Shadow Breeds

Chapter 24

Ashe

The poor kid did not take well to waking up with his target sitting on his stomach. After attempting, and failing, many times to get me off of him he finally gave up. "What's the deal? I gave you the info you wanted!" The fear in his eyes as evident as the sun after a stormy week.

"Well at least he hasn't lost any memory," August's voice sounded from next to me, although it held an emotion I wasn't sure I'd ever heard from him. I looked up and curiously met his eyes from where I sat, "yes, this will be a huge benefit. So why don't you sound happy?" His cheeks tinted pink slightly, not enough for the others to notice but I did. "I think maybe you should get up and let the boy breath now," he rubbed the back of his neck, flinching slightly as I jumped up.

"Are you calling me heavy?" I asked sarcastically. Clovella giggled in the corner but Oakley quickly slapped her own hand over Clovella's mouth. Magna looked as though she wanted to smack August upside the head with her pocketbook, if she had one. He'd quickly tossed his hands up in a surrendering motion, "that's not what I meant! I- I just think we'd get more done a lot faster if you weren't...y'know, sitting on the guy."

Clovella's laughter bursted out from behind Oakley's hand and we all turned to her, confused expressions fanned across our faces. Even James seemed curious. "Sorry it's just," another brief moment of laughter before she continued, "it's just that I've never seen August get jealous before."

His face turned crimson and everyone except August, Magna and James laughed at the comment. He cleared his throat, "anyways, we should get on with this." Oakley, Magna and a still snickering Clovella filled the small cell and formed a slight circle around James, who appeared to become nervous as we did so. "If you're going to kill me, at least make it quick. I'm going to die either way so there's no use in me fighting off one death just to meet another," he mumbled.

I cocked my head to the side, taken a little off guard by James' statement. "We aren't going to kill you, you haven't given us a reason to yet," I held out a hand to help him to his feet as I spoke. "We have an offer for you," James sighed as he pointlessly wiped the dirt off his clothes. "And what might that be?" He said, clearly still not believing that he could get out of this alive.

"You're human, correct?"

"Obviously, yes."

"You weren't given a choice in your fate though, also correct?" He nodded slowly, his face morphing into an expression of interest.

This time Magna spoke up, "we can give you that. All we ask is that you help us map out where our enemies are typically stationed, meeting spots, where they plan to attack and anything else the others can think of." James dropped his head in thought for a moment before lifting it again, "how do I know I'll get to live? If you set me free, eventually Loralai or one of her workers will find and murder me anyways."

August spoke now, "we can send you anywhere in the world with enough money to last until you've gotten yourself a normal job." He looked skeptical of the whole idea, but I knew how to convince him. "You could live a normal life, in peace and away from the chaos of the supernatural world. Loralai and her army will never find you, ever," he bit his lip anxiously, still unsure. "I've never lived a normal life..."

"It's never too late to learn," Oakley spoke up softly and offered him a gentle smile. With that, he nodded, "then let's get started."