In what seemed like less than a second we had all snapped our wings out and were soaring far away from our safe house.

Max. Maybe flying isn't such a great idea.

Shut up, Voice. I thought back at it.

These would-be assasins - they will be looking for six flying kids. The air will be scoured. They'll expect you to fly. They don't know that you've had a warning. You need to blend.

So I see that you believe Jeb.

The Voice was silent. Of course.

"So, Max... is there a plan?" Nudge asked.

"There's always a plan," I answered automatically.

She rolled her eyes.

"I meant, do you know what this plan is?"

No. I didn't.

"Sure I do."

"I think we should go to Chicago," Dylan spoke up.

"What? Why?" I asked. I immediately decided that the plan was NOT going to involve Chicago.

"It just seems like a huge city would be the place to blend."

"We've tried that. Even New York City wasn't big enough to hide us," Iggy said.

Ugh! If only Fang were here! I could ask him what he thought; we could debate and argue ideas... he could share some of the burden of being the leader. I'd come to depend on that little benefit more than I thought without even realizing it. This leading was harder than it should have been.

"Iggy's right. But I think Dylan is right too. We need somewhere big enough to blend, but not big enough to be obvious," Nudge said.

Nudge. She'd grown up so much in the last few months. She really wasn't a kid anymore. I knew she'd rather be back home, on the computer. I knew that she hated being on the run. Yet I hadn't heard one complaint from her.

"What do you mean, 'obvious'?" Iggy asked.

"I mean like, somewhere nobody would guess we'd go. New York City, Miami, Las Vegas, Chicago - they're all to famous. These people will assume that we'd go somewhere like that. To Disney World, or someplace else fun. Someplace, like, that would be the obvious place to go."

"You're right, Nudge," I said, "Anybody else have any ideas?" Might as well ask.

"Well," Gazzy started, "I think it would be awesome if we went to Texas."

"Texas?" Iggy asked.

"Yeah! And we could meet actual cowboys and go to a ranch!"

"That would be cool! I've always sort of liked the cowgirl look," Nudge enthused, getting a faraway look in her eye.

"Lots of room for testing new bombs. I mean, it's so big and empty. It's perfect," Iggy mused.

"Yeah!" Gazzy exclaimed. He exchanged a high-five with Iggy.

Yeah. That would be wonderful. And Texas. Texas with it's scorpions and rattlesnakes and... No. We were not going to Texas. Of that much I was certain.

"Hmmm. We'll see. Angel? You've been awfully quiet." I looked back at Angel who didn't seem to be paying any attention to the conversation.

"Angel?"

We need to warn Fang.

She pushed the thought into my head and I jumped. You'd think I'd be used to my head being invaded by now. (I know; weird sentence.) I guess I was just surprised since she wasn't looking at me when she did it.

He doesn't know about this. And if they find him... It's my fault he's not with us. It's my fault he doesn't know. And it'll be my fault if something happens to him.

It's not your fault. I thought back bitterly. This talk of Fang had set the good ol' hole to festering again. I refrained from clutching at my sides in an attempt to prevent my organs from spilling out and falling far below, only to grusomely decorate a bit of ground for the next passer-by.

He left of his own free will. But I agree that he needs to be warned.

I saw Angel nod almost imperceptively from the corner of my eye.

"Ugh. You guys are talking in your heads aren't you? I hate that! It's not like I can read your body language!" Iggy snorted.

I looked up. The others were all staring at us.

"Yeah. Sorry," I answered, "Angel wasn't really thinking about where to go. And I don't really want to go to Texas."

Gazzy's and Nudge's faces fell. Iggy looked slightly disappointed. Dylan gave me an approving look. One I really didn't want to see.

We flew in silence for a very few minutes.

"How about Milan, Italy?" Nudge asked suddenly, "It's the fashion capital of the world, you know."

"Nuge, everybody knows about your obsession with fashion. If it really is the fashion capital, that would be 'too obvious', like you said," I dissuaded her gently.

Her face fell slightly again.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Dang. That would have been amazing."

"I still think we should go to Chicago," Dylan put in.

"And I don't think so," I answered icily.

"I still want to go to a ranch and meet cowboys," Gazzy said determinedly. Maybe I shouldn't have let him watch so many westerns lately.

"I have an idea," Iggy said, "Gazzy wants to meet cowboys so bad. And it gave me an idea. What if, instead of cowboys, you met farmers? I mean, really who in the world would think to look for us on a farm?"

"That's true," I said hesitantly, "But farming really isn't my thing. Any of ours. And there are lots of other options."

"But that's exactly the point! Who, in their right mind, would ever think to look on a farm?" Iggy said.

"He has a good point... but I agree with Max. I mean, I can do dirt, I can do blood, I do battles, and I can even do school. But smelly cows and their poop? No thanks."

"Oh, come on! It would be awesome!" Gazzy exclaimed.

I reserved judgement on that.

I think you should let me go find Fang. On my own.

I spun around to look at Angel, shocked. (Just a word to the wise; spinning suddenly while remaining airborne is no easy feat.)

What? I thought back.

I made this mess - I know you don't think so, Max, but I did. It's my job to clean it up. I need to warn Fang. Besides, I know that if I could just know where he was, I could get a message to him. I don't know how far I fling thoughts. But even to try, I need to know where he is. I need to find him.