“It’s going to take a damned sight more than the two of as to get that many people out of captivity. Do we have any idea where the four Sholans are?”
Kaid’s ear flicked in a negative. “None.”
Kusac ate in silence for a few minutes. “Have some coffee. You’ve been nursing those dregs for long enough,” he said absently, pushing his empty plate aside. “Carrie promised Rezac we’d come for them, so we’re committed whether or not we want to be. The only questions now are how many will go, and who they’ll be. If we’re doing this, we’ll do it on our terms, not theirs. It’s our lives at stake, after all.” He looked sharply at Kaid as the other helped himself to the coffee. “You’re coming with us?”
Kaid hesitated, spooning sweetener and whitener into his drink, then stirring it. “Did Carrie tell you I’m planning to go to Stronghold?”
“Yes, but I got the impression it was for a short while.” Kusac tried not to let his surprise show. That Kaid might not wish to be part of this mission hadn’t occurred to him. Perhaps it should have.
“I need some time to myself,” Kaid continued. “I want to learn how to use my Talent properly, and that I can do at Stronghold. I don’t intend to put myself in Esken’s hands.”
“Does that mean you’re considering remaining on Shola?”
There was a small silence before Kaid asked, “Why do you want me to come?”
Kusac couldn’t hide his surprise this time. “Because there’s no one apart from Carrie that I’d rather have at my side. Surely by now you know how much I—and she—trust you?”
“Trust. It comes down to that in the end, doesn’t it?” The question was rhetorical. “If I’m finished with Stronghold, yes, I’ll come,” he said.
Something was wrong, really wrong, Kusac realized suddenly. This was so unlike Kaid, even the Kaid from the days on the Khalossa. “You’ll help me plan for this mission, though?”
Kaid nodded. “I’ll help, yes, and suggest personnel for you. You’ll want several Sholans if you can disguise them as these aliens, but the bulk of people involved may have to be Humans, with at least two or three telepaths. I can find out who among the Terrans would be the best choices.”
At least he’d piqued his interest; that was a start. Perhaps he’d change his mind nearer the time. Kusac pushed his chair back. “Then let’s get started.”
Reluctantly Kaid nodded and got to his feet.
When they broke for second meal, Kusac remained in his office. Switching the room’s psychic dampers on, he keyed in Stronghold’s number on his comm. He felt guilty at going behind Kaid’s back like this, but he really was concerned for his friend’s health.
The speed with which he was routed through to the Head Priest’s private unit convinced him his call had come as no surprise, and that he’d made the right decision.
“I’ve been expecting you to contact me,” said Lijou. “It’s Kaid, isn’t it?”
“You’ve noticed, too. He’s cutting himself off from us, Lijou. Creating those mental barriers again.”
“What’s caused that?”
“I don’t know, that’s the problem. As to when, he started acting strangely a couple of days before the Validation. The day after the first storm, in fact.”
“Could the storm have triggered it?”
“No idea, but he woke Carrie because of some nightmare or something.”
“Nightmare? What about?”
“He didn’t say—blamed it on something he’d eaten, but he woke again later. Did you know he spent the night before the ceremony at the Shrine?”
“Ghyan mentioned it. He said he seemed restless and uneasy: His eyes were heavy from lack of sleep the next day. Kaid definitely felt strained during and after the ceremony yesterday. Are you sure the la’quo’s out of his system?”
“I checked with Vanna. She says he’s clear of the drug.”
“If not that, then what? A vision?”
“That wouldn’t make him behave like a stranger to us, Lijou.”
“He’s asked me if he can come here to study. I told him he’d have to come to terms with the world outside Stronghold first.”
“Let him come. Staying here won’t make the situation any better. Perhaps he’s right and he needs some time to himself. He’s been through too much in the last few weeks.”
“I’m not sure it’s wise for him to be allowed to turn his back on his problems,” began the Head Priest.
“I’m asking you as his Clan Leader, Lijou,” said Kusac. “He’s a priest of Vartra and a telepath, doubly your concern. It may be the only way to let him catch his breath again. Concentrating on studying his Talent may help him feel he’s achieving something worthwhile and is in control of his life again.”
Lijou chose his words carefully. “Do you think his mind has become unstable because of what Ghezu did to him?”
“I don’t think so. Carrie will say very little about it. She says, and she’s right, that he’s entitled to his privacy, but she did admit he had been close to the edge.”
Lijou sighed. “As you say, he’s my responsibility, and I have no option but to agree. The Brotherhood always looks after its own. However, if I contact him about this, he’ll become suspicious, which is the very thing we want to avoid. I’ll wait till he gets in touch with me again.”
Kusac nodded. “Thank you, Lijou. Do what you can to help him. He’s close family now.”
“Of course he is. He’s your third, after all.”
“Even without that. I’ve a feeling our Triad Link is involved somehow in what’s bothering him. He was talking about trust earlier. What could have happened to affect his trust of us?”
“I’ve no idea, Kusac, but you have my word that I’ll do what I can to help.”
“Thank you, Lijou.”
After the call, Kusac sat in silence for a few minutes. Had Kaid had a vision of the future, one he was so desperate to avoid that he was going to turn his back on them? What could be so awful as to make him do that? Sighing, he switched off the dampers and got to his feet. Time to join them downstairs for second meal.
Rhyaz of the Brotherhood was closeted with General Raiban.
“So you want us to handle the interrogation. What do you hope to find out from him?”
“The vital information we need is the location of his homeworld,” said Raiban, getting up and going over to her dispenser. “Second is finding out what they were doing here in the first place.” She selected two vassas, a strong Sholan distillation of wines and fruit, and returned to her desk, passing one to the newly inaugurated Brotherhood Guild Master. It had been a long day for her, if not for him.
“Lastly, I want to know what kind of people we’re dealing with, what motivates them, what hurts them, what their world’s like.”
“You want to understand them,” nodded Rhyaz, ignoring his drink for the moment. “The Keissians know more about this species than anyone. I’ll need some personnel from there transferred to any team we set up. Who have you got?”
“The main Keissian expert is on Jalna at the moment, more’s the pity,” said Raiban, sipping her drink.
“Jo Edwards.”
“You’re well informed.”
“Of course. We make it our business to be. Who else have you got?”
Raiban pulled a folder from her desk drawer and opened it, quickly scanning through the dozen or so pages within it. “We have Dr. Jack Reynolds, currently on the Valsgarth Estate. He was the main medic on Keiss during the Valtegan occupation. He works with Physician Vanna Kyjishi who’s also there. Between them they have the best working knowledge of Valtegan physiology. All the other experts are theorists as they’ve never seen a live Valtegan.”
“A start,” said Rhyaz, taking a small sip from his glass.
“Of course, Carrie and Kusac Aldatan are only available for a limited time due to their forthcoming mission to Jalna. Still, we can perhaps utilize their Talents while they are still here. Then there’s Consultant Chiort and Mentor
Mnya from the Khalossa who were involved in interrogating most of the captured Valtegans.”
“All of whom died. I think not, General Raiban. We’ll leave them on the Khalossa.”
“All the modern day Valtegans on Keiss were terrified of us,” said Raiban. “Not Kezule. He’s a different class of Valtegan entirely. Chiort and Mnya could well be successful.”
“They dealt with corpses, not living beings,” said Rhyaz. “We need a permanent mixed Leska team. Who is available?”
Raiban’s ears tilted, and her tone was sardonic. “I have no one. The En’Shalla Telepaths all owe allegiance only to your temple. Kusac Aldatan will allow them to hire themselves out as contractees, however.”
Rhyaz lifted an eye ridge as he put his own glass down. Father Lijou was right: Kusac was no one’s fool. “I’ll have to deal directly with them, then. However, I’m sure your files include likely employees.” He gestured to Raiban’s folder.
“There’s Interpreter Zhyaf and his Leska Mara Ryan, if Kusac will release them from the estate.”
“Oh, I think he will,” smiled Rhyaz. “From all accounts it will keep Interpreter Zhyaf interested and give him a break from young Mara. Anyone else?”
Raiban shrugged. “There are others, but they’re still in a period of assessment, and we’ve been given no data on their Talents as yet.”
Again Rhyaz was impressed. “No information comes from the estate to you, Raiban? You surprise me.”
“That place has tighter security than a demon-fish’s ass,” she snapped, letting a brief flash of her frustration show through. “My people don’t last there. On one pretext or another, they’re recycled back here by Ni’Zulhu!”
“Very well. You make the initial approaches to Kusac regarding this pair, and I’ll take it from there. The Brotherhood will want full authority over how the questioning is conducted, naturally.”
Raiban growled. “And will therefore take full responsibility if anything happens to him!”
Rhyaz smiled and picked up his glass. “Of course. Standard procedure, General. Standard procedure.” If Raiban thought him an easy mark because he was newly appointed to his position of Guild Master, she could think again. He’d survived Ghezu’s rule unscathed, and managed to keep some degree of higher ethics going in the schoolrooms. He was well able to Challenge Raiban, and win.
For Kusac, the afternoon had been spent in the ruins working with the Touibans again. While he’d been there, he’d examined the lab, trying to see if he could identify any of the ancient equipment now that he’d actually seen some of it working while they were in the Margins.
His arrival had caused a stir, and he’d been treated with an unwonted degree of awe by several of the Sholans there—including a couple of the Brothers. He’d done his best to dispel it, not least because he didn’t feel any different for having been to the Margins—only damned grateful he lived now rather than in that troubled time.
Kaid had remained at the villa with Carrie. Vanna and her sister Sashti had arrived before Kusac left and swept his mate off to the main bathing room for a pampering session, including a massage. Kaid had been invited to join them but had hastily backed out on the grounds that someone was needed to keep watch over the cub in case of intruders.
The late night feeding over, Carrie was unable to settle their daughter. Kashini wriggled and squirmed, mewling fretfully in her tiny, high-pitched voice.
“I’ll take her for a while,” offered Kusac, sitting on the edge of the bed beside her.
Gratefully, Carrie handed over the cub. “I don’t know what’s gotten into her,” she said, rubbing her arms. “She was like this when I fed her this morning. The nurse said she’s been fine with her, though. And she’s growing so fast! She weighs a ton, Kusac.”
“Hardly,” he laughed, holding his daughter upright against his chest so she could see over his shoulder. “Cubs do grow quickly at first. She’ll slow down soon, I promise you.”
As if by magic, Kashini’s mewling stopped to be replaced by a low, trilling purr. Carrie watched as the infant’s hands clutched hold of Kusac’s pelt and the small body began to relax against his.
“Great,” she said. “It’s your fur she’s after. Well, there’s no competition, is there?”
Kusac reached out with his free hand to run his fingertips across Carrie’s face. “You like my fur, why shouldn’t she? She’s only taking after her mother.” His tone, both mental and verbal, held a teasing note and Carrie had to smile.
“That’s better,” he said, resting his hand on her shoulder. “You’re tense. If you’re finding Kashini so heavy, you should do what Vanna does. Lay Kashini down on the bed beside you and feed her like that. Then her weight won’t matter.”
Carrie grunted, making herself more comfortable against the pillows. “And how do you suggest I get round the problem of being unfurred?”
“You don’t need to. What Kashini is responding to now is being held upright. Lying on her back isn’t a natural position for her, it’s one of surrender, of acknowledging you’ve lost a Challenge, or,” he said, hand clasping the back of her neck firmly as he leaned toward her, “accepting your lover.”
“I like that one,” she said, leaning forward to meet him.
Their kiss was gentle, a stolen moment as their child began to settle. Reluctantly they parted.
“I think she’s been picking up the physical tension her weight’s causing, and that plus the fact she doesn’t want to be on her back, are all that’s wrong,” Kusac said, reaching up to gently caress his daughter’s tiny head.
“You’re probably right,” Carrie conceded. “I’ll try what you suggest tomorrow. By the way, shouldn’t we have had a Link day round about now?”
“Not necessarily. Mother said you might not feel the Link compulsion just after Kashini’s birth because of your hormone levels. It isn’t dangerous so long as we stay close during this period.”
“Will you go to Vanna?”
He hesitated, then decided to get up and put the cub in her crib before answering. He knew by the infant’s slow mental rhythms that she was close to sleep.
“Not for the moment,” he said, returning to his mate’s side. “Vanna’s becoming more involved in her own life at last. I’m hoping Kaid will settle with someone so that when you and he are together …” He tailed off as he saw the expression on her face. “What is it? Is there another problem with Kaid?”
“Have you seen him since third meal?”
“No. Why?”
“He’s wearing one of the Brotherhood robes.”
“It’s cold, Carrie. Even I’m feeling it,” he said reasonably.
“That’s not why he’s wearing it. He’s begun to create a physical barrier between us now, I can feel it.”
Kusac sighed and climbed into bed beside her. “Then it’s probably just as well I contacted Lijou. Don’t let it upset you, cub,” he said. “I’m sure we’re as much victims of what’s troubling Kaid as he is.” He wrapped his arm across her waist and gently urged her closer.
“I’m not upset,” she said. “I just wish I knew what had happened. It was so sudden. One day he was gentle and affectionate in his own way, the next, it was as if there was a wall of ice between us. Did I tell you I asked T’Chebbi to keep an eye on him?”
“Sensible. They’re old friends. Her concern won’t make him feel like his privacy’s being invaded or that we’re keeping a watch on him,” he said, nuzzling the side of her neck.
“More than that, if there is anything wrong, she’ll spot it quicker than anyone. The pity is she won’t be able to go to Stronghold with him.”
“Lijou and Kha’Qwa will watch over him, don’t worry about that. I think our esteemed Head Priest regards Kaid as God-marked. He doesn’t want any harm to come to him either.”
Carrie turned to face him. “Dim the light,” she said. “Kashini’s asleep now.” She began to gently stroke the short, soft fur that covered his face. “Have I told you what a good fath
er you are?” she asked drowsily. “If I haven’t, I meant to. I love watching you two.”
A wave of pride swept through him and he began to gently lick along the edge of her jaw. I try, he sent. You and Kashini mean everything to me. He wanted her so much, but he knew she wasn’t ready yet for a more intimate contact.
Soon, she replied, running her hand across his chest. The magic will awaken me soon.
I know. It’s just so damned hard to wait! Resolutely he suppressed his lustful thoughts and contented himself with breathing her scent and holding her close within his arms.
T’Chebbi watched Kaid from behind a pillar in the garden. He stood looking out toward the woodland beyond the front gate. He’d been standing ankle-deep in the snow like this for the last half hour; it worried her.
“What is it, T’Chebbi?” he asked quietly, turning round to look at her hiding place.
She came out from behind the pillar and plowed through the snow to join him, pulling her coat tighter around her. “Should have expected that.” She stopped a few feet in front of him.
“Why are you watching me?”
“She asked me to.”
Kaid’s ears flicked, once. “She?”
“The Liegena. Said you might need company at night.”
“Company?” His ears laid themselves backward, flat against his skull.
She shrugged. “Talk. Company.”
His eye ridges met. “She … told you what?”
T’Chebbi’s ears flicked a negative. “Nothing.”
“She’s wrong,” he said abruptly, turning away from her, raising his ears with an obvious effort. “I don’t need anything.”
T’Chebbi watched him stalk off into the villa, robe billowing behind him in the wind. “Wrong, Brother Tallinu,” she sighed, waiting till he was out of sight before following him. “You need her. You just won’t, or can’t, admit it.”
He paced angrily round his room, holding the Triad pendant tightly in his damaged hand. He felt used, but by whom he didn’t know. The same with his anger—there was no one at whom he could rightly direct it. Part of him wanted to wear the pendant as openly as did Carrie and Kusac, but the other side … He flung the piece of jewelry at the far wall with all the force he could muster, hearing it hit and fall to the floor. Against the base of his throat, the crystal began to warm. He’d pull it off, too if he could bear to touch it, but touching it would bring back memories—and worse, enhance her presence in his mind.
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