Read Hathor Legacy: Burn Online
Authors: Deborah A Bailey
Hathor Legacy: Burn (33 page)
"When I was in Novacorp Labs, they developed a chemical that's delivered through an implanted device," Azure said. "It alters specific neurotransmitters."
"The Burn Order," Nadira said. Her conversation with Sgt. Tragg flashed into her mind.
"Why, yes." Azure frowned. "Where did you hear about it? It's not used on Hathor."
"One of the security officers mentioned it," Nadira replied. "A lot of Guardians work in the labs?"
"
Quite a few. They need people with superior mental dexterity for research and analysis. Our abilities make us perfect for that."
"Which is why Mikal's crimes are so disgusting. He's disgraced us all. Novacorp wants to make an example of him." Lange walked over to join to Azure. "After he's been mentally neutralized, he'll be sent to a penal colony for life."
Life. It was what he deserved. Nadira tried to feel even the smallest amount of pity for him, but she couldn't. "And Talia and the others who helped him?"
"Detention or banishment from Hathor. For Talia's part, I think she should have the same as Mikal," Lange said.
"We'll wait for Petra, and we'll discuss it." Azure gave Nadira a smile, making an effort to warm up the mood. "I'm hungry, Lange. You must have something in that kitchen."
"I'll order something for us. I'm not any more of a cook than Maji is." He grinned.
"Follow me."
As it turned out, Azure was able to fix them soup made with the remnants of what Lange had in his pantry. They sat down at his table and ate while they waited for Petra to arrive.
"I've been trying to get Varyn out of detention." Nadira finished the last of her soup and dropped her spoon into the bowl. "Security refuses to release her."
Azure dipped her bread into her soup and bit off a piece. She chewed for a moment before replying. "When we finish here, we'll contact the Detention Center. If they don't listen, I'll call Santos. The Deshtu have not been a priority in this mess."
"Have they ever been?" Lange scraped his spoon against the side of his bowl. "They found four Guardian trainees in the group of survivors from the last fire. They were taken and sent to be with Guardian mentors, while the others were kept in detention."
"Who gave that order? All of you were still being detained," Nadira remarked.
"Jen had it done the day after you exposed Mikal. She still had authority then," Lange said. "Now she has none. And I'm not sorry."
"She did what she thought was right." Azure dipped another piece of bread. "But she was wrong to do it that way. We'll have them released and returned to their homes."
"If the fire hadn't been put out, they would've killed like the others." Nadira's appetite was completely gone by now. "Varyn wasn't registered as a Deshtu, and she has abilities. Why can't she become a Guardian?"
"She may not be registered as Deshtu, but she doesn't have the mark," Azure said.
"What does that matter? Joachim was the one who set up the rules for who could be a Guardian and who couldn't be. Why are we still stuck with the decisions he made? They don't work anymore. Don't you see that?"
Lange nodded, but kept silent.
When she looked at Azure, the Elder's attention was on her bowl. Her mouth was moving like she was chewing, but it didn't seem like she was putting much effort into it.
"Don't you?" Nadira repeated.
"I see that everything is about to change," Azure admitted. "And I'm not sure where that is going to take us. I don't think I can be sure of anything ever again."
40
The Garden
Two weeks later Nadira was summoned to Maji's home to meet with the other Elders. At least this time Azure hadn't sent any Guardians to bring her. Taking her role very seriously as the lead Elder, she'd done her best to reverse the directives implemented by Dakar/Mikal. She'd also managed to talk Petra into staying on for a while.
Nadira asked Jon to come with her. They might as well get used to it, because she wasn't going to leave him out.
Riding in the transport, they were both lost in their own thoughts. She hated having to do all this official stuff. The past couple of weeks had been filled with meetings at the Admin Buil
ding. Now she understood what Brant had gone through.
He was at his home recovering from the aircar accident. He'd been lucky to have been able to land the craft without crashing. But it still seemed odd to Nadira that the malfunction had ha
ppened. She wondered if Mikal had been involved somehow.
"I've been thinking," Jon said, as he grasped her hand. "About the position with the company."
She knew he'd been thinking about it since before they'd returned from Astarte. But she'd waited for him to talk about it. "You don't want it, do you?"
"Not like I did before I left Hathor." His shoulders slumped. "Now I get why my father stays on Demeter. Why he didn't want to be part of all of this."
In the night sometimes, he would become restless and talk in his sleep. She knew that Talia's attack on him continued to reverberate through his consciousness. At least his headaches had become less severe, mostly because Maji was working with him. She'd volunteered to do for Jon what she'd refused to do for Dakar.
"You wanted to open a club."
"If I do that, I won't have to become an executive," he said. "I can do what I want without this bullshit."
"Then, do that," Nadira said. "It's your choice."
"I'll tell Lani they'll have to get somebody else to run the retail space."
She knew he'd already decided it. But he needed to know she agreed. Now if only she could get out of her executive duties just as easily.
Moments later they were pulling up to the curb in front of the house. No one was out front, but Nadira saw movement at the window. By the time they got to the door, it opened before either of them could touch the fingerpad.
Azure greeted them, pressing her cheek against Jon's face in addition to giving him a standard handshake.
"Jonathan, I'm glad you could come. You know everyone here." She reached up to pat his shoulder. "Maji's back in the garden, and Varyn's here too."
"Maji is letting you have a Gathering here for the Elders?" N
adira asked, following the Elder to the back door. "I'm surprised."
"Lange suggested it and she agreed. Did I tell you she's mento
ring Varyn? I think she'll become one of the Kasema. I would hate to start competing with them for trainees," Azure said. "Come, everyone's outside."
At least Varyn had found where she belonged. And the others who had remained in detention had finally been released, though Nadira hadn't been successful in convincing the other Elders to have them trained. Instead, they'd been returned to their homes in the Cold Towns.
"I'm telling you, my dear, we'll have to be stricter about how we select trainees. We can't take any chances with having company personnel involved. They can't be trusted." Azure sighed as she opened the back door and stepped outside.
The garden was shot through with color, and as wild as ever. Something new had been added by the door, a group of dark purple flowers with round fuzzy petals. Perched on long, green stalks, they waved in the gentle breeze.
Milling around were Lange, Maji, Varyn, and Petra, and her partner, Leesa. They all greeted her and Jonathan, just as Azure had done.
"All right everyone. I'd like to thank you for coming," Azure glanced at Maji. "Let's begin." She reached out her hand to Nadira.
"What are we doing?" The Elder had never indicated why she wanted this meeting. And now this seemed even more unusual.
"I want to connect with all of you. We'll need each other's help," she said. "If we are to go forward together, we mustn't r
epeat the mistakes of the past."
Clutching Jon's hand, she stood between him and Varyn in a small circle near the center of the garden. Jon's energy flowed into her, just as hers flowed back into him. On her other side, Varyn's grasp was gentle, but her energy was stronger than it had been when they'd first met.
When Varyn's training with Maji was completed, Nadira looked forward to taking her back to the Cold Towns to visit her family. Her burns were healing and the grafts were continuing to become part of her skin.
"All of us here are joined now," Azure said. "And we will a
lways be."
A breeze ruffled the flowers next to her, sending pink and blue feathery seedlings into the air. Floating out over the garden, they sparkled like jewels in the bright, noonday sunlight.
"Azure, are we going to stand out here all day?" Maji tugged on Lange's hand for emphasis. "It's time for lunch."
The Elder gave her a sharp look. "Perhaps if you cooked more often--"
"That has nothing to do with being hungry."
"Enough you two!" Lange put an arm around Maji's shoulder, and did the same to Azure. "Let's go inside. I'm getting a bit hu
ngry myself."
He led them both to the door, followed by Petra, Leesa and Varyn.
Jonathan chuckled as he gathered Nadira into his arms. Planting a kiss on her forehead, he held her close. "Lange is going to teach me how to fly an aircar. He was here last time I came for my session with Maji."
"He was here?" Maybe his relationship with Maji might just work out after all. "I didn't know you wanted to learn."
"Sure. Remember when we were chasing Ilana and we had to take the boat to the North? Never again."
Seeing how seasick he'd been that time, she wasn't surprised. "Everything's going to be different now, you know. I'm going to push for a lot of changes to the way things work with the Guard
ians."
"And you should." He ran his hands over her back. "It's time for a lot of things to change."
"Are you ready?" she asked, as she looked into his eyes. "To go in for lunch, I mean."
His grey eyes twinkled as he replied to her through their co
nnection.
I thought you meant something else.
Now he was just showing off. Maji's healing sessions had an interesting side effect. They were also helping to strengthen the bond between them. It wasn't strange to hear his thoughts echoing through her awareness with more frequency than they had been.
There will be time for that later.
She traced his lips with her fingertips. If she hadn't gone to Astarte, would Jon have come back? No need to think about that. They were together now, and they would stay that way.
With a smile he captured her hand and kissed it. "I can't wait."
Another breeze rippled Jon's hair, and sent more of the feathery seeds swirling through the air. It looked like someone had taken a handful of shimmering crystals and thrown them up into the sky.
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