“Being good is easy,” Missy agreed. The flames receded until they were gone. “I am good.”

  Angela smiled and lifted the little girl onto her lap, where they snuggled for a hug that filled the cabin with relief and serenity. None of them had been sure if Missy was corrupt. Her wild mind was too hard to read. Even Jennifer couldn’t make sense of the images she saw in the girl’s mind.

  “Missy’s father is an alpha,” Tara told them nervously in the silence. “He took us from the complex after the war and went to Canada. There were others like us there. Her father wanted us to help lead, but everyone was scared of Missy’s predictions. She told them a big fire was coming. We didn’t realize Major Donner was the one supposed to deliver it. He showed up a few months after we got there. The others were thrilled to be getting help from any government, but I hate soldiers and we didn’t go to the final meeting.”

  Tara’s eyes glazed over as she recalled the nightmare. “We almost didn’t escape the flames when Donner’s men came for Missy. I killed them and took a truck. It’s hidden not far from where you found us.”

  “How many others escaped?” Angela asked as the child played with the necklace that Marc had given her. The ‘A’ shaped pendant was being twirled and spun, twirled and spun.

  “Half a dozen? Her father was with them. We got separated by the river.”

  “Did he see you?”

  “Yes,” Tara answered fearfully. “He’s not far away. We can feel him.”

  “He wants me,” Missy said suddenly. “He has questions.”

  “Questions?” Greg parroted. He’d only been observing until now, storing thoughts and information as Angela had mentally instructed.

  “He wants to know about death,” the little girl answered gravely, tucking Angela’s necklace inside her Eagle Jacket. “He wants to talk to my angel.”

  “The angel of death?” Jennifer asked, horrified. Surely, she was misunderstanding. This child couldn’t communicate with death... Right?

  “Why does he want to talk to your angel?” Angela asked.

  “I told him his death date and he wants to negotiate,” Missy replied. “He hopes to find a way in.”

  “To control the angel?” Jennifer asked, wondering if the matching clothes of the people in this van–jeans and jackets–wasn’t allowed where Tara came from. The woman kept eyeing their patches with tiny frowns.

  “He thinks he should be the one who decides life and death for the world. He has stolen more life forces than any other descendant.” Missy regarded Angela reproachfully. “More than you.”

  Angela shuddered again. The images Missy was replaying were as bad as the carnage Safe Haven had left in its wake–maybe worse, because the Canadian corpses included elderly and children. Missy’s father appeared evil and capable of killing without remorse. Angela wouldn’t know for sure until the man arrived, but as of right now, the tall, sandy blond man in Missy’s memories was on her new list as a priority target.

  “What’s your father’s name?” Angela needed to know.

  “Jack, but he gets mad when people call him Jackie,” Missy spilled, ignoring her mother’s flinch. “He likes it when they call him Big Jack Devine.”

  There was instant recognition for Angela and Greg, and Jennifer drew the reason from their thoughts. Jack Devine was a name they’d both heard from Adrian. Before Adrian’s banishment, he’d given all the top Eagles a list of people to watch out for. Devine had been at the top of it.

  “What about Kranten, Stevens, and Vlad?” Angela asked, easily remembering that the names that had brought a sense of dread to Adrian.

  “They’re with him,” Tara muttered. “Always. If not, I might have been able to kill him by now. They’re his personal defenders and they’re sick. They actually want to die for him, for the honor.”

  Tara stopped talking as coldness permeated the air.

  Angela was communicating, walls up to keep the others out, and the temperature in the van continued to drop.

  4

  “We’re pulling up now. Prepare to stop and slowly make your way into the assigned areas. The map is in the glove box or with your front passenger. I repeat, drive to your assigned place. Vehicles left without drivers will be shoved off the side of this cliff.”

  Angela snorted at Kenn’s radio call. He was a bit testy. The com truck was right behind the lead semi and Kenn was scheduled to hand the radio over to Tonya as soon as he parked it in the proper spot. After that, Kenn would stay with Marc and finish his training for these setups. Marc hadn’t dealt with this many people in such a limited space yet, but Kenn had at a bowling alley and a few other locations. Marc needed that knowledge under his belt and Kenn needed a better role model than Adrian, even if it was someone he hated.

  “The area is already secured, but it will take a few minutes to get the bathrooms set up. Stay out of the way and it’ll happen faster,” Kenn instructed.

  The new people needed these lessons on procedure and Kenn’s attitude said to pay attention. It would also remind the soldiers of their old world and let them relax a bit. The soldiers who had chosen to stay in Safe Haven were mostly draftees, but they had spent enough time in awful military care to need a firm hand.

  Angela made two gestures and immediately received a disbelieving glare. She didn’t change her expectant expression.

  Jennifer let out a grunt. “Fine.”

  “You’ll tell Kendle?” Angela confirmed.

  “Yes,” Jennifer muttered. “You know how much I adore chatting with the survival queen.”

  Angela grinned. “Yes, I do.”

  “When?”

  “Now would be best.”

  Jennifer concentrated on the woman she was coming to consider a rival and future enemy. She didn’t like Kendle one bit.

  Hey, killer! Boss wants you on the new arrival.

  Jennifer braced for a nasty response, but didn’t get one at all. She narrowed in on her prey and found the scarred island woman asleep in a rear passenger vehicle.

  Jennifer wondered what Kendle was dreaming about so deeply that she’d missed Kenn’s arrival announcement. She pried, aware of the dangers and possible bonds that could come from such contact. She entered Kendle’s dream carefully.

  Oh, God!

  Jennifer immediately hit the button on her belt. She had to interrupt that. “Kendle to the boss. Report ASAP!”

  “Copy,” Kendle answered groggily a few seconds later. She’d clearly been nudged awake.

  Jennifer thought she also detected a note of gratitude and tried to harden her heart. Kendle’s nightmares matched her own and then surpassed them. Cesar had been a cakewalk compared to what Kendle had suffered, but Jennifer didn’t want to feel sympathy for the island woman–mainly because of Adrian. As long as that former leader had a way in, he would always be able to cause problems and Jennifer resented that. Kyle should have received orders to kill him. Jennifer had voted for it and she wasn’t sorry, though she did understand Angela’s reason for not doing it. Adrian was a library of knowledge, but he was also a traitor and they couldn’t forget that, or worse, actually forgive it.

  Jennifer peered at her newest duty and found the little girl staring at her fearfully.

  “What?” Jennifer snapped, suddenly cold to her bones.

  “She lied.”

  Jennifer felt her stomach drop. “Excuse me?”

  Missy opened her mouth to reveal more, but the van became icy and Missy’s head snapped toward Angela.

  “I mean that,” Angela stated evenly. “In time, it’ll be proven, but you have to control yourself. If you’re not sure, ask me.”

  Missy’s stubborn expression held for only a moment, and then her head dropped and she returned to picking threads from the hole in the seat.

  Angela glared at Tara before Jennifer could form the next logical question. “Why doesn’t she know the rules yet? How can she communicate so easily if she’s wild? What are you lying about?”

  “She’s not hiding anything!” Tara insisted. “Her gifts are frightening and she’s never been around people who needed her to act normal. In the labs, they kept her wild to promote her powers.”

  “What gift?” Angela demanded, though she knew already. Little Missy was currently predicting the fates of people in this van, and Angela noted each one. Missy had all of the same gifts that she did, and then a few more, it appeared.

  “She sees...events.”

  “Lots of descendants do. Your group didn’t have a witch?” Greg asked. Like Angela, he was confident there was more to this story than what they were being told.

  “Not like Missy,” Tara confided lowly. “She predicts endings, based on shifting choices and changes.”

  Tara heard the silence and didn’t think they understood. “She detects your exact death, based on each choice you make.”

  Angela gave Jennifer a pointed glance.

  Jennifer sighed. “Yes. As soon as we’re set up? Marc won’t like us roaming yet.”

  “Now, would be better,” Angela repeated.

  Jennifer obediently left the vehicle that was already surrounded by the Eagles on Angela’s protection detail. Kyle’s team appeared tense and Jennifer approved. They were only safe as long as they remembered there was danger everywhere.

  The Eagles on duty around the waiting convoy understood Jennifer was on orders from the boss, and didn’t comment. They were all Angela’s rules now, and if she was breaking them, there was a good reason. It did make them nervous, though.

  Jennifer smiled at Kyle as she passed by him and got a leer in return. She blushed and continued, aware of the snickering and approving murmurs. The camp had flipped completely since Kyle’s beating and Angela’s rescue. Jennifer suspected her request for another son had traveled throughout the herd, but mostly, it was Kyle and Autumn who were changing minds. Watching him care for a newborn was enough to soften anyone.

  Jennifer tapped on the door before entering the noisy living area for the youngest kids. She spent a moment with the happy children, but didn’t linger to help Peggy get the gum out of the hair of two of them. Both of those kids were sporting vivid red orbs as they sat with their coloring books, and Jennifer wondered if Angela had this issue covered yet. Descendant kids were powerful.

  Stepping over toys and pieces of food the kids had scattered, Jennifer made her way to the rear of the camper, where Cynthia was on duty.

  “Hey.”

  The reporter’s shirt was stained, short, dark hair wild, and posture defeated. She didn’t respond.

  Jennifer slid into the sticky booth across from Cynthia, wiping her hand down her jeans. “You okay?”

  Cynthia’s attention was on Hilda, who was trying to change a diaper on a squirming mass of hands and hair. “Earlier, we hit a bump while she was doing that and a pile of shit actually floated through the air.”

  Cynthia glanced down. “I caught it with my hands. Ever had a shit shower? It’s lovely.”

  That explains the smell, Jennifer thought, frowning. “You don’t sound okay.”

  “I’m not.” Cynthia’s tone sharpened. “What does the boss want this time?”

  “Babysitting,” Jennifer answered, noting the tone that said Cynthia had been pushed over the line and then a bit further.

  “I’m doing that,” Cynthia replied tonelessly. “Did you know that kids this age never shut up? I swear, the one in the red sweater doesn’t even breathe between babbles.”

  Jennifer didn’t snicker. She had great sympathy for Cynthia, and didn’t want to make things worse, even accidentally.

  “Who is it?” Cynthia asked suddenly. She had hoped to work on the outline for the first edition of her newspaper, but that idea had been given up hours ago. “And why me?”

  “New people we picked up on the way. Mother and daughter,” Jennifer informed her. “You have duty over the daughter.”

  “Great,” Cynthia cracked sarcastically. “Who has the mother?”

  Jennifer’s voice lowered. “Kendle.”

  “Must be trouble.” Cynthia’s face darkened as she swept the kids. “Thank God. Let’s go.”

  “I was summoned?”

  Kendle was near the door as Cynthia and Jennifer came from the noisy camper.

  “Boss wants you on the new arrival,” Jennifer stated, refusing to stare at Kendle’s scars. She now knew the source of them and thought Kendle was incredibly strong to have survived. It didn’t make her like the island woman, however. It would take more than pity to accomplish that.

  “They must be special,” Kendle tried to confirm subtly. She couldn’t find many other reasons for Angela assigning her to monitor someone. She was dangerous. So must her ward be.

  “Her and the daughter are descendants,” Jennifer revealed. “Cyn here, has the kid.”

  “Sweet,” Kendle smirked. She felt no sympathy for the reporter’s pregnancy problems. “Where are they?”

  “With the boss.” Jennifer led the way. “She doesn’t believe most of their story. Store details, both of you. She’ll ask for them later.”

  It should have felt odd to be taking orders from someone so young, but Jennifer had proven herself deadly and it showed, even in her stride. She was no longer scared of the world or those in it. Only the people she loved could be used against her now and she guarded them fiercely.

  “Got a short note here, folks. Some good news,” Kenn’s voice echoed across the stopped convoy. “The Eagles need new rookies. Everyone who fought in the last month is eligible! The signup sheet is at the com truck. Stop by at any point today, after we’re set up.”

  The van door slid open as the trio of women arrived and the little girl barreled out of Angela’s arms with a wild shout. She leapt straight at Kendle, who was forced to catch the sweaty child or fall.

  Kendle staggered, but kept them upright, and Missy cackled happily at the juggling. “Like you! Fun!”

  Kendle’s heart melted despite her cold exterior. The scars usually drew the opposite reaction from children. It was another part of her life that Ethan had stolen. She couldn’t imagine ever having her own now.

  “You’re gonna watch over me?”

  Kendle smiled at the girl, thinking they had the exact same shade of black hair. “Yeah. I could kill for you, if I had to.”

  Becoming aware of the silence, Kendle shifted the now humming girl to her hip and growled at the gawking members around them. She hadn’t readjusted to the fame yet.

  Jennifer and Cynthia cackled.

  “Guess we’re doing a switch,” Angela stated casually, glad the more observant, experienced members weren’t around. Marc would see through this in about ten seconds. She would have to keep him busier than she’d planned. “Kendle and Cynthia will be Missy’s settling partners for now. Kendle has nights.”

  “What the hell did I do to you?” Cynthia barked in annoyance. She didn’t like Kendle anymore than she did kids.

  “Jennifer will assist Tara until this evening, and then someone else will take over that post,” Angela stated.

  All the females swallowed their protests as Angela left.

  Angela strode to Shane next and he took his notebook out as she joined him. The expression she wore said there was work waiting.

  “Take Jax to the lumber yard we rolled by. Bring everything on this list. We’ll have a dumpsite cleared for it. Keep good records of what you collect.”

  Shane took the paper and peered at the trees around them, then their tops and the jagged cliffs above. “Lumber?”

  “We’re not lumberjacks,” Angela explained. “We’ll use the piles of sorted, precut wood in the stores that are waiting on an industrious person to gather them. It leaves the trees around our base for winter if we need them.”

  “Which means we won’t have to travel as far in the snow,” Shane realized. “Good idea!”

  “It also gives us time to figure out how to harvest these trees without getting hurt or taking too many,” Marc pointed out as he joined them. He pressed a quick kiss to Angela’s warm cheek. “It was a terrific idea.”

  “When should we go?” Shane asked, thinking Angela was tired. The bags under her eyes hadn’t faded from her time with Donner yet and many of the Eagles were watching for signs that she needed a break. Everyone knew her losing the baby would have bad effects on Safe Haven.

  “By dawn,” Angela answered. “Get rolling on it now. You don’t need to wait for Kenn’s clearance call.”

  Shane was gone an instant later, suddenly excited. A lumberyard would have more than lumber. This was an opportunity for their team to make a big score and add early points.

  Shane spotted Nancy going the way he’d come from and found himself hoping she joined the Eagles soon. If she could be one of them, he would show his interest. Until then, it was expected that the male Eagles would take strong partners who could fight alongside them. Shane agreed. When Nancy joined, he would make his move, but not a minute before that. He refused to carry anyone, including his woman.

  “They’re switching shifts without Dog here to tell them it’s time,” Angela commented once they were alone.

  Marc followed her line of sight to the ants on the perimeter. They were neatly changing positions, and then patiently waiting around for the feeding that now came after mess. The ants were still getting scraps, and a portion of actual supplies as well. Angela had promised them protection and care, and she was honoring her deal.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I’m good,” she responded too brightly. “You?”

  Marc pinned her with a dark glare. “Liar.”

  “I’m a little tired, a little hungry, and distracted,” she said resignedly. She put a hand on his big arm and let her wall down.

  In her mind was the huge construction project he’d glimpsed in Jennifer’s thoughts. Only this was ten times the size, with shiny gold threads stacking into a starless night. It was a massive undertaking.

  “What is it?” he asked, surveying the rafters and beams of light.

  “The future,” Angela answered gravely. “Ours, theirs, and those not yet born to us.”