find a killer. Does that sound useless to you?”
Cami knew she shouldn’t feel sorry for herself, but she found it hard to remember that with her life falling apart around her. “I can hear people’s thoughts, things they wouldn’t share with anyone. It’s an invasion of privacy, and I can’t always control it.” It wasn’t exactly the gift she’d been promised. “I’m a freak.”
Tariq stared at her for a moment and nodded, like he’d decided to let her in on some secret. “I’m going to tell you a story.”
“Does it start in a galaxy far, far away?”
“Your sarcasm is duly noted, little grasshopper.” Tariq pinched a lock of her hair and tugged gently. “There once was a boy born of two worlds, and though he tried, he did not truly fit in either. Bigger and stronger than his peers on Helix, but he was not invincible, because you see, the boy couldn’t shift. The others in his tribe called him an abomination. They said he’d never belong, that he’d never become anything more than what he was—a freak.”
Sadness enveloped her as Tariq’s story unfolded, and her heart ached for the little boy he’d been, the things he’d suffered. “What happened to him?” she whispered.
“He proved them wrong.”
Cami sensed the story had a much darker ending, but Tariq would tell her in his own time. The fact that he’d shared that much, trusted her with his vulnerability, meant more than she could say.
“Thank you.”
A faint smile curved his lips, and Tariq ducked his head to capture her mouth in a heartbreakingly tender kiss. “My point, angel, is that what you are doesn’t define you. It’s who you are, who you choose to be.”
“My father shot me,” Cami blurted. “Then my other father declared me dead and locked me up in the museum he calls a house for a decade. I’m pretty sure what I want, or who I choose to be doesn’t matter.”
His gazed hardened, and the muscles in his jaw ticked as he gritted his teeth. “Your father shot you?”
She hadn’t meant to say any of that. Apparently, her brain-to-mouth filter was still malfunctioning, but she couldn’t take it back now. “I was fourteen. He killed my mother and three guards before he turned his blaster on me. Then he disappeared into the badlands and left me for dead.”
The growl that rumbled through his chest would have made a grown man wet himself, but Cami didn’t fear him. They may have only known each other for a short time, virtual strangers in almost every sense, but she recognized something in Tariq, something she’d been searching for him her entire life. She didn’t have a name for it, couldn’t explain it because it didn’t make sense, not even to her. Still, when she looked at Tariq, when he touched her, she felt…peace.
“So your father, the one who lived, he locked you away to protect you? He wanted to keep you safe in case this other man returned?”
Cami chewed her bottom lip while she thought about how to answer. “In part, yes. Mostly, I think he was afraid of me. I think he feared I wouldn’t be able to control my abilities, and that I’d become like Derrek.”
“Derrek? This is the man who hurt you?”
Oh, her brave, overprotective warrior. She could see the calculation in his eyes, knew he was preparing to go out and slay every demon and bad dream she’d ever had. “Yes, but he can’t hurt me anymore. He’ll never find me here.” For mercy sakes, she didn’t even know exactly where she’d landed.
“And your father, the one who owns the company that makes medicine?”
“Canaan,” she supplied. “What about him?”
“You say he fears you, but why?”
“Derrek was a Class-A Telepath. I inherited my abilities from him, and then when I received my enhancements, they went kind of turbo.” She’d had a rare and uncommon reaction to the genetic modifications the Alliance had given her, and no one really understood why. “Under the right conditions, I can hear thoughts from as
Cami knew she shouldn’t feel sorry for herself, but she found it hard to remember that with her life falling apart around her. “I can hear people’s thoughts, things they wouldn’t share with anyone. It’s an invasion of privacy, and I can’t always control it.” It wasn’t exactly the gift she’d been promised. “I’m a freak.”
Tariq stared at her for a moment and nodded, like he’d decided to let her in on some secret. “I’m going to tell you a story.”
“Does it start in a galaxy far, far away?”
“Your sarcasm is duly noted, little grasshopper.” Tariq pinched a lock of her hair and tugged gently. “There once was a boy born of two worlds, and though he tried, he did not truly fit in either. Bigger and stronger than his peers on Helix, but he was not invincible, because you see, the boy couldn’t shift. The others in his tribe called him an abomination. They said he’d never belong, that he’d never become anything more than what he was—a freak.”
Sadness enveloped her as Tariq’s story unfolded, and her heart ached for the little boy he’d been, the things he’d suffered. “What happened to him?” she whispered.
“He proved them wrong.”
Cami sensed the story had a much darker ending, but Tariq would tell her in his own time. The fact that he’d shared that much, trusted her with his vulnerability, meant more than she could say.
“Thank you.”
A faint smile curved his lips, and Tariq ducked his head to capture her mouth in a heartbreakingly tender kiss. “My point, angel, is that what you are doesn’t define you. It’s who you are, who you choose to be.”
“My father shot me,” Cami blurted. “Then my other father declared me dead and locked me up in the museum he calls a house for a decade. I’m pretty sure what I want, or who I choose to be doesn’t matter.”
His gazed hardened, and the muscles in his jaw ticked as he gritted his teeth. “Your father shot you?”
She hadn’t meant to say any of that. Apparently, her brain-to-mouth filter was still malfunctioning, but she couldn’t take it back now. “I was fourteen. He killed my mother and three guards before he turned his blaster on me. Then he disappeared into the badlands and left me for dead.”
The growl that rumbled through his chest would have made a grown man wet himself, but Cami didn’t fear him. They may have only known each other for a short time, virtual strangers in almost every sense, but she recognized something in Tariq, something she’d been searching for him her entire life. She didn’t have a name for it, couldn’t explain it because it didn’t make sense, not even to her. Still, when she looked at Tariq, when he touched her, she felt…peace.
“So your father, the one who lived, he locked you away to protect you? He wanted to keep you safe in case this other man returned?”
Cami chewed her bottom lip while she thought about how to answer. “In part, yes. Mostly, I think he was afraid of me. I think he feared I wouldn’t be able to control my abilities, and that I’d become like Derrek.”
“Derrek? This is the man who hurt you?”
Oh, her brave, overprotective warrior. She could see the calculation in his eyes, knew he was preparing to go out and slay every demon and bad dream she’d ever had. “Yes, but he can’t hurt me anymore. He’ll never find me here.” For mercy sakes, she didn’t even know exactly where she’d landed.
“And your father, the one who owns the company that makes medicine?”
“Canaan,” she supplied. “What about him?”
“You say he fears you, but why?”
“Derrek was a Class-A Telepath. I inherited my abilities from him, and then when I received my enhancements, they went kind of turbo.” She’d had a rare and uncommon reaction to the genetic modifications the Alliance had given her, and no one really understood why. “Under the right conditions, I can hear thoughts from as
Similar Books
