Crusader

by Cyndi Friberg

  He hadn’t told her which alternative applied to him, but the detail wasn’t important. And she hadn’t really expected him to rattle off his other abilities. He was way too secretive for that. “Why did ‘the others’ change their minds?”

  “You were aware of our existence before your run-in with my shadow, so the damage was already done.”

  The damage. Truer words had never been spoken. Her exposure to Rodytes had shaped her life in ways Bandar would never understand. “And they’re not going to wipe my memory when you’re finished?”

  “No.” He looked as if he’d say more then glanced away.

  It was easy to guess what he’d left unsaid. Everyone already thought she was crazy so no one would believe her even if she called a press conference. Sadly, he was probably right. “So convince me to help you. Why do you need my father’s research?”

  “I mentioned the battle born earlier. Do you remember what the term means?”

  “Your mother was basically a prisoner of war. I still don’t understand how abusing females will help anyone win a war, but I remember what you told me.”

  “To understand fully, you must understand what caused the war.”

  She’d asked for this, yet already she was regretting her persistence. The concept of war brides was so upsetting, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know more. “Go on. I’m listening.”

  “There was an uprising on Bilarri many centuries ago. Those who couldn’t manipulate magic could no longer tolerate—”

  “Hold on. You mentioned magic before. What sort of magic are you talking about?”

  He smiled then rubbed his eyes. Were his contacts bothering him? She was still really curious to see his natural appearance. “It’s hard for humans to imagine, but Bilarrians can heal with a touch, shape change, and teleport from one planet to another, among many other abilities. They ruthlessly managed their bloodlines to maximize these powers. And anyone without significant abilities was deemed unworthy, flawed. My ancestors rebelled against the injustice and were exiled as a result. They were forced to colonize a primitive planet called Rodymia. Over the centuries that followed, they focused on creating technologies that could reproduce Bilarrian abilities.”

  “Then we didn’t actually teleport. It was some sort of transportation machine?”

  “Correct. We call it bio-streaming.”

  He seemed hesitant to go on, which wasn’t surprising. She’d made her opinion about war brides more than obvious. “Who started the war?”

  “Depends who you ask. My people consider the banishment the first act of aggression while Bilarrians claim we were the first to draw blood. Regardless, the war has dragged on for many generations and there is no end in sight.”

  “Sorry, but I don’t see how this justifies taking war brides.”

  “By forcing out every person who had no significant magic power, Bilarrians robbed us of any hope we had of regaining the abilities they take for granted.”

  “What difference does that make if you have technologies that do the same thing?”

  “A very common question. Technology, however sophisticated, is artificial and fallible. It’s an inferior substitute for what is rightfully ours. Magic is elemental; it’s part of our DNA. Or at least it was meant to be.”

  “Then it’s all about magic. How does capturing Bilarrian females… They’re forced to have babies so the babies will inherit their mother’s powers.” She shuddered. This wasn’t making her any more sympathetic to the Rodyte cause. “Your father captured your mother and raped her repeatedly until she got pregnant, hoping you would be born with magic powers? Oh my God. This is even worse than I imagined.”

  His hands fisted on his knees and a subtle flash of light erupted behind his contacts. “I’m not defending the practice. I’m explaining the society into which I was born. I did not choose this life. None of us did. I’m desperately trying to create a future where war brides are obsolete.”

  She took a deep breath and focused on his last statement. Any child born of rape was as much a victim as the woman who had suffered the abuse. It wasn’t fair to lash out at Bandar. “Now that’s a cause I can get behind. Tell me more.”

  “About sixty percent of battle born daughters are able to manipulate magic at least to some degree. Battle born sons, on the other hand, are all born latent. We have recently learned that the ability to manipulate magic has been reintroduced into our genetics. We are just unable to access it.”

  “And that’s where my father comes in.” Her father’s work in genomic transcription had been visionary, and dangerous. His focus had been curing diseases, but other, less noble application quickly became apparent.

  Bandar nodded. “We briefly believed that all it would take to drastically improve those statistics was to find mates among Earth’s population.”

  Trepidation washed over her, chilling her skin and drying out her mouth. “You’re here to find human mates or to take them?”

  “Neither. As I’m sure you know, if something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. One of Nazerel’s contacts gave him a computer file filled with information we believed to be extremely important. My brother had his people double check the information and they quickly determined that the claims were gross exaggerations and filled with inaccuracies.”

  She had so many questions. Who was Nazerel’s contact and what were these men ultimately trying to accomplish? Humans couldn’t manipulate magic—at least none of the humans she knew could—so how would mating with humans restore magic to the battle born?

  Rather than bombarding him with the questions twisting through her mind, she focused on one issue at a time. “Are you hoping to unlock your latent abilities or simply pass them on to your children?”

  “Either, maybe both. We’re ready for significant change and we think Earth holds the key to unlocking our potential.”

  “But why? No one on Earth can do magic. Sure, there are those who claim to be psychic, but I’ve never seen magic like you’ve described.”

  He scooted to the edge of his seat and rested his hands on his thighs. “During the original exile there was a large group of rebels who escaped and settled on Earth rather than subjecting themselves to the brutality of life on Rodymia. Earth was primitive too. This was thousands of years ago, but these people knew the conflict would eventually escalate into civil war and they wanted nothing to do with slaughtering their own people.”

  “So you’re looking for descendants of those refugees?”

  “The refugees are one group among many. People from my star system have been visiting Earth for centuries. Many believe humans descend from one of our three planets. There are too many similarities for it all to be coincidental.”

  She wasn’t sure what to make of that staggering revelation, so she just nodded. “I’m still not sure how this all ties together.”

  Bandar echoed her nod. “I’m not a scientist, so it’s hard for me to explain, but something in the DNA of those descendants can unlock our latent abilities.”

  “And how will that make life better? I still don’t understand why magic is so important to you? Billons of people on Earth survive just fine without it.”

  He stilled, his expression hardened and his eyes looked especially flat. She wished he’d take off the stupid contacts so she’d have some hope of understanding what he was thinking. “It’s a sad irony, but history is repeating itself on Rodymia. My planet was founded by people who were persecuted and abused because of their inability to control magic. Those founders would be horrified if they saw the current treatment of the battle born. We’ve been forsaken, cast out for exactly the same reasons that originally motivated the founders to rebel.”

  “Give me specific examples. This is a lot to take in.”

  His tone grew mechanical, his expression even more distant. “If a battle born daughter is empowered she’s treated with respect, revered and treasured by her family. However, if she is unable to manipulate magic, she’s insignificant, worthy on
ly of menial labor or worse. Powerless battle born daughters are often sold to brothels, others are treated like servants by their own families. And it’s even worse for battle born sons. None of us can control magic, so we’re all considered defective. Many are abandoned or sold to the military.”

  “That’s horrible, but why is unleashing your magic the only option? Can’t you find a society that doesn’t care? Not being able to work magic wouldn’t be a stigma on Earth. As I said, the vast majority of humans are in the same boat.”

  “It’s instinctive. My body knows that mystic energy should be flowing through every molecule I possess. It’s a hunger, no, a craving that cannot be ignored.”

  She couldn’t pretend to understand what he meant. Magic had never been a part of her life. Still, it didn’t sound that different than the various forms of prejudice peppering human history. Demeaning an entire segment of the population because of something they couldn’t control was wrong, plain and simple. “You realize my father’s work is still theoretical, right? His processes have never been tested in a live host, much less a human being.”

  He cleared his throat before he admitted, “We have strong indications that that’s not accurate. We know he was working with Rodyte scientists and they had moved well beyond simulations when Pern was killed.”

  Pern? Wait he’d said that name before. “I’m sorry, I’ve forgotten. Who is Pern?”

  “Was. Pern Keire was Crown Stirate during the years your father collaborated with Rodyte scientists.”

  “And now they’re both dead.” She shivered. “My father’s death was ruled a suicide, but I never believed it. I think something he did or something he was about to do made him too dangerous to keep around.”

  “Pern’s death was unrelated, but your suspicions about your father are likely right. He was dealing with some very dangerous people, both Rodyte and human.”

  “This is so strange.” She rubbed her eyes and relaxed back in her chair. “I spent years in therapy trying to convince myself that none of this was real.”

  “It’s real.” He paused for a surprisingly warm smile. “I am real.”

  Awareness leapt between them again and Ashley fiddled with the hem of her T-shirt. She looked like she was ready to scrub the bathroom floor not entertain an alien. Why hadn’t she chosen a more flattering outfit? Because none of your clothes are flattering. She’d struggled with her weight since she was a teen and being surrounded by ultra-fit warriors wasn’t easing her self-consciousness. She sat up and adjusted the fall of her T-shirt, trying to hide the slight curve of her stomach.

  “Have I answered all of your questions?” Bandar asked after a long pause.

  She looked at him and felt another rush of warmth. Damn the man was gorgeous, so virile and masculine. She cleared her throat and resisted the urge to lick her lips. “Tell me about your brother. Is he battle born?”

  He seemed surprised by the question, so his willingness to explain surprised her. “I have two brothers. Garin is older and he was born to Karli, our father’s morautu, his chosen mate. Zilor is younger, and like me, he is battle born.”

  “How did your father’s chosen mate feel about her husband capturing war brides?”

  “Karli died three hours after Garin was born. That’s what drove our father back to war. He had retired from the military when Karli agreed to bond with him.”

  “I’m sorry. That must have been horrible for everyone.”

  “I never knew my father before Karli’s death, but those who did say it really changed him.”

  She sighed, not wanting to anger him, but unable to remain quiet. “So he took it out on a Bilarrian female?” Before he could respond to that question, another even more troubling thought occurred to her. “What happens to the war brides after they have their babies?”

  “They’re released unharmed, of course.”

  “Without their child? How is that ‘unharmed’?” His entire body tensed again and his hands clenched into fists. “I’m sorry, but that’s despicable.”

  “Again, I do not condone the practice. I likely find it even more despicable than you do.”

  “You’re right. I’m sorry.” She should just let the subject drop, but now that it had turned to specific details about Bandar, she was curious. “You said your younger brother is also battle born. Do you have the same mother?”

  “No. And I’ve grown tired of the subject.” He pushed to his feet and walked around the coffee table, stopping directly in front of her. “I’ve been more than indulgent, Ashley. No more stalling. Where can I find your father’s backups?”

  Chapter Three

  Bandar stared down at Ashley his heart thudding wildly in his chest. He wanted to pull her to her feet and kiss her into submission, or better yet pick her up and carry her to the bed where they could fully explore the attraction pulsing between them. He’d never had so much trouble keeping his mind on his mission and it was obvious she was feeling it too.

  “Where did your father hide the backups?” The question was as much a self-reminder to stay on task as it was a demand for information. Damn the woman was distracting.

  “He has a hunting lodge way up in the Catskills, but I have to take you there. It’s not on any map.” Mischief glinted in her eyes, making them luminous and vibrantly green.

  No longer able to resist his need to touch her, he grasped her upper arms and slowly pulled her to her feet. Her soft warm body rubbed against his the entire way up, stoking the need already smoldering inside him. “You don’t have an address or GPS coordinates? That’s a little hard to believe.” Speaking of hard. Just holding her this close had him hard and aching all over again.

  She leaned back slightly and tilted her head so she could look into his eyes. “It’s really secluded and no one has been up there since my father died. The access road is probably overgrown.” Her breasts pressed against his chest with each anxious breath and yet she didn’t seem frightened or even uncertain. She allowed his hold, neither pressing closer, nor pulling away.

  “Give me directions to the closest intersection. I can find it from there.”

  She shook her head, her tongue peeking out to brush across her lower lip. “If the backups are there, he’ll have them secured. You need me to gain access.”

  He narrowed his gaze on her flushed face, wishing he could sense her emotions. Had she intentionally drawn his attention to her mouth or was she just nervous? “You’ll be safer if I leave you here.” As long as he wasn’t here with her, yearning to possess her with every breath he took.

  Her lips parted as if she’d object then she twisted out of his hold and hurried out of reach. “I need to be part of this. You’re trying to recapture your legacy. Well, this is mine.” She sounded sincere, but she wouldn’t look at him now. Likely, she was simply struggling with her desire. Still, there was a chance she was hiding something important, something potentially harmful to him or his mission.

  Hearing his own thoughts, he gave himself a mental shake. When had he become so paranoid? Ashley was an innocent in need of protection. She’d been drawn into this conflict because of his interest in her father’s work. Of course she was nervous. “You can be involved without being directly in danger.”

  “I don’t believe you.” She glanced at him then looked away. “As soon as you have his research, I’m no longer useful.”

  He still had all sorts of uses for her, but it was doubtful she’d find the fact comforting. He wasn’t doing a very good job of keeping his mind on the task at hand. “If the information is as valuable as I believe, you’ll deserve some sort of reward.”

  Another telling blush spread across her creamy cheeks. Her gaze shifted back to his and lingered. “Do I get to choose my reward? You never really answered me before.” The sensual heat in her eyes made it obvious she wasn’t thinking about money.

  He closed the distance between them and wrapped his arm around her waist. His other hand pushed into her unbound hair, cradling the back of her head. “N
ame it and it’s yours.” He leaned down and whispered the words against her lips, needing to be sure this was what she wanted. No matter how much he wanted her, he would not exploit her vulnerability.

  She shivered then her eyes drifted shut. “As tempting as I find you—” she eased her hands between them and pushed him back, “—what I really want is information about my father’s death.” Only after she’d delivered the rebuff did she open her eyes again.

  “I’m going to look into your father’s death regardless of what I find in the morning.” He lowered his arms and closed his hands into fists, unsure if he was capable of keeping his distance. He’d felt drawn to Ashley from the first moment he saw her, huddled on her living room floor covered in blood. She’d ignited a possessive sort of protectiveness that hadn’t subsided since.

  Never before had the mere sight of a female shattered his composure. It had to be because she was human. But Morgan was human. Why hadn’t he felt this way with her?

  “Thank you.” Ashley’s soft voice pulled him back from his convoluted thoughts. She stood just out of reach and a hint of sadness crept into her expression. She’d pushed him away, so why did she look so miserable?

  She’d said this research was her legacy. Perhaps she just wanted to remain in the loop. “I can update you on our progress, if you like. It will all become public knowledge at some point anyway.”

  Her brow arched and her head tilted as she processed the implications of his careless statement. “You’ve been hiding your presence for decades. Why go public now?”

  If and when Garin’s scientists found a way to unlock the latent powers of the battle born, hundreds of thousands of battle born sons would swarm to Earth ready to pay whatever price demanded of them to access the treatment. Still, that day could be years away or it might never happen at all. Many had tried to solve this mystery and many had failed. He had no idea why he’d brought up the possibility now.