“They need to learn,” Fury added. “They are our future.”

“They won’t be if they get hurt.” Darkness softened his tone, not wanting to startle the children. “They are too high.”

Fury bumped him again. “Relax. Watch. Move a little to the left and back three feet.”

Darkness moved and Fury took his spot. “Sal? Emergency drop!”

The boy pushed away from the wall and turned in the air as he fell. Darkness wanted to jump up and catch him but Fury opened his arms. The child landed safely in them. Giggles erupted from the boy when Fury tossed him in the air once and then set him on his feet.

“Emergency drop,” Slade called out.

Darkness tensed again but expected it when Forest shoved off the wall and fell. He curled into a ball. Slade caught him and put him on the floor, tickling him in the process. They both laughed.

Fury winked. “See? We have this down. They not only are learning how to climb but gaining upper-body strength in the process.”

Slade gave him a meaningful look. “In case of emergency they know to follow orders without pausing to give it thought. He’d have dropped for you too if you’d asked, trusting you to catch him.”

Darkness nodded. “Species only, I hope.”

Fury shook his head. “We don’t discuss that. They are still too young. Their mothers…”

Darkness understood. He could finish what Fury hadn’t said aloud. Their mothers were human and therefore they’d only been exposed to love. “That will be a tough conversation.”

Slade captured his son and hoisted him high, putting him within reach of the handholds on the wall. “Go for it.”

His son laughed and started climbing again. Salvation didn’t have to be told. He ran at the wall and jumped, that time managing to catch two handholds at once. He quickly reached Forest but stayed next to the other young one.

It confused Darkness. “Salvation is taller and stronger. Why doesn’t he climb above Forest?”

Fury answered his question. “They are a team. If Forest slips, Sal will help him.” He shot Darkness a pointed look. “They are like brothers. They will always be there for each other.”

The words were meant to sting and they hit their mark. Darkness felt guilt. “I need to go. I’m late for my shift.” He quickly left.

Chapter Ten

Kat smiled and glanced around the main room in Security. The banks of monitors were impressive. It was a top-of-the-line system. She felt honored to get a tour.

“What do you think?”

“It’s great.” She pointed to one wall. “Those are all exterior monitors there?”

Jinx nodded. “Yes. They cover the wall sections. To your left is the interior of Homeland in general areas. The right is the exterior shots of Homeland, beyond the gates.”

She peered right. Protestors paced the sidewalks and cars drove by on the street. On another screen was the view of a nearly deserted street. The monitor under it showed a park. She glanced at each screen, realizing they had views of everything within about a block of their walls.

“Do you get a lot of people who try to breach the walls at various points?”

“Not often. We have officers on the wall and the humans see them. It dissuades most from attempting it.”

“What about by air?” She knew the answer already but a crime lab technician wouldn’t.

“We have a mile radius no-fly zone around all NSO lands. We closely monitor air traffic. Anything incoming needs prior approval.”

“What if someone does breach the air space?”

“We have the means to take them down.”

She pondered that, questions forming.

“I can’t discuss it further,” Jinx murmured. “Sorry. Some precautions are classified.”

Kat let it go. “No problem.” She knew the military had worked with the NSO and their task force to protect their land. Her attention drifted left and she watched the monitors covering the front gates. At least thirty people were working to repair the damage, repaving the scarred ground and putting up new gates. A redhead caught her attention. There was something about him that seemed familiar.

“Can you zoom with these cameras? Do they move?”

“Sure.”

She walked forward, hoping it didn’t seem suspicious. “Can you show me? Like, zoom in on this guy here?” She pointed to the construction worker smoothing freshly poured concrete over the scarred area where the van had exploded.

“Do it,” Jinx ordered.

The image was sent to a larger monitor at the front of the room and the operator of the security system brought the man into sharp focus for close inspection. The face of the construction worker filled the screen and he glanced around, lifting his chin just enough for her to get a really good look at him. Her anger simmered.

“Show her the mobility of the cameras,” Jinx ordered the woman at the controls.

The camera angle moved, panning across the other construction workers. The man behind the wheel of the concrete truck came into view and Kat clenched her teeth. She studied each face on the monitor.

“Very cool.” She tried to make her voice sound ordinary.

“Would you like a tour of our interrogation rooms?”

“I’ve seen one of them already. I’ll pass.”

Jinx winced. “Sorry. I forgot about that.”

“Speaking of, is there any way I can talk to Darkness? I had a question for him and want to make sure he’s still not irritated with us.”