Deadly Call
Authors: Martha Bourke
Martha Bourke
A New Breed Novel
Deadly Call
Copyright © 2013 Martha Bourke
All rights reserved
Cover Art by Natasha Brown
Edited by Debra Hartmann
Book design by Rachelle Ayala Publishing
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. And any resemblance to actual events, persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Printed in the United States of America
This one’s a shout out to my girls:
Faith, Krissy, Tracy, Tasha, Uxia, and Josie.
You’re the best friends anyone could ask for.
I’m in awe of each of you every day in so many ways.
Take no prisoners!
camzah
(n.) Mayan term for teacher; mentor
den
(n.) Where a group of
hellions
live together as a clan, often in abandoned buildings.
gleam
(v.) The ability to open and pass through portals at will in order to move any distance. Only New Breeds possess this power. To the naked eye, it appears as though the shifter has simply vanished or appeared out of nowhere.
the Goddess Akina
(pr. n.) Maya Goddess of Love and the Moon who was destroyed by her fellow gods for aiding an enemy soldier during a celestial war. Still exists in spirit form. Created the New Breed shifters to battle Toltec.
hellions
(n.) Genetically altered shifters created and controlled by Toltec.
Hellions
are physically stronger than common shapeshifters, although the change in their genes leaves them with almost no remaining
k’ul
. This unnatural balance leaves them seeking to possess the
k’ul
of other shifters, even though it is only temporary. If they take all of another shifter’s
k’ul
, that shifter will die. They are considered abominations.
in lak'ech ala k'in
(n.) Mayan term used in formal greeting between shifters and often as words of endearment with loved ones. Loosely translates to, “I am you, you are me.” Often accompanied by placing the fist over the heart.
the Initiative
(pr. n.)
Program started by Victrixa Mata to kill shifters and steal their
naguals
.
k’ul
(n.) Supernatural energy that resides in the earth and all living beings. Vital life force in nature. Different beings hold different amounts of this energy. Humans in general have very modest amounts, whereas shifters have much higher levels. New Breeds have by far the most
k’ul
. All shifters are able to identify other beings by sensing how much of this life energy they carry.
K’ul
is also connected to the lifespan of shifters, with shifter civilians living well over a hundred years. The lifespan of the New Breed shifters is unknown.
mark
(n.) Tattoo-like symbol that all shapeshifters have on the back of their neck in the form of their
nagual
. Appears when a shifter phases for the first time, usually at the age of eighteen.
mating call
(n.) An important part of shifter nature, this phenomenon may happen any time after a shifter first phases. Once this instinct is awakened between a male and a female shifter, they generally give in to it very quickly. Most shifters have very little, if any, sexual experience before they feel ‘the call.’ The bond between mated shifters comes above all things, and all shifters mate for life. If the call is not heeded, the male will experience intense physical pain and mental confusion. It is possible for a shifter to experience a new mating call after the death of a mate, but this does not always occur. Although a ceremony is often held to make the pairing legal in the eyes of the government, especially when offspring are involved, shapeshifters generally do not have a religious ceremony per se. However, it is not uncommon for the male to offer the female a ring or other token of affection.
nagual
(n.) Guiding spirit and animal counterpart that exists in the Otherworld. All shifters have an animal
nagual
. The Maya, who believed that their
naguals
offered protection, often held rituals to contact these personal guides. Shifters have two souls, one human, the other of their
nagual
. This second soul guides them through instinct.
New Breed
(pr. n.) New Breed shifters collected so much
k’ul
shortly after the Transition at Chichen Itzá that they are physically changed into a new species of shapeshifter that is closer to immortal than mortal. In their human forms, they are much larger, stronger, and faster. Their hearing, vision, and instincts are heightened. Their eyes will glow around the pupil when experiencing a strong instinct, such as in battle or with a mate. They are also able to gleam. Certain New Breeds are gifted with special abilities. In addition to the marks on the backs of their necks, they also have a Maya tribal mark on their right shoulder. At this time, there are eight known New Breeds. They were chosen by the Goddess Akina to fight against Toltec.
the Order
(pr. n.) A group comprising the eight New Breed shifters. Its members are deadly warriors who swear an oath to protect both the human and shifter populations from Toltec. They are chosen through divine means and join the Order when they receive the call to serve.
the Otherworld
(pr. n.) The celestial realm inhabited by
naguals
and other supernatural beings.
permaphase
(v.) Phasing into and remaining in one’s second form permanently. This is incredibly dangerous for shifters, as they can forget their first form completely and thus lose their humanity forever. It is found most commonly in shifters after the death of a mate, as they rely on instinct while in their second form. This blocks out the psychological and emotional pain of the loss.
phase
(v.) Act of physically taking on the form of one’s
nagual
. All shifters are able to do this. It is not painful and is instantaneous. Shifters often refer to their animal form as their
second
form.
portal
(n.) A sacred space between earth and the Otherworld that allows New Breeds to pass between the worlds when they gleam. Portals are also used by shifters for rituals and communication with their
naguals
.
protective instinct
(n.) The intense urge male and female shifters feel to protect both mate and offspring. This instinct can become particularly intense in times of danger or when a female is pregnant. As with all other instincts, this impulse is heightened in a New Breed.
shapeshifter/shifter
(n.) Although they are members of the species Homo sapiens, shapeshifters contain much more
k’ul
, and are therefore able to take on the animal form of their
nagual
. There are shapeshifters all over the world, in every country and every culture. They are often not well accepted by humans. Some live openly, while others hide their marks. The first shapeshifters were the Maya. Even today, shapeshifters use some Mayan expressions, and follow some Maya rituals and traditions.
silver nitrate
(n.) All shifters have an intense allergy to silver nitrate when ingested in any form.
Toltec
(pr. n.) Organization of shifters whose core belief is shifter supremacy over all other living things, including humankind. They believe that the elevated level of
k’ul
carried by shifters gives them the divine right to rule the world’s governments, control the banking system, etc. They work toward these goals through both violence and more insidious means.
the Transition
(pr. n.) Refers to the tremendous release of
k’ul
from the earth at Chichen Itzá at the end of the Maya Calendar on December 21, 2012. When this occurred, the balance of
k’ul
on earth changed dramatically.
Six hours and countin’.
Troy shook his head as he walked back toward the surgical area after a smoke in the gym. That’s how long the whole of the Order had been crushed together in the narrow hallway of the compound. He had a real interesting view of his brothers. It was almost comical the way all those massive bodies were crammed together. They were New Breed warriors. They feared nothing. But shit. Put one of their females in harm’s way and it was like the whole fucking world stopped. Not that he didn’t get it. He understood all too well. But he wasn’t about to get loose-lipped about it. Ever.
As he leaned against the wall near Pax’s seat, he could feel the stress coming off the brothers in waves. Focusing for a moment, he gently tugged at the tension, pulling it away from the warriors and letting it disperse. Ana looked up at him and smiled gratefully. The first female New Breed had been officially mated to Soaring Eagle only hours before—by the Goddess Akina, herself, no less. And she fit in like she’d always been there. ‘Course Adriana wouldn’t be alive and giving birth to the first New Breed offspring if it weren’t for Ana.
Troy stuffed his hands in his pockets. He could hear Diesel’s voice resonating from the other room. Thank Christ, Helen had convinced Richard to let Diesel in there to assist. It was unbelievably rare for a shifter to let another male anywhere near his mate while she gave birth. It went almost as far against the protective instinct as you could get. But these were not normal circumstances. Adriana was only ten months into what should have been a normal fifteen month shifter pregnancy. Troy shook his head.
Jesus.
There was no way to know what she was giving birth to. Richard was willing to deal with whatever shit his New Breed instincts threw at him. You had to respect the male.
Another cry came from behind the swinging door, followed by Richard’s voice. Troy guessed he must be coaching his female or some shit.
Right.
Like he had any friggin’ idea. The closest thing he’d seen to a real birth was on the boob tube and that was close enough, thank you very much. With each yell, every face in the corridor went chalk white. Even Xavier’s face was taking on a gray undertone. Troy contemplated his shit kickers and considered another cig break.
Then, there was another cry.
And it wasn’t Adriana.
Holy shit.
At first everyone froze. Slowly, they all started glancing from one to the other, looks of relief quickly replacing the chalky white pallor on their faces. Troy exhaled and leaned his head back against the wall as his body slowly relaxed. Baby New Breed was alive. Alive was good. Now if it only had all its parts. Moments later, Richard appeared, holding the newborn.
He smiled, his gray pupils alight with bright blue. “Everyone, this is Ana Maya. She’s just over seven pounds and perfectly healthy.”
Troy had to chuckle. The eyes of all eight New Breeds were instantly trained on the infant. It was love at first sight.
Richard grinned at Ana. “Of course, we’ll have to call her Maya so no one mixes her up with her namesake.”
Troy glanced over at Ana sitting on SE’s lap. Tears were falling down her cheeks. The brother wrapped his arms around her, wiped her cheek, and then kissed it.
“You all may as well get some sleep. It’s been a long night. Adriana’s been moved to recovery to rest. You can all visit this afternoon.”
As the warriors all stood and stretched, Troy gleamed out.
Diesel handed Helen a bottle of water. She took a couple of good swigs, gave her back a feline stretch, and started to strip the sheets and blankets from the bed.
He stepped in. “I got this, Doc.”
“You sure?”
“Yep.”
Helen leaned against the back counter and shook her head. “That was really something, wasn’t it?”
“Fucking A right. So were you.”
“Oh, please. Do you know how many offspring I’ve delivered?”
Diesel pulled out a bucket and started to fill it. “Not New Breed offspring and not five months early. You were rocking nerves of steel the whole time.”
Huh.
Good to know she’d brought her A game. But mostly it was just her personality. She’d never been one to be easily rattled.
“I thought Richard was going to rip you in half a couple of times.”
He barked a laugh. “You and me both, Doc.”
Helen crossed her arms. “Hey, what do you think about that? The birth, I mean. I’m not convinced the offspring was early. Maybe a shorter gestation time than for your average shifter?”
“Could be. Or maybe, accelerated growth after a certain point?”
Hmm.
She hadn’t thought of that one.
Diesel stopped mopping. “Hey, you know what? We should do something to celebrate our awesomeness. How ‘bout a Star Wars marathon later? I’m off duty tonight.”
Now there was an idea. “You have them
all
?”
“Nope. That’s why we’re inviting Pax.”
There sure as hell wasn’t any way she was going to say no. She’d inherited her nerves from her mother. And from her father? A love of pop culture flicks. How was that for genetics? “Sure. I’ll bring the popcorn.”
“Extra butter?”
“Is there any other kind?”
Reyn kicked off his boots and fell back on the bed. Holy hell, he was tired. Nothing like some New Breed, super-sized stress for, oh, six hours, to kill off every last brain cell he had available. He used what he had left to contemplate taking a shower. There was so much work waiting for him in the study on the other side of that goddamn door.
Fuck.
“You look tired, warrior. Long night?” The voice of the Goddess Akina came to him on its own, as if carried on the wind.
Reyn sighed and answered the voice. “You really have a sick sense of humor for a goddess, you know?”
“I apologize. You do look so very tired.”
“You know, one of these days someone is going to overhear us out in the study and think I’m talking to myself.”
A girlish laughter he knew all too well resonated throughout the room and disappeared.
There was a knock at the door and Reyn couldn’t help wondering how much of that little convo had just been overheard.
Lovely.
He opened the door to be faced by the only New Breed mates in existence.
“Hey. We’re sorry. I know we’re all exhausted, but Ana and I figured we’d better get this duty issue out of the way.”
Duty issue?
“Oh, shit, the schedule. Right. I’m sorry, you two. Have a seat.”
SE rubbed his eyes. “I think we’ve got two concerns. The first is that I almost got Pax hurt, or possibly worse, when Ana and I were in the field together.”
“That’s true,” Reyn said, “but you were fighting on opposite sides.”
“I don’t think that matters, do you? I mean, the protective instinct is what it is. And Ana and I are both New Breeds now. Who knows how strong it will be in a dangerous situation.”
“You aren’t going to see as much of each other if you’re working opposite nights.”
Ana nodded. “We know. But we can’t put other warriors at risk.”
Reyn leaned forward on the desk. “Although, you do put us up one warrior, Ana. Especially when Richard returns to duty. How about a compromise. For every two nights on, you get the next one off together. I’ll fill in.”
Ana smiled. “That’s a great idea.”
SE smiled. “Thanks, man.”
Reyn gave Ana a wink. “Happy to help.”
Their new sister flushed from forehead to chin.
Helen shrugged into her jeans just before there was a knock on her door. Her thick, honey blond hair was still damp and her shoulders ached from the birthing the night before. She needed to get back to working out.
“You ready, Doc? Dimitri doesn’t take kindly to late comers to the car reveal.”
She yawned and opened the door. “I’m ready.”
Diesel laughed. “Maybe we’d better do Star Wars on my next night off.”
“I think maybe you’re right. So, what are we doing exactly?”
They walked down the corridor and Diesel led her toward the garage. “Well, Dimitri has this thing where he buys a new member of the Order a brand new set of wheels after Induction. It’s pretty insane, but it’s a lot of fun to see what he comes up with.”
They entered the garage and Helen found herself staring at some of the most amazing cars she’d ever seen. Not that she knew much about them, but some things needed no explanation.
“Which one’s yours?” she asked.
Diesel pointed to the shiny motorcycle parked off to the side a few feet away.
“Dimitri got you a Harley for Induction?”
He smiled and nodded to the right. “Oh, no. That’d be the black Ford F-450 pickup parked over there. The bike was mine.”
Helen took in the shiny pickup’s mean looking grill. Holy crap. Now there was a truck.
“And Pax? Wait, let me guess. The BMW?”
“That’s the one.”
She looked around them. Everyone seemed to be there except the guests of honor and Richard.
Dimitri’s phone went off. “Okay, they’re coming through the compound.”
“Does anyone know what the cars will be?” she asked.
Diesel shook his head. “Only Geoffrey and Mary. This little ritual is shrouded in secrecy. Besides, it would ruin the fun.”
As Richard walked through the door to the garage with SE and Ana, everyone started to clap.
SE gave them all a mischievous grin. “Whoa, what’s all this?”
Pax laughed. “Dimitri’s been spending wads of cash again.”
SE smiled. “Oh, is that all.”
“Soaring Eagle, our eighth brother to come into the fold. You were also gracious enough to bring us a new sister as well. I thought maybe you’d like to bring her home to the Kikapu Rez in Mexico at some point. So I went all-terrain on your ass.”
Geoffrey rounded the corner driving a new, black Mercedes, G class SUV.
“I love this part,” Diesel whispered to Helen.
SE’s eyes practically left his skull.
“Phone!” Diesel said to Pax, who held up his cell and took a picture of SE’s face.
“Holy shit, Dimitri,” SE choked out.
“Hang on. We’re not done yet. Ana, you were a little tougher. I know you’re big on utility, but then I figured you could just borrow SE’s car.”
SE smiled and kissed his mate’s temple. “Yeah, like that’s gonna happen.”
Everyone laughed and Helen couldn’t help but appreciate the couple. Even though SE was close to twice Ana’s age, they seemed to complement one another perfectly.
“So, anyway, I thought I’d appeal more to your wild side, little sister. I got you a Dodge SRT Viper.” Mary drove up behind Geoffrey and parked the midnight blue sports car.
Ana screamed and Pax took another photo.
SE took his mate’s hand and led her toward the car. On his way by Dimitri, Helen heard him say thank you to the brother, and she had the distinct impression he was thanking him for what he had given Ana.
Dimitri slapped his shoulder. “My pleasure, bro.”
The male walked his mate to the driver side of her new car and helped her in. Then he walked to the passenger side. He opened the door and turned around.
He grinned. “Don’t wait up, kids.” He slid into the car, slammed the door, and they took off.
Diesel looked over at Pax. “Did you get any good shots?”
“Oh, yeah.” He motioned for Diesel and Helen to have a look.
Helen laughed at the looks on their shocked faces.
“Classic. Those are totally going on the breakfast table in the morning,” Diesel said.
She followed him back into the compound. “Is it me or was that about two hundred grand in cars back there?”
He nodded. “Actually, I’d say you’re pretty damn close.”
“Wow.”
“Yeah, Dimitri loves it though. He hasn’t had any living family for a long time. He jokes about the Goddess only wanting him for his money, but he knows it’s pretty empty without people to share it with. This is better than Christmas to him.”
“So, tell me, how’d you start riding motorcycles?”
“Oh, I used to fix up dirt bikes as a kid in Cali. I guess I just graduated to bigger toys as I got older.”
“You’d never catch me on one.” Helen knew all too well the danger those
toys
presented. They had countless patients in the ER every month because of accidents on those things.
“You’re kidding, right? You operate on people all the time and you won’t ride a motorcycle?”
“Nope.”
“I have a feeling I’ll be able to get you on one at some point.”
Helen shook her head emphatically. “Dream on.”