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possess? She said she could kill Wyer if she chose to. Kyr didn’t doubt her ability to do just that. What else had she seen? She’d said regardless of her death, the Chief would betray him.
    If the stories were true, it was no wonder the Coalition wanted her family dead. If she fell into the wrong hands, even into the wrong hands among the resistance fighters...
    Kyr wondered if her sisters possessed the same powers or if Aja alone was gifted. It was rumored that the power of the Blood passed through the ruling Empress to her daughters, not to her sons, never to her sons.
    Kyr ran a hand through his hair. Aja had been trying to talk to him about something terrible and he’d focused on how much help her ability would be to the Resistance. He’d been so caught up in his own excitement it hadn’t occurred to him how terrified she must be.
    How did it feel to experience your own rape and murder in a man’s mind? To be aware of the many ways she could be used by both sides, the myriad ways her powers could be abused by ambitious men?
    By the Gods he was brainless. He walked to the companionway and stared in the direction she’d gone. He would check on the Chief’s whereabouts and when he was certain they couldn’t be overheard, he’d speak with her. And he’d apologize for behaving like a boorish, insensitive, stupid, heedless darrok.

    She was crying, damn it all to hells. Aja leaned back against her locked door. She refused, absolutely refused, to probe the captain’s mind. She hoped he would help her. If not, then she would kill Wyer and vanish, coin or no coin. She could easily steal whatever she needed to survive. That would be the best solution all around.
    The captain had recognized her for what she was‌—‌power‌—‌for whomever controlled her or controlled the people she cared about. He might inadvertently turn her over to something worse than the Coalition. She’d seen that very real possibility among the many possible futures before them.
    Idiot. I may as well be smoking cabba.
    Living hand to mouth on this rock was not one of her destinies. It made her wonder, not for the first time, exactly how much control she had over the events in her life.
    She’d seen the many paths before her, but choosing the right path? That had always been the question. Sometimes events unfolded in such a way it seemed as if her path had already been laid out and there was no choice about it. Doors to the future were so numerous that if placed end to end they would stretch almost to the edges of the universe.
    Regardless of their number, Aja often felt as if she was destined to open certain doors.
    She shook her head, trying to alter the direction of her thoughts. Aja knew the history of her Blood. Other women like her, ancestors with her power, had been locked away before they died. Not a pleasant way to spend one’s days. Perhaps death by virus would have been kinder.
    Well, action was a good way to vanish her doubts. There was no time like the present to kill a man. Wyer was weak. She’d have no trouble luring him away from the ship.
    Aja walked to her bunk and pulled the coverlet aside. She reached beneath the pad, into the small slice she’d made in the bottom. She removed the largest surgical knife and stashed it in the pocket on the front of her trouser leg. Too bad she didn’t have any underclothes. The knife would be safer in her binder.
    She headed for the door, but her steps slowed. She had to give Wyer enough time to finish the repairs. She couldn’t get rid of the man until he’d completed his work.
    Aja wanted to smack herself. What a cold hard bitch she truly was. She ripped the scalpel out of her pocket and hurled it across the room. The blade stuck in the soft saffawood chest. Her mother had taught her to be patient. Tomorrow would be soon enough.
    Aja lay down on her bed and closed her eyes. She allowed her mind to drift, tuning out distractions, searching for Coalition ships, for the militia, for