Chapter 25
As Kane’s driver continued to take the longest path back to headquarters, he stayed lost in his memories….
It had been six months since his speech to his fellow aristocrats, and so far, his plan was working. The people of France were on the verge of a complete riot against the ruling class, as the restrictions placed on them had only hardened their resolve for reform. Now they were threatening a rebellion of epic proportions against the monarchy. However, one man was starting to quell the uprising, was making concessions for the people in hopes that they would settle down before needless bloodshed took place. This would not do for Kane, though.
He was on his way to pay a visit tonight to the said man, and knew that before the night was over, he will have proven his point one way or the other. As he approached the house of Jean-Luc Perdue, he still didn’t have an exact plan of what he would say, he just knew he had to convince him to listen. He knocked on the door and found that the house had already gone dark for the night. After a couple more knocks, he saw a light flicker in the distance through the window next to the door. He watched as the light made its way towards him until the door finally swung open, and he found the man in his night clothes staring at him.
“Can I help you, sir?” Jean-Luc asked.
Kane paused for a second, and before he could speak, he found his hand on the throat of the man while pushing him backwards into the house. The man struggled unsuccessfully at the strength of Kane’s hand and couldn’t produce the necessary air to scream out through the strong grip. Kane shut the door behind him as he made it through the doorway before finding himself squeezing his hand even tighter around the man’s throat until he heard a snap of the bones in the rear of his neck. The man fell to the ground, motionless, and Kane stared at him for a moment, eyeing the trickle of blood coming from the man’s nose and mouth before he turned to leave. As he carefully left the residence, making sure he wasn’t seen, he was startled by the presence of another figure in the night.
“I take it that wasn’t your original plan, when you first arrived?” a voice spoke from the darkness.
Kane immediately recognized the sound of the raspy voice and relaxed at the sound of it. “Brother, when did you get here?”
“I came in this morning, but, of course, had to wait until night to find you,” Rowland said as he stepped out of the shadows.
“It’s good to see you, but what brings you here, and to me, during such a time?” Kane pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped off a small amount of blood from his hands.
“I caught wind of what you were doing, and thought I would see how things were progressing in your cause.” Rowland stepped up to the door and looked through the window at the lifeless body on the floor of the house.
“I am wrapping up a few loose ends that were inhibiting my plans. I think after this, everything will go the way I have forecasted.” Kane kept an eye out for any witnesses. “I think we should make haste from here, now, lest we be seen. I need this to look like an act against the aristocracy.”
“By all means. While we flee, though, please catch me up on everything you’ve done to so enrage the population.” Rowland dipped back into the shadows to remain unseen.
The two brothers kept to the darkness while they left the area, and before long, were far enough away to not be linked to the crime Kane had committed. As they walked along the cobblestone streets of Paris, Kane filled his brother in on everything going on.
“So, you have finally decided to play a role in dictating which way the human race develops. I, myself, have been at this game for some time, too. I have helped create a thriving slave trade back home in Africa, pitting brother against brother in supplying America with as many slaves as it wants, all the while helping them justify the act as necessary for the development of their future. It has allowed me to keep the local population in control and fighting against each other, instead of against us.” Rowland stopped to look through the window of a bakery.
“We’ve talked about doing this for years, even as it seemed like such an unnecessary bother, but I must confess that I have found a new lease on life, now that I’m taking more of an active hand directing human affairs. They are so easily persuaded when you use a threat against their stature to get them to act without thinking it through. We have found a game that could entertain us for many years to come, eliminating the boredom that during our prolonged existence, we’ve all felt at some time.” Kane, too, looked into the bakery window.
“We have talked about this for many a year since the last time we were all together during that mess in Europe with the supposed Black Plague. I’m glad to see you’ve finally made the turn on why this is important for our kind. I do have one final play for us to make before we bring this to our brothers, and I will be needing you for it to work.” Rowland leaned over to the bakery door, and with a single shove, broke the locks and pushed the door open.
“What would that be?” Kane followed his brother into the closed bakery.
“We need to get you into the leadership role of the Neteru. Donovan has been a great leader, but it’s time for a changing of the guard. With you as our figurehead, we can convince our brothers of the benefits of what we’re doing, and especially if we have some positive results for the offing. We’ve been alive for a long time, and this is something we should have been doing from nearly the beginning. With our resources and the time we have, we could eventually rule without fear of retribution. The world is getting larger by the day. We don’t even know yet what lies on the other side of this New World. There could be so much more we are not aware of, and we need to make sure that whatever it is, once it’s found, we have the controlling hand. I, for one, am not ready to stop enjoying the life our fathers gave to us.” Rowland started to sniff at some of the leftover breads in the bakery.
“How would we ever convince Donovan to step down?” Kane asked. “He’s been our leader longer than anyone, and he hasn’t exactly made any mistakes.”
“Heng’s already onboard, and Xavier is looking to move to Australia. Donovan’s always stopped him before, and he’s beyond aggravated, so he should be easy to persuade. Christo, too, has set his sights on leaving the European countryside, but hasn’t spoken up because of Donovan’s desire to keep us all close together. With their votes, we shall be able to affect the change. With us at an odd number after Mercer’s death, we would have the majority.” Rowland scooped up a basket of bread and made his way back out the door.
“Why me, though? Why not have you take the seat?”
“I have no desire to lead, but you were born to it. You hold a special place in the hearts of our brothers, whereas I’m looked at as more of a savage, because of my size, and because of where I choose to live. They love me, yes, but they don’t respect me, at least not as they do you. You have educated yourself and remained active in the world. Look at the renaissance you spoke of, and which you helped to foster all those years ago. You changed the way the world works. We still don’t have those flying machines you so hoped for, but look how far everything has come. They will listen to you, and with me helping advise you, we can do what we have started and guide the world the way we want.”
Kane paused in the street, considering all that his brother had said. “I will do it if you think it will be wholly embraced by our brothers.”
“It will be. Just know this, that when we get our fellow Neteru going in the right direction, there’ll be no turning back. And even when we feel it brutal, and wrong sometimes, we will have to do the unthinkable to set ourselves into the position that is best for us. Just as you did earlier with that man you killed.” Rowland tossed a roll from the basket over to his brother.
The limousine came to a halt, the rear door opened, and the driver greeted his passenger. “We’re back home, sir. I hope that I took a long enough path back for you.”
Snapping back to the present, Kane slowly got up, not even acknowledging his driver’s remarks. As he made his way
to the elevator, he was joined by two armed guards that he waved off before he entered the elevator. On the long ride to the top floor, he glanced at the large hole he’d created earlier and grinned. “Sometimes we have to do the unthinkable to set ourselves into the best position.”
Chapter 26
The basketball games went well, with Hunter making sure they intentionally lost all three matches in order to look inferior to their captors. After it was over, the participants stuck around for a little gloating and friendly chatter. Hunter worked them over like a politician at a fundraiser, building up their trust and trying to get in good with them to gather as much intelligence as possible. He was just about to put the trust to the test and start getting the information out of them when an alarm sounded.
Hunter turned. “What the hell is that?”
“We have an attack,” one of the opposing players yelled. “Come on, we have to get into position. Let’s go.”
Hunter waved for his three companions to follow and gave them the signal to keep their eyes open. As he approached the front of the school, he found Jeremy already there, and in full battle-rattle. He almost snickered at the sight of the young man in the gear. He would later remark to Hope and the others how he reminded him of a kid dressing up for Halloween in his dad’s clothes. However, for the moment, Hunter was on a mission to watch and see how the kids reacted to the possibility of an attack, and to see if there were any flaws in their execution he could later exploit for their escape. By the time he made it to the front observation area, the alarm went silent and everyone started to relax a little.
A voice from the second floor rang out through a hole in the floor. “It’s over, they just dropped a box and ran again.”
Hunter looked confused at the statement, considering the amount of force they were bringing to confront the supposed attack. He turned to Jeremy. “What just happened?”
“The others do this every few days. They leave a box out there with a small amount of food in it and an offer to surrender. They are just trying to get us to drop our guard so they can come back and kill us all.” Jeremy paused. “Tomorrow, we’ll go out, destroy it, and then move on. Now, why don’t you go get some rest; I will have someone follow you up and secure you in for the night.”
Hunter turned and, looking at the faces of the other kids in the room, could sense a little bit of confusion at Jeremy’s statement, but none of them questioned it. “I guess we have to be your prisoners a little while longer before you fully trust us?”
“Just being safe. I’ve been keeping an eye on all of you all day, and I feel like you will be fine here, but for the meantime, this is just the way it’s gotta be.” Jeremy turned and walked back to his office.
Hunter and his companions were led back to their room and locked inside, but this time a guard was stationed right outside their door. Hunter whispered to Hope that they would talk later about what they all had witnessed when they were alone. Hope acknowledged with a nod and laid down on her cot to get some rest. As she was just getting to the point of falling asleep, she heard Hunter’s voice one last time. “G’night, sweetie,” followed by a soft chuckle.
Morning came fast for the exhausted crew, and they all started to stir at about the same time. All except Hope. She had already been awake for a couple hours, but had kept herself in bed to let them get some extra rest. As Hunter stood up, he checked on their guard and found him missing. He rolled over to face Hope. “So, what did you see last night with their attack preparations?”
“A lot of scared faces and plenty of holes in their defense. The entire left side was unprotected, and the biggest guns were in the hands of some of the smallest kids. It looked like most of them were concentrated on the front of the building, which made me wonder who was guarding the back.” Hope kept an eye out for anybody approaching.
“I saw a lot of the same stuff, but I think the fear the kids had was directed at Jeremy more than what was on the outside. Whenever he and his goon squad step into a room, you can sense the fear in the air. Might be something we can take advantage of, but for now, just keep up what we’re doing. If everything today goes according to plan, I’ll let you know how we are getting out of here tomorrow.” Hunter started to get up at the sound of approaching footsteps.
Morgan rolled over just in time to catch a look at Hunter’s face and started to burst out laughing until Hope kicked her in the back. Morgan turned to look at Hope and got a shush from her.
Hunter walked over to the door and caught the sight of the approaching person and found the same little boy from yesterday bringing them breakfast. The boy unlocked the door and slid the food box over to Hunter’s feet. The little boy looked up at Hunter and laughed a laugh that only a small child can muster. He cackled so hard he had trouble talking, but managed to get out, “You’re funny looking,” before he ran off.
Hunter picked up the box and brought it back over to his friends. “That little dude needs a butt whipping,” he said as he put the box down and grabbed himself a box of cereal. “Well, I’m gonna go get a shower before I head to the shop. Keep your eyes open and we’ll be out of here soon.”
“Will do. See you this afternoon.” Hope watched Hunter head down the hall and pass a few other kids also on their way to the showers. They stopped and snickered as he passed by, but he didn’t hear them.
Hope laid back and laughed so hard she almost snorted. Trip looked over and asked, “Why does Hunter have whiskers and the word jerk written on his forehead?”
Just as he finished asking the question, they heard a yell come from down the hall. “This shit ain’t funny, Hope,” from a very angry Hunter.
“I woke up and figured what the hell. I warned him not to call me sweetie again.” Hope was trying to bring herself under control. “It’s in permanent ink, too, so he’ll be scrubbing for a while. I’m gonna head on down to the armory before he gets back.” She grabbed her stuff and stopped by a mirror for a second to admire the football jersey she was still wearing.
Chapter 27
Renee had been busy for the last hour running around the camp, securing the perimeter, and setting up the defensive measures David had recently briefed her on. She had been repeating the words David was constantly speaking in her head ever since they’d had their talk, and was having a real hard time coming to grips with everything she had learned. As she placed a gun into a hiding spot at the last hidden bunker near the main bridge, she was joined by Storm, who was coming over to see what she was doing. Renee stopped to pet the lifelong friend of the family while taking a moment to catch her breath.
As she sat down, Storm took a seat next to her while laying her head in Renee’s lap, indicating she wanted some lovings. “Okay, girl, I know I haven’t given you much attention lately. Come here,” Renee said as she started to relax a little. “So, old girl, what do you think about all this? We got vampires running around here along with zombies. David said it sounds like the ones that attacked us at the camp during the storm, and they’re coming back to finish the job. Benjy said Hope had somehow managed to kill one of them, and now they want revenge. I told David we needed to get in the Devastator and run. But he said we had the ability to hold them off here, so here we are staying. He said these people were tough, but Benjy had some secret weapons to use, and he thinks we can win. I really wish Dad was here to help, but that’s not an option. So, I have to man-up, as David puts it, and help fight them. We don’t know if they’re coming tonight or tomorrow or the next or if ever, but we gotta be ready. So watchya think, girl, you up for a fight?” Renee finished, but didn’t feel any less frazzled by saying it out loud than when she had it running around inside her head.
Storm just looked up and gave a little nudge of her nose, indicating she needed even more petting. Renee, however, felt like it was Storm’s way of saying I got your back, which for the moment gave her the courage to keep it together for a little while longer.
Renee finally stood back up and started to survey the camp while ru
nning through a mental checklist to make sure she had everything covered. She turned and saw the sun settling into place behind the trees, indicating that night would soon be there. So, she decided to head inside and get the kids situated and to check on their newest arrival.
As Renee entered the house, she found Tori sitting in the living room, answering all sort of questions from the little ones, and figured she’d better rescue her from them. “Hey, Tori, can you give me a hand in the kitchen?”
Tori nodded and excused herself to follow Renee into the kitchen. As the two girls got far enough away from the kids, Renee decided it was time to catch her up on their plan, at least the parts that would involve Tori helping, and then, only if she were up for it. Renee explained how they were geared up for a fight and should be able to protect the camp, but at the same time, when it hit the fan, that they’d be needing her to hide out in the underground bunker with the little ones, keeping them out of danger.
At first, not liking the idea, Tori insisted they should all pack up and leave—immediately, but quickly learned that that wasn’t an option. After several minutes of reassurance from Renee, she finally conceded to at least seeing the place they would be hiding before she agreed to the request.
Renee led her to the hidden underground base and gave her a short tour of the facility. She showed her how she could lock the doors and how only someone with a key could get in, unless she opened it. She showed her the food pantry and the surveillance gear that would allow her to keep tabs on what was happening outside. As she got done, she turned and asked her, “So what do you think? Can you stay down here and keep the little ones quiet and safe?”
Tori took a long look around again. “I still think we should get in that bus out back, and get as far away from here as possible. You didn’t see how brutal they were. If they find us, they will kill us, no doubt about it.”
Juggernaut (Humanity's Hope Book 2) Page 13
