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  Loxin took to the air and aimed for the spectators. If he couldn’t stop the wave, he could do what he did best and protect those in its path.

  The wave knocked the logs loose, Yekesh used wind to redirect most of it, but Loxin landed, opened his wings and formed the barrier to protect those behind him.

  He grunted as the water struck the telekinetic wall between him and the coursing cascade filled with logs and debris. The two minutes that he held the barrier was an eternity.

  * * * *

  Dot was doing yoga and watching the news when the screams echoed those in her mind. She sat with tension ripping through her as the ship careened into the water, Ralos reinforced the dam, Yekesh redirected the flow of the debris and Loxin took care of the spectators by putting himself between them and danger. Jekross was opening the crashed vessel sticking out of the reservoir and helping those inside to gain freedom. He was giving them what they needed.

  Tears formed and slipped down her cheeks. Since the screams had begun, she had never actually seen the entire sequence from start to finish.

  She watched until everything had reached a sort of numb peace. The Niandi ship was hauled out of the lake, the Guardians made sure that everyone was accounted for and, finally, they were free to leave.

  Dot continued her workout and then toddled off to take a shower. She put on a new suit and her knees buckled when cries for help began in her mind.

  Her hand trembled as she reported what she was hearing. Blasts of energy weapons were sounding, men were shouting and the gurgle of the dying was unmistakable.

  Dot recorded everything she could hear, and then, she went to the com office and looked through the audio files. Those weapons had a distinctive sound and there had to be something that would identify them in the archives. She was going to keep looking.

  * * * *

  Jekross knew that Dot had had another activation. There was a tension in the building when they returned; exhausted and in desperate need of showers, she was nowhere to be found in the common areas.

  Loxin had dark circles under his eyes and Jekross pointed down the hall. “She is in the com centre looking for sounds.”

  Loxin nodded and headed to try and make inroads with his mate while she tried to save the world, again.

  Chapter Six

  Dot turned around when Loxin came in. “I heard another incident and this one involves some sort of blaster or gun.”

  He had his wings folded back and his helmet tucked under one arm. He looked exhausted.

  She got to her feet and pushed the chair at him. “Sit down. You look beat.”

  He chuckled. “I don’t need to rest. I need…”

  The intense look in his eyes froze her to the spot. “What?”

  He stepped forward and pulled her against him with his free arm. “I had wanted to start slowly.”

  She heard his words but all thought vanished when he bent his head to kiss her. His lips were warm and he smelled of sweaty male. Funnily enough, it just added to the intoxication as his mouth brushed over hers again and again.

  Dot put her hands on his chest and the cool metal of his armour was unyielding under her palms. When he lifted his head, she heard a small chuckle and she opened her eyes.

  Blushing was her first response. Trying to push out of his grip was the second. Even with one arm, he held her easily.

  “Loxin, I really need to finish finding that sound.” She hid behind work. She had heard that it worked.

  With a reluctant sigh, he let her go. “Show me what you have found.”

  She took a seat in the chair and sampled the blasters that she had found. He leaned over her shoulder and she felt her blush return to full flare.

  “The sound is a cross between these three. It blends and then there is that staccato pop.” She scowled at the screen. “There are tens of thousands of these things. I don’t know how I am going to find it by tomorrow.”

  He chuckled and she could swear that he sniffed her hair. “You don’t have to. Luaksar offensive weapons. They are fairly exotic and Ralos should be able to trace them.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “They are a blend of those three sounds with a staccato pop.” He sighed, and this time she knew that he inhaled against her ear. “You just need to listen to the files while you run around the base. You will learn about it in short order.”

  Dot leaned forward and turned toward him. “How do you know I can manage it?”

  He helped her to her feet, lifting one of her hands to his lips. “Because you are meant to be here.”

  Looking into those red and black eyes, she was pretty sure that this was exactly where she was supposed to be.

  She didn’t know how long they simply stood looking at each other, but when Jekross came in, it was both welcome and irritating.

  He cleared his throat and said, “Loxin, you need to get out of your battle suit; Oracle, you need to brief us on what is happening tomorrow.”

  She nodded. “I will meet all of you in the living area. Loxin isn’t the only one who needs a shower.”

  Jekross looked hurt for a moment before he grinned. “I think there was an algae bloom in that water.”

  With the men all changing, she could breathe easier, literally. There was a lot of tang in the air when men got sweaty.

  She fixed some tea and caf as well as a snack tray provided by the dispenser. When they trickled in, the food disappeared in seconds allowing her to explain the issue.

  “First, I hear shots that echo. No one speaks for a moment and then there are voices demanding that everyone get down. The voices echo as well. The building has to be made of metal or stone for that much reverberation. The screams build to a pitch, a woman begs for her life. They demand access. She sobs and says she can’t. Another shot and the sounds of someone drowning in their own blood. That is all.”

  The men were silent.

  “Loxin has helped me to identify the weapons. It sounds like a bank or a public archive.” She bit her lip.

  Ralos and Yekesh pulled out their data pads. While they went looking for a location, she got some more snacks.

  She added some information. “I don’t know about how things are done here, but there were no children at all in the audio report. Does that matter?”

  Ralos nodded. “Good point. Children are everywhere here. If there are none, it is a secure facility with a public entrance and polished stone floors.”

  Yekesh raised his computer with one hand. “I have it. Nixos Trade Commission is hosting a power source display. The prototypes are being stored in the Hulgarka Archive at the edge of Whex city.”

  Dot swayed as the sound of landing ships now preceded the shots. Loxin took the tray from her and helped her to the couch.

  “Landing craft. There is a craft that lands one minute before the shooting starts. It has to be close to a large enough space to land in. Engines sound like short-distance transport. Something in the Leycral style of engine.”

  Four masculine faces looked at her in surprise. She laughed. “I didn’t spend my whole day doing yoga.”

  The mood was lightened as they brought up a holographic schematic and planned their defense.

  It wasn’t going to be the smoothest event, but it should be quick.

  Sleep fought her, so she pulled on a light robe and crept through the halls until she was outside and standing under the stars.

  The weather felt like spring as she walked along the stone patio, sitting on the low barrier that separated stone from grass and forest. The sky was so familiar. She felt as though she had looked up a thousand times and seen the same stars above her, but this was only her second night.

  “Couldn’t sleep?” Loxin was in the shadows. She hadn’t heard him arrive.

  She turned her head and tried not to stare. All he was wearing was about a foot of fabric wrapped around his hips.

  She looked up quickly. “Sleep eluded me. I can’t beli
eve I am finally here.”

  He walked toward her, his purple skin and black wings blurred him in the minimal light. “I can’t believe you are finally here, either.”

  “What do you mean?” There seemed to be more than a simple assignment to a Guardian base in his tone.

  “May I tell you a story? It follows the whole idea of no secrets on this base.”

  She settled and wrapped her arms around her torso for warmth. “Sure.”

  “My mother’s people have a tradition when a child turns eight. They are taken to the matchmaker and she shows them their perfect mate in a reflecting pool. The idea behind it is to help the child make the right career choice that will put them in the path of their match.”

  She nodded and noticed that he was closer. She felt the heat coming off his body.

  “Because I was a cross-breed, no one believed that the matchmaker would be able to find someone for me, but she did. In that silver reflecting pool, I saw a woman with blue-green eyes, blond hair, creamy skin, pouting lips and the weight of the world on her shoulders. She was smiling at me, but it was a tired smile.”

  Dot couldn’t say anything. She just sat there and stared at him.

  “When I saw your request for a space here, I was intrigued. Few would come out this far to such a dangerously active world. The moment I saw your face, I knew who you were. One of your own kind confirmed it.”

  That fixated Dot. “How?”

  “Rhoda, married to the Yacaro Guardian, Charm, has a talent for painting a person’s romantic destiny. She sent me a copy of the portrait she had done for me and you are in it. She had not even received your file.” He shrugged.

  “Does that happen a lot?”

  He chuckled. “She has been distracted with her children, but she paints when she can. Would you like to see the portrait?”

  “Um, sure?”

  “It is inside, but remind me tomorrow after the mission.”

  She held her breath and then blurted out, “Is that why you kissed me?”

  He seemed surprised. He grabbed her hands and gently tugged her to her feet, pulling her against him in a hug. “I kissed you because I can’t think of anything else. When I was on the mission, I wanted to simply do it successfully and get back because you were waiting and our success matters greatly to you.”

  It was a sweet thought. Her heart pounded. “It does matter. As it regards my talent, it is the only thing that matters. Having the incidents that I hear turn out with survivors is the key to my sanity.”

  He ran his hands over her back and pressed her to him. There was a lot of bare skin pressed against her, but she wasn’t going to complain. He was warm and he smelled wonderful.

  To her surprise, he shifted his wings and they wrapped around her, warming her back as well with the silky soft caress of the feathers. He simply held her, rocking gently with her in his arms.

  She yawned and rubbed her cheek against his chest. The warmth was making her sleepy. His heart thudded slowly under her cheek and she closed her eyes to enjoy the moment. The evidence of his arousal was prodding at her, but she was confident that snuggling was the only thing on the agenda.

  She bit her lip, and under the cover of darkness, she whispered, “In the interests of full disclosure, I haven’t had a relationship with a man before. My talent kept me in a restricted area and it just never happened.”

  “I am aware. I read your file, but thank you for telling me. Among my father’s people, the courtship would take as long as you like. I would offer you gifts wrapped in different colours that each signify a new level to the interaction, and it would be up to you to agree. For my mother’s people, once we meet our mate, we have ten days to make contact of a more intimate nature. It helps to maintain the population. I would love to give you as much time as you need, but I will be honest and tell you that time is a factor.”

  “What will happen if I chicken out?”

  “I will be put into cold sleep until a medical specialist can be brought in to halt the tension.” He shrugged.

  “And if I encourage it?”

  “After the first joining, the reaction will be stopped. From then on, things can take a slower pace.”

  That sounded so odd that she craned her neck to look up at him. “That has a peculiar ring to it.”

  “I know and I do not wish to rush you, but as I stated, time is a factor.”

  She settled back against his chest. “What is your mother’s race?”

  “Yevoshan.”

  “Do you mind if I confirm this?”

  “Please. I have already researched Terrans, and there seems to not be one specific courtship ritual. I am going with my instinct on this.”

  “Sometimes instinct is best. If all else fails, ask Jekross. He can tell you what I need.” She smiled and pressed her lips to his chest. She didn’t think about it, but after she kissed him, she tasted him lightly with her tongue.

  His shiver was violent as was the ridge against her belly. “What are you doing?”

  She went up on her toes and trailed her lips over the cords of his neck. “Going on instinct?”

  Dot smiled when he gripped her arms and he moved her back. “Not tonight. I need to get some sleep, Dorothea.”

  “Dot, please.”

  He sighed. “I think we should go back inside before things get out of hand.”

  It was funny that he said that. She had been thinking about putting her hands on him and lifting that wrap out of the way.

  Knowing that he wanted her had given her a freedom to explore that she hadn’t imagined. It was heady stuff, but she let him coax her back to her room, and before he had cleared her private space, she slipped the robe off her shoulders and slid into bed.

  He was next to her door and staring, his eyes glowing like coals. With his jaw clenched, he left her room and returned to his.

  He might be going to have a tense night, but she was going to sleep like a baby.

  Chapter Seven

  Once they left for the mission, she looked up the traditions of the Yevoshan. They were serial pair-bonders for the most part, similar to humans, with the exception of those who went to a matchmaker. Enjels were life-maters, so she wondered how his parents had worked that out.

  As the time crept forward, she played the audio samples of the different styles of weaponry while she exercised. She memorized the name and the sound, one after the other, working her way through the library.

  When the time of the attack arrived, she switched on the vid screen and streamed the video from the archive feeds and the Guardian’s armour. It was hard to watch them all at once, but she really tried to keep focused.

  The traffic scanners caught the attack ship landing, and the troops deployed immediately, running for the archive with their weapons up.

  The shots were fired, but they were aimed at the Guardians now, not the staff working the archive or the visitors.

  Loxin was protecting the cluster of bystanders, Ralos encased the attackers in stone, but the shot she had been dreading was still fired.

  The administrator was pinned next to her desk and she slowly collapsed with a chest wound.

  Yekesh’s camera was focused on the wound, and he applied pressure while his other hand worked to seal the hole with spray.

  A medical siren wailed to indicate its approach. Yekesh worked quickly and the woman’s wet breathing eased.

  Dot sat back with a sense of extreme relief. The woman wasn’t in great shape, but she was alive. The attackers were encased in stone and rapidly running out of oxygen, and the rest of the bystanders were safe.

  When she checked Jekross’s camera, he was walking back from the smoking hole in the side of the ship’s engines with one of the blasters casually over his shoulder. The hatches were wide open and there were no signs of life.

  She smiled at the cocky swagger that he exhibited crossing the field.

  Inside, Loxin was being fawned over by two o
f the archive employees who were trying to see how much of his biceps were him and how much was the armour. His wings were getting an examination as well.

  Dot sighed and she wondered which side of his family he favoured. He didn’t seem to be flirting back, so that was a positive sign.

  She restarted her audio memorization and did her yoga until the team returned. The news reports only recapped the events that she had already seen and she had her education to attend to.

  When Loxin came through the door, Dot got to her feet. He pulled his helmet off and tucked it under one arm, and his features showed exhaustion again.

  She walked up to him and put her hand behind his neck, pulling him in for a kiss. His free arm snapped around her and lifted her up until neither of them had to strain.

  She heard the others unsealing their helmets, but she didn’t care.

  Jekross calmly said, “I’ll get us something to drink. Oh look. Oracle has prepared tea and sandwiches. I am really going to have to show her what foods are corollaries for ones she grew up with, I mean…once Loxin puts her down. I am betting ten credits that it will be in three minutes.”

  Ralos chuckled. “I would go for five.”

  Yekesh said, “Ten.”

  Against her lips, Loxin smiled as he wrapped his wings around them and dropped his helmet to get a better grip.

  She opened her mouth under his urging and wrapped her arms around his neck. The feel of his tongue sliding along hers made her shiver and her skin tightened in reaction. She felt hot, shaky and on the edge of control, but she had no idea what was coming next.

  There was a strange safety in making out with him while he was dressed for battle. He couldn’t do anything too invasive with his hands and his crotch was safely confined. There was nothing safer than kissing a man in a battle suit as long as there weren’t weapons attached.