All of them were standing in water now, but no one complained.
Ana sighed, opened her eyes, and looked on what she'd wrought. She tried to be surprised, and found only a sense of resignation. This was what she was. Earth Witch.
"Holy fucking shit," Hardhat said. His jaw hung open.
A hand touched her shoulder, and she looked up, startled. Kate stood there, frowning with concern. Ana sat back, relaxed, and her arms hung limp.
"You okay?"
Ana smiled. "Yeah. I'll be okay."
Wild Fox tried to cross the mud bridge, but his feet sank to above his ankles almost immediately. His tail stiffened and twitched, and he hurriedly backed away. He had lost a shoe and had to reach back for it. "Okay, not cool."
Gardener already held a handful of seeds.
She tossed them, and they rained down to the start of the bridge—and grew. Giant lily pads opened and spread like carpets across the length of the bridge, digging roots into the mud, solidifying it.
They crossed the bridge, walking on the squishing green carpet, and discovered they still weren't finished, because they had to break the thing open. Without a word DB tackled it, wrenching at the handle, pulling at the crack that marked the door, pounding at the steel sides. He could bend steel bars, but he couldn't dent this. He glared at the thing as if it had offered a personal insult.
He went at it for five minutes before Kate cut in. "Let me try. Please?" Her tone was flat.
Six arms loose at his sides, DB stepped back.
Kate already had her missile in hand, cupped to her chest in preparation for her pitch. "Everyone stand clear," she said, and she herself backed onto the edge of the bridge, with the others fanned out behind her.
We're a team, Ana thought. We really are.
Kate snapped her pitch, and Ana never even saw the marble leave her hand. Only a streak of light blazed—a shooting star—and the streak swerved, slamming straight into the combination knob and locking mechanism. The thing sparked and shattered, pieces zipping in all directions. The safe's door swung open.
They'd done it. No numbing failure this time. No sense of shame. For a long moment, they didn't seem to believe it.
Then Wild Fox cheered. "Yes!"
Miniature fireworks flew around him, red and gold light bursting, flowering, and falling. That was a cue, and they all let loose, a cathartic release. Hardhat hugged Earth Witch, Wild Fox grabbed Gardener's hands and spun her in a circle—and Kate hugged Drummer Boy. He lifted her clear off the ground, and they were both smiling.
They settled down long enough for DB to gesture at the safe and say to Kate, "You want to do the honors?"
Curveball retrieved their prize: a hand-sized velvet box with a gold heart inside.
Hardhat parked Hearts' Humvee in its spot outside the American Hero studio and cameras captured every move. They were still soaked and dirty from the challenge, but their mood was high—electric. Wild Fox couldn't sit still. His tail twitched manically. "We're going to win. We're totally going to win. They totally can't rag on us this time."
"We still don't know how the other teams did," Kate said. "If the others got into their safes, then the judges get to call it."
Secretly, Ana thought Wild Fox was right. They had to win, after all that. She was still wrung out after rearranging the entire arena, and even that was a new feeling. She couldn't tell if the fatigue was physical—or simple mental shock at what she had done. You can move the world, Roberto had said. What if he was right?
They were the first to arrive. The other three parking spaces were empty. That could only be a good thing.
John Fortune met the group at the stage entrance, swinging the door out and holding it open for them. "Hey! Welcome back," he said.
"Hi, John," Kate said.
"I just watched the playback. You guys were awesome. Really awesome."
"Really?" Kate said, smiling, blushing a little. She turned almost shy. "Thanks."
DB hissed at Kate, "That guy's just kissing your ass." Everybody heard the mock whisper.
John ignored him. "I know I'm not supposed to tell you how you did beforehand, but I have to say, the look on Digger's face when he saw what Ana did? Unbelievable."
Ana felt herself blush.
The door pushed open wider and Berman shoved himself into the group. He spared the slightest of glances for John. "Hey kid, why don't you find me a donut and coffee or something."
"Actually, I'm supposed—"
"It'll only take a minute. Go," Berman said, smiling over gritted teeth.
"I'll see you guys later," John said, squeezing past Berman to reenter the soundstage.
DB laughed." Captain Cruller's on a mission."
"Michael, shut up!" Kate glared at him.
"You don't have to stick up for him like that," he said.
"I'm not—"
Berman butted in. "Curveball, my God! That was fantastic! This all comes so easy to you, you know that? You're a natural."
Ana found herself looking around for an escape route, but the executive was only interested in Kate. Came right at her, hand outstretched. Somehow, Kate overcame the reflex to offer her own hand to shake, and Berman turned the move into an open-armed gesture of welcome.
"Thanks," Kate said, frowning. "But we all did it. No one can fault our teamwork this time."
"Of course, of course," he said, but his look turned just a bit sour when he regarded the others.
DB crossed all six arms.
"And that's a great point. That was a really important element when we were putting this together, and you know—I'd love to get your opinion on it sometime, maybe—"
This time, Ana butted in. Really, this had to stop. Kate looked like she was getting ready to throw something.
She angled Kate toward the door. "Hey, are there really donuts in there? 'Cause I'm starving. We missed lunch." She threw Berman a smile and a glare as they pushed past him. The team followed, like she hoped they would.
Berman's voice echoed after them. "I need to speak with Peregrine. You kids take it easy."
"That bastard's kissing your ass," Hardhat said, after they'd left the sun and entered the darkness of the building.
"Thanks for the save," Kate said.
Ana grinned. "Teamwork, chica."
They waited in catering, some on chairs, some pacing, all of them growing more nervous. Ana and Kate sat side-by-side, looking out over the back end of the set; struts and lights and cables hung everywhere, people in headsets and clipboards wandering back and forth. The dark underbelly of Hollywood magic.
"We have to win this one," Kate said. She leaned forward, elbows on knees, glaring at nothing in particular. She smiled when John looked their way and waved at them.
Ana's own nervous twitch found her tracing the outline of her Santa Barbara medallion under her shirt. It was almost a form of prayer. But she wasn't praying to win the task. Please, God, get me through this. Get me through the next hour without going insane.
"We did the best we could," she said to Kate. "Whatever happens, happens. I'm still happy."
"Whatever happens will be exactly how they rig it to happen," DB said. He was pacing back and forth along the wall, glaring like a caged animal. He nodded to where the three judges had arrived—Berman was already talking to them.
Ana hated to think that DB might be right.
Team Spades arrived, and they looked smug. Crap. They'd succeeded at their treasure hunt, too. The six Spades teammates ranged out and regarded them, from the two bombshells Pop Tart and Rosa Loteria, the iron-skinned Rustbelt, Simoon and the Candle, on down to the show's youngest contestant, eleven-year-old Dragon Girl. "Hey, it's the big losers," Rosa said. "You guys didn't actually get anything done this time, did you? You gave up early, right?" Her grin was gloating.
Ana glared at her. People had expected the two of them—both Latinas—to bond, but Ana didn't much like Rosa. She'd never met anyone so brazen.
Before anyone could respond, Pop Tart vanished, reappeared next to DB, and gave him a smile and wink. "Hey, honey, will I see you around after the show's done?"