CARESSED BY ICE

Relief rushed through her like a flash flood. “I—” She shuddered.


“I know.” Stark, unemotional words. More disturbingly, though he’d come to her last night, he didn’t move to hold her as a changeling male would have done in the same situation. And she needed to be held.

But Judd wasn’t changeling. He never would be.





CHAPTER 14


Kaleb read the précis of the report on his desk and looked up at his most senior aide. “You’re sure there’s been no error?”

“Yes, Councilor.” Silver Mercant’s eyes were an odd shade between gray and blue, and had apparently been the genesis of her given name. That extraneous fact was something Kaleb had made it his business to find out—he trusted no one near him he didn’t know inside out.

“I rechecked every byte of data we were able to hack into and download. Unfortunately the facility was attacked before we broke the final encryptions,” she said, “but we have enough to make a conclusive assessment. Someone has already authorized live trials of the Implant Protocol.”

Kaleb leaned back in his chair and swiveled to stare out at the gray chill of Moscow. People hurried across the snow-flecked square, all walking as if they had somewhere to be—unsurprising, given the city’s forty-year reign as one of the world’s economic supercenters. “Were you able to determine who gave the order?” He turned back to Silver.

“Negative.” Her eyes flicked to the window behind him. “It appears you have an engagement.”

He’d already seen the trail laid by the approaching highspeed airjet. “We have ten minutes before my guest makes it down to this office. Tell me what else I need to know.” This information could mean a change in his plans.

“The authorization came from very high up in the Council ranks. The individual or individuals were able to provide test subjects who either volunteered or were those who would not be missed—the notes are vague on that point.”

An intentional oversight, Kaleb thought. No rational Psy would accede to having his or her brain implanted with a device that hadn’t yet reached beta testing. He could almost guarantee there had been no volunteers.

“The data is fragmented,” Silver continued, “but I’m ninety percent confident the test group is limited to ten members. They’ve already had one confirmed fatality.”

“Find me that body.” If not literally, then figuratively. A missing Psy who matched the description parameters.

“I’m already working on it.” She glanced down at the flat screen of her organizer. “There are two other crucial factors. The first is that Ashaya Aleine appears to have solved the issue of Static.”

Static, a term used to describe the buzz of background noise—the sound of millions of whispering Psy minds—produced during simulations to test the theory behind Protocol I. No Psy could function with that kind of mental distraction.

“The second factor?” A small light flashed on the surface of his fully computronic desk. The airjet had landed on the rooftop landing pad.

“It’s common knowledge that Protocol I would never have worked as initially postulated because it would have reduced the entire population to one level. To use an analogy, we would have all become worker bees.”

And a hive could not survive without a queen. “You’re saying Aleine solved the problem of distinct but compatible implants for different segments of the populace?” Ensuring power remained in the hands of those who would use it to keep the Psy at the top of the food chain.

“Not completely,” Silver clarified, “but she does appear to have broken the implants into two categories—primary and secondary. Of the original participants in the trial, eight had secondary implants, two primary.”

Two rulers. With possible total control over the other eight. Such influence would be the prerogative of those in power should Protocol I come to fruition. “See if you can get me any names.” He had his suspicions, but what he needed was proof.

“Yes, Councilor.” She gave a short nod and walked out.

Another light flashed on the gleaming black smoothness of his desk to indicate that his visitor had exited the glass hover-elevator and was heading toward his office. Touching a concealed panel under the desk, he initiated its secure mode. The desk turned opaque, hiding the computronics but continuing to record everything that went on in this room. Of course, he had no doubt that his visitor had come prepared for such an exigency.

A knock and then the door opened to reveal his administrative assistant, Lenik. “Sir, Councilor Duncan is here for your meeting.” He shut the door as soon as she came through.

Walking around the desk, Kaleb went to meet her midway. “Nikita. It was good of you to come all this way.”