by Biance D'Arc
“Crazy thing that. We’ve heard rumors of a new experiment, but even Harry couldn’t find out what the goal was. If your people really want to restore emotion, well, I’d be amazed,” Mick said, concentrating on his work as he applied the fast-acting antibiotics.
“They’re not my people.” Davin was adamant on that point. “After this, they’ll be lucky if I don’t sabotage every crystal on this whole damned planet.” The fire in his blood belied the low rumble of his voice. Davin was pissed and only just starting to realize the full implications of the past few hours. His people—or the Council at least—wanted him dead. Sinclair could have just as easily shot Callie. They’d been sitting ducks. Just the thought of it made his blood boil.
Mick stopped working and looked up at him until Davin met the man’s eyes.
“Point taken.” Mick nodded significantly. “Didn’t mean to insult you. You’re nothing like them, and thank God for that.” Mick finished applying the dressing and sat back on his rolling chair. “If you want to discuss strategy, I’m thinking you should wait to hear what Justin and Jane get out of our visitor. And we’ll want to see what Harry knows. No sense going off half-cocked.”
Davin could see the sense in Mick’s words, but he ached to retaliate. Nobody put his mate in danger. Nobody.
Davin bowed his head in respect as Mick rose. “Thank you.” It was clear, from the way he held Davin’s gaze that Mick understood the words referred to more than just the medical treatment.
Mick walked to the sink as Callie stepped close to place her arm around Davin’s waist. She reached for his hand and the soothing Hum of their compatibility sent tingling waves of warmth through him. Thank the stars for her. She was his entire world. Mick walked back and ruffled her hair, smiling at them both.
“The Alvian med team did a good job on your arm. They, at least, meant you no harm. Actually, they must’ve used something on the wound that sped healing beyond what I’d normally expect out of the supplies they’ve given me. Lousy holdouts.” Mick snickered as Callie laughed. “I never thought they’d given us the best of what they had anyway, but this confirms my suspicions. Unless…”
“Unless what?” Callie asked.
“Well, aside from Harry, I don’t have any experience treating Alvians. I don’t know much about full-blooded Alvian physiology. Maybe they heal faster than we do. I know Harry has a slight immune boost compared to the rest of the kids.” Mick’s eyes turned thoughtful as his scientific mind worked on the problem.
Davin recognized the look. “It’s not my specialty, but from what I understand, we do have some advantages over humans. I didn’t realize you were unaware of them, Mick. I’d be happy to answer any questions you have and if I can get to a dataport, I’ll hack in and give you a copy of the entire Alvian medical database.”
A cunning light gleamed in Mick’s eyes. He, of all the O’Haras, had a thirst for knowledge not easily quenched.
Rick watched from the edge of the room. He’d gotten a good look at the wound before the Alvian med team arrived, but hadn’t been able to talk to any of them or find out what they’d administered to replace Davin’s lost blood.
Rick was very impressed with Mick O’Hara’s laboratory and his doctoring skills. Here was a man he could learn from—if he ever got the chance. The way things were, Rick wasn’t sure sticking around would be a good idea.
He had to be certain of Callie’s safety. He’d stay until the immediate problems were resolved, but then he’d probably have to go his own way. He could be free now. Davin wouldn’t stop him, and neither would Callie’s human kin. The only threat that remained was the one he’d always faced—capture by Alvians¾but Rick thought he knew enough to keep himself hidden and free from now on.
Still, leaving Callie would be difficult. He knew it was wrong to want her—to want to share her the way Davin had suggested—but it was all he could think about. He wanted her like he wanted his next breath. She was fast becoming the center of his universe and he knew that walking away from her would be one of the hardest things he’d ever do.
But it still had to be done.
Maybe not today or even tomorrow, but soon, he’d have to leave her to Davin and try to get on with his life. In the meantime, it wouldn’t hurt to make friends with Callie’s family. Mick, in particular, seemed like the kind of man his father would have respected. Justin, too, for that matter. Zach St. John had been both warrior and healer, and had passed both those skills down to his son. The O’Hara brothers were cut from the same cloth as Rick’s dad, and he already liked them both, though they’d only just met.
Callie looked up and pinned him with a glance. Her beautiful green eyes lit as she smiled at him and Rick almost forgot to breathe. A single finger beckoned him closer and he was powerless to resist.
“I’m going to out you, if that’s okay,” she told him in the privacy of their minds. Her voice felt like a caress in his head.
“What? Out me how?”
“Papa Mick is a good doctor, but you’re a healer. He’ll want to talk to you about that. If you don’t mind.” Big green eyes beseeched him.
Rick weighed his options. He didn’t go around telling folks about his abilities as a general rule. He liked to remain a mystery. But he couldn’t see the harm in telling Mick—and by extension the rest of the O’Hara clan. In fact, it might just help him build a rapport with the older man, which Rick found he wanted.
It’s okay, Callie. I don’t mind your family knowing.
Great! Callie held out her hand to him and he went like a lemming over a cliff. “Papa Mick,” she said, “Rick might also have something to do with Davin’s speedy recovery. He stopped Davin’s bleeding before the Alvian med team got there. There was so much blood.” Her smile dimmed as she remembered, but she shook it off. “Rick has a really powerful healing gift. He saved my life too, as a matter of fact, when I got hit by a crystal shard a while back.”
Mick’s gaze pinned him. There was no doubt the elder O’Hara was interested. Callie knew her family well.
“No kidding? I’ve always wanted to meet a healer, but they’re rare.” Mick looked him over minutely, his eyes narrowing. “And what’s this about saving my girl?”
“It was a silly accident,” Callie jumped in, probably to deflect the storm clouds Rick saw gathering in Mick’s expression. “I was facing the wrong way and didn’t know the crystal was about to explode. A big chunk flew off and hit me right about here.” She stood away from the exam table and Davin, lifting her shirt expose the area on her side where newly knitted flesh had been badly injured. The area was still a little pink, but otherwise healthy and showed no sign of the life-threatening trauma.
Mick moved closer to inspect the site himself. “Darnit, girl, you could’ve lost your spleen.”
“I almost did. But Rick fixed everything inside and out with his amazing gift. It left him flat on his back and drained for a day or two.” She reached for Rick’s hand again, tugging him forward to stand at her side, facing Mick. Davin watched from the side and knowing he was there made Rick uncomfortable. He’d never been one to seek the limelight. He wasn’t comfortable being the center of attention. “Whatever you did to stop Davin’s bleeding, Rick, it didn’t drain you as much this time.”
“It was just a nick to the side of the blood vessel.” Rick tried to shrug it off. “It only took a small zap, but made a big difference.”
“Well then.” Mick faced him. “We all owe you a great debt of gratitude, and I for one, would love to hear the details. I didn’t see any evidence of that kind of trauma when I examined the wound.”
Callie smiled at them both, retreating to Davin’s side. “We’re going to the house. I’ll help make lunch and we’ll expect you both within the hour.” Her teasing tone made Rick aware that this was something of a habit with the family.
“Don’t worry. We’ll be along,” Mick assured her before turning back to Rick. “I sometimes forget to go in for meals, which is why we installed the interc
om. Janie will ping us when it’s time for lunch.”
Rick was touched by the easy way he’d been incorporated into the family’s little rituals. Davin left with Callie, and Rick couldn’t help the wistful expression that must’ve crossed his face as he watched them go.
“So you’re in love with our little girl, eh?” Mick surprised the hell out of Rick with the blunt question. He stuttered for an answer, but Mick forestalled him. “Oh, it’s obvious, boy. Don’t try to hide it. Besides, my brother Caleb saw this coming. He always knew there were two for Callie, but we never expected the first to be a damned alien. I’ll admit, I’m a bit more comfortable with you as her second. You’re more what I’d expected, though this healing business is something special.”
Mick moved to his desk and a small refrigeration unit that stood next to it. He reached in and grabbed two long-necked brown bottles, popping the caps and handing one to Rick. He took it and sampled the contents as Mick took a drink from his own bottle. It was surprisingly good beer. Something Rick had rarely had—and never since being captured.
“Jane brews this for us. She’s a hell of a woman and Callie is made in her image. You couldn’t find a finer girl if you searched the world over. But then, I’m probably a little biased.” Mick winked as he downed another swallow of the cold brew.
Rick felt like he had to say something, but this conversation was beyond him. Still, he made an effort. “Callie is a special woman.”
“You can say that again.” Mick plopped down on the big rolling chair behind his desk. “Have a seat.”
Rick took the chair in front of the desk. It was big and more comfortable than he’d expected. He relaxed back into it and savored his beer.
“I don’t want you to think that I’m going to take advantage of Callie. She’s Davin’s mate. I respect their prior commitment and won’t intrude on it.” Rick felt his tongue running on as the alcohol mellowed his mind. “I remember how it was in the old days. I remember my mom.” His words trailed off.
“It’s good to remember, son,” Mick’s tone held the wisdom of age, though he wasn’t all that much older than Rick. “But you can’t let yesterday get in the way of tomorrow. I know. I felt much as you do at one time. Jane was married to my brother Caleb before the world exploded. He’s got the gift of foresight and we came up here and set up this place well before the attacks began. We lived as we used to, with me and Justin single and Jane happily married to Caleb, but it was driving Justin and me crazy. We’d all loved Jane from the time we were kids. We all grew up together because her daddy owned the next ranch over.” Mick sat back in his chair, a smile on his face. “When her father died, Caleb snatched her up before Justin or I had a chance to court her. But then the whole world changed almost overnight. We had to change with it or—according to Caleb’s visions, which are never wrong—we all would have been dead long ago.”
Rick didn’t know what to say. Mick was much more than a simple doctor and just as fierce as his brothers.
“I was the last holdout. I was so stubborn. I knew that giving in to this strange way of life was wrong. It would never have happened in the old world and I was desperately clinging to those beliefs. But by doing so, I was sentencing my beautiful Janie, and my two brothers, to death. Faced with that certainty, well, you can see how simple the decision really was.”
“But that’s not the case here,” Rick objected. “Nobody says Callie is going to die if I walk away.”
Mick eyed him. “I wouldn’t be too sure of that. For one thing, Caleb’s not here. Getting his predictions is harder now, but we know for sure that he’s seen you in Callie’s future. Hell, you’ve already saved her life once. Maybe you’re meant to be around to do it again. If you leave her, you might as well kill her yourself.”
“That’s one hell of a stretch.” Rick started to get angry.
“All right. Maybe I was being too melodramatic.” Mick shrugged. “But there’s no denying that by leaving, you’ll break her heart. I see the way she looks at you. She’s already in love with you. You leave her, she’ll suffer. Is that what you want?”
“What if I believe that by staying, she’ll suffer more? This multiple-partner thing isn’t the way it’s supposed to be. We’re not animals or barbarians to subjugate and share our women around. We’re human beings with free will. My father taught me that and I’ll always believe it.”
“Your father sounds like a wise man,” Mick agreed, his voice quite a bit lower than Rick’s agitated tones. “But what if you’ve got the wrong end of the stick? I agree that women shouldn’t be forced to accept men they neither want nor love, but what about when a woman wants more than one man? When she loves them, and they love her? Where’s the harm in that?”
Rick was both confused and torn. “I don’t know the answer.”
“Don’t you think you’d better figure it out? Seems to me, you’re in just that situation with Callie, and your decision will impact not only your life, but Callie’s and Davin’s as well.” Mick saluted him with the bottle before polishing it off. A few seconds later, the intercom buzzed. Lunch was served.
Justin had stashed Sinclair in one of the smaller hay barns, far away from the main house and livestock barns. He had secure rooms there, built with various purposes in mind. One of the chambers was close enough to a secure cell, to suit their purposes. Sinclair hadn’t put up any kind of resistance and Jane kept tabs on his emotional state—an upheaval so intense it made her knees buckle a few times as they’d walked their guest to the barn. Justin didn’t like that, but it couldn’t be helped. He needed Jane’s empathic observations to gauge the man’s state of mind.
There was some furniture in the room—an old cot and chair as well as a table and lamp. There was no electricity this far from the main house and the small generator they ran on biodiesel, but there was an oil lamp and lighter to get it going.
They left him there, locking him in with his consent, while they went for lunch. Justin figured if he was still there when they got back, Sinclair would play them straight. It was the first of many tests Justin would subject the man to before he began to trust him to any degree.
So it was with some satisfaction that Justin found their guest waiting for them when they returned with a plate of sandwiches for him. Rick, Davin and Callie came too, wanting to be present while Justin questioned the man more closely. They hadn’t gotten very far before lunch. Jane had told him that Sinclair was in too stressful an emotional state, so they left him alone to settle down a bit. Callie was nearly as empathic as her mother, so she came along this time to gauge Sinclair’s emotional response.
Sinclair was an assassin. That much they knew. But Justin could see this man was even more than that. A Prime, he was the top of his line on this planet, and his line was a warrior line. No doubt, if he didn’t want to be held, he’d have been long gone before now. Which meant he wanted something from them. Justin didn’t have to think too hard to realize what it was. The man—new to his emotions—was probably in a worse place than even Davin had been. He probably wanted acceptance and understanding. Maybe reassurance and guidance through the tough new emotions he was dealing with. Which was where Callie came in, though Justin might be able to help as well, and he certainly wouldn’t leave Callie alone with this big brute.
“Look, I know you’re a soldier. Believe it or not, I have a friend of sorts, among the Alvian warrior lines.”
That caught Sinclair’s interest. He looked over at Justin with suspicion. “Who?” he asked simply.
“Grady Prime comes out here every once in a while with Mara 12. We’ve talked a few times and of all the Alvians I’ve met, he actually seems to feel something. Not much, I grant you, but something. He’s a little different than the others, in a subtle way.”
Sinclair actually smiled. It looked rusty, as if he hadn’t done much smiling in his life. “All warrior lines are more primitive than the rest of the population. Gradys even more so. They are considered highly aggressive soldiers. Unpredict
able and unstoppable.”
“Yeah, that’s Grady, all right,” Justin agreed with a grin. “I like the bastard for all that.”
“He cannot understand the concept of affection.” Sinclair’s expression was lost. “Neither could I until a few days ago. Now, I wonder that I could ever do half the things I did. I have a great number of transgressions on my soul.”
“Do your people believe in the idea of an immortal soul?” Callie asked from near the door where they’d positioned her. They wanted her to be able to flee should their guest turn violent.
“There is little doubt the energy of one’s being is not destroyed when the body ceases to function. We do not know where the energy goes, but we do live on. It is the one thought that gives me some solace for all the lives I’ve taken over the years.” A tear leaked down the side of Sinclair’s face, surprising Justin. He shot a questioning glance to Callie.
She nodded, using telepathy to communicate privately with her father. “His sorrow is real and deep.” She turned to address the Alvian. “You’re a new man now,” she said aloud. “You can make up for what you’ve done and try to ease your burden of guilt through your future actions.”
“For one thing,” Justin pounced, “you could begin by telling us who ordered the hit on Davin and how badly they want him dead. Were you supposed to take out Callie as well? Rick? Anybody else?”
A tight muscle in Sinclair’s cheek ticked as Justin fired questions at him, but he stood firm. The warrior had a backbone of steel.
“I was sent for Davin alone. He’s the one with the power. He’s the one they fear, though they do not recognize the emotion. Yet it is fear—in a sense. They fear his power as the single person who could interfere with their plans for this world and their desire for ultimate power over our people and this planet. Davin’s grown too strong to confront openly. The whispers about his instability are for naught now that he has a mate to ground him. And many are beginning to study our old ways, intrigued by the idea of resonance mating. I wasn’t instructed to target Davin’s mate, but I believe Callie bears watching in case subsequent orders change.”
