“You wish me to give you time?”
“Yes.”
She wished he’d give her about five years but she suspected that wasn’t going to happen. When had she become such a coward? Hemmed in by her own rules, afraid to even try and reach out to a man who obviously wanted her? There had to be a balance between what she’d always feared and what she suddenly craved.
“Then I will wait to hear what this Oracle of yours has to say.” Aki smiled at her. “I am a very patient man, Elli. I have had four thousand years to hone that skill. But if the Oracle is as wise as everyone says she is, she will know you are mine and that I am determined to have you.” He patted the seat next to him. “Now come and teach me how to guard my thoughts and I promise not to kiss you.”
The journey to the Oracle’s Temple was accomplished in yet another form of a flying machine called an airplane. It skimmed through the skies at great speeds, and Aki spent most of his time looking out of the small window while below him the ground scrolled out like parchment. Seeing the tiny dwellings and roads beneath him, he imagined himself a hawk searching for his prey.
He also appreciated the silence. There were only about a dozen people on the air ship, and thanks to Elli’s continuing lessons, he was able to block most of them from his mind and not project his thoughts outward. He couldn’t imagine mastering the skill of obstructing every thought except his bonded mate’s and his family, but Elli insisted he would soon learn.
She was sitting beside him, her head on his shoulder as she slept, her hand securely in his. Einarr and Frey had vanished into one of the cabins and hadn’t reappeared yet. Aki was also relieved that he’d learned to block out at least some of Einarr’s thoughts, although it also made him sad not sharing everything with his twin.
Ash was working near the front of the ship and Esca guarded the door. The evening before they’d left, Aki had met Soreya, the female who was mated to Ash and Esca. She was also a warrior and had been very kind to Aki, sharing her own struggles at adapting to Pavlovan culture. She’d given him hope that the future might not be as difficult as he’d feared.
If only he could persuade Elli to believe that his need for her was true, his world would be even better. She was trustworthy, strong and very good at understanding how hard it was for him to adapt to his new life. She reminded him of the frozen lakes of his childhood with their smooth surfaces and immense hidden depths. She allowed little to disturb her calm exterior, but she felt deeply about things and beneath the surface lurked a passionate and complex woman.
Einarr was right that in his past life Aki had chosen his bedmates with an eye to their beauty and stamina, but now he was older and wiser. He smiled to himself. Far older than he’d ever expected to be, and the things that called to him now—strength, steadiness and kindness—were encapsulated in Elli. She hid her hurts well, but he still wanted to kill anyone who had made her life difficult. Leaning closer, he inhaled her scent, willing her to wake up, take his hand and walk with him into one of the cabins…
“
Stop right there, Aki. I don’t want to picture anymore.”
Aki recognized Esca’s distinct voice in his mind and raised an eyebrow.
“I apologize. I am working hard on my shields, but the occasional thought escapes me
.”
Esca beckoned to him. With a resigned sigh, Aki left Elli’s side and went to sit next to the formidable warrior.
“
Are you serious about her
?” Esca demanded. “
Because if you aren’t…”
“Ash has already warned me off.”
Aki held Esca’s gaze. “
But I still want her and believe she is meant to be mine.”
“She’s had a bad experience with mates.”
Aki frowned. “
I knew someone had hurt her. She is reluctant to believe that I could want her
.
She keeps telling me that I must be certain and not make a mistake. What happened to her?”
“It’s not my story to tell, but then I’ve never been known for my ability to hold my tongue. All I’m going to say is don’t hurt her, and don’t go public about how you feel about her unless you are one hundred percent certain you mean it.”
Aki nodded. “
I understand.”
“If you hurt her, Ash will be upset. And nothing is allowed to upset my First Male, so I’ll be coming for you and not in a good way,”
Esca added.
Aki frowned as he puzzled through what Esca had said, recognized it was some sort of threat and then nodded. “
I will not change my mind about how I feel about Elli Slavin, I swear it
.”
“
We’ll see, won’t we
?” For once Esca looked entirely serious. “
She’s awake and watching us. Don’t tell her what we were discussing, okay?”
“
I will not betray your confidence.”
Aki rose to his feet and bowed. “Thank you for your counsel, Esca.” He started making his way back toward Elli when a thousand screams tore through his mind and he rocked on his heels.
Elli shot to her feet. “What’s wrong?”
“Didn’t you hear that?” Aki clutched at his head. “Something is wrong, someone is dying and—”
A door slammed and Einarr emerged half-naked his sword in his hand. “What is going on?”
Aki spun around to look at Esca. “Someone is being attacked below us. Can’t you hear them?” He winced as another wave of emotions swept over him. “Other voices now, they sound like your female, Esca.”
“Etruscan?” Esca snapped.
“I do not know.” Aki concentrated. “They want Ash… They—”
“Roberts, get this frakking plane down on the ground right now!” Esca shouted and ran toward the flight deck. “Ash—to me!”
Aki staggered as the floor dipped sharply to the right, sending him to his knees. He gathered Elli in his arms and stayed down as Esca continued to issue orders.
“Weapons fired.” Robert’s cool voice came over the system. “Fourth engine out. Brace for impact. We’re going down into the Quoxor preserve.”
Aki closed his eyes as the airship plummeted downward, engines screaming as Roberts continued to talk as though nothing was wrong. That man had ice in his very veins.
“Hold on everyone.”
The impact as they hit something solid beneath them made Aki bite his tongue. He held Elli close to his heart, shielding her with his body as everything around them buckled and screamed and threatened to tear itself apart. When he finally opened his eyes, alarms were blaring and there was the smell of burning in the air.
Einarr shook his shoulder. “We have to get out. Do you have Elli safe?”
“Aye.” He picked Elli up and followed Einarr out of the enormous hole ripped into the side of the ship. “Where are Esca and Ash and the rest of the crew?”
“Trying to put the fire out.”
Aki gently deposited Elli under a tree next to Frey. Ash lay there as well, his eyes closed and a nasty gash dripping blood over one of his eyes.
Elli nodded at him. “Go and help them shut the plane down before it explodes. I’ll locate the medical emergency kit and keep an eye on Ash and Frey.”
Aki shoved a reluctant Einarr away from his mate and back toward the ship where Esca and the crew were dousing the flames with thick white clouds of frothing water.
Esca spared them both one glance. “You okay?”
“Aye.”
“Is Ash conscious?”
“Not yet, but he is still breathing. What can we do?”
Esca gave him one of the heavy metal tanks. “Point this at the flames while I scout around the area.”
Einarr shoved Aki aside. “I’ll do this. You go with Esca.” He nodded at the other man. “Aki will keep you safe. He is the best hunter I know.”
“Come then,” Esca said. “But no more words, just mind speak. And shield as best as you can.”
From what Aki could tell, they’d landed in the middle of a large forest, flattening several trees during their descent. The air felt heavy and sticky, making it hard to breathe, and his clothes were already drenched with sweat. He and Esca made a wide circle around the crash site, but detected no immediate opposition or interest in their arrival.
“
Can you still sense the voices
?” Esca asked eventually.
Aki went still and then pointed to the north. “
Over there
.”
“
Which ones
?”
“
Both kinds of thoughts. But the enemy are far louder now
.” Aki swallowed hard. He’d seen what a raiding party could do to a peaceful settlement. It was never good. “
Why do they want Ash
?”
“
Because he’s the leader of the senate
.”
“
Like a king
?”
“
Kind of.”
Esca checked his weapon, his expression lethal. “
He is also my First Male. I will not allow him to be hurt. When I find out how the Etruscans targeted our plane despite supposedly the highest security level on the planet…. I will frakking kill someone.
”
Aki nodded. “
I do not sense any of our enemies around us yet. Perhaps we should do a final circuit and then head back to the others
.”
“
Agreed
.” He slapped Aki in the shoulder. “If you hadn’t picked up on those Etruscan raiders, we’d probably all be dead by now.”
Einarr crouched beside Frey. “The fire is out, and the alarms have been silenced.”
“That’s good.” Elli forced a smile. “You and Aki probably saved us all.”
Einarr shrugged. “That is only because we have inadequate shields and heard what you all managed to keep out.” He shuddered. “I would rather not have to experience the screams of the dying. Who are these raiders?”
“They are probably Etruscans. They are
supposed
to be our allies, but they hate telepaths and think it is their solemn duty to erase us from the universe. They tried to kidnap the Oracle recently and now this…” Elli glanced over at Ash who remained unconscious. “They probably want Ash.”
“Because he is a powerful mind talker?”
“Yes, and because he is the current leader of our Senate—the body that makes the laws for all Pavlovans.”
“Ah.” Einarr nodded. “A very important man indeed.” He glanced over her shoulder. “Here come Aki and Esca now.”
Esca paused to talk to Roberts and the crew, and Aki loped toward her. He’d stripped off his shirt, leaving him in just low-slung black pants and thick boots. His blond braid was coming undone, allowing his fair hair to flow over his tattooed shoulder, and he carried his heavy axe easily in one hand.
His blue gaze fastened on her. “You are well, Elli?”
“I’m fine.”
He looked over at Ash and frowned. “He is still not awake?”
“I think he must have hit his head quite hard.” She paused. “I can’t bring him out of it.”
Aki knelt by Ash’s side and placed a hand on his throat. “He is still breathing, and I feel the pump of his life blood. All is not lost. Do you think we will find help out here?”
“It’s hard to tell. This isn’t a very populated area, and they don’t like to use technology. There are two local tribes, the Neveks, who tend to keep to themselves, and the Hakron, who supply the Oracle with the majority of her bodyguards.”
“Then we will find one of their villages and get you all to safety.”
Esca arrived and almost pushed past Elli in his haste to get to Ash. “Why isn’t he conscious yet?”
“I need to access some of the equipment from the medic station to find out exactly what’s going on. Is it safe to go inside the wreckage?” Elli asked.
Esca grimaced. “The right side of the plane is smashed into the ground. There’s not much left
to
find, but you can go ahead and search.”
“Thanks.” Elli hesitated before she rose. “Have we sent out a distress signal?”
“That happens automatically if a Senate-registered craft goes down. They’ll find us eventually—although Roberts already told me that he chose one of the remotest spots in the preserve to set down so that he wouldn’t take anyone out. That means our communication links are very weak.”
Aki came with her to the plane and helped her get back inside. Unfortunately, Esca had been right, and there was little left of the cabin that hadn’t been compressed into a sheer tangle of metal. After a careful search, she located one mediscanner and checked to see if it was working.
“Thank the Gods,” she murmured as it lit up. “At least we can check everyone out and relay the information back to the nearest medical facility.”
Aki held her hand as she stepped out of the wreckage and returned to the others. Some of the six-man crew had erected a temporary shelter to give some shade and were busy checking out the rest of the area for water and for any supplies they could glean from the ship.
As a test, Elli ran the scanner over Aki and saw nothing more serious than a few bruises, which he reluctantly confirmed. She also checked out Einarr. Frey had a badly sprained ankle. Roberts and the rest of the crew were also unharmed and happy to deal with their own cuts and scrapes with the supplies Elli had in the medical kit.
Esca refused to be scanned and wordlessly pointed at Ash.
Elli crouched next to her cousin, waited for the scan to complete and then touched Esca’s shoulder..
“Esca, please don’t panic, but the scan suggests he is bleeding internally in his brain. We should get him to a medical facility as soon as possible.”
Esca shook off Aki’s hand and shot to his feet. “Where the frakking hal am I supposed to take him, Elli? We’re out in the middle of frakking nowhere!”
Aki frowned at the male. “Do not shout at Elli. She is trying to help you.” He beckoned to the pilot Roberts. “Are we able to navigate our way out of this forest on foot?”
“Yes.”
“Can you find the shortest route to a medical facility?”
Roberts consulted the scanner in his hand. “There’s a village to the south which should be reachable within a few hours.”
“That’s not damn quick enough!” Esca interrupted them.
Einarr came to stand beside Aki, his presence a solid comfort as Roberts continued to speak. “As soon as we start moving toward normal levels of the communication network we can send out additional emergency signals. They’ll find us quicker.” Roberts glanced over at Ash. “None of us wish to see Senator Ash’s life cut short, Major Esca. We will do anything necessary to ensure he survives this.”