by Dannika Dark
“It hardly matters these days with everything going on outside. Thanks.” The drink was weak, but I still refrained from gulping it down in one go.
Quaid sat in front of me and crossed his long legs. Thankfully, he wasn’t wearing pajamas, or this might have been incredibly awkward. Just dark slacks and a grey cotton sweater. He sipped his drink and set the glass on the flat armrest of his chair. “To what do I owe this honor?”
“Maybe someone higher up has already talked to you about this, or maybe I’m not even supposed to be here. But we’re in danger of losing control of the city.”
He gave a noncommittal shrug. “Until power is restored, there isn’t much we can do.”
After glancing at the closed doors, I lowered my voice. “You’re the Overlord. I’m guessing you might be aware that there are certain… emergency evacuations underway? Because of your high-ranking position, I’m just guessing that you might be privy to things that others aren’t.”
He nodded. “I am.”
“Then you’re aware that the Regulators are supposed to oversee these evacuations. There’s something else going on that I can’t talk about, and the blackout makes the situation even more urgent. The higher authority is taking precautionary measures to ensure everyone’s safety, but they hired outsiders like me to do the job. Why? Because the Regulators decided to take a sick day.”
Quaid drew in a deep breath and uncrossed his legs. “That’s not entirely true. The city is divided, and many Regulators are receiving death threats for guarding their mortal enemies. These are family men.”
“So are the officials. Well… probably. That doesn’t really matter. What do you think will happen to this city if someone gets to the officials? Leadership is the only thing keeping order, because it instills fear in outlaws. Believe me, this is something I know a lot about. Criminals won’t stop what they’re doing, but they still act within the parameters of the law. They have to limit their crimes—plot and plan—because they know that someone might turn them in or blackmail them. Without leaders, this city will fall like dominoes.”
Quaid sipped his drink, his eyes pensive.
“You have a lot of influence,” I continued. “People follow the higher authority because they have to, but Chitahs follow you because they want to. We have a short amount of time to complete this job. The longer it takes, the greater the risk to the whole operation.” I downed the rest of my drink and set the glass on the armrest. “I’m here to ask you to order the Regulators back to their posts. We can’t do anything about the ones who aren’t Chitah, but we don’t need every single body. We just need enough familiar faces to pull this thing off. Officials are running from us.”
Quaid laced his fingers and slowly rubbed his thumbs together. “It’s a difficult task, asking a man to walk away from protecting his family. Chitahs hold their family above all else.”
“Their sacrifice is for the greater good. We’re supposed to be done by morning, but some of the other teams are doing worse than we are. Especially the ones trying to negotiate with the Vamps. I get that this puts you in a bad position, but maybe you can tell them it’s just until tomorrow morning. That’s our deadline. That shouldn’t pose any unnecessary risk to their families. No one will even know that they’re gone.”
“Will this evacuation end if the power returns?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Right now, nobody’s security systems work. Personal guards are vanishing, and phones are unreliable. You’ve got a nice view from this building. I’m sure you’ve seen what’s going on. People are losing their minds out there. Humans are looting, but we’ve got bigger problems in the Breed district. Lions roaming the streets, businesses burning, juicers on a binge, and some crazy Vamp running around naked on Fourteenth Street. If we don’t protect the leaders who keep everyone in line, this place is going to become a zoo.”
A smile touched his lips. “You’re a tenacious woman.”
“If you command the Chitahs working as Regulators to help us evacuate, you’ll have a favor in your pocket from me.”
Quaid tilted his head to one side. “You can keep the favor if you promise me this: continue fighting battles you believe in. Strength of character isn’t a common trait in young Learners such as yourself. I’ll be curious to look you up in five hundred years and see where you are.”
“Probably flipping burgers if I get fired for this.”
Quaid smiled warmly and rose to his feet. “You have nothing to worry about, female. I know Viktor Kazan, and I’m certain he’ll recognize your good intentions for what they are.”
“Thanks again.” I stood up and worried my lip. “I’m not sure how to organize this—the Regulators won’t know who we’ve already picked up.”
“I’ll have two men follow you discreetly and offer assistance. After you give them a brief update, they’ll contact one of my associates to coordinate with those who have given us their commitment to help.”
The Overlord wasn’t such a bad guy, for all the money and power he had. Then again, that cynical part of me couldn’t help but wonder why he was so easy to convince.
“Can I trust you?” I inquired and almost instantly regretted the question. Maybe it was the dark rings that pulsed in his eyes, or maybe it was the fact I might insult him enough to rescind his offer.
He inclined his head. “On my word as a Chitah. Good night, Raven. Leave now before your foot gets trapped in your mouth.”
I smiled sheepishly. That was what I did best.
During the drive back to Sacred Heart, I spied a car following me with their headlights off. The Overlord had said two Regulators would follow me back, but I was also paranoid about someone tailing me who wasn’t supposed to. Trusting a man I didn’t know proved difficult.
When I pulled up to the side of the church, the other car parked beneath a large tree. After I scooped up the clothes in the passenger seat, I noticed Christian lingering by the door. He must have heard me drive up. What a relief. If these guys tailing me hadn’t been sent by the Overlord, at least I’d have backup.
I kicked the door shut with my foot and turned to face the men. Well, well. If it wasn’t Merry and his quiet friend. They were out of uniform but still armed with katanas. I wondered how those two got paired up considering how opposite they were in looks and personality. Merry looked like a catalogue model and Weather his bodyguard.
Merry bent down, collected a shirt that had fallen to the ground, and placed it back in my arms. “We meet again.”
“You two,” I said. What a strange coincidence.
Merry glanced at Weather. “We’re the primary investigators on the murder cases. The Overlord knows we’ve met, so perhaps he thought you would trust us more than a stranger.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You divulge personal information relating to cases to a third party?”
“I’d hardly call the Overlord a third party. He’s the only one outside of the higher authority who’s aware, and we weren’t the ones to give him that information. That would be our boss.”
“You were at each crime scene?”
“Yes. We collected evidence and handled the cleanup as discreetly as possible. Unfortunately, that wasn’t feasible at Mr. Bane’s party.”
I shifted my weight to my other leg. “Any news?”
“Another murder today. HALO sent word that they came across a body.”
“Exactly who did they tell? We’re in the middle of transporting everyone.”
“The Overlord. A Chitah runs HALO, from what I understand, and because the victim was a Mage, he wanted to make sure the Overlord was aware. I suppose he was afraid the deed might be pinned on his group, so he was covering all bases.”
“Who was the victim?”
“We haven’t been able to investigate.”
“Because you and all the other Regulators bailed? Nice move, by the way. You’ve put this entire operation in jeopardy.”
Weather’s eyes narrowed, and he widened his stance. “Chitahs are r
eceiving death threats. When someone threatens your family, you don’t have time to decide if it’s a hoax or not.”
I looked between them. “Why would anyone do that?”
Merry’s eyebrows popped up in surprise. “There isn’t a Mage in this country who wouldn’t want to see our population diminish.”
“And that’ll happen for sure if we don’t have any leaders running this place.”
I stalked off and approached Shepherd’s Jeep. After leaving the kid’s clothes in the driver’s seat, I slammed the door and breezed by Christian on my way inside. “We need to talk.”
“What are those shitebags doing here?”
“That’s what we have to talk about. I went to see the Overlord, and—”
“You did what?” Christian stepped back, eyes fierce.
“Unwad your panties and listen. Daylight is coming soon, and there’s no way we’re going to get everyone here in time. Not without someone spotting one of our vans and following us. I don’t know what the other teams are thinking, but they’re probably feeling the same way—that we’ve failed. We’ve got too many runners, and the main reason is they’re not expecting us. They’re expecting Regulators.”
Merry and Weather walked in just then, but I ignored them.
“I asked him to order those men back to work. I don’t care if they stick around afterward, but we also need someone to collect these officials so we can lock down the church.”
Christian folded his arms. “And he just said yes. No favors.”
“I offered him one, but he didn’t take it. Well, not really. He just gave me some advice.”
“Not to visit Chitahs after midnight?”
“He’s not a gremlin. Look, we need to get Merry and Weather up to speed. They’ll be the liaison between the Regulators and us. I’ll let Viktor know as soon as possible so he can reach out to the other teams. These two will coordinate between all the groups and assign Regulators according to how many more pickups there are. Can we fight about this later? We don’t have time to waste.”
He dipped his chin and lowered his voice. “I’ll take a rain check on that quarrel.” After a beat, he snapped his fingers. “You two, come with me.”
Merry and Weather followed Christian down the dark hall. I went in the other direction and cut straight to the main chapel. This time, it was empty. The priest must have been downstairs, handling demands from his unexpected guests. Christian said that each official had his own room and that the living quarters were quite nice for being small. As much as I wanted to go down and check out their accommodations, it probably wasn’t a good idea considering I’d manhandled some and stabbed others of them.
I sat down in the front pew and savored the silence. It wasn’t even the silence so much as an overwhelming sense of peace.
“May I sit?”
I jumped. The priest had given me a start. “Hi, Father.”
He sat next to me, one arm resting on the bench, his head propped in his hand. “You can call me Tony.”
I crossed my legs. “Don’t you have rules about that?”
“I have immortal beings sleeping beneath my feet. I’d say I’m fairly progressive. Besides, I can tell it makes you uncomfortable.”
“I didn’t grow up going to church.”
“There’s no sin in that. We all have our own path to God.”
“Maybe God doesn’t want everyone showing up at his house.”
He tipped his head. “Is there a question you want to ask?”
I looked down at my black nail polish and picked at it. “Do you think we’re evil?”
“Breed?”
I glanced up at the cross. “I mean… where do we fit in? Are we the demons you talk about in your sermons?”
He pursed his lips and sighed. “God doesn’t create evil. Man is his own demon. I can’t deny what I see with my own eyes, and if God created Breed, I have to believe in a divine purpose.”
“What if our purpose is to give you an enemy?”
“The journey to understanding begins with a leap of faith. I’m willing to extend a hand of friendship. I grew up reading about monsters, just as you did.”
“But I chose to become one.”
He put his hand over mine and leaned forward. “I can see you’re doing some soul searching, but there aren’t easy answers for the most difficult questions. We’re all in the dark, searching for the light. But maybe we should stop looking and start listening.” Father Martin stood up and snorted like a man with allergy problems.
I struggled to contain my laughter as it reverberated off the walls. “Thanks for the chat, Tony. You would have made a good father for real.”
A smile lit up his face. “You think? I don’t know if I could have survived the diaper stage,” he said, strolling away.
I got up to stretch my legs and walked to the water fountain in the back. When I looked for a button to push, I realized it was holy water. What did people do? Wash their hands in there? If it really cleansed the soul, I probably needed to bathe in it.
Christian entered through the wooden doors in the rear and spied me leaning against the wall. I flicked water in his face, and he gave me a bemused look.
“Just checking,” I quipped. “Where are the Regulators?”
“The two Tweedles are on the phone with Viktor. Did you let him in on your plan?”
“No. I’ll worry about the repercussions later. I figured if anyone could get those guys back to work, it was their leader. Not their boss, but their Lord.”
“Lords govern territories. You went to the Almighty.” The way Christian folded his arms, I could tell he was peeved that I hadn’t filled him in on my intentions.
I shrugged tiredly. “We were running out of time, and since I recently talked to the Overlord and got along with him, I thought I might be able to persuade him to help. We’ve literally got just hours to finish the job. You haven’t been on the front lines, so you don’t know what we had to deal with. How many of those officials do you think took one look at Shepherd and fled? I know Viktor said to detain them by any means, but I’m pretty sure we can kiss our careers goodbye if Claude bites someone.” I closed my eyes. “None of us want to walk out of this a failure.”
Christian gripped my jacket and led me forward. “Follow me.”
Candles flickered as we walked past them. He lifted a tall one encased in glass and headed toward the hall to the left of the altar. When we reached the end, Christian turned right and opened the second door.
“He wouldn’t let us have the sacristy or his personal office. There’s another room where they hold classes, but it’s not carpeted.”
I stared down at the maroon carpet. “What is this place?”
He set the candle on a small desk, the light reflecting off robes hanging on a rack and a large armoire. “It’s the vestry. The priest sleeps in the rectory—that small building on the right side of the church.” Christian reached inside a wardrobe closet. “But I found out he likes to secretly take naps in here.”
I watched Christian unfold a small cot and place it in the left-hand corner. He dragged a red chair beside it and then reached for one of the robes.
“No, don’t mess with those,” I said. “I have two pairs of pants on, and I’ll just use my jacket for a pillow.”
I unzipped my jacket and threw it onto the cot. Then I toed off my sneakers and sat down.
“Stay here,” he said, briskly leaving the room.
I kept my socks on since the room was frigid. Luckily there weren’t any windows. The small desk in front of me was pristinely kept, and a small bookshelf behind it contained leather-bound books, some with gold lettering on the spine. The room looked like storage for robes and books. I stared at the opposite wall and wondered what Father Martin used the sink for. Mounted on the wall above it hung a large wooden cross.
I tucked my hands beneath my armpits to warm them and leaned forward. How can anyone believe in a benevolent God when evil men like Fletcher exist? Men who ge
t a thrill from using people to satisfy their own needs. Guys like Hooper die, and his killers get away with murder. How is that a fair world?
And where exactly did I fall in the spectrum?
Christian returned and closed the door behind him. He handed me a tall thermos before taking a seat in the chair.
I wrapped my hands around the tumbler and drew in a deep breath. “Where did you get coffee?”
“Every man has his secrets.”
“Thanks.” After sliding the tab, I took a few sips to warm my belly.
Christian casually crossed his legs and ran his hand through his disheveled hair. “HALO dropped off two more men while you were out. They had three others who were assigned to a different location. I really wish we’d been tagged with another group.”
I picked up on the annoyed look on his face and the way he scratched his beard as if it were the enemy. “Wanna share?”
“I have a history with one of them.”
“Did you piss him off?”
Christian answered with an arch of his brow. “I don’t think he’ll ever really forgive me, and nor should he.”
“Sleep with his woman?”
“Jaysus, no. Sometimes a man needs to leave his past behind and start over, but it’s not easy to do when you keep running into the same people who remind you of the mistakes you made. That’s why a lot of us have traveled over the years, to have a fresh start.”
I drew my knees up and tucked the thermos between my chest and my thighs. “I know what you mean. I never made any besties in the immortal world, but I sure made a lot of enemies. It makes the city feel smaller and smaller.”
“Trust me, friends make it worse. They place their trust in you, and if you let them down or lie—no matter how good your reason—they won’t forgive you. And even if they do, they won’t forget.”
“But you’ve got new friends now.”
“I’d hardly call what we have friendship. Shepherd’s the only one who’s given me a fair shot. Everyone else tolerates me, but they don’t necessarily trust me. Especially Blue. And probably you, for that matter. You didn’t trust me from day one, and I sometimes wonder if you still question my motives.”
