Angels and Ministers of Grace Read online

  "All right. But really, I'm feeling lots better and should be good as new in no time."

  "Ani?" Ces had drawn the covers up over half her face and was peeking at her with wide, worried brown eyes. "Can you still… I mean, have you been able to use your—ah…"

  "What Ces is trying to say is what about your talent? Did you burn it out completely?"

  Anya lifted her eyebrows at Jar's blunt question, but didn't avoid it. Truth was, she hadn't thought about it. Like a patient probing at a recent injury, she tested herself with ginger care. "Seems okay. It hurts to use, but I've still got it."

  "Well, don't overdue it. If it hurts, don't bother until you're all better. Then see how it goes."

  "Yes, Mom," she sighed, but smiled as she said it, and Jarden smiled back before getting off the bed with a graceful flip.

  "All right, let's get started girls. Ani needs her beauty sleep."

  Rie immediately stood, but Ces gave a rebellious grunt and scrunched even further under the covers. "I'll just stay and keep Ani company—"

  "So you can nap while we have to work? Don't make me come in there after you, girl!"

  Grumbling, Cesna wiggled out of the covers and the bed.

  Anya gave a half-hearted protest. "You don't have to go…"

  Jar shook her dark head. "You're wiped. I can see it in your face." Anya had been trying to hide her growing weariness, but she should have known Jar would see it anyway. "We'll be back later. You get some rest."

  They filed out, and Anya closed her eyes with gratitude. The headache had been whittled down to a dull throb by the painkillers, but with relief came an almost overwhelming need for sleep. Sighing, she relaxed into the bed and was out in seconds.

  When she next woke, she had a parade of visitors filing through her room. Frank and the captain were at the head of the line. She gave Frank a kiss on the cheek that made him blush to the roots of what was left of his russet hair.

  "I haven't had the chance to thank you yet for all you've done. From what I hear, your quick actions saved not only me, but my friends, too."

  "Wasn't just me…" he mumbled, shuffling his feet while trying to hide a pleased smile.

  Captain Jamison wasn't nearly so pleased. She stood at the end of the bed with folded arms and a frown. "Miss Anya Vaedrin, you have been a whole world of trouble."

  "I know." Anya lifted her chin and looked her steadily in the eye. Her actions had been extreme, and the captain had every right to complain, but she wasn't going to apologize. "On the other hand, no one was injured by my actions but me. That was why I did it."

  Marta raised an eyebrow, her tone caustic. "You did it to get injured? It was a foolish stunt, and you know it."

  "As I saw it, the telepath had left me with no other choice."

  "You could have discussed it with me. We may have found a solution that didn't involve putting you into the very jaws of the lion."

  "We tried that, remember? And he anticipated us, wedging me into a corner. I was out of options, Captain."

  "There are always options."

  "Unacceptable ones. Remain a prisoner? Continue to put my friends and the good people protecting me in danger? What would you have done, Captain?"

  Marta stared at her with narrow eyes for a long moment before a slow smile lifted the corners of her mouth. "I thought I told you to call me Marta."

  "Marta, we were dealing with a telepath who had no rules. I believed that I had to break a few to catch him."

  "Well, what's done is done, and you are recovering. That's all that matters."

  "Not—exactly." Anya braced herself as the two of them gave her puzzled looks. If she were to stay on this station, she wouldn't do it under false pretenses. Of all people, the captain should know what she was capable of doing. "You know the circumstances of the telepath's death?"

  "Jason shot him," Frank said matter-of-factly, but there was a satisfied gleam in his eye.

  "Yes, but he didn't kill him."

  "Of course, he did." The captain frowned at her. "The technicians who examined the body have verified that fact."

  "Before Ja—ah, the lieutenant commander shot that man, I used my talent to stop his heart. He was dying when he was shot. I can kill people, Captain. I thought you should know." A little flustered by how easily Jason's name came to her lips, Anya still kept her head up and eyes direct.

  The captain's face went expressionless for a moment at her revelation before smoothing into thoughtfulness. "Hmm. Now the man's heart attack makes more sense. But this poses a problem." Anya swallowed and waited in tense silence as Marta caste a look between her and Frank. "I was going to give Jace a promotion to Commander for eliminating such a danger to the station, but now…" She gave an exaggerated sigh and stared morosely over their heads, chewing on her bottom lip.

  Anya let out the breath she was holding and covered her mouth to smother a nervous giggle as Frank began to protest. "Now, Captain, you know he deserves that promo! He's been up for it for God knows how long…" he trailed off as Marta grinned at him.

  "That eager to be Chief of Security, huh, Frank?"

  "No, that's not—well, I mean I would, but—you shouldn't—" He fell into flustered silence as the two women laughed.

  Anya reached out and patted his arm. "You'll make a great chief, Frank." She looked at the captain with eyebrows raised, still smiling. "So does this mean you're not going to kick me off the station or throw me in the brig?"

  "For an act of self-defense? Don't be ridiculous. But I don't think the general population is ready to know what you can do, so I think it's best if we kept this confidential."

  "Thank you, Marta. That means more to me than you can know." They smiled at each other like friends, and Anya realized that she owed this woman more than she could possibly repay. Despite her reservations and lack of knowledge, she decided her instincts were right and she could trust her. "I'd like to discuss the offer I made before…"

  But Marta was shaking her head. "Not yet. There's plenty of time for that, and you've got recovering to do."

  That only brought up a different topic that had been worrying Anya. "Do we have time? Do we know how the Guild is going to react to all this?"

  "You let me worry about that."

  That was all Marta would say on the subject, evading any further questions and steering the conversation into different areas, like what Anya planned to do now that she was free to move about the station. She discussed her career plans with them both and the fact that she didn't plan on moving out of the quarters they'd placed her in.

  "But it's awful small," Frank muttered in a dubious tone. "You sure?"

  "With the girls gone, it'll be practically cavernous and since the floor is empty, I won't have people jammed up close to me. It's work blocking people out all the time, and it'll be nice to be alone, to have some peace."

  "The safe zone has been dismantled, so the Shrieks will be using that space a lot now. Will that be a problem for you?" the captain asked.

  "They won't be coming into my quarters, will they?" When the captain shook her head, Anya shrugged. "The corridor is public space. I won't have a problem if they won't. Ah—will they have a problem with me being there? Should I ask permission?"

  Marta gave her a strange smile. "They won't have a problem, but asking permission would be nice. The Queen appreciates gestures like that. I can see to it, if you don't mind."

  "Please, I'd be grateful. I wouldn't know how to approach them anyway."

  Their conversation was cut short by a stream of guards that soon filled her room with a sea of faces. All of them were the protectors who she and her friends had befriended while they'd been trapped in the safe zone. They babbled good wishes at her until Frank took control, shooing most out and scheduling them to visit in much smaller groups. Unable to get a word in edgewise, the captain just waved goodbye and left.

  The rest of her day was spent as a hostess, while the med staff and her friends made sure that she got naps in between
visitors. Most of the guards had been and gone when the Thlassnians paid her a visit. Rie told her later that the dreamer had not been among them. They were an interesting group, three males and a female. All were scaled and beautiful, but they were as individual as any human. Only one was near the same shade of blue as Rie. One male and the female were lovely shades of green, while the last Thlassnian was an eye catcher in vibrant reds and oranges.

  Not normally shy, Anya found herself stuttering under their calm gazes, both honored and awed by their presence and knowing she looked less than her best. Feeling like a graceless idiot, she still did her best to welcome them and not make a total ass out of herself. It didn't help matters that every one of the males was incredibly, exotically attractive to her. She should have known that they would be, considering how most humans reacted to Rie. Jarden had to bodily remove Cesna from the room—the poor girl was beside herself.

  Much to her relief, they didn't stay long. They asked after her health, thanked her for the care and protection that she'd given Rie, expressed careful delight that she was remaining on the station, and then left after wishing her a speedy recovery. She needed a very long nap after that.

  The owner of Whitey's also visited her. He was a mountainous Belkan with a face like a rockslide and an oddly shaped lump on his back that she was too polite to mention. She was also too polite to gag on the smell he brought with him, but it was a close thing. Without answering her greeting, he hunched over to the bed and bent his lumpy face close, inspecting her like a buyer at auction. Anya held her breath and smiled with as much graciousness as she could muster.

  "You sing?"

  It took her a moment to realize that he'd spoken, the sound he made seeming more like a belch than words. She nodded, holding her smile despite the burning in her lungs. She was going to have to breathe soon, but she sure as hell wasn't looking forward to it.

  "You dance?"

  She nodded again and then widened her eyes at the alarming rumble that came from deep inside him. It sounded like he was getting ready to explode, but he just turned and shuffled away. Anya gasped for oxygen, but was careful to breathe through her mouth.

  "Try out," the Belkan rumbled at Jarden, and she nodded with admirable calm.

  "When Anya's recovered, anytime you're ready."

  They had the med staff fumigate the room after he left.

  Anya was kept plenty busy with all her visitors that day and the next, but there was one person conspicuously absent. With stubborn pride, she refused to ask Marta or Frank or even the guards where Jason was, but she couldn't help feeling hurt by his continued absence. His job might be done, but she thought he would at least check in to see how his former charges were doing, out of politeness if nothing else. Then again, when had Jason Salvatore ever been polite? Obviously, he was done with her.

  She tried to hide her growing depression from her friends, but Jar had always been able to see through her like glass. They were taking a meal together in comfortable silence when the subject was brought up for the first time. "Do you want me to contact him?"

  "Who?"

  "Sal, of course. I'd like to know why he hasn't stopped in."

  Anya focused her attention on her food, careful to keep all expression out of her face and voice. "I'm sure he's got things to do."

  "Ani, the man didn't leave your side the whole time you were out. That nurse, Aggie, asked me a little while ago if you two had broken up. She was upset because he seemed so devoted."

  "She misunderstood." Anya felt her face warm with a flush, but it was humiliation, not hope. "He had to find out if the telepath was alone, that's all. He was just doing his job."

  "Yeah right! He could've had somebody tell him when you woke up—he didn't need to sit by your side the whole time."

  "Maybe he's just really damned dedicated!" Anya snapped, then sighed and rubbed her temple as her headache came back with a vengeance. "I don't know why he did that, but he's not here is he? So just drop it, please."

  Jar shrugged and let the subject drop. Anya wished she could get her own mind to do the same so easily. She spent a restless night brooding about him, trying to make sense of his abrupt switches in attitude from anger to protectiveness and from his indifferent absence to the bittersweet memory of being held in his arms. When Dr. Bradshaw—who insisted that she call him Bo—released her the next morning, Anya made a decision. If he wouldn't come to her, she'd go to him. She had the perfect excuse. It would have been beyond rude and unacceptable not to thank him for all he'd done to protect her.

  Unsure of her reception, she contacted the captain first. It wouldn't hurt to have her there for moral support. "Marta, I've just been discharged."

  "That's wonderful! Bradshaw thinks you're fully recovered, then?"

  "He told me very politely to get out. I guess other people need that bed more than I do. He wants to see me tomorrow for a full checkup though."

  "That's great. I hope he told you to take it easy and not overtire yourself?"

  "Of course—I got the complete list of rules on what I can and cannot do over the next few days." Anya rolled her eyes, and the captain gave a sympathetic chuckle, reaching out of sight of the screen for a moment. "I know you're busy, and I won't keep you. I just wanted to let you know that I was going to drop in on Ja—ah, the commander to thank him for all he's done. If you could be there, I'd like to thank you, too."

  "You've already thanked me, but I wouldn't miss this for the world." The captain grinned like a fellow conspirator, and Anya smiled back rather uncertainly. "And Anya…I wouldn't bother letting him know you're coming. He's not very busy right now since I gave half his work to Cooper."

  Marta's tone was far too casual, and Anya's smile slipped into a frown. "You want me to surprise him?"

  The older woman chuckled again as if Anya had made a joke. "I'll see you at his office in half an hour."

  Marta cut the transmission, and Anya stared at the blank screen for a moment. What was that all about? The captain had acted as though Anya were planning a siege on Jason instead of just making a polite appearance. The man had never seemed too thrilled to be in her presence—maybe he would see it that way. Anya nearly changed her mind, but her friends wouldn't let her.

  "You'll just feel guilty for not thanking him, so move it and don't give me any lip." Jar was in rare form, and the other two backed her without a murmur of protest.

  Faced with a united front, Anya folded, but procrastinated by making the rounds with the med staff. She'd meant to thank them anyway, but she took her time about it, making small talk and dragging her feet.

  She'd finally gotten around to Aggie when Jar stepped in, giving her a narrow glare as she addressed the nurse politely. "We really need to go. We've got an appointment."

  Anya gave the nurse a hurried hug and promised to contact her later as her friends dragged her out the door. They didn't let her slow down either, one or the other tugging on an arm or stepping on her heels all the way to Jason's office. Feeling harassed, Anya paused to take a fortifying breath before marching into the office, the other three trailing her.

  Whatever concern she'd had about Jason's reaction was instantly justified as he turned a fierce scowl on her. He was leaning on the front of his desk, arms folded while the captain leisurely paced the room. Marta noticed them a moment later and smiled in welcome.

  "Uh, may we come in? Do you…have a moment?"

  When Jason didn't answer, the captain shot him a disgruntled look and waved them in. "Of course. It's good to see you up and about, Anya. Isn't it, Jace?"

  He gave a noncommittal grunt and turned his scowl on his captain.

  Feeling like a pariah—and humiliated by the realization that she was pathetically glad to see him, scowl and all—Anya stepped further into the room and squared her shoulders before speaking. "I just wanted the thank you both for the hospitality and protection that you've given us, above and beyond what anyone else would have done. We're very grateful."

  "You
're very welcome," the captain said warmly, but Jason stared over their heads with a stony expression and said nothing. Anya could feel that formidable anger baking off of him again and felt her skin flush in reaction.

  "I also wanted you to know that we'll be reimbursing the station for any expenses. It may take us a while, but we'll pay you back in time."

  "I don't consider that necessary. Protection of the station's citizens, human or otherwise, is our main priority, and we don't see it as an expense."

  "Still, we should at least pay for our room and board while we were under your protection."

  "As you wish."

  There was still no response from Jason, and Anya faced him with grim determination, starting to get angry herself at his rude behavior. "I hear congratulations are in order, Commander."

  He shot her a dark, killing look as if she'd insulted instead of complimented him on his promotion before looking away with a monosyllabic mutter for a response.

  Anya felt the skin of her face burn even hotter with anger and humiliation, but she gritted her teeth and kept her tone as even as she could. "Well, we'll be staying on the station, so I suppose we'll see you both around."

  She turned to go, and the captain joined her after giving her second a sharp glance. "I'm certain you will. You'll probably get sick of our faces." Ignoring Jason, Anya gave the older woman a stiff smile as they made for the door. With an answering smile, the captain continued, "Actually, if you have the time, I'd like you to come to my office in a couple of hours. I've contacted the Hive Queen, and I'd like to discuss what she said, perhaps over lunch?"

  Deliberately not looking over her shoulder for a last glimpse of Jason, Anya murmured her assent as the office doors slid closed behind them. The captain flashed a quick frown at the doors before rolling her eyes and turning away. "I'll see you then."

  Anya stalked in the opposite direction, aware of her silent friends trailing her. Muttering angry insults under her breath, she seethed about the unfairness of Jason's treatment until Jar cleared her throat.

  "Well, Sal was in a worse mood than normal."