her float for a glorious second before despair crashed her to the ground. “It’s too big.” Memory took another bite of the granola bar, swallowed. “The damage is too much. I can do small areas, but I can’t do the entire Net.” The task needed hundreds of thousands of her. “I feel on the edge of flameout. It may take days to recover.” Her psychic veins were sluggish, the energy not even trickling in at this point.
“Show me what you saw when you cleaned.” Krychek, in that cold dark voice that made her nape prickle.
Frowning because he’d been right there, Memory nonetheless telepathed him the image. “It’s not even the size of a room.”
Ivy Jane stared at her, then glanced at Kaleb. It was the cardinal who spoke. “Your mind must telescope the sections to make it easier to visualize. Ivy and I witnessed a vast section of the PsyNet ripple with black light. An area big enough—and now nearly strong enough—to support a thousand minds.”
Memory actually squeaked. “A thousand?” She leaned back into Alexei, needing his solid warmth as an anchor.
Ivy Jane nodded. “It’s the most astonishing thing I’ve ever seen.” Her voice was breathless.
A thousand was amazing, but the PsyNet held millions of minds.
As if reading her bleak thoughts, Kaleb said, “Triage. If I work with the Arrows to give you a map, can you attempt to strengthen the most critical areas with the largest populations?”
Memory nodded even as her throat closed up. “Yes, I’ll help.” She’d seen the true scale of the problem during her time connected with the NetMind and DarkMind, the horror of it. “Millions could die, couldn’t they?”
Alexei’s arms tightened around her as Krychek said, “We’re holding on, but it’s going to become critical sooner rather than later.”
“You’ve just bought us an incredible amount of time.” Sahara’s gaze held a fierce hope. “Even another year could mean everything.”
Memory’s heart ached for all the lives that hung in the balance. She would survive, she knew that—Alexei’s wolf would haul her into the SnowDancer network that held Judd and his family, but so many others had no option but the PsyNet. “I forgot to ask about why the NetMind’s hiding the mating bond.”
“You’re exhausted,” Alexei said with a scowl. “It can wait.”
“Yes, that’s not critical,” Sahara reassured her. “It’s more a curiosity.”
Overcome by the scope of what she’d learned about herself today, Memory stayed quiet for the rest of the conversation. After the others left—Krychek and Sahara teleporting out, Vasic and Ivy going to speak to the other Es—Memory turned into Alexei’s chest and burrowed in.
He slid one hand to her nape, his other arm like steel around her. “If I hear you question your abilities ever again, I’ll bite you twice.”
She laughed, the sound a little wet. “You already bit me twice today.” It had been in bed, her wolf in a wickedly playful mood this morning. He’d done it lightly, left no marks, but she could still feel the brush of teeth on the underside of her breast, and at her throat. “But . . . can we go do that again?”
Alexei brushed back her curls. “You’re exhausted.”
“Psychically, not physically.” She kissed her wolf’s throat, the intimate area he’d allow no one else to touch. “Today was a good discovery . . . but I feel unsteady, off-center. I never feel that way when we’re naked together.”
Chuckling, he grinned. “Come on then, lioness. Let’s go play.”
Chapter 57
Skin privileges are a core necessity to any changeling. Without tactile contact, the dominants become edgy, irritable, bad-tempered, while others get depressed. But you know who’re the worst? The predatory dominants. Good grief. Talk about snarly.
So if you’re with a wolf, or a leopard, or a bear, or any of their dangerous brethren, we highly recommend a daily dose of skin privileges—intimate and not. We know, we know, it’s going to be a great sacrifice on your part, but think of the good of the pack or clan and you can get through it.
—From the February 2083 issue of Wild Woman magazine: “Skin Privileges, Style & Primal Sophistication”
THE TWO OF them snuck into the den like naughty children, on a mission to avoid being stopped. Of course that proved impossible. Memory tried to keep a straight face when a packmate flagged them down to ask Alexei about a border incursion issue. She just barely managed to hold it together until the packmate had moved on and they were around a corner.
Giggles erupted inside her.
Leaning into Alexei, her hand