Ok. First off, flying through the sky at six thirty a.m. and trying to act perky and awake is not exactly my idea of fun, but we're on the run from Erasers again. When are we not? Nudge begged me to let us go to New York City again to "hide out" because it was oh-so-super-awesome (which it is, I must admit), and pretty soon everyone was begging me to go, so I kind of had to say yes. A good idea? Not especially. But I still agreed to it. I even agreed to possibly sneak onto the top of the Trump tower, provided that nobody takes a joy flight off of it. I could have sworn I saw Angel wink at me when the thought came to mind.

We touched down in a grimy alleyway, our feet touching the ground with nearly soundless thunks. Within seconds, Iggy and Fang were already headed out for the open, their wings covered by the oversized jackets we had picked up at Goodwill a few weeks ago. I ruffled Gazzy's hair as I waited for Angel to tie her shoe. My poor little guy was looking a little under the weather. I helped him and Nudge into their jackets, but Angel ducked when I began to pull the jacket over her head.

"I'll do it," she told me as she pulled the jacket from my grip and slid it over her head. "I'm a big girl now."

I couldn't argue. Angel had grown up in a huge way since our escape from the School. But still, she was only just a kid.

"We all are, Max," she reminded me. "You, Ig, and Fang are only fifteen."

I grinned and bared my teeth.

"But I can rip a grown man to shreds."

And if not a man, then definitely an Eraser. I'd dealt with plenty of those losers before.

Suddenly, Fang was calling to me from the street.

"Max! Hurry it up!"

I turned to the younger kids. Angel and Nudge were already wide-eyed with excitement.

"Alright, guys, we're moving out. If you see any Erasers, I want you to yell Fizzy." Fang, Ig, and Gazzy already knew my little code word—after all, it was a combination of all their names. And, you know, it wouldn't be totally weird if someone yelled "fizzy". They could have had a hyper-carbonated soda just explode in their face.

Fizzy indeed.

Finally, we all crossed the street and stopped in front of Central Park. I did a quick head count, then announced the plan that I knew would probably be dissolved within five minutes of its telling.

"Ok. We're going to chill in Central Park for a bit, and then we are hiding. No exceptions. No socializing with strangers, either." I glanced at Fang. I was having visions of him chatting up some local girl that was out on a jog. "And let's all stick together."

Angel giggled, then clamped her hand over her mouth.

"That's fine, Max. But what I really want is some food," Iggy blurted. "Something smells good, by the way. What is it?"

I glanced around.

"Ig, that's coming from your left. We're next to the pigpen at the Petting Zoo. They just filled the pig's troughs"

"Simply disgusting," Total grunted. "Ig, my boy, you need to refine your tastes."

I jumped a little. I had forgotten he was there. It's not everyday you tote around a talking dog.

"So, can we go see the animals?" Nudge begged, weakening me with her large pleading eyes. "Pleaaaaase?"

I scanned the crowd at the Zoo. There weren't many people there, maybe a couple of moms and their kids. Certainly not any large, hairy Erasers.

"Sure," I told her. Fang looked surprised, which brightened my mood considerably. Not such a boring leader now, eh? "Let's hope the tickets don't cost too much."

We walked up to the ticket seller, a stocky man with a wrinkled blue shirt and a rosy face. He smiled brightly at us.

At least, until he saw Total.

"Miss, I'm sorry, but you can't take the dog in. We aren't allowed to admit animals that are not part of the exhibit. It's a hygiene issue."

Total growled, then whimpered softly and circled Iggy. I got his point immediately. I also knew that he was most likely on the verge of chewing the guy out for questioning his hygiene, which Total never thought of as anything other than stellar. I wouldn't put it past him, either, unfortunately.

"Ig, do you mind watching Total while we go in?"

I hated to do this to him, but I knew we couldn't leave Total all by himself. He would probably start talking to passerby's, and that would not go over very well.

Iggy muttered a glum "fine", then bent over and groped for Total with his long, nimble fingers until he had him secured in his hands. Fang led him over to a bench right where we could find him if we ran into trouble, which was more likely to happen than not.

"Five tickets, please," I asked the ticket seller. I spotted snacks and soda behind the counter, so I asked for a bottle of Coke and a pack of Pop-tarts as an attempt to make peace with Iggy. After I paid for everything, I stuffed the goods into his arms.

"A Coke and Pop-tarts. Don't say I don't love you," I teased him. He smiled slyly.

"Ah, the explosives I could make with this…"

…

Once we were inside the Petting Zoo, Nudge grabbed Fang's hand and pointed towards a small animal with spotted, coarse fur that was asleep on a thin coating of hay.

"What's that?"

"It's a goat," he answered uneasily, taking in the cages with an unmistakable touch of fear. I was feeling the same way as Fang—the enclosures hit too close to home.

If you could even call The School a home.

Angel was crouched by a pig eating greedily out of one of the troughs. Nudge eyed its snout in fascination. I don't think she had ever seen a pig in any other form than bacon.

"Wow, look at his nose! Fang, what would happen if I touched that?"

"It's a she, and she says she'd bite your fingers off," Angel warned her. "They do kind of look like carrots, you know…"

Fang grinned. "Angel, you're…a beast. A scheming, animal-whispering beast."

Nudge glared at both of them.

I didn't want to look at the animals, so I looked for Gazzy instead. He was crouched down by the wall, and still looked ill. I took his hand and rubbed it gently.

"Gaz, what's wrong?" It killed me to see him like this. He looked as if he were going to puke.

"The…School," he whispered in a small voice. "It's all like The School. They're all in cages. Like we were."

I started to feel sick myself. As much as I had tried to block it out for Nudge's sake, I couldn't stop the overwhelming hatred from rising in my chest. The cages…the memories came flooding back to me in a torrent. My eyes began to water. This was sick. I grabbed Gazzy's hand and pulled him towards the others, my voice catching in my throat.

"We're leaving. Now."

Nudge was wide-eyed and oblivious. "Why? I want to stay and look at all the pretty animals!"

She broke my heart almost as much as being surrounded by the cages did.

I figured that I could hold out for a few more minutes if I really tried, so, being the generous compromiser I am, agreed to let everyone stay five more minutes. Gazzy groaned, and I really wanted to groan with him. More than anything, I just wanted to open all the cages and let all the animals go free, and sock the people who put them there in their big, ugly noses. I could even see Gazzy and Iggy using their explosives to cause a diversion while we liberated all the captive creatures.

"Sure. And afterwards, we'll streak through the park," Angel piqued up from across the barn. "Nice plan, Max."

Sometimes I hated her ability to read minds.

"Just entertaining the notion, Angel," I grimaced, shooting her a tense smile.

We all fell silent. The others didn't know what I was thinking, and I knew they wouldn't bother to ask. But suddenly, we heard something that made my blood freeze over.

There was a loud bang, and then a voice yelled "FIZZY!"

It was Iggy. He must have gotten in some kind of trouble. The Erasers must have followed us, I realized with a sinking feeling. And now they have Iggy. Had they shot him? Stunned him? Whatever they had done, I wasn't going to wait to find out.

"Wait for my signal," I hissed. All five of us were already crouched down in a defensive stance. I was shaking, blood surging through my veins. "Fang, take the back door and circle around. Angel, go with Fang. Nudge and Gaz, wrap around the side doors and take down the others. I'm headed straight for Ig," I commanded, strength finally returning to my voice. "And no wings unless absolutely necessary." I began to creep towards the door. The ticket seller had turned around, and was digging for a roll of paper towels.

Showtime.

"Now!"

Five avain-americans were suddenly running rampage out of the barn, eager for some Eraser jerks to beat the crap out of. I sprinted full-speed towards Iggy's bench, fire burning in my eyes.

Then I slipped.

I landed on the ground with a painful thud, arm-first. Only the best for Max. I hissed as the pain erupted from the scrape I had gotten from the fall. Ignore it, Max, I told myself. I snapped up and scanned for the Erasers and for Iggy, the pain already forgotten. Funny. There weren't any Erasers…

I almost screamed in rage.

Iggy was sitting right there, perfectly unharmed except for the bits of Pop-tart sliding down his coke-streaked hair.

Damn him. He mixed the Pop-tarts and Coke and blew them up.

"Max? Is that you?"

"Yes, it is, Ig. Congratulations. And you've gone and made me delirious. FIZZY?! There's no Erasers!" I snapped. My heart was still racing, and my face was hot with rage.

"Oh, so that was the code word!" he exclaimed, slapping his knee with his palm. "I knew it had something to do with carbonation." He grinned. "What else is a blind kid to do?"

I wasn't about to forgive him, so I didn't laugh. Instead, I growled. He suddenly dropped his smile.

The ticket seller tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around and found a wad of paper towels thrusted into my hands.

"For your friend," the man said. "He's made quite a mess of himself."

I couldn't agree more. He had scared the living shit out of all of us. When I finished cleaning him up, Iggy frowned.

"Are you angry with me?"

Yes.

"I'm definitely---"

"FIGGY!" Nudge and Angel screamed from behind the barn.

"It's the hairy one!" Gazzy screamed. "Max!"

Huh. So it wasn't a false alarm after all. At least Ig was safe. Suddenly, I wasn't so mad at him anymore. There were more important matters to attend to.

I sped towards the back of the barn, my legs churning like wheels, with Iggy right by my side. When I saw what it was, I stopped dead. I could hardly believe what I was seeing.

"What?" Iggy muttered in my ear. "Is it an Eraser? What is it?"

"You're not going to believe this. It's not even an Eraser. Ig, they're screaming over a cow."