“I think that’s the room you’re looking for.” The reporter pointed to a room people were filing into.
“Thank you.” Jill smiled as she made her way inside. They found a place to sit near the front and waited. Six men and three women sat on a podium that stretched across the room. One man was talking, but Jill wasn’t listening; instead, she focused on what she needed to say and hoped with everything she had she didn’t screw this up. She started to turn to see how much media was in the room, but Hunter stopped her.
“Don’t,” Hunter whispered. “No one other than you and those nine people up there are in this room. Fight, Jill. You’re not only speaking for yourself, you’re speaking for a whole race.”
“We’re going to open up now for citizens to express concerns,” one man said, drawing Jill’s attention.
“You’re on.” Hunter gave her an encouraging nod.
Steve and Adam touched her as she passed in encouragement. As soon as Jill stood and started toward the podium, a man stood also heading that way.
“Hey, dude,” Hunter called out. “Ladies first.”
The man, embarrassed, nodded and sat down. A few people snickered.
Jill walked to the podium staring at the microphone. “My name is Jillian Bucha...”
“You need to speak up.” One of the men on the council said, looking irritated to have to even say anything.
Her eyes searched each and every one of them and only two, maybe showed any interest in what she had to say and that set her soul on fire adding fuel to her growing anger.
“My name is Jillian Buchanan.” Her voice was strong and clear this time.
“I take it you are the reason for all the media here today.” Another man who sat on a platform higher than her looked down his narrowed nose.
“Yes.” Jill nodded, knowing they were only seeing her mismatched eyes. “I most certainly am and I’m glad I made that call because just getting into this building proved difficult. Only with the help of a reporter was I allowed to walk inside.”
“State your business.” Another man looked at his watch, not even at her.
“There is only one thing that sets me apart from you,” Jill began, taking time to look at each council member. “I love like you. I breathe like you. I even have a heartbeat like you, but the thing that sets me apart from you is I’m a half-breed who has been sentenced to death. As you sit on your platform playing God, I, along with hundreds more are slowly starving to death.”
Murmurs from the crowd echoed throughout the room, but Jill wasn’t finished.
“By no choice of my own I was given a manmade serum to turn me into a half-breed. The serum is making us sick. The only way to save us is to change us, but a new law you proposed and had passed prohibits any half-breed to be changed. I refuse to let my husband, Dr. Slade Buchanan, change me because of this law. He would lose his VC Warrior status, be jailed, and lose his medical license.” Jill’s throat swelled with emotion preventing her from saying anything for a second. Jill swayed, black spots dotted across her vision. Swallowing hard, she cleared her throat. “You have already jailed a highly regarded VC Warrior for changing his loved one, I’ll be damned if you jail another.”
Jill watched as one council member leaned over whispering something to another.
“I am standing before you today to fight for my life. I deserve to live whether I’m human or vampire.” This time tears filled her eyes. Her body was weak and the room swayed, but she kept a death grip on the podium because she was not going down until she finished. “This happening to me means it can happen to one of your loved ones, even yourselves.”
“Mrs. Buchanan, you need to realize we have to have some kind of regulation,” a stuffy older gentleman who eyed her with disdain said into his little microphone.
“Why?” Jill asked, now leaning against the podium. Something was wrong and she was fighting to stay on her feet. Her breathing felt funny and her vision kept bouncing from clear to blurry. When the man didn’t answer, Jill’s anger skyrocketed. “It’s a simple question.”
“No, it’s not,” he replied. “We can’t have vampires running around changing people...”
Jill shook her head. “I see that you have no clue what the hell you’re talking about.” Moving her face away from the microphone, Jill tried to take a couple deep breaths. When Hunter started to come to her, she waved him away, turning back to the microphone. “If by regulation you mean jailing a VC Warrior for saving his wife’s life then this council is a lost cause.”