thefiremargins (44 page)

Carrie reached out and took his hand. "I understand," she said softly, feeling the hurt he was trying to control. "You're someone special, Garras, always will be to me. When we needed help back on Keiss and the
Khalossa,
you were there for us. You didn't need to be, but you were, even to asking your friend to guard us from harm. I'm honored to count you my friend." She gave his hand a gentle, comforting squeeze. "If I can help, even if it's only to listen to your troubles, please come to me. You and Vanna mean a lot to both of us."
Garras returned the gesture before gently freeing his hand. "I know, and thank you. If I seem wary of Dzaka, now you know why."

*áá*áá*

Later that day, Kusac headed over to see his father, leaving Carrie organizing their new home with the dubious help of Kitra and Dzaka. On the way, he stopped to talk to the building foreman. Arrangements were quickly made to start excavating the tunnel the following day. Secrecy was assured by the foreman suggesting he only take clansfolk with him as they were surveying the site for the small outer estate settlement, weren't they?
Kusac was still grinning when he parked the hopper round the rear of the house. His mother was in her study upstairs. Of his father there was no sign.
"He's over at the Guild," Rhyasha said, hand hovering over the internal comm button. "Do you want c'shar or coffee?"
"Coffee, please," he said, making himself comfortable in the seat beside her. "What's he doing there?" he asked after she'd spoken to Choa.
"Another twenty telepaths have arrived, mostly Terran women this time, and two new Leska pairs. He's gone out to meet the newcomers, and bring the new Leskas here."
"Anyone we know, or are they fresh from Earth?"
"He didn't say. Now your news. I hear Dzaka's back. Did he bring news of Kaid?"

* * *

"She's pregnant again, you say?"
"Yes," said Raiban, helping herself to another mug of c'shar. "We'll have to postpone any thought of a rescue mission to Jalna until after the cub's born, I'm afraid."
"Do we have to send them? Wouldn't some other operatives serve just as well?" asked Chuz.
Raiban gave a snort of disgust. "You're the one who keeps complaining about the cost of maintaining a high level of security at the combined Aldatan and Valsgarth estates,
and
the one who wants to see some return for that outlay!"
"Of course I do! I've got the Alliance Treasury breathing down my neck; I've got to justify the outlay to them, Raiban."
"We both knew this would be a long-term project. It'll be several years before we know what the cubs of these Leskas will be capable of. At least we now have the proof that the Sholan partner is capable of fighting without losing any of his or her Talent's sensitivity. And that, Chuz, is why we need to send them to Jalna. We need a telepath on that planet and this mission. I don't want to trust to the Terrans alone."
"Have you any new information regarding the group on Jalna?"
"Not since I sent you the latest report. We're getting a great deal of information on the planet's social structure and its winter ecology which is being passed over to the appropriate department, but with the spring thaw delayed, their progress across the plains to the mountains is slow. Now they've left the caravan and struck out on their own, they've not only the weather to contend with but also local bandits and wild carnivores."
"So we're looking at how long a delay until Kusac and Carrie are ready to leave?"
"I wouldn't have put a second team on Jalna yet anyway, but at a reasonable guess I'd say, including training time for the mission, somewhere in the region of nine months to a year."
"A year! You'll have to rethink those figures, Raiban. A delay of that long just isn't acceptable! Those four Sholans are enslaved on that world! We can't abandon them for that long!"
"Commander," said Raiban, taking another drink and replacing her mug carefully on the table that separated them. "I want our people back as quickly as possible, but we cannot send in anyone but this pair. Their telepathic skills will enable them to locate the four and rescue them. We can't send down normal Sholan telepaths! Apart from the fact that we haven't yet got a reliable way of making even one Sholan look like a U'churian, they'd be so affected by any pain around them, and so vulnerable to capture, that they'd quite frankly be a damned liability! Only these mixed pairs combine the necessary telepathic abilities with the fighting skills. Like Carrie Aldatan, Vanna Kyjishi is pregnant, and although she'll be ready to return to duty before the Aldatans, she's a medic— completely untrained in combat— that rules her out, and as for Zhyaf—" She shook her head, sighing.
"All right, all right," said Chuz testily. "Don't go on about it! But nine months to a year, Raiban!"
"Kusac can begin training now, but his Leska can't," said Raiban. "She's some seven weeks into her pregnancy, so it will be another seventeen before her cub is born, and ..."
"How do you know the pregnancy will be as long as a Sholan one?" interrupted Chuz.
"Information from the Valsgarth Telepath Guild medical center," said Raiban.
"If you can get information out of Esken's lot, why haven't you put someone in at the Aldatan estate?"
Raiban looked pityingly at him. "Do I have to tell you why, Commander? We may pay the bills, but every person on that estate has been hand-picked by Kaid Tallinu and has sworn loyalty not only to the Aldatan Clan, but to Kusac personally! They wouldn't tell us what time Kusac got up in the morning, even if their lives depended on it! I wish I could achieve security of that standard, I'll tell you. We may not be able to get any information from them, but we know no one else can either and that in itself is worthwhile. Now, may I continue?"
Chuz merely flicked an ear this time.
"She has another seventeen weeks to go before the cub is born, that means another six weeks till she's fit enough to start training, then approximately twelve weeks training. That's where your time has gone, providing we can persuade her to waive her mandatory maternity leave of six months."
"Has it occurred to you that she might fall pregnant again during this training, or even during this mission?"
"That has been a concern," Raiban admitted. "But it looks like the Terran scientists working with our people have come up with a contraceptive that will work on our Mixed Leskas. It's not been given a proper trial yet, but we've still got the best part of a year ahead of us. Tests will start shortly as supplies of the drug arrived today with the latest group of Terran Telepaths. They're mainly female and they're willing to take the drug if they should form a Leska Link with one of our people."
"Naika's still paranoid about this new species, Raiban. I must admit to having worries myself."
"What do you suggest, Commander? That we kill all mixed Leska pairs? That we sterilize them so there can be no cubs? We don't know what effect that would have on them since the Leska Link seems to be a biological imperative. All we can do is what we
are
doing, wait and watch. Their skills are useful to us in a way our normal telepaths aren't, namely the undercover work and the ability to fight. Anyway, they've already been useful: that ni'uzu epidemic they started only enhanced our existing telepaths' abilities, it didn't alter them genetically. The bulk of them are still pure Sholan, and the percentage of these anomalous links is small. I don't feel we need to worry."
"What do we do if Naika is proved right?"
"If the worst comes to the worst, a possible colony world has already been located where we can send them. Without space-going capabilities, they wouldn't present a threat to us for many generations." She took her mug up again. "I'm usually the one accused of being paranoid, but I honestly believe we have nothing to fear from them. If we treat them with suspicion, we're more likely to foster a
them and us
attitude that would lead to trouble."
Chuz grunted. "Well, time will tell, as you say. Even if we have to wait for the female to have her cub, we can at least start Kusac's training. Maybe with their Link she won't need to train for as long," he said hopefully.
"Commander, I have no intentions of putting inadequately trained operatives into the field, especially when it's these two! I don't like losing any of my people. She will be as well trained in her own right as her Leska."

* * *

Vanna returned home to the Valsgarth estate later that afternoon accompanied by Brynne. She'd sent ahead to Kusac, getting permission for her Leska to stay with Jack. After dropping him off at the medical center, she returned to her own home to tell Garras.
Konis arrived toward evening, as it was getting dark. With him were the two new Leska pairs. Kusac had Dzaka escort them over to Ghyan at the Shrine. They'd stay there until Ghyan had integrated them into the small community, then they'd move into homes of their own.
"We've got enough couples here to warrant getting our own teachers now," said Kusac, fetching his father a mug of c'shar.
"Thank you," said Konis, gratefully taking the mug from him. "I'll attend to that through AlRel. Just let me know if you've anyone in mind. It's getting cold now. Do you realize that the winter festival's not that far off?"
Kusac did a quick mental calculation as he sat down with his own drink. "You're right," he said. "Carrie'll enjoy that."
"Where is she, by the way? Resting?"
"No, she's in the kitchen with Kitra. They've been baking pastries. Mother gave her her own recipes." He gave a small laugh. "I hope they're edible! The first lot she made weren't."
"Of course they're edible," said Carrie, coming into the den bearing a plate of the newly cooked pastries. She held them out to Konis. "Try one."
Casting a pained look at his son, he took one from her and cautiously nibbled the edge of it. He looked over at Kusac, shaking his head with a grin. "That was unfair, Kusac! They're fine, Carrie."
"Told you so," she said, joining Kusac on the settee and holding the plate out to him. "Your turn."
"Is Kitra still in the kitchen?" asked Konis.
"Kitra? No, she went with Dzaka to the Shrine. He said he'd take her back home afterward."
"Was that wise?" asked Konis, looking over at Kusac. "Are you sure of him?"
"I trust him with Carrie," said Kusac. "He'll see Kitra home safely."
"That's not what I meant," said Konis.
"She's safe with him, Konis," interrupted Carrie. "I wouldn't have let her go otherwise. Stopping her would only have made him more interesting. Better to allow her to be in his company, then you know where she is."
"Am I missing something here?" asked Kusac, looking from one to the other of them. "What's all this sudden concern over Kitra?"
"I told you earlier, Kusac," said Carrie. "You didn't want to believe me, though. She's growing up. Look at her tomorrow, you'll see her markings are toning down to their adult coloring."
Konis nodded. "She's right. We're trying to keep a careful watch on her now to see which males she favors. We want her first lover to be someone who'll ensure it's a pleasant experience for her."
"When? I mean ..."
"Your mother says within the next couple of weeks. I'm beginning to feel old, Kusac," sighed his father. "There's both you and Taizia soon to be parents, and now Kitra's leaving her childhood behind. It seems like yesterday you were all cubs. At least you and your sister are both happily settled." He drank down his c'shar and got to his feet.
"I'd better get home. It's been a long day. I dislike my meetings with Esken. I swear all we need for snow is him standing out in the rain!"
After Kusac had seen his father off, Carrie turned to him.
"What will you do if Kitra chooses Dzaka?"
"She won't!" Then a moment later, "Why do you ask?"
"Because she's been following him about all day. That's why I took them with me to the kitchen. He's desperately trying to avoid being alone with her, and she's just as anxious to be with him. I don't think she's fully realized what the attraction is yet. Your females certainly mature quite a bit younger than we do."
"Ah, well, I wouldn't know about that," he said. "Kitra with Dzaka? Gods! I don't know what I'd do, Carrie. What should I do?" he asked, running a hand across his head in bewilderment.
"Nothing, except accept it as graciously as you can, that's why I'm mentioning it to you now. Your reaction will be everyone else's benchmark for how they treat Dzaka. If you trust him with your young sister ..."
"I don't know if I do!"
"He was bonded before. His mate and son were on Szurtha."
Kusac shook his head, reaching out for her. "Thank the Gods we have to stay together," he said, holding her close. "I don't know how he coped. Even if we hadn't been Leskas and you'd died on one of those two worlds, I couldn't have lived without you."
"Nor I you," she said, sharing his distress at the thought. She let the matter of Kitra and Dzaka drop there. It was enough that she'd mentioned it to him.

CHAPTER 13

Locked in sleep, Carrie's mind was held captive by the past till the scene before her had finished unfolding.
Half-formed images haunted Rezac, making it difficult to know what was real and what was not. Voices faded one minute and were amplified the next as he moved restlessly in his bed. The sheets were pulling at his fur, pushing it against the lie, making each follicle burn with discomfort. Every movement hurt his joints yet he had to try and move away from the pressure of the sheet.
He dreamed he was made of fire, a fire that burned from deep within him. He opened his eyes only to see beams of flame streaming from them. Devastation followed his gaze, burning and searing everything around. Fear touched him then, his own fear, and instinctively he fought against it, lashing out at it with taloned hands until he was held forcibly down.
"Get that wound dressed immediately," Dr. Nyaam ordered as the nurse staggered back holding his slashed and bleeding forearm. Nyaam continued to fasten Rezac's limbs to the bed frame as Goran grabbed for the arm that he'd managed to pull free. Maro held on grimly to the other limb until Nyaam had finished, then began picking up the scattered ice packs and replacing them around Rezac's body.
"This'll only make him struggle more," said Goran dispassionately.
"I hardly think you're qualified enough to give a medical opinion," said Nyaam, moving round beside the security chief. "He's as much a danger to himself as to us in this state."
"I know my people, Nyaam, which is more than you do. You sent for me because you couldn't control him. I've told you already, put the female in his bed."
"Don't talk rubbish," the doctor snapped. "Look at what he did to my nurse! One blow from him and his Leska would be dead, then we'd lose them both."
"He'd quiet down," said Goran. "He'd know she was there and he'd stop fighting. They're linked mentally, right? So why're you treating them separately? What have you got to lose, Nyaam? At this rate they'll both die. You can't get their temperatures down and he's exhausting himself by fighting your restraints."
"If he weren't so violent I might consider it, but look at him," said Nyaam.
Rezac, already pulling frantically at the restraining bands round his limbs, had lifted his head as high as he could and was leaning over, trying to snap at those holding his wrists.
"We haven't got a bed wide enough for both of them, even if I was prepared to countenance the risk," Nyaam added.
"I told you it would make him worse," said Goran, stepping back to allow Maro in to replace the ice packs. "He's a warrior, Nyaam. Restrain him and he'll fight all the harder against it. That's going to give him convulsions faster than a high temperature."
"Goran's right," said Vartra abruptly. "Try it. We've nothing to lose. If we can't get their temperatures down within the next hour, Rezac is certainly going to go into convulsions."
"I'm telling you, he'll kill her," said Nyaam, looking over to where Dr. Kimin was beginning to unfasten Zashou's bonds. The young female was lying semi-comatose and panting, having exhausted herself with her own struggles.
"Fix the two beds together," said Dr. Kimin. "Use the restraint straps, anything. We know nothing about these new Leska pairs. We've all seen how Zashou's condition has paralleled Rezac's, something that doesn't happen with normal Leskas. For all we know we could be making the situation worse by keeping them apart."
Maro pushed Zashou's bed over beside Rezac's while the other nurse took the restraints from Dr Kimin and dived under the beds to lash the legs together.
"I'm advising you to keep the restraints on Rezac for the moment," said Nyaam. "I think you're taking a foolish risk and I refuse to help you. However, I've no doubt you're going to ignore my opinion."
Goran began moving the ice packs from what was now the middle of one large bed, making room for Zashou to be placed beside Rezac. The sheet, dried out by his body heat, was taken off him and as he flinched away from contact with the others, he lurched briefly against Zashou. He froze, then as Zashou was moved closer so the contact was maintained, his body went into spasm.
"What did I tell you?" demanded Nyaam, grabbing his hypo off the treatment trolley behind them. "Just touching her has made him worse! Give her an anticonvulsant before she starts too! Hold him still for the Gods' sake," he said, trying to get a grip on Rezac.
Goran took hold of Rezac's head. "Hold his arm," he ordered Maro.
Nyaam stuck the needle in Rezac's arm while the two males held him as still as possible.
Almost as they watched, the spasms that wracked his body began to diminish until suddenly, Rezac relaxed and lay there limp and panting, his tongue partially protruding from his mouth.
"Give him some water, Layul," said Dr. Kimin, leaning forward to unfasten the restraints.
Nyaam frowned. "What do you think you're doing?" he demanded, reaching out to stop her. "You should be moving the female away! That's what started the convulsions!"
"For the Gods sake, Nyaam, look at his wrists!" she said, batting his hand aside with one of hers. "The leather has already lacerated him, he's bleeding. Goran's right, Rezac can't help but fight against your restraints. That's what made him convulse, not Zashou! Do something useful, pass me the dressings," she added. "We're working blind with these two, we've no idea what will help them since they're not responding to our treatment like any of the other telepaths. They're suffering identical symptoms, as if they were one person, not two." She took the dressings that Goran held out.
"I'd put money on it that they're amplifying each other's fever dreams. If they're touching, it might just give them the reassurances they need to cope with the hallucinations," she said, wiping the blood from the cuts with an antiseptic pad.
Vartra began unfastening Rezac's other arm.
"On your head be it, then," snapped Nyaam, standing back.
Kimin looked up from bandaging Rezac's wrist. "This isn't a competition, Nyaam," she said quietly. "If you want me to take sole responsibility, then I will. I have a gut-feeling that Goran is right and this will work."
Maro poured a small amount of water onto Rezac's tongue and when he swallowed reflexively, gave him a little more. When his panting began to decrease, Goran released him.
Rezac moved his head slightly, his face creasing in pain. He opened and closed his hands, automatically checking to see if they were free.
"We telepaths learn to trust gut-feelings and instincts, Dr. Nyaam," said Maro quietly as he replaced the water container, then moved round to Vartra's side and began dressing Rezac's other wrist.
Nyaam grunted disbelief. "We've got the damper on, Maro. Neither you nor Dr. Kimin can be picking anything up from him."
"We're inside its influence, Doctor," said Kimin, releasing Rezac's ankles. "Our thoughts don't escape the field, that's all."
It was Zashou who moved first, turning on her side to lie close against Rezac. The anticonvulsant had sedated him and he continued to lie still save for a slight movement of his head and the blinking of his eyes.
He fought against the lassitude, trying to make sense of what was around him. His eyes refused to focus, everything was a blur that made his stomach tighten with nausea. The touch of her body against his was somehow helping the fire in his body die down. When a damp sheet was laid over them, it no longer made him burn, and the coolness that surrounded him, except for where they touched, was welcome.
He was tired, and his eyes began to close. His arm was too heavy to move more than a few centimeters. His hand touched her, reflexively closing on her arm. Now he could sense her mind, feel his heartbeat slowing till it matched hers. All he wanted now was to join her in sleep.
Carrie woke to find herself swathed in a blanket with Kusac holding her close. Jack was sitting beside them, a concerned look on his face. She was drenched in sweat and still shuddering convulsively, though that was beginning to pass now. Gradually she grew still, and as she did, she began to push against the blanket.
"I'm fine now," she said, her voice hoarse. She swallowed, realizing how thirsty she was. "A drink," she said. "I need a drink."
Jack fetched one while Kusac allowed her to push the blanket open so the cooler air of the room could get at her body. He insisted she keep it round her shoulders though.
"What happened?" she asked, having drunk her fill. "Am I all right?"
Jack leaned forward, feeling her forehead. "You're fine now," he said. "You were feverish, that's all, but it's broken now. Probably caught a chill."
She pushed her hair back with a shaky hand. "I dreamed. It wasn't me who had the fever, it was Rezac. The new Leskas all took the fever and they didn't know how to treat it then."
"Carrie, you had us worried," said Kusac, touching her face to check her temperature for himself. "You really did get burning hot, that's why I sent for Jack."
"I tell you it wasn't me," she insisted. "Maybe he and I were linked in too closely in the dream, but it wasn't my fever."
"Tell us what happened," said Jack soothingly.
She put her hands up to her face, scrubbing at it before pushing her hair back again as she tried to recall the dream.
"He had a fever and they tied him to the bed to stop him struggling. It made him worse." She stopped, trying to catch the images that were beginning to slip from her mind like smoke rising from the temple burners.
"There was a warrior— Goran. He said Rezac and Zashou should be together but one doctor didn't want that. They did it anyway, then packed ice round them."
"What then?" asked Kusac gently.
"Their link was like ours, too close, but they were the first." She stopped again, face creasing in concentration. There was someone there, she had to remember who it was. "I remember! It was Vartra! He said,
Try it. We've nothing to lose.
They didn't know much about Leskas then, Kusac. Why?"
"I don't know, cub," he said. "It's over now, that's the main thing."
"Kusac's right, Carrie," said Jack, standing up. "Get back into bed now. You should sleep the night through peacefully. Call me again if you need me."
Kusac stood up, still holding Carrie in his arms. Jack pulled the cover back and Kusac laid her down.
The bed felt fresh and cool after the heat of the blanket. Gratefully she lay down and curled up as Kusac put the cover over her.
"I'll see myself out," said Jack. "Goodnight."
"Thank you for coming over, Jack," said Kusac. "Goodnight."
She was almost asleep when he climbed in beside her, dimming the light before wrapping his body round hers, his arm lying across her waist.
"How do you feel now?" he asked quietly.
"Sleepy," she said. "It wasn't a scary dream, Kusac. I was there, watching them, then inside Rezac's mind. Vartra was there. They didn't know about the new Leskas, Kusac. There were new Leskas then, ones with a link as close as ours."
"I hear you. We can record it in the morning. I won't forget what you've told me," he said, gently nuzzling the back of her neck. "Go to sleep now, cub."
"Mmm."