Between Two Tiron (13 page)

in camouflage. Most people either looked dangerous or silly in the battle gear. Shard and Kaleb

did look dangerous, but even more appealing in it.

“Except for the one you took down, the others should be alive.” Kaleb curved his arm

around her and pulled her back against him as Shard knelt at look at her wound.

“As to the men, we don‟t know who they were. We had no idea that they were here.”

Shard gently probed the wound and then wrapped it.

“Maybe you could help us to figure that one out.” Kaleb brushed his hand over her

stomach before he released her.

“It‟s time to go back to the camp. We‟ll have our physician look at your wound, but it

should be fully healed within a day or two.” Shard swept her up, cradling her in his arms.

* * * * *

The interrogation began the moment she‟d shown them the device she‟d used to bring the

ship to her. She knew exactly why they were angry. Because she hadn‟t told them of her little

tool, they were wondering exactly what else she‟d kept from them. As if she‟d purposely set

herself up for just this type of result. At least they were conducting this interview in the privacy

of their tent.

“Why didn‟t you tell us of this device you used to bring the ship to your location?” Shard

demanded.

Lina rolled her eyes in exasperation. “First of all, that particular device is so seldom used

that I didn‟t even think about it when I was telling you about the custom modifications that I

have made to the Sendar. I don‟t carry a list of every tool I‟ve ever used or own around with

me.”

“Don‟t get flippant.” A soft warning growl rumbled in Kaleb‟s order.

“Second, I haven‟t had much time to think about the Sendar and if I had missed anything

since we returned to the planet.” She continued with the explanation, cautious of inciting them

further. Not because she was afraid, she‟d just had enough drama today. “I didn‟t have it with me

when I went after Nerisa because if I was spotted by someone on the way there or back using it

would have caused more trouble than it would solve. The ship uncloaks when that function is

activated.”

“Why did you take it with you when you went for a walk with Nerisa? Were you

expecting trouble?” Shard narrowed his eyes as he leaned closer to her.

“No, it was just habit to grab it in an unknown situation. I didn‟t even really know if I had

it. I had to search my pockets to make sure. I hardly ever leave the Sendar or my camp without

some of my gadgets. It‟s something I do almost every time I get ready to leave.” She glared at

him and raised her chin. “Do you think about putting on your belt and weapons when you get

dressed?”

Kaleb‟s head tilted and he seemed to be thinking about it. “You‟re right. I don‟t think

about it. It‟s just natural to grab them.”

“What kind of missions did you do for Central Command?” Shard smiled as he

negligently studied the thin palm-sized comp she sometimes used.

“Almost anything, as long as I didn‟t consider it a suicide mission.” Lina shrugged.

“Did you ever work on any other shifter-human mating rescues?” Kaleb folded his arms

and waited for an answer.

“Yes,” she answered simply. She wouldn‟t lie to them about it.

Both men went completely still. She didn‟t even see them draw in a breath. Suddenly, she

was very nervous. She could feel the intent in them. From the fierce frowns on their faces, an

observer could understandably believe that this was the first that they‟d heard of her dealings

with Central Command.

“You mean you did this regularly?” Kaleb asked. “You‟ve succeeded in taking the mates

of other shifters?”

She endured the two glares directed at her by the two men standing across from her.

Gods, she felt like pacing. Actually, she felt like walking right out of the Dura-tent, but knew she

wouldn‟t make it. She could understand that they were angry that she hadn‟t told them of it, but

this change in subject mystified her. Somehow, they‟d gone from her inventions to discussing

her missions with Central Command.

“They weren‟t mated. I never took a woman who had been more than found.” She

stamped her foot and glared at them as she repeated what she had told them only moments ago. It

was either stamp her foot or kick one of them. “I didn‟t break any shifter laws.”

“That‟s true, but you walked a fine edge.” Shard‟s right hand braced on his hip as he

stared down at her, anger still simmering in his dark gaze.

She glared back at him, just as angry. “No, I didn‟t live a sheltered, protected life. I was

doing a job and some of those women were terrified. Nerisa was scared. The women I took were

terrified of the men who had found them, of shifters.”

“You know that a shifter would never hurt his mate.” Kaleb‟s eyes narrowed and the

staccato delivery of the words informed her that he didn‟t believe her.

“Those women didn‟t know that. A few of them didn‟t even know that they were mates

to the men. They thought they were going to be eaten or sacrificed or something similarly vile.”

She threw up her hands and turned to begin pacing, but Shard‟s hand caught her shoulder and

turned her back to him.

“It‟s not uncommon for a woman to panic, especially if she doesn‟t know much about

shifters.” Shard nodded, but the look on his face remained stern.

“The men were idiots. In some cases, I spent most of the journey to the meeting point

reassuring them and explaining things so that when the men did find them, they wouldn‟t be

quite so scared.” Frustrated, she heaved a sigh and waited. She knew she wasn‟t going anywhere.

Kaleb‟s scowl twitched a few times.

Shard apparently decided to redirect the subject back to the original topic. “Is there

anything you haven‟t told us?” Shard raised a brow and waited.

“After that session of „what is this‟ that you conducted through my bags and the Sendar, I

doubt it,” Lina huffed, crossing her arms under her breasts, but then she qualified her answer.

“That is it at least as far as what I have with me. I have some projects at my home that are in

various stages of completion.”

“Your home is with us now,” Kaleb barked, his tone hard.

“Yes, it is.” She gave her agreement readily. She knew that any qualification or hesitation

would draw the beast within them, but that wasn‟t why she said it. She‟d mated with them. For

years, she‟d tried to ease the yearning inside her but now, it was gone. She didn‟t feel restless.

The
tiron
was content.

Shard and Kaleb both nodded, clearly pleased with her quick answer.

“We‟ll have to learn as much as we can from the equipment we found and their clothing

since the two surviving men committed suicide rather than be captured. As you seem to be

familiar with various technologies, you can help us find the rest of their party and their ship.”

Kaleb stepped forward and wrapped an arm around her.

The dampening units the men had used were archaic. It didn‟t take much time to decide

that the group was either poorly funded or the bulk of their money had gone for other things. The

same could be said of the sidearm the men had carried. Their clothing had been sturdy and made

for rough conditions, but it hadn‟t been of high quality.

“I think we should recommend the search begin at the anomaly we found on the scan.”

Technician Meral pointed to a printed version of the scan he mentioned.

“You‟d be wasting your time. It‟s not there.” Lina felt obligated to warn the man.

She raised a brow as the technician she‟d been working with pointedly ignored what she

had said. It wasn‟t because he was only suffering her presence. It was because she, due to an

order given by Shard and Kaleb, couldn‟t provide proof for her beliefs. She wanted to strangle

her two mates, but getting her hands around Technician Meral‟s throat for a few moments would

also improve her mood. His insistence on first seeing solid proof of her claims before he even

considered her ideas was driving her insane.

The group of people gathered to learn what they could about these men knew a few facts.

They had lived in a small camp. They had had no communication devices on them. Also, they

surmised from the taunts and insults thrown by the man who had hunted Lina in that ruin that the

men were from one of the hate groups that targeted shifters.

That information seemed to fit with the destruction that had been found in two sites. The

destruction had been obviously deliberate. Pottery had been smashed and walls had chunks

hacked from them.

Shard and Kaleb returned from their search for the men‟s companions and she glared at

them as they walked toward the table. A small camp had been found, but the lack of supplies and

the lack of sign that the men had been hunting for their food had led Shard and Kaleb to believe

that that had not been their primary camp.

“Do you have anything for us?” Shard asked.

“There is some disagreement between us on a few things.” Technician Meral looked

significantly at Lina who gave him a sweet smile. “We all agree that they have been here for

some time, most probably longer than we‟ve been on Nariu Minor. We also agree that there are

more than those three men on the planet.”

“What don‟t you agree about?” Kaleb looked at her, smiled and then frowned as she

glared at him.

“Most of us believe that their ship is somehow hidden on the planet.” Meral again looked

at her.

“What do you believe, Lina?” Shard stepped forward to the table and fingered a pair of

the trousers from the camp.

“Their ship isn‟t on the planet. I‟m certain about that.” She clenched her fists, trying to

accomplish anything under those restrictions was impossible. “I missed them. I wouldn‟t have

missed a ship.”

“You sound confident.” Kaleb chuckled.

Gods, they seemed unaware of how far she‟d been pushed today. Much more and she‟d

do something rash. Lina took a deep breath to keep from screaming at them. There had been one

point when she‟d been ready to walk. If she‟d been able to get near her ship, she‟d have taken off

and considered coming back later. “They showed me the area where they think the ship is and I

admit that there are manufactured materials there. I would have shown them how I know that

that place is not the ship, but it seems that I‟m not allowed on board my own ship, the Sendar,

unless either you or Kaleb is with me.”

“You know that you‟re very good with technology. It‟s just some precautions until we‟re

certain that you‟ve settled in.” Shard seemed unconcerned by the fire blazing in her golden eyes,

the fisted hands pressed to her side and the tense body posture.

“I know that I‟ve given you no reason to distrust me and that it‟s an insult.” She growled,

but closed her eyes as she grabbed for control. “That isn‟t the point. I need to get into the Sendar

and onto one of the monitors there so that I can show them how I know that the site they

mentioned isn‟t hiding the ship you are looking for.”

“If it isn‟t the ship, then what is it?” Shard raised an eyebrow, but made no move to lead

her to the Sendar.

“It‟s an old crash site,” she snapped. “The images I have show the impact crater and the

debris field much better than your scans.”

“These couldn‟t be survivors of that crash?” Kaleb looked at the blurry blob on the scan

they‟d been using.

“No, the crash happened long ago. I did closer scans to make sure that it didn‟t hide an

advanced sensing system before I entered the atmosphere and after I landed. The decay of some

the metals produces specific chemical signatures. The only thing there is vegetation and metal,

most of it buried.” Lina tapped her foot as she waited for Kaleb and Shard to decide what they

were going to do.

“Where do you think they hid their ship?” Kaleb took her arm as he began leading her to

the Sendar shuttle.

“It‟s probably on one of the moons or one of the low-gravity, uninhabitable planets in this

solar system. There it would be hidden from sight and in an area that isn‟t likely to be scanned

with much intensity or frequency.”

After flicking on a monitor, she showed them the scans that showed the crash site and the

debris field.

“Why would you think it‟s on one of the moons?” Meral asked.

“I used that strategy before I modified the Sendar‟s shields and added the stealth

functions when I had to stay on a planet for an extended period. An automated return program is

a fairly cheap modification and simple enough to install on your own. Sometimes, it‟s easier to

hide out on the planet, especially if your enemy has better technology than you do. The program

will enable the ship at a specific time or at a signal.” She shut down the monitor.

“Why do you say enemy?” Kaleb stepped close to the chair and cupped the back of her

head, his fingers lightly massaging her scalp.

She bit back a moan. His fingers felt so good, soothing away the tension. “That is one of

the few things Technician Meral and I easily agreed on. I told you that the man called me a

„fucking animal‟. That is what they consider us. I don‟t know what they‟re doing here. You‟d

know if this planet held some sort of significance more than I would. It‟s not some innocent

pleasure group touring the universe.”

“You‟re sure of that?” Shard asked as he stood just opposite her.