Marco kept his voice bored. “Don’t you know that violence isn’t the way to win me over? Try being polite and you might get better results.”
The man yanked the knife from the wall and pointed it at him. “Stop with the games and nonchalance bullshit. The longer you play around, the greater the danger you put your lady in. I may have owed Ekstrom, but he’s not the same person he once was, and I wouldn’t trust him with my car, let alone my girlfriend.”
So this man had no loyalty to Ekstrom. Marco could use that. “Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that DEFEND exists. Why do you care? Do you need their help? Or do you want to hunt them down? If they exist, no one will help you without knowing your motive. If you’ve worked with the likes of Ekstrom, then I’m sure you’re familiar with that concept.”
The shifter said nothing at first, but then he moved close to him and repositioned the knife at his throat. “Do you have a little sister?”
Marco was curious to see where this was going. “Two, in fact.”
“Then imagine your teenage sister had been taken, and her kidnapper kept forcing you to use your latent abilities however the kidnapper liked, in order to guarantee your sister’s safety.” The shifter paused a second, almost as if he was trying to get his anger under control before he continued. “And then imagine you’re only one of an ever-growing army of Feiru with latent abilities, made to do things against their will, to fulfill one person’s greed. I’d think if DEFEND existed, they’d want to stop the bitch in charge of the coerced army sooner rather than later. Especially if the rumors I’ve heard about the anti-prison activist group are true.”
If there were as many Feiru with latent abilities as the shifter’s words implied, then the Four Talents were closer to awakening than he’d previously thought. Part of Marco’s Elemental Master training had focused on the old Feiru legends. According to those legends, by the time all of the Talents awoke, nearly one out of every eleven or twelve Feiru would have a latent ability of some sort.
They’d been able to hide those abilities in the past. But this was the first time since the advent of TV and the internet that anything like this had happened. The Feiru High Council had been strict before, it was only going to get stricter in the future if they wanted to keep humans in ignorance.
Did Neena and Aislinn already know about the surge in latent abilities? If not, this would start a shitstorm flurry of activity—DEFEND against this unknown party, fighting for control, all while trying to keep out of the High Council’s notice.
As if all of that wasn’t enough to take in, Marco also now realized the shadow-shifter hadn’t been after their information about the Talents, that first day back in the market. “You’re here for Cam, to take her back to this person gathering Feiru with latent abilities.”
The shifter pressed the knife hard enough against his throat to prick his skin. “If you don’t answer my question about DEFEND, you’ll never find out the answer.”
Marco took that as a yes. “Killing me won’t accomplish anything. If I’m not working with DEFEND, then you’ve murdered an innocent. And if I am working with DEFEND, well, they’ll never help someone who murdered one of their own.” Marco raised his eyebrows. “So how about you lower your knife, and stop with the threats. I’d much rather have a conversation.”
The shifter stared at Marco, but eventually he lowered his knife. “You have no fucking idea what that woman—she calls herself the Collector—is planning to do. Any Feiru with a latent ability is in danger.”
“See, talking like that may get you somewhere.” Marco motioned with his head. “So, how about you tell me what you want.”
“Are you going to actually listen, or are you plotting how to move your hands to the west, so you can take me out.”
The corner of Marco’s mouth rose. “Not a stupid one, eh?”
“I wouldn’t have been sent after Camilla Melini if I were.”
He sobered at Cam’s name. “As long as you give me actual information, I won’t try to reach to the west.” The shifter stared, and Marco resisted a sigh. Did everyone have to be so suspicious? “I’d cross my heart and hope to die, but I’m a little tied up at the moment.”
The shifter shook his head. “Your reputation is true, then, about not taking things seriously.”
“So it seems. Now that we’ve gotten the displays of manliness out of the way, tell me what you want. My ass is getting cold here on the floor.”
The shifter took a step back and leaned against the wall. “I want my sister free of the Collector’s prison, and stashed away some place where the bitch can’t find her.”
“And what about yourself?”
“While I’d like to live, that probably won’t happen once my sister is free. I’m not the only shadow-shifter the Collector has in her camp. I’m disposable.”
At the mention of other shadow-shifters, Marco remembered the one back in Washington State. “By any chance, did this Collector have a shadow-shifter working for her named Vanessa?”
The shifter kept his face expressionless. “You need to tell me what you can do to help my sister before I tell you anything else. I’m not about to give away all
of my information for free.”
Marco needed something more concrete before he risked exposing DEFEND’s existence. “Answer this last question, and I’ll see what I can do.” The shifter started to shake his head, so Marco said, “All you’ve told me so far are vague statements about a woman collecting Feiru with latent abilities. I need something specific to work with, something that isn’t easily investigated.”
The shifter stared at him a moment. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet. “Just tell me if rescuing my sister is even possible.”
The look of desperation in the shifter’s eyes was genuine. “I believe so, yes.”
His answer must’ve convinced the shifter, because he continued. “What I’m about to tell you can’t be shared with anyone you don’t trust. The Collector is a powerful woman, and she’ll hunt you down if she sees you as a threat.” Marco nodded, and the shifter continued. “Vanessa was the previous shifter assigned to Cam’s capture, but once V disappeared, the assignment fell to me.”