numbers and they're at war with the other side, then we'd be fighting the others with them. Wouldn't we?"
"I don't even want to think about that."
"Mace, the battery is about dead on my walkie. I'll talk to you later."
"All right."
Luanne got up to find the charger for her walkie-talkie when her bedroom window crashed inward, knocking candles onto the floor and setting her curtains afire.
* * *
Dad! Ashe sent desperate mindspeech to his father. Dad, I got a signal from something and now one of the mobile homes is on fire! Ashe had followed his mother as instructed, keeping her within distance using echolocation. It was only when Ashe had banked in flight, sending signals out in the opposite direction that he'd caught two—likely Chad and Jeremy—nearly upon the six temporary homes lined up neatly behind his own. And then the unthinkable happened; fire bloomed on one side of a mobile home, engulfing the structure quickly. Thinking swiftly, Ashe knew he had to help. Turning to mist, he rocketed toward the burning home.
Chapter 6
Aedan and Nathan were already at the home, but it was burning so brightly the vampires couldn't go in without risking death—fire could easily kill a vampire. And it was far too late to haul out the community pumper truck. The other new residents were all outside their homes, screaming and crying.
"Do something!" Macy begged Aedan and Nathan to help—Luanne and her parents were still inside the burning structure. Macy screamed as the house exploded in a fireball behind her.
* * *
"They're safe," Ashe appeared, dropping all three members of the Jansen family in front of his father. If they'd wanted to keep his misting secret, he'd just blown that by saving Luanne and her parents. Luanne was on her knees, coughing. She'd gotten the worst of the smoke and flames while her parents had rushed toward that end of the home to rescue her. If Ashe hadn't come, they'd all be burning inside the house.
Aedan pulled his shirt off swiftly and wrapped it around Ashe, who stood naked in the light from the fire. There wasn't enough water pressure to the temporary homes to save the house, and with the other Cloud Chief residents either shifted to animal form or too young to help, there was nothing to do except watch the home burn.
"You all right?" Ashe clutched his father's shirt tightly around him and knelt before Luanne, who was being comforted by her parents. They'd just lost everything they owned in the fire. "Dad, will the witch's shield keep the humans from noticing this?" Ashe jerked his head toward the burning home.
"I sure hope so, son. Nathan, let's get water on the grass around the home so the fire doesn't spread," Aedan muttered grimly. Ashe watched as his father and Nathan Anderson went to find hoses to do what they could. The heat from the burning home was almost unbearable, so Ashe helped Luanne stand and walk farther away. Other parents assisted Peter and Linda Jansen. They followed Ashe and Luanne, eventually turning to watch as the two vampires sprayed the field surrounding the burning home.
"How did you get us out?" Peter Jansen thought to ask Ashe.
"It's just something I can do," Ashe shrugged. "Not important. Ask my dad about it." Ashe knew his father would place compulsion, but it couldn't be helped. He'd rather expose himself than allow three people to die. "Look, if you don't need anything else, I have to go find my mom." Allowing his father's shirt to drop, Ashe turned to bumblebee bat and flapped silently away.
Sending out echolocation signals again, Ashe found whom he believed responsible—two forms huddled beneath a tree roughly a quarter mile away. Ignoring them for the moment, Ashe went in search of his mother's falcon.
* * *
Chad and Jeremy sat inside Principal Billings' office while Marcus paced. Benjamin Billings waited outside, listening in on the conversation. "So you thought you'd get away with this," Marcus DeLuca growled. Chad was the one whose condition
"I don't even want to think about that."
"Mace, the battery is about dead on my walkie. I'll talk to you later."
"All right."
Luanne got up to find the charger for her walkie-talkie when her bedroom window crashed inward, knocking candles onto the floor and setting her curtains afire.
* * *
Dad! Ashe sent desperate mindspeech to his father. Dad, I got a signal from something and now one of the mobile homes is on fire! Ashe had followed his mother as instructed, keeping her within distance using echolocation. It was only when Ashe had banked in flight, sending signals out in the opposite direction that he'd caught two—likely Chad and Jeremy—nearly upon the six temporary homes lined up neatly behind his own. And then the unthinkable happened; fire bloomed on one side of a mobile home, engulfing the structure quickly. Thinking swiftly, Ashe knew he had to help. Turning to mist, he rocketed toward the burning home.
Chapter 6
Aedan and Nathan were already at the home, but it was burning so brightly the vampires couldn't go in without risking death—fire could easily kill a vampire. And it was far too late to haul out the community pumper truck. The other new residents were all outside their homes, screaming and crying.
"Do something!" Macy begged Aedan and Nathan to help—Luanne and her parents were still inside the burning structure. Macy screamed as the house exploded in a fireball behind her.
* * *
"They're safe," Ashe appeared, dropping all three members of the Jansen family in front of his father. If they'd wanted to keep his misting secret, he'd just blown that by saving Luanne and her parents. Luanne was on her knees, coughing. She'd gotten the worst of the smoke and flames while her parents had rushed toward that end of the home to rescue her. If Ashe hadn't come, they'd all be burning inside the house.
Aedan pulled his shirt off swiftly and wrapped it around Ashe, who stood naked in the light from the fire. There wasn't enough water pressure to the temporary homes to save the house, and with the other Cloud Chief residents either shifted to animal form or too young to help, there was nothing to do except watch the home burn.
"You all right?" Ashe clutched his father's shirt tightly around him and knelt before Luanne, who was being comforted by her parents. They'd just lost everything they owned in the fire. "Dad, will the witch's shield keep the humans from noticing this?" Ashe jerked his head toward the burning home.
"I sure hope so, son. Nathan, let's get water on the grass around the home so the fire doesn't spread," Aedan muttered grimly. Ashe watched as his father and Nathan Anderson went to find hoses to do what they could. The heat from the burning home was almost unbearable, so Ashe helped Luanne stand and walk farther away. Other parents assisted Peter and Linda Jansen. They followed Ashe and Luanne, eventually turning to watch as the two vampires sprayed the field surrounding the burning home.
"How did you get us out?" Peter Jansen thought to ask Ashe.
"It's just something I can do," Ashe shrugged. "Not important. Ask my dad about it." Ashe knew his father would place compulsion, but it couldn't be helped. He'd rather expose himself than allow three people to die. "Look, if you don't need anything else, I have to go find my mom." Allowing his father's shirt to drop, Ashe turned to bumblebee bat and flapped silently away.
Sending out echolocation signals again, Ashe found whom he believed responsible—two forms huddled beneath a tree roughly a quarter mile away. Ignoring them for the moment, Ashe went in search of his mother's falcon.
* * *
Chad and Jeremy sat inside Principal Billings' office while Marcus paced. Benjamin Billings waited outside, listening in on the conversation. "So you thought you'd get away with this," Marcus DeLuca growled. Chad was the one whose condition
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