Free Janaya by Shelley Munro

dragging her through the open door. At the last moment, she remembered to temper her strength but Hinekiri still winced. “Sorry,” Janaya whispered. “I keep forgetting.”
    Janaya and Hinekiri trailed Luke through the crowded room.
    A tall, slim woman with long blonde hair and glasses pushed in front of Janaya. “Luke, about time. I want your comments for the paper.”
    “Slept in, no doubt,” a large woman in an ugly orange floral dress said. “I told you there were aliens but you refused to listen.”
    “There are no aliens,” Luke snapped.
    “Oh, dear,” Hinekiri whispered. “What are we going to do? We have to help Luke. That large woman looks meaner than a Torgon.”
    “I think Luke would prefer us to stay out of the way,” Janaya countered.
    Several men and women leapt up off wooden benches and converged on Luke. Janaya heard aliens mentioned several times. A frown creased Luke’s face, tugging at her inner guilt. She should have listened to her gut and kept away from Luke and his father.
    Luke seemed to sense her gaze and glanced across the crowded room, his gaze zeroing in on her. Instantly, a dizzying current raced through her followed by an intense longing to service him despite the crowd. A shiver of awareness shot to her pleasure points as she imagined them naked. Alone. Janaya sighed, quashing the inclination. They couldn’t join again. The consequences were too dire—for both of them.
    “Constable, do you know the location of the spaceship?” a thin, bald man demanded.
    Luke brushed past the determined throng, tight-lipped with tense shoulders. “I’ll talk to you soon and answer any questions you have.”
    “What’s wrong with now?” Marcie Montgomery said with an arch grin.
    The reporter, Janaya thought. Irritation kicked her in the gut when she noticed the drift of the blonde woman’s eyes to Luke’s masculine attributes. Had the woman no shame? She felt the subtle build of heat behind her eyes. Holy St. Francis! She couldn’t put holes in any of these people. What should she do? Panic made the heat intensify. A faint tinge of purple blurred her eyesight.
    “What’s wrong?” Hinekiri whispered.
    “I think— Holes.”
    “Don’t you dare,” Hinekiri snapped, taking in the threat of danger in one swift glance. She grasped Janaya’s forearm and dug in her fingernails until they bit into her flesh. A dire warning. “If you get us in trouble, I will take you to the nearest cliff and toss you off. Don’t think I won’t. You might be my favorite niece but that won’t stop me.”
    The anger bled from Janaya as soon as she visualized the scene her aunt described. “I’m your only niece.”
    She slumped against the painted wall, breathing deep and slow. Gradually the purple tinge in her eyes receded. The fight for control had zapped her energy, and she hoped like hell a Torgon didn’t make an appearance. Even though she felt as weak as a newborn, Janaya tried to focus on their surroundings, unwilling to commit another bodyguard sin—that of being taken unawares.
    “Thank God you’re here!” The young man behind the desk looked as if he wanted to hug Luke. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. “Can you help Mrs. Bates? Please.”
    Janaya propelled her aunt past the crowd of people and pushed her after Luke, following the path he’d cleared. She kept a close eye on her aunt. It would be just like Hinekiri to wander off the minute she found an opportunity. Mingling with the natives was her special thing. But somehow, Janaya didn’t think the Earth natives were ready for her aunt.
    “Do you want me to process these two?” Tony asked. “I’ll do it while you deal with Mrs. Bates.”
    “They’re not under arrest,” Luke said tersely.
    Although Janaya couldn’t read his thoughts this time, his body language told the story. He didn’t want them here. The minute they were alone she’d insist he let them go to source parts. They were both highly qualified and able to