"You're gonna die! You're gonna burn right now!" Thistle! She's
kicking ashes at the kid. Damn her, what is she doing?
Then it hits me, the kid is going to jump! It's three stories, she won't make it, damn it! Now what?
Oh God, Jez is running after her! Jez! I say it telepathically, hardly knowing that I'm projecting it, that I'm leaping after her. I hear Val and Raven shouting, but I don't care. By the time I hit the ground, Jez and Iona are sprawled on the sidewalk. No, please no, let her be okay. But I don't have to worry, she's already sitting up.
"Are you all right? Jez! " No! She can't be hurt. I need Jez, she's my soulmate, even if she won't admit it. No! She has to be fine.
"Of course I'm alright." She takes a deep breath, then suddenly remembers something. "Iona! Are you all right?"
The kid just looks at us. She has intense brown eyes. Kind of sad, tired. "That was really scary."
Jez starts babbling at the kid, "I know. I'm sorry, Iona; I'm so sorry. We shouldn't have done that. It was a very bad thing to do, and I'm really sorry, and we're going to take you home now. Nobody's going to hurt you. We're going to take you back to your mom." Man, do I feel rotten. "Can you erase her memory? I can't see any reason why she should have to remember all this."
"Yeah, I can wipe her." Poor kid.
Jez keeps going, "Because she's not the Wild Power, you know. She's an extroardinary kid, and I don't know exactly what she's going to be- maybe President or some great doctor or botanist or something. Something special, because she's got that inner light- something that keeps her from getting mad or hysterical. But that's got nothing to do with being a Wild Power."
I have to shut her up, God she needs sleep. "All right! I know, already! She's not it. I was wrong. I made a bad mistake. Okay?"
"Okay. So can you please wipe her?"
"Yes! I'm doing it! Look, kid, I'm- sorry." Amazing how hard it is to spit the words out. "I'd never thought you'd- you know, jump like that. This has been a pretty rotten day, hasn't it? So why don't you just forget all about it, and before you know it, you'll be home."
"It's okay. It won't hurt." I can't remember Jez being so friendly towards humans before, but then, I haven't been before either. I brush that aside while I wrap the tendrils of my mind around hers, wiping away her memories for the last two hours.
"You don't ever have to remember this. So why don't you just go to sleep? You can have a little nap, and when you wake up, you'll be home." The kid just slumps into Jez's arms.
Jez sets the kid down gently on the pavement. "Thanks." God, Jez has a pretty smile!
"It was the least I could do." Wait a second. Why didn't Jez wipe the kid herself if she cares so much?
She must have seen the look on my face. "I'm really kind of tired, after everything that happened today. I don't have much power left."
Right. What isn't she telling me? "Yeah ..."
"Plus, I hurt."
Morg, you moron! The girl can't even sit up all the way, and you're giving her the third degree. How could you forget about Jez, of all people? I bet she's hurting. "Can you move everything? What about your legs? Do you feel numb anywhere?" I give her the once-over with my hands, making sure nothing's broken.
"I can move everything, and I only wish I felt numb somewhere."
"Jez- I'm sorry." Amazing how hard apologies are. "I didn't mean ... I mean, this just hasn't turned out the way I planned. The kid getting hurt- you getting hurt. It just wasn't what i had in mind."
"I'm not hurt." Nice try, but no.
"Yes, you are." I reach out and put my hand on her forehead to give her some power. She looks so tired.
"Morgead- what are you doing?!" What, she's never shared energy before? Hunter discovered it, for godsakes.
"Giving you some power. You're low and you need it." Duh.
Suddenly, that silver cord is back. I let it pull me along. How can Jez deny this? Suddenly, I really see her face. She has a look I've never seen before, a mix of wonder and fear. "Morgead..."
I just look back at her, knowing that I have a matching expression on my face. "Jez..." She leans into my arms, and I pull her close, let our lips connect.
Wow. That's the best way to describe it. I'm falling into her soul, melting into her mind. I feel the subtlest hint of panic, but either it's not strong or she's blocking it. It doesn't matter. I just enjoy being one with her, and she's an amazing kisser. Wow.
Suddenly, my revery is shattered. Jez! Morgead! What's wrong with you two? Who the hell? Hey, look; I'm just trying to help. If you guys are alive, then, like give us a sign, okay?
Damn it! Can't a guy enjoy himself? It's Val. I have to kill him.
I'm going to help. Oh- wait. Where are we ...? It's almost a laughable question, or it would be if I knew.
I slowly open my eyes. Jez and I are sitting on the sidewalk, with Iona lying a few feet away. Val, Thistle, Raven, and Pierce are all standing around, staring at us. I notice my arms are around Jez, and I drop them quickly. At least we weren't still kissing, that would have been worse than embarassing, although Jez is turning scarlet anyway. "What do you guys want?"
Raven's eyebrows shoot up as she starts shouting at me, and her eyes, both of them for once, flash violently. "What do we want? You three jumped off the roof just as the fire got out of control. We put it out and came down here to see if you were still alive- and then we find you here hanging on to each other and totally out of it. And you want to know what we want? We want to know if you're okay! "
"We're fine." Why can't I have a gang that will butt out of my business? Stupid question, because I know they're just worried, but I still am angry. Who am I angry at, anyway? Jez crawls over to Iona. I can tell she isn't hurting as badly now by the way she moves. Good thing.
Thistle looks edgy, like we are about to kill her. She's probably right. "What about her?"
"She's fine, too. No thanks to you." I have never seen Jez this angry.
Thistle looks at the ground and mutters, "She's just a human."
I'm on my feet without thinking about it. "She's a kid! Which you're not. You're just a-a sixteen-year-old Shirley Temple-wannabe." Why am I mad at Thistle? What do I care if she hurt vermin? For some reason, I do care, and that scares me, but I'm too mad right now to stop and think about it.
Jez just glares at me, and then Thistle. "All right, both of you! You," she looks at me, "be quiet and let me take care of things. And you," she shouts at Thistle, with a look that could kill pigeons in midair, "if you ever try to hurt a kid again, I'll knock your head off. Okay, that's settled. Now we've got to get this girl home."
"Home?" Val mutters, looking dazedly around.
Jez picks up Iona and rolls her eyes at him. "Yeah, Val. In case you missed something, she's not the Wild Power."
Val just looks at me, dumfounded. "But ... You mean you were wrong?"
"There's a first time for everything, right?" Why are they such numskulls? I made a stupid mistake, so what?
Raven looks troubled. "But then-who is the Wild Power?"
Pierce almost seems happy. "Who knows?" Man, that guy is giving off weird vibes.
"If this kid isn't the one-well, I guess it could have been anybody at the scene," said Jez. "Anybody worried enough to want to save her. One of the firefighters, a neighbor-anybody."
Pierce just smirks at Jez. "Assuming the flash on the tape really was evidence of a Wild Power."
"I think it was. It sure looked like blue fire. And it certainly was some kind of power."
"And Grandma Harman dreamed about the Wild Power being in San Francisco. It all fits too well," I add. "But it couldn't have been anybody at the scene, you know."
Jez looks puzzled. "Why not?"
"Because of what you said about that line in the prophesy. 'Born in the year of the blind Maiden's vision.' That means it has to be somebody born less than eighteen years ago. Before that, Aradia couldn't have visions because she wasn't alive." Morg, the genius. I expect Jez to be glaring at me for one-upping her, but she just smiles. Wow.
Raven, of course, bursts our bubble, the only lead we've got. "It's still not much to go on. But don't you think we should go back inside to discuss it? Somebody's going to come along eventually and see us with an unconscious kid."
Jez sighs, then nods. "Good point. But I'm not going up with you. I'm taking the kid home."
"Me, too." She's not going alone. I don't know if I want to make sure she won't try anything, or if I just want to be with her. Morg, you are losing control, man.
Jez sees the look on my face, then nods. "Okay, but just us. Two motorcycles are going to be conspicuous enough. The rest of you can do what we want tonight; try to figure out who the Wild Power is or whatever. We'll meet again tomorrow and see what we've come up with."
"Why wait? It's only dusk. We could meet tonight-" Val suggests.
Jez just shakes her head. "I'm tired. It's enough for the day." She looks really tired. Is she okay? I hope she's alright.
Pierce gives her an odd look, but he's still smirking when he says, "So you'll have to report to Hunter that we failed." What is with that guy?
"Yeah, I'll tell him you screwed up. But that we still have some options. Unless you'd rather I just tell him that you're all idiots and not worth giving a second chance." She just glares at him, and of course the jerk looks away first. Then she just picks up Iona and hops on her bike. I follow her lead, and we zip through the streets.
I can't keep my mind focused. At least Jez is in the lead, so I don't have to think about where I'm going. My mind keeps thinking about that kiss. It was the most wonderful thing I've ever felt. Or it could have been. Jez didn't like it though, I could tell. Well, she liked it, but she was pulling back from me. She wouldn't let me see her soul. Stupid thing to ask anyone to do, but I let Jez see mine. She must hate me or something. Why else wouldn't she let me in?
Damn, the kid's mom called the cops. Now what? Jez stops her motorcycle in an alley across the street, with me on her tail. "We'll have to do a drive-by. Drop her by the police cars and then shoot out of there. They'll probably chase us. Are you up for it?"
"We should go seperate ways. That'll make it harder for them to catch us."
She nodds brusquely. "Right. You go on home once you lose them. So will I."
She's going where? "So will you? Go home?"
"I mean I'll go to the place where I'm staying."
I don't want her to leave. Maybe she can hang out at my apartment for a while. We can talk about the Wild Power. Yeah, right. Morg, all you want is to kiss her again, and you know it. "Do you have to?"
"Yes, I have to. I want to. I'm tired, Morgead, and anyway I'm not ready to be spending the night with a guy." She thinks I want to bang her?
"I didn't mean that-" Well, I wouldn't have minded, but I really meant just hang out. Really.
"I know. I'm sorry. But I'm still tired and-"
"And you're still mad." Why is she pissed at me?
"I'm not mad-"
She must hate me, she's even lying to me. "Or disgusted or whatever."
She shakes her head firmly, but she looks confused. "I'm just tired. Now let's drop the kid off, and I'll see you tomorrow."
"I-" won't see her again tonight unless I drag her back to my place, and I won't do that. "All right." She wants to leave me, again, she can. I won't stop her.
We speed out of the alley, with Jez slowing down long enough to hand Iona to a startled neighbor. Then, we're off on our seperate ways as the cops give chase. I'm half tempted to follow Jez, see where she's staying, but I know they'll catch us if we do.
I finally dodge them, and then hi-tail it back to my apartment. I need sleep, and time to think. What am I going to do tomorrow?
* * *
I come to slowly, with a pain in my head, as I feel little jolts of lightning touching my forehead. My eyes open to bright red curls. "Jez! Jez, what happened? Where are we?" I look around. We're in the back of a moving van, the two of us and two humans, a boy and a girl. That vermin guy looks familiar, where from?
"I was hoping you might tell me that." She's trying to stay cool, but it isn't working. She's panicking.
"I got hit. With wood. Somebody got me when I left my apartment. Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I got hit with a car. But it could be worse; it was almost a train." I spend a second picturing myself ripping their guts out for hurting her. She snaps me out of it, asking, "Do you have any idea who hit you?"
"No. Pierce called to say he'd come up with something on the Wild Power. I was going to meet him when suddenly I got attacked from behind." A train? "What do you mean, it was almost a train?"
She's busy checking out the van, I do the same. "Nothing here. Nothing on the sides. This van is stripped."
"Nothing here, either. What do you mean, a train?" She had better tell me.
"You really don't know?"
Jez thinks I would hurt her. She really thinks that. Oh damn. "You think I would do something to hurt you?"
"It's happened in the past." She's trying to seem cool again, like she doesn't care. Bullshit.
"I have no idea what's going on. And I would not try to hurt you."
She just closes her eyes and leans against the side of the van. "Then we're both in trouble."
"I believe you there." I just lean against my side of the van. "It's the Council, isn't it? They found out about Hunter's deal with us, and they're moving in."
"Probably." Something about the way she said that rubs me wrong. I can almost feel the silver thread again, and it's twitching. Oblivious, she continues, "Whether it's the Council or not, we're going to have to fight them. How's your energy-blast trick? The one you demonstrated when we were stick-fighting."
"Not good. I used up all my Power fighting the guys who tackled me. It'll be a long time before I recharge."
"Too bad. Because those two aren't going to be able to do much."
Be casual. "Those humans? Who are they, by the way?"
"That's Claire, and this is Hugh. They're-acquaintances. They've helped me in the past."
"Humans?" Why would vermin help her?
"Even humans can be useful sometimes."
"I thought maybe one of them might be the Wild Power."
"You thought if I found the Wild Power I wouldn't tell you?" Suddenly it hits me. That vermin I recognized, he's a Daybreaker!
I try to stay calm while I answer, figure out how to phrase my thoughts. "It occurred to me."
"You're so cynical, Morgead." She smiles at me, and I almost forget what I just figured out. Almost, but not quite.
I start to smirk a little, just because I'm so pissed off. "I prefer to call it observant. For instance, I can tell you something about your friend Hugh, there. I saw him in the city, just once, but I remember his face. He's a damned Daybreaker."
She just frowns and says, "So maybe I'm using him for something." Yeah, right.
I know I'm smirking now, half in denial and half in anger. "And maybe you're using me. You know, there's still a connection between us. I can feel it, sort of like a cord between our minds. It pulls. You can't deny it, Jez. It's there whether you like it or not. And-it tells me things. Things about you."
"So what's it telling you now?" She looks absolutely furious at me. I have to rush on, before I lose my resolve.
Suddenly, the pieces are falling into place, and I pray that I'm wrong even as I say it all. "That you're not telling the truth. That there's something you're keeping from me. And that it has to do with him. Something to do with why you want the Wild Power. And where you've been for the past year, and with why you suddenly want to protect humans. And why you say 'Goddess' when you're surprised. No vampire says that. It's a witch thing."
"Anything else?" She's beyond furious at me now, but I have to know.
"And with why you're scared of me reading your thoughts." I sigh, then put on a smile. "Told you I was observant."
"Yeah, Morgead, you're brilliant. So are you smart enough to figure out what it all means? Or just to get suspicious?"
"It means-" I can't say it! "It means ... that you're ... with Circle Daybreak."
"Very good. Two points. No, one; it took you long enough."
No. No! It can't be. Jez, my Jez, she can't be a Daybreaker! But she is, and I have to make her see reason. I grab her shoulders and shake her. "You little idiot!"
"What?" She had risen into a crouch, a fighting stance, and I unbalanced her, she is practically falling over. In shock?
"You're a Daybreaker?"
"I thought you had it all figured out." She's still sarcastic, but she's suprised too.
"I did-I guess-but I still can't believe it. Jez, why? Don't you know how stupid that is? Don't you realize what's going to happen to them?"
"Look, Morgead-" She tries to talk, to explain, but I keep babbling onward, shaking her shoulders.
"They're going to lose, Jez. It's not just going to be the Council against them now. Everybody in the Night World is going to be gunning for them. They're going to get wiped out, and anybody who sides with them will be wiped out, too."
"I'm not just siding with them. I am one of them. I'm a damned Daybreaker." She's giving me That Look. The 'I'm right and I'll kill you if you don't shut up' look. I ignore it.
"You're a dead Daybreaker! I can't believe this! How am I supposed to protect you from the whole Night World?"
"What?" She's stunned. Completely stunned. What, she thought I was going to kill her? Kill Jez? I couldn't if I wanted to.
"You heard me. I don't care who your friends are, Jez. I don't even care that you came back to use me. I'm just glad you came back. We're soulmates, and nothing can change that. Even if you won't admit it."
"Morgead ..." She just looks at me, for a long time. "I'm sorry. For all of this, Morgead-I'm sorry. It really wasn't fair for you for me to come back."
"I told you; I'm glad you did. We can work things out-if you'll just stop being so stubborn. We'll get out of this-"
"Even if we do get out of it, nothing's going to change. I can't be your soulmate, Morgead." Why not? It isn't as if we can change it or anything.
I have to convince her, I can't let her go. "Yes, you can. I told you, I don't care who your friends are. We'll keep you alive somehow. The only thing I don't understand is why you'd want to ally yourself with stupid humans, when you know they're going to lose."
Suddenly, her entire face changes. She shivers, looks down at the carpet of the van. When she finally meets my gaze, her eyes, her beautiful blue eyes, are crying. "Because I'm a human."
No. No, no, no, NO NO NO NONONONO ! She's lying again, trying to confuse me. No. It can't be, she has fangs, she drinks blood. It can't be true. No. Her parents are vampires, she's a direct descendant of Hunter Redfern. No. She's lying, that's it!
The silver cord will tell me. It'll tell me she's lying. It'll shake again, and I'll yell at her for lying to me, and everything will be fine. Even as I think it, the delusion shatters. All I feel in the link between us is pain. She's hurting badly, crying inside. I want her to feel better, but how? Every thought I've ever had about vermin, if she's right, has now blown itself to smithereens. How do I cope with that?
It can't be though, her parents were vampires, her last name is Redfern for crying out loud! It can't be. No. She has to be lying. "No! How?"
She's shaking hard, nearly hysterical. "My mom was human. They had me. no one knows how. Then, when I was three years old, people came. But they weren't vampire slayers, they were vampires! They were screaming, 'Kill the freak!' and they were screaming it at me. At me, Morgead! I didn't remember it until that last day, when I heard that poor guy begging for mercy. Then, well I couldn't kill him. So you know what? I moved in with my mother's family. That's my cousin Claire. Hugh helped me join Daybreak, and now I'm the vampire slayer. I hunt down vampires who hurt humans for fun, and I kill them.
"Now, are you going to kill me, or is the engagement just off?" She's shaking so badly. I want to run to her, hold her. But I can't. She's vermin! My Jez! No, it can't be. It just can't.
"But you have powers!"
"Only when I drink blood. I've been clean for a year." She makes it sound like a drug or something! But it was, a voice in the back of Morgead's mind whispered. It's a drug you can't live without.
"Maybe you should drink your friends, then, because any minute now-," he started to say, when the van lurched to a halt.
Jez just looked at him, her blue eyes flashing. "Look, Morgead. These humans are my friends, and I won't let anything happen to them. I don't expect you to try and save them, but don't get in my way." As she finished, the door to the van was opened. The sunlight was bright, blinding them both... TO BE CONTINUED
Then it hits me, the kid is going to jump! It's three stories, she won't make it, damn it! Now what?
Oh God, Jez is running after her! Jez! I say it telepathically, hardly knowing that I'm projecting it, that I'm leaping after her. I hear Val and Raven shouting, but I don't care. By the time I hit the ground, Jez and Iona are sprawled on the sidewalk. No, please no, let her be okay. But I don't have to worry, she's already sitting up.
"Are you all right? Jez! " No! She can't be hurt. I need Jez, she's my soulmate, even if she won't admit it. No! She has to be fine.
"Of course I'm alright." She takes a deep breath, then suddenly remembers something. "Iona! Are you all right?"
The kid just looks at us. She has intense brown eyes. Kind of sad, tired. "That was really scary."
Jez starts babbling at the kid, "I know. I'm sorry, Iona; I'm so sorry. We shouldn't have done that. It was a very bad thing to do, and I'm really sorry, and we're going to take you home now. Nobody's going to hurt you. We're going to take you back to your mom." Man, do I feel rotten. "Can you erase her memory? I can't see any reason why she should have to remember all this."
"Yeah, I can wipe her." Poor kid.
Jez keeps going, "Because she's not the Wild Power, you know. She's an extroardinary kid, and I don't know exactly what she's going to be- maybe President or some great doctor or botanist or something. Something special, because she's got that inner light- something that keeps her from getting mad or hysterical. But that's got nothing to do with being a Wild Power."
I have to shut her up, God she needs sleep. "All right! I know, already! She's not it. I was wrong. I made a bad mistake. Okay?"
"Okay. So can you please wipe her?"
"Yes! I'm doing it! Look, kid, I'm- sorry." Amazing how hard it is to spit the words out. "I'd never thought you'd- you know, jump like that. This has been a pretty rotten day, hasn't it? So why don't you just forget all about it, and before you know it, you'll be home."
"It's okay. It won't hurt." I can't remember Jez being so friendly towards humans before, but then, I haven't been before either. I brush that aside while I wrap the tendrils of my mind around hers, wiping away her memories for the last two hours.
"You don't ever have to remember this. So why don't you just go to sleep? You can have a little nap, and when you wake up, you'll be home." The kid just slumps into Jez's arms.
Jez sets the kid down gently on the pavement. "Thanks." God, Jez has a pretty smile!
"It was the least I could do." Wait a second. Why didn't Jez wipe the kid herself if she cares so much?
She must have seen the look on my face. "I'm really kind of tired, after everything that happened today. I don't have much power left."
Right. What isn't she telling me? "Yeah ..."
"Plus, I hurt."
Morg, you moron! The girl can't even sit up all the way, and you're giving her the third degree. How could you forget about Jez, of all people? I bet she's hurting. "Can you move everything? What about your legs? Do you feel numb anywhere?" I give her the once-over with my hands, making sure nothing's broken.
"I can move everything, and I only wish I felt numb somewhere."
"Jez- I'm sorry." Amazing how hard apologies are. "I didn't mean ... I mean, this just hasn't turned out the way I planned. The kid getting hurt- you getting hurt. It just wasn't what i had in mind."
"I'm not hurt." Nice try, but no.
"Yes, you are." I reach out and put my hand on her forehead to give her some power. She looks so tired.
"Morgead- what are you doing?!" What, she's never shared energy before? Hunter discovered it, for godsakes.
"Giving you some power. You're low and you need it." Duh.
Suddenly, that silver cord is back. I let it pull me along. How can Jez deny this? Suddenly, I really see her face. She has a look I've never seen before, a mix of wonder and fear. "Morgead..."
I just look back at her, knowing that I have a matching expression on my face. "Jez..." She leans into my arms, and I pull her close, let our lips connect.
Wow. That's the best way to describe it. I'm falling into her soul, melting into her mind. I feel the subtlest hint of panic, but either it's not strong or she's blocking it. It doesn't matter. I just enjoy being one with her, and she's an amazing kisser. Wow.
Suddenly, my revery is shattered. Jez! Morgead! What's wrong with you two? Who the hell? Hey, look; I'm just trying to help. If you guys are alive, then, like give us a sign, okay?
Damn it! Can't a guy enjoy himself? It's Val. I have to kill him.
I'm going to help. Oh- wait. Where are we ...? It's almost a laughable question, or it would be if I knew.
I slowly open my eyes. Jez and I are sitting on the sidewalk, with Iona lying a few feet away. Val, Thistle, Raven, and Pierce are all standing around, staring at us. I notice my arms are around Jez, and I drop them quickly. At least we weren't still kissing, that would have been worse than embarassing, although Jez is turning scarlet anyway. "What do you guys want?"
Raven's eyebrows shoot up as she starts shouting at me, and her eyes, both of them for once, flash violently. "What do we want? You three jumped off the roof just as the fire got out of control. We put it out and came down here to see if you were still alive- and then we find you here hanging on to each other and totally out of it. And you want to know what we want? We want to know if you're okay! "
"We're fine." Why can't I have a gang that will butt out of my business? Stupid question, because I know they're just worried, but I still am angry. Who am I angry at, anyway? Jez crawls over to Iona. I can tell she isn't hurting as badly now by the way she moves. Good thing.
Thistle looks edgy, like we are about to kill her. She's probably right. "What about her?"
"She's fine, too. No thanks to you." I have never seen Jez this angry.
Thistle looks at the ground and mutters, "She's just a human."
I'm on my feet without thinking about it. "She's a kid! Which you're not. You're just a-a sixteen-year-old Shirley Temple-wannabe." Why am I mad at Thistle? What do I care if she hurt vermin? For some reason, I do care, and that scares me, but I'm too mad right now to stop and think about it.
Jez just glares at me, and then Thistle. "All right, both of you! You," she looks at me, "be quiet and let me take care of things. And you," she shouts at Thistle, with a look that could kill pigeons in midair, "if you ever try to hurt a kid again, I'll knock your head off. Okay, that's settled. Now we've got to get this girl home."
"Home?" Val mutters, looking dazedly around.
Jez picks up Iona and rolls her eyes at him. "Yeah, Val. In case you missed something, she's not the Wild Power."
Val just looks at me, dumfounded. "But ... You mean you were wrong?"
"There's a first time for everything, right?" Why are they such numskulls? I made a stupid mistake, so what?
Raven looks troubled. "But then-who is the Wild Power?"
Pierce almost seems happy. "Who knows?" Man, that guy is giving off weird vibes.
"If this kid isn't the one-well, I guess it could have been anybody at the scene," said Jez. "Anybody worried enough to want to save her. One of the firefighters, a neighbor-anybody."
Pierce just smirks at Jez. "Assuming the flash on the tape really was evidence of a Wild Power."
"I think it was. It sure looked like blue fire. And it certainly was some kind of power."
"And Grandma Harman dreamed about the Wild Power being in San Francisco. It all fits too well," I add. "But it couldn't have been anybody at the scene, you know."
Jez looks puzzled. "Why not?"
"Because of what you said about that line in the prophesy. 'Born in the year of the blind Maiden's vision.' That means it has to be somebody born less than eighteen years ago. Before that, Aradia couldn't have visions because she wasn't alive." Morg, the genius. I expect Jez to be glaring at me for one-upping her, but she just smiles. Wow.
Raven, of course, bursts our bubble, the only lead we've got. "It's still not much to go on. But don't you think we should go back inside to discuss it? Somebody's going to come along eventually and see us with an unconscious kid."
Jez sighs, then nods. "Good point. But I'm not going up with you. I'm taking the kid home."
"Me, too." She's not going alone. I don't know if I want to make sure she won't try anything, or if I just want to be with her. Morg, you are losing control, man.
Jez sees the look on my face, then nods. "Okay, but just us. Two motorcycles are going to be conspicuous enough. The rest of you can do what we want tonight; try to figure out who the Wild Power is or whatever. We'll meet again tomorrow and see what we've come up with."
"Why wait? It's only dusk. We could meet tonight-" Val suggests.
Jez just shakes her head. "I'm tired. It's enough for the day." She looks really tired. Is she okay? I hope she's alright.
Pierce gives her an odd look, but he's still smirking when he says, "So you'll have to report to Hunter that we failed." What is with that guy?
"Yeah, I'll tell him you screwed up. But that we still have some options. Unless you'd rather I just tell him that you're all idiots and not worth giving a second chance." She just glares at him, and of course the jerk looks away first. Then she just picks up Iona and hops on her bike. I follow her lead, and we zip through the streets.
I can't keep my mind focused. At least Jez is in the lead, so I don't have to think about where I'm going. My mind keeps thinking about that kiss. It was the most wonderful thing I've ever felt. Or it could have been. Jez didn't like it though, I could tell. Well, she liked it, but she was pulling back from me. She wouldn't let me see her soul. Stupid thing to ask anyone to do, but I let Jez see mine. She must hate me or something. Why else wouldn't she let me in?
Damn, the kid's mom called the cops. Now what? Jez stops her motorcycle in an alley across the street, with me on her tail. "We'll have to do a drive-by. Drop her by the police cars and then shoot out of there. They'll probably chase us. Are you up for it?"
"We should go seperate ways. That'll make it harder for them to catch us."
She nodds brusquely. "Right. You go on home once you lose them. So will I."
She's going where? "So will you? Go home?"
"I mean I'll go to the place where I'm staying."
I don't want her to leave. Maybe she can hang out at my apartment for a while. We can talk about the Wild Power. Yeah, right. Morg, all you want is to kiss her again, and you know it. "Do you have to?"
"Yes, I have to. I want to. I'm tired, Morgead, and anyway I'm not ready to be spending the night with a guy." She thinks I want to bang her?
"I didn't mean that-" Well, I wouldn't have minded, but I really meant just hang out. Really.
"I know. I'm sorry. But I'm still tired and-"
"And you're still mad." Why is she pissed at me?
"I'm not mad-"
She must hate me, she's even lying to me. "Or disgusted or whatever."
She shakes her head firmly, but she looks confused. "I'm just tired. Now let's drop the kid off, and I'll see you tomorrow."
"I-" won't see her again tonight unless I drag her back to my place, and I won't do that. "All right." She wants to leave me, again, she can. I won't stop her.
We speed out of the alley, with Jez slowing down long enough to hand Iona to a startled neighbor. Then, we're off on our seperate ways as the cops give chase. I'm half tempted to follow Jez, see where she's staying, but I know they'll catch us if we do.
I finally dodge them, and then hi-tail it back to my apartment. I need sleep, and time to think. What am I going to do tomorrow?
* * *
I come to slowly, with a pain in my head, as I feel little jolts of lightning touching my forehead. My eyes open to bright red curls. "Jez! Jez, what happened? Where are we?" I look around. We're in the back of a moving van, the two of us and two humans, a boy and a girl. That vermin guy looks familiar, where from?
"I was hoping you might tell me that." She's trying to stay cool, but it isn't working. She's panicking.
"I got hit. With wood. Somebody got me when I left my apartment. Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I got hit with a car. But it could be worse; it was almost a train." I spend a second picturing myself ripping their guts out for hurting her. She snaps me out of it, asking, "Do you have any idea who hit you?"
"No. Pierce called to say he'd come up with something on the Wild Power. I was going to meet him when suddenly I got attacked from behind." A train? "What do you mean, it was almost a train?"
She's busy checking out the van, I do the same. "Nothing here. Nothing on the sides. This van is stripped."
"Nothing here, either. What do you mean, a train?" She had better tell me.
"You really don't know?"
Jez thinks I would hurt her. She really thinks that. Oh damn. "You think I would do something to hurt you?"
"It's happened in the past." She's trying to seem cool again, like she doesn't care. Bullshit.
"I have no idea what's going on. And I would not try to hurt you."
She just closes her eyes and leans against the side of the van. "Then we're both in trouble."
"I believe you there." I just lean against my side of the van. "It's the Council, isn't it? They found out about Hunter's deal with us, and they're moving in."
"Probably." Something about the way she said that rubs me wrong. I can almost feel the silver thread again, and it's twitching. Oblivious, she continues, "Whether it's the Council or not, we're going to have to fight them. How's your energy-blast trick? The one you demonstrated when we were stick-fighting."
"Not good. I used up all my Power fighting the guys who tackled me. It'll be a long time before I recharge."
"Too bad. Because those two aren't going to be able to do much."
Be casual. "Those humans? Who are they, by the way?"
"That's Claire, and this is Hugh. They're-acquaintances. They've helped me in the past."
"Humans?" Why would vermin help her?
"Even humans can be useful sometimes."
"I thought maybe one of them might be the Wild Power."
"You thought if I found the Wild Power I wouldn't tell you?" Suddenly it hits me. That vermin I recognized, he's a Daybreaker!
I try to stay calm while I answer, figure out how to phrase my thoughts. "It occurred to me."
"You're so cynical, Morgead." She smiles at me, and I almost forget what I just figured out. Almost, but not quite.
I start to smirk a little, just because I'm so pissed off. "I prefer to call it observant. For instance, I can tell you something about your friend Hugh, there. I saw him in the city, just once, but I remember his face. He's a damned Daybreaker."
She just frowns and says, "So maybe I'm using him for something." Yeah, right.
I know I'm smirking now, half in denial and half in anger. "And maybe you're using me. You know, there's still a connection between us. I can feel it, sort of like a cord between our minds. It pulls. You can't deny it, Jez. It's there whether you like it or not. And-it tells me things. Things about you."
"So what's it telling you now?" She looks absolutely furious at me. I have to rush on, before I lose my resolve.
Suddenly, the pieces are falling into place, and I pray that I'm wrong even as I say it all. "That you're not telling the truth. That there's something you're keeping from me. And that it has to do with him. Something to do with why you want the Wild Power. And where you've been for the past year, and with why you suddenly want to protect humans. And why you say 'Goddess' when you're surprised. No vampire says that. It's a witch thing."
"Anything else?" She's beyond furious at me now, but I have to know.
"And with why you're scared of me reading your thoughts." I sigh, then put on a smile. "Told you I was observant."
"Yeah, Morgead, you're brilliant. So are you smart enough to figure out what it all means? Or just to get suspicious?"
"It means-" I can't say it! "It means ... that you're ... with Circle Daybreak."
"Very good. Two points. No, one; it took you long enough."
No. No! It can't be. Jez, my Jez, she can't be a Daybreaker! But she is, and I have to make her see reason. I grab her shoulders and shake her. "You little idiot!"
"What?" She had risen into a crouch, a fighting stance, and I unbalanced her, she is practically falling over. In shock?
"You're a Daybreaker?"
"I thought you had it all figured out." She's still sarcastic, but she's suprised too.
"I did-I guess-but I still can't believe it. Jez, why? Don't you know how stupid that is? Don't you realize what's going to happen to them?"
"Look, Morgead-" She tries to talk, to explain, but I keep babbling onward, shaking her shoulders.
"They're going to lose, Jez. It's not just going to be the Council against them now. Everybody in the Night World is going to be gunning for them. They're going to get wiped out, and anybody who sides with them will be wiped out, too."
"I'm not just siding with them. I am one of them. I'm a damned Daybreaker." She's giving me That Look. The 'I'm right and I'll kill you if you don't shut up' look. I ignore it.
"You're a dead Daybreaker! I can't believe this! How am I supposed to protect you from the whole Night World?"
"What?" She's stunned. Completely stunned. What, she thought I was going to kill her? Kill Jez? I couldn't if I wanted to.
"You heard me. I don't care who your friends are, Jez. I don't even care that you came back to use me. I'm just glad you came back. We're soulmates, and nothing can change that. Even if you won't admit it."
"Morgead ..." She just looks at me, for a long time. "I'm sorry. For all of this, Morgead-I'm sorry. It really wasn't fair for you for me to come back."
"I told you; I'm glad you did. We can work things out-if you'll just stop being so stubborn. We'll get out of this-"
"Even if we do get out of it, nothing's going to change. I can't be your soulmate, Morgead." Why not? It isn't as if we can change it or anything.
I have to convince her, I can't let her go. "Yes, you can. I told you, I don't care who your friends are. We'll keep you alive somehow. The only thing I don't understand is why you'd want to ally yourself with stupid humans, when you know they're going to lose."
Suddenly, her entire face changes. She shivers, looks down at the carpet of the van. When she finally meets my gaze, her eyes, her beautiful blue eyes, are crying. "Because I'm a human."
No. No, no, no, NO NO NO NONONONO ! She's lying again, trying to confuse me. No. It can't be, she has fangs, she drinks blood. It can't be true. No. Her parents are vampires, she's a direct descendant of Hunter Redfern. No. She's lying, that's it!
The silver cord will tell me. It'll tell me she's lying. It'll shake again, and I'll yell at her for lying to me, and everything will be fine. Even as I think it, the delusion shatters. All I feel in the link between us is pain. She's hurting badly, crying inside. I want her to feel better, but how? Every thought I've ever had about vermin, if she's right, has now blown itself to smithereens. How do I cope with that?
It can't be though, her parents were vampires, her last name is Redfern for crying out loud! It can't be. No. She has to be lying. "No! How?"
She's shaking hard, nearly hysterical. "My mom was human. They had me. no one knows how. Then, when I was three years old, people came. But they weren't vampire slayers, they were vampires! They were screaming, 'Kill the freak!' and they were screaming it at me. At me, Morgead! I didn't remember it until that last day, when I heard that poor guy begging for mercy. Then, well I couldn't kill him. So you know what? I moved in with my mother's family. That's my cousin Claire. Hugh helped me join Daybreak, and now I'm the vampire slayer. I hunt down vampires who hurt humans for fun, and I kill them.
"Now, are you going to kill me, or is the engagement just off?" She's shaking so badly. I want to run to her, hold her. But I can't. She's vermin! My Jez! No, it can't be. It just can't.
"But you have powers!"
"Only when I drink blood. I've been clean for a year." She makes it sound like a drug or something! But it was, a voice in the back of Morgead's mind whispered. It's a drug you can't live without.
"Maybe you should drink your friends, then, because any minute now-," he started to say, when the van lurched to a halt.
Jez just looked at him, her blue eyes flashing. "Look, Morgead. These humans are my friends, and I won't let anything happen to them. I don't expect you to try and save them, but don't get in my way." As she finished, the door to the van was opened. The sunlight was bright, blinding them both... TO BE CONTINUED