"I had Ashleigh create a lab-controlled DNA copy we found in those dead bodies. Remember when that creature attacked us? It looked gnarly, grotesque and not itself. The deformation had already begun. They were never going to be able to create a stable prototype because the ones injected with mutated blood were unable to survive. Desmond gave away his plan the moment he let that creature attack us, whatever it was." Noah shuddered in phantom disgust."Children adapt to new changes better than adults. Our priority is to keep them safe. And hold onto what our enemy wants the most. So I simply passed on the blood samples made in the lab to the members high up the chain. Greggory delivered it. That's why I could never tell you or Evan. You had Vanessa's best interest at heart. Evan is very…… fond of her. Secrets weigh a lot, Rhys. How can you carry them when I barely can? For what it's worth, I am sorry." Rhys swallowed another shot of rum. Noah had kept them in dark. All of them. He sud
"Most likely. He knows too much. Once his work is done, this person he considers to be his partner will end him. He is also a liability because he had promised his employer rogue children to. He can't deliver them since we moved them to Alaska." Inimical colourless tone in him suggested he was done talking about Desmond. But he was still sitting, and hadn't walked out. Rhys thought, 'Maybe he needs to say these things out loud as much as I want to hear them.' "So Desmond's work is done. You think he won't go against us to get to the children?" Their evacuation plan had been perfect, Rhys recalled with pride. They had moved children in tunnels, the majority of them. They had sent smaller groups of those children with fully trained mercenaries to protect them. Visac had distributed their scents all over America, different states, different clans, successfully throwing Desmond and his minions off the trail. And Alaska had clans the mainlanders didn't know about. Noah knew because his m
She should've visited this place in the morning. Lower Manhattan was vividly occupied by pedestrians even at this time of night. Five students-they looked students sat at the turning of the curb discussing Ophelia, their bandanas and tie-dye t shirts looked approachable but as she drew near, she realized she didn't have to. Across the street in typical New York style, made of red-pink bricks with hedgerow growing on either sides, filling up the lane, the Rattlestick theatre was a far cry from furnished. Vanessa darted around, a quick scan later she tried the door with her foot. The students might not see her now but they would if the damn thing creaked. They were theatre students doing a gothic version of Ophelia, how they were going to pull it off-she had no idea. Her thoughts scrambled like chicken at the barn. She had hid for the entire in set of public washrooms. Making sure she sat on the closed toilet lid, knees to chest and not on the floor. Because anyone would recognise her sn
Clavin pressed his fingers to the arm band, a stolen piece of brimstone embedded in it. He loathed how ornamental it looked, when it was far more precious than any gemstone, Ruby or diamond encountered on a rock floating in space. It was a watered version of Earth but he prefered it that way. To believe in something bigger than himself. As for Brimstones, if he wished to collect them all, he can't do it without Issa's help. And Issa would question his intentions. Silas was a Karou. A wizard and a protector of the realm, of the old order inaugurated by the coven. Had it been Militia of Trackers and Valhallas, he would have had deployed an army (even though it went against his base instincts) to breach the highest ranks and get the brimstones for himself. But this was a matter of Coven (which no longer existed)- but families passed on duties generation after generation. Brimstones were alive, they had a weird pulsing connection with members of families bestowed to protect them. And in
Evan had double-checked his lpanto move her to states, provided en route everything worked smoothly. The could go via Spain nd be thre in two das ut the refugee crisis from Morocco meant strict border regulations- Jodie was not a reliable captor. The only reason she wasn’t runing was because without a plan, she won’t get very far. Once they crossed borders, wihtout her fake passprt she’d be detained. All he had to do was get her out of Morocco without a lsew of law enforcement behidn them. His asset in Morocco had come through with ther fake IDs. Another poolite option was Greece but leaving Morocco from any airway was-put plainly, stupid. Airport authorities were the ultimate errant id, they pokedand prodded everywhere. If Jodie casued ruckus, they’d both be taken in immediately. European countries sharing border crisis took no prisoners when it came to suspicious activities. So another laborous route would get them to USA. She was sleeping next to him in thecar. He knew she had a p
To her surprise, he did answer. Evan drew back his seat.“We are going to drop this vehicle two miles down the road. There’s an out croppinng of rocks, a bus waiting to take us to Lorca.” She might not be a messy sleeper but she was a messy eater. Crumbs of danish bread on her lap and shirt still stuck there. Lorca? That meant Greece. Was he trying to prove that despite the long hours, it took two days via bus to reach Athens, no one would come looking for her because they hadn’t yet?She curled her hands under her thighs, leather seat squeaking as she sat upright. Another dream. Another place. Another time. Camila didn’t dream of the healer for two nights.The last dream was the healer riding south. She never arrived to see her. Camila had waited at the gates, mistweaving a cloak to keep herself warm, and only a few market carts had passed by. At dawn, she rented a horse. Tessa followed the trail north, checking the map at each turn. Had the healer taken a wrong path, returning hom
Her saucer eyes followed him everywhere. Being near her was a lot like tipping the balancing world, to measure one’s footing, when all it wanted was to spiral Evan out of control- a spiral with no recovery, only impact. Pale silver eyes rimmed of kohl lashes blinking at him every few minutes of the flight until he excused himself to get both of them something to eat. She displayed no novice qualms at flying, so his theory disproved itself. She wasn’t nervous flying. And now that they had landed, the airport security once again having checked them, with mild surprise at their lack of baggage. Thankfully, they didn’t comment. They were both Morrocans, returning to work here for six months. Minnela and Connel Gerber, oil company engineers relieved to be back home. That’s the look no one questioned. It implied they traveled back and forth from Morocco enough times a year, they had made themselves a home in the Eastern African country. Now she was sitting at the bench, haplessly surveyin
The heart he'd thought he had cut out and buried long ago wrenched into a warped shape, twisted and broken- like a striga breaking out of it's grave- all wrong, it didn't belong there. The human was so aghast at his behaviour he tried to pull away. But the animal was in on a secret- it knew how she tasted. So it growled and pulled Jodie closer, taking her weight with him to stand up. They only broke apart when he realized they had gathered an audience. 'Be charming.' His wolf sing-songed, licking its imaginary paws. He liked getting into trouble, leaving the human to solve it. The flower lady shared a concerned look with the cap seller. When he walked past them, his lips curved in an apologetic smile. He made sure the dimples stayed even when he spoke."I am sorry. My wife and I found out we are pregnant. We've hit some… road bumps," wasn't that the irony, "in starting a family together. We liked the prospect of starting young. Right, love?" He pressed a kiss to her head. Thankfully,