"And I'm in there because of my bond with you." It gave her a sense of peace to say that. "I'm glad we're mated," she said, speaking the truth for the first time. "I know that's selfish, but I'm glad."
"Good, because there's no getting out."
It was at that moment that Sascha's eyes flicked open. Talin was startled to see the blackness cascading with color. The wonder of it astonished her, made her want to reach out and touch the screen in delight.
But what Sascha had to say eclipsed even those magnificent eyes. "Clay was right."
Her knees would have collapsed had Clay not been holding her upright. "What?" she croaked out. "Did you see something?"
"It was hard," Sascha said, her smile growing so wide it was in danger of cracking her face. "Your mind is different - we thought it was because you were human, and we were mostly right, but our preconception kept us from seeing the whole truth. You don't suck in the biofeedback the same way a Psy does. The flows aren't obvious. It's like" - she paused her rapid-fire explanation - "like you need a misty rain, while we need a downpour. Do you see?"
Talin was so dazed, she had trouble formulating speech. "Not enough to die immediately without, but not quite right unless I have it?"
"Yes!" Sascha's expression glowed with excitement. "What we saw around you is a slight, very slight, draw on the biofeedback. Your brain is taking in what it needs through your link to Clay and therefore to the Web." Her eyes sharpened. "Are you feeling much better?"
She didn't have to consider the question. "Yes. I can think so clearly. Ever since - " Blood rushed out of her face. "Clay's headache."
"That explains it," Sascha said, smile not dimming. "There had to be a strong draw at some point, because, if we go by your symptoms, your brain was well into starvation mode. I didn't notice a shift in the Web that would have alerted me to the truth, but that's because you took it directly from Clay."
Terror spread through Talin's veins. "Did I hurt him?"
"No, no, it's like a blood donation," Sascha assured her. "If you'd been taking in that much constantly, it would have hurt him."
"Can it kill?" Talin asked, mouth full of cotton wool.
Sascha's eyes grew poignant. "Yes. For the PsyNet born, yes. But you don't need as much. You would have simply made Clay very tired. As it is, you only took a big bite" - she smiled - "from him once, and he's had time to regenerate. With the bond settled in the Web, you're soaking it in from the general extraneous buildup, like me and Faith. It harms no one."
"Okay." Now that she knew Clay was fine, it was all she could say, her mind numb.
"Clay," Lucas said, "how about we pick this up tomorrow?" His eyes were intent on Talin. "I think your Tally needs time to recover, and my Sascha darling needs to work off some of her excitement."
There was a gasp and a chuckle from someone, but Talin was barely aware of it. As she was barely aware of Clay ending the call, peeling off her robe, and dropping it to the floor along with his own clothes. But when he kissed her, it was as if a switch had been thrown inside her. She came to life and what exuberant life it was. She laughed and they played and when it was over, she lay with her head on his heart, and thought about forever.
Chapter 48
In the PsyNet, the third emergency session of the Psy Council was taking place.
"We can't have a repeat of the situation we had last year with Enrique," Shoshanna said, referring to the Councilor whose death had led to Kaleb's ascension. "We need to swear in a new Councilor before anyone starts questioning the true circumstances of Marshall's death."
"Yes," Tatiana agreed. "Though the populace does seem to be accepting the explanation of accidental death very well."
"There's one more thing we need to discuss," Ming interrupted. "We may have a situation with Ashaya Aleine."
"She's controlled," Kaleb said, brushing the issue aside. "We have her son, correct?"
"Yes. However, I'm not sure how long that's going to hold her."
"But it does for now," Nikita responded. "Shoshanna's right - we need a new Councilor fast."
"Agreed," Ming replied. "But unlike with Kaleb, there's no one ready to step into the role. We considered Gia Khan in the last round, but she's since proven weak, unable to stop unrest in her local region."
A taut silence.
"I have a suggestion," Kaleb said. "He was once a Council candidate, is now powerful enough that he defies us, and he's strong enough to take on Marshall's responsibilities."
"You're talking about Anthony Kyriakus," Shoshanna said. "The man is a thorn in our side, but you could be right. Make him Council and we gain access to his considerable resources and business network."
"He turned down a Council seat once before," Nikita reminded them. "He may not accept now."
Kaleb considered his next words with care. "After the confirmation of Marshall's death, I had a discussion with Anthony."
"Without Council authorization?"
"Give me credit, Ming," Kaleb responded. "There are ways to gauge interest without saying anything of the least note."
"Your conclusion?" Tatiana asked.
"He may be willing."
Shoshanna's mental star swirled in thought. "He has considerable contact with changelings - he's still subcontracting work to his daughter, Faith."
"That," Nikita said, "could be another advantage. He has to have gained a lot of knowledge about the cats."
"A good point," Ming acceded. "I have no reservations against him as a candidate."
"I have one," Henry said. "Like Nikita, he also has a daughter who has dropped out of the Net. Will that weaken the Council's image?"
"In my opinion, no," Kaleb responded. "He's already proven he can hold us at bay. He has more businesses backing him than any of us."
"I agree," Shoshanna said. "I vote yes."
One by one, the others all agreed.
A day later, Anthony Kyriakus, leader of the influential NightStar Group and father of the most powerful F-Psy in the world, accepted their offer.
At the same time, Ashaya Aleine unfolded a plain pen and paper note hidden inside the latest batch of equipment she had requested. Keenan would be flown in for his next scheduled visit, but the one after that would be by car.
She hoped the man who had held a gun on her the night she'd set Jonquil Duchslaya and Noor Hassan free had told the truth. Because they would have only one chance. Ming was watching her. She had overplayed her hand, and now the Councilor was inches away from enforcing her obedience through the most vicious of mental violations.
EPILOGUE
Two days after the night that had given her forever, Talin met with the specialists at Shine and they put her through a rigorous series of tests that confirmed Clay's hunch and Sascha's diagnosis.
"Your need for the feedback is so small," Dr. Herriford exclaimed, "it wasn't picked up on the initial tests we run on every Shine child." He shoved a hand through his hair, making the bright orange stuff stick up in untidy tufts. "We're going to have to redo that testing. If you slipped through, so will others." His distress was open. "We'll need to start doing periodic checks as students age, too, rather than just the intake scans."
Talin had every intention of helping reboot the system, but first she wanted solid answers. "So I don't have to worry about any of the symptoms?" No more fugues, no more having her sense of choice taken from her. Her hand curled around Clay's, held on tight.
"Everything you've told me," the doc said, glancing at his small electronic notepad, "the fugues, the lost memories, even the mysterious allergic reaction, they're all symptoms of Process Degeneration."
"Doc," Clay said, cutting to the heart of the matter, "is she going to be okay?"
Herriford beamed. "Whatever you've done to address the feedback issue - and if you changelings ever decide to share, please let me know - "
Clay growled.
"Right." The doctor smiled on, undaunted. "I'm happy to say that Ms. McKade is in perfect health. No Forgotten weirdness - you wouldn't believe the things I see."
She jumped off the examining table. "Thanks, Dr. Herriford."
The doctor's handshake was warm, solid. "By the way, did Dev have a chance to catch you up on everything?"
Talin shook her head. "We got the CliffNotes version. Why?"
"Well, this isn't common knowledge," Herriford said, "but Dev told me to be honest with you. You know about the power discrepancy?"
She nodded. "A rare few descendants have a massive amount."
"Yeah, but that's not the interesting thing." The doctor's eyes were sparkling. "These kids, they're not being born with a lesser version of Psy abilities, they're being born with completely new abilities."
"How is that possible?" She glanced at Clay and suddenly had her answer. "Mixed blood. The genetics are intermingling and creating something new." Something beautiful.
The doctor nodded. "There were instances of such spontaneous abilities appearing in the PsyNet pre-Silence - our theory is that these changes stopped because the Council has a firm line on eliminating any mutations from the gene pool."
"But that's not happening with the Forgotten."
"No." The doctor's smile grew. "What we're now seeing are the results of a long-term genetic shift. In some cases, it's as if the Psy genes express themselves by intensifying the bearers' human strengths." He gave Clay a pleading look. "Are you sure you can't find me some changeling - "