the first to arrive. He wore a ball cap pulled down tightly to hide his face, as did Finn. The celebrity thing had gone from exciting to annoying; neither of the boys wanted to endure a half hour of signing autographs or answering stupid questions.
“Hey,” Philby said, pulling over a chair and sitting down.
“Hey, yourself,” said Amanda.
Finn picked up a spark between the two and wondered if he was imagining things.
“You made it here quickly,” Finn said, suddenly questioning Philby’s motivation.
“Caught the right bus. What’s up?”
Finn slid Jess’s diary over to Philby. At the same moment Jess entered the shop. Finn was going to ask Amanda how Jess could possibly know they were there, but he wasn’t sure he wanted the answer—the “sisters” had an eerie connection and seemed to possess powers that had yet to be fully explained. But as it turned out, he was being overly dramatic.
“We can’t stay long,” Jess said. Thanks to Mrs. Nash, she and Amanda attended different schools. They met here each afternoon before heading home. She sat down and pulled her backpack into her lap. “Mrs. Nash grounded us, in case you didn’t hear.”
Amanda said, “We’ve got to stay at least a few minutes. Finn wants to talk to everyone.”
“About?” Jess looked over at Finn. She had an intensity about her that other girls didn’t have, a way of looking through you as if reading your thoughts. He was partly afraid of her, partly intrigued. Always curious. Her looks changed with her moods—today she was bright and cheerful, but that wasn’t always the case. Her skin shimmered, catching the light in an unusual way and making it appear translucent.
“You,” Finn answered. “This,” he said, indicating the diary. “Your encounter with security.”
Mention of that caused Philby’s head to snap to attention. Philby’s expertise was in all things technical—he was a computer nerd, electronics wizard, and all-around techno-geek. He also loved anything to do with security because security represented his chief nemesis.