We stand on the rise overlooking the city in its valley of green fields. I thought for sure Skytown woulda been surrounded by soldiers on all sides, but there ain’t a soldier to be seen. There ain’t no movement at all, other than what Busher confirms with his spyglass is Jonas and his men heading our way.
Jonas pauses to take a breath as he hits the top of the rise where we stand. He looks impressed as he takes in the thousand plus force spread out behind me, but his furrowed brow tells me something ain’t right. I know Belle is itchin’ to greet her brother, but she holds herself back as his worried eyes fall on me.
“What is it?” I say, foregoing any sort of greeting, but he don’t get a chance to answer before Busher’s, “Holy mother of gods,” reaches my ears. The words cause my heart to sink to my stomach, but I say nuthin’ as I take the spyglass Busher hands my way and train it where he points. I squint into the eyepiece and scan the barricade standing between us and our enemy. My eyes finally register what Busher saw. People line the entire wall, packed together so tightly it’s like they’re sewn together, back to back, one continuous, human shield around the city.
“It’s women and young’uns,” I mutter, and Jonas confirms.
“Aye, I don’t know what you did to scare him, but he’s taking no chance of you destroying the walls to get in. The moment his spies got back with word that you were traveling with an army of your own, he moved quick to do this. He has all the city’s innocents tied up there as insurance. He knows you won’t harm them, not like you would have his soldiers.”
I don’t know why this surprises me. The Prezedant ain’t no fool. He knew I’d come for my kin, and he wanted it to be on his terms. I reckon he thinks it’ll give him the upper hand. It don’t matter to me where we meet. I ain’t running no more. But he is right about the wall. My idea to crush it cain’t be done now. Not with so many innocent lives at stake.
I finger the object Ernst had made me, still safe in my pocket. Looks like I’m gonna have to go with this alternative. But for it to work, I need to get close to the Prezedant. This needs to work. This reign of terror needs to end, whether through his death or mine, but it will end. I just need to take out the Prezedant, and the rest will follow.
I curse myself under my breath at my reckless stupidity and the fact that it now comes to this. I shoulda ended this at the village. I shouldn’t have hesitated. I know that now. Lily had warned me. I won’t make the same mistake twice. I hand the spyglass back to Busher as Maya joins us.
“What is it?” she asks.
“He’s built himself a human shield of innocents,” Jax answers as he points to the city below. Maya shades her eyes against the sun.
“Hmmmm, this changes things quite a bit, doesn’t it?”
I shake my head. “It changes nuthin’. We still go in. Jonas, do you still have people inside that are willin’ to fight to open the gate?”
Jonas runs a weary hand through his sand-dusted hair. “I can’t guarantee that. I haven’t been able to contact anyone on the inside in a couple of days. My contacts are either dead, up there on that wall, or have family up there that are being used to control them. No one is gonna let us in willingly.”
“Can we blow the gate? If Tara can get through—”
“No.” I shake my head at Belle. “He will have prepared for that. He knows as well as we do that any kind of forceful entry will account for deaths among your people.”
Belle stares back at me in surprise. “How do you know that?”
“Because I know him. He’s a coward and hides behind women and young’uns.”
Maya crosses her arms and rubs at her chin. “Tara is correct. The man is as wily as they come. He knows Tara won’t take a chance on harming the innocents… unlike him.”
“Then whatta we do?” Finn asks. I roll his question around in my head, asking myself the same.
“If we cain’t get in through force, we use negotiation,” I say firmly.
Jax narrows his eyes. “What do you mean by negotiation?”
“Like Jonas said, we brought our own army. The Prezedant wasn’t expectin’ that. He thought he’d lure me here and take us easily. Since that ain’t about to happen, we need to negotiate. He has something we want, our people. We have something he wants, namely me and my blood. So, we meet in the middle and offer a trade.”
“I’m not liking the sound of this,” Jax growls with hands on his hips, and I’m suddenly glad I ain’t told him of my plan. I know there ain’t no way he woulda let me go through with it.
“It’s the only way, Jax. A few of us need to get inside the walls. Once we’re in there, I can assess the situation and use it to our advantage. I’m prepared for him now. I know how he operates. He won’t get the best of me this time. Once I overpower him, the people with me need to get the gates open and let the rest inside to take care of his army.”
“That isn’t much of a plan, Tara,” he says, and I swear he can see the truth in my face.
That I’m keeping something from him. Lifting my chin defiantly, I try to make my face as blank as possible. “It’s the only plan we got. What do you suggest we do? Stand outside here and make faces at him until he decides to let everyone go? I don’t think that’s gonna happen, do you?”
“The New Blood is right,” Busher finally adds his piece, and I’m surprised it's in agreement with me. “We can do nothing from this side of the wall. We need people on that side to allow the rest of us entry. Do you think you can do it? Can you overpower him enough to get the gate open and the rest of us in?”
I nod, and he smiles his ginormous grin. “That’s the spirit. You got balls, girl. You’d make a great raider. Maybe after all of this is over, we should talk about making that a possibility?”
He seems to take offense at the snort I throw his way. “Thanks, but somehow I don’t see that happenin’.”
“I don’t like this plan,” Jax interrupts, refusing to let go of his disapproval like some dog with a bone. “I don’t like it one little bit. But if it’s the only solution, then I’m one of the ones going in with you.”
“Jax, no. I don’t think—”
“This is not up for debate, Tara. I go in with you, or you don’t go at all.”
“Me too,” Ben echoes. As does Finn and Belle and Talbert. It don’t surprise me in the least. I try to have one final say with the boy.
“Finn, it’s too dangerous for you. You stay here with Cat and wait until we’ve taken the city.”
“The boy has become a better shot than me and you combined, Tara,” Jax says, surprising me. “He’s earned his spot on the team.”
Finn looks like he’s about to bust his chest in pride at Jax’s praise, and I know Jax ain’t talking outta his arse. Still, he ain’t going.
“No. You ain’t goin’ and that’s that.”
He points a finger in my face, his pride turning to anger. “You don’t get to order me about no more. It ain’t fair that everybody gets to help and I don’t. Why cain’t I go? You scared I’m gonna fail again like I did protectin’ the other young’uns? I ain’t gonna fail. Not this time. I can do it.”
I can tell by the look on his face he’s gonna be real stubborn about this and not give up easily, and we don’t have time for that.
“Finn—”
“I promise, Tara. I ain’t gonna fail ya. Let me help.”
“Finn.”
“But, Tara—”
“Just shut up for a moment, will you?” I plant my hands on my hips and glare at the boy in frustration. “I know you can do it. And I know you ain’t gonna fail. But I have another job for you. One that is extremely important. Think you can handle it?”
He nods so hard I swear I hear his brain rattling in his head.
“Okay, you can go with us as far as the tunnel. Once we get our people inside out past the gate, you lead ‘em back here to safety. Then…” I glance over at Jax. He’s side tracked by Jonas and ain’t paying any attention to me and Finn no more. Perfect. I
lean over and whisper the next instructions in the boy’s ear. “Got it?” I say. He nods again. “Okay. Now, I’m countin’ on you. I know you ain’t gonna let me down."
I look over at my kin flanking me on either side as we walk alone toward the walled city. Jax. Finn. Ben. Belle. Cat. Talbert. They all refused to let me do this alone. My family. My love for them blossoms in my chest so much that there ain’t no room for fear or doubt. Not anymore. I know what I do, I do for them, and that thought chases away any uncertainties. My gaze lingers a bit longer on Jax. I wish we woulda had more time together. Maybe we will, if the gods favor my plan. Maybe.
As if Finn senses my morbid thoughts, his hand reaches for mine, and he links my fingers with his in a familiar gesture. He ain’t doing it because he’s scared. That scared little boy ain’t no longer. He’s doing it for support, and I smile over at him as his choc-o-let gaze finds mine. There weren’t no stopping him from coming. He was determined to be by my side, and I’m real glad he’s here. I need to be with all my family.
Soldiers move outta the tunnel as we descend on the city. They coulda shot at us a dozen times over, but they don’t. Even though my Chi stands on guard, ready to defend my family at a moment’s notice, there ain’t no need for ‘em to shoot at us. The Prezedant thinks he has me over a barrel. As long as he holds Mack and Tater and the other innocent villagers, he believes he has some control over me. That I won’t attack knowing they’re inside. He thinks he knows me. He knows nuthin’.
We stop as one as a soldier moves ahead, our way. We wait in silence as he approaches, and I'm disgusted to feel the slight Chi emanating offa him as he gets closer. One of the lab New Bloods Ernst spoke of no doubt, created from the stolen blood of my kind. My own Chi jumps at the presence, itchin' to destroy the imposter in fronta us, but I hold it back with effort. He pauses, studying us all with a sneer of contempt. He obviously ain't tangled with us before. He has no idea what I'm capable of, and I wanna let my Chi loose on him so badly, just to wipe that smugness from his face. But I stay as quiet as the rest of my kin. He’s the first to speak.
“I take it you're the New Blood?”
I give a slight nod.
“You don't look like much. I could probably take you down myself.”
“You’re welcome to try,” I say softly, and my Chi bristles in irritation, colliding with his. He must not like what he feels since his eyes shift away in discomfort.
“What do you want?” he snarls instead.
“What I want is for your master to give me back my people without a fight. But since I know that ain't gonna happen, I propose a meetin’. Tell the Prezedant I'm willin' to negotiate to free my kin. Tell him we need to end this with no more death. If he sets free the people he took from my village, then he can have us instead.”
The soldier narrows his eyes at me. “There is no negotiating with him. He will get his way. May as well accept it and give yourselves up now.”
“You're starting to irritate me, boy,” Jax growls, and I lay a restraining hand on his arm. I turn my attention back to the young soldier.
“You speakin' for the Prezedant now? I don't think he'll like that too much. Why don't you be a good little lackey and go deliver the message?”
I can tell I hit a nerve, but he don't say no more. Instead, he turns on his heel and walks back to join the rest of his men. One of ‘em soon scurries back into the tunnel, and I reckon he's gone to deliver the ultimatum.
A mournful wind echoes over our head as we wait in silence. I know their silence is a mixture of nerves and fear. I feel the same. But they still stood by me. I wanna tell 'em how much that means to me. I wanna tell 'em how much they mean to me, but like always when confronted with soft feelings, I go mute. Cat, as if sensing my turmoil, comes to my side and starts rubbing against my leg. Like she's telling me it's okay to say what I'm feeling. I reach down and scratch her ears, before taking a deep breath.
“I want y'all to know how proud I am of each and every one of you. And how honored I am to call y'all my kin. I … I—”
“We love you too, Tara,” Ben says as he grins. “And we know what you're trying to say. Don't strain yourself. We need you at your strongest in there.”
My grin is part relief, part laughter. “Mule turd,” I throw his way, and our nervous laughter is interrupted by the approaching soldiers. That didn't take long.
The same jackass from earlier approaches us with an even surlier expression on his face. He jumps right to the point.
“The Prezedant accepts your offer. Come with us.”
“Whoa now!” Jax yells at the soldier’s back as he turns to go back to the city. “We didn't just fall off the back of a tax truck. We're not stepping one foot inside until we see our people being set free.”
The young man turns back our way. “That wasn't part of his offer.”
“Well, it's part of ours,” I say. “You tell the Prezedant until we see our villagers being set free, we ain't goin' nowhere. Deliver the message or we walk.”
His sigh is overly dramatic, but he nods at the same soldier, and the man retraces his footsteps once again. Our silence is complete this time as both groups stand, staring at each other. Weighing each other’s weaknesses. I can feel the soldier’s Chi prodding at me, testing my limits, and I ain’t gonna lie, I take great pleasure in mind numbing him with a sharp command of, “Stop.” He pulls back abruptly and does just that, trying to hide my dominance over him from his men.
It seems to take forever, but finally the soldier comes running back. He don't have to say anything. I know my demands have been met as I see the line of villagers pouring outta the tunnel. The first few faces I barely recognize, but I sag in relief as I spot Jane and Beanie. I keep searching until the last person emerges, but there ain't no sign of Mack or Tater or Conner. I figured as much. I knew he wouldn't give up all his advantage, and he wouldn’t have missed Conner being a young New Blood. There was no way he was gonna let him go free.
The prisoners appear uncertain, glancing our way in confusion. Beanie calls out Talbert’s name, and Talbert raises his hand in a relieved greeting, but he stays by my side. He ain’t changing his mind on going in.
“Okay, Finn, this is where we part ways. Go do what I need ya to do.”
He nods, trying to hide his fear for our safety behind a forced smile. I reciprocate by flicking his chin with my finger. “See you on the flip side, ya little stinkster.”
I watch as he and Cat scurry to the villagers to herd ‘em to safety with our people on the rise, fighting the sudden urge to pull him back for one last hug.
We stay stubbornly rooted until I see them safely outta reach of the city limits. Only then do I allow myself to breathe again since I know Maya will take care of ‘em now.
“Happy now?” the arrogant soldier asks, and I raise a brow.
“Not yet, but I will be. Lead the way. Let’s get this done.”
“Not so fast. Hand over your weapons. No one gets past the gate with any sort of weapon.”
All eyes fall on me, but I merely respond by surrendering my shooter, and the rest of my kin follow suit. They ain’t happy. There ain’t no missing Talbert’s groan of disapproval as he hands over his weapon, and Jax’s whispered, “I hope we don’t regret this.”
“It’ll be okay,” I say in assurance, hoping my voice sounds far more confident than I feel.
I wasn’t wrong about the gate. As we follow the soldiers through the iron doors, I glance up at the human shield lining the top of the barricade just like the outside walls. It’s mostly young’uns, and I’m amazed once again at how uncaring the Prezedant is. He ain’t got no qualms about sacrificing anyone, not even the children, to save his own neck.
Soldiers are everywhere, crowding the streets and the guardhouse containing the gate’s controls. They ain’t taking no chance of us getting anywhere near it. Skytown residents mingle amongst ‘em, but it ain’t by choice. Most ignore us as we pass. They’re too busy staring up at the young’
uns on the wall. Some of ‘em cry silent tears, and I realize it must be the mas and pas watching their babes from afar, helpless to do anything about their predicament. I tilt my head slightly toward the guardhouse, and Ben and Jax nod back, confirming they know what they gotta do when the time comes.
The crowd blocking the street parts as we come through, and I cain’t help but feel their fear and overhear their uneasy murmuring. I get the feeling even they don’t quite know why they’re here. Even as we approach, more people are herded from the opposite end of the street, the soldiers at their backs, forcing ‘em to move.
At first I don’t understand the huge gathering. Why are the people of Skytown being herded to the middle of the city? But then I see what sits at the end of the street up ahead, and I realize what he’s done. The people ain’t got a choice. They’re being forced here to bear witness to his show of ultimate power. The Prezedant has prepared for our arrival. He knew we’d come, and like the showman he is, he set up a high platform in the middle of the street complete with a throne center stage for him, and hanging nooses for the two prisoners standing at either side of the stage. A public execution.
Mack and Tater stare out over the crowd, the nooses around their necks a chilling reminder of who holds the power right now. Guards stand at their backs, ready to flip the levers that will plummet them to their death. There ain’t no sign of Conner. My Chi flares violently in reaction as we approach the platform. Mack and Tater share the same look of defiance, but I pick up on their underlying desperation.
This is the last straw, seeing me here inside the city walls. They think we’ve lost. Anger fuels my Chi, and I wanna let ‘em know it’s okay. That I know what I’m doing, but instead I concentrate on holding back my power and its insistence to yank ‘em free. It don’t like me holding it in check, and it keeps fighting me, even as a sudden silence falls over the crowd, and that hated voice punctuates the air.
New Bloods Boxset Page 77
