"I just don't understand what I'm looking at, Ed," Caryn said as she looked at the stills from the ultrasounds they had run.

"Look here. This is Anja's. This is the control we did on Alexa and this is the control we did on you."

"I don't know why you did one on me, how does that help?"

"It gives me a basis for comparison. I don't understand the dominant reproductive system, but I do know my way around the sapiens version. I figured that if I compare the two, maybe I could figure out the differences."

"Got it. I'm not thinking." Ed coughed and turned away with a grin. "Well, okay, I'm not thinking about this."

"That's all right. You're entitled."

"Humph." She frowned and stared at the scans. "What's this?" she asked pointing at a protrusion between the uteri and the birth canal on Alexa's scan.

"That's the million dollar question. I guess we're going to have to wait until Alexa gets back."

"Or figure it out for ourselves," Caryn muttered. "Hmm. Look at the opacity. Doesn't that argue this wider area being more an organ than a part of the canal?"

"Huh. Could be. Definitely looks more expandable. Hey, and look at the way the uteri feed into it at different levels. Oh, wow. That's it! It's like a…a staging area. I was wondering how they managed not to have all the fetuses trying to get through the birthing canal at the same time. This is it. They feed into this…whatever they call it at different levels and are birthed in order of what uterus they were gestated in."

"I think you're right. Look, Anja doesn't have that. Her uteri feed directly into what looks like a standard birth canal…about the same size and length as mine…well, maybe just a little bit longer. Dayum, is that scar tissue?"

"Yeah. She said it felt like she was being ripped apart when she was in labor, she probably was, literally, when several babies tried to fit into the canal all at once. No wonder she's so terrified of being pregnant."

"You've got to give her an abortion. She's not going to survive another delivery."

"Well, she could have a c-section."

"Edward Tate, what are you talkin' about? Look at how the uteri are nestled in around the abdomen. You'd have to open her up in four different places to deliver the babies by c-section. And that doesn't even take into account having to disturb the other organs on the way in."

Ed had the grace to look embarrassed. "Sorry. I…I just have this thing about abortions. I mean, I'm not avidly anti-abortion, you know, to each their own conscience…but my conscience would bother me if I performed an abortion that wasn't to save the mother's life. I guess that doesn't apply here."

"No, it most decidedly does not."

"Got another problem, though."

Caryn sighed and gathered her patience. "What?"

"How do you go about doing an abortion with four different uteri?"

"Aw, hell."

Alexa carefully lowered herself in a squat, keeping her back straight and her arms even. A shift in position while working with weights this heavy could put undue strain on the very muscle groups she was working to improve. She couldn't afford an injury. An approaching presence registered on her consciousness and she braced herself internally to deal with the interruption. Being startled into an unplanned movement would not be helpful at this point either.

The door opened and she felt Lewis enter. He stopped and waited quietly while she stood and placed the barbell on its rack. "My apologies," he said.

"Not needed. I felt your approach."

"Good." He crossed the room and watched as she slid under the weights to do her bench press reps. "You should have a spotter for that weight."

She shrugged and placed her hands on the bar. "You're here now."

"So I am." He frowned and then leaned closer to examine the barbell…no, he was examining her hands, or more specifically her fingers. She felt herself squirm internally. "Interesting," he said, one eyebrow lifting.

"It was pointed out to me that an otherwise well dressed and attractive woman would look out of place in this area if she did not have a manicure. I've corrected the oversight."

"Of course."

She frowned and began the set. He was obviously attempting to rattle her, to make her feel defensive. That was not acceptable. It would be best to ignore his efforts…any reaction would lend credence to his unspoken criticism. Her arms began to burn as she pressed the weights repeatedly, bringing them down to her chest and then pushing them up to the full extension.

"I suppose a manicure is appropriate under the circumstances. A pedicure, however, would be simple self-indulgence."

Alexa gasped as the 400 pounds of weights and bar slipped to the side. Damn him, she fumed silently, watching him grab the bar and replace it on the support. He'd evidently spoken to Keri and had been baiting her intentionally.

"Perhaps you're attempting to please some male you have your eye on?" he suggested as she slipped off the bench and headed for the door.

She forced herself to continue without hesitation. It would be a cold day in hell before she discussed her odd attraction to Dr. Tate with Lewis.

... ...

Ed looked up as Alexa slammed into the room. He wasn't sure whom she was pissed at, but he pitied the fool.

"What do you need now?" she asked, her voice clipped.

"Oh, for you to relax would be a good start." She leveled a blue glare at him that could have turned a wall of titanium into a pile of ash. Ouch.

"I don't have time for games, doctor. What is the problem?"

He sighed. Whatever he'd done, she was going to have to get over it on her own. Human women were impossible to understand most of the time; no doubt he'd only manage to make things worse if he tried to placate a female dominant. "We think we've figured out what's wrong." He pointed to the extra organ on the ultrasound that Caryn had dubbed the 'mystery organ'.

"The pre-birth canal? Why is that a problem?" Alexa asked.

"Well, obviously it's not a problem for you, but Anja doesn't have one."

"But…hmm. That must have been missed during her adolescent exam."

"Oh, so they wouldn't have allowed her to have kids if they'd known?"

Alexa shook her head. "No. They wouldn't have allowed her to live. Congenital defects are not permitted to remain in the gene pool."

"What?" He looked around worriedly. Good, Caryn was still down in the garage with Anja, keeping the other dominants out of range while the girl took care of her bike. "Damn it Alexa, that's barbaric! If all they were worried about was the gene pool, why didn't they just sterilize her? Jeez, what am I saying?" he asked throwing his hands up in frustration. "Even that's barbaric. Damn."

"Are you quite through?" He looked up as Alexa crossed her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, I guess."

"I did not say I agreed with the practice, I simply informed you that it exists."

"Sorry, didn't mean to kill the messenger."

She sighed. "No, of course you didn't." She frowned, considering. "Apparently whoever attended her during childbirth didn't agree with the practice either. Otherwise she would have been terminated then. Not that they did her any great favor, it was only a matter of time before she ran into a male strong enough to overcome her objections to pairing during her fertile period."

"Well, she's with the coexistence faction now. That means we'll fix this…right?

"Fix it how, Ed?" Alexa paced the small open area between the equipment.

He looked up. At least she was back to calling him by his first name again. "Well, after we abort the pregnancy I'll give her a tubal ligation so she can't get pregnant again."

"No."

He blinked. "Why not?"

"Because every dominant that catches her scent will know that she's no longer fertile. She will be treated as a pariah, shunned, pitied."

"Not among the faction, surely? Oh, I get it; you won't be able to order her to seduce information out of your council any more. Tough."

"What? She was ordered to…did she say that?"

"Uh, she said it was part of her job."

"I was not aware of this."

"Oh. So what's the problem then…"

"Even within the faction, Ed." She shifted uncomfortably. "I know it wouldn't be right, but you have to understand how we're raised. It's an ingrained reaction. The people here would try to overcome it, but they'd fail far too often for Anja's mental well being."

"Okay, let's not worry about the long term solution right now. How do I go about doing an abortion when four uteri are involved?"

"I have no idea. I've never even heard of any of our people ever having one."

"Great. We need to get in touch with Carla. Anja doesn't want Mark to know about any of this. Can Lewis help?"

"Probably."

"Will you ask him?"

"No." Her tone was almost viciously resolute.

"Ooookay. I guess it's up to me, then."

... ...

My mate might be right, Lewis mused. From her reaction to his probing Alexa was interested in some male and if she was allowing herself to take pains with her appearance it was likely a sapiens. Speaking of the…he bit back the derogatory thought as Tate walked into the library.

"Lewis, I've been looking for you."

"You've found me," he couldn't resist responding.

"Yeah." The lanky sapiens paced nervously. "Uh, I need to reach Carla, I need her help with something."

"Mark can contact her."

"Yes, but I've been asked not to involve him."

Interesting. Plots among the sapiens? But why would they come to him as opposed to Mark? "If you wish my help, you'll need to be a bit more forthcoming."

Tate sighed. "One of the faction's operatives needs surgery, and I'm not familiar enough with your physiology to do it on my own."

"And why can't Mark be informed of this?"

"Um, the operative doesn't want Mark to think they're disabled in any way?"

"Try again." The doctor was looking extremely uncomfortable. Lewis leaned back in the padded armchair. This was actually quite entertaining.

Tate stared at the floor for a few minutes, a muscle in his cheek his only movement. Finally he looked up. "It's Anja," he muttered.

"I see. Has she not recovered from her hip injury?"

"Her hip's fine…well, as fine as it's going to get. The scar tissue will always impede her movement a bit." He laughed briefly. "Not to any degree that I'd notice, but I'm told it makes a significant difference to her." Lewis frowned. Why couldn't the man get to the point? "It's…well. She's pregnant." His eyebrows shot up. That was certainly inconvenient, but… "She needs an abortion."

"Dr. Tate, an abortion is out of the question."

"Normally I'd agree, but it's not her fault. She was trying to get information out of the council and…"

"The sire is on the council?"

"Uh, yeah. I think his name is Daniel…uh, no, that's not right."

"Damien?"

"Yes, that's it."

Lewis stood and stalked to the bay window. Damien. He stared out at the relentless sunshine for several long minutes, fighting his automatic reaction at the thought of his…rival. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself back into balance. "An abortion is out of the question," he repeated.

"You don't understand," Tate said insistently.

"No, Dr. Tate, you don't understand. The offspring you so casually wish to terminate are of my blood."

Oh shit, Ed thought. This Damien dude was related to Lewis. Huh. Guess Anja didn't have too much trouble accepting the order to sleep with the guy. "Uh, look, I'm sorry, but…"

"Damien is my half-brother. One of the few left of my line and generation. His offspring cannot be simply cast away because they are an inconvenience."

The dominant's tone was even, but the intensity was almost overwhelming. This was not good. "Lewis, it's not like that. I wouldn't…"

"Then what is it like, doctor?"

"It could kill her."

Lewis looked up sharply. "How?"

Ed thought furiously. If he told Lewis that Anja had a congenital defect he'd…no, can't do that. "Uh, well, when she injured her hip she suffered some internal damage a…ulp!" He struggled for breath as Lewis' hand around his throat forced him to his knees.

"Lewis! Let him go!"

Thank God, it was Keri, she'd save him.

"I will let him go if he ceases to lie to me."

"Ed, don't lie to Lewis," Keri scolded sternly.

He nodded his head as best he could and struggled to voice an agreement.

"There, you see? He won't lie to you anymore, now please let him go."

Ed gasped as he landed on his butt on the plush carpet.

"Thank you. Now, somebody needs to tell me what's going on," she demanded imperiously.

... ...

"Your surrogate sibling was careless with her assignations, became pregnant with my brother's offspring and now wants an abortion," Lewis informed her tersely.

Oops. Well, that explained why Lewis was so pissed. Wait…a brother? He'd never mentioned a…ah hell. That would have to wait. Keri looked at Ed as he scrambled to his feet. "Well?" she asked him.

"Anja was ordered to seduce information out of this Damien dude, couldn't tell him no while she was fertile or she'd have blown her cover, and she has to have an abortion."

"I'll ask you one more time, doctor. Why?" Lewis' voice was strained.

"Love, easy," Keri murmured, wrapping her arm around his waist and pressing up against him. She stiffened as Lewis' annoyance with her interference spiked through the bond.

Ed sighed. "Because she doesn't have a pre-birth canal, and the delivery would kill her."

"Doesn't have…?"

"Look, that doesn't mean she's defective. There's no reason to…"

"Is that why you made that pathetic attempt to lie to me? Did you think I'd order her termination?"

"Her what?!" Keri croaked.

"Yeah, it crossed my mind."

"Lewis!"

"She's my mate's surrogate sibling. No one will harm her."

"Fine, what about the others? I hear they'll think she's worthless if they find out."

... ...

Tate had a point, Lewis thought. "Your lie will suffice. Her injuries were more extensive than we thought at first. It is a great tragedy. She will be honored for her sacrifice."

His mate rested her chin on his collarbone and frowned up at him. "I don't understand," she complained.

"Later, cherished. I need to get to the bottom of this. That child did not have the training to warrant such an assignment and someone will answer for it." He firmly pushed Keridwen away, ignoring her anxious look. "Tate, I'll see that Carla is brought out here immediately."

"Great. Uh, I'll let Anja know. She's kind of hanging out at the lab; she thinks it would be better if no one knows about her condition."

"Quite so." He looked down at Keridwen who had thrown herself petulantly into the chair he'd vacated and was now glaring at the rather inoffensive footstool. "My own, I know you are upset, but I need to handle this for your sib, hmm?"

She sighed heavily. "I just want to understand what's going on."

"Go with Tate, he can explain it to you."

"Ah, no. Bad idea. Anja didn't want Keri involved either," Ed muttered as he stopped in the doorway.

"What? Why not? I'm her sib!"

Ed shrugged. "I think she's embarrassed."

"Oh for…"

Lewis called her back as she began to follow Tate out the door. "Keridwen, you will honor her wishes in this."

"But…"

"Enough. Come upstairs. I have a call to make, and then I need to deal with Mark before we head out to see the jeweler.

... ...

"I don't want to go out," Keri mumbled as she followed Lewis into their suite. "I sure as hell don't feel like celebrating."

"We'll postpone the celebration until another time; however we do need to keep our appointment with the jeweler."

"Can't we just change it?"

"Keridwen, when a business makes special arrangements for a wealthy client, it lets its rivals know of said arrangements so as to enhance its reputation. It does not, however, identify the client to avoid having said rivals woo that client away from them. If the client does not keep the appointment, their anonymity is forfeit. The business makes sure everyone knows just who proved to be so unreliable. We do not need that sort of attention."

"Oh."

"Besides," he said, taking her left hand in his and rubbing the bare fingers. "If you are going to be wandering around town, I want everyone to know that you are not available."

She chuckled, as he'd no doubt intended, then her jaw dropped when he slipped into his office and firmly shut the door in her face. Sighing, she poked through the limited offerings in her closet for something suitable to wear. There wasn't much, especially if they were supposed to be 'wealthy clients'.

A few minutes later Lewis emerged and headed for the door. He stopped short and turned to stare at her. "What's wrong now?" he asked.

"Well, I don't have anything to wear," she said, wincing at the petulance in her voice. She winced again as she felt his patience shift to irritation.

"Keridwen, what is happening with you? Where is the competent, take-charge woman who stole me out from under the nose of one of the most notorious covert operations in this country? What happened to the woman who protected me while I was incapacitated, and who saved me from the depths of my own mind?"

"She's lost, Lewis," she sighed. "I don't know who I am anymore. My life hasn't just been turned upside down; it's been turned inside out. My family is gone, I don't have any work anymore…I don't know what to do with myself."

"You have a new family. You have your mate, your sib and new cousins. You have work in the lab."

"I'm useless in the lab. I can't do any of the research I'm qualified for; the subjects are never here. Walter's got a gift, a trained and active one if pretty rudimentary, but he's in LA. I'd love to do some testing with Ray, from what I hear he's got great gut instincts, which means he's probably got some kind of latent gift at least, but he's in LA too. And David has nothing, absolutely nothing, which is pretty amazing for a doctor. He might be a true null…do you have any idea how rare that is? And where is he? In LA. Sloan's incommunicado for god knows how long…do you know?"

Lewis shrugged. "Until she's either pregnant or leaves the fertile part of her cycle."

"Right. However long that's going to take. And your people…well, Mark's people," she corrected herself as his eyebrow rose. "You know what I mean, the other homo sapiens-dominants. They don't have time to cooperate. Mark has them busy on all sorts of projects to support coexistence..."

"Keridwen…"

"…and he won't let me help with anything on that because of you. And now, Anja's in trouble and she doesn't even want my help. My own sib!"

Lewis sighed and pulled her into his arms.

"I'm sorry, I know I'm whining…but you don't even involve me in your business. Why? Is it something you think I'd disapprove of? Is it something to undermine coexistence?"

"No. My business is simply routine business. You know my holdings are extensive. They require management and for several months they did not have my attention. I'm playing catch up on all of the paperwork."

"Can't I help? I do know how to manage businesses and estates."

"Cherished, by the time I showed you everything that needed to be done, I could finish it myself."

She pressed her face tight against his neck and sighed. "So again, I'm useless."

... ...

Lewis groaned. There was little or nothing he was going to be able to do to convince his mate of her worth without seriously considering the matter and finding her something to do. And right now, he hadn't the time. There was Mark to be dealt with and then the jeweler…

He stroked Keridwen's hair and nuzzled her cheek soothingly. "Lewis," she murmured, looking up at him with sad eyes.

"We'll talk about it tonight, my own. I promise." She nodded and held him tightly. "For now, let me deal with your sib's problem, hmm?"

"I really don't understand why she doesn't want me involved."

"She's quite proud, our Anja. I'm sure she'd prefer always being the stronger of the two of you. So far things are equal between you. You cared for her after her injury, and she cared for you while you mourned your grandfather. This would unbalance the scales again, and not in her favor."

"Well…damn it, that's not supposed to matter."

He chuckled. He knew very well how Anja was feeling about it. His debt to his mate was far greater than he was comfortable with. "Ah, cherished. It's a cultural difference. It matters very much to us, to those of us of a more alpha nature. But you know this, hmm?"

"I suppose," she groused.

"Besides, she is my bond mate's sib and therefore my own. Being the head of that family makes it my responsibility to deal with the problem…and I will do so."

"But…"

"It is a matter of honor, Keridwen. Leave it be."

She sighed. "Okay."

He kissed her briefly and gave her a little push in the direction of the closet.

"Lewis, I still don't have anything to wear if I'm supposed to look like a wealthy client."

His eyebrow rose automatically. "I am the wealthy client, my own. You are my fiancée."

"Oh, great. So now that I'm no longer a brown mousie…I'm a poor church mouse, huh?"

He laughed at her annoyed expression. "Just so."

... ...

Mark frowned as he felt Lewis' controlled anger a few seconds before the door to the study was slammed open. "There's a problem?" he asked.

"Yet again you have endangered that which is mine by not thinking. You had no business ordering Anja into a sexual liaison with Damien. She has neither the training nor the sheer power required to handle such an assignment with the likes of him as the target. I would hesitate to take on someone with his strength in a one on one attempt to obtain information."

The man was seething, but Mark had no idea what the former chameleon master was talking about. "Anja's mission was to copy the data she was transporting then either hand it off for delivery to me or store it in a safe place and then deliver it here herself after her assignments for the council were complete. Nothing more and nothing less."

"Then explain why Anja thought it was her duty to sleep with Damien Ryan to obtain information that would not appear in official correspondence."

"I…I can't. She…I…" He paused to take a deep breath. The agitation was destroying his control. He was trained to handle situations with hostiles…he reached out with waves of calm, blanching as Lewis casually brushed the attempt away. "Lewis, I…"

"Do you now understand what you asked her to deal with? You, a trained arbiter, can't handle my strength. How could you expect a courier to handle Damien?"

"I didn't. I told you, I did not give her any such orders. I would not. You know that I…I have feelings for her."

"Yes, and I also know you feel that your sterility puts you beneath her. Perhaps you felt that Damien was more worthy?"

"I would not endanger her so!" Mark snapped out. "You will not continue to accuse me of it!"he continued in command tone.

Lewis folded his arms across his chest and stared back at him with a sardonic expression. He was evidently neither impressed nor affected by the command voice. "Then why did she take it upon herself to do this?" he asked.

Mark dropped back down into his chair and rested his head on his hands. "I have no idea," he muttered, rubbing his temples. Trying to command Lewis had given him a throbbing headache. He frowned and looked up. "Why is this a, issue? Now that it's been brought to my attention, I'll order her to desist. If it's gone too far for her to simply break it off, we'll have to do without the data she was collecting, but I won't send her back into danger."

"It's an issue because she's carrying Damien's offspring."

"Oh." Blinking slowly, he tried to adjust to the shock of the statement. His Anja was pregnant. He knew that she would have more offspring some day and that they'd never be his…but this? He sighed, trying to suppress his regret for the relationship that would never be. "Well, has she said what she wishes to do? If she would like Damien to parent them she can return to the council and sever her ties with the faction until it's safe for her to leave the infants in his care. If she wishes them raised within the faction we have a safe house she can go to when she's closer to term. They have a top rated midwife, and Carla is on call. She can stay there to raise them herself, or they can be turned over to a foster mother."

Lewis was glowering impatiently. "She will not be continuing the pregnancy."

"What?" How did one not continue a pregnancy? Was Anja miscarrying?

"Carla is on her way here to perform an abortion."

Mark stood up so swiftly he banged his knees on the desk, the pain brought tears to his eyes…or so he insisted to himself. "No. That's not…"

"She has no choice, Mark," Lewis interrupted…was that compassion in his voice? "She was…injured internally during the rescue mission. It wasn't noticed. But the pre-birth canal was…destroyed. Attempting to deliver offspring would kill her."

Lewis was lying. But he was also telling the truth. Mark dropped back down into the chair. "Tell me the whole story, Lewis. The full truth, please. I need to know it if I'm to do what's best for Anja…and for all of us."