APTOR VISION allows us to see tiny things from great heights and to see incredibly well in the dark and in much more detail than regular people. But, for the life of me, I couldn’t tell what that thing was, shooting toward us.

“If it’s heat-seeking, we should go under water,” Fang said tensely. “It’ll still get us, but maybe some poor whale or dolphin will confuse it.”

Great. A lovely choice. I squinted, wishing the rolling bank of thick gray clouds hadn’t totally covered the moon. But—wait…

“Fang—that thing has wings. Is it like an albatross? What’s the biggest seabird there is?”

Fang frowned and tilted his head. “Uh—what kind of seabird wears preppy Top-Siders?”

My eyes went wide as I stared first at Fang, then at the dark thing. “Oh, my God! Itis wearing Top-Siders! It’sNudge! ” ‘Cause, I mean, how many preppy mutant bird kids are there? Not a lot.

Fang and I poured on the speed, scanning the whole sky as we streaked toward Nudge, myNudge! Nothing seemed to be pursuing her; she was flying fast but not panicky. Now we were close enough to see her long ringlets streaming out in back of her, her bright white smile shining in the deep night sky.

My heart swelled, and I admitted to myself just how much I’d missed her, how worried I’d been, how hurt I’d felt that she’d chosen safety, calm, and education overus .

“Nudge!” I shrieked, and she beamed and waved.

Just then, something huge shot out of the water and slammed into her. It shoved her off balance, knocking the wind out of her. Fang and I surged forward, going into battle mode, and thentwo more things shot out of the water as if launched from a huge slingshot.

Two large, wet, familiar things.

“Max!”

“Angel?!”

“Get Gazzy! He’s hurt! Oh—Nudge?!”

“Angel—hi!”

Fang swooped down and scooped up Gazzy, who had some weird contraption hanging off his head. His eyes were closed, and his face looked like a bulldozer had run over it.

“He’s hurt!” Angel said again. “Nudge! I can’t believe you’re back!”

Here’s what I was feeling: elation about seeing Nudge again, alive and unhurt; worry over Gazzy, who was now unconscious as we raced back to the naval base; a guilty thrill over what was happening between me and Fang (when will it happen again?); lingering anxiety about my mom; and a deep, abiding contentment that we were all together again, the six of us, my flock, my family.

Not bad, for someone whohates emotions .