Charliesighed. “If only we knew the name of it…”

“Wait…”Thracesat up straighter in his chair. “There was some kind of lettering on the wallof the place she was in. I couldn’t read it because it was in a tongue I didn’tknow—or one I couldn’t read, anyway though I understood her speech wellenough.”

“It’sthe same with Kindred,” Far said. “We pick up new languages almost immediatelybut it takes a bit of study to get the written part of any new tongue downpat.”

“Whatif there was a way to see the words?”

Thenew voice, coming from the doorway that led to Sylvan’s sleeping chamberbelonged to his mate, Sophia. She had been putting their twins down for a napwhen the meeting started.

“Whatway, talana?” Sylvan asked.

“Nadiahof course. She’s right here in the next room—lying down with Kara and Kaleb.She can see into Thrace’smemories and read the words. Of course…” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Any priestess could do it but Nadiah ismuch less invasive. And she knows every language in the universe because she’sthe Mouthpiece of the Goddess.”

“Avery good thought.” Sylvan drew her close and kissed her affectionately. “Wouldyou get Nadiah for us now?” He looked at Thrace. “That is, if you’ll agreeto the process?”

Thrace shifteduncomfortably.

“Wouldshe only look at one specific memory? Or would she have to scan everything inmy past?”

“Youdon’t have to worry about Nadiah—she’s wonderful.” Trin pressed his hand gently.“She won’t look at anything you don’t want her to.”

“Well…”Thracehesitated but at last nodded. “All right. I’ll do it.”

“I’llget her.” Sophia went back into the sleeping chamber and came back a momentlater with the blonde haired priestess who looked sleepy and tousled.

“Sorry…”She yawned. “I was trying to get Kara and Kaleb down for their nap and I sortof fell asleep myself in the process.”

“That’squite all right, Nadiah.” Sylvan smiled. “You know Sophia and I appreciate thehelp.”

“I’mhappy to help while I can…but you know I have to leave soon. Rast misses me andI’m lost without him, too. My mate,” she explained to Trin who looked at herquizzically. “He can’t leave First World sohe’s managing without me while I visit the Mother Ship and snuggle with Karaand Kaleb.”

“You’rewonderful with the twins but right now we need a different kind of help fromyou,” Sylvan said. “We need the Mouthpiece of the Goddess.” Rapidly, heoutlined what was going on and what they needed to see. When he was finished,Nadiah looked very grave indeed.

“TheGoddess has shown me something about this—about a girl who will be veryimportant to the Kindred race’s future. I couldn’t see much about her exceptthat she’s not at all what she seems. Though I don’t think even she knows that.And now you say she’s been targeted for assassination?”

“I’mafraid so—Two put a member of the Verrak onher trail and Thracesaw him watching her in his vision,” Sylvan said. “But he also saw somelettering on the building. We thought it might help us find her—hopefullybefore it’s too late.”

“Soyou need me to look into his memories?” Nadiah walked over to where Thracewas sitting and held out a hand in greeting.

Hesitantly,he took it.

Nadiahsmiled at him warmly.

“Hello—youmust be the male Trin fell in love with.” She smiled at Trin. “And I see you’renow healed outside as well as inside.”

“Iam.” Trin smiled at her. “Thanks to you and the Goddess.”

“Iknew she brought you two to the Mother Ship for a reason.” Nadiah pulled herhand from Thrace’sand looked at Sylvan. “I’ve got it. She’s full figured with brownish blondehair and blue eyes.” She frowned. “For a moment I thought I saw something elsethough—some change in her that was hard to define…”

“What?”Thracewas genuinely startled. “That’s exactly what she looked like and I saw thechange too. But how did you know all that I saw? I never felt a thing.”

“Toldyou she was unobtrusive,” Sophia remarked, smiling. “She’s absolutely thebest—take it from someone who’s had other people in their head rifling throughtheir memories more than once.” She shivered. “With anyone else, it’s ahorrible experience. With Nadiah—you don’t even notice it.”

“Sowhere is the girl? Did you get the name?” Charlie asked, leaning forward.

Nadiahfrowned. “The writing on the wall that Thrace saw said ‘George WashingtonElementary.’ Does that mean anything to you?”

Beccagroaned. “He was the first president of our country. There must be a million elementary schools named afterhim!”

“Still,we at least know she’s in the US,”Charlie said thoughtfully. “That narrows it down some.”

“Weneed to do a search of elementary schools with that name with a teacher thathas the last name of Brooks,” Sylvan said. “We need to find her!”

“I’llattend to it.” Far was already standing. “I’ll go to the main communicationsdesk and run a comprehensive search.”

“Dothat,” Sylvan said, nodding. “And while you’re at it—”

Hewas interrupted by a buzzing from the large viewscreen on the wall.

“Answerit quick!” Sophia exclaimed. “It’ll wake up the twins!”

“Allowcall,” Sylvan said. At once an image of Six popped up on the screen.

“Ohgood,” Sophie murmured. “Somebody bespeak Mei-Li and tell her that her man isfine. She was so worried she had to lay down with a headache.”

“Onit.” Becca was already reaching for the thin silver wire of a Think-me in orderto communicate with their friend.

Sylvanalso seemed pleased. “Six, good. I asked the communications officers to patchyou directly through when you called. What have you found?”

“Destructionand death.” Six sounded sober. “The lab is where Two modified all of hissniffers—canine-like creatures who were able to scent emotions. He always keptit in immaculate condition but now, well…see for yourself, Commander.”

Hepanned the hand-held camera across the lab showing broken glass and twistedmetal along with some suspicious looking brownish-red stains.

“Isthat blood?” Sylvan asked, frowning at the screen.

“Itappears to be. But there is more—look.”

Sixwalked to a different part of the lab, his boots crunching on the scatteredglass fragments. He came to a stop in front of two huge cylinders which hadbeen broken open, though one was still half filled with greenish goo.

Butit was what the cylinders contained that caught Thrace’s eye—two twisted forms,both of them clearly dead, were lying locked together, half-in, half-out of theshattered containers.

“Isthat…Two?” Thraceasked.

Sixnodded. “He looks much changed but yes, I believe it is him. The teeth areunmistakable.”

Twohad died with a look of agony on his face—his thin lips were peeled back in asnarl that revealed his steel teeth. Beside him, with long fingers wrappedaround Two’s skinny throat, lay another figure Thrace recognized.

“LordX!” Trin exclaimed.

“Isthis the scion Two made of himself?” Six asked, looking down.

“Ifit’s not it’s close enough to be his twin,” Trin murmured. “Look—is that ablaster hole in his chest?”

“Ibelieve so,” Six answered her. “And look—” He lifted Two’s stiff hand with thetoe of one boot. It was still gripping a blaster.

“Iwonder what happened to them?” Charlie said.

“Itappears that Two was trying to make some kind of transference—maybe he wantedto put his consciousness directly into his scion’s body,” Six said.“Apparently, the scion did not approve of this.”

“Hedidn’t want Two taking over his body so he strangled him,” Charlie said. “Andthen Two shot him—they must have died together.”

Beccashivered. “It’s not pretty but at least now we know Two and his scion are outof the picture.” She turned to Thrace.“That must be a load off your mind!”

“Ofcourse.” Thracetried to smile but for some reason, he couldn’t feel the elation he knew heought to. There was something too easy…to convenient about the scene Six hadfound in the abandoned laboratory…