Chapter 14

14

It was surprising how quickly the others vanished. Kade picked up Shadow and launched himself into the air. Skye and Edge went in separate directions, sprinting away so fast Jenna's eyes only saw blurs of movement that were gone before she could blink.

"Well, that was fun. Let's never do it again," Zanyr muttered.

Jenna looked up and gave him a wry smile. "You brought this on yourself. If you'd waited a few hours, I would have told you everything. I only wanted Shadow's confirmation that I could… what did Edge call it? Read you in."

"And we planned on telling you the truth about our past. We thought it wouldn't hurt to give you more time to get to know us before we told you who we used to be," Torren said.

"I get it. We had a lot going on in a very short amount of time." She took a step forward and her mates followed suit. "And before you say anything, I know it wasn't fair of me to ask for honesty when I wasn't telling you everything."

They walked down the tree-lined road that would take them home. Dappled sunlight played across the hard-packed dirt, and a chorus of birdsong and insect noise made a kind of music in the background.

They talked the whole way back. At first, they answered each other's questions about the past and then switched to talk of the future as they neared the bridge and other beings.

Jenna still had a thousand questions, but those could wait. She didn't care about who they'd been because she'd seen who they were now. Her mates. Two males who wanted to live in peace in a place that welcomed them. They had that in common.

"Come in. There's one more thing I want to tell you about."

It felt good to lead them upstairs and show them the comm unit she'd hidden beneath the towels. "This was how I communicated with Shadow. I'll give it back to her once everything is dealt with."

Torren inspected it carefully. "That's military-grade gear. Even the princess would have trouble cracking the encryption cipher this thing uses."

"Then it's a good thing she's on our side," Jenna said.

"What about the other guys? How do you communicate with them?" Zanyr asked with a scowl. "You've never given them a name, but I am assuming they're part of the Shadow Men?"

"I think of them as the enemy. They told me they were a collection of concerned galactic citizens, but I never believed them. I'm certain they're with the Shadow Men, but it's possible they're not. Other groups have a grudge against the colony. Torex, for example."

"True," Torren agreed. "I try not to think too much about how many beings out there want this colony to fail."

"Not long after I arrived here, a package appeared at the door of my habi-pod. My name was printed on the label, along with a three-digit code I'd been given when I agreed to work for the enemy. Inside was a comm unit not much different from this one, and instructions about basic functions, where to hide it, and how often to check in. One of the first rules is that I must always be alone when I go near its hiding place."

"And where is that?" Zanyr asked.

"It's under a rock in my backyard."

"Why outside?" Torren asked.

"Because I have nightmares about getting them mixed up and sending the wrong information to the wrong side." She'd even put a spot of bright pink paint on the one from Shadow to make sure that didn't happen.

Zanyr winced. "Yeah. That is a damned good reason."

"I want to tell them I'm quitting. But I don't want to break any rules when I do. I want to give them every reason to let me walk away." She sighed. "Though I know that isn't likely. They're not going to take this well. Are they?"

"Probably not." Torren set a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she leaned into his touch. The embers of desire flickered to life again, but she did her best to ignore them for now. She had to keep her head clear for a little while longer.

"But you'll be safe with us. We'll protect you, Jenna. Torren will keep an eye on you while you're working, and one of us can go with you until we're certain there won't be any fallout. The colony is alert for trouble these days, and all new arrivals are carefully vetted. Hells, most of visitors have to remain on the platform and can't come to the surface at all." Zanyr's words sounded good, but she heard the concern laced beneath the confident delivery.

"Nothing has changed. Not really. I knew the risks when I agreed to this. I have to admit, I'm glad it's over. I can't stand lying, and I've done far too much of that since this all started." Guilt and regret made her lapse into silence. Then she realized what she was doing. Hiding her feelings never helped. It was time to try something different. "I feel guilty, though. Like I'm being selfish. If I stop this, am I letting everyone down?"

"No." Zanyr shook his head hard. "There is nothing selfish about you. Don't feel guilty for doing what you need to do to protect yourself. That makes you a lot smarter than me and Torren. When we first thought about leaving, we didn't. We stayed for the wrong reasons."

Torren took over, and she quietly marveled at how easily they managed to continue each other's thoughts. "You're leaving for the right reasons. And, yeah, I'll admit I'm biased when it comes to you, but even if you weren't our mahaya , I wouldn't blame you for stepping back. I wish we'd made a different choice back then. I have a lot of regrets, but none of them are about leaving. If that's what you want to do, listen to your heart, and do it. You've done enough for everyone else already."

"More than enough," Zanyr agreed.

It was exactly what she needed to hear. Their poignant logic and belief in her drowned out her doubts. "Then that's what I'll do. But for that to happen, I need to be alone."

"Are you asking us to go?" Torren asked.

His question made her heart ache. "Not exactly. You just can't be with me while I do this." She bit her lip. She didn't want them to leave, but she needed to do this alone. If the enemy had some way of knowing she had company… it wouldn't end well. "Why don't you go home and come back in an hour or so?"

"We're not leaving without you." Torren folded his arms across his chest and glared at her. It made him look even bigger, but that's all. She knew he'd never hurt her.

Zanyr was the one who suggested the oblivious compromise. "Why don't we go outside. It's a nice day, and I saw a fruit stand down the road. We can pick up something and come back a little later."

Jenna brightened. "Oh, that's Sanjin's stand. He grows some of the most amazing fruit. He paid to ship saplings here. Can you believe it? It must have cost the moon and stars, but they're already producing fruit."

Zanyr brightened. "Is that so? Interesting. Come on, Vex. Let's go take a look. I never thought about a fruit orchard, but it might be a viable market option."

"Oh fun. We're going to talk farming stuff." Torren turned and pointed at her. "You keep your comm close at all times and tell us if anything happens. We won't be far away."

"Of course I will. But what are the odds of something happening to me in my own house? Shoo, both of you. And if you see Sanjin, be sure to ask about the fruit he gave me earlier. It was amazing, and I have no idea what it's called."

With them out of the house, the place felt weirdly empty. Even though they'd only been there a single night, their absence was a tangible thing. She'd blame the sharhal for that. The mating fever was messing with her head.

She looked around the place, waiting for a pang of… something. She'd only just moved in here. It was the first place she'd ever actually owned. She should be sad, or nostalgic. Shouldn't she? Instead, she was glad she hadn't been here long enough to mess the place up. The paint was still perfect. The counters gleamed. It would make someone else a lovely home.

It only took a minute to retrieve the comm from its hiding place out back. She stood in the sunshine, enjoying the way the heat sank into her back even though the wind was chilly. Summer was almost over. In a matter of weeks, she'd get to experience her first snowfall.

She'd done her part for the colony. Now, it was time for her to live for herself.

With that thought in mind, she started typing. First, her three-digit code, followed by what she hoped was a concise message.

This will be my last report. I have no new intel to relay. I am no longer comfortable with our arrangement and feel the risk of discovery is increasing. I forfeit all agreed upon arrangements. I will destroy this device within twenty-four hours.

She'd never written a resignation letter before. This one felt a little flat, but it would have to do.

A touch of a button and the message was sent. How long would it take to be relayed to her mysterious handler? She had no idea, though it would likely be days. That's how long most of their communications were delayed. A few days to get there, a few days for a reply. She hoped they were a long way from here. If the distance was great enough, maybe they'd forget about her.

She went back inside, the comm unit still in her hand. She'd get rid of it tomorrow. Before they had time to send another message.

Partway up the stairs, she had a dizzy spell. Probably dehydration. She hadn't had anything but coffee today, and that was a few hours ago.

By the time she reached the top, her stomach was roiling. Damn it. Was she coming down with something?

"I should have let them bite me last night," she muttered. Nanotech would kill whatever bug she'd contracted. The timing was terrible. She was supposed to be getting ready to see their home and spend a few days getting to know her mates in and out of the bedroom.

Damn, damn, and triple damn. She didn't want to be sick.

It wasn't until her vision went gray that she began to worry, and then, she was on the floor.