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  “Yes, and…?” Baird made a hurry-up gesture with one hand.

  “And I spoke to Olivia’s friend, Jillian. She admitted that she’d allowed Olivia to contact her sister, Sophia via the Think-me.” Sylvan ran a hand over his short, spiky blond hair. “Baird, she violated the first rule of the contract—‘No unbonded bride without a complete link to the warrior who has claimed her will have direct contact with her planet of origin.’”

  Liv felt like her stomach had dropped somewhere around her feet. How could Jillian be so stupid as to tell on herself—and Liv—like that? What was wrong with her? Should have known. She never could keep a secret, even in high school. “I…I’m sorry,” she said, looking at both Baird and Sylvan. “I mean, I knew it was wrong but I didn’t know it was such a big deal. I miss Sophie so much.” She felt tears begin to rise to her eyes and blinked them away. “This is the longest I’ve gone without seeing her in my entire life. I just…just wanted to hear her voice.”

  “Oh, Lilenta…” Baird turned and started to gather her into his arms but a discrete cough from Sylvan stopped him and he drew back.

  Liv huddled in on herself, wishing he hadn’t stopped. She could have used some of his warmth right about now. “I don’t understand,” she whispered.

  “The claiming contract between yourself and Baird is null and void,” Sylvan said.

  “So…what does that mean?” Liv lifted her chin, trying to keep her voice from cracking.

  “It means you get what you wanted, Olivia.” Baird’s voice was quiet and sad. “You’re free of me now. You can go home and have your old life back.”

  “With…without you?” Liv knew it sounded ridiculous but suddenly the idea of being separated from the big warrior she’d come to care for so much made her feel sick and uncertain. “I mean…it’s really that big of a deal?”

  “It is.” Sylvan nodded. “The rule was instituted especially for situations like this, where the bride’s home planet is at war. If she is allowed free contact with her family and loved ones before she’s completely bonded to the warrior that calls her, delicate information may go astray and endanger everyone on board the ship.”

  “But Jillian never said anything like that! She said they were turning a blind eye to it. That all the warriors were letting their brides use the Think-me.”

  “They may be but only after being completely bonded.” Sylvan looked grim. “Only having a fully formed link with a Kindred mind can shield your thought messages enough to keep the Scourge from reading them.”

  “What’s done is done,” Baird said heavily. “I will inform the Council of my new status and Olivia can go back on the first available shuttle.”

  “What, just like that?” Liv could hardly believe her ears. “You go on and on about how much you love me and how we’re meant to be together and now you’re giving me up because I made a long distance phone call?” She knew she wasn’t being rational—after all, this was what she’d wanted from the moment Baird had first claimed her. But she couldn’t help feeling disappointed that after all his words of love and devotion breaking one little rule was all it took to end things between them.

  “Please, Lilenta.” Baird shook his head. “Please know that I would never give you up willingly.”

  “He has no choice,” Sylvan cut in. “The claiming contract is binding and specific. Failure to follow the proper protocol, especially in the case of a breach of that contract, could result in death for one or both of you.”

  “What?” Liv felt cold all over. “Nobody said anything about being killed if you broke the rules. That’s crazy!”

  “No, that’s war, Olivia.” Baird turned his head to look at her, his eyes flat and dead. “The Scourge are still out there and they’re able to intercept any unbonded Think-me transmissions.”

  “They can read your thoughts?” Liv was appalled.

  Sylvan nodded. “If there is an incomplete link they can. Most likely what they’re looking for is a way to harvest the emotions from such exchanges. They…feed on negative energy.”

  “They feed on pain,” Baird said bluntly. “Too bad we’re not all on board their Fathership right now. They could be having a fuckin’ feast.” He sighed and ran both hands through his hair. “I’m sorry.”

  “Me too.” Liv bit her lower lip. “Look, this is all just crazy. It’s not like Sophie and I were exchanging state secrets. She was just…just warning me about your mating scent.”

  “Well you won’t have to worry about it any more.” Baird stood abruptly. “You won’t have to worry about anything outside of Earth anymore.”

  “Baird, I—” she began but he shook his head.

  “Please, Olivia—just get dressed and packed. Sylvan and I will be waiting outside.” And then he left.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Baird felt as though someone wearing metal anti-grav boots had kicked him in the gut. Gone, she’s really gone. Gods, can’t believe I actually lost her and over something so stupid… He had taken the precaution of hiding his own Think-me but it had never occurred to him that Olivia would go use someone else’s. Hell, he hadn’t even known she had any friends on board the ship. Maybe you would have known if you’d asked. If you’d let her talk about her home and her friends more. But no, you were so eager to keep her focused on her future with you that you refused to hear about her past and now it’s too late. He knew it was true but all the self recrimination in the universe wouldn’t help now. Wouldn’t bring her back.

  He and Sylvan were standing on the observation deck of the docking bay after seeing Olivia onto a shuttle bound for Earth. Baird had wanted to go with her for one last goodbye but Sylvan had convinced him it would be a bad idea. It would, too. If he’d gone down with her, Baird wasn’t sure he could have brought himself to leave her, even though she’d been fighting for her freedom from him from the moment he first called her.

  At least she got what she wanted. She never wanted to be bonded to me, never wanted me as her mate. All she cared about was getting her old life back, seeing her sister every day. But if she wanted that so much, why was she crying when she said good-bye? Baird didn’t have an answer for that. He could still feel her soft, curvy body against him, could still hear her soft sobbing in his ears. When the time had come to go, she had thrown herself into his arms, trembling and saying, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” over and over again. Baird hadn’t had any words to give back to her—he was past words now. He’d only been able to hold her tight and press his face to her neck to breathe her sweet scent one more time. One last time. And then she was gone.

  Gods, Lilenta… He was still numb and he knew it. It was like the feeling you got when you’d just been wounded in battle. Looking down, seeing the blood pour out and feeling nothing. But sooner or later the pain would come and when it did…When it does it’s going to fucking kill me, he thought in a detached kind of way. It’s going to make the worst torture the AllFather inflicted look like kindness and mercy.

  “Baird…Brother, I am so sorry.” Sylvan was looking at him with concern in his eyes. Concern and understanding.

  Was this how he felt after what happened on Tranq Prime? Baird stared at his brother blankly without answering.

  “If you wish to talk about it…about how you feel…” Sylvan began hesitantly.

  “How I feel?” Baird laughed harshly. “I’ll tell you how I fuckin’ feel. I feel like my hand just got cut off and I’m looking down at the bloody stump waiting for the pain to start. She was part of me, Sylvan—the best part. And she’s gone.”

  “I know.” There was real agony in his brother’s voice now. “Forgive me, Baird. I blame myself.”

  “Don’t.” Baird shook his head wearily. “It would have come out sooner or later, I’m sure. And if it had happened after we’d already bonded, well…”

  “There’s nothing worse than a broken bond,” Sylvan murmured.

  “I wouldn’t know.” Baird ran a hand over his face, hearing the sandpaper scratch of his rough