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She knew Bram hadn’t told her the full extent of that excitement, but he hadn’t had to, not after he’d said, “No different from Bonner or Clarke or Tissera. Psychopaths who found pleasure in perversion while wearing a mask to fool the world.”

Because she understood Adam’s heart, his sense of honor, she told him all of that, without any attempt to hide the cold truth, and saw the human side of him accept it. His falcon already had, its mores far more primal.

“Trinity is already discussing setting up tests to pick up children with minor Psy abilities,” he told her afterward, leaning forward with his forearms braced on his thighs. “It wouldn’t have helped Hendricks, given the path he chose, but it might help another kid.”

A nod in the direction of the Raintree Inn.

“Talking of kids going bad, Mi-ja’s furious with Dae now that she’s past her shock and pain.

Her friend Mary’s being good about visiting more, and clanmates of her generation are dropping in at least once a day, too.

They say that right now, she’s in the venting phase, but the sorrow will come. ”

And when it did, Eleri thought, WindHaven would be there for the woman who had called Adam’s grandmother a friend. Because that was the falcon way. Adam’s way.

Eleri stroked her fingers through his hair, saw his eyes close to half-mast as he surrendered to the sensation. So did she, preening her mate with lazy pleasure. When she spoke a long time later, she said, “Does Saoirse realize she’s changed the world?”

“I knew she could do it,” Adam said with a brother’s pride. “And not that it’s a surprise given who she and Ashaya are, but they’re going to credit the whole team, get everyone in the history books. But none of them—Ashaya included—will budge on only Saoirse being listed as the team lead.”

The light wind pushed the silky green material of the pretty top Eleri was wearing today against her skin, and it felt like a caress.

“She deserves that spot,” Eleri said, thinking of what Bram had shared about how hard Saoirse had worked, and how devastated she’d been when her attempts failed.

“Without her taking your challenge and rolling with it, the team wouldn’t exist.”

“Chirp was muttering I should be listed as team lead, since it was my ‘lunatic’ idea to create an external shield.” Adam laughed as he shifted to play with her hair in a show of falconish affection that made her feel utterly adored.

“I pointed out that I was just expecting my big sister to save my ass.”

Eleri knew Saoirse, Ashaya, and the team behind the earth-shattering development weren’t happy with how far they’d come. Wearable tech would never be as secure as internal tech, but as Eleri saw it, this was a blindingly brilliant start.

The discovery that it was a combination of certain metals and minerals and ultrasonic sounds on a specific oscillating wavelength that created a shield around the mind opened up whole new avenues for internal tech.

“Does it bother you?” Adam began to weave her hair into an intricate braid. “Not being able to telepath?”

Because that was the other thing. The Ultrasonic blocked everything going in or out.

“I thought it would,” Eleri admitted, “but it’s not like when I flamed out.

I’m still a fully Psy creature—I feel whole, nothing missing.

It’s just a case of not flexing that muscle until the team figures out a solution—and I’m okay with that. ”

“The others?”

“No problem with a lack of telepathic communication.” She loved him even more because he always thought about her strange little family, always included them.

“Since all four of us have relocated here, we can talk to each other anytime we choose.” The entire Cartel was also in the process of flux when it came to their work—they might wish to pursue other directions, but they also had priceless information in their heads when it came to hunting evil.

“You’ve done enough, Eleri,” Adam said, picking up on her thoughts in that instinctual way that seemed to have come as part of their particular mating bond. “All of you. You’re allowed to live away from the horror and suffering.”

“We feel so much guilt about all we know, the good we could do with it.”

“You don’t have to be in the field for that. You can consult. Hell, set up a company—Quatro Cartel Consultants—and hire your brains out to Enforcement and other security agencies around the world on a limited basis.”

Eleri’s eyes went wide. “You’re very, very clever, Adam Garrett.” Because she could sell that idea to the others, especially Bram with his heavy sense of responsibility. All she’d have to watch was the workload—and she could get Dahlia to make sure Bram didn’t take on too much.

Her chosen brother would never hurt Dahlia, and losing him to the work would hurt her—ergo, Bram would not be working himself to the bone. None of them would. Not anymore.

“I know.” A falcon smile as he tied off the braid. “Especially since today, I’ve managed to shove all of my responsibilities onto a hale and hearty Jacques so I can make you scream.”

Eleri’s skin flushed. “Not here,” she whispered.

“Soundproofing,” was his response. “All bedrooms. No clan would make it otherwise.” A nuzzling kiss. “But I’ve scouted another spot. Ready?”

Eleri took a deep breath and flexed her tights-clad legs. “Ready.”

The air was warm under the ultralight powered hang glider Adam had gifted her, the falcon beside her a magnificent presence as they flew over the Canyon, over Raintree, and beyond, the desert glittering under the light of the setting sun.

Other falcons dipped their wings when they passed, but no one interrupted their flight.

Eleri gloried in the sense of freedom, shouting in delight when the glider dipped with the wind and rose the same way.

The device was designed to use as little power as possible, with the person gliding also having to use their muscles to retain control.

They’d practiced at much lower altitudes until by now, Eleri was a pro.

As she was a pro at being loved by and loving Adam Garrett.

She’d carry the scars of the life she’d lived forever, but that didn’t scare her. She was Eleri, and she had lived that life. She was who she was…and she was beloved by her mate, cherished by her family and clan, and—what a thing of wonder—adored by the little birds in WindHaven.

Adam had made her a gauntlet to protect her shoulder and arm now that the tiniest fledglings had decided she was one of their favorite landing spots.

A falcon call from her mate as he dived toward a secluded little valley in a distant canyon.

She followed in a slower glide.

He’d already left a picnic blanket there earlier that day, and tucked a picnic cooler into the nearby spring so it’d remain chilled.

Lying naked on the blanket soon after their arrival, Eleri’s back arched under a sky painted in sunset as her lover tasted her with slow deliberation, her scream of pleasure a song of freedom.