Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Bo, the blood-bonding is now complete.

After discussion with Sahara Kyriakus and Ivy Jane Zen, we also bonded in as many fully Psy children as they calculated the clan's changeling network could handle, and it's possible the little ones may make it—my innate urge to protect means they live in my heart now, so there is an emotional tie. I only wish we could take so many more.

As for full-blooded adult Psy who aren't linked to us by emotion—no change on the needle there. Still, we've laid the groundwork with multiple empaths because the children will need psychic oversight, and Es seem to be the best bet. Let us hope that we're all wrong and that we won't have to stand by and watch the loss of life on a scale incalculable.

—Miane Levèque, alpha of BlackSea, to Bowen Knight, security chief of the Human Alliance (4 November 2083)

"PROBLEM?" RINA ASKED from where she kept watch by the door, even as Remi growled deep in his chest and went to Auden.

She shook her head when he would've touched her, her gaze pleading with him to keep his distance. Those eyes, that expression, it was the Auden he knew—but a faint whisper of the metal remained tangled in her scent.

He halted, man and leopard both fighting the urge to shake her and hold her close at the same time.

"No, this desk is cold." A pause. "In the psychometric sense. That's why so many of my designation go for hyper-modern furnishings. Less chance of embedded history. But this particular desk is cold in the sense that I don't think anyone's touched it since I was gone."

"What did you do at it?" Remi asked, unable to imagine his Auden in this space.

"Prior to this past month, nothing much." She rubbed her chest, her face flinching.

"Auden." A growl and this time, he gripped her jaw, held the moonstone blue of her gaze.

"It's me with a piece of another," she whispered, low enough to reach him alone.

He scented the truth of that in her body.

"I need her," she added with a hard swallow. "She knew the code to Charisma's private files. I don't understand why I would've ever had that."

He understood what she was asking of him, but that didn't mean he had to like it. "You're in control," he told her, and this time, he pitched his voice so Rina could hear as well—Auden had asked Remi to brief her on the possibility of a hostile personality. "I can scent it." He released her jaw. "Yours is ascendant."

"I scent the same," Rina said, her eyes narrowed. "Whatever is going on, that metallic part of you is only a thread."

Auden took a deep breath, then looked from Remi to Rina and back. Her spine grew straighter. "Can you make it so we'll know immediately if anyone enters after today?"

"That won't be a problem. We'll do scent sweeps on a regular basis."

"Good." She shifted so that she could see both him and Rina, her expression set in unmoving lines. "Let's do this. For her." Love in her scent itself, Liberty's scent tangled with Auden's on an indelible level—and that part of her scent, Remi realized on a roar of satisfaction, had never altered.

The other Auden could no longer get past his Auden's love for her child. It was a thing enormous, and the Auden he loved—because yeah, why the fuck fight that when it was a blazing star deep within—was stronger, tougher, harder to break because of the power of her heart.

"I," she added, "want to blow the secrets of this house wide open."

"That's my girl." A rumbling purr in his chest, his leopard's claws pushing at his skin. "First thing is for you to give us a tour of the compound, so we can assess any obvious threats."

"I'll show you from upstairs."

Professional mask back on, Remi fell into a walk behind her as Rina took the lead. He'd have liked to enjoy the view of Auden's curvy form, but that pleasure would have to wait. Right now, his every sense was on alert for any sign of danger, even as he made note of possible entry and exit routes, as well as any cameras or other indicators of surveillance.

"This is the most private part of the property," Auden said, after walking them upstairs. "The family bedrooms are all up here. Right now, I occupy the one center right, with Charisma across from me but one down to the left, nearest the stairs. The other three bedrooms are unoccupied."

Leading them into her room, she took them past the bed made with pale gray sheets that seemed to float in the spartan space. The only other piece of furniture was an armchair with a high back, its cushions a deep green, that sat by the main windows.

He would've expected the walls to be a formless white, but they'd been wallpapered with a fine gray pattern against white. His eyes narrowed at the unnecessary detail. Better, he thought, to hide listening devices.

He tapped his ear to indicate the need for silence, then got out his scanner. Rina was already at work with hers.

The room was clear.

"Look here," Remi said afterward, indicating a fine tear in the wallpaper. "Rush job pulling it out."

"That's the one the installer left behind the first time around." Auden's jaw was a hard line. "I didn't know it but she did, the other part of me."

"Good. Keep on using her. You are the alpha," he reiterated, because this could well be the fight for Auden's life. "You know why? Because your heart is bigger than hers could ever be."

Her pupils expanded, her breath catching. "An alpha must have a huge heart," she said, and it wasn't a question, rather a wondering statement. "All this time, I thought the key ingredient was dominance, but it's not, is it?"

"It is and it isn't," he corrected. " Both must exist for a changeling to be an alpha. An alpha without a heart would be a dictator, and an alpha without dominance couldn't hold his pack together."

Auden nodded slowly. "Balance." A murmur almost to herself before she shook it off. "Come, I want you to see the view from the window. You can get an overview of the rest of the compound from there."

Three other buildings dominated, one on either side and one to the front. All were smaller than the main residence, but were painted in the same white color palette, with touches of dark gray. Elegant and unobtrusive against the crisp and clean lines of the landscaping.

"The building to the left houses other staff who work in or close to the house, while the building to the right is the infirmary. Dr.Verhoeven's apartment is in back of it."

"Why is the guard station so big?" Rina asked, pointing to the building out front.

"The guards have barracks inside. Fences are all wired for motion detection, but the guards do live patrols at regular intervals." A wince. "I never bothered to work out the intervals."

Remi curled his fingers over her hand below the line of the window; her skin was cool, as if this place had stolen all her warmth. "We know the intervals." When she shot him a questioning look, he allowed himself a faint smile, his cat pleased with itself. "Soon as we knew we'd be coming here, Rina and her brother, Kit, came down to spy."

"Cats are excellent spies," Rina said, her own leopard in her voice. "And Kit can still climb better than me, which is annoying in the extreme. But it meant he was able to set up a hide a short distance from here in a tree, and watch the goings-on through binoculars, while I used my night vision to prowl around a bit closer."

Auden's skin prickled with a pride as wild as the two changelings who stood with her. "Charisma and the other Auden have no idea what they're up against."

"Damn straight," Rina said with a grin before she stepped out to go check the neighboring room.

Remi nudged Auden away from the window at the same time, one big hand warm on her lower back. "Windows offer clear lines of sight. Try to avoid being immobile in front of one."

Auden could feel the heat of his palm against her even after he broke contact. It burned, a silent brand. She wanted so much more, craved it even knowing that it was the wrong time, the wrong place…because panic beat in the back of her brain, warning her that time was running out. She intended to fight to the death to win this war, but she never forgot that the enemy lived inside her mind . Victory was in no way guaranteed.

"Remi," she whispered.

His eyes glowed in a way that wasn't human, wasn't Psy. "Not in this house." It came out a growl that held no menace, his chest rumbling against her as he wrapped her up in his arms.

She held on tight, the muscled heat of him making her shiver.

A nip to her ear that made her jump. "You're not ready, either." He nuzzled her. "Finn would have my head if I did what I wanted to do."

But Auden had found her voice now and she wasn't about to give it up. Especially not when it came to this man who walked in her dreams and whose scent was her compass. "You taught me what it is to crave touch. You can't just stop now that I'm an addict," she argued on a wave of that simmering inner panic. "You've cleared this room, too."

She shifted, held his gaze. "As for not being ready…I had time in the infirmary. I did a little research." Sure that the erotic searches were emblazoned on her forehead, she'd hidden her organizer under the sheets each time Finn or the nurses walked into the room.

Remi had retrieved her organizer and her clothes from the cabin, and she'd known the device—unlinked to the Scott system—was free of any bugs. So she'd shed her inhibitions and typed in searches that had given her an erotic education that made her squirm.

"I watched videos late at night," she admitted, even though it made her cheeks burn from the inside. "I saw all the things lovers can do to each other."

Groaning, he pressed a kiss to her throat, then another. The shiver that ran through her this time was a thing electric. Her already sensitive breasts felt engorged, her nipples tight buds. She pressed herself to the hardness of his chest, her body hot and wanting.

"Enough." Another kiss to her throat. "I want time, and I want privacy—and I want you to be sure." He drew back, held her gaze with those of alpha yellow-green. "No mental disruption, no other Auden. Just you and me."

She wanted to argue with him that that might never happen, but she also knew that this wasn't just about her. Remi was a man of honor, and he'd never forgive himself if he thought he'd taken advantage of her.

But after swallowing to wet a dry throat, she said, "Can we do things like this, though? When my scent is mine? Not the complete sexual act, but…touching like this?" She knew it was all too soon, her mind still reeling after the birth even if her body was physically healed thanks to Finn's use of the nanos, but the wild desperation in her wasn't listening to reason.

What if , whispered that desperate part of her, what if she lost the battle without ever experiencing this piercing intimacy with Remi?

A scowl. "That's definitely my stubborn Auden." His hand cupping her jaw, his lips taking hers in an intimacy so sweet and sensual at the same time that she couldn't breathe.

She gasped when he broke the kiss, her fingers rising to her lips. "I never…" Another rough inhale. "Kisses. I never understood why people would want to do that. Until now." His breath in her mouth, his fingers so firm and warm on her face, it was the newest addition to her list of cravings when it came to Remi Denier.

His own breathing not exactly steady, Remi ran the back of his hand over her cheek. "It's okay, Cupcake." Infinite tenderness in his voice. "We'll have time. No one is going to stand in our way."

She should've been ashamed that he'd so quickly glimpsed her panic, but all she felt was a sobbing relief. Remi saw her, complete with her ability to love and her faults and her fear. "We'll finish our kiss?"

"And more," he promised. "In our own time, at our own pace. No rush, no driving force but our own desire." He rubbed his thumb over her cheekbone before pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. "I didn't bruise your lips, but you want to check your makeup to make sure it'll pass muster?"

Nodding, Auden walked into the bathroom on legs that held a faint quiver.

Remi stood in the open doorway while she touched up minor details that wouldn't escape Charisma's eagle eye.

"So," he said, leaning one wide shoulder against the doorjamb. "Did your mother favor this house? Is that why Ms.Wai chose the place for the duration of your pregnancy?"

Auden shook her head. "In the last year of her life, Shoshanna didn't stay in one place for too long."

"Do you know where she was when she died?"

"Charisma told me it was her residence in Nevada, but who knows." Auden sleeked back a fine curl that had escaped its bun. "Her body was cremated, the ashes disposed of before I even truly understood that she was dead."

Turning, she met Remi's eyes. "I think that's why I feel her presence like a malevolent shadow at times—because I never saw her dead. It feels like this house is still hers, and I know the people are all still hers, each and every one following a blueprint she put down that has to do with me and Liberty."

Remi straightened. "By the time we're done here, the only name that'll matter to anyone in the outside world is that of Auden Scott." His vow held the power of an alpha leopard—and his gaze held the promise of the protective man who'd sung a lullaby to Liberty while holding her in his arms late one dark night.

A flicker of memory.

Blue spiderwebs of haunting loveliness.

Then Remi ran his hand down her back, his body a solid shield behind her, pure power and warmth, and the faint remembrance whispered out of her mind.