Laura Jo Phillips (19 page)

“I see no reason to send you into danger,” he said.  “That is what military personnel are for.”

“Well, happily, what I do is not your business,” Summer replied sweetly.

“You are our Arima,” Maxim snapped.

Summer laughed.  “Yes, so I overheard someone say.  But you have not told me that, nor, by your request, has anyone bothered to explain to me what an Arima is.  Therefore, it means nothing to me.  And if it did, that still does not give you the right to tell me what I can or cannot do.  In spite of everything that has happened this past year, I am not owned.  Furthermore, I will do whatever I am able to see to it that the other women who were abducted are freed.”

By the time Summer was finished speaking she was no longer smiling, but barely holding her voice down, she was so angry.  How dare this man think to dictate her actions?  He didn’t even like her. 

Maxim opened his mouth but Faron rose from his chair and held up a hand.

“Enough,” he said softly.  Maxim turned angry eyes to Faron, but Faron ignored him.  “This is not the time or the place for discussion of these deeply personal matters.”

Maxim clamped his jaw shut and turned away, embarrassed by his inability to control both his temper and his mouth with Summer Whitney.  What in the stars was wrong with him? he wondered.  She had not, in truth, said a single thing wrong during the entire meeting.  Yet, every time she spoke, he grew tense, as though waiting for something rude and embarrassing to come out of her mouth.  If she would just show her true colors and be done with it, then he could relax, he thought to himself.  Well, that and getting away from her scent, he amended.  The aroma of sun warmed grass and spring wildflowers filled the meeting room, causing his body to react in a very uncomfortable manner.

Faron turned to Summer.  “There is a specific reason that we would ask you to go to Li-Hach-Cor,” he said.

“Yes?” Summer asked curiously.

“You mentioned yesterday that you are able to mentally control computers,” Faron said.  “How much control do you have over them?”

“I’ve been able to control basic functions since I was a kid,” Summer said.  “The only time I ever tried to stretch that ability was when I discovered the Controller in my own head.  I have certainly been able to do a lot more with the nano-bots than I ever did with a computer, but I don’t know if that means I can do more with computers or not.”

“Would you be willing to try?” Faron asked.  “To do more with a computer, I mean.”

“I suppose so,” Summer replied.  “But, why?”

“We confiscated the computer system in Lio’s office, and the system at the compound as well,” Faron replied.  “Our tech experts had no problem logging into either system, but, unfortunately, once in, there was nothing there.  Both systems were completely wiped clean.  Council scientists determined that both computers were equipped with a bio-metric recognition device.  The moment a non-authorized person touched them, they erased themselves.”

 “I’ve never even heard of anything like that,” Summer said.  “And I’m sorry, Faron, but I really don’t think I can do anything to recover wiped information.  I will try of course.  Whatever I can do to help, I will do.  I just don’t think it will work.”

 “I thank you for your offer of help, Summer Whitney,” Faron said with a smile.  “It is very much appreciated.  However, we do not want you to try to recover wiped information.  We want you to try to access a system before it is wiped.”

“You think that if I can control the computer telekinetically that it will bypass the bio-metric system,” Summer guessed.

“Yes, that is what we think,” Faron said.  “Or rather, that is what we hope.”

Summer frowned thoughtfully.  “All of those questions you asked earlier about ships and captains and routes that Lio couldn’t answer, you think that information will be in a computer system.”

“Yes,” Faron said, “we do.  What Lio has given us is, I believe, a code key.  If we can get a computer system with the matching information for the codes, we can break this slavery ring.”

Two hours later Summer and Darleen left the meeting room with Lio following obediently behind them.  Summer felt wrung out from the long ordeal, but she had gotten what she and Darleen wanted without having to bargain, and Lio had provided at least some useful information. 

“I’m sorry Maxim is angry with you again,” Darleen said, surprising Summer. 

“Why?” Summer asked.  “It’s not really my problem how the man feels.  I have no idea why he keeps getting so angry with me, and I have even less understanding of why I should care about it. .  I don’t even know the man, though from what I’ve seen so far, he’s bullheaded and stubborn.”

“Well, whatever Maxim thought, Ran certainly seemed amused,” Darleen said. 

“Yes, he certainly did,”  Summer agreed with a grin.  “I don’t really understand that any more than I understand Maxim’s anger, but I did think Maxim was going to smack him there for awhile.”

“Yes, I thought so too,” Darleen replied.  “Whatever had Maxim angry with you, I think Ran’s snickering had him even angrier.” 

 “Do you know where the kitchen is around here?” Summer asked, changing the subject.  “I’m starving.  Then I suppose we need to clean Lio up some.  He really is getting a bit ripe.”

“Yes, the kitchen is this way, and as for Lio, I think the barn idea Maxim had earlier was a good one,” Darleen replied, tossing an unreadable look at Lio before turning and leading the way down the hall. 

Chapter
24

“Faron told me that you claimed Warrior Rights, and that Maxim Katre acknowledged your right to them,” Saige said over lunch.  Summer and Darleen were both a little nervous about eating in front of others, but as only Saige had joined them in the kitchen for lunch, they soon relaxed.

“That’s true,” Summer said.  “But truthfully, I only did it as a means to keep Darleen and Lio with me.  Maxim wanted to take them both away and I was afraid to let that happen.”

“Even so, Warrior Rights is a serious business,” Saige said.  “I can’t believe that Maxim would have granted them unless he believed you to be worthy of them.”

“She handled the pain baton as though she knew how to fight with it,” Darleen said.  “The way she moves is...warrior like.”

Saige narrowed her eyes at Summer.  “Yes, I can see that,” she agreed.

“The closest I have ever come to any weapon before yesterday was reading the books in Father’s library,” Summer insisted.  “I know a lot about weapons because of that, and I know a lot about how they are used, but that’s all.”

 “I think there is more to you than you know, Summer Whitney,” Saige said cryptically.  “However, the important point here is that you requested Warrior Rights, and they were granted.  Therefore, you are required, by Jasani custom and law,
to
go armed as the warrior you are
.”

“What does that mean exactly?” Summer asked warily.

“It means that you have been granted warrior status, and as such, you must always be ready for battle, and must carry your chosen weapon or tool of battle with you at all times.”

“How do you know this?” Summer asked.

“Because I have been granted Warrior Rights,” Saige replied. 

“But you don’t carry a weapon,” Summer pointed out.  “At least, I’ve never seen you with one.”

“I am proficient in the art of
tiketa
, a form of acrobatic kick-fighting.  I do not need to carry a weapon with me because my body itself is my weapon,” Saige explained.  “Since Clan Jasani are shifters, they don’t necessarily need to carry a weapon either, as their alter forms are quite dangerous enough.  However, most Clan Jasani will carry a favored weapon on their persons at all times, and all humans in the Jasani military do so as well.  Is there a weapon you favor above others?”

Summer shook her head slowly, wondering how she was going to bluff her way through this one.  The closest she had ever come to handling a real weapon had been the pain baton the previous day. 

“How about you Darleen?” Saige asked.

“Me?” Darleen squeaked in surprise. 

Saige smiled.  “From what I understand, you also have been granted Warrior Rights, through the Battle Bond,” she said.  “So yes, you need to carry a weapon as well.”

“I have never used a weapon in my life,” Darleen objected.  “I don’t know the first thing about them.”

“I suggest that you two take a walk down to the armory this afternoon and see if you can find something that appeals to you.  It really is very important that you honor the status granted you by carrying a weapon.”

“Just because Maxim agreed to something I asked for on the spur of the moment?” Summer asked doubtfully.

“Maxim Katre is one of the highest ranking officers in the Jasani Military, Summer,” Saige said.  “If he granted you Warrior Rights, the only person I am aware of who might dare to contradict him would be High Prince Garen, and even he would not do so without good cause.”

My name is Alice and I’ve just fallen down the rabbit hole,
Summer thought.
  I don’t know which potion to drink, or which pill to take, but I wish someone would wake me up before I have to decide.

“Okay, where exactly is this armory?” Summer asked, knowing she had little choice in this unless she wanted to risk offending a lot of people.  People she needed to help her rescue those women on Li-Hach-Cor. 

A short time later Summer and Darleen left the Lobos’ residence and, following Saige’s directions, took the graveled path downhill until it intersected with a wider path obviously intended for vehicles.  There was a narrower path alongside it so the women followed that until they topped a low rise and saw a cluster of long, stone buildings in a shallow valley before them.

“So much has changed in the past year,” Darleen commented. 

“Yes?” Summer asked as they stepped off the path and cut down the slope to the valley floor, wading through the tall grass rather than following the path half way around the valley to the road.

“None of this was here a year ago,” Darleen said.  “This was all cow pastures.  The only buildings that are familiar are the main barn which you can barely see in the distance just south of here, and the Dracons’ house which you can just see the roof of over that hill north.”

“Wow, that is a lot of changes,” Summer said.  “It almost looks like a small town in the middle of this valley.  Is all of this to protect the Dracon Princes?” 

“I think it’s to protect Lariah and Saige, and their daughters,” Darleen replied.  “They each have three now.  They are the first female Jasani to be born in thousands of years, and from what I overhead in Lio’s office, the Xanti would love to get their hands on them.”

“That’s awful,” Summer said softly, trying to imagine what it would be like to need so much security in order to protect your children.  She shuddered at the thought.  How did Saige deal with such fear and worry?

Darleen and Summer reached the valley floor and headed for the cluster of buildings.  Just as they reached the first building at the far end of the cluster, a side door opened and about a dozen men filed out into a large cleared area.  Darleen and Saige slowed their pace as they watched the men organize themselves into neat, orderly rows.  A small man wearing a loose robe tied with a sash followed a moment later and took up position in front of the group, facing them.  There was something about the man with his dark gray hair and solemn face that drew Summer’s attention.  She stopped walking without actually realizing it, and stood motionless, unable to take her eyes off of the man.

He spoke rapidly in a language that sounded vaguely familiar to Summer, addressing the class before him.  When he was finished speaking he bowed at the waist and waited for his students to copy him.  He then removed a long stick that was stuck in the sash at his waist and held it up with both hands at the hilt, his feet shifting into a fighting stance.  Every one of his students did the same, until all stood there with their wooden practice swords at the ready.  The man then began leading the class in a series of movements that, to Summer, were mesmerizing. 

Suddenly, Summer felt as though she were standing outside of herself, watching as another took over her body and mind.  This was not frightening, like the Controller, but spiritual and beneficial in some ethereal way that she neither understood nor questioned. 

The teacher finished his last movement and Summer felt herself move forward, approaching him with measured steps.  When she was only a couple of feet from him, she bowed, her hands together before her in an attitude of prayer. 

“May I help you, Miss?” the man asked, speaking Standard.

“
Watashi wa Nintai no tame ni kita,” Summer said, wondering at herself even as the words left her mouth.  She was speaking in Japanese, a language she had only heard spoken a few times in her life, and had never spoken herself.  Yet she understood what she had said.
  I have come for Patience.

The teacher...
sensei
, her other self insisted...stared at her for a long moment with his brilliant black eyes.  When he spoke, he used Japanese as well.