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Authors: Lisanne Norman

Between Darkness and Light (64 page)

BOOK: Between Darkness and Light
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“Sometimes I think I remember people, but not very well.”
“Which people?”
“A female, with yellow hair on her head. She's not like anyone here I think, but it's not very clear.”
He closed his eyes and tried not to groan aloud. How in Vartra's name had Shaidan got an image of Carrie?
“He said I had your memories.”
“He? Which he?” he asked sharply, opening his eyes again.
“The Sholan who wears gray. I don't see him very often, and usually he's lost because he's on our level and he's not allowed there.”
Gray? None of them had brought their grays with them. “My memories? He said you have my memories?”
Shaidan nodded.
“That's how you knew how to use your Talent,” he said, realization dawning. “But how did they get my memories to give you?”
“Sleep tapes, he said.”
“What else can you tell me about this person?”
“He said he had grown-up children.”
He sucked in a breath. It was definitely not one of them, which meant it could only be Vartra. “Have you told anyone else about him?”
“No.”
“Then don't. Keep this to yourself, Shaidan. Did you tell Aunt about me? Or anyone else?”
“No. Why don't you want anyone to know?”
“The General dislikes Telepaths, he believes I'm no longer one. He mustn't know about any of this. Can you do that? Not tell him?”
“I can try,” said Shaidan dubiously. “If he asks me, I have to tell the truth.”
“Avoid telling him the truth then.”
“I can't lie,” the cub said, slightly shocked. “It's not right to lie.”
“No, it isn't. But if you tell the truth about this, I could get into a lot of trouble.”
Then you are still a Telepath.
He heard the question loud and clear, and the joy he felt was equally balanced by the fear he had of his son being unable to keep the truth from Kezule if asked.
“Don't ask me that, Shaidan,” he said quietly, reaching a decision. “Shall we carry on with our game?”
“Yes. You aren't angry with me or Aunt, are you?”
“No. Now let's forget about all this, shall we?”
He met Zayshul later, much later, at the pool when it was empty.
“You're wearing the stud,” she said, pleased.
“Yes. Zayshul,” he began.
“The blue is much nicer against your pelt.” She reached up to touch his ear gently. “And with it matching Shaidan's, I thought it less likely to arouse comment.”
“I don't know about that,” he said as she moved closer and began to stroke his cheek. Her scent enveloped him, making it difficult to resist her. “Zayshul . . .”
“We can't be too long,” she murmured.
“I know. When were you going to tell me about Shaidan mind-speaking to you?”
She froze. “I . . . don't know,” she admitted.
“You're a Telepath, and so are more of you, all females according to Shaidan,” he said accusingly.
She rested her forehead against his chest. “I didn't want to hurt you by telling you I could hear your son,” she said quietly. “Don't be angry. Please.”
“I can't be,” he said, his voice tight with a mixture of emotions as he put his arms around her. “Shaidan would sense it, and I have no intention of upsetting my son. But believe me, I am angry. Does Kezule know about this?”
“He suspects I am. He's wearing a small psi damper, one he got from the Directorate when he raided them to rescue the children.”
“Did you also know Shaidan's been programmed with my memories?”
“We suspected it when we realized they all knew how to use their telepathic abilities.”
“How? How did they do that?” He could hear the growl creeping into his voice and tried to still it.
“Mind scan. Chy'qui certainly had you long enough to do one.”
“He destroyed my Talent!”
“He must have done it before,” she said, lifting her head to look at him. “I don't know, Kusac. I wasn't involved with you then.”
“He took everything from me! Even my memories, dammit!” he snarled, trying hard to suppress the outrage he felt.
“Not your memories. The children only got your knowledge of using telepathy, as far we know.”
He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, for Shaidan's sake if nothing else. “My son has a faint memory of my wife, Zayshul. They didn't just give them knowledge of how to use their Talents.”
“I'm sorry, Kusac, I really am, but I had nothing to do with it, you know I didn't,” she said, stroking his arm in an attempt to calm him.
“Did Kezule find the scan?”
“No, I swear he didn't. That's why he wanted you to agree to another one.”
“Hell will freeze first,” he growled.
“I know,” she said soothingly. “But now isn't the time to talk about this, when neither of us is really rational.”
“You're right,” he said, too aware of the warmth of her body pressing against his and his own body's involuntary response to hers. “We'll talk about it later, but in the meantime, for Vartra's sake, be careful! Don't make Kezule's suspicion into more. And tell him nothing about Shaidan.”
“I'm not a fool, Kusac,” she said, shivering as she felt his hands beginning to stroke their way down her back and flanks. “I've always protected Shaidan.”
“I know,” he murmured, tilting his neck toward her as she began to nibble it. “This visit to Ch'almuth is going to be impossible. Is there any way you can stay behind?”
“I can try,” she said. “But won't it be worse when you return?”
“Hiding a meeting on the
N'zishok
will be impossible, it's far easier to lose ourselves here on Kij'ik. Now, enough talking.”
Kezule's suite, Zhal-L'Shoh 15th day (January)
“Yes, you can stay here on Kij'ik if you want,” Kezule said lazily, pulling Zayshul against the curve of his body. “I thought you'd have enjoyed the chance to get off the Outpost and visit another world.”
“I would, but the timing is wrong,” she said. “I have patients depending on me, pregnant females and Mayza, who's still very young. I wouldn't feel right leaving them at this time, even if only for six or seven days.”
She'd chosen her moment carefully, knowing Kezule would want to spend the whole of the night before the journey with her. Right now, he was relaxed, his senses satiated by the meal she'd cooked him earlier, and their lovemaking.
“I'll send Ghidd'ah with you. You know she's my right hand.”
He grunted, letting his head rest on her shoulder. “Is this scent marker business getting you down?” he asked. “I thought you were coping well.”
Panic fluttered in her stomach and she had to force herself not to stiffen in his embrace. “A little,” she admitted carefully. “It's very difficult for me not to respond to him.”
“He seems to be managing. I hear he's mixing more, even talking softly to our females. Zhalmo is certainly taken with him. Perhaps a coupling between them would stop the marker.”
“The marker can only be removed by the one who put it there,” she said stiffly.
“And she's dead. Yes, I remember. Giyarishis is working on it, I'll have another word with him when we return,” he murmured, yawning, his hand idly caressing the gentle curve of her belly.
She wondered if she should tell him that she'd spoken to the TeLaxaudin herself and he'd said there was no cure for the marker. Maybe Kezule knew already. Suddenly she was aware of his surface thoughts with no idea of how it had happened.
He hadn't visited Giyarishis in some time, but she could feel his absolute faith in the TeLaxaudin's ability to find an acceptable solution to the scent marker.
“Doesn't the marker bother you?” she asked abruptly, turning round within the circle of his arm to look at him. “I know you can smell it.”
“Not particularly,” he said sleepily. “I have no need to brand you as mine. To me, you smell more of Shaidan than him.”
His mind was growing fuzzy, the images she was receiving beginning to blur as he drifted closer to sleep. There was a small spike of mental activity as he briefly enjoyed the fact he still had something Kusac craved.
That annoyed her. “You said you hated the scent of mammals,” she said almost sharply.
“I've gotten used to it,” he replied, pulling her closer again.
His thoughts had faded now and she could feel his need for her warmth pressing against him, and the flash of irritation that she was delaying his sleep with her chat.
“Sleep, pretty one,” he mumbled, tongue flicking out briefly to lick her cheek. Then he was asleep, leaving her taken aback by the unexpected endearment.
N'zishok
bridge, Zhal-L'Shoh 18th day (January)
Kezule had called him up to the bridge and sat him at a comm console just before emergence from the passageway.
“Start the recorded message as soon as we emerge,” ordered Kezule.
“Emergence in five seconds from my mark,” said Captain Zaykkuh. “Mark. Four, three, two, emergence!”
He felt a slight wrench, followed by a brief moment of nausea, not dissimilar to that of a normal jump transition. Finished reconfiguring the console to his own needs, he hit Kezule's recording, monitoring it through an earpiece as the message was broadcast on as many bands as they thought the Ch'almuthians might use.
“This is the Prime vessel
N'zishok,
from K'oish'ik. Our mission is peaceful. We wish to reestablish communications with the sovereign people of Ch'almuth. We ask you to please respond to our message.”
“Emergence on course, General,” said Maaz'ih from his Nav station. “Plotting course to spaceport landing site.”
“Jump drive off-line. Maneuver drives initiated,” said Zaykkuh.
“No life signs on the orbiting station, General,” said Maaz'ih from his sensor post.
“I'm not picking up any communication signals, General,” said Zhalmo.
“No space traffic either,” said Kushool, looking up from her sensor post.
He turned in his seat to look at Kezule. “It appears that they are still planet-locked.”
Kezule nodded. “So it appears. Screen on,” he said.
“Course plotted,” said Maaz'ih, sending it to the pilot's console.
“Received and initiating,” replied Zaykkuh.
The large view screen darkened then resolved to show a view of the approaching world. It hung in space, a mottled tan and green-colored globe, with small patches of deep blue where the mainly landlocked seas were located. Patches and wisps of white clouds were sprinkled across the hemisphere they could currently see.
BOOK: Between Darkness and Light
3.5Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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