n

n

nELRETH

nRika glanced at Gar, then kept going.

"Within the first few weeks I'd located your, uh, City, but I was keeping my space. I'd been warned about your senses. And there was a far larger number of Anima here than I'd been led to believe.

n

"I was travelling the region, looking for other groups so I could count population when I got lost as dark fell one night. I found a cave and… and Gar found me,

" she said quietly.

nElreth looked at Gar.

"Ah, yes. The infamous human that my brother hid from me.

"

nGar grimaced.

"I told you, I didn't realize then. She was only one, and at first I assumed she'd been brought through by a disformed. By the time I knew she hadn't, I suspected she was my mate. I kept visiting with her and… I knew she was safe for us, Elreth. I was managing it. I wasn't refusing to bring her to you. But I needed to understand—

"

n

"You out of all of us knew the risk better than any,

" Elreth growled.

"I should have been the first person you told—and she should have been brought here that day.

" She kept her voice toneless beyond a reprimand because she couldn't let her emotions bleed through. She couldn't quite explain why it hurt so badly that Gar hadn't trusted her with this. But especially in view of what he'd known about the prophecy… he had to have made the connection. He was too smart not to.

nHe'd chosen his connection to this strange, foreign female over his loyalty to her and that hurt on a level she hadn't anticipated.

nUnaware of her angst, Gar sighed, nodding and raking a hand through his hair.

"I wasn't going to hide her forever. I was hoping she'd accept the bond and… and it would get easier to show you everything,

" he said quietly.

"El, I'm sorry. Truly.

"

n

"So many chances, Gar. The pricklepig and the bullet alone—

"

n

"I know, El. I won't make the same mistake. Just… listen to her.

"

nElreth sighed, but turned back to Rika and motioned for her to go on. She was staring at Gar, but she blinked and kept talking.

n

"By the time I met Gar I was already… slowing the amount of information I sent through to my colleagues. I was already uneasy about how different it was here than I'd been told—you'd been described as savage tribes who tore each other apart. Like wolves kept in too close quarters. I had no idea how… intelligent and… sensitive you were. So human. If I'd known I would never have agreed to be a part of this. And I was already trying to slow the process down, to give myself time to figure out how to thwart the whole thing.

n

"Then I met Gar and I knew… I knew I couldn't be a part of destroying a people that included him,

" she said, her voice trailing off almost to a whisper. She didn't look up, but Gar's hands twitched, like he wanted to reach for her.

nBut then it struck El, the look in her brother's eyes… it was exactly the look their father had for their mother. And just the way Aaryn looked at her.

nElreth couldn't help smiling and was forced to rub her mouth to hide it. She couldn't let Gar see how happy she was for him. Not yet. There was still the little complication of him hiding all of this from her.

nRika went on to explain that she and Gar spent time together for several days a week at first. She showed him some of their technology—though not the barrier she described that, when unmoving, could create a space one hundred feet across, but that was also capable of

"scrubbing

" scent for a small area when they were moving, leaving so little trace even the Anima couldn't follow it.

nAnd while all this was going on, they were… bonding. Elreth could see it even if Rika couldn't. El found herself holding her breath, hoping that this intelligent, quietly strong woman was going to prove true. And that she wouldn't betray Gar or the Anima.

nWithout thought, she looked for her own mate, and found Aaryn sitting at her right, frowning thoughtfully at Rika.

nShe wanted to be angry at Gar, but then she tried to imagine if Aaryn was at risk… what would she have done if she thought her choice was between him and the Anima as a whole? If she'd thought she could balance the two?

nIf she was forced to choose between her mate's life, and the life of the people?

nSuddenly washed with empathy for her brother, Elreth shuddered and hurriedly prayed she'd never have to make that decision.

nAs she tuned back in to Rika's tale, Elreth's head just kept spinning, showing her everything from her own perspective as all the chips fell into place.

nSuddenly those weeks when Gar would disappear for days at a time made a lot more sense. She'd thought he was going through the portal all those days, spending that time in the human world. Now his sleeping when he was home made so much more sense. The way he always looked so tired. If he was travelling to see Rika and keeping up with the disformed training as well…

nShe felt reluctant admiration for her brother's commitment—to both sides of his life. If only he hadn't hidden his mate for so long…

nRika described that eventually Gar was forced by events to return to the Tree City and the disformed. She recounted her anxiety when he said he'd be gone for just a couple of days, and then he was gone for a week. Then another. And during those last days. As she'd begun preparing her own trip to the portal to pass her findings and technology over to the team that would meet her there once a month, she'd been shocked when the rest of the team showed up over a month early.

n

"I've spent the last few days trying to figure out what was going on, why they were there. The Head Researcher's explanation was so vague… but Gar was gone and… there was nothing I could do. So, I just kept working. But I'd been thinking… about coming to you… I really was,

" Rika said earnestly.

"I just didn't know how… I didn't know if I would be welcome. And I wasn't sure how to get away from my colleagues without raising the alarm.

"

n

"Which is exactly what happened anyway,

" Elreth muttered, glaring at Gar.

nHe scowled.

"I did tell you. I warned you!

"

n

"But you didn't warn me about this!

" El sighed, shaking her head. But as Gar opened his mouth to respond, she hurried on.

"I feel like I understand how this has all come about, Rika. But now, please, tell me how you were getting information to your teammates before they arrived?

"

n

"I would take it to the gateway and they would send someone across to collect it,

" she said.

nElreth shook her head. Were these humans insane? Braving the voices so casually? How many of them had the voices infected by now? And they were sitting there, knowing how to get here, and with the portal unguarded?

nElreth's entire body began to tremble.

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