Gale Force

anxious part of me to see that Lewis wasn't still pining after me.

Okay, it vexed that part of me, too, but that's a personal problem.

Rahel effortlessly folded her shape back into Cherise's cute, compact little body, tossed her

blond hair with a flair so familiar it would have fooled even me, and winked at him. We all

stared after her as she left, Cherise's trademark little gray alien tattoo waving at the small of her

back.

I didn't even notice what she was wearing as Cherise; that was how much she'd thrown me off

stride, and after all, I'd known who she really was.

Lewis turned his attention to David, still standing silently in the corner. David cleared his throat

and pushed his shoulders away from the wall. ''She'll be all right,'' he said. ''No, she's not full

strength, but that could play well, considering what she's doing. There's no danger. Rahel can

always leave if things get too hard.''

He sounded too casual about it. I felt an uneasy lurch; there it was, again, that strange blind spot,

as if the Dji

these Sentinels? How could they have that kind of power-or were they just taking advantage of

a weakness I'd never really seen before? I'd always thought the Dji

when they took on each other, or a Demon.

I'd been feeling good about my plan, but the good feeling was going away fast. ''But we're

going to give her backup, right? Just in case?''

''Of course,'' David said. ''What's next?''

As far as he was concerned, it was settled. I exchanged a look with my boss, and Lewis raised

both hands and shrugged. ''It's your show. Go run it.''

''Then it's time for us to do some distracting, to keep them focused on their main targets. You

get to live the dream, my love,'' I said. ''You get to take me shopping.''

David and I began to make sure we were seen, often, in public-usually hand in hand. It was

nice in one way, and nerve-racking in another, as, waiting for trouble, we both kept half our

attention on the world around us.

Ominously, it didn't come. I'd been hoping to lure the Sentinels into more threats or attacks, and

I'd especially wanted to keep their focus extended out toward us, instead of turning toward the

all-too-vulnerable undercover operatives we'd sent to them.

To bring things to a head, and present the Sentinels with even more of a target, Lewis called a

mass meeting of the Wardens. Even on short notice he got about a third of the total

membership-an impressive number. Not quite as robust as the UN General Assembly, but with

nearly as many languages, nations, and attitudes represented. The lecture hall had seen better

days, and still hadn't fully recovered from the devastation of the last Dji

impressive, paneled in teak with mahogany trim, opulently chaired, with an illuminated sun

symbol of the Wardens on the ceiling that served as a massive light fixture. I'd always liked the

room.

Today, I kept looking for the exits.

Ostensibly, the program was a half-day presentation from various National Wardens on threat

assessments in their fields of specialty-all of which were true and timely indeed, and much

needed. We'd had far too many changeovers in staff, and too many crises for comfort. A little

training and communication was positive, and desperately needed.

But really, the main point of the meeting was pure theater, and I was the starring act.

It came toward the end of the meeting, as Lewis was making his closing statement. He paused,

glanced over his shoulder toward where I sat behind him, and said, ''I have one last item of

business, and I think you'll all be pleased to know that it's a positive one. Joa

a

My palms were damp, my knees were weak, and my heart raced as if it were trying to use up its

entire quota of lifetime beats in the next ten minutes. I hoped I didn't look as nervous as I felt.

Scratch that; I hoped I didn't look as panicked as I felt.

At least I'd dressed for it. If I couldn't be self-confident wearing a kicky Carmen Marc Valvo

dress and a pair of honest-to-God Manolo Blahniks in matching tangerine, I needed to turn in my

fashion police badge. My hair looked good-wavy and glossy and glamorous. My makeup was

fine, even though I was fairly sure I could use another touch-up on the powder to get rid of the

shiny spots.

All I had to do was sell as good as I looked.

I stepped up to the podium as Lewis gracefully relinquished it, and the spotlight found me, and

all of a sudden it was time. No more thinking, no more nerves. You leap, and hope for the net.

''Hello,'' I said. ''I'd like to thank Lewis for allowing me to make this a

because I think it's an important one. The Wardens have been through so much over the past few

years; we've lost great colleagues to unavoidable accidents, and worse, to each other. We were

drawn into a conflict with the Dji

were lost, and none of us can ever forget that.''

There was utter silence in the lecture hall-not even a nervous cough. I knew that many people

in the audience-probably most-had lost friends, lovers, family. They'd survived, but many

still held on to the pain, and the bitterness. Those were the prime recruiting ground for the

Sentinels.

The ones who hurt the most.

''That's why this is important,'' I continued. ''You all know me. You all know that I owe my

life to a particular Dji

may not know is that it's more than gratitude; I love David, and he loves me. And we know it's

not easy, and it may not be popular, but I'm here to a

no Warden and no Dji

exhilarated. ''We're going to pledge ourselves to each other in marriage, and I hope that you'll

all join us in the next couple of months for a great celebration of our wedding. We believe that in

making this vow, we'll bring the Wardens and the Dji

and cooperation.'' I swallowed hard, suddenly feeling very exposed. ''Thank you all.''

For a heart-stopping second, there was still nothing-no sound at all. And then a lone pair of

hands clapped, somewhere in the darkness, and then a few more, and then it turned into a round

of applause. Not cheers and champagne, but it seemed positive enough. Lewis reclaimed the

podium and I went back to my chair and sank into it, feeling relieved and a little sick with

adrenaline.

The next bit of theater belonged to Kevin, who was standing at the back of the hall, looking surly

and militant, as only Kevin could do. When a lull came after the applause, Kevin said, clearly

enough to carry throughout the room, ''I thought screwing a Dji

special?''

There was an audible intake of breath, and heads turned. Somebody laughed, but it was quickly

smothered. Lewis, who'd been about to speak, seemed thrown off balance. He focused on Kevin

with a baleful stare, and said, ''If you want to offer your congratulations, Warden, do it to her

face. I'm sure Joa

That got general laughter. People knew me all too well. I stood up slowly, making sure that

everybody saw my expression.

Kevin pushed away from the wall. ''Yeah? Well, I'm just saying what everybody in here is