Shadow Boy by R.J. Ross Read Free Book Online Page A

“He’s never been on his own before—you know, at least since I was born. And he’s sort of a dork, so he’s probably getting into all sorts of trouble.”
    “Sure!” she says, grinning now. Cisco is such a cute kid, she thinks happily. “I’ll tell him you miss him, too, okay?”
    “Don’t!” he says quickly. “He needs to think I’m fine—I AM fine,” he corrects himself quickly. “It’s like Harry Potter, but with teachers that AREN’T out to kill me, right? I’m the chosen one, you know.”
    “I’M the chosen one,” she tells him, placing her hands on her hips. “You’re the super blonde sidekick.”
    “Hey,” he protests, “the sidekick’s supposed to be a redhead!”
    “Emily’s her own sidekick,” Carla says, dismissing the idea. “Besides, the books AND the movies were too long for me, so I never finished them,” she adds with a shrug. “I can’t sit that long, I’d miss something!”
    “You’re so ADHD,” he says, laughing. She jumps, though, as a hand drops on her shoulder. She dares to look up, seeing Rocco with a sharp expression on his face as he looks at the force field.
    “We found him,” he says. “Time to say goodbye.”
    “Oh,” she says. “Um, bye, Cisco—I’ll tell your dad you miss him!” she adds with a wave before letting Rocco pull her away. She waits until they’re a bit away before asking, “Do you not like Cisco? He’s a really cute kid!”
    “I—” he says, looking a little off-balance. “We’re heading West,” he says instead of answering that. “So we need to know how we want to travel. You and Skye both run, in your own ways, and I guess I can run, but it might be faster if we take the shadows.”
    “Let’s take the shadows!” Skye says. “I want to see what’s down there!”
    “They aren’t friendly, so you might not see much,” Rocco says, looking around before heading across the street. “But let’s go.” He holds out a hand to Carla and she swallows loudly, staring at the hand for too long. Skye grabs it, and then grabs hers.
    She just lost the chance to hold Rocco’s hand because she was too slow, Carla realizes, stunned. Her, too slow, she’s never had that happen to her before.
     
    ***
     
    Moron. I’m a moron. This is NOT the time to focus on the whole Carla Cisco thing—and honestly I’m acting COMPLETELY out of character, because I’m the guy that likes everyone! Jealousy is some nasty stuff, man—
    No. Not jealousy. I’m totally NOT jealous. I’m just… feeling protective, okay?
    I step into the shadows and jerk, feeling that faint pulse from before become much more powerful. My dad’s down here, I realize, starting to run. That stupid dance actually HAD worked, not that I’ll ever admit it. I can feel him. I have to catch him before he goes through a shadow.
    “Rocco—” I hear Carla say, but I keep running, seeing him in the distance. He’s just standing there, I realize abruptly as I skid to a stop.
    “Stay back, Skystep,” Shadowman says calmly. “I want to have a little chat with my kid.”
    “Shadowman,” Skye says, and I can almost feel the tension.
    “Either you stay back or I grab the kid and drag him out. You’ll be stuck down here until he gets free from me.”
    I see a flash of movement from the corner of my eye. The monsters are restless because we’re not moving. “Wait,” I say, holding up a hand to the girls. “Let’s hear what he has to say for himself.”
    “I’m touched,” Dad says, shoving his hands into his pockets and leaning back slightly. “You’re actually willing to listen this time.”
    “Who broke you out of the Cape Cells?” I demand, knowing the answer but wanting to see if he’ll tell the truth.
    “Herold. He’s using me to continue what his Mom started. He thinks she’s dead.”
    “What?”
    “They left the planet, I think, and when he asked I could honestly say that I couldn’t sense her anymore,” he says almost cheerfully. “It’s his