Free Destiny by Sharon Green Page A

and they won't be accomplished if we're falling off our collective feet. Our Blending and Holter's are the two strongest among us. Both of our groups will have to sleep while the others take care of the details."
    "He's right, love," Tamma told Vallant gently before Vallant could voice the protest clear in his lovely eyes. "You know I prefer to be in charge whenever possible, but there are certain times when being in charge will do more harm than good. This is one of those times."
    "You're both right, so I surrender," Vallant agreed with a tired smile. "We and our link groups will be needin' all the rest we can get, and it's time the other Blendin's got to do some of the work anyway. I'll let everyone know what the plan is, and then we'll get out of the way."
    Jovvi could tell that Vallant was still faintly reluctant to leave overseeing the details to others, but he still walked off to speak to the others. That meant they would all soon be able to lie down, and Jovvi was looking forward to the time more than a little.
    "You look really tired, love," Lorand said softly to Jovvi as he put an arm around her shoulders. "When Vallant gets back, I'm going to suggest that we take Rion up on his offer to provide private places for us to sleep in. Not only do we deserve some privacy, but I'm almost as reluctant as Vallant to let others be in charge of our safety. If I can't see what's going on, I won't have any choice but to let go for a while."
    "How did you know about Vallant's reluctance?" Jovvi asked, sudden curiosity distracting her from weariness. "And did you notice how oddly Naran and Tamma have been behaving from time to time? Naran said things to Antrie and Cleemor that would have been more fitting coming from Tamma, and Tamma was actually patient and supportive when she spoke to Olskin Dinno, Satlan Reesh, and even Vallant."
    "Yes, I noticed both of those things," Lorand replied, his headshake one of mystification. "I don't understand why they acted that way any more than I know how I know about Vallant's reluctance. And you can add another oddity to your list: the calmly firm way that Rion spoke to Vallant. It was almost as if they'd swapped places while we weren't watching."
    "There's so much we really need to think and talk about, but there just isn't any time," Jovvi said, faint annoyance suddenly growing stronger. "I'm beginning to believe more and more strongly that those mysterious someones we were talking about are playing games with us. If that turns out to be true, I think I'm going to get really nasty when we finally find them."
    "Now you're sounding like Tamrissa, and I'm feeling like Naran," Lorand said with another, stronger headshake. "I have the feeling that we will find those someones, but the meeting won't be anything like what we might picture."
    "I'm really much too tired for this," Jovvi said, closing her eyes briefly as she echoed Lorand's headshake. "And to make my position even more clear, I don't know when I won't be too tired to face all this."
    "Personally, I've decided to ignore it all for now," Tamma said, obviously having heard the exchange. "But when we do find those someones, I'll be the one who handles the nasty."
    "Not without me," Lorand said, just as Rion put in, "Along with my help." That made all of them look at each other while Jovvi groaned silently. Naran's expression of firm agreement made them all look and sound like Tamma, and that was really more than Jovvi could bear.
    "All right, everythin's set," Vallant announced as he reappeared. "Holter's Blendin' didn't like the idea any more than we did, but they also aren't arguin'… What's goin' on? You're all agitated and roilin' on the inside."
    Jovvi closed her eyes again while a couple of groans were voiced, but Lorand just sighed.
    "If you ask yourself how you knew we were all agitated, Vallant, you just might be able to answer your own question," Lorand said. He sounded as tired as Jovvi felt, and Jovvi didn't have to wonder why.