BirthMark (8 page)

“Two of each.”

Siseria gasped. Julie shushed her.

Jasmine watched but didn’t say anything.

“Are you going to breed more children?” Julie asked.

“I don’t know. I have to think about it.”

“That’s the trick, you know,” Julie said, moving closer to the edge of the thin mattress. Jasmine got a good look at her face for the first time and gasped softly.

“
What happened?”
Silas asked.

“
Nothing, I just saw the claw marks on her face.”

“
Oh yeah. I heard about that. Ask her what she means by the trick
,” Silas said.

“No, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jasmine said, looking Julie in the eyes.

“Thoughts. They are the trick for regulating our bodies,” Julie said softly. The claws had slashed from the side of her eye down to her chin, splitting her upper and lower lips. The wound had healed leaving the lip split and deep marks in her face. Jasmine wondered why it hadn't healed cleanly.

“Thoughts,” Jasmine said, tearing her gaze from Julie’s eyes and looked at her brutalized face.

“Yes. Think back on when you were impregnated with the Patron’s seed. You had to have thought of children, maybe remembered fondly when your sons were younger, and a desire was birthed from that. It would have set your pheromones in action preparing your womb to conceive. You control your body. When you want children again, just think about it and give your body permission.”

It couldn’t be that simple. “Birth control pills, IUD?”

“Won’t work. The only birth control for us is in our minds. We use untapped energy from our brain and focus it inward. It’s not that much different from what the Patron does. Although from what I’ve heard, his energy levels are off the charts,” Julie said emphatically. “But back to breeders, most don’t know how to tap into their natural energies and think they don’t have a choice. Not that it’s easy,” Julie warned. “Women have a natural desire to reproduce. You have to fight against that for this to work.”

Siseria nodded. Her limp, dull blonde hair barely moved. “Julie’s right.”

I need to tell mama about this, Jasmine thought as she watched the woman lick her lips repeatedly without taking a break.
What’s wrong with her?

“
What
?” Silas asked.

“
She keeps licking her lips.”

“
Ask her.”

Normally, Jasmine would never ask such a personal question, but time was of the essence and she needed to be sure the woman didn’t have some kind of infection or something. “Why do you keep licking your lips?”

“Huh?” Julie said.

Jasmine pointed at Siseria. “She keeps licking her lips. Why?”

“She wants to breed but is fighting the need.”

Jasmine jerked back and looked at Julie. “What? She wants babies and is fighting it? Why the hell is she doing that?”

Julie crossed her arms and pursed her lips. “Because we are committed to never birthing pups again. Things are escalating and we don’t plan to be casualties of war.”

“What the hell are you talking about and what does that have to do with her wanting to have sex and get knocked up?” Jasmine asked, exasperated with the circles in the conversation.

Julie’s hands flew up and waved around the room. “All of this is for the cause, Jasmine. I was recruiting you for the side of good, but you…” she pointed at Jasmine and sniffed. “You choose the animals. Well, you’re going to wish you had listened to me. Just wait,” she said self-righteously.

Jasmine leaned forward in her chair and pointed. “You wanted me to give you my babies. Hell, I don’t know you. Why would I give a stranger my kids? You crazy.”

“To save them. To prepare them, you selfish bitch,” Julie yelled.

Glaring at the woman, Jasmine jumped up wishing she could just smack the woman and leave, but that wouldn’t get them the answers they needed. She needed to be mature about this. Her security guard made a step in her direction, she waved him down.

“Prepare them for what?” Jasmine asked in what she hoped was a calm voice.

“
Good girl.”
She heard Silas say.

Julie laughed and lay back on the bed. “I’m not telling you.”

Gritting her teeth, Jasmine glanced at Siseria and then at Jaree. She arched her brow. Somebody in this room was going to tell her what she needed to know today. “Jaree come here.”

The large guard strode forward and nodded. Jasmine glanced at Siseria. The woman had stopped licking her lips and stared hungrily at the tall blond man with mint green eyes who stood in front of her.

“Stop… shoo, go away you big wolf,” Julie screamed, jumping off her bed and running to the bars between their cages. “No Siseria, no.” She reached for the other woman and failed, but that didn’t stop her from trying. “Leave her alone, just leave her alone.”

“Go back,” Jasmine said softly to her guard, feeling guilty at the look of longing in Siseria’s eyes. “Step outside for a minute, give her a chance to pull it together.”

He looked at Siseria and then at her before opening the door and taking a step outside. She noticed the door wasn’t closed tight but doubted the women would pick up on it.

“Prepare them for what?” she asked Julie again.

“I can’t tell you.” The woman sounded genuinely regretful.

Jasmine nodded. “Siseria, what did y’all want to prepare my children for? If you don’t tell me, I’m going to call three men in here and they will not leave until you are breeding. Is that what you want?”

“Stop it, damn you. Can’t you see she’s weak?” Julie yelled.

Jasmine thought of her four kids upstairs in bed and the bomb that'd went off less than an hour ago. The lives of everyone she loved were in jeopardy.
Weakness worked for her
. “Siseria, why do they want my babies?” she asked again in a more demanding voice.

“They are going to determine the future of the war. If we can teach them the ways of Nicromja, then the breeds will defeat the wolves. But you have sons and daughters, that complicates matters. We don’t know which will lead. Your house may be divided.”

What the hell? “Who or what is Nicromja?” Jasmine asked.

Siseria smiled. “He is our Patron.”

“She answered your questions, now leave her alone. Siseria, lay back and rest. Be easy,” Julie said, but Siseria didn’t respond. She continued sitting on the edge of the bed, looking straight ahead and licking her lips.

“A Patron like Silas?” Jasmine asked, not liking the idea of two of them walking around.

“No. Silas is a toy for his Goddess. Ask the Goddess who Nicromja is.”

Puzzled, Jasmine leaned forward. “Why ask her, don’t you know?”

Siseria looked her in the eye, Jasmine gasped at the raw pain she saw reflected there. Whatever was going on with this woman was taking a serious toll. “Who changes life from the seed? Humans? Wolves? No. We are pawns in this game. It is being played on a chessboard none of us can see.”

Jasmine froze as the wisdom of the softly spoken words settled on her. “Okay.” There wasn’t a whole lot she could say to that.

“
Silas ask your Goddess about Nicromja.”

“
Most definitely
,” he said tightly. “
Get more information about the pups.”

“
Babies,
” she corrected automatically. Inhaling, she glanced at a wound up Julie as she spoke to Siseria. “What makes you think one of my children will determine the outcome of the war? Why can’t it be one of yours? Or Julie’s? They’re breeds.”

“Siseria, shut your mouth. Do not answer her,” Julie gritted out.

Siseria looked at Julie and then at Jasmine. “I can’t tell you the answer.” She looked down and away.

Jasmine nodded. “Jaree?”

He stepped inside. “Yes Mistress?”

“Please remove her and take her to an empty cell in the next block.” He nodded and walked toward the cells.

“You are a horrible person, Jasmine. How could you do this to her. If he touches her…you know what will happen,” Julie screamed.

Siseria watched the big guard approach and Jasmine would swear she was drooling. He reached for Siseria’s cage and Jasmine stopped him.

“No, not her. The other one.” She pointed to Julie and the woman went ballistic, running around the small space trying to escape Jaree’s long reach. She was no match for the huge man and within moments he had the struggling woman over his shoulder. He nodded to Jasmine as he removed the screaming woman from the room.

Jasmine brushed her pants to give Siseria a second to collect herself. “Now, please answer my question. Why did the baby have to be mine?”

Siseria closed her eyes and swallowed hard. For a moment, Jasmine wasn’t sure the woman would answer. “The child had to come from the Patron’s seed since this will be his ultimate downfall. The egg had to come from a human capable of birthing wolves, because the child must be a half-breed. Your Patron is over 300 years old and favored by the Goddess, yet his seed never took root because he despised humans. You are his Eve and your babes are the forbidden fruit that will destroy him.”

Gut punched, Jasmine pinched the bridge of her nose for a few minutes before eyeing the woman. The words rang false and Jasmine lashed out. “You are lying to me. You made this up so Julie won’t be mad at you.” Jasmine stood. “Our deal is off. Jaree,” she yelled.

Siseria jumped up from the edge of the bed and ran to the bars. Her knuckled turned white beneath the pressure. “Please no…please. I can’t take it. As much as it pains me to admit it, I’m not strong like her or the others were. I have told you the truth…except…”

“Except what? Because I need some good news after that bombshell you just dropped.”

Siseria looked up at her. “Everything is fluid and depends on a series of combinations. Choices made, the environment, people we meet. That’s why we wanted the children to control all those things.”

Jasmine looked at the woman and then looked at the wall, her mind racing. “So basically what you’re saying is that in the right environment, none of what you predicted will happen,” Jasmine said, pissed at the level of adrenaline coursing through her body from that whack announcement.

Siseria licked her lips and looked around the room before speaking. “Here’s the thing you have to remember. Jacob and Esau were twins, yet they divided a nation. There is potential to do both good and evil in every person, it is how the seeds are watered that make the difference. A wise king said there is nothing new under the sun, this is an old game being played out, the difference is the players.”

Jasmine considered everything the woman said and could tell by his silence Silas was as well.
Basically, she’s saying this is out our hands, we are all pawns and must play the game to survive,
” she said to Silas.

“
You believe she’s telling the truth?”

Jasmine eyed Siseria, who had returned to the edge of her bed and was licking her lips again. Her eyes flicked all over the room, it gave Jasmine the creeps. “
Some, but not all
.”

“
I agree.”

“
I definitely don’t like your destruction being the end result,”
Jasmine said.

“
That part doesn’t sit well with me either.”

“If what Julie says is true and we control our bodies, why are you in such a bad state?” Jasmine asked the twitching woman.

Siseria wrapped her arms around herself tight. “My mate is near. He always finds me and he’s close. I can sense him. He’s close and I can’t block him out.”

“
What?”
Silas yelled. “
Leave now, Jasmine."

The woman made her nervous. “Jaree?”

“Yes, Mistress?”

“I’m ready to leave now,” she said, heading toward the door.

He waited until she was close and led her out the room. Jasmine glanced back at the chair to make sure the small listening device she placed in between the cushions couldn’t be seen. Once they had cleared all the gates and were back in the tunnels she gave Jaree his instructions. “In about an hour, have Julie returned to her cell and I want every conversation between those two monitored.”

“Yes, Mistress.” He picked up his phone and made the arrangements.

Jasmine pondered Siseria’s predictions during the walk back to her living quarters. Part of it was common sense; aside from the occasional mad scientist you see on TV, God was the only one to successfully change human biology. If some kind of cosmic chess game was being played, there wasn’t a whole lot they could do about it other than hope to be on the winning team. Silas would get more information from the Goddess and they would take it from there.

But this thing with the kids. The Jacob and Esau reference, that bugged her, and she couldn’t put her finger on the reason why. Was it because David was sickly and the rest of the kids weren’t. But Silas said David would be okay. So he wouldn’t always be sick. What was it Julie and Siseria said…something about a sign or a mark. None of her children had any distinguishable marks.