Blood Diamond

by R. J. Blain

  The disgust in my brother’s voice made me chuckle. “I had an apartment like that in college.”

  “You have a house like that now,” he retorted, earning a glare from me.

  “I do not have a cardboard box for a table.”

  “Oh? Upgraded to a plastic card table?”

  I flexed my hands, restraining my desire to wipe his smug expression off his face. After careful consideration of how much work it’d take to put him in his place, I said, “Oak.”

  “He’s going to lose his temper if you keep it up, Anderson,” Richard warned, nudging me with his elbow. “Let’s not trash Brandon’s office. He needs it to work. No brotherly brawling.”

  My brother’s grin widened. “I know. It’s my sacred duty to nettle him whenever possible. And anyway, with the way he’s limping around, he couldn’t catch me if he wanted to.”

  The trash talk and banter reminded me of when we had been little, before my witchcraft had manifested. Did my brother also long for the days before life—and our parents—had torn us apart? Despite bristling at his challenge, I relaxed, curling my arm around Evelyn’s waist. If he wanted to play games, I’d show him I was his match regardless of my sore knee. “I’m going to count to a hundred, Elliot. May someone have pity on your soul should I catch you, for I won’t.”

  Bursting out in laughter, my brother pushed by me, elbowing me in the stomach as he did so. “You’re such a child.”

  “Says the one making a run for it,” I called out after him. Richard and Alex choked on their laughter, and I pointed at the door. “I’m counting now.”

  Evelyn squirmed in her attempts to pull free of me, giggling. “Let me go.”

  “Go, Brandon,” I ordered, securing my grip on Evelyn by hugging her tightly.

  Heaving a sigh, Brandon circled his desk and headed out into the cargo bay. “You’re terrible, Boss.”

  “I know,” I replied, waiting for them to disappear into the cargo bay before stealing several kisses from my Fenerec. I sent her off with a playful pinch before settling in to count to a hundred. If running around in the cargo bay didn’t give me a chance to prove there weren’t any more unwanted surprises laying in wait for me, nothing would. At least this way, I would be able to explore the entire place and memorize the name of the dead without anyone seeing my reactions to those who had died to the Inquisition and the Fenerec.

  ~~*~~

  The next time I even dreamed of playing games with Fenerec, I hoped someone would stop and talk sense into me. After several hours of stalking through the cargo bay, I managed to catch two of my security detail by surprise. It hadn’t taken them very long to relegate me back to seeker duty. At least my plan to explore the ship worked to a certain degree. I doubted I could find my way back to Brandon’s office, but I had managed to learn the names of all of those who had died.

  While their final moments were brutal, their deaths didn’t hurt me.

  Fenerec didn’t play with their prey, and the knowledge put me at ease. If one of them did turn on me, they wouldn’t leave me alive for long. When I got a hold of my daughter’s murderers, I wondered if I would be capable of such clean and efficient executions. I wanted to make everyone responsible for Jacqueline’s death suffer for a long, long time, which bothered me even more than experiencing the final moments of those who had invaded the Wave Dream.

  I forced my thoughts to the game, easing my way through a narrow gap between plastic-wrapped pallets. The knowledge I was woefully outclassed—even before I considered my sore knee—agitated me. My work didn’t require physical fitness, although I did make a point of hitting the gym every few days to keep in shape. When I wasn’t lame, I ran a decent mile. I’d never match an Olympian, but I wasn’t a slacker either.

  The Fenerec and my security detail put me to shame, and the fact my twin even managed to elude me was the insult added to my injured pride. Stopping to listen didn’t help; the others were either far away or far stealthier than anyone had any right to be.

  “They’re ninjas,” I mumbled, peeking around a corner.

  I froze when I saw Richard and Alex huddled near a pile of crates, whispering to each other. Richard’s back was to me, and Alex met my gaze for a brief moment before focusing his attention on his brother.

  There was a trick to moving quietly on grated metal floors, and it involved slow movements, careful lifting of the feet, and a great deal of patience. Luck was with me; the plates didn’t creak or groan beneath my weight as I moved into position behind Richard. I was so focused on the Alpha Fenerec I didn’t catch what Alex was whispering about.

  There was something viscerally satisfying about jabbing a Fenerec in the ribs from behind. With a startled yelp, Richard whirled and dropped into a crouch. Wolf-yellow eyes bore into me, and a snarl burst out of him.

  A shiver ran through me, accompanied by a giddying surge of satisfaction and adrenaline. I answered his growls with a grin. “You’re it, Richard.” I saluted Alex. “Thanks, Alex.”

  “Anytime, Jackson. Now, could you please lower your eyes? You’re going to get yourself killed if you keep challenging him like that.” Alex grabbed the back of Richard’s neck and squeezed. “Richard.”

  Part of me recognized the wisdom in Alex’s advice, but I discarded it all the same. The round belonged to me, and I wasn’t letting go of my victory so easily.

  Richard growled, the deep sound rumbling in his chest. “I could have hurt you.”

  Ignoring the ache in my knee, I dropped into a crouch in front of my friend and business partner, resting my elbows on my knees. “You know, my brother keeps warning me about the volatile nature of Fenerec, but I have a theory. While you wolves can be violent, I’ve yet to see one turn on those they view as friends, partners, or pack. I’m not afraid of Evelyn, and I’m certainly not afraid of you.”

  To prove my point, I reached out, grabbed Richard’s ear, and twisted. He hissed, tilting his head to the side. “Stop that,” he snarled.

  “Jesus Christ, Jackson. Are you insane?” Alex hissed.

  I let Richard go. “The next person to warn me about dangerous and uncivilized Fenerec is getting punched in the mouth. I’m tired of it.”

  Richard rubbed his ear, shaking his head. “You’re going to cross the wrong Fenerec one of these days, Jackson, and they’re going to rip your arms out of their sockets and feed them to you. You’re too damned dominant for your own good. It’s going to get you killed one of these days.”

  “We’re equals, Richard. That’s all.”

  Both of the Fenerec stared at me as though I’d grown a second head. Alex sighed, relaxing his grip on his brother. “He’s right. One of these days, you really are going to cross the wrong Fenerec, and you’re going to learn just how right your brother is. You’re wrong about us being incapable of turning on friends, partners, or pack—even our children. It happens. When it does, it’s almost always lethal.”

  “That’s my problem, isn’t it? If I backed down whenever some muscle-bound freak stood up to me, I’d never get any work done. If you think Richard’s bad with his posturing, I should introduce you to some of the folks I have to work with overseas. Their superiority complexes make you Fenerec look good in comparison.” I wrinkled my nose, wondering how much of a mess I’d have to untangle when all of my contacts learned I was still among the living. If word of my death spread too far, I’d be spending weeks sorting the mess out. “Maybe I should hire you Fenerec to browbeat some of my contacts when they figure out I’m not actually dead. I’ll pay good money to watch that.”

  “Please never choose to become a Fenerec,” Richard said, standing and offering me his hand. He pulled me upright. “If you can work with Fenerec, you’ll be priceless as a witch.”

  “Explain,” I ordered. “While I’m aware that some witches are able to help Fenerec in certain capacities, I was under the impression that the job typically fell to fire witches, which I am not.”

  “It’s complicated,” Richard grumbled.

>   Alex sighed. “While it is complicated, it isn’t that difficult to understand. I’m not actually a witch, but I’m dominant enough to rein my brother in when he loses his temper—something that happens often enough. We’re not human, Jackson—we’ll never be human. Some of us have a harder time pretending to be human. We’re predators, pure and simple. Witches make it easier for us to play at being human. Dominant witches can help maintain the balance between wolf and man—or at least let us look a little more like a regular human. Submissive Fenerec can as well, but they’re far rarer. The type of person who typically chooses to become a Fenerec isn’t the type of person who likes bowing their head to anyone, and once they let the wolf in, those instincts are amplified.”

  There was no point in denying the truth of Alex’s words; while amazing in every way, I could see the wildness in Evelyn, and the way she reacted to things. With her, instinct ruled before thought, and the honesty of her behavior made me want her all the more.

  “I like Fenerec because they’re honest,” I said, shrugging. “Maybe that’s something people fear. I haven’t had a lot of exposure to Fenerec in person, but all of the ones I’ve met? What you see is what you get. I know when I’m being threatened—or they’re trying to threaten me. It’s not hard to tell if you’re being serious. If you wanted me dead, I’d be dead.”

  “That’s a pretty simple way of looking at it,” Alex said, shaking his head. “It’s more complicated than that.”

  “Is it?” I leaned against one of the crates, bending down to rub my knee. “Evelyn’s pretty straightforward, as were the Inquisition Fenerec. Richard’s the same.”

  “That’s only because you’re too damned dominant for your own good,” Richard replied. “You didn’t hurt your knee, did you?”

  “Just sore, it’ll be fine. I’m not limping nearly as bad as I was earlier,” I replied. After taking a few moments to think about it, I confessed, “I still have no idea what it means to be dominant.”

  “It means you’re too stupid to look away, thus holding eye contact with a Fenerec, which is a form of challenge. Fenerec typically answer challenges with violence,” Alex grumbled.

  “You may as well leave him alone about it, Alex. He’s not going to learn. That’s what makes him dominant. I should have known he’d be this way from all of the times we’ve spoken on the phone. Of course he’s dominant. He wouldn’t be able to browbeat me into his dirty work all of the time otherwise.”

  “I don’t browbeat you, Richard. I just tell you what to do and expect you to do it.”

  Richard chuckled. “So you do. You play the black market game almost as well as I play the financial game.”

  “Almost as well? In your eye. I play my game better—that’s why you have so much money to work with,” I countered, pushing away from the crates to stretch my legs. “I’m pretty sure I’ve been through this entire place twice over by now. My knee hasn’t quit, and if there are any strays in here, they had plenty of chances to grab me.”

  “We already checked it several times. If I thought there was anyone in here, I wouldn’t have let you wander off,” Richard replied, his words accompanied by the low rumble of a growl.

  “I saw Zachary had the codes changed when we came in,” I commented.

  Richard nodded. “He’s also got an order for a new lock system altogether—he’s installing it when we reach shore. He’s still pissed anyone got close to you in the first place. If he finds out who leaked the code for the doors and lost their key, heads are going to roll.”

  “Wonderful,” I muttered, alarmed at the thought of there being a traitor on board the ship. There were ways to get copies of the keys; I had several in my house. I’d need to check and make certain they were where they belonged. “I’ll have to check my place. If they were after me and not my brother, it’s possible someone cracked my safe—especially if they did it sometime after Oconee.”

  “I didn’t think to ask if anyone had been to your place. You got an alarm system?”

  “I do, but someone with skill could get by it easily enough. That said, if someone did, I should have video of who did it. That’s the nice thing about my house; it’s small enough it wasn’t hard or expensive to install monitors.”

  “Will all of the idiots in the cargo bay please report to Brandon’s office?” Zachary demanded over the intercom.

  “I think he’s talking about you two,” Alex said.

  “Impossible. We’re both far too smart,” I replied. “I don’t suppose you two know how to get to the office from here, do you?”

  “Judging from that question alone, I’m pretty certain you’re one of the idiots.” Alex pointed behind me. “It’s that way, somewhere.”

  “Judging from that answer alone, I’m pretty certain you’re also one of the idiots,” I replied.

  It took us almost half an hour to find our way out of the maze. Zachary waited in the doorway of Brandon’s office, his arms crossed over his chest. “You shook your detail,” he accused.

  I hadn’t even considered my security detail while hunting for the others in the cargo bay. I widened my eyes at my friend. “I didn’t shake them. I was actively hunting them down the entire time. They shook me.”

  “It’s true. We got a little carried away,” Alex admitted. “You missed it. He frightened Richard.”

  After a long moment of looking between Richard and me, Zachary replied, “You look alive. Richard doesn’t do scared. I’ve seen him. He has two modes of operation, and frightened isn’t one of them.”

  “I solemnly swear on my honor that Richard yelped. He was definitely scared. At the very least, gloriously startled.” Alex clapped his brother’s shoulder. “It was fun.”

  “Alex,” Richard growled.

  With an unrepentant grin, Alex stepped out of his brother’s reach. “Nicole’s going to love you, Jackson. You’re going to keep Richard in line far better than I can.”

  “Is it too late for me to change my mind about taking him with me to Yellowknife?”

  “Yes, it is,” Zachary replied.

  “We’re here, Zachary. What’s the problem?” I asked. A yawn slipped out of me before I could stop it.

  “Brandon called. It’s almost five in the morning. Don’t any of you have any common sense or restraint? What were you doing, anyway?”

  After exchanging looks with Richard and Alex, I said, “Elliot challenged me.”

  “See?” Alex demanded, poking me in the collarbone. “You just had to go prove your dominance. Don’t blame your brother. Admit it, you wanted to do it as much as we did.”

  “I’m confused,” Zachary admitted.

  “Hide and seek,” Richard replied. “Jackson was the seeker for most of it, seeing as it’s shamefully easy to outrun him when he’s limping around like a cripple.”

  I scowled, but decided it was wiser to keep my mouth shut.

  It didn’t save me from Zachary’s wrath. He turned on me and blurted, “Are you insane? Have you lost your fucking mind? Playing a hunting game with Fenerec? You’re going to die.”

  “See? I keep trying to tell you,” Alex muttered.

  “I don’t know what the big deal is. Look, I’m fine. I’m not even limping as bad as I was earlier today.”

  With a rather unimpressed expression, Zachary replied, “You mean yesterday.”

  “Even better, then. You all wanted me to exercise, now you’re complaining that I went and did what you wanted.” I shoved my hands in my pockets, grumbled a few curses under my breath, and attempted to change the conversation by asking, “Where’s Evelyn?”

  A pair of arms slipped around my waist from behind, startling a gasp out of me. Evelyn murmured, “Here I am.” Her breath tickled my ear. “Did you have fun?”

  I leaned against her, swallowing the lump out of my throat before replying, “I did. I caught Richard.”

  “Hey! He had help. Without me, he would have noticed you,” Alex protested. “I noticed you.”

  “Oh? You caught you
rself a big bad wolf? Good hunters are rewarded for their efforts,” Evelyn murmured, pressing her lips to my neck.

  “Please go to your room first,” Zachary complained, shaking his head. “Why were you playing hide and seek in the cargo bay, anyway? You could have done it up top if you wanted.”

  “Privacy?” I improvised.

  “Opportunity,” my brother corrected, emerging from between two shipping containers. “You didn’t catch me. I thought you said you could.”

  “I caught Richard. He’s worth more points,” I replied. Another yawn worked its way out of me. “I’m ready for bed.”

  “Are you now?” Evelyn whispered in my ear.

  Zachary shook his head. “Is there even a point in going to bed now?”

  “Think about it this way. We confirmed there were no stowaways in your cargo bay,” Richard said, stretching his arms over his head. “Sleep sounds good.”

  “I could have told you there were no stragglers—and you know full well there aren’t any. You helped me check!” Zachary sighed.

  Taking hold of Evelyn’s hands, I freed myself from her grip, turning so I could give her a gentle push towards the staircase. “I needed the exercise anyway.”

  Brandon chuckled. “Lay off, Zach. He was perfectly safe the entire time. I only called you because I was tired of monitoring their play. I need sleep, too.”

  “Fine, fine. I’ll lock up. All of you, out of my cargo bay! I guess I shouldn’t complain at you for enjoying the cruise, although I’d prefer if you did so in a more traditional fashion. So you’re aware, we’ll reach Prince Edward Island tomorrow night.”

  Apprehension sucked away my good mood, and I tightened my hold on Evelyn. I had forgotten about landfall and the subsequent trip to Yellowknife. What would happen when we reached our final destination? Everything I knew was in Georgia, but I wasn’t going to leave Evelyn. I could relocate easily enough, but I had no idea what she wanted, and that bothered me most of all. My work didn’t matter; I could reach out to my contacts in Ottawa and make arrangements, but so long as Evelyn remained on the Inquisition’s kill list, she’d never be truly safe, even under Richard’s guard.