Page 23 of I Dated the Lost Song

“What?” Im-bar blinked.

“She muttered something about not wanting to be like her sister and rejected me.”

“Oh, hell. Yeah. She can’t afford to be like her sister. Her activation is far more dangerous than Arcady’s.” Im-bar said, “Have a seat. I will explain. I just have to grab a tablet.”

She darted off and came back with a tablet. She brought up the schematics of Arcady’s transformation and showed Raek. “This is Cadence’s older sister. Arcady. Arcady is a member of the Blind Date Corporation, and she is Dr. Kritz’s wife.”

“That sounds reasonable. Why wouldn’t she want to get married?”

“Kritz is not Arcady’s only lover. She is also the lover of Tycho and Corianne. They are all biters, and Arcady has no compunction about flopping into their arms at any given moment, and everyone just chuckles and pets her for it.”

Raek frowned. “I am beginning to understand. I think.”

“Do you? Arcady insisted on hugging Cadence.”

“That is right for a sibling.”

“But Arcady is loaded with implants, so it hurt.”

“Right.”

“So Kritz designed a suit to compress Cadence’s output so Arcady could hug her sibling. Cadence doesn’t reach for her.”

“I am getting a bad feeling.”

“You should.” Im-bar sat and unloaded everything she had learned about Cadence’s origin, and she showed him the images that had been found of Cadence standing away from her family, with her arms covered on the hottest days.

“Oh. So, she has fear of people.”

“She ran across the Aksalla border as a tween and was shot while being arrested. That would have been the same year you went under. She had to prove she was in danger, and then she had to beg for asylum. She got it. She got her reprieve, but then she had to make a living with a talent that isn’t marketable.”

“I made a good living with it.”

“They knew you were a harmonic from the start. Only the people in this house know what she is and what she could one day learn to do.”

“So, what is her romantic history?”

“There isn’t one. Raek, she can’t touch people. She has never been able to touch people. It has never been in her grasp. Literally. But she gives off those harmonics, and that draws males in who invariably get aggressive. Like the guys at the gym.”

“So, I offered to keep her, and she said no because...”

“Yes isn’t something she can imagine. Everyone close to her has rejected her, and being too close to the wrong person gets her punished. That suit was painful.”

“Wait. Kritz? Blue guy, big horns?”

“Yes.”

“I am going to have to have a chat with him. I am shocked that he didn’t take advantage of another harmonic in his lab. He was always bemoaning the lack of them back in the day.”

Im-bar smiled. “Good, now go and make friends with Cadence. She needs a friend far more than she needs a lover. I think the friendship has been sadly lacking.”

He nodded and sighed. “I just want to catch her up and kiss her. Her harmony melds so well with mine.”

“Well, she has enjoyed letting it free today. She has been smiling and twirling and stopping to breathe deep.”

Raek’s expression changed to worry. “Shit. I left her on my path.”

“Wait, your private path?” Im-bar yelled and followed him. “I think he’s been fed.”

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