Now that Cassie has used the Spear of Destiny, she is bound to it and Asher is bound to her as her protector. Simone betrayed both of them when she gave the spear to her mother who only wants it for its power. Cassie and Asher have escaped and are on the run. Cassie now realizes that when she used the spear to save her father, she actually saved Tobias. Cassie's visions of the future return to her in what her grandmother calls echo tracing. The images she sees make her believe that she must use the spear again to fix the future she created, but more of the evidence they are collecting points to ending the power of the spear and releasing destiny, giving everyone free will to make choices and live with the consequences.
Return Fire isn't quite as good as Moving Target. While the kids do continue to use clues to search for the spear, there are philosophical questions raised that have value in the story, but slow the action and make the pacing of the story uneven. The theme of choosing one's destiny and the importance of free will is pushed extremely hard in this book and almost overwhelms the actual story. As a second book out of two, this story does answer the questions left at the end of Moving Target and ties up all of the loose ends, but overall, the story just isn't as entertaining. ( )