Close Contact (15 page)

Dr. Daniels nodded. “I imagine it will take some practice, though. And I have a feeling we’re only seeing the tip of the sword where Echo’s ability is concerned. She tested much too strong for this to be all there is of her ability.”

“There’s more?” I swallowed hard. “I just accepted I had an ability yesterday. I’m not sure I can handle any more surprises.”

“In my experience,” Dr. Shilly told me, “it’s a very instinctual process. Rather like yanking your hand back from
a flame once you feel the heat. The full range of your ability will be there when it’s needed, and you won’t even realize you’ve used it until afterward.”

“Great. That makes me feel so much better. Kind of like a blaster with the trigger half depressed. Now, unless you gentlemen have more good news for me, I need to be on my way.” I glanced at Dr. Daniels. “Can you make sure Lillith gets a copy of everything you’ve found out? It will save a lot of time if I don’t have to explain it all to her myself.”

“Of course.” He stood and pushed a few buttons on his desk console. “All taken care of. I understand you’ve asked to meet with Kiera. Excellent idea. She’s probably the only person in the Federation who has any chance of understanding what you’re going through.” An expression more serious than any I’d seen before crossed his face. “Be careful, Agent Adams. Remember, while Gaia may seem like a helpless child, Gertz created her. We have no idea what she’s capable of doing, and as Dr. Shilly mentioned, use of psi ability can be a reflex action. If she’s scared, she could lash out, even against those trying to help her. And we have no information at all on Banca, except she’s obviously not Gaia’s biological sister, no matter what the girls believe. She’s a total mystery.”

Wonderful. Something else I hadn’t thought about. I’d sure be thinking about it now, though. Me, Miss I-don’t-like-kids suddenly had not one but three to deal with. One was a superhuman with unknown capabilities, another was a little girl with spooky eyes, and the last was an alien with the potential to destroy universes. And at least two of them were scared and dangerous. If that didn’t make your knees shake, nothing would.

Trying to maintain my confidence, I gave him a curt nod and then closed my eyes, pictured Kiera, and pushed.

When I opened my eyes again, it was to the sound of
squabbling dragon birds and the rush of a waterfall somewhere nearby. I was standing in what appeared to be a giant birdcage attached to the back of a stone building. On the floor, two kittens the size of medium canines snarled and tumbled and mock-stalked each other, barely sparing me a glance when I appeared.

Before I could stop myself, I inhaled deeply and caught the scent of growing things mixed with traces of a recent rain. Maybe there was something to this “wishing it to be so” thing, because I wouldn’t have thought I’d be able to smell anything in this form.

There was so much to look at that it took me a second to focus on Kiera and the man beside her.

Holy Zin. While I might prefer Reynard’s rugged visage and piercing blue eyes, there was no denying that Smith’s mate was the most gorgeous male I’d ever seen. And there was no doubt whatsoever that this was Thor. He was huge, with inky black hair and ebony eyes that reflected a deep-seated wisdom and kindness.

I tried not to ogle all those rippling muscles under warm bronze skin, instead forcing my gaze on Kiera. She was standing in front of a waist-high pedestal that held the biggest black crystal I’d ever seen. Even in my current bodiless condition I could sense the power flowing off that stone. To say it scared me silly would be an understatement of epic proportions. All I could do was gape at it.

“Echo, I don’t believe you’ve met Thor, my mate,” Smith lifted a hand to the man beside her. “Thor, this is Echo Adams. I thought maybe Thor could help, since his people have lived with the crystals for thousands of cycles.”

I tore my gaze away from the Limantti long enough to acknowledge Thor with a nod, then nervously looked back at the giant crystal.

“You get used to it, eventually,” Kiera said, reminding me
yet again that she was an empath. “And luckily, she wants only the best for all life forms.”

“Unlike her daughter?”

Smith frowned. “What do you mean?”

I told her about my experience with the Sumantti the day before. “That’s why I wanted to speak with you. I need to know everything you can tell me about the Daughter Stone, about the alien life form that inhabits the crystal. The Sumantti may want the best for everyone in theory, but she’s so young I don’t think she’s developed any self-control yet. And she’s trapped, unable to get away from her captors. I’m afraid that in her panic, she could very well take out the people who are trying to help her. Namely, me.”

“I see what you mean.” She glanced at Thor, and I got the impression a conversation was going on just below the level of my hearing. Finally, Thor spoke in careful Galactic Standard, his voice deep and rumbling.

“We do not understand how these captors are holding her, or why the Limantti can find no trace of her daughter.”

“I can’t be positive, but it felt to me as if she were in a stasis box. Is that even possible? If she’s powerful enough to destroy a star system, I don’t know why she couldn’t escape from a stasis field.”

Smith put her hands on the Limantti, her eyes unfocused. She stayed that way for a second or two, and then nodded. “The Mother Stone says it would explain why she can’t locate the Sumantti. Her daughter has no experience with stasis fields. While no one could hold
her
this way, the Sumantti is still very immature. But the Daughter Stone will, eventually, determine how the field works, and then her captors won’t be able to contain her.” She lowered her hands.

“Zin help us if that happens before I can calm her down.”
I sighed. “And I can’t even start trying until I understand exactly how this life form operates. For instance,” I gestured at the crystal. “Why did the brains of the bunch end up in black quartz, as opposed to another color?”

Smith glanced down at the huge stone. “The easiest way to put it is that black tastes better than other colors to the psynaviats that make up the hive mind. The color each colony prefers depends on the workers’ psi function, but all are tied to and created by the brains of the life form.” She tilted her head toward the Mother Stone. “Think of her as the queen bee. It makes things simpler.”

“Psynaviats?”

“Yes, it’s what we’ve named them, for lack of a better term. It means psychic energy.”

“Okay. Psynaviats it is. But is the Limantti really female?”

She hesitated. “Only in the sense that it replicates, or gives birth.
Female
is our word, not hers. You have to remember, this isn’t a single entity we’re dealing with. Both the Sumantti, or Daughter Stone, and the Limantti contain millions of living beings, all too small to see, even with a molecular microscope. You have to go to the subatomic level to get a glimpse of them. They make viruses look gigantic. Just as an example, they move
between
the molecules of the quartz, not through them.”

Midway through her explanation, Thor touched her arm lightly, and then vanished through a curtained door into the building, the kittens scrambling at his heels. A scarlet-feathered dragon bird darted after them, pausing long enough to loudly scold a blue-green dragon bird and swat him with one wing before ducking under the curtain.

Smith chuckled at their antics. “Sorry about that. It’s almost time for Rayda to mate again, and she’s giving Gem a hard time. Now, where were we?”

“The organism that lives in the quartz,” I reminded her.
“If there are that many of them, won’t they eventually consume the crystal?”

“That’s what we thought at first. Turns out, they don’t consume the quartz at all. Quartz is a conduit for electricity, even minor quantities like what it absorbs from sunlight. The entities feed on that energy. And while we aren’t sure how they manage it, they can even produce more quartz. That’s how the quartz for the Daughter Stone was created.”

“I thought it was mitosis.”

Smith nodded. “For the psynaviats, it was, but they had to make the quartz for their new halves to inhabit first.”

My mind spun with questions. “So the form that operates as the brain can’t survive outside the crystal?”

“Oh, it can, and has in the past. It just prefers staying in its quartz.” She frowned again. “At least, I think it does. The truth is, we wouldn’t know if came out and went for daily walks, since we can’t see it. And it does send colonies out every time it lands on a quartz-rich world.”

“Okay, I think I’m getting the basic idea of how this works. Maybe that will help if the Daughter Stone gets loose and throws a fit, although I’m not sure how.”

“Don’t forget the Imadei,” Smith told me. “It should help you control her. And now that we know which planet the Sumantti is on, the Mother Stone will be watching, too. If there’s anything we can do, I promise, we’ll do it. You aren’t alone in this, Echo, even if it feels that way sometimes.”

“Thanks, I’ll take all the help I can get. I just have one more question. Are there any more of them floating around in space, waiting to fall into the wrong hands?”

Smith looked shocked and I figured she’d never thought of that possibility before. Her eyes went unfocused again as she consulted the Limantti. Whatever the conversation, it seemed to take longer this time, and she appeared troubled when she finally answered me.

“The Mother Stone says she encountered three others in her travels through space. Two continued on and she lost track of them when they left this galaxy. She believes the third crashed on a deserted planet, because it vanished from her sight and she hasn’t seen it since then.”

Not a comforting thought, but I could only deal with one catastrophe at a time. Casting a last look at the massive crystal, I said good-bye and then pictured slipping into my body.

When I opened my eyes, both Marcus and Peri were leaning close, looking at me, Peri from the headboard, Marcus from beside the bed.

“We were beginning to worry,” Marcus said, straightening while Peri cooed at me. “You’ve been gone for over two hours.”

“Zin, three planets, scattered all over the galaxy, in two hours.” I grinned at him. “I’m starting to see the advantages of this ability. But there’s one more thing I need to try.”

It had occurred to me that maybe I could get a lock on someone’s DNA when I was in ghost form. And I had a perfect subject to practice on now.

Closing my eyes, I let Thor’s image form in my mind, and then pushed. Abruptly, I was back on Orpheus Two, standing outside a large adobe building. Thor was in front of me, along with three other male Buri, and all of them were staring at me in surprise.

A whoop of glee escaped before I could stop it, causing all the Buri except Thor to jump. He merely smiled at me, his thick black hair lifting in a gentle breeze.

“My mate wishes to know if you forgot something.”

“Yes.” I grinned at him. “I forgot to tell you good-bye.”

His head dipped in a regal nod, as if ghost women popped up in front of him every day. “Good-bye, Echo Adams. Fare thee well.”

Aw, now wasn’t that just the sweetest thing ever? I could see why Kiera Smith liked him so much. Before I could respond, Kiera spoke from behind me.

“He’s taken, Adams. Go get your own man.”

A laugh burst out of me. “I already did. See you later.”

This time when I returned to Madrea, Marcus had his arms crossed over his chest, glaring at me. “What just happened?”

I sat up and swung my feet to the floor. “Did Lillith tell you what Dr. Daniels and Dr. Shilly discovered about my ability?”

“Yes.”

“Well, I just found out I don’t have to meet people in my normal form to get a lock on their DNA. I can do the same thing in my ghost form. That should help.”

“How are you feeling? You must have expended quite a bit of energy.”

I did a quick inventory. “Maybe, but I feel fine. Probably a little hungrier than I normally would be a few hours after eating breakfast, but that’s it.”

“In that case, we might as well go to the Terpsichore and grab a snack. We still have a while before we’ll need to get ready for tonight, and I’m expecting a wagonload of wine from up north today at the warehouse.”

“Sure. Leddy wanted me to organize things so the women wouldn’t have to go all the way through the kitchen to get drinks for the customers. I can keep busy with that.”

Peri gave an inquisitive
cheep
, and I waved her toward the window. “Go ahead and visit the flowers. You must be starved by now.”

She trilled happily and fluttered out of sight, but I could still feel her nearby. It made me think of Rayda, and the fact that she’d mate soon.

Which presented a problem I hadn’t thought about before
now. Sooner or later, Peri would be mature enough to mate. What we were going to do then? As far as I knew, other dragon birds were nonexistent on Centaurius.

Well, schite. It looked like I was going to end up owning yet another dragon bird in the future. Didn’t that just figure?

With a sigh, I followed Marcus from the house.

“Y
ou cut a hole in the wall of my storage room!” Marcus roared.

I winced, and then continued calmly putting on my bracelets, watching him from the corner of my eye as I stood in the main room of the house. “You don’t have to yell. Bim will think we’re being attacked.”

“You cut a hole in the wall of my storage room,” he said through clenched teeth.

At least he didn’t rattle the windows this time.

Carefully, I reached over and patted his arm. “It’s for the best. When you see how much time it will save, you’ll thank me.”

“I had kegs of ale stored against that wall. Now you’ve cut my storage space down by a fourth of what it was.”

Pausing, I tilted my head to study him. “You didn’t go into the storage room, did you? You just saw the opening from the common room.” With a put-upon huff, I propped my hands on my hips. “If you’d bothered to look, you’d have noticed I rearranged your stock so that it’s not only more efficient, you have twice the storage space you had before. Furthermore, if you put a man inside to fill the mugs, which,
I might add, are now within reach of anyone standing behind the counter in the opening, it will speed up the flow of the servers. Everyone else loves it, including Treya.” I glared at him.

“Fine!” He threw his hands up. “I’ll go look at the storage room.” Stomping every step, he went through the back door, letting it slam behind him.

By the time he came back, much subdued, I’d finished getting ready for our meeting with the king. “Well?”

“You were right. It’s much better.” He looked at me curiously. “How do you do it? How do you know exactly where to put everything to make the most use of a space?”

“It’s no big mystery.” I shrugged. “The image of how it should look just pops into my head, like a diagram, all nice and neat.”

An inscrutable look crossed his face. “So you always know just what’s right for a space.”

“I guess you could put it that way.”

“Rather like the commander knows what’s right or wrong when someone speaks to him.”

Surprised, I nodded slowly. I’d never made the connection before. “Lillith did say our brains operated on the same electrical frequency. I guess this proves it. The only difference is he focuses on people, I focus on spaces.”

“Did you think I was lying?” the ship asked.

“No, I’d simply never considered how it might affect us.”

“Given your upbringings, I suppose it’s natural that you use this talent differently,” Marcus mused.

“What do you mean?” I asked him, watching Peri attempt to get a spare bangle bracelet over her head.

“Well, you were created for the Department of Protocol, so you were taught to organize events. And that included the spaces they were held in. In the commander’s case, he was
alone at an extremely young age. His very survival depended on his ability to judge the people he encountered, figure out whom he could trust and whom he couldn’t.”

“That makes sense.” I took the bangle bracelet away from Peri and picked up one made from a slender chain. Looping it around her neck twice, I fastened it and stood back to survey the effect while she happily preened. It was still loose, but at least it wouldn’t impede her wings. “There, you look gorgeous. Definitely fit to visit the king.”

“And if I don’t get changed, you two will be the only ones allowed into the royal dining room,” Marcus said, vanishing into his room.

When he was gone, Peri waddled across the table, looked me in the eye, and sent me an image of herself holding a stick of makeup.

“No,” I hastily told her. “Not a fragging chance. Dragon birds do not wear makeup. You don’t need it,” I added, hoping to head off a trend. “You’re beautiful just like you are. I should be so lucky.”

Impatiently, I blew at the lock of hair that insisted on hanging over my left eye. It seemed like the harder I tried to do something with the mop, the worse it got. I’d finally given up entirely and just let it do what it wanted.

At least Treya had loaned me a dressier outfit for the night. It wasn’t as elaborate as the costumes used for performing, but it was a beautiful shade of sapphire blue, adorned with golden chains at the waistband. There were even matching sandals and a velvety cloak to go with it.

“How do I look?” I asked the dragon bird, and then blinked in surprise when she sent me an image of myself glowing like I’d swallowed a sun. “That good, huh?” I chuckled.

Kiera had told me that Peri would pick up my emotions and broadcast hers, but lately it seemed the exchange had
gone way beyond emotions. The fact that Peri answered a question with an appropriate image boded well for future communications on a higher level.

“Are you two finished admiring yourselves?” Lillith asked. “The commander just left the castle and is headed your way.”

“Right on time, as usual,” Marcus said, carrying his boots as he came back into the main room.

I couldn’t help staring at my “guardian.” “Zin, Marcus. No wonder so many women are in lust with you. If you dressed like that more often they’d be falling at your feet.”

His tight pants were made from a fine, chocolate-brown material that delineated the long muscles of his legs. The boots he pulled on were a darker, shinier brown and came to his knees. His shirt was a light, silky tan, set off by a jeweled belt holding an ornamental short sword. The colors set off the silver-threaded blond hair that had been pulled into a queue and tied with a matching ribbon.

An attractive flush tinted his cheeks at my words. “It’s hard to dress like this when I do manual labor most of the day. Besides, there aren’t that many women in ‘lust’ with me.”

I shot him a wicked grin. “I’ve been here a week and I can already name two. Maybe I should be
your
guardian.” I took a simple offensive stance, arms raised to strike. “I’m pretty sure I could take Leddy. Cammi seemed a little more determined, though.”

“I can defend my own honor, thank you.” Marcus chuckled as I straightened. “You’re certainly in a good mood tonight.”

“Of course I am. I get to have dinner in a castle with a king, escorted by the two most handsome men on the planet.”

“And maybe get closer to the Sumantti?” he asked shrewdly.

“That, too,” I told him. “I really need to get a better idea of the way the castle is laid out, plus, get a lock on as many people’s DNA as possible. If I can’t search the place in my corporeal body, maybe I can do it in ghost form.”

“You know, you can always ask the commander to help you with the layout.”

“I could.” Sobered, I shook my head. “But it would put him in an untenable position, Marcus. He’s already compromised his loyalty to the king by not telling him the truth about me. I don’t want to push him any more than necessary. It may come down to that to save the girls, and if it does, I’ll use him. But until we reach that point, I won’t force him to choose between me and the king more than he already has.”

Before he could respond, there was a brief tap on the front door, and Bim opened it to allow Reynard entry. One glimpse of him and my knees went weak; my heart gave one hard knock and then started hammering at a rate it had never achieved before. I forgot all about how good Marcus looked or that he was even in the room.

Reynard was dressed in black from top to bottom, the silk shirt clinging to a well-defined chest and snuggled lovingly against his flat stomach. The sleeves were long and full, cinched tightly at his wrists.

His slim waist was encircled by a wide silver belt studded with blue stones the same shade as his eyes. Attached to the belt hung a silver scabbard containing a sword that wasn’t the least bit ornamental.

An ornate medallion holding the same kind of blue stone hung from a silver chain around his neck. It looked official, and I suspected it was the formal badge of his office.

Peri saved me from making a complete idiot of myself by strutting across the table, chortling proudly as she fluffed her feathers, tilting her head from side to side, all to better display her necklace.

With a grin that highlighted his dimple, Reynard bowed to her. “How magnificent you look tonight, my lady. The king will be most impressed. As he will be when he sees your beautiful mistress.”

The look he sent me simmered with heat as he extended an arm. “May I have the privilege of escorting you?”

“Of course.” After donning my cloak, I wrapped my hand around his muscled arm as Peri settled on my shoulder. The commander and Marcus greeted each other and then we exited through the front door.

And I came to a screeching stop, causing Peri to scramble for purchase.

Bim was holding the reins of three gigantic animals. At least, they looked gigantic to me. They shifted, snorted, and tossed their heads until their gear jingled.

Immediately, I released Reynard’s arm and took two quick steps in reverse until my back was pressed to the door. Unaware of my sudden terror, Marcus continued on, stopping to talk with Bim.

“What’s wrong?” Lillith asked. “They’re just horses.”

“I know what they are,” I told her, my voice shaking while Reynard turned toward me, concern on his expressive face. “And I’m not getting on one of those evil beasts.”

“They aren’t evil, Echo,” Reynard told me, and I realized I’d been speaking aloud. “They’re animals, with no concept of right or wrong.”

“Then why are they looking at me as though they want to see how I taste?” I asked him.

Lillith’s snort mimicked those of the horses. “Even if they bit you, you’d heal instantly.”

“Yeah, well, knowing that in theory and experiencing it in actuality are two different things. Besides, it would still hurt even if it didn’t kill me, and my instincts are telling me that if I get on that creature’s back, I’ll die. Not to mention,
I have no idea how to steer the things, or where the brakes are. I don’t even own a fragging PTV. The tubes or the public beltways have always served just fine to get me where I’m going.”

“A PTV?” Reynard asked.

“Personal transportation vehicle,” I explained.

“You’ll ride with me,” Reynard decided abruptly. He held out a hand. “I swear, I’ll let no harm come to you.”

Well, schite. Now I had no choice in the matter unless I wanted to insult him.

Reluctantly, I put my hand in his and let him lead me closer to the monstrous beasts. Lillith must have repeated the conversation to Marcus, because he calmly mounted the reddish-brown animal, and took the reins of the gray. “I’ll lead this one.”

“Thank you.” Reynard nodded to him and then patted the huge black horse we’d stopped next to on the neck. “This is Arrow. I raised him from a foal and saw to his training myself.”

The inky-black animal turned his head and stared at me, his mouth making chewing motions on the metal bar between his teeth.

“Bite me, and so help me Zin, I’ll break your nose,” I muttered at him. “Believe me, I’m a lot stronger than I look.”

The threat seemed to leave him supremely unconcerned.

“He’s merely curious,” Reynard told me. “Your scent is unfamiliar to him.”

Without another word, he scooped me up, put his foot in the stirrup, and suddenly we were on top of Arrow’s broad back, me in front of Reynard. Frantically I clutched him, burying my face against his neck as the animal began to move.

With an indignant squawk, Peri squirmed out from between us, deciding it was better to fly than get squashed.

Reynard’s right arm came around me, holding me securely against his body. Beneath me, I could feel the shift of muscles as he used his legs to control the horse.

“Are we there yet?” I mumbled against his warm, clean skin.

“No.” His head lowered until his lips brushed my ear. “And I’m thinking of taking the longer way, if it will keep you in my arms like this.”

I was still melting when, from our right, Marcus cleared his throat. “Nice evening, isn’t it? Lots of people out enjoying the weather.”

“Marcus says if you don’t stop, you’re going to be engaged to the commander before you reach the castle,” Lillith told me. “As your guardian he will personally see to it.”

This guardian thing was turning out to be a real pain in the butt. With a sigh, I gathered my courage and forced myself to sit up straighter, barely suppressing a gasp when I saw how far away the ground looked.

Gripping the commander’s arms, I glanced around and realized why Marcus was so concerned. The sun was barely down, but enough light remained to show me the people who had stopped along the road to gape at us.

Lifting my chin, I schooled my features into a serene expression and gazed straight between the horse’s ears. If I could fake being an agent, I could fake being calm, even though my heart was still pounding.

Faster than I would have thought possible, we reached the front of the castle. A man ran forward and took the reins Reynard handed him, then held the horse while we alit. I was tempted to fall down and kiss the ground, but managed to restrain the urge. Instead, I took a closer look at my surroundings.

Since I’d avoided the front of the castle on my first attempt to get inside, I’d only seen it from a distance. The porch made
a half circle abutting the stone building, and it was so big that twenty men lying stretched out wouldn’t reach from one end to the other.

Ten wide marble steps followed the entire length of the arc, and ten marble columns supported the roof.

Thanks to large sunstone lamps attached to each side of every column and adorning the walls on both sides of the huge double doors, the area was lit up like the Federation Council during a five-day filibuster.

Every inch of marble was stark white shot through with veins of clear quartz crystals. The only spots of color came from the many-hued flowers filling round marble planters that flanked each pillar and weighted the air with scent.

Reynard took my hand and led me up the stairs to the doors, Marcus and Peri following. The doors were made of solid wood, and so big I had no idea how the liveried men next to them would get them open.

Easily, as it turned out. One of the men gave the commander a brisk three-fingered salute and then gripped a handle. Without a sound, one of the massive doors swung outward. Not until then did I notice the slight indentation of a tack in the marble floor where weight-bearing rollers could glide, making moving the door effortless. Apparently Politaus feared no enemy attack.