Free Forgotten by Evangeline Anderson

felt
guilty. If what he was saying was true, she had shot her own
husband. Don’t be stupid, she told herself fiercely. He’s crazy—I’m not married to him or anyone else! Why would I
marry somebody who makes me have a panic attack every time he
touches me?
    She didn’t know the answer but somewhere in
the back of her mind a seed of doubt had been planted. How could he
have so many pictures of the two of them together if he was lying?
Could it be that she’d had a whole other life she couldn’t
remember? Was that what had happened during the three year gap in
her memory?
    But if he’s my husband,
why does he scare me so much? Even now,
being close to him in the car was difficult. Kate knew the panic
that wanted to take her was irrational but that didn’t stop her
from breaking into a cold sweat if he got too close to her. Why did
she fear him so?
    Before she could answer, the car pulled into
the driveway of the apartment she shared with Mimi. The big Kindred
parked and turned to face her again.
    “ I’m going to unlock your
door now, Kate. Will you promise not to run?”
    “ I…” Her throat got tight.
“I’ll try not to. But this still just doesn’t make any
sense.”
    “ To me either,” he said
grimly. “The priestess I spoke to told me the effects of the Dream
Blooms should wear off in a solar day or so.” He leaned over her to
unbuckle the unfamiliar seat harness and Kate stiffened, fighting
the panic that tried to take her at his proximity. The Kindred’s
nose wrinkled and he pulled back abruptly, giving her space. “And
she said nothing about you fearing me like this,” he finished in a
harsh voice.
    “ Of course I’m afraid of
you—you’re huge,” Kate protested, trying to catch her breath. Why did she feel like she
was having a panic attack whenever he got too near? Was it just
that he was a stranger—a really big stranger—invading her personal space? But she’d
been the smallest person in any given situation all her life—she
wasn’t afraid of big men. So why—
    “ There’s more to it than
just my size, I think,” the Kindred said, breaking her frantic
train of thought. “I do not know what’s going on but we need to get
to the bottom of it. We can’t do that if you run from me the minute
you get a chance.” He ducked his head, looking into her eyes with
an intensity that made Kate’s stomach flutter. “Will you swear not
to run, Kate? Will you at least talk to me some more?”
    Reluctantly, Kate nodded. Though she didn’t
want to admit it, even to herself, clearly there was something to
his claims. He wouldn’t have all those pictures, otherwise.
    “ All right,” she said.
“Let me out and we’ll talk—but on my turf.”
    “ That’s fine with me.” He
nodded gravely and spoke in a different language. “Doors
open.”
    Kate knew it wasn’t English but she
understood it anyway.
    “ What was that?” she
asked. “That language? Why did I understand it?”
    “ It’s the Kindred standard
language,” he said patiently. “You understand it because you had a
shot of translation bacteria—all Kindred brides get it so that they
can understand the language of the natives anywhere they might
travel with their Kindred mates.”
    “ Oh…” Kate felt another
little piece of her doubt chip away. “So that’s why I can understand and
speak all different languages!”
    He nodded briefly and reached for the door
latch…then winced.
    “ Forgive me but you never
answered my question— do you have a med kit in your domicile?”
    “ I have a first aid kit,”
Kate said, making a decision. “Come on inside—let’s see what we can
do for you, uh…” She cleared her throat. “I just realized I don’t
even know your name.”
    He winced again and this time she was sure
his pain wasn’t physical. But he only said, “Rone. My name is
Rone,” in that quiet, deep voice of his.
    Kate felt a stab of guilt, as though she
should have known his name already. But how