“Which is why you were fighting those others last night.” It wasn’t a question. Somehow, Sapphire knew this to be true. “I remember you telling them that I was protected. Then you fought them.”

  “They challenged my right to protect you. Some believe that just because I choose to heal, that I cannot fight.” Galen shrugged with a grin. “They are mistaken, as you can see. My gift to heal allows me to take more damage than others as I heal myself faster than I heal others.”

  “That is how you were able to take on so many at once?”

  “Yes,” he said with a nod. “I have taken on as many as seven at once during my training sessions in my parents’ home. They wanted to know I could protect myself from those who would consider a healer weak.”

  “They would be mistaken.” Sapphire smiled as she recalled the incident. “Your abilities make you a very formidable opponent, indeed.”

  “Such high praise from you, Sapphire.” Galen bowed. “Be careful, lest it goes to my head.”

  Chapter Four

  “I want to hunt one of the human colonies.” Ruby was direct as they sat around the table, working their way through dinner.

  The men raised their eyebrows and Sapphire’s sisters laughed at the one they considered to be their eldest. Galen cleared his throat. “I beg your pardon?”

  “We need to show the humans that we are still here and still doing our jobs. Their treatment of Opalite was enough to confirm that we are better off sending the humans home from out here. Mother agrees.” Ruby sat back and hiccupped.

  “I think that you have had a little too much wine, Ruby.” Oton rubbed her shoulder.

  Ruby smiled a peculiarly inviting smile that made Sapphire a little uncomfortable. If her own face ever took on that sort of a trusting and enticing look, she wanted someone to slap her hard.

  “I know I have had too much wine, but I still want to send a bunch of humans home. I can feel the difference in the dimensional curtain already. I can only imagine the relief when more than two of them pass back at the same time.”

  The sisters all nodded in agreement. It was a peculiar thing, but they were beginning to feel a binding to the rift itself. It communicated to them and they felt every shift for positive or negative.

  The other pods had different powers, but it seemed that the gem set was coming out with an affinity for the rift itself. Sapphire sat back and let the feeling of security that came with being with her own kind wash over her.

  The holes in the dimensional curtain were becoming clear to her. She could see the waves of energy streaming through each breach in the barrier and wondered if her sisters could see it as well.

  Galen touched the back of her hand, drawing her attention. “What do you see?”

  “Holes in the worlds.” She closed her eyes and viewed the targets that came to her mind. Some holes were large, some miniscule but she saw them all.

  Ruby sobered abruptly. “You can see them?”

  “Yes, can’t you?”

  Ruby looked to Opalite and shook her head. “No. I can feel when a rift is near, but I can’t see them from here.”

  “Interesting. This is new for me, too. It just happened now, in fact. Do you think it is all of us together?”

  Galen held her hand and gave her a sober look. “I think that the poison changed you. I think it altered the way your mind perceives energy and I think that is why you took so long to come out of your healing sleep. Your body was adapting.”

  Sapphire looked into his eyes and saw the truth of the situation. He was looking at her with a healer’s eyes and those eyes did not lie.

  She nodded at her sisters’ amazed gazes. “It is likely. I can lead you to the largest settlement I can see. Will tomorrow be soon enough? I think I need to go for a walk.”

  She stood before they could answer her and headed for the door. Galen followed her at a distance, but her sisters remained at the sides of their companions.

  Sapphire exhaled and inhaled rapidly as she walked through the kitchen and out into the back gardens. The scent of herbs and flowers calmed her somewhat, but it wasn’t enough.

  Galen stood behind her and placed his hands on her arms. “Change is often difficult. You and your sisters are special to begin with, so this is doubly difficult for you.”

  She turned in his arms and gazed up into his face, searching for any sign of the freak she was becoming. All she saw was patience and desire, so she rewarded his steadfastness with a kiss.

  Sapphire went up on her toes and pressed her lips to Galen’s. He held perfectly still until she touched his jaw with her hand. The hands on her arms shifted to her waist and they stood, kissing in the afternoon sun.

  When Sapphire pulled back, feeling dazed and hot, she pressed fingers to her swollen lips and licked them to cool them. A small act that caused Galen’s dilated pupils to shift into draconic slits.

  “I believe we should rejoin your sisters.” His chest was rising and falling rapidly as he struggled for control.

  “Why? They have been watching us from the window in the kitchen for the last half hour.” She blinked up at Galen, enjoying the phases of control that she was seeing. She would be safe in his hands and probably in his bed as well.

  He blushed. The great warrior-healer dragon blushed and Sapphire was caught in another giggle.

  “We can go back inside, Galen, but I think you will need to let go of me first.” Her smile was not as intimate as Ruby’s had been while looking at Oton, but she knew that it held a companionship with this man that she was not sure he should see yet. She simply could not help herself.

  His hands smoothed over her leathers before they released her, her spine tingled from the memory of his touch. “Back inside it shall be. Would you care to hear some music? Nela is a talented musician.”

  They were walking back into the house again, “I like music. I heard it whenever the handlers were not careful with their recordings. We were able to listen to whatever they were listening to. They forgot about our hearing.”

  A brief tightening around his lips showed that he was not fond of her tales from childhood. She made a note not to mention more.

  “Nela can play the harp, flute and drums quite well. I am sure that she will be only too happy to show you the basics of playing.”

  “I could learn?”

  “I don’t see why not. You seem capable of any number of surprising learning curves.”

  This time, she sensed that he was laughing at her enthusiasm for kissing, but she pushed it aside in favor of enjoying the feel of his hand engulfing hers.

  Her sisters tried to act as if they were all getting a cooking lesson from Lona.

  Sapphire burst out laughing again. “Enough. I know you can’t cook. We can heat rations. That is about it.”

  Topaz took umbrage. “Hey, I have been learning to cook. I can cook fish three ways, really burned, sort of scorched and almost edible.”

  Kai lounged in the doorway. “Her almost edible is coming along nicely.”

  Sapphire watched her sister’s grin of pride that lasted until Topaz walked up to her mate and punched him in the gut.

  She looked up at Galen speculatively and he stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her and walking her into the large dining room where three dragons were in detailed conversation.

  Each had a smile in their eyes when they saw Galen steering her around by surrounding her with his body, but when he called for Nela and she brought out her harp, the men’s amusement turned to amazement as the girls sat at Nela’s feet and watched her play.

  When her fingers were sore, they allowed her to rest but took turns trying the harp. Opalite had the greatest dexterity, but Sapphire had the most determination.

  Day turned into night and Lona made dinner for ten out of sheer will. The servant was a little stressed at having to find accommodations for four couples and two singles, but when Galen offered to share space with Sapphire, she couldn’t turn him down.

  “I am not completely comfortable in sharing a bed with you, Galen.”

  He raised a brow as he stripped off his shirt and one side of his mouth kicked up in a smile. “Trust me, Sapphire. Whatever happens here tonight will definitely be on the uncomfortable side. Self-control is my hallmark, but you are driving me to the edge.”

  With only his pants left on, he climbed into his bed and turned his back to her side.

  Sapphire quickly stripped off her leathers and slipped into the nightgown that Lona had provided. It felt odd to sleep in such delicate clothing with another person at close range, but with Galen there, it was the only armor she was able to wear.

  She slid between the sheets and turned her back to Galen, looking out the window, watching the stars of the foreign world she was on lulled her into relaxation, and the feeling of warmth as Galen snuggled up against her from behind carried her off into a restful and healing sleep.

  Chapter Five

  They were suited up and wearing some of the new leathers that Galen had provided, each sister had a kit, stunner and a small dart gun with a crossbow motif. Add that in with their boot knives and each one felt as secure as she could when going into an unknown situation.

  “Okay, I am going to open a portal and from there, we will use the left-over scanner that Kros is carrying to find the colonists if they are not immediately apparent.” Sapphire breathed deeply and asked, “Is everyone ready?”

  The men nodded and her sisters grinned with thumbs up.

  Sapphire opened a portal and they stepped through it, single file. Any of them could find their way back to Galen’s home, so a rendezvous point was not necessary. They could and would simply corral the humans and run them through the portals back to earth.

  The men were looking forward to their part of the event. As dragons, they had full authorization to herd the humans toward the portals.

  The world was perfectly temperate, green grasses crushed under their feet wafting the smell of chlorophyll through the air. It was really a very nice planet to live on, but the humans needed to go home.

  As a group, they approached the settlement using the stealth that was so rarely needed in their lines of work. Hand signals were brought out to indicate the plan of attack and when everyone was clear, the men snuck off to shift into their dragon forms and the girls scoped out the areas where they would open portals.

  When the dragons moved in, things happened fast. Women and children ran down the main street and when there was a large enough stampede, Sapphire opened her portal. Unable to stop, the women ran into the portal with their children in tow. The monitor that Sapphire had next to her indicated that the population had been cut by two thirds. The rest would be a one-on-one hunt.

  Sapphire walked through the streets, opening quick-drop portals whenever a human crossed her path. Her sisters did the same on the other side of the city.

  Men tended to charge the sisters as they drew closer together. Sapphire used the martial arts that she had been taught and dropped the men into an earth portal as quickly as she could.

  All of this psychic energy flying around was exhausting, but though they had been at it for hours, they finally whittled the population down to three. The life signs were human even though they had no tracers.

  Sapphire opened the door and braced for anything. She saw three small children whose parents had probably fled long before. “Are you alone, children?”

  The oldest or tallest seemed to nod.

  “Do you remember Earth?”

  “No, Mama told us stories though.”

  “Well, the humans that came through have to go back home. The fabric of the world tore when they came through and I am trying to fix it by sending them home. Would you like to be with your parents?”

  The youngest was sobbing softly, her little arms wrapped around her legs, her head resting on her knees. Mussed blonde hair swirled around her shoulders, the blue ribbon that once held it in place lay untied and hung from her shoulder.

  Sapphire stepped forward and extended her hand to the children. “See? I’m flesh and blood just like you.”

  “What are those marks on your face?” the middle child asked. He was a brave one to reach out and touch her cheek, his expression filled with curiosity. Dirt smudged his face and his brown hair nearly stood on end.

  “I am marked by my parents so that they can know who I am at a glance. I never got to meet my mom. She is held in the same facility that sent your parents here.”

  The youngest leaned up and placed her little hand on Sapphire’s. “Will you take us?”

  “I, uh…” Kneeling down, she grasped the girl’s shoulder with her free hand then let it go. “I cannot take you home. I wish I could, but those left back on Earth think that my sisters and I are bad people and would capture me if I went back.”

  “You’re a bad person?” The tallest child did a crab walk, scuttling away from her. “Don’t hurt us. Let my sister go!”

  “I am not holding your sister.” Sapphire looked down at her captured hand. “It is your sister who holds me.” She shook her head. “My sisters and I are not bad people.” She paused. “Some would say we are victims. Others call us orphans and still others fear us.” Sighing, Sapphire pried her fingers from the little one’s grip and stood. “The fact remains that I must send you home. Everyone who came through the rift must be sent back to Earth.”

  What was she to do now? The last thing Sapphire wanted or needed was to take these children through to Earth. The humans would stun and capture her the moment she stepped through the rift.

  No. It was better that her disappearance remained a mystery, or at least that her whereabouts remained so. At least until they managed to return all of the humans to Earth and the rest of her sisters were freed.

  “I can show you the way, but I cannot go with you,” Sapphire said as she gazed down into their little faces. Goodness, is this what she and her sisters looked like when they were young? She couldn’t remember, but she was almost certain that they had never been this vulnerable.

  “But why can’t you go with us?” They all whined at the same time.

  Sapphire nervously licked her lips and glance around for help. Since she was alone and it was obvious that help was not forthcoming, she had no idea how to handle these children. What did she say to them beyond the truth? They must return to their parents.

  Uncertain if her words convinced the children or not, Sapphire had no choice but to send them home. What would she do with three small children? Never mind that they must return to Earth to close the rift.

  Reaching out, she waved her arms. Using more intricate arm movements than usual, she drew out the opening of the rift to make sure it was strong enough to see through to the other side. The people on Earth wouldn’t see a thing until the children stepped through, but she would see them. The children watched, rapt as she drew on the universal power and stepped back. Power arced and sparked as it swirled around the room, a small hole opened between the worlds, getting larger and larger.

  Sapphire looked through to the other side. It wasn’t something she usually did, but then, she usually didn’t give a damn where the humans landed when she threw them through to the other side. It was easier to think of them as little more than targets. If she kept herself aloof, she could manage to keep her conscience from hurting. Not that she should worry about her conscience. If it weren’t for humans, she and her sisters wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place.

  A woman knelt on the floor in the debarkation room, her head bowed and resting in her hands. She sobbed uncontrollably as a man squatted next to her, his arm around her shoulders, his face filled with sorrow.

  “If what the scientists say is true, Lena, they will send the children home when they find them. They must.” Reaching out, the man stroked her hair.

  “Stop it!” Lena moved away from him. “You don’t understand. Our children didn’t go through the rift. Since they were born on the other side, they could stay with no consequences.” She turned her tear-ravaged face upward to look into the man’s eyes. “Robbie, what if they decide to keep our children the way these…” She paused for a moment and looked around with contempt. “The way these scientists told us that we could have a new life on a new world?”

  Sapphire stepped back again, then looked at the three little ones. For just a blink of a moment, she thought about keeping the children just because she could, then fell to her knees. What was she thinking? She would be no better than those who stole her and her sisters away from their mother’s womb.

  Lifting her shaking hand, she pointed at the woman. “Is that your mother?” She knew it was. She only wanted the children to confirm it.

  They all nodded. The tallest, whom Sapphire assumed was the oldest, stepped forward to peer through the portal. Cupping her hands round her mouth, she called, “Mama! We’re right here. Can’t you hear me?”

  Sapphire shook her head. “They cannot hear or see you, little one. I opened the rift in such a way that we can see and hear them, but they will not know we are here until you step through to the other side.”

  The girl stiffened, drawing herself up to her full height. “My name is Liselle.” She waved her arm behind her, obviously indicating her siblings. “My sister’s name is Jenelina and my brother is Robbie Junior. We just call him RJ…”

  Giving them a smile she hoped was appealing and not frightening, Sapphire stood and wiped her leathers off. “I am Sapphire. I have siblings as well. Sisters, as a matter of fact. I have a lot of them.”

  “Why did the scientists lie?” RJ asked as his lip began to quiver.

  He may have tried to appear older and brave, but he was still a child with a child’s fears and insecurities. “We don’t want to stay here.”

 

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