Authors: Bernadette Gardner
Icarus Rising (13 page)
lovers' aerie last night while they slept, she had decided to
return immediately to the research station and set the wheels
in motion to bring the breeding project back on track.
Besides, unless she used Dr. Abbott's own blood, Dr. Danson
would have easily figured out her ruse.
Everything she told the humans now would have to seem
like the truth, and she could afford no margin of error in her
plan.
Giving a dramatic sigh, she rubbed her eyes and slumped
her shoulders. "My liege, I will join the search program again,
but I must rest. I will go to my aerie just until midday. Then I
promise—"
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Namara cut her off. "No Arilani. You need more than half a
morning's rest. I forbid you to continue the search today.
You've given us a new place to start, and I'm sure with
everyone searching in the area you indicated we will be able
to locate Caleb and Zara before nightfall. Go home and sleep.
You have earned it."
With a wan smile of acceptance, Ari squeezed Namara's
shoulder and then bowed to Jidar. "Please contact me the
moment they are found. I want to help in any way I can."
"We will," Namara assured her.
Arilani sidled past her and Jidar, being sure to move slowly
so no one would question the depth of her fatigue. Dr.
Danson reached for her hand as she past him, but she twisted
casually out of his grasp and kept moving. Nothing would stop
her now.
While the rest of her tribe searched the distant islands to
the northwest, Ari would fly in the opposite direction, back to
the island in the southeast quadrant of the search grid where
she'd observed the lovers' tryst. She still had the tranquilizer
dose in her possession and she knew exactly how to use it to
get what she deserved.
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"Maybe the wind blew them over the edge," Caleb offered
with a shrug of both his shoulders and his wings.
Now, more than two days after his joining, he seemed to
have finally gained control over the volatile link with his
symbion. Though his emotions still ran close to the surface,
Zara could see the man she'd grown to love beginning to
resurface.
Once they found her shorts, they could fly to the royal
aerie and begin to work on a treatment plan that would
maximize the time Caleb had left before the symptoms of his
Rennard's Syndrome began to manifest.
She pushed that unpleasant thought out of her mind and
concentrated on tugging her T-shirt down lower over her
thighs. "Well, maybe you should go look for them. I'd really
like not to parade around in front of Jidar bare-assed."
Caleb made a show of staring at her rear. "I'm sure he
won't mind the view. I certainly don't."
She swatted his shoulder and continued searching every
nook of the aerie for her missing clothing. Nakedness was the
norm among Icarians. None of them likely would think twice if
she showed up wearing nothing. Nevertheless, she was
certain she could not look Jidar or Namara in the eye if she
had to appear before the royal couple in the nude. "Do you
really want Jidar looking at my ... assets? He may be married
to Namara, but I know on occasion Icarian couples will invite
third parties into their beds."
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"All right, all right. I'll find your shorts." He huffed
dramatically. "How did you know that anyway? There's only
one obscure entry on it in my research."
She eyed him playfully, a long, pointed observation that
ended with her gaze trained on his own shorts. "I read every
word of your research, Dr. Faulkner."
He grinned. "I'm glad
someone
did. Now maybe later we
can talk more about these threesomes."
"No." She held up a hand and gestured toward the edge of
the island. "We can't. Now, go. I'll keep looking in here, but if
you don't find them, I'm stealing yours for the trip."
He winked at her. "Good luck getting my pants off, Dr.
Abbott."
She scoffed at him. "Are you serious? I could have your
pants off just like
that
." She snapped her fingers for
emphasis.
"I'd like to see you try."
She crossed the room and gave him a small shove toward
the entranceway of the aerie. "I bet you would. Now hurry up.
I want to be on solid ground and a lot closer to sea level by
sundown."
"Nag, nag, nag..." He flew off before she could swipe at
him again, leaving her laughing and at least momentarily
light-hearted.
Once he'd gone she sighed and continued searching the
aerie. She couldn't remember where she'd been standing
when she'd shed her clothes the night before, or rather, when
Caleb had stripped her.
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Her face heated at the memory of it, and the muscles in
her belly tightened. She needed to get fully dressed, if only to
put a damper on her own heightened arousal. Every time she
looked at Caleb, his bare chest dusted with dark hair, his
rock-hard biceps and muscular thighs glistening with sweat,
she grew wet with desire.
She'd given herself freely to him and surrendered to the
urgent, primal needs of the symbion, and now she craved
that connection. She'd have been perfectly content to spend
the rest of her life here, isolated from everything she'd ever
known, naked and at Caleb's sexual beck and call forever.
This giddy stage couldn't last, though. The psychologist in
her knew there were too many obstacles to face once they
returned. Danson's wrath would be formidable. This project
was his life's work, and to see the culmination of his vision
delayed, possibly indefinitely, would no doubt enrage him.
Jidar and Namara would be disappointed. The future of
their race depended on bringing humans into symbion
relationships and augmenting the Icarian population with
adults dedicated to breeding. This setback could cost them
everything.
Beyond all that, Caleb was dying. Though his illness hadn't
manifested yet, when it did, there was no telling what it
would do to the symbion. The chance that the alien could
compensate for the enzyme blockage and effectively cure it
was so remote, she didn't dare set her hopes on it.
Ultimately, she would lose him all over again, but at least
it wouldn't be today.
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The flapping of wings drew her attention toward the
archway leading outside, and she hurried across the room to
meet Caleb, hoping he'd found her missing pants. "It's about
time," she said as the feathery shadow of folding wings
interrupted the ray of sunlight streaming through the arch.
Disappointment clutched at her when Arilani's feminine
form appeared in the doorway instead of Caleb's. The female
Icarian, dark-haired and almond-eyed, wore nothing except a
leather carrying pouch, its strap slung between her perfect
breasts. Her beauty made Zara feel terribly self-conscious,
another reason why she was loathe to appear at the royal
aerie naked.
"Dr. Abbott, thank my liege I've finally found you. Are you
all right?"
"I'm fine. We're both fine."
"Both?" Arilani raised a brow. "Is Dr. Faulkner here too?"
"He's nearby. He should be back soon."
Arilani's clinical stare raked down Zara's body, lingering on
the portions of her anatomy not covered by her flimsy shirt.
Uncomfortable under the winged woman's stare, Zara tugged
at the hem of her shirt and squeezed her knees together.
"You wouldn't happen to have a spare pair of pants in your
pack, would you?"
Arilani ignored Zara's half-serious request and stepped
closer. Tall and slender, she towered over Zara who, for the
first time since Caleb had spirited her away, felt short and
unattractive next to the stunning, naked brunette.
"Dr. Abbott, I'm so sorry this occurred. I'll be happy to fly
you back to the research station myself, right now."
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"I'd rather wait for Caleb. He can take me. We've decided
the best course of action will be to go to the royal aerie. Caleb
is concerned that—well, his symbion is afraid of Dr. Danson."
Arilani blinked. She tilted her head and her lovely features
morphed into a curious expression. "The symbion is in charge
then?"
"Well, it was. He seems to be fine now, but—"
Arilani lowered her voice. "It won't last. I'm sorry to tell
you this, but Dr. Danson has reviewed the blood chemistry
analysis he did on both Dr. Faulkner and the symbion and he
found a minute discrepancy he missed before. He's
devastated by the error, as are we all."
"I know about the problem."
"Do you?"
"I know there's an additional factor Dr. Danson hadn't
taken into consideration because he didn't know about it."
"Then you know unless the symbion is removed
immediately Dr. Faulkner will die."
Zara stiffened. No! No. She couldn't deal with any more of
this. "Please, Ari, oh God. What else could go wrong? We've
been trying to convince the symbion that it's safe to go back
to the station because no one will remove it."
"I'm sorry, Dr. Abbott. It's the only way to save Caleb's
life. He could suffer a massive cardiovascular episode at any
given moment. I believe Dr. Danson used the term 'stroke'."
Zara wobbled, and Arilani reached out to steady her. "This
can't be."
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"I'm afraid it is. We must get him back to the station, but
we cannot trust him to carry you. He could suffer this episode
during the flight and drop you. It's not safe."
Zara crossed her arms over her chest and shivered. This
couldn't be happening. Her blissful fantasy was crumbling
before her eyes.
Arilani offered her hand to Zara. "Come with me. I'll take
you back safely and return with Jidar. He will be able to carry
Dr. Faulkner back to the station."
"Oh, Arilani, can't we wait for Caleb to return? He should
be back any minute."
"He may have already had this 'stroke'. What if he doesn't
return? We need to bring others who can help him."
Zara's eyes stung. Caleb had been gone for a while. What
if he was lying injured at the base of an island and dying
alone with no one by his side? What if he was already dead?
She swiped at her tears and nodded. "Fine. I'll go with you,
but we have to look for him before we go back to the station.
I can't abandon him."
"Of course." Arilani grabbed Zara's hand and pulled her
toward the archway. "Let's hurry. The sooner I can tell the
others where Dr. Faulkner is, the sooner we can bring him
back to safety."
Zara hurried to keep up with the Icarian healer's long
strides toward the edge of the rock platform. She hadn't
given much thought to how she would feel about being
whisked off into open air again and now her fear hit her full
force.
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She'd have to close her eyes for this and just hang on until
Arilani set her down on terra firma. She prayed Caleb would
understand that she was doing this for him, for both of them,
so they could make the most of whatever time they had left.
"Arilani, should I—" A sharp pain shot through Zara's body,
radiating outward from a point just below her jaw where
Arilani had jammed the point of a medical syringe.
Electric ice burned its way down Zara's neck, racing
through her limbs at the speed of blood, pushing farther with
each frantic heartbeat. She went down on her knees, scraping
them raw on the rough stone. Her muscles went limp. No
longer able to support her bones, they seemed like flaccid
ropes, tying her body together but offering no structure to
help her move. She fell like a rag doll into Arilani's arms, dead
weight.
Each breath became a monumental effort for her, so she
was unable to scream or even gasp when her assailant lifted
her off the ground, carried her over the churning water so far
below, and dropped her.
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Caleb would have returned sooner. He should have, but
when his search for Zara's missing shorts turned up nothing,
he decided to be creative.
There were hundreds of abandoned aeries nearby. Some of
the larger islands had several multi-room dwellings that had
once belonged to large, extended families of Icarians. Many
had left belongings behind. Though they didn't wear clothing,
he hoped to find a decorative blanket or tapestry woven of
