Ruins

“Three minutes ago you didn’t think I’d made it either,” said Kira. “They’re resourceful; they’ll make it through.”

“Can we have this conversation when they’re no longer pointing guns at us?” asked Marcus. “I am just as fascinated as you are, but it’s hard to concentrate with a gun in my face.”

“How many of you are Partials?” asked Haru. Samm, Ritter, and the three others raised their hands. Calix stepped forward, directly in the line of Haru’s fire.

“My name is Calix,” she said, “and I can personally vouch that these men have saved my life more times than I can count. They are not a threat; they are probably your biggest asset trying to protect these people.”

“They’re Partials,” said Haru. “Kira grew up human, so I trust her, but these four could be spies, they could be assassins—they could be anything.”

“Then consider for a moment that they could be friends,” said Calix. “It was hard for me at first, too, but I’ve trusted my life to them, and they’ve never let me down.”

Haru stared at the Partials, tightening his grip on the pistol. After a moment he spoke again. “Kira, you saved my daughter’s life—whatever else you’ve done, you did that. If you tell me we can trust these men, I’ll believe you.”

“You can,” said Kira. “And the woman behind you, too.”

Haru lowered his gun. “Who?” He turned around and Heron stepped out of a shadow, lowering her own gun with a blank expression. Haru considered her carefully. “After that, why should I trust you?”

Heron smiled. “Because you’re still alive.”

Haru glowered, but after a moment he reholstered his pistol and waved away the guards. “The world has changed, and I’m not quite used to the new one yet. Kira and Marcus consider you friends, so you’re welcome here.”

“We understand,” said Samm. “I’m glad to hear that your daughter is safe.”

Haru glowered again, clearly conflicted about receiving good wishes from a Partial, but he didn’t say anything out loud. Kira stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Tell me about Isolde and her baby,” she said. “How did—she?—survive the initial symptoms of RM?”

“It’s a boy,” said Haru, “named Mohammad Khan. And the baby never had RM. He’s a hybrid.”

Kira frowned. “What does that mean?”

Haru shook his head. “So you don’t know. Well, we have a lot to talk about.”

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

“I still can’t believe it,” said Kira. Darkness was falling, and they were sitting in their assigned house: Kira tending the fire while Samm and the Third Division soldiers insulated the windows with couch cushions and mattresses. “Ariel and Isolde are Partials, like me—my sisters are my actual sisters, in some giant, cosmic sense.”

“If they’re still alive,” said Marcus. “I’m not trying to kill the buzz, but the odds are against it.”

“They’re alive,” said Kira. “Screw the snow, screw the nuke, screw the island full of revenge-fueled super-soldiers, they’re alive.”

Marcus held up his hands in a gesture of peace. “Okay, they’re alive.”

“Four more days of ferrying people in boats,” said Calix. “You really think we can do it?”

“You mean get off the island?” asked Kira.

“I mean stay alive for four days.”

Kira poked at the fire. “I hope so. Even if we do, it’s not going to mean anything if we can’t convince the Partial army to join us.”

“There hasn’t been any sign of them,” said Marcus. “None of the explosive traps have gone off, none of the outposts have been attacked, nothing.”

“Rotor,” said Heron, sitting by the wide front window they’d left open for smoke. She was staring outside, and as Kira looked over, Heron pointed up at the sky. “It’s running dark, but you can see its shape blocking out the stars in the background.”

Samm walked over to look, the rest of the group close behind him. “Does the invasion force have rotors? They weren’t using them when they were chasing us.”

“The storm was too strong,” said Ritter. “They wouldn’t have been useful.”

“It’s not the army,” said Kira, “it’s the Blood Man.”

Samm peered at the sky. “You mean your—”

“He’s not my father,” said Kira. “Get your gear. If he’s here, he’ll be looking for ‘donors.’ Phan, run to the command center and warn Haru, tell him to put everyone on alert.” She pulled on her weather-beaten jacket and picked up her rifle, the others already scrambling for their own weapons. “The rest of you get outside, and get up on the rooftops where you can see. We’re going to find where he lands, and we’re going to stop him.”

“There’s no way we can do it while he’s got that rotor,” said Samm. “He can drop, kill, and take off again before we can catch him.”

“We don’t have to catch him,” said Kira, slapping a magazine home in her rifle. “We’re going to get his attention, and he’s going to come for me.”