Chapter Twelve

Evalee

I could sense Lanimer’s mind was racing, and he was longing for something he couldn’t have. I rested my hand on his shoulder, and he turned to me. Putting my arms around him, I pressed my body to his. “We’ll figure this out,” I whispered.

His hands tangled in my hair, and he took my lips in a deep kiss, finding comfort in my equally passionate response. While not a telepath, I could send my love and soothing empathy to his mind, reminding him I was with him in all things. Tenderness and empathy flared into sexual desire, and we found ourselves fucking hard and fast on our bed with little foreplay.

Our mutual orgasm burned off the frustrations of the day and renewed our connection and faith in each other.

Afterward, we showered and shared a meal from the food processor. “We need to find evidence that will help the enforcers figure out who is really behind the sabotage at the Val’kara mine.”

“We’re medics, not detectives.”

“Medicine often involves detective work. I think we should go to the mine and take a look.”

“How are we going to get in there?”

“They won’t see us.”

“You can do that?”

“I can, but we’ll dress in black, just in case.” He gave me his classic sexy smirk that went straight to my core. Lanimer gave me a quick kiss because, of course, he knew. Save that thought for later, my love.

Only one sentry guarded the entrance to the mine, so Lanimer and I easily slipped past him and into the mine. Auxiliary power lit the first few hundred feet of the mining tunnel. Expecting the darkness beyond, we came prepared with headlamps.

Fallen rock cluttered the path to the cave-in area, and we picked our way through. As we got closer, we could feel the psychic imprint of the miners’ trauma. A loud bang preceded the cave-in as Jamal and some Trakellisans were inspecting the support beams.

Jamal was the first to go down under the rock falling. Acting quickly, the Trakellisans picked up Jamal and ran for their lives. They received minor to serious injuries, but their foreman nearly lost his life. It left us feeling as if we had been there.

Lanimer sensed impressions of ominous metallic cylinders that had been hidden deep within the mine, primed to explode at any moment. Military-grade detonators had triggered the ”accidents,” systematically targeting Trakellisan crews. Clearly, a sinister plot was afoot, lurking beneath the surface of the current unrest.

Jamal’s crew had been lucky; no one died. Others hadn’t been so lucky, and I sensed their despair as they succumbed in great pain. I can’t stop the tears that filled my eyes and ran down my cheeks. Lanimer took me in his arms and held me as I wept for those lost to the evil cause.

Lanimer

Before going to the clinic the next day, Evalee and I made a detour down to Medrin to speak to Magistrate Spencer Brooks and let him know what we discovered. We also wanted to learn how he planned to handle this obvious bigotry against the Trakellisans.

“What proof do you have?” he demanded when I told him what we knew.

I wasn’t ready to tell him I was a telepath, although he was probably aware that most Trakellisans were empaths. I sensed that he was using a form of meditation to shield his thoughts and schooled his features into a passive expression. That made me even more suspicious that he knew far more than he would admit. That still left the question of why, after thirty years, there would be a rise in protests and ill will toward the gentle Trakellisan’s.

Maybe he already knew I was a telepath. That’s why he was using a meditative technique to hide his thoughts. I did try to probe him to confirm what might still be mere suspicion.

“I am sorry, but we need more than hunches to open an investigation. Let the mine safety people finish their investigation. If they find evidence of what you’ve told me, our detectives will investigate,” he assured me, crossing his arms over his chest. Even a Normal would know he was dismissing us.

I drew a calming breath and said, “Thank you for your time. We will let you know if we have evidence to present.”

Evalee slipped her hand in mine. We left the Magistrate’s office disappointed and frustrated that Magistrate Brooks had just brushed off our concerns. We flew to Val’kara mostly in silence, arriving at the clinic an hour late. Our android receptionist rescheduled the first few appointments so we would not run behind schedule for the rest of the day.

As we went about our daily routine, it became clear to me that Evalee’s presence was part of the reason that the Trakellisans accepted my treatment. I had nothing but respect for Evalee and her skillful rapport with her patients. Though we heard stirrings of concern about the daily xenophobe demonstrations, only a few were aware of the mine collapse the day before. The Zevian info stream did not mention it where it should have normally been. It seemed logical to conclude that someone was suppressing the information.

Evalee and I decided that if law enforcement would not even look into the matter, we would.

Under cover of darkness, we ventured back into the mines to the cave-in. We searched meticulously, sifting through the ruins. Evalee’s psychometric abilities led her to dig where a support beam had collapsed. Those efforts revealed a metal container etched with the Tregan symbol. I recognized it as the same symbol that Orin Hart ripped from his uniform after he had saved my governess and me. He never wanted to be a soldier in the first place.

But that was 30 years ago. Surely, no Tregans remained alive on Zevus Mar. Somebody should have removed their weapons dumps with them. Was this a ruse to throw us off the trail?

“What do you sense about this explosive storage container, Evalee?”

“I don’t think it contained Tregan weaponry. I think they just used it to add confusion to the situation. Let’s dig around a little more and see what we find.”

It was a tedious process of moving rocks and sifting through dust, but I finally found the mangled fragments of the detonators that caused the mine explosion. As I examined the pieces, we heard a scuffle from the shadows beyond us. A sudden barrage of energy bolts pinged off the walls around us, and I dropped to the ground, pulling Evalee with me.

“Show your faces, you fucking cowards!” I yelled.

Dark silhouettes emerged, weapons still drawn. “You are trespassing. Get out of here now if you want to live.”

Both of them were human, and I was certain they were not mine security guards. I shoved the evidence inside my jacket and rose, helping Evalee to her feet with me. I regretted pulling her down so hard as I sensed that impact bruised her in a few places. But she understood that I had feared for her life.

A quick scan of the gunmen told me they did not intend to kill us unless we resisted, so we left without further incident, taking our finds with us. When we got to the flier, Evalee asked, “Are we taking these to the magistrate?”

“I’m not sure that will help. I can almost hear him saying that explosives are used in the mines all the time. He is either in denial or hiding something. I can’t determine which. Something tells me we can’t trust him because he has some kind of stake in this.”

“What about the Elders? Our people have been disturbed for some time by these demonstrations and the horrible things that Toran spouts about our people. They worry that he is gaining followers to help him continue turning the Zevians against us.”

“The demonstrations do seem to be getting bigger. Perhaps the Elders will have more influence with a magistrate than we do. Brooks seemed to be using some kind of mind technique to hide something, but I don’t know what. I only could feel that he was hiding something.”

“My uncle is an Elder who dotes on me. He will at least be more willing to listen than the magistrate.”

I smiled at her. It was easy to see why anyone would dote on her. I certainly did. “It will be a good opportunity for us to find out where they stand on this insidious movement. I really don’t understand it myself, except that it is fueled by irrational hatred. I don’t care what anyone says. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever known.”

“And I love you too.” She smiled sweetly and climbed into the passenger seat of our flyer.