The Breaking

“We used to go where we pleased,” Minh said in a soft, almost comforting tone. “We avoided humans simply because they were noisy, arrogant, and stank of smoke and metal. When we were curious as to how they were living, we walked among them. The ones that stepped out of line, we wiped off the face of the planet. Then the Nymar spread like a plague and lied well enough to convince us that staying in the cities for too long was more trouble than it was worth. I think Kawosa had something to do with that. He is Ktseena. Some say he can look into the soul of any shapeshifter.”

“He may have spawned us in one way or another,” Liam sneered, “but he can’t look into my soul any more than a father can know what’s truly going on inside his son. If he knew what was goin’ on inside of me, he would never have left me alone for so long.”

Minh approached him in the form of a lean, finely toned human. Her long black hair hung down over smooth shoulders and pert, firm breasts. Even in the little bit of light coming through the window, her skin had the color of lightly creamed coffee. “As more power flows through us, the temptation will arise for us to thin our own herd. Esteban already met Randolph, which means the first blood has already been spilt. The last time we fought among ourselves this way, entire cities were laid to waste. Human history records them as natural disasters only because there weren’t enough of them left on those battlefields to record the truth.”

“I don’t know about you, darlin’,” Liam growled, “but I am a natural disaster.”

A cold knot formed in Paige’s stomach. For anyone else on earth, that statement would have been hot air. Hearing it spoken by a Full Blood was like finding out that a tornado was not only conscious but eager to turn the next midwestern town into a swirling cloud of splinters and screaming motorists.

“There are already precious few of us on earth,” Minh continued. “and there will be even fewer after a fight like that.”

“And those of us that remain will have the power we should have had all along! Do you even know what can be done by someone who wields a lion’s share of the Torva’ox?”

“I know the legends, but those aren’t enough to start killing our own kind and laying waste to so many humans. They may be a weaker species, but they are persistent, they are vengeful, and they have numbers on their side. We must not underestimate the backlash that will follow.”

“Surely you’re not frightened by their precious machines and guns and bombs,” he grunted.

Minh’s human face had soft, Asian features. Her hands slipped through the fur on his chest and her thin lips curled into a wide smile as she said, “Their machines are useless without anyone to operate them. Guns and bombs can’t do anything if there is no human hand to fire them, and with the Torva’ox, such a thing can be arranged.”

“Now this ,” Liam said while reaching around to grab her hips with both hands, “is why I’ve continued this conversation. You have vision, my darling.”

“I do,” Minh replied. “Which is why I can see where this road of yours can take us. Perhaps it is too late to hope for us to go back to quiet times when the humans were blissfully unaware of what hunted them, but we must truly know what we’re starting. What do you hope to accomplish? Do you want to rule them?”

“What I want is to set things in their proper order. The strong are supposed to prosper through strength ! Not by keeping their heads down and staying away from gnats who’ve survived through sheer procreation and strut like kings because they can throw lead pellets in mass quantities or burn their own cities to the ground. We know how to take the machines out of the picture. We know how to knock the humans back down to where they need to be. All we lack is the will to put this knowledge to use. I may have forced our hand, but can you honestly tell me that a part of you doesn’t want to thank me for it?”

After a heavy pause, Minh sighed and said, “This will get bloody. Bloodier than it already has. Bloodier than anyone could anticipate. Bloodier, even, then you may anticipate. What will be left when all that blood is spilled? What will be left when the humans retaliate and start those fires they’re so fond of? What will be left for us when the world finally stops burning?”

“I don’t know,” Liam said with an eagerness that Paige could feel from where she hid. “Let’s find out!”

Chapter Twenty-One

Twelve miles north of Raton, New Mexico

“So what now?” Cole asked.

Paige’s voice came through in a rush. While telling him the basics of what she’d learned, she’d been running down side streets and hopping fences from one backyard to another. She’d listened to his update without panting more than Cole after climbing too many stairs. “Now, we get our asses to another safe house and prepare to clean this city out. I need to mix up a batch of Half Breed bait to try and draw enough of those things away from here and give the locals a chance to get out.”

“Anything other than that? This sounds like some pretty big news.”

“I was kinda hoping to hear a good idea or two from you,” she said. “I hate to say that I’m out of my depth here, but …”

“Yeah,” Cole sighed. “Even with your Army buddies we may be out of our depth. Have you tried calling them again yet?”

“No,” she snapped. “I sent Rico to check them out and I’m leaving it at that. After what happened with you, Adderson deserves to deal with him. And what about your wolf girl?”

“We’re meeting her somewhere in New Mexico.”

“Jessup’s idea?”

“Yep.”

Although the rattling on her end of the phone had stopped, Paige’s breathing was getting heavier. “He’s kind of a hick, but that backwoods stuff of his may be what we need right now. Should keep you off anyone’s radar. Let me know what you come up with.”

“Will do.” Cole tapped the front of the phone, realized it wasn’t his own touch-screen beauty, and put the sparkling monstrosity away. The scenery flowing past him on the other side of the Ford’s window consisted of dusty rock and shrubs that were tough enough to survive the punishment doled out by a sun that only grew fiercer as it shone farther south of Chicago. “Why the hell is your window open?” he grunted.

“Because the fresh air feels good,” Jessup replied. “Don’t tell me you expect there to be AC blowin’ on your face no matter where you go. Besides, it’s a dry heat.”

“You know what else is dry heat? The middle of a freaking oven. Crank the AC.”

“So what’s Paige got to say?” Jessup asked without even looking at the control to raise his window.

She’d told him the highlights of what she’d gleaned from the conversation between Liam and Minh, so Cole relayed that to Jessup while staring out the window.

Finally, Jessup said, “No need to stare outside like a mooning hound. If that gal was around, we’d feel her.”

Cole’s scars weren’t burning and he couldn’t see Cecile anywhere outside. Still, he couldn’t quite get himself to lower his guard. “Are you sure she’s going to meet up with us?”

“If she wasn’t, there ain’t a lot we could do about it.” Since he wasn’t taking any comfort from that, Jessup added, “Sometimes you just gotta do your thing and have faith that whatever you set into motion before will keep on turning.”

“You think she heard anything I said about what Paige found?”

“They can sniff out quite a lot, but I don’t think it’s the same for hearing. At least, not for one as inexperienced as her, especially since she’d have to hear past this damn powerful engine to put any pieces together. I still can’t believe Paige heard all of that from two Full Bloods without them knowing she was there.”

“There was some sort of interference. She says it messed up a little bit of everything, including cell phones. Whatever it was, it distracted the Full Bloods long enough for them to have their meeting and leave before they noticed she was there. She got away and was still running when I talked to her.”

“I suppose that ain’t too surprising. Considering how everything’s been going, the Full Bloods don’t have to worry if we hear them talking or not.” When Cole stared at him, Jessup added, “Time to face up to it. We’re scrambling just to see another sunrise. The quicker we wrap our heads around that, the better. We’re almost in