Hunger

cried.
    “What was what?”
    “I saw it, too,” Diana said.
    “Saw what?” Caine demanded.
    “Like a blur. Like something shooting past us.”
    There was silence. Then, Caine cursed. “Brianna. Faster, Panda!”
    “I don’t want to run off—”
    “Faster,” Caine hissed.
    The walkie-talkie crackled. Drake’s voice. “You guys see that?”
    Caine keyed his own set. “Yeah. Brianna. Either that or a tornado.”
    “She’ll get there before us,” Diana said.
    “She’s already there,” Caine agreed.
    “Don’t you think maybe we should do this some other time?” Diana asked.
    Caine laughed. “Just because Brianna is zipping around? I’m not worried about that girl.” It was phony bravado. Brianna “zipping around” could mean that an ambush was waiting. Or it could mean that Sam had been alerted and was already on his way.
    He keyed the walkie-talkie. “Drake. They may be ready when we get there.”
    “Good. I’m in the mood for a fight,” Drake answered.
    Caine twisted halfway in his seat to see Diana. Her nearly bald head was distracting. It had the strange effect of focusing his attention on her eyes and lips. He winked at her. “Drake’s not worried.”
    Diana said nothing.
    “You worried, Panda?” Caine asked. Panda was too terrified to answer. His fingers were white from gripping the wheel.
    “Nobody’s worried but you, Diana,” Caine said.
    Caine hadn’t asked Jack. He was going to be careful with Jack for a while. At least until the computer genius had given him what he needed.
    “Coming up on the gate,” Bug said.
    There was a brick guardhouse beside a tall chain-linkfence. Lights were blazing everywhere. Spotlights atop the guardhouse, trained down along the fence line in both directions. And beyond the gate the vast bulk of the power plant itself, humming, vibrating, a sinister presence in the night. It was bigger than Caine had imagined, and was comprised of several buildings, the largest of which looked like a prison. It could almost be a small city of its own. The parking lot was half full of cars, glittering in the glow.
    “There’s Brianna!” Caine cried, and pointed at the girl, doubled over, clutching the fence, tugging ineffectually at it. She glanced back fearfully at them, face blue-white in the headlights. She shouted something that Caine did not hear.
    In obvious frustration she rattled the chain link, unable to open it, unable, it seemed, to get the attention of anyone in the guardhouse. If anyone even was in the guardhouse.
    Panda slammed on the brakes and the car skidded.
    Caine leaped out and raised his hands toward Brianna. But in a blur she was gone only to reappear halfway up the hill to the right.
    “Hello, Brianna, long time no see,” Caine called to her.
    “Hello, Caine. How’s that leg where Sam burned your skin off?”
    Caine smiled at her. “Everyone out of the car,” he said in a whisper. “Now!”
    Panda, Jack, and Diana piled out. Bug may have piled out or not, Caine didn’t see him, but with Bug, that didn’t mean much.
    “Whatcha up to?” Brianna asked. She was chewing gum,trying to act nonchalant. But Caine could see that she had not yet recovered from the exertion. She would be tired. Hungry, too, no doubt. He wished he had some food to offer her. Like a bone for a dog. Test her loyalty.
    But they had not brought any food.
    “Oh, not much, Brianna,” Caine answered. He dropped his hands to his waist, arms crossed over his chest, and turned his palms toward the car behind him. Then, in a swift motion he rotated his arms up over his head and brought them down.
    The car jumped up off the ground. It was yanked into the sky like it was a giant’s yo-yo that had run out its string.
    The car inscribed a tight arc, twenty, thirty feet in the air, and hurtled down toward Brianna.
    The car smashed the dirt with shocking violence. The windshield and all the other windows shattered into a million glittering pieces. Like someone had set off a hand grenade inside. Two of the tires blew out. The hood popped clear off, twirled in the air, and crashed.
    Brianna was standing twenty feet away from the impact.
    “Wow. That was cool, Caine,” Brianna mocked. “I’ll bet that seemed really fast to you, huh? Car flying through the air all lightning quick? Why don’t you try again?”
    “She’s baiting you, Caine,” Diana said, stepping up beside him. “She’s stalling. Not to mention that whoever is on guard inside may have heard