CHAPTER THREE

 

James Monroe wasn’t what Nathan had been expecting. For some reason, Nathan had expected the historian to be a bit more…academic looking. And older. Not a well-tanned, classically handsome athlete with a squared jaw and blue eyes.

Something more than his looks bothered Nathan. Monroe wasn’t just a historian. Nathan couldn’t say for sure how he knew—instinct probably—but he’d been a hired gun long enough to trust his gut. He was sure there was more to Monroe than this academic guise. Distrust and suspicion were immediate and intense.

Hanging back while Ti’ann and Krin spoke with the man, Nathan observed the group with Monroe. One extra person than had been expected. He studied each, trying to guess which one was the addition. Three women and one other man.

The man had short, brown hair, a thick mustache and beard, and dark eyes behind thin glasses. Nathan’s lip twitched at the affectation. Glasses for vision correction hadn’t been required in a century and a half, but recently academic types had taken to wearing them again as an accessory. Just another in a series of fashion trends Nathan didn’t understand. But it told him something about the man’s character that he bothered with fashion. Nathan listened as he was introduced to Ti’ann and Krin as Mike Warez, the geophysicist. One expected person down.

The next to be introduced was Juanita Baker. She shook hands firmly with Ti’ann and Krin but didn’t smile. She had a thick mane of black, curly hair, and an expression just a touch too hard make her attractive. Whatever sensitivity or vulnerability she had was well-hidden. She was the molecular scientist. Also expected.

The natural historian was introduced as Val Hyde, a petit, green-eyed blond who could have been Monroe’s sister. Their features were somewhat alike, square and broad, their coloring similar if not identical. And Val was just as lovely as Monroe was handsome. She greeted Ti’ann and Krin with an infectious grin and an enthusiastic handshake that nearly pulled Ti’ann off her feet.

The little laugh that jumped out of Ti’ann captured Nathan’s full attention. Her face was flushed, her gray eyes sparkled, and her full lips were wet from a quick flick of her tongue.

The sight nearly pulled a groan from him. Her expression conjured remembered images of another time, of throaty laughter and flushed skin. He tried to force himself to look away, but she turned before he could and caught him staring. He held her gaze a moment too long before he made himself face Monroe’s group again. Under different circumstances, he might have smiled at the sudden flush of her cheeks.

The last person to be introduced was a woman named Clare O’Malley. Unlike the other two women, Clare threw her sensuality out for all to see. Her tight clothing hugged generous curves. Her wavy red hair was pulled up in a wildly exploded bun with sexy tendrils hanging free to frame a pale, stunning face dusted with faint freckles over her nose. The freckles were the only thing marring her otherwise porcelain skin and the one thing that made Clare attractive as far as Nathan was concerned.

The woman swiveled up to shake Krin and Ti’ann’s hands then draped a slim arm across Mike Warez’s shoulders. Monroe didn’t mention what Clare did, and no one seemed comfortable enough to ask. But Nathan had a pretty good idea from her body language why Clare had been invited on this little expedition. He had a feeling Mike wouldn’t have come along otherwise.

She wasn’t what she seemed either though. Like Monroe, Clare was hiding behind her charm. Her chocolate-colored eyes were carefully hooded, alert to everything going on around her. Nathan made a mental note to watch Ms. O’Malley. Closely.

He glanced back at Ti’ann in time to catch her watching him. Her expression went through a series of contortions too fast for him to interpret before she looked away. He frowned, but Monroe spoke, drawing back his attention.

“I don’t mean to seem abrupt,” James said, “but we’ve come a long way to see this anomaly of yours. May we take a look at your findings now?”

Nathan was looking forward to this part, too. Ti’ann’s reluctance to tell him anything about the “anomaly” had been irritating, not because she was resistant to sharing information with him but because he was going to find out what they were hiding anyway. She’d been evasive for the sake of it and it did make his job more difficult.

Ti’ann shook off whatever had upset her a moment ago and answered with a courteous, “Of course. The imaging tent is this way.”

Monroe’s group trailed Ti’ann and Krin to the tent. Nathan took up the rear, watching the body language of the historian and his group. Monroe’s excitement seemed to radiate from him, infecting even the unsmiling Juanita. Whatever Ti’ann had found, Monroe obviously thought it was important.

When they entered the imaging tent, Ti’ann went to the largest viewing screen, sat in front of a small console, and called up a series of files. As this was his first opportunity to see the mysterious discovery, Nathan found himself crowding close to the screen with the others. On the slate gray background, a multi-colored image emerged. He stared for several minutes before it resolved into a group of boxes and spheres stacked in layers on top of and around each other, the various colors a visual indication of different elements making up the thing. Whatever the hell it was.

He was no expert, but that image didn’t look like any fossil he’d ever seen before. In fact, it looked a bit like the structure of one of the safe houses he and Alex had once had in the Sapphire Mountain Range—before they’d blown it up. This was a lot bigger though. He glanced at the scale reading at the bottom left corner of the screen. The object was twenty kilometers long at its thickest point and nearly three kilometers deep.

“Holy shit,” Monroe breathed. “It has DNA and non-organic components?”

Nathan’s gaze flicked to the list of elements to the right of the image. He couldn’t make sense of most of it anymore than he’d been able to interpret the color code on the image itself, but the genetic material was obvious.

Val pushed forward, studying the structure over Ti’ann’s shoulder, her entire body vibrating with intensity. “Can we see it now? This is a file right? Can we see what it looks like at this moment?”

“Sure.” Ti’ann hit a series of keys on a pad next to the viewer, then swiveled around, the movement forcing Val to take a step back, and flick a button on a large rectangular box festooned with colored lights and toggle switches. Three of the lights flickered from yellow to green and a green light went red. She knocked two toggle switches up and flipped three down with a quick swipe of her hand. Another two lights turned green.

“Give it a sec,” she said, smiling up at Val. “The scan sensor node is still dropped to the same depth as this image so it shouldn’t take too long.”

They all waited with varying degrees of impatience, Val practically bouncing in place.

“Do you know what it is?” Ti’ann asked the anxious woman.

“Maybe. No. Well, maybe.” She bit her lip and paced back to Monroe.

They didn’t speak, but she stared at him intently for a moment, and Nathan had the distinct impression information was passed in that look. Juanita put a hand on Val’s shoulder, a gentling gesture that seemed at odds with his first impression of the molecular scientist.

“I’ve never seen this mix of elements before,” Mike murmured. When Ti’ann moved the filed data on the structure to a second, smaller view screen, Mike moved close to study the list. “The Quinn’s Beryl Crystal and Pyri-Stone is unique to this area.” He moved his hand down the list of inorganic material. “But coramite is extremely rare in this region, isn’t it? When was the most recent geological survey done?”

“Less than two months ago,” Krin said. “I checked the data myself. No natural reserves of coramite were detected.”

“Strange,” Mike murmured.

“Is there any data on human habitation of this area, James?” Ti’ann turned in her seat to address the historian. “Just after the first colonists arrived maybe? Something we wouldn’t have come across in our searches.”

“No. Humans didn’t move into this part of the planet until about fifty years ago. There was a pioneer settlement just north of where Gremblewreath is now. They surveyed and mined for lanimium in the northern valleys, but most records indicate they couldn’t find anything of sufficient value this far south so didn’t bother coming down this way.”

“Is it possible some of them might? Could this be a human construction that wasn’t on record?”

He frowned at the filed image. “I can’t discount the possibility with absolute certainty, Dr. Jones. But I doubt it. All the records indicate the settlers didn’t move farther than about five kilometers south of Gremblewreath’s current location. Obviously, people have come down this far on surveys and such—your own dig being a good example. But there’s no evidence to suggest humans settled here.”

“You think that’s a building?” Juanita asked, turning away from the still bouncing Val to face Ti’ann.

Ti’ann shrugged, a gesture that made her long braid shift over her shoulder to fall down her back. Nathan watched for a moment, distracted from the conversation, struck by an overwhelming need to undo the braid and run her thick hair through his fingers. He snapped back from his fantasy at the sound of her voice.

“I hesitate to call it architecture when the genetic material is so prominent. At the same time, it doesn’t look like any fossil I’ve ever seen before.” She glanced at Krin, a frown creasing her brow.

Krin nodded and turned to Monroe. “Dr. Jones found a paper that was published about fifteen years ago. In it, there was some information about the change in Shifter cellular structure at death. Specifically, the way Shifter cells instantaneously petrify.”

Nathan’s attention zeroed in on Val’s shocked gasp. Krin’s reference to Narava’s much debated native species had Nathan’s instincts jumping and suspicions rising. Val’s reaction, though, wasn’t surprise at the mention of the Shifters. Her shock followed the news about Shifters petrifying at death.

“How would they know something like that?” Val said. “Who were they? Where did they get their data? Was it Shifter Research Center?”

Val’s questions came so fast, Krin had to raise a hand to slow her down. “The researchers were doctors Ripley and Hesh. I haven’t heard of Dr. Hesh, but Dr. Ripley is one of the more prominent researchers—” Krin sneered the word, “—at SRC.”

Monroe stepped closer to Val when she started trembling, another response from the small woman that was more extreme than Nathan would have expected. His eyes narrowed. Something there…

“There was debate about how they’d obtained the samples,” Ti’ann said, also staring hard at the natural historian, “as there’s no evidence of Shifter fossils. At least, not that we know of.”

Her back straightened just enough Nathan could tell she was intensely interested in their reactions.

The way Monroe’s group dealt with the mention of Shifters and the sudden nervous energy filling the imaging tent confirmed Nathan’s suspicions. There was more to this group than their academic credentials. He kept his insight to himself while he watched.

The only person in the room who hadn’t tensed at the mention of Shifters was Clare O’Malley. She stood to one side, observing in a controlled, neutral way. A lot like the way he was watching the group, he thought, surprised. Could she be their security? He’d seen more outrageous mercenaries. It was possible. Especially given how cool she was in the midst of the tension.

Her only outward sign of emotion came when Val started pacing the tent. She crossed to the young woman and took her hand, stilling her restless movements at the same time as giving assurance. “You okay, Val?”

The small woman almost smiled. “I’m either very good or not very good at all.”

The molecular echo imaging scanner announced it had finished its run and was ready to display the collected pattern. They all turned to the screen, watching quietly as the image solidified.

A list of elements present in the object scrolled beside the image, matching the saved file. Monroe and Warez leaned in close to scan the data. Val stared at the image as if her life depended on the final picture.

“What do you really think this is, Dr. Jones?” Juanita asked. “In light of the Ripley and Hesh paper.”

Ti’ann answered without taking her gaze from the image forming on the view screen. “I can’t help but wonder if maybe it’s some sort of Shifter graveyard.”

The tent fell silent, leaving Ti’ann’s words to hover in the air.

 

As the image took shape, Ti’ann studied it, frowning. When it came to full resolution, she sucked in a sharp breath.

“Krin,” she whispered, without looking over her shoulder. She glanced at the saved image, then back to the newly formed picture. “Do you see it?”

“Uh-huh.”

She looked up to see him standing at her shoulder, his gaze also darting between the new and old images.

“I don’t believe it.”

“What is it?” Nathan asked from behind them.

“The two readouts aren’t identical,” Monroe answered for her. “The new one is slightly different. There.” He pointed at one of the box shapes. “There seems to be something…more there now.”

“It’s changed? That sort of blows the graveyard theory, doesn’t it?” Clare said. “Unless another’s just died in the last day without anyone noticing.”

Ti’ann glanced at Clare. Her mildly sardonic response drew a scathing look from Juanita but the rest of the group ignored her.

Ti’ann turned back to the readout, too caught up in her own paradigm shift to worry about the others. If the image really had changed, then it definitely couldn’t be a fossil. Unless Clare was right. But how could a Shifter have gotten that far underground?

“Ti’ann, do you have a flask nearby?”

Busy debating possibilities, she didn’t immediately notice the commotion going on behind her until Nathan said her name.

She spun around to see Mike Warez holding a trembling Val, who’d dropped to her knees . Her green eyes were huge in her small face as she stared at the imaging screen.

“I think she might need an anazepam,” Nathan said.

He stood near her chair, his gaze on the natural historian. But his body heat radiated out to sizzle over Ti’ann’s skin. She swallowed back her reaction to Nathan and rose from her seat.

“I’ll be right back.”

Monroe held up a hand, stopping Ti’ann in her tracks. “Val will be fine. Drugs won’t be necessary.”

The small woman nodded, taking deep, slow breathes. “I’m allergic to most meds anyway.” She managed a weak smile and, with Mike’s help, got back to her feet.

The minute Val looked under control again, Ti’ann’s curiosity got the best of her.

Turning back to Krin, Ti’ann asked, “What do you think this is?” She tried to remain calm but excitement leaked through, despite her best efforts. Her stomach tightened as a myriad of theories ran through her mind. When Krin’s only response was a shrug, Ti’ann faced Val, intent on questioning her. She stopped, however, when she saw the way Val and James stared at each other, saying nothing. The expressions on their faces were serious and disturbed.

After a few silent minutes, as the tension in the room mounted, James finally shook his head. “It’s up to you, Val. If you feel you can trust them…”

Ti’ann frowned, wondering why trust was required, but before she could ask, Val straightened her shoulders and spoke.

“What I’m going to tell you can’t leave this tent,” she said, focusing first on Krin and Nathan before finally settling her startling green gaze on Ti’ann. “Dr. Jones, this is highly delicate information. If this were to be made public…” She paused, leaving the repercussion of exposure unsaid, the weight of the consequences heavier because of Val’s silence. “Can I have your word that you won’t reveal anything said here?”

Ti’ann took the request as seriously as it was given. She thought hard about whether or not they’d be able to keep an obviously important secret.

Finally, she said, “I’ll give you my word, Val. But—” She held up a hand when the woman would have spoken again. “But there are twenty other people in this camp and I won’t be able to vouch for them. Is this secret of yours something that’s likely to get out when we dig?”

Val shrugged. “Depends on what we find. I’m not positive what that is.” She pointed at the view screen. “I’ve got my suspicions. My hopes. But until we know whether my suspicions are true or not, I can’t allow this information to be made public.”

“And if your suspicions are proven true?”

“Then I doubt we’d be able to keep the secret.”

“Okay, then.” Ti’ann nodded. “For the moment, I think Krin and I will be able to keep your information quiet. And Mr. Longfeather was hired for his discretion.” She tried to ignore the way he shifted next to her. She didn’t dare look up to see his expression.

Monroe flashed them a look, his gaze turning reflective, but he didn’t comment. The rest of the group waited quietly, leaving the final decision with Val.

“Okay. I’ll trust you with this, Dr. Jones. I think I can.” She paused, her head tilted to one side. “In the Senate debates over the cognizance of Shifters, one of the arguments against Shifter intelligence is that there’s never been any evidence of habitations—actual buildings or structures built by Shifters. There’s a very good reason for that.”

Ti’ann’s heart started pounding. She locked gazes with Val and hung on her every word.

“What buildings and structures there were,” Val went on, “those that were obvious enough to be discovered by humans, were destroyed. Not all buildings were discovered. Shifter architecture, like Shifter nature, is designed to blend into the environment. They took advantage of their surroundings and developed whole cities that merged flawlessly with those surroundings. But the two biggest cities were destroyed within twenty years of each other.”

Shifters built cities.

Ti’ann felt like she’d taken a punch to the stomach at the revelation. She’d never heard rumors of such a thing outside the wild ravings of the tabloids. And no one took those seriously. Even the Shifter support groups didn’t back those stories. The realization struck her like a blaster shot—she’d never really believed their anomaly was evidence of Shifter architecture. Now to discover they built cities. Whole cities.

“How was this kept secret? How is it possible?” Ti’ann asked.

“When the right people, with enough power and influence, make sure evidence and records are erased, they stay erased,” Monroe said. His voice was hard with disgust.

“But after all this time? Surely someone would have uncovered the information by now. All the work the Shifter support groups have put into protecting the species, I can’t believe they wouldn’t know about this.”

Monroe looked decidedly uncomfortable and Ti’ann narrowed her eyes. “Do they know?”

Val ignored her question and continued with the story. “Humans had only settled Narava a few decades earlier. The span of one generation. The presence of Shifters went unnoticed for a long time. When a few curious Shifters inadvertently revealed themselves to humans, the colonists were terrified. Almost immediately, the killing of Shifters was approved, though it wasn’t made law for another thirty years. Unfortunately for the human hunters, Shifters were used to being prey and were perfectly capable of evading detection.

“The first city was discovered by accident. The group that stumbled across it was horrified by the reality facing them. If Shifters could build cities then they could also think and reason. If they could think and reason, and because they could hide so well, what was to stop them from wiping out the human population? With that fear motivating them, the hunters moved in with weaponry unlike anything the Shifters had ever seen. They destroyed the city and killed thousands of Shifters.”

It was so quiet in the tent, the only sound Ti’ann heard was the quiet whir of the temp regulators.

Val continued. “I’d like to think those humans were ashamed of the carnage and that’s why all records of the incident were destroyed. But it’s more likely they wanted to prevent the public from becoming aware of Shifter intelligence. Some would say to prevent hysteria.” Val shrugged, her opinion of that theory clear.

Ti’ann found herself sitting again but didn’t remember dropping back into the chair. She looked around and noticed most of Monroe’s people stared at the ground. They probably knew this story as well as Val. Clare was the only one who seemed interested. Her attention was subtle, but intensity underlay her casual curiosity.

“A group was formed to look for more cities,” Val continued. “It was made up of those who destroyed the first city as well as others who shared their opinion. The public knew nothing of this…organization. As far as we know, they don’t even have a name.”

“What happened then?” Ti’ann asked, unable to curb a morbid need to know everything.

“Detector technology didn’t exist at the time. Nothing had been found that consistently identified a shape-changed Shifter. The group spent years combing the planet for other cities. Some Shifters were able to disguise their homes further or moved altogether. Some still believed a truce could be negotiated with humans.”

“Jesus, Val,” Krin said, his voice sharp with shock. “How the hell do you know all this? How could you know what was going on within Shifter communities back then? Hell, Shifters having communities period is a surprise to me.”

Nathan leaned close to Ti’ann’s ear and whispered, “I’d like to know why you didn’t tell me these people were part of a Shifter support group.”

The heat from his breath sent chills over her neck and spine. It took a great deal of will power to keep from jumping away from him, or melting into him, despite the underlying threat in his comment.

Ignoring him, she focused on Val but suspected Nathan would demand an explanation from her later.

Val glanced at Nathan and frowned as if considering something.

“As a security person, do you maintain confidentiality of clients after you’ve finished your job?” she finally asked.

Nathan straightened. “I wouldn’t get much future work if I didn’t.”

“So anything you see and hear while you’re working for Dr. Jones and Dr. Freemont will remain confidential?”

“Yes, but I’ve already guessed you’re part of a Shifter support group.”

Val actually smiled. “I’d have been very disappointed in your powers of observation if you hadn’t figured that out by now, Mr. Longfeather.” The woman laughed. “I’ve revealed much that may or may not come to public attention over the next few months. There’s little to no concrete proof of what I say so not many people would believe it. Yet. But there’s more to be told, more that may come to light as we investigate this.” She gestured at the imaging screen and the current representation of the anomaly. “I need to be sure I can rely on your future discretion.”

Ti’ann’s excitement over what Val told them, the sheer joy of possibly discovering a Shifter city was dampened by a slight tingling of unease. What else could Val tell them? What could possibly be more confidential than the information she’d already imparted?

Without meaning to, Ti’ann looked up at Nathan. Strong and solid, his presence was a lot more reassuring than it should have been. All her hurt feelings and discomfort over their past paled compared to the thought of having someone close who could actually protect them all from trouble. She was glad Krin had insisted on calling Nathan in. She was relieved to have him in camp.

Nathan glanced down then, meeting her gaze. She couldn’t read anything in his expression. But even without touching her, his stare sent shockwaves of sensation across her skin, raising the memory of his fingertips gliding down her throat, over her collar bone, circling her breast. She swallowed hard, hoping he didn’t notice her response, yet unable to look away this time. Her already thumping heartbeat kicked up an extra few beats.

After what felt like an excruciatingly long moment, he turned his attention back to Val, and Ti’ann could breathe again. She hadn’t realized she’d been holding her breath.

So much for reassured feelings.

Blinking back a haze of lust and confusion, she forced herself to pay attention to the moment at hand. Now was most definitely not the time to get distracted by Nathan Longfeather.