Hotbloods 5: Traitors

“Speaking of Kaido, where is he?”


“He said he was going to try and catch you before he left for the public execution,” Ronad replied, moving over to my personal stash of fruits and vegetables.

“What about Jareth?”

Ronad juggled three vibrant fruits—pink, yellow, and blue—before slicing them up and fanning them out on a platter. “He’s already gone. I imagine Gianne wanted him there early, for some official rigmarole.”

“Good word,” I commended.

“I do enjoy stretching the old vocabulary now and again. You humans have such beautiful languages, beyond what these things can translate.” He tapped the side of his head, where his linguistic nano-chip was implanted. “Sometimes, it’s nice to throw in one I’ve learned the old-fashioned way. I know Navan takes pride in showcasing what he’s bothered to learn himself.”

Smiling sadly at the thought of Navan, I pulled back the edge of my collar and glanced down at the flashing climpet beneath. There it was, blinking steadily, letting me know my boyfriend’s heart was still beating.

Ronad carved another pink fruit into a flower, the petals curving outward. For someone who didn’t eat solid food, he was becoming quite the culinary artiste.

“Good morning,” Kaido announced brusquely, making me turn away from Ronad’s sharp prep skills. “I trust you are well rested, as you appear to have slept for more than half a full day.”

“Not as much as you’d think,” I replied with a warm smile.

“I should have warned you yesterday—your brain chemistry is unaccustomed to the plants used in my serum, so your body will likely be forced to compensate with fatigue, leading to an increased amount of rest,” he said. “An oversight on my part, but it is a temporary side effect. You should be back to normal by the end of the day, tomorrow at the latest.”

I raised a doubtful eyebrow. “Seems like there are a lot of side effects that you neglected to warn me about.” After all, feeling suddenly sleepy was the last thing I needed today, with a big mission awaiting me.

Kaido shook his head. “I did not neglect to tell you of them. You merely forgot I had told you.”

“Makes total sense,” I teased.

“Anyway, I hoped to give you the results of the experiment before I left,” Kaido went on. “As I suspected, your brain chemistry responded in the exact opposite manner to that of a Vysanthean mind. That is not where the intrigue stops, however.”

Ronad smirked. “Intriguing for you, maybe,” he muttered, bringing over the platter of fruit for me.

I shot him a disapproving look. “I think it’s fascinating, actually.”

“Thank you, Riley. I am glad someone has intellectual curiosity in this room,” Kaido remarked. It was probably the closest thing to a deliberate insult he was capable of. “The most fascinating finding was that, when stimulated by the serum, the affected areas of your brain released trace amounts of a chemical we call imocea. It is something I have never encountered in the brain chemistry of another species, aside from Vysantheans. Indeed, I thought it was unique to our people, until now.”

I looked at him in shock. “And I have it in my brain?”

“A very, very insignificant amount, yes,” he said excitedly. “It does not naturally occur, it would seem, but is produced when your brain is properly stimulated. Now, we Vysantheans have it running in our veins—it is what allows us our superior strength, speed, healing, brain function, etcetera. It is what sets us apart from many other species.”

“But the Draconians are stronger and faster than you. Don’t they have it?” I wondered.

Kaido scoffed. “Their strength stems from a different physical chemistry altogether—there are many chemicals and mutations that can cause different developments,” he said, sounding like a schoolteacher. “I believe there were studies done, a long time ago, into what made the Draconians so formidable, but those findings were lost. What we do know, however, is that imocea is responsible for our growth.”

“So, why is it in my head?” I asked, dumbfounded.

He paused thoughtfully. “It is something we shall endeavor to discover together, Riley. If you would be willing, I should like to investigate more, to see if there is, somehow, a common link between your species and mine,” he proposed. “Naturally, your species is a mere embryo compared to us, but perhaps you are an ancestral offshoot—the product of an errant entity that managed to escape Vysanthe’s atmosphere and travel all the way to Krypton.” A short, sharp bark—his alarming attempt at laughter—erupted from his throat. Evidently, there was something hilarious in the idea of that happening. I chuckled along with him, wanting him to feel comfortable.

“You’re going to be late, Kaido,” Ronad chimed in, nodding to the clock on the wall.

“Oh dear, that is not good. I have lingered too long,” Kaido muttered, suddenly flustered.

“Yeah, you better get going!” Ronad said.

Kaido looked at me, ignoring Ronad completely. “You will consent to more experiments? This may be the breakthrough I’ve sought my entire life. It may explain those people you spoke of, who are similar to me, where you come from,” he said, with such hope in his voice that I couldn’t bring myself to say no.

“As long as you don’t hide any more side effects from me, I’ll help you out,” I joked feebly.

He frowned. “I did not keep them from you, Riley. I will do my best to repeat the warnings next time, once the experiment is over,” he assured me, missing my joke entirely. “Now, I must go before I really am late. Please, take good care of my mother while I am away,” he added, turning his pointed gaze at Ronad.

“I’ll look after her like she was my own mother,” he replied, his tone cold.

“Excellent. Well, goodbye then.”

Kaido hurried from the room. A moment later, the front door opened and closed, and the house fell silent.

“I thought he’d never leave,” Ronad muttered.

“You really don’t like him, do you?”

He shrugged. “I just don’t see how someone can lose a sister and feel nothing. He acted like someone had just told him the brand of blood we had in the mornings was going to change—he didn’t care. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, but even if he has these problems you say he does… to show no emotion whatsoever? I’ll never understand that.”

I didn’t feel like continuing that line of conversation, not when we had so much to do today. He felt a certain way and had lived with those feelings for a long time now. I knew it would take more than a few words to change his mind.

“Come on, we should get going too,” I prompted.

He shot me a grateful smile. “I found some good stuff in the basement the other day. We should have a look and throw on some disguises. We’re definitely going to need something to hide these,” he said, gesturing to his face and mine.

Feeling anxious, I followed Ronad into the entrance hall and down the labyrinth of corridors that led to the basement steps. All the while, I thought about what Kaido had said about the imocea. Was there some ancestral link between humans and coldbloods? Looking at Ronad now, with his tanned skin and wingless back, I guessed we weren’t a million miles away from each other.

“I guess gray skin would be pretty handy right now,” I said as we hurried along. “I hadn’t even thought about clothes to keep us warm.” I flashed Ronad a grin, but he didn’t seem to be in his usual high spirits. A sadness was etched across his face. “You okay?”