Hearts of Ishira (Hearts of Ishira Saga) (61 page)

“Why do people keep getting hurt?” she demanded, crying angrily as she hit him. The medics behind her stared at the tiny woman beating on their commander, but when they would have moved to sedate or restrain her, Hunter held up a hand behind her back to stay them.

Instead, he held her shoulders as she rained blows down on him. She had been scared out of her wits, for herself and then Jace, and she needed an outlet for the adrenaline that had built up in her system. Her little fists and meager strength wouldn’t hurt him, and he’d much rather let her spend her anger and fear on him than be drugged and not deal with it. The medics, knowing they were no longer needed, left the quarters. Only the crypto-zoologists remained, inspecting the area, each entrance, every little hole and nook and cranny, trying to figure out how the slider had entered the quarters.

When Arianna’s anger was spent, she lay on Hunter’s chest, heaving great deep sobs and shaking with the after-effects of the short but terrifying ordeal. Hunter shifted her so that he could sit back up, cradling her against him as he spoke to the crypto team.

“Report,” he ordered grimly.

Crig, the leader of that team, nodded and came closer.

“I have no idea how the slider got in, Commander,” Crig said, sounding truly puzzled. “We know they don’t like noisy areas and this one would have had to have come through the training area to get here. It never would have done that on its own.”

“When I was in the courtyard, I sensed that someone was amused by all the commotion. Somebody knew what was going on and was looking forward to the results.” Hunter’s face was hard, his body tightening.

“Sir, we’ve found something else… strange.”

Hunter got up, leaving Arianna leaning against the island, though he sensed that she was okay without him now. He walked to Jace’s doorway, saw the pile of metal utensils and trays that someone had placed all along his bedside, obviously so that Jace would trip over them and make noise. Hunter’s head filled with rage. Everyone had known that he and Arianna would be gone most of the day, and it wouldn’t have been hard to find out that Jace had left the med center to rest before his shift tonight.

So whoever had set this up had been targeting his brother. But who would do such a thing? He knew that none of his men would. They all owed their lives, in one way or another, to the medical staff and to Jace. Besides that, Jace was well-liked for his playful and engaging character. No one would wish him harm, and many would willingly give their lives for his.

“Hunter?” Arianna called his name softly. He turned to meet her eyes. She wouldn’t interrupt him unless it was important, he knew. She gazed sadly at him. “It was one of the women.”

“Who?” he demanded, stomping over to stand above her. “Amy is locked into Rian’s quarters, so it could not have been her. Why would anyone else do something like this?”

“Some girls are just… crazy,” she said wearily. “This is a classic ‘prank’ in entertainment back home. Whoever did this probably thought it would be funny to scare us. I doubt she knew that the creature was that vicious or deadly, though. I mean, I can’t think of why any of them would want to hurt any of you.”

“I can,” Crig admitted, running a hand through his hair. Hunter arched an eyebrow at him in question. Crig sank to the couch. “I will take responsibility if it is true, Commander.”

“Your loyalty to me is without question,” Hunter said quietly. “You will not be punished for the actions of another against me or mine. What do you know?”

“Well, the girl that our team ended up with,” he didn’t sound like he was happy about that now, “She was sweet and flirty at first, and seemed truly interested in the animals we have discovered and learned so much about. She was happy to join us in the labs while we worked, eager to learn everything she could. But when she saw her first slider, she became… obsessed with them. She asked all kinds of strange questions that didn’t make much sense at the time, but now I realize she was creating a plan.”

“And the girl?” Hunter growled. Crig looked at his teammates, who nodded at him.

“Tanya. But the thing is, sir, she’s been spending a lot of time with someone else.” Hunter stared at him. “Amy.”

Arianna gasped, but thankfully said nothing. Hunter thought back to the odd thoughts in the courtyard, then nodded once. It fit. The darkness lurking behind the thoughts matched what he knew of the vindictive, grasping young woman.

“Amy has been locked away,” Hunter said again, baffled. Crig shook his head.

“Tanya has been sitting on the balcony a lot recently, while we are away.”

Hunter thought about where Crig’s apartment was, relative to Rian’s, and his face grew dark with fury.

“I don’t want Tanya near me or my family again until she has learned some manners,” Hunter said harshly.

“We don’t want her near us, either,” Crig admitted, scrubbing a hand over his face. “But no one else can stand her. She and Amy are two of a kind. We’ve tried keeping her away from Amy’s influence, but she manages to escape and get to Amy’s balcony when the other girl is alone. Damn skinny kids are escape artists.”

Hunter cocked his head to the side, considering the man and his team. Finally, he sighed.

“I would ask for you to keep Tanya for awhile longer,” Hunter told the team grimly. “I know that it will be unpleasant, but I do not like to think of her running around without some form of authority keeping track of her, and we do not have a secure area to hold her until we can figure out what to do with her.”

“If it was her,” Arianna muttered. Hunter shot her a surprised look. She shrugged and got wearily to her feet. “Back on Earth, we have a judicial process. We gather evidence against the accused, then put them on trial if the evidence shows reasonable suspicion that they perpetrated the crime.”

“Are your judges Readers?” he asked pointedly. “Are the investigators?”

“No,” she admitted. “Well, they might be, but we don’t acknowledge those kinds of things back there. So… no.”

“Then all they have to go on is the evidence, while you and I and any other Reader can determine in a single moment if someone is guilty or not. Amy and Tanya must not be allowed to run free, causing trouble again. My brother nearly died today, still might, if any of the scratches from the slider become infected. Rom appeared to be seriously injured, as well. Your woman must be held accountable, and it is my understanding that in her own society, she would be, yes?” he looked at Arianna, who nodded.

“Then I will deal with it as our people would, if you give leave.” Hunter stiffened in anticipation of her response. Arianna watched him carefully for a few moments, then nodded.

“She’s all yours,” she said softly. The warriors remaining in the quarters acknowledged transfer of authority.

Knowing that she had essentially signed someone’s death warrant, Ri swallowed bile that threatened to crawl up her throat. A sob escaped her and Hunter pulled her forcefully into his arms, wrapping them around her and rocking her gently against him as she worked through the nausea. It was always hardest the first time, he knew. He held her for a minute longer, then retrieved her shawl from the floor where she’d dropped it, wrapped it lovingly around her shoulders, and guided her from the suite.

“Crig, I want you to confine Tanya to quarters until further notice. Lock her in a room, if you must, but I don’t want her out with the rest of us right now.” He toggled his com unit and called for Rian’s quarters, ordering the same thing.

“The little bitch escaped,” Rian bit out after hearing what had happened. “We can’t find her anywhere. She doesn’t particularly like Protocol, even though we’ve explained that it’s the only thing saving her life right now.”

Hunter cursed beneath his breath, then ordered Rian’s team to meet him in the med center as soon as they could all be gathered. Rian informed him that it would take a few minutes, as the men were currently engaged in duties elsewhere.

Turning to Ri, Hunter offered a smile of reassurance and held out his arm.

“Now, let us go see how my brother is doing. I am sure that he will insist on your fussing over him for a bit.”

Arianna straightened her shoulders, nodded, and on the way out, grabbed up her knitting basket, just in case. Despite his worry for his brother, Hunter grinned behind her.

“My entire body hurts,” Jace complained as soon as he saw Arianna, his lower lip sticking out petulantly, like a little boy’s instead of a grown man’s. She stifled a grin and settled on the bed beside him when Hunter lifted her up. Nothing in this damn compound was meant for someone as short as she was. First thing in the morning, she was going to march into the woodshop and make herself several sets of steps, so that she could get into and out of the men’s beds on her own, without having to jump into them or have one of the guys put her there. And she’d make one for the med center, since she seemed destined to spend a lot of time there.

“Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?” she offered, her saucy voice at odds with the concern in her touch and in her expression. She offered Jace a sweet smile and stroked the hair back from his sweaty forehead. He was pale, drawn, and as she watched, spasms leapt in various parts of his body, the muscles jumping and twitching without his control, in reaction to the venom still in his system.

But he was alive, and she was incredibly grateful for that.

She brought his hand up to her face, brushing the back of it against her cheek before planting a kiss in his palm. When she let his hand drop to her lap, there were tears in her eyes. Jace stopped complaining when he saw them, reached up weakly to wipe one away with his thumb.

“I’m going to be all right, little one,” he said huskily. “It’s okay.”

“You almost died!” she sobbed, wanting to hug him, but not sure if she could do so without hurting him. “That thing just… kept biting you! I think it hit you three times before Rom got it away from you.”

“But he did, and he’s going to be fine, too.” Jace looked helplessly at his brother. Hunter, however, had moved to Rom’s side, checking on his man. Bev, like Arianna, sat on the bed with her mate, holding his hand and watching over him. Rom’s team sat nearby, ready to help him if needed. Jace clasped Ri’s hand in his, trying to reassure her, but a particularly harsh spasm gripped his body and he cried out with the agony of it as his body bowed off the bed.

Hunter came running to help hold him down until it passed. Once it was done, he shook his head at Jace.

“You need to sleep for several days,” Hunter said gruffly, “So that this can spend itself.”

“Aye,” Jace said gustily. “I do. One thing… who put that slider in our home?”

“Tanya,” Hunter bit out, “Coerced by Amy.”

Jace cursed, wincing as another small spasm gripped him. When he could, he opened his eyes and looked at Hunter.

“Do not kill her.”

“Jace,” Hunter began. The younger man shook his head.

“She might not have known that it would kill this quickly. And she’s only been under Protocol for two weeks. It takes longer than that to show results, and you know it.” Jace grimaced and clenched his fists as a tremor moved through him. “You have to promise me to give her another chance. Everyone deserves a second chance.”

“This is her third,” Ri cried softly, clutching his hand to her breast. “She’s hurt me twice, hurt Alicia, and now you and Rom. How many more ‘second chances’ does she get before we do something about it?”

“One more,” Jace whispered, his eyes imploring her. She touched his mind and realized what was happening. While she disagreed with his decision, she also understood his motivation. “She can’t die because of me, Ri. I’m a healer. It can’t be because of me.”

“Then who?” she whispered back, kissing his knuckles.

Jace sent his brother a pleading glance, then looked at Arianna once more before closing his eyes in exhaustion. Hunter got it. Signaling to the doctor on call, Hunter nodded and the man hurried over with a syringe.

“Take care of our little warrior,” Jace said, his voice thin with pain and exhaustion.

“Of course,” Hunter said, snorting. “Rest, brother. We will be here when you wake.”

As the pain meds kicked in, Jace fell into unconsciousness, which was probably the best thing that could happen until the venom made its way out of his body.

“What did you give him?” Arianna asked, alarmed at Jace’s sudden stillness. Hunter held her shoulders and gently urged her from the bed.

“It’s a sleeping aid,” Jax told her calmly. “Now that all the tests have been run, it will take time for the poison to work out of his system. Until then, he will be in a great deal of pain, unless we keep him deeply sedated. He did not want to be given anything until he had seen you and the Commander, though.”

“Can I stay with him?” she asked quietly, her eyes locked on Jace’s ashen face. The medic smiled gently at her.

“You could, of course. But it will be several days before he will want to awaken, so there will not be much to see until that time. If you like, when he begins stirring, I can send someone to get you. I would send for Hunter, either way, both as his Commander and as his brother.”

“I’m his mate,” she muttered. The man’s eyes widened, as did Hunter’s, at the admission. “Where does that put me on the notification list?”