Kalyndi quickly explained what we'd discovered while I secured the dwelling, checking sight lines and potential escape routes. Our home had become a potential battleground.
"They won't take you without a fight," I promised, returning to the main room.
Kalyndi looked up from where she was hastily packing essential supplies. "Violence will only confirm their suspicions and justify their actions. We need a different approach."
"What do you suggest?"
She thought for a moment. "Compliance, but on our terms. If they want to test me, fine, but the tests happen here, with you present. No laboratories, no separation."
"And if they refuse?"
A small, dangerous smile curved her lips. "Then we reveal we've already contacted other matched pairs with our suspicions. A bluff, but they won't know that."
I studied her with growing admiration. In the weeks since our forced matching, Kalyndi had transformed from a frightened, angry captive into a formidable ally. More than an ally, if I was honest with myself.
"It might work," I conceded. "But have an escape route ready. Just in case."
She nodded, then hesitated. "Redmon, if they're coming for me, you could claim ignorance. Say I kept secrets from you. There's no need for both of us to be targeted."
The suggestion made my chest tighten painfully. "Do you really think I'd abandon you now?"
"It would be the logical choice. Save yourself, maintain your position as war chief. You could do more good from inside the system."
"There's nothing logical about any of this." I moved closer, drawn to her like gravity. "I'm not leaving you to face this alone."
"Why? After everything... the forced matching, my resistance. Why risk yourself for me?"
The question hung between us, demanding truth I'd barely acknowledged to myself. Before I could answer, Selene cleared her throat.
"I'l check the back garden for anyone approaching," she said tactfully, slipping outside.
Alone with Kalyndi, I struggled to find words for feelings I'd never expected to have. "At first, I told myself it was about justice. About doing what was right."
"And now?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Now I know it's more than that." I reached out, gently tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I want to protect you not because it's right, but because I can't imagine my life without you in it."
Her eyes widened, surprise and something warmer flooding her expression. "Even though I was forced on you? A human experiment in your bed?"
"You were never an experiment to me." My hand lingered near her face. "And nothing about how we feel now was forced."
She leaned into my touch, her cheek warm against my palm. "I hated you at first. Or I tried to."
"I know."
"I don't hate you now." Her admission came softly, almost reluctantly. "I'm not sure I have for a while."
The distance between us seemed to shrink, the air charged with unspoken feelings. For the first time, our closeness wasn't born of necessity or circumstance, but of choice. My gaze dropped to her lips, and I saw her breath catch.
"Kalyndi, I… "
The warning bell at our perimeter fence shattered the moment. Selene burst through the door. "Magnus Terra vehicles. At least three. Coming fast."
Reality crashed back. I stepped away from Kalyndi, though everything in me protested the distance. "Remember the plan. Compliance on our terms. And if that fails..."
"We run," she finished, her expression hardening into resolve.
I moved to the window, watching as the sleek black vehicles of Magnus Terra approached our dwelling. Six officials emerged, along with four tribal enforcers as Thorne's personal guard, not regular warriors.
