Farid. I don’t want to hear it.” She shoved her fingers through her hair, working it into some semblance of its usual order.
“Johar Sajan.” The words jerked out of him and his fingers fisted at his sides.
Huffing out a breath, she quit fussing with her hair. “I know his name.”
“He’s also your One.”
She snarled at him, some of the beast ripping free of her tight restraint. “Stay out of my mind.”
Finally meeting her gaze, he arched an eyebrow. “Your thoughts are chaotic, they’re pushing out.”
“You can block them.” She crossed her arms over her chest and lifted her chin, managing to stare down at him though he was a full head taller than her.
“Fine.”
She sighed. “It’s not like with your sister, Farid. I’m in control.”
Closing his eyes, he shook his head and an ironic smile tugged at his mouth. “If there’s anything I know, it’s that control and bonding with your One don’t go hand in hand.”
“I’m aware of that. I am in control enough not to force a bonding between us if he doesn’t want it. Yes, I am far more powerful than he is and I could force it, but I’m not Cilji. He may be from the same family as Cilji’s One, but they aren’t the same men. I understand all of that.” Agony flashed in her eyes. There was no deeper torment than this. “I also understand that he may decide it’s not worth it to deal with someone as powerful as I am, that he may leave me for another woman, another bond. An easier bond.”
“I’m sorry.” He shook his hands out and tucked them into his pockets.
“So am I.” A tremulous smile crossed her lips. “And, yet, I’m not. I could never regret finding my One, even if I know there may be no good ending that comes of it.”
He shook his head. “I hope, for your sake, this turns out better than it did for my sister.”
“No one will die, if that’s what you mean.” Her chin rose another notch.
“It is.”
“Have some faith in me, Farid.” She sniffed, her gaze cooling to that of the military commander she was. In that moment, she reminded him of Bren. His gut clenched at the thought. Too many emotions tangled within him today, and still he couldn’t stop the instinctive craving he had for his One. Tylara’s eyes narrowed on his face. “We’ve known each other long enough for that not to be an odd thing for me to expect from you. You’ve seen me work, seen me under pressure.”
“Leave it be, Tylara.”
She didn’t. He stifled a groan and rubbed the back of his neck. This was not how he’d wanted this day to go. He should be deep in dreamless slumber. Instead, he was being lectured on faith by the highest-ranking officer in Suen’s military. She poked a finger in his direction. “You want people to trust you and your control. You want to prove you’re not like your sister, but no one else can ask for your trust? Is that truly fair? Or rational? Or reasonable?”
He clenched his teeth together to keep from saying things that would destroy years of friendly relations with the woman. He found his fangs had erupted from his gums to press against his lips. So much for his vaunted control. He wasn’t doing very well with that today, was he? First, reaching for his One, and now, arguing with a friend. But she was right, wasn’t she? He’d worked long and hard to prove he’d never end up like his sister—out of control in ways the Kith could never be and still expect to remain sane, to survive at all. That was what bonding with a One could do to a Kith, and only control and logic would keep him from his family’s fate.
He met Tylara’s gaze, hoping she couldn’t see his turmoil. “No, it’s not reasonable, rational, or fair. I’m not like Cilji and neither are you. That doesn’t make my concern for you and your safety illegitimate. Anun be with you.”
With that, he turned on his heel and marched away. Thankfully, she didn’t follow. He didn’t know if he could handle much more today. Connecting with Bren always shook him, always let the beast inside him loose far longer than he normally allowed, always made him react when he should think.
No matter what political maneuvering he might be able to accomplish here, he had to consider self-preservation. He could only pray that the emperor claimed his One soon and they could leave this miserable planet behind. Only then would the temptation Bren presented be beyond his reach.
Ignoring the feline within’s yowl of protest and pain at the mere thought of abandoning its mate forever, he turned for his quarters, once more in complete command of himself.
The personal communication imager in his pocket vibrated to indicate he had received a new message. He pulled out the handheld comm. and accessed the missive.
He had to read it twice before the words sank in. Bren wanted to meet with him. He shouldn’t. He should stay as far away from her as possible. He should allow no contact outside of what was necessary in their professions when he went down to haggle with General Arthur.
His fingers were already moving over the imager, sending her a confirmation of their meeting. “Vishra, cancel the somnolence dose for me, reschedule the rest of my meetings for the day, and alert the cargo master that I’ll be taking a shuttle down to the surface for a…rendezvous of a personal nature.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Night had fallen by the time Bren hiked up the side of a mountain in the middle of West Virginia, moving toward the same clearing she’d stood in when the Sueni had landed. She’d gone with Arthur when he’d been ordered to investigate. Less than a year had passed since then, but so much had changed. Technology, politics, religion, history. Everything.
Farid had been here that day, in his cat form. There’d been only ten of them in the landing party, half in human form, the rest in beast form. The humans had been all shapes, sizes, and colors, and they looked…like regular humans. Farid had moved forward, planting his feline self directly in front of her. He’d bowed his head but never took those icy eyes off her. She was caught by that gaze and the unearthly power she felt behind it.
Everything about him overwhelmed her. He was huge. And beautiful. Like nothing she’d ever seen before. Like nothing any human had ever seen before. They were dangerous and feline, colored like a snow tiger with dark stripes on pale fur. Only no cat could ever be that size. They had the bulk of a grizzly bear, but all the grace of a feline. She shook her head, pushing the memories away. It didn’t matter what the Kith looked like or what had happened the day they arrived. What mattered was right here, right now, she needed the help of one Kith.
Farid.
Pausing beside a large tree, Bren let her gaze scan the area. Nothing moved, nothing was out of place. Only the moon lit the forest around her. She was about a quarter of a mile from the clearing, and she’d dumped her rental car outside the little town at the base of the mountain. The car was low end and she’d switched out the license plates on a similar model outside of D.C. Anything she could do to make herself harder to find, to keep Arthur from realizing what she was doing. She brushed a hand down her T-shirt. She felt naked without her uniform, but she couldn’t afford to wear it. Uniforms were distinctive in civilian areas; they made a person stand out. That was the last thing she wanted right now. Dark jeans, a black shirt, and black hiking boots would have to do. She
