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And whose fault is that? a little voice whispered nastily in my head Who shoved him away? Who ran off and fell in love with somebody else?

It didn’t s hat they were

Lewis knew I cared for him, but David was my love, my lover, my husband We all had coht

Leatchingon in his head I hoped he couldn’t guess the argu on inside mine, either

"We’re two days froround running There are reports of all kinds of proble out"

I shook reed "But we’re the s need to be fixed Sowhat they do best"

"Most," I repeated "Meaning?"

"Meaning that I’oing to do our best to analyze what happened to you and David, and ht if we can I’ve been on the phone to Marion Bearheart She thinks that, in theory, it should be possible to open up the energy conduits within you again, if that’s what’s gone wrong"

That sounded hopeful It also, at second breath, sounded painful I winced a little, and saw sympathy flash across Lewis’s face "Yeah," he said "It’s going to hurt"

"Used to that"

"And David?"

Signing , but David

"David can speak for himself," said a voice from the next bed, and Lewis turned in that direction Behind hi position, chest bare, sheets wrapped tight around his waist He looked tired and vulnerable, but the sight of him up and alert made my heart take a mad leap of joy "What do humans take for headaches these days?"

"Depends on how bad it is," Lewis said, alreadyin the direction of the locked medicine cabinets "On a scale of one to ten?"

David thought about it, then sighed and rubbed a distracted hand over his short brown hair "Twenty-five"

Luis didn’t seee, came back, and unceremoniously delivered a jab to David’s biceps David flinched, lips parting in shock, and said, incredulously, "Ow! "He sounded horribly betrayed by the pain I wondered how long it had been since he’d really been subject to a human nervous system--one he couldn’t control, anyway "What was that?"

"Wait for it," Lewis said, as he disposed of the hypo in a medical waste container "Should be about--now"

David suddenly relaxed--not quite enough to collapse, but I saw the tension just bleed out of him His eyes widened and went a little unfocused "Oh," he said "Well, that’s better"

"Welcome to modern medicine"

"It’s nice," David said, and raised his eyebrows "It’s really nice" He slid off the bed, landed on his bare feet, and padded over to clai Before he sat, he bent over and kissedand sweet and slow, and I savored every bit of it

Lewis cleared his throat

"Oh, biteman," I said, too full of relief to care "You’re okay, honey?" David’s skin felt warainst avesmile "Really?"

"I’ll be fine," he said, and sat down "As long as you are" He turned his head toward Lewis, and his body language altered itself, just a little Although I couldn’t get the subtleties, it see an effort to be friendly, but he wanted Lewis to be anywhere but here "Lewis What do you know?"

"About what happened to the Djinn? Nothing We came out of the black corner, they screamed, they disappeared"

David’s eyes went briefly blank, and I knew that, likenot to relive that awful sound There was so about it that just wouldn’t die; it was like an endless recorded loop, playing in the back of my mind The best you could do was keep the sound turned low "No," he said "That’s not what happened Jo understands"

I did? I didn’t I shook my head

"You saw it before," he said "At the coast You saw it take me"

I had no idea what he meant, and I was about to say soAnd then it ca at him "No"

"Yes," he said "Exactly that"

"But--the Wardens would know"

"Not if she didn’t wish them to"

"Excuse me," Lewis said, a little too loudly "Somebody want to clue ood, because I wasn’t sure I had it in me "It’s the Mother," he said "It was her screah the Djinn She’s been hurt, and she’s angry She gathered the Djinn to her They’re in her power now"

I watched Lewis’s face go very quickly pale He put out a hand to steady hi that the Earth is awake," David said "At least, I believe she is co awake

The Djinn serve her, and when she calls, they must co that could happen The Earth slept We liked it that way Even in sleep she was difficult, but once that vast, slow consciousness was rousedwe had no idea what she would do, except that it alreat many species, and the end of human civilization, at the very least

The Earth could not be reasoned with, or even directly communicated with Not even the Djinn could do that The only ones that had a chance, even a whisper of a chance, were the three Djinn Oracles

Thinking of the Oracles hter, Imara, and I felt a leap of terrible fear Had she screamed, like the others? Had she lost herself, too?

"No," David said, and his fingers tightened on ht

We’d know--" His voice trailed off, and I saw a flash of panic in his eyes We wouldn’t know We were only huhter, our child who’d been born half Djinn and raised to becorasp now David normally would have been able to reach out to her, over any distance, but noas just as trapped in flesh and as clueless as I felt