almost cost Rider his life tonight." Marlene's attention snapped back to Damali and held her with a hard stare. "You just try me."
The challenge ignited a level of defiance in Damali that was nearly intoxicating. But as she looked at Marlene's stricken expression, seeing fear, hurt, and concern, she forced herself to relax. Yeah, she could take Marlene in an all-out one-on-one, but there was indeed this thing called respect. And she did love this woman... .
"Look, I'm sorry. And I shouldn't have cursed at you. I didn't mean it like that," Damali said, forcing herself to take a deep breath. "I picked up the trail, then all this weird stuff started happening to me, and I couldn't turn it loose. I didn't mean to put Rider at risk. It won't happen again." She watched Marlene lower her arm and steady her breath.
"I'm tired. I'm going to bed." Damali cast a disparaging look at the team. "Yeah. At night. And no, I'm not afraid," she added sarcastically before they could speak - then snatched her sword as she left the room.
"Okay, that was fun," Rider said after they heard Damali's bedroom door slam.
"It's gonna get worse before it gets better." Shabazz sighed, finding a stool again. "We've got two queen bees in this hive."
"Oh, brother," J.L. mumbled on a long breath, going back to his computers.
Marlene wrapped her arms around herself, closed her eyes, and leaned her head back. When two tears slipped down her cheeks, Shabazz stood, went to her, and hugged her.
"Baby, you know our job is almost over, right? She's ready to fly now."
Marlene allowed her forehead to rest against his shoulder. "But she's not ready, Shabazz. Her body is changing - she's going through Neteru physiology spikes, but it's not a stable transition ... hasn't locked in. The girl is a woman by society's standards - but by guardian and vampire huntress standards, she's just a child."
"I know, baby. It's tough on everybody. Like living with a teenager, times ten."
"Mar, exactly what's up with Damali?" J.L. asked, watching them from his station. It was obvious that he had been just sitting there, staring at the screens.
"Her bone structure, while light as a feather, gains flexibility, density - as do her muscles and skin as she matures." Marlene let her breath out in a long, weary sigh. "Can't really tell the difference between a Neteru and a normal kid until one of two things happen - either they are in a life or death situation, or they reach maturity."
J.L. stared at Marlene. "She could've killed another kid, just in a schoolyard brawl..."
Marlene shook her head. "No. It's adrenaline-activated. A normal schoolyard fight wouldn't have kicked this off. But something serious... yeah. She could have hurt somebody. It never got that bad for her, except once."
Shabazz looked at Marlene, then down at the floor as he spoke, remembering how they found Damali after she'd fought and run away from her foster father. "The physical structure is to make her an even match to do battle with a master vampire. If the vamps throw her, she won't sustain a fracture as easily as we would. If they try to bite or scratch her, her skin will give, long enough for her to defend against it. She'll be able to withstand a bite, and once she's fully matured, won't turn. She'll be faster, stronger than all of us - will have everything to match up against a vamp ... telepathy, night vision, silent stealth, the nose to track them, the ears to hear the slightest register of sound ... and lightning quickness. It's all sending her through these ... these bursts. Even her voice is a weapon, it's a frequency that the males draw to, given their heightened hearing capacity. That's why she gravitated to the music industry."
Marlene shook her head. "By instinct she was seeking out experiences to ready her - to strengthen her skills... even if we had never shown up, she would have still been what she is now."
Marlene backed away from Shabazz and walked, glancing at J.L. "She's becoming a walking fighting machine ... but, there's a flaw, or, I should say, a vulnerability."
"What else, Mar? What's the vulnerability?" Rider studied Marlene, and glanced at his teammates. "That female vamp made her crazy."
"Yeah. I know." Marlene went to the window. "She'll make the females attack. The inner core forces around a master vampire are generally females, for some reason. But, for the males, Damali's scent