"Whatever you say, chief." I drove into the al ey he'd pointed out, barely squeezing my chubby little sedan through. The tires rol ed over rocks, garbage, and massive weeds that were beginning to look like trees. I reached the end and shut off the engine. "What now?"

He smiled. "We go inside."

"I'm going to get tetanus in there," I grumbled.

"Don't go rol ing in piles of dirt and rusty nails and you'l be fine."

"You're an ass."

8

WILL SHOWED ME TO THE DOOR, BUT IT WAS BOARDED up. He plucked the sheets of plywood off with no effort at al and tossed them aside. Inside, the warehouse was surprisingly clean. Junk had been moved off to the side, and there wasn't any broken glass lying around. Tires were stacked in a corner by a pile of rusting hubcaps and wooden crates. Moonlight streamed in through high, mostly intact windows. Steel columns stretched from the concrete floor to the ceiling.

"I've even cleaned it up for you," Wil said, obviously trying to suppress laughter. Laughter that, I was sure, was directed at me.

I glared at him. "Why was it boarded up if you've gotten in already? Did you nail the boards over the door when you left?"

"I didn't come in through the door," he said, and pointed up.

My gaze lifted to the windows. "Nuh-uh."

"Once you figure out what you can real y do, you won't be surprised at how I got in. That's why we're here."

"So you can murder me and steal Marshmal ow?" I mumbled absently as I picked at the peeling paint on the door.

He blinked. "Steal what?"

"Never mind."

"You are a very strange girl," he said, stepping very close to me.

His closeness alarmed me for a moment, and then I felt my unease melt away. It was real y odd, my reaction to his presence. Perhaps it was because he was the only one I knew in the world who had the power to protect me. That should have made anyone feel pretty safe, right? Perhaps it was the "bond" he said we shared.

"What are you doing?" I asked, my eyes wide.

His fingers traced the curve of my shoulder softly, as his gaze fel . I gasped sharply. If he tried to kiss me, I'd slap the crap out of him. Bond or no bond.

He slipped my purse off my shoulder and tossed it. "You won't need this." He turned and stepped away.

I let out a long breath. "You're weird, you know that? Way weirder than you think I am."

He laughed. "I believe you've told me that a few times."

"Do I need to be in the Grim in order to fight or do those crazy acrobatics?"

"No," he said. "The only time you need to enter the Grim is when a reaper is hiding there. When they're hiding, that's the only way we can see them."

"So what can I real y do? If you can jump through a twostory window, then what can I do?"

"You can do that too. You don't even need wings to do it, either."

I ignored his smartass remark, which made no sense at al anyway. I unzipped my hoodie, shrugged it off, and tossed it over by my purse. Wearing just my tank top, I folded my arms across my chest. "Yeah, right. Show me something, then."

"You can bring this whole building down."

I huffed in disbelief. "Show me."

"I'm not going to destroy the warehouse with us in it," he said. "We'l need this place for a while, so I'l give you a taste."

He stepped farther away from me, his eyes locked on mine, and stood next to one of the steel columns. For a moment--I had to blink several times--it looked as if the air around him moved, like heat waves swaying just above the pavement on a hot day, only they radiated off his body. His green of his eyes seemed to intensify until they almost glowed, even though I knew that wasn't possible. Then a blast hit me like a truck, knocking me flat on my back. I struggled back to my feet, gaping at Wil in awe. I could see the energy rol ing from him. I could feel it on my skin and lapping up my legs.

With a quick swing of his torso, Wil smashed his forearm into the column, and the steel gave with a piercing whine until it bent at an angle, ripping almost ful y free from the beam high above it. Dust blasted free and settled to the floor. I staggered back, tripping and nearly fal ing. I stared at him, fearful, confused, and completely stunned. "H--how?"

"I could take it down if I wanted to," he said, relaxing his power, letting it wash away like the tide. "You're stronger than me, El ie. I need to prove it to you."

"Oh God" was al I could say.

"You try it," he said. "I know you remember how. I've seen you do it since you awakened. By summoning your power, you wil have the strength to kil a reaper. They can do the same thing, though, so you have to be cautious, and that is why you have the angelfire. If you come across a vir, you may not know what he is until it's too late. The weaker ones seem the most human. The powerful ones don't bother to hide what they are. They don't usual y like to be compared to humans, but they'l shape-shift to take the form of a particular human in order to infiltrate."

"Do you have to touch my face again, to trigger me, in order to bring my power out?" I asked.

"No, I don't think I'l have to do that again." He held out his arm and conjured his sword. The enormous silver blade glinted into being. "Cal your swords now."

"Why?" I asked, uncertain of his motives.

"We're going to bring out your power so you wil learn to do it on your own. I am your soldier, but I am not your crutch."