Page 124 of Between Imminent Fates

The healer departed not long after that, leaving him with Key. Though he knew that Key wasn’t fully aware, he’d taken the liberty of bringing a television into the room. Flipping it on, he pulled up the latest Hallmark movie he’d found and hit play. As the story developed, he led a one-sided conversation with Key about the tropes he saw, and what they were doing when there wasn’t any dialogue.

They weren’t even halfway through the first act before a tentative knock sounded on the door. Eden poked her head in. “You gotta second?”

“Sure.”

Slipping out, he followed Eden downstairs to where a few people waited in the living room. Eden introduced him to Toni and Lucy, two Elementals, and Nero wagged his eyebrows. “You ready for this, Jax?”

“Dare I ask for what?”

Eden took the lead. “Toni, Lucy, and I would like to bring you on as a consultant. The three of us—and Nero—are discussing the ramifications of revealing the supernatural community to the humans.”

Immediately, Jax’s mind started churning. “You mean to tell humanity that we exist? Wasn’t that exactly what Key was trying to prevent?”

“Yes—in a sense,” Lucy said. “But this won’t be theCitizens’bias and ignorance exposing us as villains. This would be a calculated, logical approach, with a focus on peace between our kinds.”

“Think about it. The humans will continue to find out about immortals. With the increase in technology, it’s only a matter of time before something happens and we’re caught red handed.” Nero shrugged. “It may be in our best interest to pre-empt that version of our future.”

Thoughts bombarded Jax as he thought about the possible outcomes of what they were proposing. If they did reveal who and what they were to the greater human populace, there may be portions of them that’d be supportive. Just as likely would be those who immediately took their existence as a threat.

“We’d need a way to ensure humans wouldn’t be threatened,” he said. “We’re scary, unknown, and stronger than they are. We have to offset that somehow. If we go big, offer them something, we could sway public opinion toward our cause. What do we do for them that’s an improvement? How can we help them?”

“Raeth healers,” Nero said.

“Vampire blood cures almost everything,” Toni added.

Lucy nodded. “And our Elemental search and rescue teams already have contributed during countless disasters.”

“We would need to show them exactly what we’ve done—and will keep doing—in order to keep fear from spreading.” Jax crossed his arms. “Who else knows what we’re planning?”

“The Peace Accords leaders are all in agreement,” Nero answered, “but we have no way of knowing if this is the right course …”

“Unless Key wakes up,” Jax finished. “Unless she has foresight once more.”

“We would also need to be prepared for those who ask for immortality,” Toni said quietly. “Though Elementals and Raeths would be spared, vampires and werewolves might be inundated with requests.”

Jax nodded. “It might go a long way to showing our benevolence if we accepted some of those requests—those that would save lives, for example. We’d need a way to sort through them—only choose the ones who’d adapt well to immortal life.”

It was impossible to predict, but absolutely understandable. People dying of terminal illnesses or enticed by the thought of immortality would come to them in droves. Parents striving for their children to be saved, asking for miracles, or begging for a cure: they would have to be prepared for it all.

The endless questions continued to pile up, and each of them were struck silent in the minutes that followed. Pursuing this path meant diverging from what’d kept them alive for millennia, but if they didn’t adapt, their secret might be their undoing.

For the first time since Key had fallen, Jax had found something that he could fully dedicate himself to. Aidan had charged him with finding his own niche and responsibilities, and this seemed the perfect fit.

As he looked around at those who surrounded him, he couldn’t imagine a better group to lead this project. Every single one of them—except Nero—had once been human.

Eden’s smile was slow but breathtaking. “I have an idea.”

***

“We would have to be selective about who we accepted,” Aidan said several hours later, as they sat in Key’s living room. “Those who are bitten don’t always have the strength to fully turn.”

Jax chuckled, scrubbing a hand through his hair. “I might’ve thought twice about getting myself bitten if I’d known that.”

“What you don’t know and all that.”

Studying the other man, Jax asked, “Do you think coming out to the general public is a good idea?”

The alpha became contemplative, steepling his hands above his knees. For a man who was twelve hundred years old, changing the status quo would be a massive shift. For Jax, whose immortality was so new, adapting would be easier. It was something to remember for the masses of supernaturals who’d have to adjust to the scenario.

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