“The reason the Junta is after you may not be because we've told you the truth," Eli said. "There’s another reason. David has begun to exhibit special abilities."
I was stumped. I didn't see why that would cause the council to come after me. I looked at Eli with my angry face on and waited for him to clarify.
"If you remember," Anthony said, "only pureblood Supay have ever exhibited abilities. Your sons aren't pureblood."
I jerked my head to face Anthony in shock. “Then why do they have abilities?”
Elias continued. "Danyelus told us while we were at the manor—that's part of what took me so long to get back to you. They were telling me their suspicions. David is starting to go through puberty. His aging process will slow, and he'll begin to crave blood. Danyelus and Tammy have been taking him into town to walk around the local mall and be around humans. It's important he not be secluded as he changes from child to grown Supay."
"Why?" I asked.
"He’d be fine while he was away from humans. He’d drink bagged blood. But being confronted all at once with human smells and sounds could push him over the edge. He might kill," said Anthony.
"If he’s around humans while his cravings start to build, he'll be accustomed to fighting off the urges. Anyway, Danyelus noticed a strange phenomenon as David walked around among the humans." Elias continued the story. "Humans started following David. He seems to be entrancing people without trying."
"I thought that was Michael's ability, entrancing humans," I said, missing the point.
"Right. Michael entranced humans, and Anthony can calm them. But the children of pure Supay and humans havenevermanifested any abilities. Also, Danyelus wasn't able to find any record of a child manifesting their parent's same ability."
Anthony took their mugs to the sink as he continued the explanation. "Not only is David showing the same abilities, but they’re also multiplied tenfold. Michael had to focus to snare one human, and he was near adulthood before his power manifested. David is at the beginning of puberty and already stronger than Michael ever aspired to be."
"He's always been a bright, energetic kid. I'm not surprised he’d be special," I said with pride.
“Riley, it's not just that he's special," Elias said as Anthony grabbed my dishes and washed them. "He'stoospecial. For him to have this ability, it means that both of his parents must also be special. They must both be Unseen."
Here we go again. Unseen. They think I’m a vampire or something? This is getting ridiculous.
"Am I in a novel? My life is being written into a novel, isn't it? Am I breaking the fourth wall right now?” Hysteria rose up my throat. “This is a hundred percent ridiculous! I'm not some distant relative of an Unseen creature! I've read this book. It ends in heartbreak. It's a fluke that David is showing extra-strong powers." I grew more panicked, overwhelmed. “I don’t want to die in a bloodbath, guys. That’s not how I should go out. I want to grow old and have more babies, watch my babies have babies, and be a cranky old Southern woman, and I want to—”
"Riley!" Anthony exclaimed, shattering the mug in his hand. "Stop being so obstinate! Yes, this is a large pill to swallow, but thisisreal life—it happens to be crazier than you imagined. We’re on your side. We’re hiding you from those that want to harm or study orbreed withyou. We’re proposing a solution, a way to help you stay with your children.” I gaped at him while he ranted, and blood dripped down his hand. “And we're willing to make this journey with you, leaving our own children behind, and possibly die beside you. Can’t you see it, woman! We care about you!"
I looked ridiculous as I processed that outburst from the reserved Anthony. My mouth hung open, my eyes were wide, and my pulse raced. I stood and walked over to Anthony, partly angry at his tone of voice, partly touched. I stood in front of him as he glared down at me, undecided if I wanted to punch him or hug him. Surprising myself, I wrapped my arms around his waist and pulled him close. After reaching around me to rinse the blood from his already healed hands, he scooped me up and hugged me. I wrapped my legs around his waist and giggled.
"I'm sorry, Anthony. You've proven to me, without a doubt, that your words are true. If I wasn't convinced before, the bites last night would be proof enough that the world is so much bigger than anyone expects it to be."
Elias came up behind me and hugged both of us. I was a comforted Riley sandwich. I tried to let myself relax in relief and safety, but my mind warred with itself.
If you keep letting them comfort and fawn over you, you're going to get too used to it…I think they’re the real deal, though.
They set me down, and we moved to the table. "How can I possibly be Unseen, though? I'm not arguing with you about this, I'm curious how it could happen if you said that the Unseen gene is always dominant? And also, how could I not know?”
"That's what we don't know," said Elias. "We’re clueless. And the Junta would most likely stick you in a cell disguised as a posh room and force us to impregnate you over and over. Once the children reached puberty, they'd be monitored closely to find any possible abilities. You would probably be bred until you were too old, or your body gave out. They would say it was in the name of increasing the strength of the Supay to justify the atrocity."
"The new Fae leader of the Junta is making strides to change the ways of the Unseen world, but something of this magnitude would be out of his hands. Even the Supay elders that are unconnected to the Junta would want the same thing out of you. A hundred years ago, it wasn't uncommon to take a human woman hostage if she produced a female child. Of course, we know now it’s the man that biologically decides the sex of the baby, but there are still those who refuse to believe that." Anthony sighed, disgusted.
Elias nodded his head. "It’s one of the downfalls of long life. We find it difficult to change. Old dogs and whatnot."
I threw my hands up, exasperated. "I can't leave my children. I can't go hide and start over and pretend they don't exist. And Michael! I need to find his grave; I need to say goodbye. Since I won't let myself be taken by the Junta, I guess our only option is the underworld. Doesn't that sound like fun?" Hopeless sarcasm laced my voice.
Anthony pulled out an ancient-looking book. The cover was old, cracked brown leather and the pages were so thin they were almost transparent. "This is one of the earliest written records of our legends. Like the Inca people, our ancestors didn't develop a written language until many hundreds of years after their inception." He put on a pair of white gloves before taking up the explanation again. "When a Supay goes through their sixty-year puberty, he or she is required to read our entire history. The three of us spent years memorizing texts, travelling to other Supay settlements, and learning from other Unseen species. This book always intrigued me. It's been in our family for years. As soon as Danyelus told me what was going on with David, I thought we’d need it."
"Hold up," I interrupted. "You guys are family? I thought you were so special because you're the last two male purebloodunrelatedSupay. And what about the women? I know they're rare, but what about pureblood female Supay?"
“All three of our mothers are still alive, but we aren't related by blood," Elias said. "And Michael has a pureblood sister. She lives with her husbands and children, who are not purebloods. They live in Virginia. We each have several brothers, but none of them are pure. Our fathers were killed in a war between the Supay and the Aljans—they’re sort of like demons.”
“We were toddlers when they died,” said Anthony. “As far as anyone has been able to find, there are no more pure men. There are several pure women across the world, ranging from one baby to very, very old. Supay women are so sheltered and protected, whether pure blood or not, that more female purebloods have survived. No Supay would dream of harming a female, they don’t go to war, they do not fight. Extra care is taken so that there are no accidents. But with us being the only two men, even if we made a dozen children each, they'd only have each other to marry to keep the line alive, and then their children wouldn't be able to marry as they'd be related. So, the Supay have bidden a sad farewell to our bloodline.”
“We’re a race of hybrids,” continued Elias. “And for the most part, we're okay with that. Mainly, the regret is losing the special abilities. That’s why the Junta would be so eager to figure out what's special about you and to find a way to duplicate David's heritage."
