Chapter 5
Blackworm? Here? Impossible!
Heart seizing, Lishelle whirled again to look behind her.
And met Tynan’s quizzical gaze.
Every muscle, not just her heart, cramped tighter as she slowly pivoted to face Trixie again. Nor had his blaster out.
Aimed at Tynan.
Whose confused, narrowed gaze widened as he realized the other male’s intent.
Lishelle spread her arms. “Nor! Don’t shoothim!”
“Shel, back away,” Trixie said with a calm, cool,murderouslook that Lishelle had never seen in the small woman. “That’s Blackworm.”
“It’s not.” Lishelle opened her fingers wider, as if that would stop the lethal beam of plasma she could practicallysmellsimmering in Nor’s blaster. “This is Tynan. He’s the officiant for the wedding.”
It wasn’t the scent of plasma but the tart odor ofthe spilled pixberry tea wafting across the room.
Tynan settled his fingertips lightly on her shoulders and eased her away from him. Her throat clogged with terror—and the realization that he was removing her from the line of fire. “I came here to bless the beloveds,” he said quietly.
She resisted his push, but the strength she’d found so delightful last night was set against her now. If shepushed back, she or he might stumble—and alarm Nor into firing. With a frustrated curse, she held her hand out to Nor. “See? Everything’s fine.”
With a flick of his thumb, a faint, menacing whine emerged from the high-powered weapon. “Iseehim, all right,” he snapped. “Trixie and I stood face to face with him when he was explaining how he wanted to invade the realm of the gods.” Outrage sharpenedhis voice. “With my girl.”
Trixie straightened at his elbow. “Did you ever see him, Shel? When we were being held here before, did you ever actually see Blackworm?”
Lishelle hesitated. “I… No. Not…clearly. Through the stasis pod cover, through the drugs…” She wavered.
The bore of Nor’s blaster didn’t even twitch. “How did you get here?”
She knew he wasn’t talking to her, since he knew exactlyhow she got here: like Trixie, abducted by aliens.
By…this alien?
She flushed cold, as if the eternal chill of space was leaking up through her body, fanning in invisible blossoms of ice across her skin. “He…came with the other guests,” she said weakly. “We knew there’d be some strangers on the station.”
“I review all the manifests,” Nor said. “Only estate staff and approved contractors havecome aboard. The first guests and family aren’t due for another two day cycles. Definitely no clerics.” The whine of the blaster notched higher. “I’ll ask once more: How did you get here?”
Tynan frowned. “The beloveds. They need to be sanctified. So I came.”
“How?” Nor snarled. “Trixie, contact security and tell them to sweep the exterior for an unauthorized or shrouded shuttle—”
“The wormhole,”Tynan said abruptly. “I came through the wormhole.”
***
It wasn’t the right answer.
Tynan could tell by Lishelle’s stricken expression. Not to mention the raging fury on the other male’s face.
The smaller female—Trixie, Lishelle had called her—was tapping at the device on her wrist. “They’re searching on all scanner lengths. No signs of any docked vehicles, no record of any questionabledeliveries. Running a review of internal sensors for facial recognition.” She glared at him. “Weknowwho you are, you bastard.”
He wasn’t a bastard. He was…
A strange wave of dizziness swept him, worse than when he’d been looking up at the black hole…and looked down to see Lishelle for the first time.
