Nayeli sat in the dark, staring at the chrome-plated pistol in her hand. She examined its cold, hard edges, wishing it would just vanish, like the secret she had found out earlier that day.

The rain continued to pour as she waited in that house, wishing she could be in her own home right now instead of this one.

She closed her eyes, reliving the moment that led her here.

“What’s taking Ezra s...

A black mist appeared in the center of a dark alleyway. It pulled at the shadows from the surrounding buildings, drawing the darkness toward its core. A shape formed within. First a head. Then shoulders. Then the rest of the body took shape.

A boy stood where the mist had been. He opened his eyes, surveying his new surroundings. The sounds of the city echoed between the walls of the narrow alley...