Half-Born (Half-Blood Chronicles #1) (The Half-Blood Chronicles)

by Ivy Baum

I soon realized that I had no desire to spend my fifteen minutes milling around the main courtyard. There were a handful of tourists here, and every time I made eye contact with them, I felt a pang of worry.

  These people would soon be in danger—if Blood Right had its way.

  And so I followed the faded sign to the pay phones—which were located in an open pavilion slightly removed from the rest of the buildings.

  The pavilion was shabbier and dirtier than the rest of the place, and the phones themselves were battered and covered in graffiti. One of the cords dangled freely, detached from the receiver.

  Heart pounding, I pulled out my prepaid phone card.

  I suppose I could have just used my new cell phone. But I didn’t want a record of this.

  This was personal.

  I picked up one of the phones and held it to my ear. Instead of a dial tone, it emitted a strange feedback—something scratchy and electronic. As I continued to listen, it grew in intensity.

  The hairs stood up on the back of my neck. Someone was watching me.

  I whirled—but it was only Clover.

  Sheepishly, I replaced the receiver. “They don’t work.”

  Clover’s expression was unreadable.

  I had the sudden, paranoid thought that she knew that I’d been about to call my father.

  With deliberate casualness, I stepped away from the phones.

  “Having second thoughts?”

  I glanced guiltily at the phones, remembering my ill-conceived plan to run away and find my father.

  Had Sol told the others about that? I’d been secretly hoping he’d kept it to himself—but never had the courage to ask.

  “Second thoughts about what? Outlaw City?”

  Clover raised an eyebrow.

  “No,” I said emphatically. Probably too emphatically.

  “It’s okay. I’m not going to tell on you.”

  I started to deny it again, but she shook her head.

  “It’s okay,” she said. “You’re obviously nervous.”

  I shrugged. “I guess it’s our only option.”

  Clover’s expression had taken on a distinctly sour look. “You can’t even do magic there. Did you know that?”

  It took me a moment to realize that she was talking about Outlaw City.

  Well. I hadn’t known that. Though I realized now that there had been ample hints—which I might have picked up on, if I hadn’t been so absorbed in my own worries.

  Throughout the journey here, Sol had made any number of ominous predictions that started with, “If we get into trouble there…”

  Now they made sense. We’d be defenseless there—without our magic.

  Clover smirked. She seemed pleased that she’d known something I didn’t. “Yeah, they don’t like to talk about it much, do they?”

  I wondered why she’d even wandered over here. To make a phone call of her own?

  I said, “Sanctuary’s the same. No magic.”

  “Yeah, but those were just the official rules. They couldn’t really enforce it.” She paused. “Outlaw City is different.”

  I didn’t exactly want to prolong this conversation. But my curiosity got the best of me. “How so?”

  “You know those two guys, the founders? Well, when they started fighting, they used magic. And it got out of hand. Rumor has it that some crazy shit went down. Anyway, one of the guys got the idea to install permanent Dampers around the place. Now the whole thing is one big Dead Zone.”

  “Permanent Dampers?” It didn’t seem possible—from what I’d learned, Dampers were people—highly-trained Distorters who could temporarily suppress the use of magic.

  In fact, long before we reached Sanctuary, I’d overheard Clover asking Sol if she could try her hand at Damping.

  Sol had forbidden it.

  Trust me, you don’t want to graduate from Distorter to Damper too soon. I’ve seen the results. They’re not pretty.

  Clover said, “It’s some kind of fixed magic. Whatever the guy did, it’s permanent now.”

  “Okay, but—”

  “What’s the point of even going there? You might as well be human.”

  I pointed out, “We need to tell the other half-bloods about Blood Right.”

  “You think they don’t already know?”

  That caught me off-guard. I hadn’t really given much thought to what kind of reaction our news would bring.

  “Besides, what would we even want them to do?”

  I thought back to the many arguments between Deo, Junie, and Sol over the past few days. They’d thrown out all sorts of ideas. Enlist the leadership as an ally. Or use their resources to find out more about Blood Right—and Tacitus. Maybe even send a neutral envoy to the Capitol.

  I shrugged. “Maybe they could help us fight them.”

  “Why, though?”

  I frowned. I couldn’t tell from her tone whether she was joking.

  “I mean, why fight against Blood Right? It’s not like the assholes in the Capitol don’t have it coming to them.”

  “People are going to get hurt—and not just purebloods. Someone has to do something about it.”

  Clover nodded, looking faintly superior. “I told him you’d say that.”

  I stared. Was she talking about Sol?

  “So, what kind of speech did he give you?”

  I frowned. “Who?”

  “Sol.” Her smile had an edge to it, now. “Did he try to sugar coat it? Or did he just come right out and say it? ‘The good news is, you’re magical. The bad news is that you’re a bastard and there are people trying to kill you.’”

  Somewhere along the way, this conversation had crossed a line.

  Anyway, wasn’t it time to get back to the van?

  But no one had wandered over here to tell us to get back in the van.

  Clover folded her arms. “Wanna know what he told me? I’ll give you the short version. Being a half-blood sucks. It’s the kind of life that takes things from you—if you’re not careful. Sound about right?”

  I waited, feeling as though I were holding my breath.

  “The thing is, I already knew that. I didn’t grow up in a McMansion in Silver Oaks. I had a mom who drank herself to sleep and a step-father who was one missed dose of medication away from strangling me in my sleep.”

  I tried to look past Clover, out to the main building. Up until now, a steady stream of people had flowed in and out of it.

  Now it was eerily quiet.

  “I think we should—”

  “The truth is, we’re our own worst enemies. We can do magic. So why is it that we’d rather live in a freaking hole in the ground than stand up for ourselves?”

  I felt a chill. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying that you need to wake up. I don’t know what Sol told you but here’s the speech he should have given you. The world doesn’t give you anything. You want something? You have to take it.”

  I didn’t know what was going on and I didn’t want to find out.

  I started to move to the edge of the pavilion—but stopped when I saw two shadows appear.

  Two men. I recognized one of them.

  Piercings.

  The last time I saw him, he was facing off against Sol at that party in The Lofts.

  I had no idea what he was doing here. But it couldn’t possibly be good news.

  Clover caught my eye and smiled. “And in the spirit of taking what we want, we’re taking you.”

  Chapter 32

  Piercings made a face. “Ugh. That’s pretty on the nose, isn’t it?”

  Clover flipped him off. “I’m tired of beating around the bush.”

  “Right, well, as long as we’re throwing out cliches, let’s get this party started.” He produced a knife and started toward me.

  I started to move toward the opposite side of the pavilion, but the other man blocked my way.

  There was no way I was getting out of here. Between the three of them, they had me surrounded.


  The other guy lifted a two-way radio to his mouth. “We’ve got her. Go to phase two.”

  Well, that sounded disturbingly precise.

  I looked frantically toward the main building. Maybe if I shouted, I could get someone’s attention. One of the team—even a tourist…

  But that thought was cut short as the main building exploded.

  Not the entire thing. But some of the wall had been blown out, and there was smoke billowing out into the blue sky. Seconds later, I heard screaming. A stampede of people emerged from the double doors.

  I looked to Clover. “What’s going on?”

  “A thing exploded and people are running away from it. Duh.” She smiled. “Anyway, you don’t need to worry about it. You’re coming with us.”

  Piercings and his accomplice began to advance once more.

  I turned and started to run toward the opposite side of the pavilion—until something like a sledgehammer hit my chest.

  Breathless, I stumbled backward—and into the arms of Piercings’s companion.

  Piercings reached out to grab my arm, and I caught sight of the familiar tattoo. An upside-down triangle and a garish orange flame. And in the center, a tiny droplet of blood.

  I looked at Clover in disbelief. “You’re working for Blood Right?”

  She scowled. “I’m working with Blood Right. I’m not a groupie, bitch.”

  The two men marched me out of the pavilion and off to the side, where there was an overflow parking lot.

  This one was empty, except for two large SUVs.

  I tried to call on my magic. It was worth a try, after all. It wasn’t like I could makes things any worse.

  But the second I tried to pull on that energy, something went wrong. It slipped through my fingers.

  My gaze flew to Clover. “You’re doing that?”

  Her smile gave me my answer.

  “I thought you couldn’t do that yet. You’re just a Distorter, not a Damper.”

  Her face contorted with anger. “Sol wouldn’t even let me try!”

  Yes, and for good reason, I thought.

  What had he said? You start messing with the flow of magic and you can get swept away in the current—if you’re not strong enough.

  Clover, apparently, had decided to ignore that warning.

  When we got to the parking lot, I heard the chirp of the SUV unlocking.

  The trunk began to open, and Piercings shoved me toward it.

  I stared, not quite believing it. “You’re kidnapping me?”

  Clover gave me a withering look. “Are you always this surprised by everything? Anyway, we’re not kidnapping you. You’re just our insurance policy.”

  She produced a role of duct tape and roughly bound my wrists behind my back. Then Piercings lifted me up and threw me unceremoniously into the sweltering trunk.

  Clover crawled in next to me.

  Piercings handed her his knife. Panicking, I tried to squirm away.

  “Calm down,” she said, rolling her eyes. “This is just so Sol doesn’t go all psycho Jean Gray on everybody.”

  So that was what she meant by insurance policy.

  “What makes you think he won’t just sacrifice me?”

  Clover looked unimpressed. “Oh, please. I’ve seen how you two look at each other.”

  I felt my cheeks begin to redden.

  She gave me a disgusted look. “Can I give you a bit of advice? Find someone your own age. He’s probably, like, a hundred years old. That’s just gross.”

  Piercings spoke into his two-way radio. “The girl is secure. Bring the rest of them.”

  Clover leaned in close and pressed the knife to my throat. “You think you’re so special,” she hissed. “That’s your problem. Well I’ve got news for you. You’re not the only one…”

  She trailed off as another group of Blood Right soldiers appeared—with Sol, Deo, and Junie in tow.

  I heard a voice say, “One wrong move and your girlfriend is going to bleed out the old-fashioned way.”

  Sol and the others were dragged in front of the waiting SUV. When they caught sight of me—and Clover—they looked pissed.

  One of the men pointed to the SUV next to mine. “Get in.”

  Sol raised an eyebrow. I was impressed by how calm and collected he appeared. “If Tacitus wanted to have me over for tea, this is a hell of an invitation.”

  Deo was gazing at Clover, his face stricken. “How could you?”

  Clover gave him an almost pitying look. “I like you, Deo. It’s nothing personal. But this is more important.”

  Sol looked annoyed. “What, terrorizing humans?”

  Piercings scowled. “Claiming our rightful place in the world. We should be running the place, don’t you think?”

  “Somehow, I don’t think that job is going to be as fun as you think.”

  “Look, you’ve got to pick a side, okay? One side involves you going to the Capitol so that a bunch of grown men playing dress-up can execute you.”

  “Let me guess. The other involves a free tattoo?”

  “We represent the interests of all half-bloods. The ones who aren’t traitors, anyway.”

  Sol gave him an irritable look. “There’s no such thing as ‘half-blood interests.’ There are only half-bloods. Like the ones you murdered at Sanctuary.”

  Piercings ignored this and shoved Sol toward the waiting SUV.

  I waited for something to happen—for Sol to fight back. But he kept walking.

  That was when I realized—he wasn’t going to fight back.

  I reached tentatively for my magic, and felt Clover’s power push back.

  And then I got an idea. A desperate one.

  I reached inside—but this time, I didn’t try to harness my magic. Instead, I simply opened up the void.

  I wasn’t sure it would work. As I opened myself up, I felt the energy begin to flow into me.

  I couldn’t grasp it—couldn’t use it. But I could let it fill me, and that was exactly what I did.

  Clover let out a gasp.

  I opened my eyes, and saw that she had grown very pale. There was a new sheen of sweat on her forehead.

  Whatever was happening, I was no longer in control of it. But it was too late to stop it now.

  Her eyes flared open. She let out something like a snarl—and I felt her Distorting energy redouble.

  But even as I felt her try to clamp down on it, the magic inside me grew in intensity. It ballooned all out of proportion to what I had felt before, until I thought I might pass out.

  I heard a cry. Then Clover’s eyes rolled into the back of her head and she slumped over.

  I heard a shout from outside the car. Time to get out of here.

  I wriggled forward. It wasn’t easy—my arms were still pinned behind my back and half of Clover’s weight was on me.

  I was still struggling to get out of the trunk when Sol appeared in front of me.

  He grabbed Clover’s knife and cut me loose. “Ready to go?”

  Outside the trunk, several of the Blood Right soldiers were on the ground.

  Deo was crouched low to the ground, his head in his hands.

  “What’s going on?”

  Sol gave me an appraising look. “I could ask you the same question.”

  “What?”

  He smiled. “Whatever you did, you just knocked out not only the Dampers but the Sniffers, too. Including Deo.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know what I did. I just—”

  “We can talk about it later.” A siren sounded in the distance, and he swore under his breath. “We need to get out of here.”

  “What about Clover?”

  Sol shrugged. “She’s their problem now.”

  But as I climbed out of the trunk, Clover moaned. She was awake.

  She was struggling to sit up now. She pointed a weak finger at Sol. “You’re on the wrong side.”

  I thought he would ignore her. But he actually stopped and turned.

>   There was, I thought, more than a little pity in his face.

  “That’s where you’re wrong. I’m not on any side.”

  By the time we pulled out of the parking lot, the sirens were much closer.

  I peered out the back window as we pulled away. The Rest Area was in ruins, still spewing black smoke. But that wasn’t the most shocking thing.

  On the front wall, graffiti had been painted on the stucco. It was the upside-down triangle and flame, and a single droplet of blood.

  I pointed it out to the others.

  Junie whistled. “What are they thinking?”

  “They’re forcing our hand.” Sol’s voice was grim.

  I frowned. “What do you mean?”

  He glanced around from the driver’s seat. “They said they wanted us on their side. Now the human world won’t know the difference.”

  Chapter 33

  The name of the town was Redemption.

  Or so Junie said. It wasn’t on any map, and there was nothing to indicate the name as we approached the outskirts.

  But there were lots of other signs posted along the dusty, two-lane highway. They increased in both number and urgency the closer we got.

  Warning—Restricted Area.

  Environmental Damage. Harmful Gases May Be Present.

  I glanced at Junie as we passed these signs, mystified.

  But she only grinned.

  I’m not sure what I was expecting, based on those signs. But when Sol began to slow, I saw that we were in front of a dilapidated town.

  It was, of course, completely empty.

  Redemption was a ghost town.

  Sol pulled in behind an abandoned house and parked next to a rusted playground. He went into a nearby shed and pulled out a tarp.

  Junie and Deo were already pulling bags out of the van—as much as they could carry.

  I raised an eyebrow.

  Sol said, “We might not be coming back here any time soon.”

  I grabbed my backpack and joined Junie. Sol and Deo were wrestling a tarp over the van.

  Sol caught my puzzled expression and shrugged. “You never know. We might need to use this thing later.”

  I couldn’t contain my curiosity any longer. “So this is Outlaw City?”

  Junie grinned. “No, this is just window-dressing. The real Outlaw City is underneath.”