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know about my people’s history? What have you told your governor about us? Hmm? Have you fed him lies of what happened in the Great War? My people have survived. The legend of the Mars family ends with me.”
    The teacher’s head trembled from the pressure of the rifle against his skull. “Dean Mars will find a way to beat you.”
    Rodion knocked the butt of the rifle across the teacher’s head, leaving a gash three inches long as the old man tumbled out of the chair and to the floor, where he lay there lifeless. The soldiers picked him up and went to drag him outside, but Rodion had another plan. “Wait!”
    The two soldiers froze then set the body down. Rodion stepped along the faint trail of blood from the teacher’s wound. “If this is an advisor that Governor Mars listens to, then perhaps I should have him deliver a message.” Rodion pulled a knife from his belt and cut the old man’s shirt open. He pressed the tip of his blade into the teacher’s chest and carved downward.

Chapter 4
    The Pacific fleet met Dean and the Atlantic fleet along the dead coast in the south. With it they brought the news of the capital’s fall, as well as their brother’s death. It was all Dean could do to act relieved that at least his wife and nephews had survived. And the baby.
    Jason punched the wall in Dean’s cabin, cracking the wooden board in half and leaving a stain that resembled a bloodied version of his fist. “How could they let this happen?” Jason paced around the room, gently shaking his bloody hand, his eyes looking for another board to break. “How did Rodion get that type of weaponry?”
    “Sit down, Jason.” Dean kept his cool demeanor, and his tone at the very least triggered Jason’s hands to release the tight clench they held. He turned his attention back to the messenger Monaghan had sent. “Where is Rodion’s army now?”
    The soldier couldn’t have been older than Dean’s nephew, Kit, but the boy was significantly less confident than his own blood. Even when the young soldier stood at attention, he fidgeted. “They’ve made camp in the capital. They’ve sent out scouts along the coast and farther south, but he’s shown no movement over the past few days.”
    Savoring the victory. “Anything else?”
    The grunt shifted uncomfortably. “The governess requested a time for your brother’s funeral.”
    Jason sat down, the rage falling with him. For Dean it was all too surreal. Having lost both Fred and Lance within the span of only a month had been the most Mars blood shed in nearly three years. “It will be discussed upon our return. For now, tell her to make what preparations she deems necessary. I have full confidence in her judgment. You’re dismissed.”
    “Yes, sir!” The boy saluted and quickly left the room, the guard closing the door behind him and locking both Dean and Jason in the room alone.
    Dean found the pendulum around his neck and cradled it gently. He looked over and saw Jason doing the same. The silver sphere felt smooth and cool against his fingertips. “We’ll have to decide who will go, and soon. We can’t afford to risk another one of us dying, and I won’t put such a burden on Kit to go in our stead if we perish.”
    “I know,” Jason replied. He leaned forward, letting go of the necklace, and it dangled from his neck, swaying slightly with the rock of the boat. “How the hell did Rodion get those weapons?”
    “Hawthorne.” The name left Dean’s mouth involuntarily, and Jason eyed him, confused. “The professor tried talking to me before I departed to Brazil, telling me about the symbols he saw and the letter we received from Lance about the modern weapons being traded on Australia’s black market. He warned me that the Russians could have found an old factory and started producing the weapons on a large scale. I wasn’t sure if I didn’t believe him because of his proof or because I was afraid of what it would mean if it was true.”
    “Well, with