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Andreas shoots me a curious look. “What?”
“We can’t get the other shadowbloods to listen to us when they’re roaming around, and as long as they’re on the loose, they’ll keep attacking people. So we’ll just have to restrain them. Capture them and hold them someplace where they can’t do any more damage while we figure out how to get through to them.”
Jacob frowns. “Stick them in a sort-of prison. Like the guardians were always doing. Like Balthazar did.”
The truth of his words makes my stomach churn, but I barrel onward. “It isn’t the same. We’d be doing it so that we cansavethem, not to use them. And the fact that the guardians could do it without any powers of their own proves that we should be able to round the rogue shadowbloods up too, especially with help from the shadowkind.”
And it’s a lot better than asking Sorsha to simply incinerate them all.
Dominic nods slowly. “We’ll need to figure out a place where we can catch them where we shouldn’t be interrupted like last night. And we’d need to go in looking to disable them or knock them out right from the start, no trying to talk and giving them the chance to prepare for an attack.”
“Howarewe going to capture them?” Zian asks. “They’re pretty good at fighting back. Even if we can surprise them…”
I turn back to Rollick. “We’ll need to come up with a plan with any shadowkind allies who have abilities that would allow them to overpower people without doing major damage.”
The demon rubs his chin. “I can think of a few already who’d be well-suited to that task.”
I glance around at the guys. “I’m not sure how useful the rest of us will be toward that goal… Andreas could confuse them with projected memories, but Griffin hasn’t been able to impose any emotions on them before. I guess Zian and Jacob and I could slow them down by breaking bones, but… that’ll just make them angrier, and it won’t get in the way of a lot of their powers.”
“There are a lot of them,” Griffin points out. “It’ll be difficult to tackle them all at once effectively.”
“Yeah.” I hesitate, my mind spinning, and then the idea hits me like a punch to the chest. “Balthazar managed it, though. He stopped all of us and Sorsha when we came after him at his mountain base—with the device that made that awful sound. It was impossible to concentrate enough to aim our talents. That should work on the other shadowbloods too.”
Zian cocks his head. “And the rest of us… wear earplugs?”
I can’t restrain a laugh. “Whatever works. They’ll need to be really good earplugs, but we already thought of that when we were worried about Balthazar trying it on us again.”
A pleased gleam has come into Rollick’s eyes as he watches us pull our scheme together. He motions toward the TV. “You’ll also need a means of determining where your fellow shadowbloods might go next—and I think we may have that right here.”
A group of silver-helmed figures have appeared on the screen. As I shift my attention to the interview being conducted, one of them pumps his fist in the air.
“We won’t be knocked down, no matter what those fiends try to throw at us! Just let them try any of that BS in Chicago.”
A shiver runs down my back. “You think the rogue shadowbloods will see that and take the challenge?”
Rollick offers me a small smile. “I wouldn’t be surprised. They do seem to be rather impulsive. And Chicago is along the trajectory they were already on. I’d imagine our best strategy would be to check for other similar declarations in the area and then monitor which direction the kids you can track start heading in.”
And then we attack. I drag in a breath, repeating to myself that we’re doing the right thing, that this is the best option we have.
Then I reach toward the bedside table for my phone. “I’m going to call Toni and see what she can tell us about Balthazar’s tech. He used us in plenty of ways. Now we might as well use whatever we can from him.”
Twenty-Two
Jacob
I’m starting to realize that I have a love-hate relationship with watching Riva in action.
Nothing can compare to the fire that comes into her bright brown eyes when she focuses all her determination on a goal. She lights up with the energy that carries through every brisk movement, turning her seemingly delicate body into a force of nature.
It’s a hell of a lot better than the deflated hopelessness that’s come over her at the worst of times. Seeingthatalways makes me want to tear the rest of the world apart until I reach whatever’s hurting her.
But gearing up for a fight involves more than just determination and energy. As she stalks through her new hotel room, tension hardens the set of her shoulders and the curl of her fingers. Her eyes burn with worry as well as resolve.
This woman cares so much about so many people. I can’t complain about that, since I’m lucky enough to be one of those people.
But the stress of wanting to protect them all, save them all, digs into her with each passing minute when she hasn’t accomplished it yet.
Now, she spins on her heel toward the door with a swing of her braid. “I should check in with Rollick’s people again. Go over the plan one more time.”
