It didn't help that my father was also King of the Elves-it only widened the gap between us and left me open for the insults my brothers often leveled in my direction.
"Thank you," I gritted. One should never show ingratitude toward my father. He was generous and never pointed out my flaws-at least in my presence.
"Drink-it will make what I'm about to say go down easier," he said.
I drank. The tea was hot but not too hot, just as my father commanded. I emptied half the cup before he spoke again.
Patience-it was a virtue with my father. My humanoid side dictated that I have very little of that precious commodity. "What is it, Father?" I muttered.
"Ah-Norian Keef will come to you shortly, to ask you to accompany him to the planet known as Earth. He wishes to avenge the deaths of four wayward agents. You will go with him, but you will advise caution. In all things, do not anger the Larentii."
"What the hell do the Larentii have to do with this?" I demanded.
"You will see," he said and ended the communication.
The moment the comp-vid screen went dark, it lit again. Norian was calling. I cursed softly before accepting the transmission.
* * *
Ilya
I expected Finch to start growling, his frown was so intense. It was obvious he didn't appreciate my presence-or Sergei's. If I thought it wouldn't start a fight, I'd ask him what the problem was.
I hadn't even seen Corinne-she'd been taken straight to the suite she shared with Valegar. Instead, I attempted to run interference between Sergei, Finch and myself. If he wanted a fight, however, I didn't intend to hold back.
Captain Walker's eyes also followed Finch wherever he went, but he watched Dr. Farrell just as intently.
Farrell's actions appeared strange to me, too, and I was at a loss to explain it. The normally calm doctor was short-tempered and restless. His eyes followed Lieutenant Troutman, much like a drowning man might follow water.
Jennifer, on the other hand, appeared uncomfortable under his gaze. Whenever Farrell came too close, she automatically moved toward Captain Walker. It didn't take much to determine why, I think. There were the beginnings of a relationship, not fully realized, and she looked to Captain Walker for protection-at least in her unconscious mind.
It made me wish for Corinne's presence so we could discuss these problems, but she was absent. I worried that she was now too afraid to be near me. Depression threatened again at the thought but I fought it down, determined not to fall into that chasm again.
Katya was pleased to be reunited with her friends, and I hoped she-and they-could reel Sergei in if Finch threatened in any way.
I considered contacting Colonel Hunter to describe the potentially volatile situation, but held off. The weather promised to clear the following day, so an outing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the explosion could serve to calm Finch down.
"Papa?" Katya placed a cup of hot coffee in my hands.
"Thank you," I gave her a smile.
"I didn't know it would feel so uncomfortable here," she whispered as she leaned her head on my shoulder.
"When Corinne comes back to us, things will be better," I soothed.
"I hope that's true," she agreed. "And I hope it happens soon."
* * *
Corinne
"Dearest, Father has sent information while you slept," Val woke me with his words and a kiss.
"What?" I mumbled, still half asleep.
"He says that present day, which is his past as you know, Norian Keef, Lendill Schaff and one other have embarked for Earth. They will arrive in three days."
"Perfect news to wake to," I sighed.
"Sarcasm?"
"You know it."
"Are you ready to face the others?"
"I suppose."
"They feel your absence," he kissed my forehead.
"I hope that's all they feel. I don't need or want murderous attacks."
"Come, I believe there is coffee if you want it."
"My hair's a mess," I complained. I'm sure Val recognized my words for what they were-a stalling tactic.
"I will take care of your appearance if you wish," he said. "Rise with me, my darling, and we will go out to the others."
I went, but I wasn't happy about it. The impending visit by Norian Keef didn't sit well, either. For me, that was the icing, which would land on the snow-covered cake in our part of Canada.
I swear I felt cold, even with Val providing a constant balloon of warm air around me. When I walked into the kitchen with Val, I could see and feel the tension gathering.
Leo was still with Auggie and Matt, so he couldn't help calm the emotional waves emanating from everybody. Poor Bekzi and Gerrett were making sandwiches and coffee for everyone while both shook their head at the state of things.
Well, fuck.
"Everybody, listen up," I announced our presence, which until then had gone unremarked. "If you can't get along, then go sit in the corner. If you can't get along and don't go to a corner, then I'll put you in one. We have bigger fish to fry than dealing with pettiness and jealousy, right now. The Director of the ASD will be here in three days, looking to avenge those ass-hats we offed in Oklahoma. We have to stand together and make sure nobody dies, okay? It's important for the future."
"What the hell would you know," Finch snarled.
I didn't have to put him in a corner-Val did it for me. He was forced to sit there, his nose in a small circle and unable to move it, for half an hour. I hoped he was a good boy after that, because Val had lost patience with him.
* * *
Notes-Colonel Hunter
"I have a ride back to D.C. arranged for you and Dr. Shaw," James informed me over the phone. "Matt, too, if he wants it. A jet is waiting at Tinker AFB for you."
Tinker was located in Midwest City, a suburb of Oklahoma City. It would take roughly an hour to get there from Cordell, with smooth traffic. I considered calling Corinne, then thought better of it.
The bodies of the two beheaded ASD agents had been taken away at Matt's orders; they'd be examined at a facility located south of Atlanta. The others-all locals-had already been sent to a facility in Oklahoma City. Most of them bore burns on their bodies. I wanted to curse for the hundredth time at the dead Elemaiya who'd killed innocents. Those four may as well have declared war on us the moment they arrived in the Oval Office.
I blew out a breath-Madam President was waiting to be briefed on the incident, and I wasn't looking forward to giving the information to her. The locals were already gossiping that this was a terrorist act and frankly, I couldn't say they were wrong.
"Meeting tomorrow with the President," Matt said when he ended the call on his cell phone. "You got us a ride?"
"Yeah. We just have to get to Oklahoma City, first."
"No problem; Winkler sent a car and driver," he said. "Grab Shaw and let's get on the road. Oklahoma gives me the fidgets."
* * *
Corinne
"You think they'll sneak out of bed and cause trouble?" I asked Val. It was late and the others had gone to bed.
"I say they will," Rafe walked in, a bottle of imported beer in his hand.
I went still. I hadn't expected him to still be up.
"Cabbage, it's all right," he held up a hand. "Keep a shield about yourself if you want-I can sense it from here. I believe Nefrigar has done more for me than I may have imagined-I only wish to touch you, now."
To tell you how much I love you. And how I've missed you, he added in mindspeech.
"I think I'll have to get used to that," I held up a hand. I could see how much my words and gesture upset him. I was upset, too, but I didn't say it.
"Shall we sit and talk," Valegar suggested.
"Yes. Please," I heaved a sigh. My legs already felt like rubber and my hands trembled. I was afraid to trust this change in Rafe. I could recall with perfect clarity the rage in his eyes when he'd come after me both times-the first immediately after the
obsession was placed, and then at the villa in Italy.
I was terrified to trust Rafe again, even though a powerful Larentii thought him to be safe. We sat on sofas divided by a large table, facing one another. Val sat beside me and took my hand.
"You must understand that she loves you-it is merely difficult for her to disassociate the obsession-afflicted man from the one she trusted before," Val told Rafe.
"I can see how that could happen," Rafe lowered his eyes and stared at the beer bottle in his hand for a moment. "I also understand how her past plays a part in this-although I was hoping for a permanent cure for her PTSD."
"We are learning, just as you are," Val said. "We have never had a Larentii join our ranks after surviving the drug. Every day brings something new, including the fact that her past lives are bleeding into her current one."
"Yes. At times, I experience the same." Rafe dropped his American-sounding accent for his native one. Ilya was now present. He sounded bitter.
I understood that perfectly. It made me want to cry.
He'd lost a wife and a son.
I'd lost a husband and a son.
He now bore an obsession to kill me if he could. I didn't trust what had been done to hold the obsession at bay. I couldn't trust him, either.
Not anymore. This wasn't the Ilya I'd known. This one was afflicted with a disease no Larentii could cure. They could only provide a temporary fix that could weaken or disintegrate with no notice.
Yes, my PTSD was in the driver's seat and I couldn't muster enough logic to defeat it. I felt horrible for the pain Ilya was experiencing.
I felt horrible from the pain in me, too.
I had no ready answer for either of those things.
"I don't know what to do," I wept.
"Shhh, Ilya's here," he crooned. I had no idea how he'd reached my side so quickly.
"Breathe slowly, dearest," Val soothed. "I will allow no harm to come to you."
I felt as if I were drowning-in both fear and desire. The desire came from Val-I recognized it from before. Perhaps he was attempting to forge better memories between Ilya and me. Perhaps I would be angry with him about that.
Later.
Ilya kissed me. A kiss I remembered. One that told me I was more important than anything else to him. Valegar transported us to the bed in our suite.
I will never forget my first experience with energy sex. It was achieved during normal coitus, giving Ilya and me a pleasure we'd never experienced before while I wept with joy at the loving touch of his hands and body.
* * *
Opal
I poured more Scotch in my glass and swallowed half of it before turning my gaze on Matt. We were in his office and it was late at night.
Something was up-we both felt it.
"Look, I know you disagree with the way I'm handling things," he said, waving his empty glass at me.
"You're not handling much at all," I pointed out. "You're standing back and letting Corinne do it, for the most part."
"We have limitations on interference," Matt reminded me.
"But this-what's happening now-wasn't exactly in the game plan. You know we can interfere all we want if rogue gods are involved."
"I don't think a rogue would come within a hundred light-years of this place," he replied. "We have absolutely no proof of that. Besides, I have to keep my job, and if I go too far off the reservation-sorry, that was the wrong word to use-anyway, I have to keep my job, at least for a while longer, even if it involves disguising myself and taking on another name."
"I disagree-you need to involve yourself now, before everything goes to hell," I retorted. "Cori doesn't need to carry this load by herself."
"Well, you're not in charge, here," he hissed. "So back off. I'll let you know if we need to up our game."
"Right," I said, just as his cell phone rang.
* * *
Notes-Colonel Hunter
I was asleep when the call came. Laci lay beside me, her breathing soft and even. The vibration of my cell phone didn't disturb her sleep as it did mine.
Rolling off the bed, I stalked into the bathroom and shut the door before answering. Only an emergency would interrupt my sleep like this.
"What is it?" I barked without looking to see which White House staffer generated the call.
"Madam President is dead," the voice informed me. "Of an apparent heart attack."
Chapter 10
Corinne
I wasn't aware of anything until I woke. I understood then why Larentii always had others stand guard during and after energy sex, whenever they were away from their homeworld. It took the term mind-blowing and lifted it to the fiftieth power, at the very least.
If Ilya had been human, it would have torn him apart, the force was so great. Most Larentii arranged to have humanoids shielded if they were included in the backwash of pleasure.
Ilya got the full force of it and managed to survive.
I imagine his shield kicked in at an appropriate moment.
"Dearest, wake, there is news," Val whispered against my ear.
I only wanted to sleep longer, or be transported into sunlight and sleep longer.
"Whuh?" I asked.
"The President is dead," he informed me. "I fear it is not from natural causes, as others are currently reporting."
"Fuck." I was awake and standing beside the bed in a blink while Ilya disentangled himself from the sheets.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Madam President is dead. I need sunlight, coffee and a trip to the White House, because I intend to get to the bottom of this."
* * *
We ended up in Auggie's office with James while we waited for Auggie and Matt to arrive after their meeting at the White House. The Vice President had already been sworn in; I was grateful for that bit of news, at least.
As the former Secretary of State, I knew he was a decent, fair-minded human being-as long as the enemy wasn't planning to pay him a visit. He suffered from an undiagnosed case of PTSD, and wasn't getting treatment for it. I worried that something small could set him off and then we'd all be in trouble.
As for Madam President's death, it smelled of betrayal and assassination to me, and I wanted to see everybody who'd had contact with her in the past two days.
I'd read in their faces what they weren't willing to tell anyone-whether they were involved in this debacle.
"Cabbage, you look as if you're a pressure cooker turned too high," Ilya cautioned as he patted my hand.
"I know," I mumbled. "I can't help it. I'm so mad I could blow something apart."
"Dearest," Val warned.
"Yeah."
"Thank God you're here." Auggie looked gray as he stalked into his office, James and Matt right behind him. "Look, I need your talents, Cori, and I need them fast. I also need to keep you disguised, if possible. We don't want to alert any enemies to your presence, unless I miss my guess."
"I can handle that," I began.
"No, I need you to look like a regular staffer," he said. "James, show her the photograph."
James handed a tablet to me, where a young woman in a photograph smiled at me-it was the picture used for her White House Staff identification.
"Your name will be Laura Quimby, assistant to the current Chief of Staff," Auggie said. "You'll say you were called back from vacation by your boss, who's already been informed and sworn to secrecy," he added.
"But what about," I pointed at Val and Ilya.
"Oh, they'll come too-as bodyguards for Matt and me. James has more photographs for them. You'll have a better excuse for getting in and out of sensitive areas."
"I see. I really want to take a look at anybody who had dealings with Madam President in the past two days," I said.
"We'll do our best to accommodate that request," Matt said. "Most are scheduled for questioning by the Secret Service, at President Granville's request. You'll help herd them to and from their appointments. It's disguised as a debriefing, sort o
f, to record and compile Madam President's final hours in office."
"Do you know how sad and fucked up that sounds?" I rounded on Matt.
"Yeah. I do. Not my fault," he held up his hands.
"All right," I offered a curt nod in apology.
"Come on-get your disguises together. Cori, will you help with Rafe's?"
"I will see to it," Val offered.
"Good. Cori, James will drop you off at the employee entrance. Make sure your badge has the proper barcode and chip. The Chief of Staff will be waiting for you in his office. I assume you recall where that is?" Auggie asked.
"I do."
"Perfect. Let's get on this, people. I want to know what happened, who's behind it and what we should be doing about it. Now."
* * *
"How's Nathan?" James asked as we drove through crowded D.C. streets.
"He's fine. Finch is being an asshole as usual, but he should be minding his manners unless he wants Val to put him in a corner again."
"What?" James jerked his eyes off the road for half a second before turning back to his driving.
"Just what I said. I'm sure he's still pissed about it, too, but if he knows what's good for him," I shrugged.
"I don't believe this," James muttered before a chuckle escaped. "I hope Nathan got pictures."
"Val can probably pull up an image for you, if he didn't," I said.
"What do you think happened? To the President?" James turned to a more serious topic.
"I don't know, but I doubt poor health played into it. Last time I saw her in the Oval Office, she was in very good health. If I don't find anything at the White House today, I may ask Auggie to let me see her body."
"This whole thing is so frustrating," James said. "I voted for her, you know. Sure, she did some things I disagreed with, but that happens no matter who it is."
"All that time Zoran was trying to kill her and take over, and this happens now," I said.
"At least he's dead," James gripped the steering wheel tighter.
"Yeah, but we have no idea whether he has clones running around or not. We've had a Zoran sighting in Dublin-don't forget that. Plus, the American people still think Phillips is alive. Madam President never announced his death to the public."
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