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deserved—”
    She grabbed the back of his head and slammed his face into the table.
    He lurched back, spewing curses, blood running from his nose. She sprang to her feet, her surge of anger waning as quickly as her temper had snapped, but the image of Kindra falling still kept playing in her mind—the sound of the gunshot, the thud as she hit the ground.
    Travis wound up for a punch that would break her jaw. She slid aside, grabbed his other arm, and spun him around using his own momentum, making him stagger in the wrong direction. He reoriented and took another swing. She ducked under it, the breeze ruffling her hair, and saw his friend rushing her. Damn it.
    She danced away from the new guy’s punch. The others closed in. She sighed, struggling to control her anger. However many months of martial arts training these guys had, it was just enough to make them overconfident. Block the incoming punch, strike to the gut, kick to the knee, and one went down. Rinse, repeat. When Travis came at her again, it took all her self-control not to break any bones as she put him on the ground.
    “Piper!”
    She looked up from the middle of a circle of moaning guys clutching their bruises. Her mother stood at the entrance to the space, mouth hanging open. Piper belatedly noticed the entire room was watching. Her two shadow Gaians hadn’t moved from their seats; the creepy one was smirking.
    “He wanted a fight,” she said loudly, pointing at Travis. She looked around at Kylee, who was possibly about to faint. “You saw, right?”
    Kylee gaped at her, not making a sound.
    Mona’s mouth thinned. “Come with me. Travis, report to your supervisor.”
    She shook her head and turned, striding away. Whispers erupted throughout the room, shocked voices quietly exclaiming. Piper glanced at Kylee and shrugged. The girl managed a weak smile. As Piper turned to leave, the two teens sitting nearby gave her grins and thumbs-up. She wondered who else didn’t much like Travis.
    Hurrying out of the room, Piper caught up with her mother in front of the elevator. She braced herself for a lecture but Mona merely frowned at her.
    “This community doesn’t tolerate senseless infighting. I expect you to show more respect.”
    “I am not a member of this—”
    The elevator dinged and the doors opened.
    “Don’t make any decisions yet,” Mona said. She suddenly smiled. “The Council is waiting for you.”

CHAPTER 4
    T HE ELEVATOR rattled as it ascended. Piper silently watched the floors tick by.
    Why didn’t Mona get it? Piper didn’t want to be part of her special community . Introducing her to a bunch of people and making her feel sorry for the poor abandoned haemon kids wouldn’t change that. She could list a lot of good reasons why she hated the Gaians, starting with her mother leaving the family when Piper was a kid and ending with the whole “hello, you kidnapped me” thing going on at this very moment.
    When the light for the twenty-fourth floor lit up, the elevator groaned to a halt and the doors creaked open. Oh, this had to be the executive level of the building. Two glass doors opened into a reception area with a curved desk of glossy mahogany. Mona led her straight through and down a wide hall. The door at the end opened before they reached it and an older man in a suit waved them in. A long conference table took up most of the room, with six people already seated around it, three men and three women.
    Her mother sat and the door-opening guy took his seat as well. That left the chair at the head of the table for Piper. She sat, eyeing the others warily. These were the leaders of the Gaians, the men and women responsible for the destruction of her home.
    “Welcome, Piper,” the nearest man said. His deep-set eyes were serious above a broad nose and full mouth. The dark skin of his bald head gleamed under the fluorescent lights. He was around thirty, maybe a little older. “I am Chairman Walter.”
    Piper gave him a cold look.