"I want what's coming to me. All my Life I've had to stand around and watch humans get everything.
After the millennium things will be different." He glared at her broodingly.
Jez still felt sick. But she knew what to say now.
"And what makes you think the Council is going to be around after the millennium?" She shook her head.
"You're better off going with Hunter. I'd bet on him against the Council any day."
Morgead blinked once, lizardlike. "He's planning on getting rid of the Council?"
Jez held his gaze. "What would you do in his place?"
Morgead's expression didn't get any sweeter. But she could see from his eyes that she had him.
He turned away sharply and went to glower out the window. Jez could practically see the wheels turning in his head. Finally he looked back.
"All right," he said coldly. "Ill join Hunter's team-but only on my terms. After the millennium-"
"After the millennium you'll get what you deserve." Jez couldn't help glaring back at him. Morgead brought out all her worst traits, all the things she tried to control in herself.
"You'll get a position," she amended, spinning the story she knew he wanted to hear. She was winging it, but she had no choice. "Hunter wants people loyal to him in the new order. And if you can prove you're valuable, he'll want you. But first you have to prove it. Okay? Deal?"
"If I can trust you."
"We can trust each other because we have to. We both want the same thing. If we do what Hunter wants, we both win."
"So we cooperate-for the time being."
"We cooperate-and we see what happens," Jez said evenly.
They stared at each other from opposite sides of the room. It was as if the blood sharing had never happened. They were back to their old roles- maybe a little more hostile, but the same old Jez and Morgead, enjoying being adversaries.
Maybe it'll be easy from now on, Jez thought. As long as Hunter doesn't show up to blow my story.
Then she grinned inwardly. It would never happen. Hunter Redfern hadn't visited the West Coast for fifty years.
"Business," she said crisply, out loud. "Where's the Wild Power, Morgead?"
"Ill show you." He walked over to the futon and sat down.
Jez stayed where she was. "You'll show me what?"
"Show you the Wild Power." There was a TV with a VCR at the foot of the bed, sitting on the bare floor. Morgead was putting a tape in.
Jez settled on the far end of the futon, glad for the chance to sit.
"You've got the Wild Power on tape?"
He threw her an icy glance over his shoulder. "Yeah, on America's Funniest Home Videos. Just shut up, Jez, and watch."
Jez narrowed her eyes and watched.
What she was looking at was a TV movie about a doomsday asteroid. A movie she'd seen-it had been awful. Suddenly the action was interrupted by the logo of a local news station. A blond anchorwoman came on screen.
"Breaking news in San Francisco this hour. We have live pictures from the Marina district where a five-alarm fire is raging through a government housing project. We go now to Linda Chin, who's on the scene."
The scene switched to a dark-haired reporter.
"Regina, I'm here at Taylor Street, where firefighters are trying to prevent this spectacular blaze from spreading-"
Jez looked from the TV to Morgead. "What's this got to do with the Wild Power? I saw it live. It happened a couple weeks ago. I was watching that stupid movie-"
She broke off, shocked at herself. She'd actually been about to say "I was watching that stupid movie with Claire and Aunt Nan." Just like that, to blurt out the names of the humans she lived with. She clenched her teeth, furious.
She'd already let Morgead know one thing: that a couple of weeks ago she'd been in this area, where a local news station could break in.
What was wrong with her?
Morgead tilted a sardonic glance at her, just to show her that he hadn't missed her slip. But all he said was "Keep watching. You'll see what it's got to do with the Wild Power."
On screen the flames were brilliant orange, dazzling against the background of darkness. So bright that if Jez hadn't known that area of the Marina district well, she wouldn't have been able to tell much about it.
In front of the building firefighters in yellow were carrying hoses. Smoke flooded out suddenly as one of the hoses sprayed a straight line of water into the flames.
"Their greatest fear is that there may be a little girl still inside this complex-"
Yes. That was what Jez remembered about this fire. There had been a kid....
"Look here," Morgead said, pointing.
The camera was zooming in on something, bringing the flames in close. A window in the pinky-brown concrete of the building. High up, on the third floor. Flames were pouring up from the walkway below it, making the whole area look too dangerous to approach.
The reporter was still talking, but Jez had tuned her out. She leaned closer, eyes fixed on that window.
Like all the other windows, it was half covered with a wrought-iron screen in a diamond pattern. Unlike the others, it had something else: On the sill there were a couple of plastic buckets with dirt and scraggly plants. A window box.
And a face looking out between the plants.
A child's face.
"There," Morgead said.
The reporter was speaking. "Regina, the firefighters say there is definitely someone on the third floor of this building. They are looking for a way to approach the person-the little girl-"
High-powered searchlights had been turned on the flames. That was the only reason the girl was visible at all. Even so, Jez couldn't distinguish any features. The girl was a small blurry blob.