CARESSED BY ICE

His vehicle—separate from those owned by the SnowDancers—was hidden near one of the rutted tracks leading out of wolf territory. When he reached it, he found it undisturbed and in perfect condition. The engine started with an almost soundless purr.

A second later, he thought he saw a shadow in the forest. He sent his Tp senses in an outward scan, aware that his body and mind were both functioning at less than optimal levels. Someone could have followed him in the wake of his distraction with Brenna. However, the scan touched nothing but the open minds of forest creatures. Satisfied, he maneuvered the vehicle through the thick darkness of a cloudy night and onto the track.

The telepathic “knock” came when he’d almost reached his destination. I’m here. He eased the car into a single-level street parking slot and got out. What’s important enough to call a meeting in person?

I wanted to talk to both of you, and the comm channels aren’t secure at present—I’m working on getting some new encryption software to block any covert monitoring, the Ghost responded. The Council’s already begun eliminating the most vocal of the agitators.

Judd smelled the biting freshness of oncoming rain as he cut through a children’s park. They knew the risk. Crossing the road, he walked around the church and into the unlit backyard, home to a small graveyard for those who had chosen to lie under the sun rather than be interred in the crypts.

Father Perez sat on the back steps of the church and Judd located the Ghost’s dark shadow against a facing tree. “What did you find out?”

“I didn’t see you arrive,” the Ghost said.“Being out of the PsyNet hasn’t had any appreciable impact on you and your abilities.”

Wrong, but it was an untruth that had tactical value. “I have to get back.” Distance was simply turning up the notch on his need to be with Brenna, to keep her safe. There was a threat to her. His brain was fixated on the idea. But what he didn’t know was whether the threat came from the outside . . . or from his own killing abilities.

The Ghost took the hint. “This data hasn’t been confirmed yet, but it appears Ashaya Aleine may be forced to start her work from scratch.”

“Why? The lab had to have backup files hidden away,” Perez said.

“The recent loss of several of their top scientists negates the value of any such backups—they alone knew what their notes meant. Unfortunately Aleine’s too well protected.”

Perez sighed. “I was hoping you hadn’t taken that route.” His voice held sorrow. “You kill too easily.”

The Ghost shifted in the darkness. “If I hadn’t removed the scientists from the equation, all our work would have meant nothing. They would’ve begun implanting test subjects within the year. In a decade, we would have become a single hive mind.”

“Not single,” Judd said. “Psy wouldn’t all be equal under Protocol I. There will be puppets and puppet masters.” As an Arrow programmed to kill, Judd knew the truth of what happened when some were given absolute control over others. Power was the most rapacious of drugs.

“And so we spill more blood?” Perez asked. “Is that right?”

“I have no right to judge anyone else, Father.” No matter what the Ghost had done, Judd knew he’d done worse. “Tell me what else you have—quickly.”





By the time Judd left, the chill winter rain was coming down in a steady beat. He let it fall on him, let it wash away the death-soaked taste of this latest meeting. The dehumanizing cruelty that was the Implant Protocol was evil, but in fighting it, Judd knew that they, too, could become evil. The understanding came from some buried part of him, a part inextricably linked to what he felt for Brenna.

The thought further heightened his urgency to return to her. Speeding up his pace, he breathed in the scent of ozone and city. The street was deserted, the glow of the laz-lamps muted by the rain. Walking across, he stepped into the darkness of the park. As a child, he’d never once played in a place like this. His training runs had been supervised, his exercises regimented. Shaping him. Making him.

Pushing aside the memories, he traversed the park with long steady strides, heading for the car he’d left on the other side. He could run the new data crystal the Ghost had passed him in the car’s system, but preferred to wait and do it on his personal organizer, which was double-firewalled against interference.