had never known before. I wanted to do it again. I wanted to rip the flesh from his bones. The wanting flushed away the coldness. I knew if I hit him again my blood would begin to boil and it would bring me the strength of ten men. I backed away. “You broke the law.”
The Délon stood, his dead eyes full of rage. “No human hand shall ever be raised against a Délon. That is the law you have broken.”
Hunched over, he stepped toward me and again without thinking, I sent my fist crashing into his face. I heard his bones crack. “Do you know who I am?”
He rubbed his jaw. “I know who you will be. That does not change the law. No human shall...”
I smashed him in the face again. “I am the law.” My strength was increasing with each punch. I wouldn’t have been surprised if with the next punch I decapitated him.
I looked at Mrs. Chalmers and for a moment I understood the Délons’ disgust for halfers. She was beyond ugly. She was an abhorrent mistake of nature. I wanted to kill her, to end her existence so I would never have to look at her again.
Mr. Chalmers was not done with me. He wobbled from the blows and the alcohol, but he was going to rush me at any moment. I could feel his need to attack. I raised my hand. “Get out of my sight before I call for the general.”
The message got through to him immediately. The general would not show the restraint that I had demonstrated, and Mr. Chalmers knew it. He located his whiskey bottle and raced up the stairs.
I made an effort not to look at Mrs. Chalmers until I could calm myself. If I saw her ugly halfer face, it would have taken every bit of strength inside of me not to rip her limb from limb. I breathed in and out trying to soothe the beast within. Gradually, my insides began to freeze again. I started to shiver. I felt a hand wrap around my shoulder. I turned to see half of Mrs. Chalmers’ smiling face. “You should sit down.” She guided me to living room and helped me to the sofa.
“It’s so cold,” I said.
“They’re punishing you.” She placed her hand on my knee.
“Punishing me?”
“You’ve been marked. They’re with you now. They can feel the Délon ways inside of you. When you fight them, they punish you.”
“How do I make it stop?”
“You become a Délon.” She said it coldly as if it were inevitable.
I reached in my back pocket and pulled out the picture. “Nate, Mrs. Chalmers.” I handed it to her. “I have to find him.”
She lightly moved her human fingers across the glossy surface of the photograph. I couldn’t detect the slightest bit of recognition in her human eye. The spider legs on the Délon half of her head danced wildly. “Who are these people?” she asked.
“You, Mrs. Chalmers. Your family.”
She looked at me. “Family?”
Hearing her say the word “family” I realized that it was more than her not recognizing the fact that she had a family. She had no idea what the concept of family was.
“Think, Mrs. Chalmers. Nate was born just a few weeks ago. Don’t you remember?”
A tear formed in her human eye. “Don’t make me remember, Oz Griffin.” She was pleading. “Don’t make me remember.”
“I have to find him...”
Whispering, she said. “If you find him, they will find him.” She sniffed the picture. “He is a beautiful baby.” She screamed in pain. Breathing heavily she repeated, “He is a beautiful baby.” Her pain intensified. She threw the picture at me. “He would make lovely skinner food.” Her pain eased.
To my horror, a small part of me understood her sentiment. A horde of skinners would dispose of the fragile little body in seconds, and it would be a sight to see. A sight any Délon would enjoy. I shook the thought out of my head and stood. “This will be over soon, Mrs. Chalmers.”
She didn’t say a word. She stared straight ahead.
“Mrs. Chalmers?”
“I’m ashamed, Oz.”
“I know...”
“I like feeling this way.” The tears fell from her human
Larry Correia, Mike Kupari