Blood Revolution (God Wars, #3) (34 page)

Gavin seemed perfectly fine with Charles's new state. Apparently they'd already held a lengthy conversation, and the world hadn't ended over it. I had no idea why that was, and still found myself wondering if the Gavin I'd known would ever show up.

I'd leaned against Charles after returning to the beach house in Port Aransas, while he and Gavin talked quietly and the others went to bed. Charles's voice eventually soothed me to sleep—he and Gavin were discussing rogues in South America.

* * *

Sunday morning dawned clear and hot, with only a thin line of clouds far to the east, turning the early-morning sunlight pink and red. Insects were already singing in the dunes when I wandered onto the deck with a cup of coffee in my hands.

My dreams had been unsettled the night before, but I couldn't recall any of them when I slipped out of bed. Charles, who'd taken me to bed the night before, had loved me, nipped my neck to intensify the climax and then soothed me whenever I jerked awake throughout the night.

"You're up early," Weldon Harper commented as he chose a deck chair near mine.

"Not a choice. Couldn't sleep," I said, sipping coffee.

"I'm old enough now that the wolf wants up before I do," Weldon grinned. "I don't argue with the wolf, much."

"Probably a wise decision," I smiled into my cup.

"Want to argue with this wolf?" Trajan pulled a deck chair alongside mine and settled his tall frame onto it.

"Why would I want to argue with you? You are kind of awesome," I said.

"Hear that? I'm awesome," Trajan grinned at Weldon over my head. He had perfect, white teeth, just as most werewolves I'd met did.

"Don't let it go to your head," Weldon grunted. "It'll have to climb too far," he added with a snicker.

"Always the height jokes," Trajan growled.

"They have to compete with your awesomeness, Trajan, so of course they'll settle for the least imaginative slights," I said.

"I think I just got insulted," Weldon sipped his coffee. Trajan laughed.

"Why wasn't I invited to this meeting?" Winkler pulled up a chair beside Weldon's. He held a huge cup of coffee in his hand, which meant that somebody might have to make more soon.

"I sent you an email about this meeting," Trajan teased.

"I don't read my email until after I've had coffee," Winkler pointed his cup at Trajan.

"I know that," Trajan said with a grin.

"Hey, stop hogging all the chairs," Trace walked out of the house, holding a cup of steaming coffee.

"I can fix that, bro," Trajan lifted me out of my seat with one arm and settled me onto his lap. "See? All done."

"Seriously?" I blinked into Trajan's dark eyes. He was still as unreadable to me as the day I'd met him in the future.

"Yeah. Seriously." Trajan's mouth curled into a smile as he leaned in and took my lips with his. Well, he wasn't wasting any time, looked like. He was just as attracted now as he was in the future. With a sigh, I slipped my arms around his neck.

"Hey now, I haven't had breakfast yet," Trace chuckled.

"I'm having mine now," Trajan kissed me again.

* * *

"Boss, I know where Breanne is. More than that, I know
when
she is," Trajan settled beside Ashe on the back deck of Ashe's huge house. "But my mind goes blank after that," Trajan growled. "Like I can't remember what happens afterward."

"What?" Ashe stared at Trajan in alarm.

* * *

"Should I go over these reports with you?" Dee handed a comp-vid to Tybus. Tybus had settled on the patio surrounding the pool behind San Gerxon Palace, to reflect on the recent events in his life. Sunlight filtered through the trees overhead, and Tybus breathed in the warmth it provided. So many years had passed since he'd been able to withstand sunlight, and now he quietly reveled in it.

"There's no need, I have sufficient memories to get me through, I believe," Tybus replied, shaking off his thoughts and accepting the comp-vid from Dee. He sighed as he entered the passcode.

"You do have the memories. Only Teeg had that passcode," Dee nodded before leaning back in the chair he'd taken beside Tybus.

"I am vampire, just as you are. I recall all that has happened and all that has been given me," Tybus said absently, already scrolling through figures and notes. "I believe we ought to eliminate this chemical—it appears to be affecting the atmosphere," he pointed to the one in question.

"Yes. I agree completely. I'll add this to the agenda for the next conclave."

"Thank you," Tybus said and went to the next page.

* * *

Breanne's Journal

The day would have been perfect, except the unsettled feeling didn't go away as the day progressed. I even mentioned it to Hank, but he didn't seem to notice anything amiss.

The hours passed and it seemed as if Hank was correct—the unsettled feeling had no foundation. Until it did.

* * *

Lissa's Journal

"Mom, this is the worst, isn't it?" Nissa twined her fingers together anxiously.

"Yes. I wanted you to know, because your older brothers know. Travis and Trent, well, that can wait until a better time."

"There's something you should know, Mom," Nissa sighed.

"What's that?"

"I heard it from Kyler and Cleo," Nissa sighed. "Everything is so messed up," she added.

"I agree about it being messed up. What did you hear from Kyler and Cleo?"

"That Amara's getting married. To Edan Desh. I hear the Saa Thalarr will offer him blood when they marry."

"Oh, Lord." My fingers shook as I raised them to my forehead. Amara was leaving my father behind—for good. She'd found someone else—a healer, this time. I'd heard she and Edan worked well together, and had a common cause of helping needy children by providing health care at no cost, but Griffin—I had no idea how he might react to this.

"Does Reah know about this?" I asked.

"I don't know. You didn't," Nissa pointed out. "Mom, we can have a memorial service on Grey Planet if you want. Nobody from the outside will ever know."

"I wonder if Griffin will ever know he lost his grandson," I muttered.

"I don't know him at all, so I can't say. Toff just sighs and looks sad whenever his name comes up."

"I understand that," I said. "I feel exactly the same."

* * *

Breanne's Journal

When the church exploded in a fireball in Maine, it made the news and everybody in the media was speculating about the cause. Bodies were hauled out, charred beyond recognition after the flames were extinguished.

That was the beginning.

Before the news crews could settle in comfortably, three more churches exploded in New York, New Hampshire and Vermont. With people beginning to reel from those reports, another ten blew up in other states. Bill got notification after the ten blew up, and then, before word could get out across the nation to evacuate churches everywhere, a church exploded in every remaining state, simultaneously. That included Alaska and Hawaii.

The news outlets were almost numb from too many disasters to report on completely. Estimates of the dead nationwide blew out of proportion. I watched in horror, my hands clutched by Hank and Charles, as we watched the reports on television. In every case, no evidence could be located as to the cause of the explosions and ensuing conflagrations. There were no survivors. Anywhere. I
Looked
for the cause, and just like many other things, it was blocked. The Sirenali had a hand in this, there was no doubt. Or an obsession, at least.

Bill had been on the phone almost constantly after the first call, and then on his laptop and Winkler's laptop, too.

"Bree," Bill came to me an hour later, looking disheveled and in shock, "Can you get me to D.C.? The President wants a meeting."

"Yeah," I rose from my spot between Hank and Charles.

"I will come." Gavin had sat silently nearby, as had Jayson, Opal and the werewolves. Hank had given Kathleen a sedative earlier; she was weeping after scenes of the carnage were televised.

"We're not getting left behind," Weldon and Winkler rose from their chairs.

"We need somebody to stay with Kathleen," Bill sighed.

"I'll stay," Jimmy said. "I'll keep her safe."

"Good," Winkler nodded to his cook. "Everybody else, let's ride with Bill."

* * *

Surprisingly enough, we were allowed into the meeting this time. I think the President wanted as many opinions as possible, and he trusted Bill's judgment on who to bring in. Bill pulled all of us in.

"We have a theory," Bill said when the President came to him after talking to the FBI Director, the CIA Director and a few generals and admirals.

"Let's hear it," the President sighed.

"You'll think it's outrageous at first, but hear us out," Bill said.

"All right, tell us."

"Bree?" Bill turned to me. I swallowed hard.

* * *

"I'm having trouble with this," Dan Kelsey, the FBI Director, said as a three-dimensional image of a Sirenali hovered over the center of the meeting table.

"I'm not sure this is all that's responsible, either," Bill said. "It's just that Breanne can't seem to see past these obsessions to get to the underlying causes or find any other participants."

"You're telling me that any one of us could fall victim to one of these things?" A general from South Carolina said, his Southern accent drawing out his words.

"Yes. But there isn't anyone inside this room that has been victimized," I said.

"How the hell can she tell that?" the general turned to the admiral on his left.

"It's a special talent, and shouldn't be taken lightly," Bill said. Poor Bill—this could cost him his job if nobody supported him in this.

"Frankly, anybody who can put up three-dimensional images and tell me what I had for lunch today gets my vote," another general remarked. "That's beside the fact that she survived what should have killed her years ago."

Yeah, they all knew who I was. Recognized me immediately, in fact. I was waiting for the meeting to be over so I could hyperventilate in a seemingly proper fashion somewhere else.

"How do we track this thing?" someone else asked.

"That's the trouble—it's difficult without some kind of information to go on," I said. "The last time I killed one, I just happened across her—almost by accident."

"We're fucked," Dan Kelsey slapped a hand on the table.

* * *

"There has to be at least twenty or thirty chimeras," Hank and Jayson had worked out the logistics with Bill after the meeting adjourned. Nobody had a clear picture as to what to do—all they could say was that everybody needed to stay away from church. Well, that wouldn't sit well with a bunch of people, for obvious reasons.

The President asked to schedule another meeting the following day, but without new evidence, I didn't see that it would do any good at all.

"Bree," Bill sighed, "If we go to some of those churches tomorrow morning, can you, Charles and Hank sniff around with the wolves?"

"I'll go," I nodded. "I just don't want to be photographed or recorded."

"I'll make sure you're not," he nodded. "I figure at this point the conspiracy crazies are in with your Sirenali, and they're all going nuts."

"Why would they hit churches? I thought the conspiracy crazies were all conservative or fundamental," I blinked at Bill without finishing my question. "Never mind. With a Sirenali involved, that's a really stupid question."

* * *

"You can't let this destroy your good sense," Wylend cautioned. "Brenten, you have no jealousy, remember?"

"She is doing this to hurt me," Griffin muttered angrily. "Like I hurt her."

"You're saying she doesn't love him? That this is revenge?" Wylend sounded skeptical. "That doesn’t sound like the Amara I know."

"Our child died, Wylend, because I refused to see what was in front of me. Why wouldn't she want revenge for that?"

"Griffin?" Renegar appeared in Griffin's kitchen.

"Ren?" Griffin studied the Larentii Nameless One, his gaze troubled.

"I have received a message. You must travel with me to Avendor. Someone there has a confession to make."

"What the hell?" Griffin rose from his seat.

"I wish to come," Wylend stood.

"Then come," Renegar said sternly and folded Wylend and Griffin away.

* * *

The Shining One known as The Ear stood nearby, watching Thurlow carefully. This involved Thurlow's previous existence as Thorsten, and Thurlow was ashamed. Nevertheless, he'd been commanded to reveal the truth and he would do so.

* * *

"I should have known," Griffin snarled at Thurlow the moment Renegar appeared with him and Wylend.

"Do you think that our long feud does not make me ashamed now?" Thurlow's face bore lines of sorrow, something unusual for even the lowest in the Hierarchy of gods.