Chapter Two
The effects of the dinner party stuck with Simina like an itch she couldn’t scratch. The next morning she woke up thinking she was just a little hungover from the delicious cocktails, but she felt physically invigorated and eager to get back to work on her research.
She analyzed the latest series of tests she’d run on the poison compound, the slightest shift in the results providing evidence that she was at least on the right track. After cataloging the results, she went to the secure cooler in the corner of the lab for a fresh sample. Frosty air billowed out, making her skin tingle and reminding her of the way the wind felt at the higher altitudes above the mountains when she flew.
Once she solved the mystery of this poison, she should treat herself to a vacation. Or at the very least a long weekend in the mountains where she could stretch her wings. Then perhaps she could spend some time thinking about her promise to Talon.
Until then, she had to keep working. She was too close to unraveling the secrets of the poison that had killed her lover and was still wreaking havoc on the lives of the athletes who competed in Aurora’s Arena League matches. She didn’t want to encounter another man coming to her, mauled and near-death the way Bryer Vargas had been. Most of the victims had survived with few ill effects, but it was only a matter of time before the poison affected another one to the degree it had Talon or Bryer.
Clear cooler drawers lined the walls, lit from within and displaying myriad vials of colorful samples. Simina silently counted down the inventory tags, marking the rows. She stopped in front of the one she wanted and frowned. One tiny vial remained with barely enough of a sample left to complete the next round of tests she planned. Once it was gone, she’d be at a standstill unless another victim turned up, and she refused to let herself hope for that to happen. She took the vial and carried it to her workstation to begin her tests.
The poison was insidious and nearly lethal … fully lethal, in the case of her lover. It interfered with an athlete’s link to his animal, and once injured, prevented him from healing. If the wound the athlete sustained was grave enough, he could die. She had a suspicion that the reason it had affected Talon and Bryer so much worse than any of the others had something to do with the closely synced connection with their animals that made them so unbeatable. Whether their opponents just used more of the stuff to gain an upper hand because they were so out-matched, she wasn’t sure, but it was almost always the highest-ranked athletes who fell victim to the poison.
Talon had been the best in his solo bracket, and arguably the best league-wide champion ever. Cheating was uncommon in the league, but not unheard of, so nobody had been particularly shocked that his opponent had tried to gain an advantage by using the poison. The cheating athlete had sworn he never intended to kill Talon, but Simina hadn’t cared and still didn’t. The offender was rotting away in a prison now, and at least couldn’t try it again with someone new.
Yet attacks still happened, and that meant the poison was still out there, yet Simina still hadn’t been able to pinpoint its origin. Of all the samples she’d collected, they were each slightly different in maddeningly simple ways. How in the world could someone be manufacturing a poison so perfectly imperfect as to throw off her analysis?
This last sample was the remainder of the poison she’d been able to extract from Bryer’s blood nearly six months ago. His system was thankfully clear of the toxins now, and he’d made a full and spectacular recovery. At least some good had come of her research. She’d had a hunch that the poison’s interference with the animal link could be overcome more quickly if the patient’s animal had a good reason to synchronize with the man again. The draw of a mate often forced man and animal into cohesion when they otherwise might have remained split.
The understanding that it had worked pained her still. It just reinforced her theory that arena champions would have a bigger advantage if they were mated. However, the popular wisdom was that mated arena champions lost their edge, so most of them opted to avoid mating or put it off even if they found their mates.
She prepared her testing solutions with the heavy weight of that old anger sitting like a stone in her chest. Talon had believed it too. They belonged together. They’d both known it from the moment they set eyes on each other when she’d started work as a League physician.
If only he’d survived that match. Simina couldn’t help but grit her teeth at the idea that he might have survived if they’d been mated. His link to his animal might have been too strong for the poison to sever, and his wound would have healed. They might have been parents by now … He wouldn’t have even had to retire from competing, if he didn’t want to. She would never have forced him to leave the sport if his heart was still in it, and Bryer and Ignazio were evidence that arena champions could easily have successful careers even after they were happily mated.
If anything, the Hot Wings duo were more formidable opponents now than ever before. She’d heard about their success in the exhibition matches at the start of the winter season. Despite her attempts to avoid hearing about the current arena season in any concrete way, she still liked to follow her former patients’ careers, and had been giddy to learn that the duo had recently beat an up and coming trio of champions. Two against three, and winning? That had been quite a feat. If only Talon had been alive to witness it.
“Stare any harder and lasers are going to shoot out of your eyes.”
Simina jumped and let out an unseemly squeak at the deep voice that came from behind her. She spun around, eyes wide and heart pounding in her throat.
“Javin, you scared the crap out of me!” Her hand fluttered over her chest as she gave her boss the evil eye.
The chief of medicine at the Arena League Medical Institute lifted an eyebrow. “Your dragon would have heard me if you were in sync. For someone who preaches shifter synchronicity so much to the athletes, you aren’t very good at practicing it yourself. It’d help with stress too, you know.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I don’t have to go into the arena then, isn’t it? My job is to help make sure they stay in top form. I’m good at my job.”
Javin gave her a solemn nod. “You’re one of the best doctors on staff. Too bad you refuse to see patients. As great as you are at research, your skills are frankly wasted. You should be out there fixing them in person instead of down here staring holes through the equipment.”
Simina darted a look at the display she’d been watching while lost in thought. It would be another half hour before the results of the test were complete.
Her shoulders sagged. “I can’t …” She trailed off and let out a defeated sigh.
Javin pressed his lips together and eyed her for several beats. “I didn’t want to do this, but you’re not making it easy for me, Simina. You’re an amazing doctor. Probably the best we’ve got. But your duty is to your living patients. There are real men out there who need your skills as a healer. You’re giving me no choice.”
Simina’s neck prickled and her heart rate ratcheted up a notch again at the direction his lecture was taking.
“But I’m making progress on the poison. Real progress …”
Javin held up his hand, palm out to stall her. Nodding, he said, “I don’t disagree, but this work … you could do it in your sleep. You can delegate. You should delegate, instead of losing sleep and running yourself ragged here. You don’t even show your face to arena champions unless they’re already on your patient roster. Thank fuck Bryer Vargas was one of yours. If he hadn’t been, and you hadn’t jumped in when it counted, he’d be dead. We need you back on rounds, Simina. And if you refuse … Well, I’ll just have to …”
“Please, Javin. I need to do this. I can’t lose this job now. I’m so close to finding the key to this poison, but I just can’t see any champions.” She was too ashamed to articulate the reason, but Javin was no stranger to her dilemma. The fear of finding another mate among the athletes nearly crippled her. What if Talon wasn’t the only one for her? Worse yet, what if she fell for another champion and he suffered the same fate? She couldn’t bear losing another mate.
Javin shook his head and let out an exasperated huff. “I don’t want to fire you, Simina. What I want is for you to take a goddamn vacation.”
Her mouth dropped open and she glanced at the colorful readout on the machine displaying the chemical makeup of the poison compound it was analyzing. This test could be the one, but even if it only came one step closer to showing her the truth of the poison’s origins, she couldn’t stop there.
“Not yet … One more week.”
“One week of what? You’re out of samples. We haven’t been able to synthesize the poison for more testing. There is nothing for you to do after that test is done, except agonize over the results until another victim comes in. Take. A. Vacation. Two weeks, minimum.”
“But …”
He held up both hands this time to shush her. “No buts. We know what to do with the samples if they come in. We have all your considerable findings to refer to if someone else is poisoned. We’ve got this. If you’re that concerned about being gone so long, take your vacation on Earth. With the time difference, you can relax for two full weeks, and by the time you come home, you’ll only have been gone half as long. I’m more than certain we can manage without you for seven days.”
The readout continued to fluctuate and update, the results already giving her a hint of what she suspected—that she needed fresh samples to make any more progress.
“I need a breakthrough. I can’t be caught sleeping if something changes.”
“We need a breakthrough, Simina. Talon was my friend. He was my patient before he was yours. I want this as much as you do.” The gruffness in Javin’s tone betrayed the emotions he normally kept carefully hidden. “But he wouldn’t want you destroying your life over this. You need a break more than you need a breakthrough. If you say no, I will be forced to take more drastic measures.”
Deflated, she let out a sigh of surrender. “Fine, but promise me you will contact me if anything happens.”
“I’ve got your back,” Javin said, genuine relief filling his eyes. “Go now. I’ll handle the final analysis. I don’t want to take any chances on you changing your damn mind.”
Simina managed a laugh. “Fair enough. See you in a week.”
* * *
The problem with free time was that it gave her too much time to think. Without her work, her mind wandered to old memories, and while she’d intended to just stay home and do some reorganizing on her week off, all the mementos of her life with Talon haunted her at every turn.
It had been a year, but she hadn’t been able to bring herself to go through his things. They were all she had left of him. After one day of spinning her wheels at home, she finally gave in. She needed a new perspective, especially if she planned to return with enough drive to finally make some headway on her research. She doubted she could get Talon out of her mind completely, but being surrounded by the remnants of their shared life certainly wasn’t going to help.
“He would want this,” she reminded herself as she packed. “Talon would want you to move on.”
The very idea made a hot knot of emotion burn in her chest. Moving on meant leaving him behind. She wasn’t sure she was ready for that, but perhaps there was a compromise.
While she didn’t think she was ready to find a new mate, she knew that was a prerequisite for what she really wanted. All Simina needed was to find a man who wanted to be a father as much as she wanted to be a mother. If their desires meshed well enough and their animals could be convinced to bond, a mating might just work. It wasn’t ideal, but Simina didn’t believe she would ever find the kind of bond she’d had with Talon in another man, even if their animals were willing. Theirs had been a once in a lifetime kind of love.
But a baby … that was a different kind of love, and Simina knew she had room in her heart for a child. More than enough to make up the difference.
She’d wasted too much time in mourning already. Now that she’d made up her mind to try, she was impatient to get on with it. Her trip took on new meaning as she booked passage through the wormhole to Earth.
It wasn’t about relaxing anymore. She was on a mission, and while she hadn’t the slightest idea how to go about finding the right man for the job, she knew exactly who to ask.