Horsemen's War (The Rebellion Chronicles #3) - Steve McHugh Page 0,11
tell me, because I stopped playing games with you people years ago. Who is the next set of orders for?”
Poseidon stared at me for several seconds before sighing. “Secretary of state, in DC.”
“He’s one of yours?”
Poseidon nodded. “He relays information to those senators, congresspeople, and pretty much everyone on the president’s Secret Service detail who work for us.”
“Not the president?” I asked.
“He does as he’s told if he knows what’s good for him.”
“Why is this important?”
“DC is about to enter a very difficult phase. There’s going to be a civil war in a country with enough firepower to burn the entire planet to ash.” Poseidon smiled. “If Arthur can’t have Earth, if you people are so intent on stopping him, he’ll turn it into a wasteland and see how you like it then.”
“Where is Arthur?” I asked.
“Go fuck yourself, Nathaniel Garrett,” Poseidon said. “I hope your pet wolf got skinned.”
I leaped forward, grabbing Poseidon by the throat and dragging him off the bed, across the floor, and to the window, where I smashed him through the glass to the balcony beyond. He fell to the floor, bleeding badly from several cuts, before I lifted him off the floor again and smashed his forehead into the steel railing. The sky above darkened, and thunder rolled across above us.
“Where is Arthur?” I asked again, turning Poseidon over so he could see the heavens as lightning streaked down and slammed into the balcony a foot away from his head.
“Want me to repeat myself?” I asked, moving his head to the singed metal, letting him feel the heat of what the lightning had caused.
“Killing me won’t bring back your friend,” he screamed.
“No, but it will kill you,” I whispered. “I think that’ll be enough.”
Poseidon looked up at me, genuinely terrified. “Atlantis. He’s in Atlantis.”
“And what’s the real plan in DC?” I asked. “Arthur would never burn this entire realm. He’s spent too long wanting to rule over it and crush the resistance. He can’t rule over a wasteland.”
“The last person I received orders from was Gawain,” Poseidon said. “President Reed is going to sign a declaration stating that Avalon is now in control of both the military and policing inside the country. There are people inside every organization inside the country ready to take control. We’re going to turn the United States of America into a police state.
“The resistance might have taken back the UK, and you might take back some of Europe, but you’ll never take back all of America. We’ve worked too long to set this up. The blood of those who oppose Arthur will run in the streets. Once the USA is ours, we’ll finish with Canada and South America. Russia is already falling into line, most of eastern Europe too. Those countries who resisted will be small fry compared to those who are loyal.”
Arthur would cause the deaths of millions of people. “What’s he waiting for?”
“What?”
“Well, why not just sign the damn law?” I asked. “What’s he waiting for?”
Poseidon shook his head. “I don’t know.”
The sky rumbled.
“Honestly, no idea,” he said hurriedly. “All I know is it has to wait until midnight. Gawain is doing something and needs time to prepare. I swear, I don’t know what.”
“How do you contact President Reed?”
“I don’t,” he said. “I contacted Gawain and the head of the Senate. The latter by encrypted phone.”
I dragged Poseidon back into the room and dropped him on the floor before opening the bedroom door. “Anyone found a phone?”
Chloe had one in her hands and tossed it to me, which I caught one handed. “It was in the room with the summoning circle. The circle and its runes are drawn in blood, by the way. Because of course they were.”
I looked back at Poseidon. I placed a foot on his chest and pushed down. “Make the call,” I said.
“I need assurances,” he said.
“I can assure you I’ll rip your face off if you don’t,” Remy said from the doorway. “I bet none of the fishes will want to fuck you after that.”
“I do not have sex with fish!” Poseidon screamed.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” said Remy, looking contrite. “I meant make love . . .”
“Nate, I think you’re going to want to see this,” Zamek shouted from the doorway of the room he’d been investigating.
“Keep an eye on Poseidon,” I said to Remy and went next door to find a glowing purple summoning circle on the wall and a second one on the bare wooden floor.