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“But this isn’t just losing. This is my entire career.”

“Listen to me, Doriena.” Bakac knelt and brushed one fiery red curl from her forehead. “I have no doubt in my mind -- have never doubted -- that you would make one of the finest officers in Military Command since your father retired from active service to concentrate on governing Gothe’mar. But this isn’t you. You have too gentle a soul to expose yourself to this kind of violence.”

Doriena was starting to feel the effects of her injuries, but she needed to finish this conversation. “I --” she began and had to stop for breath. “I am as --” Another breath. “-- tough as you and Alex put -- put together.”

“Undoubtedly,” Bakac said without hesitation. “I’d not be so foolish as to question that. I just think that your soul would be better suited for peace instead of war.”

Something in the way Bakac looked at her gave her pause. There was something she was missing, but she couldn’t quite figure it out. “I think I need to get to that healing tube, Bakac.”

“Yes. I think you do.”

She expected he would have helped her to her feet, or worse, tried to carry her off the faux battlefield, but he simply stood there. He offered a hand when she needed one, but let go of her as soon as she was steady. He let her walk until her legs simply wouldn’t hold her any more. Then he simply scooped her up and ran as hard as he could to Medical Command.

She passed out long before he made it.

?* * *

“If she dies, I’m going to kill you.”

“It’s not like I made her go after a warrior almost three times her size. I got there as quickly as I could.”

“You should have anticipated!”

“Could you have?”

Blessed silence.

“It doesn’t matter. I gave you one set of instructions. One simple task and instead of keeping her out of harm’s way, you almost let her get killed.”

There they go again.

Doriena had been listening to Alex and Bakac go at it for nearly an hour. What she couldn’t figure out was how she was doing it. She was in the healing tube. Had been for several hours if what the two men were saying wasn’t exaggerated. She should have been oblivious to the outside world, but here she was, privy to the conversation of two insufferably stubborn and infuriating men.

Alex blamed Bakac, Bakac refused to accept blame, when in reality both men felt guilty as hell. They just didn’t want to admit it to the other.

Drugs. It must be the drugs. She was bound to have been given drugs of some kind when she was placed in the tube.

Fine. If she was hallucinating, she’d damn well play along.

If the two of you don’t shut the fuck up and give me a little peace and quiet, I’m going to kick both your asses when I get out of here.

Again, silence.

Did you hear something, Alex?

Err… no. I absolutely did not hear anything. Especially not Doriena.

I thought not.

Maybe it’s your guilty conscience playing tricks on you.

And there they went again.

She was definitely going to kill them both. Once she figured out what thehellwas going on.

?* * *

Bakac sat at Doriena’s side. He had been there since they had removed her from the healing tube a little more than one day ago. He glanced to his left to find Alex with his head propped on his hand, his elbow resting on Doriena’s bed. Neither of them had spoken since they first took her out of the tube, and it was likely they wouldn’t.

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