darknadir (46 page)

* * *

It proved to be a long day, and one Konis had to fight hard to win, but win he did in the end. It was with relief he collapsed into his seat in the aircar he and Rhyasha were sharing with Garras.
Opening the locker beside him, he pulled out three containers of c'shar. Handing two to the others, he pulled the tab on his can, waiting for it to heat up before taking a sip.
"Gods, this tastes as foul as ever," he groaned as Mnesu took off.
"Still, it's over— till next time," sighed Rhyasha, leaning back against the seat, her can still unopened. "You got the changes pushed through, and backdated for those families that want their younglings to have a choice this time."
"I don't know how you cope," said Garras. "It would drive me mad doing this every two months!"
Konis looked over at him. "You'll get used to it," he said tiredly. "I'll be interested to see how Lijou intends to make eligible Brothers and Sisters available to our fragile Clan kitlings."

CHAPTER 13

It had taken Carrie a while to realize what was happening to her, but when the fever and the stomach cramps started, she knew. Would Kaid understand what it was? There were several people who could tell him. He'd find a way to get them together again, surely. If she called for the Primes and told them, they'd know their Achilles' heel. She had to let Kaid deal with it.
Sitting up, the covers wrapped around her, she tried to stay awake. With Kusac, she'd almost slept herself into the coma. Not this time, this time she was going to fight it. Nausea hit, making her run for the washbasin. She'd eaten nothing for nearly four days, so all it did was leave her throat and stomach feeling raw and painful.
Trembling, she returned to her bed just as the door opened. It was the Valtegan priest, and he was alone. She recognized him from Kaid's memories. The door closed behind him, sealing the guard outside.
"Come here," he ordered, his voice sharp and sibilant. "I wish to examine you."
"You're not supposed to be here," she said, releasing her hold on the covers so her hands were free. "Only the Primes are allowed in."
"Don't tell me what I can do. You're the captive, not me. Come here!"
"I'll call the guard." Under cover of the blankets, she began to slide her legs over the far side of the bed.
He came toward her, tongue flicking out, tasting the air, and her fear.
When she saw his skin began to darken, she jumped to the floor, putting the bed between them. She knew the signs from the days when her sister worked in Geshader as a prostitute for the resistance. Too many times she'd seen what had gone on through Elise's eyes and experienced the pain and injuries they'd caused her while at the height of mating.
"You shouldn't be here," she repeated.
"Call out if you want," he said. "There's no one to hear you. The guard outside is mine. He does what I say."
With the speed of a striking snake, he lunged for her but she'd already moved. Hissing in anger, he came after her, catching her by the hair as she tried to dodge past him.
Screaming and clawing, she was jerked toward him. Her wrists grasped firmly in one of his hands, he took hold of her jaw in the other, pulling her face close. He started back in surprise as he saw her eyes. Vertical pupils— a hunter's eyes— glared back at him.
"Your eyes! Your sister didn't have eyes like those!"
She remembered him now! "I'm a mind-stealer, a telepath like the Sholans, J'koshuk," she said, voice roughened by fear and hate. "Touch me and you'll regret it. My sister laughed in your face, right until the moment she died. I'll do the same." Reaching out for his mind, she began to fill it with fear of her.
She didn't see the raised hand until too late. The blow stunned her, breaking her concentration. Dazed now, and weak from lack of food and the effects of Link deprivation, she could do nothing as he flung her down onto the bed.
"Your sister might have laughed at me, but you won't," he hissed, grasping hold of her sleeping robe.
Terror filled her, but on the edges of her mind, she felt the gestalt hovering. She reached for it, feeding it with all the energy she had left, and screamed for help.

* * *

Lying in his bed, terror exploded in Kaid's mind. He saw the hand descending, felt the blow to his face, and was suddenly caught up in the memory of the rape dream, watching as the male advanced on him again. He didn't need the warming of the crystal to tell him that this time, it was no dream.
His gasp of pain alerted T'Chebbi, who could only sit and watch in stunned horror as his cheek began to swell and a gash appeared on his forearm.
"Rezac!" she shouted, but the door burst open before she'd finished crying out.
Kaid gasped again, like a drowning man coming up for air, then clutched at Rezac as he bent over him. "Help me up!" The contact with Carrie had been brief, but it had been enough to give him back some of the strength he'd lost. He hauled on Rezac's arm, pulling himself into a sitting position.
Rezac caught Kaid's thought and nodded, helping him to his feet. "I know," he said. "I felt it, too."
"What the hell are you doing?" demanded T'Chebbi. "You're not going anywhere in that state! I sent for you to help, Rezac, not make him worse!"
Kaid reached out and touched her face. "He is. I need to call the Primes."
"You're not strong enough," said Rezac. "You'll collapse. Take some energy from me." He held out his hand.
Kaid looked at him, hesitating.
"You're wasting time," he said, grabbing Kaid's hand himself.
The rush of energy made him briefly light-headed. He staggered, to be caught by Rezac, then it was over. Turning, he ran for the door, colliding with Manesh.
"There's an alarm going off outside," she said.

* * *

On the floor of his cell, Kusac felt the pull of the gestalt as briefly, his mind was swept up with those of the other two. As abruptly as it came, it was gone, but it left something behind. A glimmer of his Talent had returned. Not much, but it was more than he'd had before. With it came a cold fury that he knew could only be satisfied by killing J'koshuk. In the distance, he heard the alarm begin to sound.

* * *

Kaid hammered at the outer door, yelling for the Primes, attempting to force his mind through the barrier to try and contact Carrie again. T'Chebbi had come hurtling after him, medikit at the ready to dress his wound, but it was ten minutes before he'd accept that no one was coming and gave up. Slumping against the wall, he finally let T'Chebbi tend his wound.
"Just dress it," he said hoarsely.
She did as he asked. "What caused this?" she asked, winding a bandage over the dressing.
"Later," said Rezac, touching her on the arm.
She turned her head to look up at him as behind them, the door opened. A Prime guard stood at the entrance, rifle held ready.
"The Seniormost wishes to see you," he said, pointing it at Kaid. "You will come with us."
Kaid got to his feet and stepped out into the corridor. Flanked by two guards, he was led down to the stasis room. A Seniormost and several more guards were waiting for him.
"I know my mate's been hurt. Take me to her now," he demanded.
"There has been an unfortunate incident."
"Just take me to her," he snarled, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.
"It was not due to us," the translator interrupted. "It was our Interface, the one called J'koshuk. He abused our trust and attacked the female. He has been punished."
A footfall from behind made him swing around but not before a hypo had been fired against his neck. It stung, and he resisted the impulse to rub it, reaching out for the Seniormost instead. He heard the sound of weapons being powered up and stopped dead, looking around the ring of guns trained on him.
"What the hell's going on?" he demanded, rounding on the Prime again. "Where is she? I want to see her!"
"It is for that you were brought," said the translator. The Seniormost indicated one of two doors in the opposite wall. "She is in there. You may take her with you. She was not thriving even before this incident. We intended her no harm."
"What?" He wasn't sure he'd heard right. He felt light-headed for a moment as their Link reestablished itself, then he knew what had happened. He'd been drugged, his Talent suppressed!
"Take her with you and return to your room."
Hesitantly, he began to walk toward the indicated door, then he ran. A low whimper of fear greeted him as he stepped inside. She was crouched in the far corner of the room, clutching a blanket.
She looked up, eyes filling with tears. "Tallinu?"
He was at her side instantly, lifting her up and wrapping what he could of the blanket around her.
"I have you now. You're coming with me." He turned and walked back to the stasis room, stopping in front of the Seniormost. "If I see J'koshuk again, he's dead. You understand?"
"You will not see him again," said a voice from behind him. "No harm was ever intended to you or any of your crew."
He turned, squinting to see the figure against the glare of the light. He thought he caught a flash of gold.
"Take your mate, Kaid. You and she will not be separated again, you have my word."
"Why are we here? Why haven't you released us?" he demanded.
An armored glove grasped his shoulder. "You will return now," said the translator as he was tugged around.
"Let us go! We've done nothing to warrant this treatment!" he shouted over his shoulder as they were led firmly from the room. "We were never your enemies!"

* * *

As he was let back into their suite, shocked exclamations greeted him. "T'Chebbi, get me the medikit," he said, pushing past everyone as he headed for their bedroom.
Once inside, he knelt down, placing Carrie carefully in his bed. She clung to her blanket when he tried to take it away.
"No! Leave me! I'm fine," she said fiercely. "I want to shower, that's all."
"Carrie, I need to see what he did to you," he said quietly. "I want to be sure your wounds are clean. Vartra knows what kind of infection you could catch." He knew she at least had an arm wound because he'd suffered it, too.
"No! I'm fine!"
The door opened and T'Chebbi came in, followed by Rezac.
Kaid frowned at him. "You're not needed, Rezac," he said, taking the kit from T'Chebbi.
"I can help her," Rezac said, coming over and squatting down a little distance from them. "Let me help, Kaid. I have more experience of this than you."
"What can you possibly..." Kaid began.
"Listen to him," insisted T'Chebbi. "Go talk over there." She nodded toward the doorway.
Kaid's face froze, ears going into the sideward position of anger.
T'Chebbi leaned forward. "Talk," she insisted. "What's important here?"
Reluctantly, he got to his feet and accompanied Rezac to the door, keeping his eyes on Carrie all the while. "Well? Keep it short."
"I've helped Valtegan rape victims before, Kaid. I know what to do."
"What can you do that I can't?" he demanded.
"For a start, I'm not her mate. She doesn't want you to see her injuries. Don't forget Jo has gone through this. Between us, we can help her more than you can right now."
He stared at the younger male, saying nothing.
Rezac sighed. "Look, I know we've got a personality problem between us, but dammit, for once trust me! Let me get Jo."
"Leave him alone, Rezac, for the Gods' sake! He's got enough on his mind without you hovering round him," said Zashou from the hallway.
T'Chebbi exploded from the room, leaping up at Zashou and grabbing her by the neck of her tunic, pushing her back into the hallway. "Why you behave like this? Do you have to always be so jealous of Rezac? Some love yours is! Only thing between them is..."
"T'Chebbi, no!" Kaid called out angrily. "This isn't the time!"
She glowered at him over her shoulder. "Yes! No more
No, T'Chebbi!
You cause more trouble by saying nothing!" She turned back to Zashou, giving her a shake. "You want to know what's between them? I tell you, foolish kitling! Rezac is Kaid's father, that's what you sense!" She pushed Zashou back till she collided with the wall. "He's his father, and somehow Rezac senses it, that's why the bond. Now leave them and us alone!" Turning her back on her, she pushed past Kaid and Rezac, returning to Carrie's side.
"You're from the past, too?" Rezac asked, a dazed look on his face as pieces of the puzzle suddenly began to fall into place.
"I haven't got the time for this right now," said Kaid, turning away from him, but Rezac grabbed his arm.
"I need to know."
"Yes," he said, unwilling to look at him.
"That's why the questions about my past— about the female in Ranz."
"My mother died when I was two. A fever they said. I was sent to relatives and ended up with Vartra's people at the monastery."
"Vartra's fever," said Rezac in a numbed voice, his ears folding back in shock. "That's what killed her. She had psi abilities. We used the serum too soon, didn't know it wasn't stable enough. It killed a great many people."
"It was unstable because Vartra was using psi abilities he didn't know he had to bind the genes the way he wanted. Carrie noticed it. Her blood sample with our altered genes made it possible for him to correct the worst mistakes." Even though he hadn't known it, Vartra had shaped his life almost from the start.
"When you went back as an adult, you met your child-self."
Kaid nodded, still unwilling to catch his father's eyes. "I sent him— me— forward because I'd been brought up as a foundling in this time."
Rezac's ears righted themselves and he seemed to pull his scattered wits together. "Dzaedoh. That's my name, and yours, and explains the similarities between us. Hell, I'm just getting used to the idea of being a father. I don't need a son older than myself!"
Kaid looked up then. Noni's kin? He was Noni's kin? "You're a grandfather. I have a son. Dzaka. He's older than you are, too."
"Shit!" Rezac shook his head, grinning wryly. "I can see why you didn't want to tell me."
"T'Chebbi can see to me, Kaid," said Carrie from the other side of the room. "You and Rezac need to talk."
Kaid raised a questioning eye ridge at Rezac, who shook his head. "I'm through." He returned to her side, taking her face in both his hands, trying not to hurt her bruised cheek. "You'll follow my orders, Carrie. If you don't want me to help, you'll have Rezac and Jo. They can do more for you than I can right now. T'Chebbi can stay, if you wish."
She nodded, covering his hands with hers. "Stay close."
Leaning forward, he flicked his tongue gently across her cheek. "Of course. Where else would I be?"
He joined Rezac back at the door. "I'll fetch Jo, but remember, Carrie's pregnant, and we're only hours from our Link day," he said quietly.
Rezac reached out impulsively to touch Kaid's arm. "We'll be especially gentle with her," he promised.