| Part 11 Christopher and Jaina reappeared in the red-hued main chamber of the Dark�s ship. Jaina had a smug smile on her face. Anger washed over Chris and he glared at her, she was enjoying something immensely and he hated to be left out. �Okay,� he demanded. �What are you grinning at?� Jaina turned her strange red-brown eyes on him. She reached up with one hand and deftly swept the contacts from her eyes. Her intense red gaze was always disconcerting at first, but that soon faded. One would think that those eyes would make her look ugly, but on Jaina, they fit her perfectly, just another tool to add to her dangerous arsenal. �She�ll come.� Chris wasn�t so sure. Jaina hadn�t known Piper for as long as he had. �How can you be so sure?� He asked with raised eyebrows as he settled into the window ledge that had been the former leader�s favorite seat. He had cleaned and padded it since Jake�s not- so-unfortunate fall from grace and it thankfully no longer reeked of the black-haired man�s cologne. Idly, he scratched patterns in the frost on the window for a moment before Jaina spoke. �Because you saw her with her daughter. That little girl is her life and if it meant returning to the war to keep her safe, she�ll do it.� Jaina said. Chris had to admit that she was right. �She saw us you know.� He said. �She saw us teleport out of the house.� �Well of course Piper saw us �port out, she�s one of us.� Obviously missing his point, Jaina settled on the outer ring of the central column, crossing her arms and legs. He shook his head and leaned forward. �No Jaina,� he said. �Not Piper, Shelby.� The brown-haired woman�s jaw dropped. �She did?� Jaina asked, red eyes wide, then she shrugged off her surprise. �She had to see it sooner or later anyways. Her mother�s kept her under lock and key. She�s a nascent, Chris.� �Really?� He snorted in derision, knowing that the sarcasm in his voice could probably be cut with a knife. �I didn�t notice. I�m not blind Jaina, and I�m not stupid, despite rumors insisting otherwise.� �Are you sure.� She asked sweetly. �Have you checked recently?� Chris just glared at her, a low growl in his throat. /Man, she�s good at that! / She was queen of button pushers, especially with him. Jaina smirked again, hearing his thought, and he sensed feelings of triumph leaking through her shields, though whether that was deliberate to keep him on edge, he didn�t know, and wouldn�t give her the satisfaction of him probing to find out. He didn�t know why he let her lead him through circles like she did and he always thought himself strong enough to resist her until she did it again. �Piper won�t be too happy with us.� Chris said to her. He had an image of Piper in his mind, silver-blue eyes flashing in anger, yelling at him for exposing a part of her life that she had wanted to keep secret from her five year old daughter. It was an all too realistic image and he shuddered as the vision took on a more premonition-like quality instead of just a mental picture. Jaina shrugged. �Who cares?� She said, voice lowering in anger. She was not only the queen of button pushing, but also the queen of mood swings. �She abandoned us Chris. For three years she had no contact with us.� Chris regarded her with a confused look. Then why did you suggest that we bring her back if you�re so angry with her having left in the first place?� He asked her. She was doing it again, contradicting herself in a way that made it seem like it was everyone else�s fault. �She can help.� Jaina said. �But I don�t condone her past actions, Chris.� She exclaimed. �We fight, that�s what we do and she goes along and has a family and a picket fence and a dog.� She stopped, reconsidering. �Well, we didn�t see a dog, but still. Piper left us.� Chris heard the unspoken end to her rant and cut her off. �She did not betray us Jaina!� He exclaimed. �How dare you even insinuate such a thing ?� �I--� A firm shake of his head stopped her from speaking. �No,� he said sternly. �At the time that she left, there was a lull in the war. Shelby was beginning to reach an age where she would start to remember things, and Piper didn�t want her to remember the battles or the ship. Nazali understood that and let her go.� He meant their last leader before Jake, Nazali Armalan. He saw Jaina�s eyes sadden, for she had been close to her when Jake cast her out and she proceeded to be caught by the Lights and endured a very excruciatingly painful death. Chris didn�t even bother to apologize. It was not in his nature to apologize. �Morgan is a traitor, Jake is a traitor, but not Piper.� Chris said firmly, in a manner that said that the conversation was over. Jaina ignored the cue and was going on. �How dare you defile Nazali�s name like that?� She asked. Chris actually felt the urge to cringe back, but pushed it away. Red eyes were good for one thing�when the owner got madder then hell, they flashed and burned like molten magma from the heart of a volcano. She had risen to her feet over him, hands on hips, hair over her shoulders and face. The skimpy clothes ceased to be alluring and seductive and instead seemed to add to her sense of strength as they revealed a lot of heavily muscled skin, coiled to spring. Chris rose to his feet, slowly like a predator cat on the prowl, and in the close space, he was rewarded when Jaina was forced to take a step back. �How dare you call Piper a traitor? She hunted down and caused the deaths of more Lights than you could ever hope to in your life time. You never saw her at her height. Your charms are nothing but child�s play compared to her.� Jaina smiled, but there was no humor, only menace, anger, and above all, triumph. �You know, Chris.� She said smoothly, her face only inches from his, so that he could feel her breath on his lips. �If I didn�t know any better, I�d say that you like her.� Christopher didn�t think, he just swung his arm and backhanded her across the face. This time her heels proved a disadvantage and she fell hard to her knees. She put her hand to the already reddening cheek and wiped the blood from her split lip. She smiled again, the same smile that told him that she had won and teleported out without a word. Chris stood panting for a moment, and let out a long, lengthy howl of rage. He had fallen for her tricks again. Goading him into striking her had been the plan all along. She had demonstrated that Darks rarely agreed on anything and that one as skilled in double talk and playing on someone�s sympathies as Jaina, shouldn�t be messed with. * * * Brianna was reading a book, mind intent when James teleported into the room. She jumped as the flashed reflected on the white pages of the book. She looked around the small library in which she was studying. Tomorrow Person or no she still had an exam tomorrow. One thing her powers did help was her memory and while it wasn�t quite photographic, it was close. He was ranting almost before he fully materialized and began pacing at about the same time. He was talking too fast for her to follow and she just shook her head in confusion, it had something to with Jake, the Darks and a lack of trust. His sense was the same, a mixture of anger, confusion, and frustration. He paced back a forth for a moment before she reached out and grabbed his arm as he passed by. /�Jamie.�/ She said into his mind, not expecting him to stop otherwise. He stumbled forward, not feeling her touch until he ran out of space with her holding tight to his arm. He turned on her, then blinked, realizing where he was, and smiled sheepishly. �Sorry.� He said. Brianna took that moment of silence to admonish him for teleporting into a public place without making sure that it was clear. �Are ye stupid or just bloody brain deid?� She asked, narrowing her golden-green eyes at him. �Someone coulda seen you!� He settled into the chair beside her at the table, planting a kiss on her cheek on his way down. �Sorry, Bree.� He said. �I guess I wasn�t thinking.� He had a sheepish grin on his face. �You bloody well weren�t.� She snapped, but closed her books and turned to him. �Now what were ye ravin� aboot? I couldna make out a bloody word.� He looked at her wide-eyes in incredulity. �You? The queen of fast talk?� He joked, the anger and aggravation she had sensed before temporarily dampened. She raised her eyebrows at him, a look that reminded him that he hadn�t answered her question. �Ha, ha.� She said sarcastically. He sighed. �Its this whole business with Jake Ciarana.� He said, his soft accent only slightly thicker with emotion. �I don�t trust him Bree.� She laughed shortly. �I dinna think anyone does but his sister.� She said. �And even then�� James smiled briefly. �That�s just it Bree, how are we supposed to accept him when we don�t trust him, when he�s responsible for the deaths of so many of us, Blaise�s own sister for one.� �I ken that well Jamie.� She said. Her mind raced furiously for something to say to him, but could only come up with one conclusion, and one conclusion that he would not like. /I canna believe that I�m going to say this./ She thought for a moment. James eyed her like he heard her thought. She sighed again, not believing that she was going to support Jake. �Perhaps we should hear him out.� She knew that his incredulity would come. Brushing her blond hair behind her shoulders and laying one hand over his gently, she cut him off with a sharp look. �Listen a moment will ye?� He shut his mouth and sat back in the padded chair all ears. �Go ahead.� She resisted the urge to growl at him. He could infuriate her most of the time, but she usually tried to forget about it for the sake of their relationship, doe she was sure that she had bad habits that aggravated him as much as his sarcasm and arrogance could bug her. �Okay, we both know how much damage he has caused us.� She said softly. �But we also know that for some weird reason, he�s willing to help us.� James snorted and she squeezed his arm. �I ken how bad it sounds, but I think that for now we may have a great breakthrough in the war. Perhaps he may even slip us the location of the ship.� A shadow briefly crossed over his eyes. Looks like that weren�t too uncommon with him, and despite the closeness between them, Brianna had feelings on occasion that he was hiding things from her. Usually it didn�t bother her and this time wasn�t all that different, but it caught her attention never the less. �Jamie?� He shrugged it off quickly. �Nothing.� His rant seemed momentarily forgotten, which surprised her. �You finished?� She asked eyebrows raised. He blinked, and looked back at her, all traces of the shadow gone. �Yeah.� That surprised her even more. Playfully, she asked, �who are ye and wha� ha� ye done wi� Jamie Ashton?� He chuckled. �Hey, its me.� He said mock-shocked putting a hand to his chest. To show that he meant it, he leaned in and kissed her soundly. She felt calmer after that, all concerns forgotten. She smiled. /Back to business./ �We just ha� to keep an eye on Jake and Morgan. He�s vulnerable the now and will be a target by the Darks.� James snorted, �let them take him.� Brianna closed her eyes briefly, a chill running up her back. �We�re not immortal Jamie.� She cautioned him, reminding him of a fact that was all too prevalent in their lives. Friends came and died, leaders disappeared after usually no more than a year. �If the Darks take it into their minds to go after him, few even Nathalie, could stop them.� The shadow returned to his eyes again and he turned away. Concern hit her again. �Jamie, what is it?� She asked leaning close wrapping her arms around his neck. �What�s troubling you?� He looked back over his shoulder at her with a smile, eyes colored by brown contacts, now clear of the shadow again. �Nothing Bree.� He said. �I was just thinking about something.� He glanced down at his watch, which she knew was set to the time in his hometown of Kimberly, South Africa. �Oh, I gotta go.� He said. He embraced her quickly, kissed her even faster, and teleported from the room again, without rising or looking to see if they were alone. She sat for a moment stunned. Something was not right. He never blew her off like that. It seemed like every time she mentioned the Darks and their plans, the shadow appeared. She didn�t know why. If it had to do with memories, that was one thing, but if it was something else� But the thought still nagged at her like for a moment, she felt as if she really didn�t know him at all. * * * The hospital had let Jake go home after a week of captivity. His mother took control of him from there on. She had him tucked up on the couch in his room where he had a TV and her only a call away. Nathalie had rarely left his side, sleeping at the hospital in one of the chairs. He knew as she did that the Darks would be coming for him to torture the location of the Light�s ship out of him or to kill him for being a traitor. Nathalie had kept her shields strong. Though the Dark�s couldn�t be one hundred percent sure that they would be together, they were trying to be careful. /They haven�t tried anything yet./ He reminded himself. That in itself worried him because it meant that they were planning something big. He shuddered as he chafed the channel, struggling to do something normal incase his mother walked by to check on him, but inside, his mind was beginning to get a little bit restless. Being cooped up in that hospital room with nothing but his own thoughts, and his sister as a constant reminder, Jake�s mind had worked overtime, struggling to make sense of everything that had happened in the past week or so. He didn�t know why fate had decided to deal him such an existence. It was extremely cruel to deal someone such an amazing gift as becoming a Tomorrow Person, and then to strip it away again, just as they were starting to become most important. Jake had been the leader of the Darks, and had formed a deep bond with the ship. It was something that he was not altogether okay with just yet. His mind was beginning to get stir crazy being alone with only his own thoughts in his head. Granted, he had that little �Nathalie-feeling� in his mind, but it was by no means the same as the voices of an entire ship-full of Darks. It didn�t seem fair. It didn�t feel right that he should be alone with nothing but his own thoughts. He didn�t think that there was any way for him to get his powers back and he felt that he would give anything for that to happen. Fitting that the moment that his thoughts were the most muddled was the moment that his sister decided to poke her head into the room. �Hey Jake.� He tried to smile. �Hi,� he said, channel surfing momentarily forgotten, the remote sitting in his lap. �What�s up?� Taking that as an invitation, Nathalie walked in and stood next to him. �Mom and I are going out shopping, and we wondered if you needed anything.� In other words, �can you take care of yourself because Mom�s not letting me out of this.� She glanced at the doorway. �You know, things have been pretty quiet with the Darks. I�ll be gone an hour tops.� Jake nodded. �That�s fine. Go.� He said. �You shouldn�t waste all of your time looking after me.� �Its no problem.� She said touching his shoulder. �Sure you don�t need anything?� �I�m fine.� He said. �Just thinking �bout a nap actually.� Nathalie stood and watched him for a moment, unsure and he silently willed her away. �Go! Nat, I�ll be fine.� He turned her around and pushed her gently towards the doorway. �Have fun.� She glanced over her shoulder offering him a smile. �Bye then.� She left again, leaving him alone once again with his own thoughts as his only company. Something needed to be done and after a few minutes of intense thought, he picked up the phone decided to do something about it. * * * Peace never lasted as long as anyone ever hoped. Morgan knew that all too well. Her home had been shattered when she was four, and even now, in a house of twelve people including young nieces and nephews, peace and quiet was usually short, most of the time, non-existent. Morgan was enjoying just one of those rare moments, the entire family, including her had gone to a nearby public pool. She had gone to get changed, and had teleported him to relax for even a few moments of peace. She pitied the lifeguards who had to deal with her brother Shane�s three devils. Luckily she didn�t sense anything in them that might be even remotely TP like. /Thank God!/ She thought. They�d be some vicious Darks. The silence was shattered by the ringing phone. Knowing that she was not supposed to be at home as the pool was twenty miles away, she let the machine get it. At the end of the message it beeped and there was such a long pause that she thought that the caller had hung up until she heard a sigh and a voice. �Morgan?� It took her a moment to recognize the almost frightened voice full of unease as Jake Ciarana. �Morgan, you there?� �Jake?� She said to herself. /I�ve never heard him sound like that./ She went over to the phone as Jake continued to beg her to be home. He sighed when she answered. �Thank God!� He said. �You�re there!� �I�m not supposed to be.� She said. �I�m supposed to be at the pool. I can�t talk.� She went to hang up the phone, but him yelling through the receiver for her to wait gave her pause. Something was really bothering him and he needed someone to talk to. /Why me?/ She thought as she brought the receiver back to her ear. �Yeah?� She was not so quick to forgive him for all the crap that he had put her through. It was still strange to think of him as a sap, someone who had suddenly taken a step *down* the evolutionary ladder, not as the evil, cold bully that he had been only the week before when he had threatened her. Sure he had apologized to her, but a year of that mental intimidation had caused his apologies to fall on deaf ears. Jake must have heard the irritation in her voice for he sighed. �Morgan, I think we need to talk.� He said softly, but there was no mistaking the urgency in his voice. �To talk about what?� She asked, voice clipped. �There�s nothing to talk about.� He was silent for only a split second. �I think we do.� He said, �but not over the phone. Can you come over?� She closed her eyes and fought against both the urge to laugh, and the urge to hang up the phone. �I can�t right now Jake.� She said. �I told you I�m supposed to be swimming with my family. I gotta get back before someone gets suspicious, my Dad can�t keep everyone quiet for long.� �Please.� Jake said after a moment of silence, sounding desperate and lonely. It still surprised her when she heard emotions like that in his voice. �It�s important.� /Damn conscience./ She thought feeling her resolve melt against her will, feeling the sympathy that she was trying not to feel. �Fine.� She said. �I�ll be there, but this better be good, or--� She broke off and hung up leaving the threat unspoken between them. Collecting her bag from the floor in the kitchen along with her thoughts, she closed her eyes, teleporting to Jake�s bedroom. The first thing that she did was glance about to be sure that she had not been seen and that they were alone. The door was closed, Jake was sitting on the couch, his features beginning to reemerge from the smashed mess that his face had been thanks to the fist of Christopher Murray. �We�re alone.� He said. �You can put the hackles down now.� She smiled nastily and narrowed her eyes. �If you got me here to make jokes, I�m just gonna leave.� �No!� He called, reaching for her, and she backed up out of his reach. �It�s something a little more important than that, as much fun as your suggestion is�� She narrowed her eyes to angry slits. �Okay, I�m sorry.� Morgan glanced down at her watch. It had been ten minutes since she had gone off in search of a changing room and one of her brothers and sisters would start to get worried, probably Jonathan, the youngest, or Cassie, the next oldest from her. No one but her father and her oldest brother Corran knew that she had her mother�s gift, and one of Corran�s three young children had TP eyes, Bridget. They always said that gifts could skip a generation, they had with Corran, but definitely not with Morgan. Jake waited patiently. Something else must have developed over the past week, patience. �I have been thinking of something.� He said. /Must�ve hurt./ She thought wryly to herself, wanting to say it out loud, but she�d agreed to nix the witty comebacks for now. �Thinking about what?� Jake was silent as if puzzling out if he really wanted to say what was on his mind. �This is going against everything that I have believed for the last two years.� He said, his gaze, faded now to a true brown instead of almost black, truly met hers for the first time since she had �ported into the room. �I think it�s time that we do something that will truly sever our ties to the Dark�s forever.� Morgan gasped, realization of what he was implying hitting her. �You mean�� she trailed off as Jake nodded his head. �I think that we should tell the Lights where the ship is.� He said. * * * Jake sat waiting, hoping that the shock that had her frozen in place would go away. He knew his suggestion was a good one, would be a welcome one to the Lights. Sure someone would be suspicious, most likely Kensington, Blaise, he corrected himself, Andrews or even Ashton. �Say something damn it.� He said, annoyed that she was being so quiet, wasting the time that she had made clear that she didn�t have. Morgan blinked. �Sorry,� she said. �That was the last think that I expected you to say.� She said. �I don�t know what to say really. I mean, I�ve been thinking of that for a long time, but its basically an understanding among the Grey�s, even the darkest of is, that though we can go between the ships, we don�t tell. But--� He started to refuse, not realizing that she was still talking. �Sorry.� Her mouth was set in a firm disapproving line. �But,� she said, looking at him to be sure that he wasn�t going to interrupt again. �But I�m willing to make an exception. I�m ready for this damned war to be over.� He felt a flood of pure elation. �Great.� He said. �I actually expected more of a fight from you than that.� She gawked at him, and for the millionth time, though he still wished that he had his powers, he was also glad that he didn�t have them as he was sue that strength of her shock would have knocked her flat. Then she did something totally unexpected, she smiled. �I�m not in a mood to argue, especially about this.� She said. �Like I said, I didn�t expect this, but its good that you did bring it up, though I never expected what you said to come out of your mouth.� He accepted that. Even before he had broken out he had never asked for help and had never really offered help to anyone else either. �So, when do you want to do it?� Morgan asked. �Tonight.� He said. He had already thought this out. "Meet me at the ship at eight o�clock. Our time, I�ll have Nathalie bring me. The Darks have five more hours of peace left.� Morgan nodded with a broad smile that finally reached her eyes. She glanced again at her watch. �Well, see you later then.� She said and disappeared. Jake sat back taking a breath of relief so deep that he felt his ribs protest. In spite of himself, he laughed. * * * Morgan rejoined her family, after finally changing, of course. Her nieces and nephews and younger brothers were already in the pool. As she added her things to the pile on the table, her brother Corran came up to her, embracing her shoulders so that he could jokingly whisper in her ear. �So did you go to China to change.� Morgan turned and smiled at him, a secret smile between them for no one else in the family except for her father could really understand fully what he was saying even if they heard it. They would just think of the amount of time that she had taken and not the space that she had traveled. �No, just home.� She said with a chuckle. �I needed a moment of peace away from everyone.� Corran sighed. �That would be nice right about now.� He glanced over at his children, among the others splashing and shrieking in the pool. Morgan laughed and hugged him tight. Of all her brothers and sisters, Corran was her favorite. He was the funniest, most caring, the most like herself. �You going in or what?� She asked noting his swim trunks. �Josh, Brid and Ash are already in with Becky.� She gestured to his wife and kids and reached back to pull her into a ponytail. �Lets go.� She took his hand and pulled him toward the water. Protesting the whole way, Corran was slowly drawn to the edge, which wasn�t an easy task. Corran was a few inches taller than her and at least thirty pounds heavier, and she had to rely a bit on her very weak telekinetic abilities. The rest of the family caught sight of it and began cheering loudly. Morgan laughed and caught her father�s eye, he was laughing too. She raised her eyebrows at him and he nodded, laughter doubling. Morgan moved behind him and pushed at his back. Corran tried to roll away, but at the last second, she concentrated and sent a small blast of TK at him, just enough to send him off balance and tumbling into the pool, but not before he turned as he fell, pulling her shrieking into the pool with him. * * * Morgan had just arrived home when she happened to glance at the big clock in the living room, and realized with a start that it was nearly eight o�clock. She jumped and hurried to her room. She changed quickly, and as she left the room she glanced in the mirror to realize that her hair was still damp. /Nothing to be done about that./ She thought to herself as she went back out to the kitchen. Her father was there with Corran who was visiting for the day. Everyone else was gone, her sister Cassie had taken her two demons home across town, her other sister Julianna was away at college, and it was her two bother�s turn to clean the store. She entered the room and the two men looked up at her. �I�ve gotta go.� She said. Corran saw the look on her face and for a moment she wondered if he had inherited something from their mother after all. He always seemed so intuitive. �What continent?� HE asked with a slight smile. He never really seemed to be upset that he couldn�t travel around the world in the blink of an eye, though she had taken him to a few places. But, he always took the time to make jokes. �South Pacific actually,� She said smirking at her brother. �Have fun,� he said. �Be safe.� It was the same send off that he had given her for the last year, and a comfort to hear it. She smiled, planted a kiss on the top of his head, hugged her father, and teleported from the room. She found herself in a room full of people. The word must have gotten out for there were about fifteen Lights crowded into the main chamber. Blaise, Nathalie, Jake, and Julie occupied a central position, Brianna and James nearby. She didn�t recognize many of the others, but as she appeared, the chatter of conversation in many languages ceased abruptly as all eyes fell on her. Unease bubbled up. She�d expected only the small core group that was usually there. She didn�t know what some of these people would do when they heard the news. /Probably go out and get themselves killed,/ she thought dejectedly. /Acting hastily./ �Hey Morgan,� Nathalie said in greeting. She returned it and looked at Jake. She didn�t like being the lone center of attention. Jake rose to his feet and joined her. Murmurs began in some parts of the room; small flashes of anger reached her mind from all about, as there was a sudden focus for their aggravation with the Darks. Blaise sensed this and got smoothly to his feet. /�Quiet!�/ He called with his mind. Telepathy acted like a universal translator, though she suspected that many of them could speak English. The power of his voice, if not the words, quieted the room, even the rush of emotions lessened as shields were slammed into place. Blaise turned to Jake with an expression that said /�there I helped you once, but this changes nothing between us.�/ He raised blond eyebrows, then sat back down and took one of Nathalie�s hands in his own. Jake then turned to Morgan. Shocked, she realized that he wanted her to do it. She shook her head adamantly. �This is your duty Jake,� she whispered. �Your idea.� He sighed, gathering his courage. �I know how everyone feels about me.� He began. �I know that every person here has the right to hate me. But right now, I am no longer the leader of the Darks, I am no longer even a Tomorrow Person. But I am willing to share information that will hopefully bring this war to a swift end.� Shouts of anger and disbelief surged through the room. Morgan turned to Jake. He returned her look and faced the rest of the room. �What kind of information?� Someone shouted from the back of the room. Morgan recognized the soft South African accent coming from James Ashton. Her gaze met those incongruous green eyes flashing out from his dark skin unflinching. Jake�s gaze met his for a moment of challenge, then it fell on Blaze�s face and his tawny gaze did not look away. �The location of the Dark�s ship.� Anticipation and excitement rolled through the crowd. Brianna�s mouth dropped open, Julie�s eyes bulged slightly and she made a sidelong glance at Blaise beside her. He was the only one who appeared unfazed by Jake�s declaration. His eyes were clear, face calm, almost bored. He was calmly waiting for Jake to continue. Jake waited for the room to silence before starting again. He took a deep breath. Movement in the back of the room caught her eye, and Morgan looked over to see Brianna trying to hold James down as he was trying to get to his feet. They were arguing quietly. James was suddenly in a hurry to get somewhere, whether it was to get closer to hear better, or to leave the ship to get somewhere. Eyes were turning towards them, and then James finally gave up trying to get up and just teleported away. Brianna looked stricken, near tears, and Julie rose from her seat to comfort her. Morgan looked to Blaise who glanced back at the young Scot, then turned back to her and shrugged, as confused as she was. She would have to remember to talk to her later. Blaise prompted Jake to continue which he did after glancing from Brianna, to his sister, to Morgan, and finally back to Blaise. When he spoke, it seemed as if his words were only for the blond-haired leader of the Lights, his gaze was on him alone, his voice quiet, though in the chamber it carried anyway. �It�s buried in the glacier in the Knud-Rasmussen Land of North-West Greenland.� He sighed. Sensing that that had been the hardest thing that he had ever done in his life, Morgan put her hand on his shoulder. She turned to Blaise, sensing in him that he was a bit skeptical. �He can�t give you more specifics that that. I think it took the Darks twenty years so figure that much out. No one�s thought to bring a GPS locator or anything to get specifics. The Darks just go there, that�s all w�they need.� She caught herself just as she was about to say �we.� She had been a Dark for so long that it would take a long time to knock it out of her. �I can take you there.� She said to Blaise. The glacier was a big place and you couldn�t make out the ship unless you knew what you were looking for. She hoped that that idea would sink in to some of the more impulsive Lights. Blaise sat back and let out a breath. Nathalie looked at her brother with a look of pride. Morgan felt tension that she hadn�t realized had held her before leak away. For the first time in a long time, she didn�t feel alienated. For the first time since she had discovered that it was possible for her to teleport to the Dark�s ship and get back out again, she felt like she truly belonged somewhere. Little did she or any of them know that this moment of peace would not last. * * * James Ashton left the ship with only one thought on his mind: /Its time./ He had kept his secret from everyone, even Bree, and he prided himself on the fact that he hadn�t fooled a group of saps for the past three years, but an entire group of telepaths. He rematerialized in the one place where no ordinary Light should have been able to find, let alone escape from. A hum from the red central core welcomed him home. He had not been back for two years, and everything came back in a rush, the smells, the color, the sense of belonging that he hadn�t felt anywhere else except with Brianna. Bree! /Oh God!/ The feelings of betrayal finally caught up with him. He loved her. He had tried not to, had forced her away for over a year before he recognized the inevitable, that he couldn�t resist her. She had too much spirit. With that love, came a constant regret because he knew that this time would come. /I had a job to do./ He thought, but self-reassurance was fleeting. The young man with red-brown hair in his face looked up at him with wide silver eyes. He had met the man only once or twice and even then they had been brief encounters. �Christopher,� James said, stepping closer. �I think I have some information for you that might be of interest.� /Just returning the favor./ |