From the way she was fighting it, this apparently was not the first time it had happened. She continued to thrash about, fighting the rebellion of her body, until the phenomenon should ease. But, Loni knew, without help, it would not end well. Gem's new hearts were about to cease, altogether.
He had immediately realized what was causing her dilemma: the physicians had failed to bring her second organ into union with its partner, so the two would not be constantly striking together. Perhaps, it had been an oversight, or maybe, purposeful; he couldn't be the judge, but now that she had been placed among the flawed, medical aid would be withheld...unless, it was to prolong a pregnancy.
****
The pain in her chest, and lack of oxygen, had driven Gemma to abrupt consciousness; the awareness of the man at her back, rudely brought to the forefront, as he circled her front with his arms.
She tensed even farther, when his left hand went from beneath her left arm to between her tiny breasts, the fist rising to catch at her right shoulder. With no time, nor energy, to wonder, what he might be doing, his other hand bunched against her back, between her shoulder blades, pushing hard at the knotted muscles there, forcing them to release. It seemed as if his mind was also inside her, affecting the struggling organs within. As her twin hearts began to synchronize, and the pain subside, Gemma realized...Loni was healing her.
That feels sooo good!
Suddenly, their minds were one, and she was watching his every effort. He corrected the beat of the weaker organ, made it stronger, and waited for the other to come into step, then beating together, the pressure became nil.
She gasped with the pleasure of being pain free. But, she felt his exhaustion, from the mind-effort it had taken. As he released her, he cautioned her:
"Don't tell anyone, I can do this. They fear anyone with powers such as these. And if you can do such...it is best to hide the fact."
"But," objected Gem silently, as well. "They already know...they consider me blind and deaf, but I know, I see...in another way."
He agreed, slowly stroking her back to sooth her further.
"They cannot understand how you communicate, but they don't, as yet, realize you are telepathic...we must never let them know the full measure of our gifts. It must remain our secret. Just pretend, as I do, that you don't understand. Make no effort to communicate with them; their intelligence is too limited to comprehend..."
Again, even as he was drifting off into slumber himself, his hand moved gently, soothingly, across her back. The twin organs were beating now, like a great, two-cog, synchronized clock, moving comfortably, one beside the other.
And so, the two slept.
****
Waking in the night, Loni held her carefully against him, as if he thought she might break, were he not careful. Tears formed in his eyes; one travelled down the cheek, to the cotton sheet. He rested his face next to the silken skin of her face, and thought proudly:
My acquired female!
She is more than I have ever hoped for; my treasure! I will never let them take you from me!
His own double heartbeat quickened excitedly; his body tingled with a new found heat, and holding Gemma protectively against him, Loni finally relaxed again, and went back to sleep.
Chapter 20
The next day was a free day. Loni intended to use it to take Gem back above the waterfall.
Da wanted to bring Lydia, and come along, but Loni ordered him to stay in their room.
Of course, Da always obeyed him. But, he too, wanted to play with his mate.
Knowing what Da had in mind, Loni cautioned him to amuse himself under the garden trees, where the surveillance cameras could not see.
Freed up from responsibility, Loni led Gem over the climbing girders to the seat above the falls. He had come prepared, his pockets stuffed with fruit to share.
Gem, enjoying a luscious peach, was just savoring her second bite, when Loni slashed at his arm with a sharp knife. Blood spurted out from the cut.
"Oh, gosh! What are you doing?"
"I want you to heal me."
"Here? Now? Won't they see?"
"No cameras up here."
"Okay." The peach forgotten, for the moment, Gem quickly obeyed, easily closing the wound.
"Now, let me cut you, and...you heal yourself."
"No! The knife hurts. I'll do it another way."
"How?"
Surprised, Loni stared at her.
What other way is there?
An ugly gaping wound appeared on her arm, red blood oozing.
Shocked, Loni gasped. His eyes went wide in horror. He had never thought to reverse the process.
Why would you want to harm yourself...or another?
It dawned upon him then, just how deadly this power was.
Can Gemma be trusted?
"How about you do the healing?" she suggested, knowing his thoughts, but ignoring them. "Since you want to play like this."
He did as she bid, feeling foolish. When it was done, she scolded him.
"I can hurt others, but...I don't want to, Loni...okay? And, we don't have to practice. I've got it."
He nodded; quietly sat there, awaiting her next action. Never before had he dealt with a mind of equal intelligence.
Loni kept his deep thoughts to himself, and somehow, she, too, had learned to cloak her thoughts. So each sat there, private and distant.
So fast, she has caught on.
When, at last, she did project a thought, unexpectedly, it did not concern the subject in question.
"How do I stop this, Loni?" she demanded, vehemently. "How do I end this, so I can go home?"
It both shocked, and saddened him, that she disliked it here with him. His lot was a good one, compared with others; his work station one of the best. He had actually earned his way up to
