Ignited Read Online Free Page A

he’d also felt every bit of pain that Franc’s men had inflicted on him.
    The memory deflated the small bubble of happiness inside me. Asher avoided my touch. It made sense that he blamed me for how my powers had changed him. Where did that leave us?
    I cleared my throat, pulling myself out of my miserable thoughts and back to the night before. Franc had said I could be with my father if I would go “home.” As much as I hated to return to Pacifica, that was where we’d find my father.
    I sipped my coffee. “About Franc . . . You all know that if we go to Pacifica we’re walking into a trap, right? He didn’t tell me about Dad out of the kindness of his heart.”
    Lucy’s brown eyes narrowed. “He’s using Dad as bait.”
    I exhaled. “Yeah. Not a doubt in my mind. Asher?”
    He rubbed a hand over his square jaw. “Definitely.”
    From the beginning, we’d guessed that Franc had taken my father to lure me back to him, but these last months, we’d been too busy running to go on the offense. Sometimes the Healers found us, and sometimes it was the Protectors who got too close for comfort. Our only choice had been to keep moving. Keep hiding. Last night we had taken a stand and manipulated our hunters to get the answers we wanted—namely that Ben was alive in San Francisco. I was scared to admit how good it had felt to use my powers again to take down those men.
    I shoved a sad-looking cherry tomato around my plate. “He’ll have people watching the airports, bus stations, whatever.”
    He’d admitted as much the first time I’d met him. He’d established the security measures to make his community feel safe from their enemy. They made a point of tracking Protectors and knowing when one entered their city.
    Asher ran a hand through his hair. “I was thinking the same thing. We should drive in. They’ll be watching the motels, too. I’ll ask Lottie to set us up with a house.”
    Thank goodness the Blackwells had more money than Jay-Z. I could have gotten by on very little, but the logistics required for three people changed things. Money made hiding easier, even if it couldn’t solve our dine-and-dash problem.
    “How are we going to find Dad when we get there?” Lucy asked, dumping ketchup on her fries. “Without getting caught, I mean.”
    I tapped a finger on the table. An idea had occurred to me last night, but it didn’t sit right. Unfortunately, it was the only idea I had.
    “What?” Asher asked me, noticing my hesitation.
    “I was thinking that they know we’re traveling together. They’re looking for three people.”
    He picked up the thread. “You’re suggesting we split up.”
    Lucy’s mouth dropped open. For months, I’d preached that we stay together no matter what. To suddenly suggest that we break up our trio must have had her head spinning. I couldn’t see a way around it, though.
    I rushed on. “Just to follow them. We need to figure out where they’re keeping Dad. I think Alcais and Franc are our best bets. If we separate, we can cover more ground and hold on to the element of surprise. They won’t see us coming when we go in for the rescue.”
    Asher and Lucy didn’t say anything. Alcais was a sadistic boy who had tortured Asher, and I hated to bring up his name. Lucy absently turned a butter knife over in her hand, the light glinting on the metal as she flipped it again and again. Asher studied the ceiling with his arms crossed. That went on for several long minutes until Lucy heaved a huge sigh.
    “I’m sitting here trying to come up with a plan that keeps us together.” She held up both hands, palms up. “I’ve got nothing.”
    “Me, either.” Asher ran a hand through his hair, mussing it until it stood on end.
    “So we’re going to do this?” I asked.
    Lucy balled up her napkin and tossed it on her plate. “I’m in. I’m tired of being the hunted. It would make a nice change to do the hunting for once.”
    Her fierce expression unnerved me, though I’d