Storm of Arranon Fire and Ice (10 page)

“Erynn,” Nev called from a partially
curtained cubicle without glancing at her. “Give me a moment, and
I’ll take you to see Kira.” His expression was again intent. He
leaned over a small form. Blood tinged the edges of a clean
material drape.

Erynn stayed back, watching as Nev closed a
wide, gaping wound.

When he had repaired the main damage, Nev
stared up at Erynn and smiled. “Young Kent here thought he could
walk through glass.”

A small voice came from behind the drawn
curtain. “It was an accident. I didn’t really try to walk through
the glass.”

Erynn came closer. A blond boy relaxed on a
narrow bed as Nev expertly sealed the thin line of the injury.

The boy smiled up at Erynn, his face red. “My
brother pushed me. We were wrestling.”

“Oh, well, I guess you shouldn’t do that
anymore, at least not around glass.” Erynn smiled down at him.

“All done,” Nev called, tossing the drape on
a small tray. “Good as new. I want you to rest here for a little
while.”

Kent frowned. “Okay. If you say so.”

“I do. I’ll have some juice brought in for
you.”

“I’d rather have Kree.” The young boy
grinned.

“I like Kree too, with lots of ice,” Erynn
said, smiling.

Nev glanced at Erynn and then back to Kent.
“Then Kree it is.”

“Thanks.” Kent’s grin widened as his gaze
darted from Nev to Erynn.

Nev went to a sink, stripped off his gloves,
and then washed his hands. His long hair fanned over his back. It
shone, streaks of sunshine reflecting in the overhead lights.
Jaer’s hair had a shine, too. A dark brown so deep it seemed to
have depth. She sighed and turned away.

Where was Jaer
?
Was he with
her
?
Stop it
!

Her hands fisted. She shouldn’t think about
such things. Jaer was gone to her.

Wasn’t he
?

Nev stepped in front of her, staring down at
her fisted hands. “What’s wrong? Did the blood bother you?”

“No, I’m…” She shook her head. “The blood
didn’t bother me.”

He gazed sideways at her. “Want to see
Kira?”

“Yes.”

Kira sat propped up in bed, holding a reader.
The holograph pages filled with words, and bright colorful pictures
changed to the next page as her eyes reached the bottom line. She
appeared as if nothing had ever happened to her. The gash on her
forehead had completely healed.

“Nice work,” Erynn whispered to Nev.

“Why, thank you.” That smile again, all light
and charm, burst over his face.

“Erynn,” Kira squealed. “Thanks for coming to
visit me. I am so bored.”

“How are you, Kira? You look great.” Erynn
moved to stand at the bedside.

“Thanks. I’m good.” Kira frowned, and it gave
her face a pouty expression.

I bet men just love that look
.

“I don’t know what happened. I’m no
help.”

“No, that’s a good thing, Kira. It’s better
you don’t remember.” Erynn glanced around the room. “I’m glad
you’re going to be all right.”

“I’m getting out of here tomorrow.” Kira
adjusted a pillow behind her head. “Would you come see me again
before I do?”

“If I can. My schedule comes out this
afternoon, so—”

“Oh, I’d love it if you would.” Kira pulled
her fingers through her blonde hair and tossed her head. She gazed
at Erynn from under long lashes. “Your Jaer was here earlier. I had
to tell him I couldn’t give him a description of the man.”

Erynn stiffened. “Jaer’s not mine.” Her voice
was harsh, and her hands fisted again.

Kira drew back, blue eyes wide.

Erynn took in a breath and let it shudder
out. “We’re just friends, nothing more.”

“Seemed more than friends to me,” Kira said,
picking up her reading.

“Yeah, well, things change. I’ll see you
later, Kira,” Erynn lied. She knew she wouldn’t come back.

Nev stood just outside the room, waiting.
“So, that’s it.”

“What?” Erynn asked, frowning up at him.

“Why you don’t come here to see me.” He
grinned. His expression made him appear young, boyish.

“What are you talking about?” Erynn asked as
she continued down the hall.

“Go to dinner with me, then.” His features
sobered, turning serious.

Erynn stopped and faced him. “What?”

“Dinner, you, me. Want to?” He glanced down
the hall. “I like being around you, Erynn. I’ll even cook.” He
smiled. “I’m pretty good.”

Am I ready for this? For what
?
What
is this
?
I shouldn’t even be considering this, but then…It’s
just dinner. Why not
?

“I guess we could.”

ERYNN’S BROW WRINKLED. SHE BIT her lower lip
while the idea formed in her mind. “It could work,” she whispered.
She smiled and hurried to the hangar bay. With Cale’s approval, she
and the computer technician on duty spent the rest of the day
equipping her Interceptor with live cameras. From inside and out,
her helmet to the wing tips, everything was covered. Then they
integrated the incoming video to one feed, accessible by DVSL.
Anyone watching would be able to experience what it was like to fly
an Interceptor. Every stomach-dropping, head-spinning,
adrenaline-rushing, non-stop moment of speed could be felt as if
actually in a fighter.

Erynn rushed into the Medical Unit as Nev
came out of a cubicle. He paused outside the curtain, forehead
creased, eyes narrowed, entering information on a small handheld
recorder. She slowed and stopped, not wanting to disturb him.

Maire emerged from the exam room, pushing the
drape back for an older man flexing his hand. “Go to your quarters
and rest.” She patted his arm. “You’ll be able to return to your
duties tomorrow.” She saw Erynn and smiled. Maire spun to Nev,
taking the recorder from his hands. Her green eyes glittered with
amusement. “I can finish this. You’ve been going all day without a
break. Go.” She tossed her head toward Erynn and golden-brown hair
swung over her shoulder. “Go.”

Nev frowned, glancing in the direction she
had indicated. “Erynn.” His voice was a whisper, a breath, a
prayer. His silver-blue eyes widened, and he smiled.

Erynn hurried forward. “I have a question
about Cace.” Nev’s smile crashed like a plummeting Interceptor. The
disappointment clouding his face made her wince. She plunged into
the reason she’d come. “I’m sorry, Nev. But I did something, for
Cace, and I need to ask you if it’s all right.”

He nodded, his expression somber, his hands
clasped in front of him. “What did you do?”

She bit her lower lip. “I want to take him
for a flight in an Interceptor.” Erynn proceeded to tell him what
she had done. She watched Nev’s face. His eyes narrowed, and his
jaw set. She was sure he was about to tell her no. She sighed and
held up her hands. “Okay, maybe later. When he’s stronger— ”

“Now, wait. I didn’t say no. Give me a moment
to think about this.” Nev’s brow creased. “What does Cale
think?”

Erynn grinned. “Cale thinks it’s a great
idea. He’s going to let anyone who wants to watch.”

“When do you fly again?”

“Tomorrow morning.”

“Let’s go talk to Cace,” Nev said, smiling.
He reached out and took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers.

First light kissed treetops bursting into a
vibrant green. Rays of morning sunlight wrapped the purple mountain
peaks in a lovers embrace. Fingers of golden illumination moved
forward against a pink and orange sky, caressing the white skin of
an Interceptor sitting alone on the scramble pad. The DVSL glowed
with the dawn and brightened the small space of Cace’s room.

Erynn handed Cace a helmet. “It’s going to be
a little big, but you’ll be able to hear what’s going on. And the
best part is, we can talk.”

Cace jumped to his knees, the bed bouncing.
He took the offering as if the helmet would disappear when touched.
He held the hard, protective covering with care, reverence in his
wide brown eyes. “I can wear this, and…and talk to you while you’re
flying? Wow, thanks, Captain Yager.” He clutched the bulky shape to
his thin chest.

Erynn reached out, brushing hair from his
eyes. “Sure. I’m going to need you. When I fly over the lake, I
want you to tell me what you see. And call me Erynn. We’re working
together now.”

Nev stood by the door, catching Erynn as she
left Cace’s room. He pulled her into the hall, cupping her face in
his hands. “Be careful.” He kissed the top of her head and walked
away to sit with Cace.

A hush followed Erynn from the hangar bay to
the scramble pad. All eyes watched in anticipation of what they
were about to witness. Erynn climbed the steps to the cockpit,
picked her helmet off the seat, and jumped in. The canopy hummed
closed, locking in place with a quiet click.

“You’re clear for scramble, Captain Yager.”
The voice was mechanical in the headset.

“Copy. Clear for scramble.” Erynn flipped
switches. The Interceptor’s engine whined to life with an
escalating roar. The panel blinked, brightening. Red, green, and
yellow lights exploded across her field of vision. She feathered
the controls in her gloved hands. The fighter rose off the scramble
pad, sliding toward the edge, and dropped. At first falling, she
pulled the throttle back, rotated the stick, and spun, rising high
into the blue sky, continuing to spin. Contrails swirled off the
Interceptor’s wing tips, creating a whirling vortex behind her. The
brilliant orb of the sun and the deep-blue of the sky alternated
around the canopy. She leveled the fighter. Trees flashed by below.
Blue static snapped, raced down her arms, and arced across the
sleek body of the fighter. “Cace, how are you?”

Cace giggled. “I’m great, but I think Byan
Nev is going to be sick. My mom quit watching after you went off
the edge.”

Erynn grinned at the picture in her mind.
“Ah, well, tell Byan Nev to close his eyes. I think we should kick
it up a notch, don’t you?”

“Yes, oh yes.”

Erynn rotated ninety degrees to the left and
cut between a stand of trees.

Low and fast, just the way I like
it
.

She came out of the first stand, revolved
right one hundred and eighty degrees, and entered the second
grouping. Electricity snapped between her hands and the controls.
Branches whipped past, swaying wildly in the wind, battling the
current the Interceptor created. She corrected the fighter. The
lake appeared before her, shining silver in the sunlight. “Ready,
Cace?”

“I’m ready, Erynn.” His voice was strong and
sure—like the man he would become.

She dropped over the lake, skimming the
surface. The water chopped and waved, the trees lining the shore
whipped by strong gusts. When she was over the spot she had
designated in her NAV-COM, a red light flashed. She closed her
eyes, took in a deep breath, and held it, praying this would
work.

The lake stilled. She sensed this calm below
her before she actually saw the choppy surface become smooth. Erynn
opened her eyes, turned the fighter in a slow, tight circle, and
spiraled higher, away from the water. Colors separated. Layers
became clear. The dark forms materialized. “Cace, can you see
it?”

“Erynn. How did. . . the wind?”

“Cace, don’t worry about the wind right now.
Can you see the letters A and L?”

“Yeah, Erynn, I see them. But that’s not an A
or an L.”

Everyone in the hangar bay stared, transfixed
at the large DVSL monitor, watching Erynn fly the Interceptor over
the edge of the scramble pad and up into the sky. Some turned away,
only to have their gaze pulled inexorably back to the scene before
them.

Jaer stood with Cale in the control room, his
hands fisted, nails cutting into his palms. He spun to Cale. “She
is being reckless and foolish. Are you going to stop her?”

Cale shook his head and grinned. “She’s fine,
Jaer. This is something Erynn can do.”

When Erynn flipped from the left to the
right, diving into another solid stand of trees, Jaer stumbled back
a step, dropping into an empty seat.

“There’s the lake,” Cale said, stepping
closer to the screen above the long desk in the control room.

Jaer stood with effort, shuffling forward.
The wind stilled, the water calmed and waves smoothed to reflect
the glassy surface of the lake.

“She’s figured out how to affect the
weather,” Cale whispered. “That’s amazing.”

Jaer straightened, frowned, and gritted his
teeth. “She is too low, going too fast. If you are not going to
talk to her, I will.” He stormed out of the control room, his
footfalls pounding down the metal steps to the hangar bay.

Dhoran watched, his head spinning partially
from Erynn’s flying, and partially because of what he’d just
learned. Erynn was of blended parentage, like him. When he saw the
electric currents winding around her, static only those of mixed
heritage could produce, he knew. Cale understood what she was and
must have encouraged her to stay here. The situation, the
relationship between Cale and Erynn, made sense now.

Interesting. She will be useful to me. I
wonder who her Arranon mother is
?

Erynn landed the Interceptor, settling down
on the scramble pad as softly as a drifting snowflake. The smiling
crew rushed stairs to the cockpit as the canopy hummed open. Erynn
slipped off her helmet and climbed out, hurrying down the steps.
She needed to talk with Cace.

“That was great, Erynn,” the first crewmember
said, his voice high.

“Great? Incredible is more like it,” a second
called, her eyes wide.

“Thanks.” Erynn smiled. She tipped her head.
“You really liked it?”

Before they could answer, Jaer stormed
outside through the wide hanger door, his course leading to Erynn.
“Come with me.” His presence and manner intimidated the two
crewmembers. They got busy connecting cables and hoses to Erynn’s
fighter.