“You owe us an apology?” Lido’s rough, raspy voice made the query more of a growl.
“What is this about, Shard?” Jalan looked to Shard when Lina didn’t immediately explain.
“Just let her explain things.” Shard turned and narrowed his eyes at Lina.
She got the message. She hadn’t yet actually apologized.
“I-I was doing some work for Central Command at the time and was off Mical more than I was on it. I should have looked more into your situation, but I was swamped at that time. I should have done more when I learned you were Santir, but, until that time, I associated you with every other person who sued me hoping for easy money.” She looked at the slightly less intimidating Ardin Jalan when she made her explanation.
“Sued…” Lido breathed. His eyes on locked on her face.
“Yes.” Kaleb nodded, his eyes sparkling as they turned to Lina. “Lina is L.C. Cadian of Cadianco. She was born Santir, but was living as a human because she was alone. She has been walking the edge for a long time now. She still has more to tell you.”
She knew that every eye in the camp was on her. They were all interested in the spectacle.
“I tried to contact you when I realized that you were Santir. I wasn’t going to try to buy you out of the suit. I was going to try to explain things to you, show you that I didn’t use your image.” She shifted her weight nervously from her right to her left foot.
“What could you think to tell us to convince us that we were wrong? We saw the images. Everyone has. What could you show us?” Lido sneered.
“If I had known of your situation, I’d have done more than that. I wouldn’t have missed the money of a no-fault settlement. I’m sorry I didn’t try harder to make you listen.” For the moment, she made no comment about proving them wrong. The look on Shard’s face told her that she had better get on with the apologies.
“We wouldn’t have accepted a no-fault settlement,” Jalan denied coldly, his eyes and his expression displaying his hostility.
“When I really thought about it, I realized that there were many ways that I could have gotten to you, even if you were stubborn. I’m sorry I didn’t pay more attention to things. I’m sorry I let it go to judgment when I knew you were Santir.” She took a deep breath. Without thinking hard, she knew of four ways to get to them with or without their approval.
“Do you think that anything you said would be of interest to us?” Jalan gave her a contemptuous look. That man was still angry and still believed that she had used his image, regardless of what the judge said.
“You never saw my part of the trial, my testimony. Your advocate was there, but because I was working with Central Command, I was allowed to show my proof late one night before I left early in the trial.” Lina laced her fingers together and looked up at the two men.
“You have proof of your claims?” Lido’s mouth had fallen open in incredulous shock.
“Why couldn’t we sense you as Santir during the trial?” Jalan narrowed his eyes.
“Yes, I have proof,” she sighed and took a deep breath. “As to why you couldn’t sense me, there’s a specialty lotion that contains many of the same minerals as the mina stone. It works just like that stone without the giveaway of wearing a piece of gray rock as jewelry.”
Jalan’s eyes turned to Shard. “Have you seen this proof?”
“No, we waited for you to arrive to gauge the worth of her proof.” Shard reached out and took one of her hands in his. He gave it a gentle squeeze and smiled at her.
“A judge found it to be more than convincing.” While she appreciated the gentle encouragement of his hand clasping hers, she couldn’t stop herself from glaring at him in response to his comment.
“Ah, but, rao nari, we have much stricter standards and are harder to convince than a human judge.” Kaleb used the tips of his fingers to turn her face to his as he brushed his lips across hers. “Show us your proof now.”
“I’ll need one of my computers as well as the black box.” She looked longingly to where Darik had disappeared into their tent. She could have used that time alone to collect her jangled nerves. Taking a deep breath, she took the box from the man and carried it to a free table.
She opened the sealed safe and took out a large, bound, obviously old tome. She gently placed it on the table and then took out a small red data chip. One of her slim, powerful computers was brought to the table.
“I’ll do it. I know what you can do with a computer.” Kaleb held out his hand in imperious demand.
She frowned at the implication, but placed the red chip in his hand. “There’s a file on that chip named ‘Origin Character Development’.”
While Kaleb was accessing the files, she reverently opened the book. She turned the yellowed pages with care. She didn’t want to damage it.
“What is this?” Lido asked, gesturing to the book.
“This is where I got the basic character faces for many of the characters in ‘Origin’ including the two that you say were based upon you.” She found the first of the relevant pages. “The file Kaleb is opening shows how I went from the one-dimensional sketches to the three-dimensional versions and the differences I added for the game characters, in detail. I learned early in my career to document my work.”
The first things she showed them were merely line sketches of Santir males, two of which did resemble Ardin Lido and Ardin Jalan. She turned the pages of the book again and showed the men drawings done in colored inks. The drawings were of excellent quality and detailed. The old explorer who had owned this book had documented his encounters with a species unknown to his people. Handwritten notes near each drawing told of the men and how they had greeted his arrival.
“You’ll want to look at these.” Kaleb set the computer down so that the others could look at the images now displayed on the screen.
After they had finished inspecting everything, Jalan’s eyes traveled back to the old, cloth-bound book. “Where did you get this?”
“I found it in an estate sale. The family had been related to the explorer who did all the sketches and notes.” She ran a reverent hand over the pages. “I was always searching for old Santir artifacts. I had several agents who kept watch for anything that might belong to that time period.”
“Have you found others?” Kaleb looked over at her and was struck by how much she had longed for a connection to her people even as she kept herself apart from them.
“Yes, she has,” Lido answered before she could respond to the question. He pulled a palm-sized metal disk out of the box.
Lina glanced briefly at the old clan Seal. “I found that in some old ruins on Denao.” The sight of the Seal, one meant to be worn by the Ardin as a buckle or medallion, brought back memories, both good and bad.
“Why did you take it?” Shard frowned at the sadness in her expression.
“My mother was a descendant of the Nairan clan. She was so proud of her affiliation to it.” She remembered with a smile. She could still hear her mother telling the legends and stories of the clan’s proud history. “I wanted to give her something of it, something she could hold. I began looking for one of the seals or a copy of it. I found some old references to it that led me to Denao.”
The silence stretched. “What happened next, rah’ki?” Shard could tell by her expression that this next part was not easy for her to remember.
“I went to get it. I told the elders only that I was going to get a gift for my mother. I was afraid that if they knew that I was flying into Shifter-Protected Space that they would try to stop me.” Her eyes saw nothing of the forest beyond their camp as old memories raced through her mind.
“Something happened to her while you were gone?” Shard reached out and rubbed his hand up her bare arm.
“It took me five days to find it once I arrived on Denao. I came back home, ready to give my mother a piece of her history. She wasn’t there. The elders had sent my mother to check some of our contacts with two others.” She drew i
n a shuddering breath. Gods, this hurt. She hadn’t ever talked about how her mother had died.
“Nari, you don’t have to tell us.” Kaleb brushed his fingers across her cheek.
She went on with the story, needing to get it out now that she was telling it. “They were very young and inexperienced. It should have been a routine check. Something went wrong. Their bodies were found naked, mutilated, days later. I should have been there. It wouldn’t have happened if I was there.”
“You could have been killed just as they were, Lina.” Shard’s voice roughened. The heat from his body seeped into hers as he stepped closer to her.
“I kept that with me for years afterward. It was the only link that I had to my mother. I was carrying it the day that I was sent to find the missing woman. That’s the only reason I have it now.” She closed her eyes. After she had been separated from her group, it had started to remind her of everything she didn’t have. She had shoved it into the safe and tried to forget about it.
Kaleb’s arm slipped around her, pulling her close, comforting her.
“So did my evidence pass the test?” She thrust her thoughts away from her mother’s death, away from her life before she’d been on her own.
“We believe that you didn’t use our images.” Lido stared at her for a few moments before he gave her his answer. “I would like to look some more at that book.”
“But you probably did use their ancestors, rao nari.” Kaleb laughed at her frowning expression.
“The resemblance between the pictures and Lido and Jalan is astounding. I’m surprised that even a human judge missed it.” Shard gave Lina a pleased smile and clapped Lido on the back.
“He didn’t miss the resemblance. My book has been authenticated as over three hundred years old. I couldn’t have faked it. With the documentation of my work, it was enough.” She turned and glared at him.
Jalan stepped forward and smiled at her. “We accept your apology and you have ours as well. We should have been much more watchful, more aware. There were a few instances in that game that did mirror Santir history.”
“I tried to dilute anything that resembled our history to a point where it was unrecognizable.” She frowned. If they had even thought that it sounded like it, then she hadn’t done enough.
“Instead of taking it as coincidence, we should have done our own research. We also should have given you a chance to explain. If we had, you’d likely have left the planet with us because I doubt you would have been able to explain and keep your identity a secret.” Jalan raised his brows.
“I wouldn’t have minded her coming to us before she did. It might have helped curb this penchant for trouble she has exhibited—working for Central Command, various acts that are on the fine edge of shifter law and also having the sheer nerve to taunt her mates at any time she feels like it. She’s a mate who will require constant attention.” Kaleb smiled at her with predatory interest.
Lido laughed but continued to look at the passages which accompanied the drawings. “She sounds like just what you two need. This mentions the name of the planet Emital. That planet was where our clan was founded long ago, before the loss of some of the old gates.”
“The explorer must have been one of the first people to visit there. It wasn’t long after the first few visitors before our kind was doing our own exploring.” Jalan leaned across the table to look more closely at the book.
“There was both good and bad in our traveling the stars.” Kaleb raised his eyes and looked over at her. “We lost so much of our history after we began exploring other planets.”
“How is your search going?” Jalan looked over at Shard. “Have you found your clan’s symbol yet?”
“Not yet.” Shard stepped up beside her. His hand ran up and down her back and then settled just over the curve of her right butt cheek.
Lina felt a tinge of red sweep up from her breasts as hot arousal simmered within her. He wasn’t even trying to entice her. A breeze swirled around her and the warm musk of her mates surrounded her. The heat and scent of their bodies was an enticement that she had no desire to resist. Shard and Kaleb knew just how to touch her.
Chapter Eleven
The scent of seasoned meat and roasted vegetables floating on a light wind teased Lina’s nostrils and drew her attention away from the code on the screen. Her stomach growled loudly announcing that it had been too long since she’d eaten. She looked back at the lines of code. Something was wrong with it, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Sighing, she saved her work and put the comp away from the moment. She’d run it later and see if she could discover what was wrong. It had to be almost time for the meal. She helped set the tables and put the last plate on the table just as the platters of food were carried out of the kitchen tent.
A few men walked out of the forest at the edge of camp. Lina looked among the men but didn’t see either Shard or Kaleb. She kept looking and a few moments later saw them as they strode toward the camp. They looked a little frustrated, but smiled when they saw her. She met them halfway, hugging each of them fiercely, before she walked with them over to the table. Sliding into the seat between theirs, she eyed the food eagerly, trying to decide what she wanted.
“How was your day?” Shard asked as he filled his plate.
“For the most part it was good. At times a little frustrating, but I’ll get everything worked out. Did you find anything useful on your search?” She looked over at him as she put the bowl of vegetables back in the center of the table and reached for a platter of meat.
“Nothing. Not even a trace or a broken jar today to tell us they were anywhere in the area.” Shard shook his head and frowned.
Kaleb must have been feeling a little left out. His hand slid over her back and trailed over her ribs. Her lips twitched and she straightened at the light prickling sensation. She glanced over at him. He smiled and she caught the hungry gleam in his eyes. Teasing man. He could have touched her arm. She shook her head. Putting her hand on his thigh, she tilted her head and looked at him through her lashes. The man was persistent. She knew she’d better stop him now.
“Did anything happen while you were searching, Kaleb, or were you with Shard the entire time?” She picked up her fork and speared a juicy chunk of meat.
“Most of the day I was in a different area than he was. I didn’t find anything. It’s been a long day.” His hand slipped up her back and his fingers stroked her neck.
“Sounds like you need to be distracted. I might be able to handle that later tonight.” She let her eyes travel over his chest before returning to his lips. She’d like to kiss him.
“Why not right after dinner?” He leaned closer and his lips brushed her cheek.
“I still have work I need to do.” She grimaced.
He smiled. “Mmm… Maybe you’ll finish early.”
She heard an intensity in his voice, but when she looked at him, he seemed to be calm. “I doubt it. I have some things I really want to get finished tonight.”
Shard chuckled but kept eating. He looked over at her, but he didn’t say anything. She didn’t know what he could find so funny. Kaleb’s right hand smoothed down her back, drawing her attention back to him. She saw the heat flare in his eyes as he watched her. She shook her head and focused on eating.
“What are you doing? How important is it?” Kaleb asked.
“It could probably wait. Since it doesn’t have to and I’m already working on it, it doesn’t make sense to stop now. I’m working on some coding for a game.” She shrugged.
Kaleb felt his smile widen at her admission. He’d been almost certain that she hadn’t had anything pressing to do, but hearing her admit it took away the last bit of his restraint. He was tempted to tell her it could wait. He didn’t want to put her on her guard or make her angry. He wanted to make love to her, not fight with her. Just thinking about watching the passion in her rise, knowing they both needed to eat caused his cock to harden.
He slid a little clo
ser to her, but kept eating even though he hadn’t tasted a bite of it since she’d mentioned relaxing him. When she didn’t seem to notice, he took advantage and slid his fingers up her side. She wiggled a little and her shoulders moved. He didn’t take his eyes off her. Turning her head, she narrowed her eyes at him. He clearly read the message in those beautiful gold eyes. She wanted him to stop and she wanted to do it now. He held back a laugh. That wasn’t happening. He’d just begun playing. He traced the full curve of her breast. He wondered if her nipples would be hard, waiting for his mouth or fingers. Her arm clamped down, pinning his hand to her side. He felt his smile widen. Did she really think that would stop him?
Lina looked over at Kaleb. The fiend was grinning wickedly and she could see the anticipation glittering in his eyes. She wasn’t going to let him tease her when they both knew she had work to do. She bared her teeth at him. He laughed. The soft chuckle infuriated her and she straightened, pulling away from him a little. His hand withdrew. She exhaled, both relieved and disappointed that he’d stopped. She really hadn’t expected it to be that easy. Waiting for his next move, she ate slowly. She felt his hand settle over her breast. Her food lodged for a moment at the back of her throat. She swallowed loudly, barely avoiding choking.
His thumb stroked over her nipple. It felt as if there wasn’t anything between his fingers and her skin. She drew in a shaky breath. She had to stop the man before he went any further. Blood heated her cheeks. She wondered if anyone had noticed where his hand was. She slid her hand off the table and put it on his thigh. Leaving it there a few moments, she waited to see if he’d get the message. His fingers gently squeezed. She gritted her teeth. He was going to be stubborn about this. She frowned, risking a glance around the table. No one seemed to have noticed anything out of the ordinary. She slid a fuming glance toward Kaleb.
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