by Biance D'Arc
Rick didn’t know how they’d done it, but he was glad they’d thought ahead. They had bought themselves a little time. Not much, but perhaps it would be enough to get out of Dodge before another assassin showed up to blow them away.
“I still want to talk to the prisoner,” Davin insisted.
Rilan voiced his reluctance yet again, but was eventually convinced to bring the prisoner to them. Rick and Callie stood off to one side while Davin confronted the man who’d shot him. The Alvian guards were vigilant, protecting the Chief Engineer against any possible threat. They paid little attention to the two humans in the room, so only Rick noticed Callie’s reaction. She swayed, off balance when the man was brought in. Rick moved to her side, steadying her with one hand when she tried to brace herself on a nearby console. He could feel her trembling and moved closer in case she needed…something. He didn’t know what, but the way she clung to his hand made him realize she needed his support.
“What is it?” he whispered.
“He’s—” Callie breathed deep, as if looking for words. “I need to talk to him, Rick.”
“Are you sure?” Rick came around in front of her to search her expression.
She nodded, clinging to his arm. “He feels.” She breathed the words, mouthing them more than actually speaking them, out of view of the Alvians. Rick realized she didn’t want them to know and he understood her caution. If this guy—this assassin—had emotions, it would explain a lot about why he missed, but it would also stir up a whole new batch of questions.
“Wait here for a minute.” Rick left her as she nodded and moved to confront the Alvian contingent. He eyed the restraints on the assassin’s wrists and feet before taking the next step.
“Chief Engineer, do we really need all the guards?”
Davin wasn’t unaware of Callie’s reaction, or her words, except those last few spoken too low for his hearing. Something was strange about their prisoner, but the man refused to speak. Bound hand and foot, he couldn’t hurt anyone, and judging from his demeanor, he already knew he was powerless to carry out his mission.
“Chief Rilan.” Davin turned to the ranking officer. “Please take your men and wait outside. I wish to speak to the prisoner alone.”
Rilan objected once more, but Davin outranked him. With a last, almost-puzzled look, Rilan cleared the room, taking his men and the Alvian med team with him. It was just Davin, Rick, Callie and the prisoner now and Davin intended to get some answers.
But before he could ask a single question, Callie spoke.
“You feel emotion.” That bombshell statement landed in the middle of the room, aimed, to Davin’s astonishment, at the prisoner, Sinclair Prime. “Don’t worry. Comms are down all over the facility and this room is fully shielded. Nothing can eavesdrop here. You’re safe for the moment.”
Sinclair Prime’s eyes dilated as his shoulders seemed to relax a small fraction. “I didn’t understand what empathy was until recently. Can you really feel what I’m feeling?” His tone held a curious mix of dismay, wonder and resignation as his expression pled with Callie, looking to her for profound answers.
She nodded, holding Sinclair’s gaze. “I feel your confusion and turmoil. I feel your guilt and pain. And I feel your wonder at this.” She grasped Davin’s hand as the comforting Hum sounded to Davin’s ears. “I love Davin and he loves me.”
“I don’t understand love,” Sinclair admitted, pain in his eyes.
Callie gave Sinclair a compassionate smile. “It’s not a simple concept, to be learned in a few days. For most of us, it takes a lifetime.”
“How do you know it’s only been days for me?” Sinclair’s eyes shuttered, suspicion filling his stance.
“It stands to reason. You’re not a throwback. There’s no way you could’ve hidden such a perceived flaw and rise to the level of Prime. So these emotions have to be something new. From the level of your confusion, you can’t have been feeling long.”
Sinclair crumpled then, his knees giving out as he leaned against the edge of the console behind him. “It’s been two days since the worst hit. I tried to control it, but it’s…it’s overwhelming. I don’t know how you Breeds do it day in and day out.”
Davin put his arm around Callie’s shoulders, drawing her to his side. She’d gotten through to the assassin. Perhaps now they would get some real answers.
“How did this happen?” Davin asked.
“The emotion, you mean?” Sinclair gave a short, bitter laugh. “I was approached a few weeks ago by one of the Maras. They’ve cooked up a potion to alter us on a genetic level. I don’t know all the particulars, but I agreed to be part of their study. A few days ago, at their direction, I applied a skinpatch with a gene-altering agent. The effects were slow to arrive at first, and I fear I’m not completely done with them.”
Callie stepped toward the man, but Davin held her out of the assassin’s reach. “There’s nothing to fear in unlocking emotion, Sinclair Prime. I understand your confusion, but I think you’ll discover living this way is better than your prior existence.”
“But there’s so much pain.” His eyes were a study of agony that was hard for even Davin to watch.
“And joy too, once you get past the hurt. Give it time. After the dark comes the dawn, and after you work through the pain, you’ll discover things to inspire happiness, amusement, wonder and perhaps even love.”
Sinclair seemed to think about it, but his gaze didn’t clear. “You don’t know the things I’ve done, Lady. Only now am I beginning to understand the impact of my actions and I feel hatred for the first time.”
“For the ones who made you kill?” Davin asked, curious.
Sinclair turned to him. “For myself, Chief Engineer. I loathe what I am.”
“What you were.” Callie’s voice was firm. “You are reborn. A new entity.”
“I can’t erase the memories of what I’ve done.” Sinclair’s tone was bleak as a winter day.
“Nor should you,” Callie agreed. “But you can learn from the past and overcome it to be a better man from this moment forward.”
Sinclair’s mouth quirked up at one corner. “I begin to understand the concept of optimism, Lady, thanks to you, but I do not feel it.”
Callie smiled at the man who’d killed so many. “That’s okay. I have enough for all of us.”
Davin was amazed by the turn of events. The Maras were experimenting with returning emotion to the Alvian race and doing it successfully, if Sinclair Prime was any indication. This was something to investigate, but there was one more pressing matter to look into.
“Why did you try to kill me? Or perhaps,” Davin tilted his head, “the better question is, why did you miss?”
The expression on Sinclair’s face was again tortured when he raised his gaze to Davin. “I watched you interact with your mate for hours before taking the shot. I could’ve bagged you any time, Chief Engineer, but at the final moment…I couldn’t. I can’t be the man I was before. Everything’s changed. I’ve changed. I feel things. Things I can’t control and don’t understand. I saw you with your mate and finally understood what I was looking at—happiness. True happiness and joy. My eyes were wet and I knew I could not take the shot. What you’ve found is a miracle. It’s not for me or the Council to take that away when all you’ve known in life to this point must’ve been fear and pain.” Tears wound down the tough soldier’s face, unheeded. “I’m feeling now what you must’ve felt your entire life.” Sinclair’s eyes unfocused. “How you must have suffered. I cannot comprehend how you survived it.” He shook his head and returned his full attention to Davin. “You’re a stronger man than I, Chief Engineer. Stronger and more courageous than any member of the Council. They have no right to sit in judgment of you or your mate. That realization made me miss when the imperative trained into me from my earliest days told me to take the shot. I am deeply ashamed. My career is over, as is my life.”
“It doesn’t have to be.” Rick sauntered over to face the
assassin. He shot a questioning look over his shoulder at Davin, continuing at his nod. “You don’t have to go back to the Alvians. You have emotions now. You could be of great help to the pockets of humanity trying to survive all over this planet. Hell, you might even find a mate among our women—the few that are left.”
“You would allow this?” Sinclair’s wide eyes searched Davin’s.
Davin leaned back, watching the assassin. “It’s not up to me, but if you help the humans, they’re likely to help you in return. They are a generous people.”
“You’d let me go, knowing I was sent here to kill you?”
“You’re a different man now than you were just a day ago.” Davin saw Callie nod in agreement at his side. “I can imagine what you’re going through—I’ve been through it myself, as you pointed out. You deserve the right to explore the man you are now, the man you could’ve been had the geneticists not tampered with our DNA generations ago.”
Sinclair dropped his head back against the wall, watching them with pain in his eyes. “You are too forgiving of my sins, Chief Engineer.”
Callie spoke up. “In time, you’ll learn to forgive yourself, Sinclair Prime.”
“I am Prime no more, Lady. Please don’t call me that.”
Callie smiled and nodded. “You know, on this world, Sinclair used to be a common surname.”
“Indeed? One of my ancestors was part of the expedition that never returned to Alvia.”
“Well, start thinking about a new name, my friend.” Rick walked over to stand beside Callie. “If you want to leave your old life behind, you have an opportunity to reinvent yourself, starting with your name. Sinclair is a respectable, human-sounding surname, but you can choose a new first name, if you want. For now, I’m going to call you Bill.”
Callie giggled as Sinclair Prime started, coming completely to his feet. “Bill?” He said it as if tasting the name. “This is not an Alvian name.”
“Great,” Rick said, moving toward the prisoner. He stopped opposite Sinclair Prime and faced him down. The men were about the same height, and both had that wiry musculature that indicated coiled strength. “Time is short, Bill. Do you really want to do this? Do you want to go with Callie and Davin and live, or return to the Alvians and almost-certain death?”
Sinclair took a deep breath. His mouth firmed as his body seemed to gain strength where before he’d been the picture of defeat. His posture straightened and his eyes shone with a new light.
“I want to live. I want time to figure out these emotions.”
Callie smiled but didn’t move any closer, much to Davin’s relief. “You’ll have help. I’m not the only empath on this planet. There are quite a few others, including most of my siblings. Speaking of which,” she swirled and placed her hands against Davin’s chest, “we need to call my family.”
Davin reached into his pocket for the private comm crystal he always kept on him, but it was gone. Lost in the shuffle of the assassination attempt, probably.
“Do you have your secure comm?” Davin asked her. “Mine’s gone.”
She bit her lip, making him want to bend down and kiss her, but time was of the essence, so he refrained. “It’s back in our room.”
“All right. I can bring power back to this console in isolation, but it won’t be secure.” Davin moved toward the comm station Callie had used to disable the entire system. He could bring back power selectively, but it wouldn’t be easy. It’d take some maneuvering. “Rick, watch the door. They should leave us alone for a little longer before Rilan’s men check on us. If necessary, I can buy us some more time. Leave Sinclair in the cuffs for now, until we know how much time we really have.”
Davin worked his magic and Callie called the most knowledgeable member of her family first. Caleb O’Hara had a strong gift of foresight. He’d know, if anyone would, what was coming. He was also the leader of their family, the one they all went to when there was trouble. Just hearing his voice made her feel better.
“Callie, baby, how are they?” Caleb O’Hara’s strong voice sounded in Callie’s ear.
“Papa Caleb! This is an open channel.”
“Doesn’t matter anymore, sweetheart. I saw what happened. You have to listen to me. Things will start moving fast from here. You need to take them all home.”
“Are you sure it’s safe?”
“Trust me. Your mother can help the new one while you see to your mates.”
“Then Rick—?”
“Definitely yours, sweetheart. Congratulations. But he’ll still need some convincing. Get him to talk to my brothers. That’ll do it.”
Callie chuckled despite the desperate turn of events. “Yeah, that ought to do it. Now why didn’t I think of that?”
“Get going, munchkin. You don’t have much time, but once you get to the ranch, you’ll be safe. They won’t dare send someone there. Not after I’ve had a little talk with Mara about the future. Harry’s going to stay here with me and see what he can find out.”
Callie trusted her farseeing father to know what was coming. He’d never steered a single person wrong yet and every member of the family trusted him with their lives. This time, she trusted him and his visions to steer a safe path for not only herself, but Davin and Rick too.
“I love you, Papa Caleb.”
“Love you too, munchkin. We’ll talk soon. Call me when you get where you’re going.”
Chapter Nine
A few hours later, the four of them arrived at the O’Hara ranch, nestled in a protected valley in what was once known as the Canadian Rockies. The weather was much colder up here and the air was dryer, but the scenery was every bit as majestic and beautiful as the jungle-rich mountain range they’d left below the equator. Only here, instead of jungle, the white of snow covered the mountain peaks and an invigorating chill permeated the air.
Jane and Justin were there to greet them. Callie raced straight into her mother’s arms and was enveloped in Justin’s arms a moment later. Davin envied the family and tried to imagine how it must feel to be part of an extended familial unit. His people had been that way in the distant past, but now most Alvians were bred in a lab and raised as one of many other children, in the collective.
He was so lost in his thoughts, he didn’t feel Rick sidle up beside him.
“Nice family,” Rick said, leaning back against the side of the small transport, next to Davin. Rick’s gaze was on Callie and her parents, standing some yards distant.
“Did you have a family like that, Rick?” Davin felt unreasonably isolated by the idea.
Rick shrugged, but wouldn’t meet Davin’s eyes. “For a while. I remember my mother, but she died in the first wave of crystal attacks. I had my dad longer, but we were separated by your people a few years back. Still, he raised me and taught me everything I know. He was a good man.”
Davin both envied and pitied Rick in that moment. “What happened to him?”
Rick straightened away from the hull of the craft and stared out over the horizon. “I don’t know.” His voice grew fainter. “But I always figured he’d been captured or killed. Otherwise he would’ve found me. Or I would’ve found him. As it is, I never caught a trace of him.”
Davin didn’t know what to say to the pain he could hear in Rick’s voice. He said, “I’m sorry,” but knew it was inadequate.
Sinclair stood silent on Davin’s other side, watching all with a painful mix of emotions on his pale face. Davin turned to him as Rick moved a short distance away.
“You’ll have to remain locked up for now.”
Sinclair glanced down at the cuffs manacling his wrists together, then shrugged. “It’s what I would do. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry I shot you.”
Davin sighed. “I can only imagine how difficult this time is for you. Callie told me a little on the trip here of the massive fluctuations she feels in your emotional field. Perhaps it will even out over time, but for now, we’re going to ask Justin to keep an eye on you. Perhaps Jane will take p
ity and work with you on the emotional upheavals you must be feeling.”
“What can she do?” A note of despair colored the other man’s tone.
“Jane O’Hara is an even stronger empath than Callie. She helped me a lot, just by understanding. She is a great woman.”
Sinclair turned to face him, surprise in his light eyes. “You really mean that.”
Davin nodded. “I do. You’ll find these humans have much more to them than we’ve been led to expect. I believe, had we any understanding of emotion left in our people, we could have come to them in peace and been allies. Instead, we’ve committed unspeakable crimes against them by taking their planet and killing so many innocent beings. It is a guilt all Alvians will bear for the rest of our days. Give the humans a chance. I guarantee, they will astound you.”
Mick joined the group, swooping down to pull Callie into an exuberant hug. When he caught sight of Davin leaning against the vehicle, he suggested the group move to his medical office. He took a look at Davin’s injury with professional eyes and used some of the topical antibiotics the Alvians had given him in trade for his continuing medical observations of the O’Hara family. It was a deal they’d struck years before and only a small part of the complex compromise that kept most of the family safe on the ranch.
Justin took charge of Sinclair Prime and escorted him to an outlying barn where he could question the man, with Jane and her empathy to assist. So Mick was left with Callie, Davin and Rick.
“Looks like the guy who shot you either didn’t know how to aim at all or knew his business very well, and didn’t intend to do much damage. You should regain full use of the arm after it heals a bit.” Mick wiped his hands on a cloth, then threw the used bandages in a trash bin at the foot of his exam table.
“Sinclair Prime is the Council’s top assassin—or was—before he retired.” Davin grimaced as Mick began cleansing the area around the wound.
