Nightmare journey

the same conclusion we've reached. Espers must band together, work for each other, in order to survive.
    Of course, Chaney said.
    Not only will we then survive, but we will no longer be lonely, either, Kiera 'pathed.
    We are seeking the Black Presence, Tedesco said. We have maps of three possible locations at which it may be hiding. Will you throw your lot in with us for these journeys?
    No word of this has reached here, Chaney 'pathed, his full tail sweeping rapidly back and forth as the notion of the trek excited him.
    No one knew it but us, Tedesco explained.
    A shielded mental conversation, between Chaney and Kiera, passed in a second, like a ball of fuzz at the edge of the others' range of perception. In a moment the wolf-man said, Count both of us in.
    Melopina said, Is the Presence real? I thought it was a myth.
    It's real enough, Tedesco said. I've got proof in books.
    The girl grinned delightedly. Then I'm with you. She took a few quick steps forward and took hold of Jask's hand in both of her smaller hands, looked at him and 'pathed, Did you really come all the way across the Blight, with all the horrors in it?
    “Yes,” Jask said.
    You must tell me about it, she said.
    “I will-” He hesitated, then said, “If we do talk about it. I don't want to use telepathy all the time.”
    Whyever not? the girl 'pathed.
    She was wearing deerskin shorts that fit her well and emphasized the smoothness of her blue-green legs and a thin brown blouse against which the nubs of her nipples pressed in fine detail. She was stunningly attractive, and her beauty not only pleased him, but upset and confused him. He had never reacted like this to a tainted woman. It seemed wrong and sinful to covet
    “I'd… just prefer talking aloud,” he hedged.
    But telepathy is much simpler than speech, so direct, so-
    It disgusts him, Tedesco 'pathed.
    For the first time Jask realized that he was the center of attention. Chaney and Kiera were watching him with undisguised curiosity.
    Disgusts him? How? Melopina asked.
    Tedesco 'pathed, He no longer looks much like a Pure, with his new strength and his tan, but he was born and raised in an enclave. He still thinks in some ways as they taught him to think, despite the fact he is now tainted himself. He finds telepathy too intimate a means of communication. Especially with tainted creatures like us. He gets ill at the idea of having us inside his head.
    “This is true?” Melopina asked.
    Jask nodded.
    She let go of his hand. “I see.”
    For a long moment everyone stood in the middle of the road in embarrassed silence.
    The grazing horse whinnied.
    That familiar sound broke the awkward spell and set them into motion once again. “Share lunch with us,” Kiera said. “Then we'll decide how best to outwit the waiting soldiers.” She turned without waiting for a response and led the way toward the gypsy wagon, the muscles in her sleek haunches moving with oiled precision, bunching and relaxing, bunching and relaxing with every step. Though she resembled a wolf more than a woman, Jask could understand why Chaney might find her quite attractive. Her grace was purely feminine, her attitude sensuous.
    Tedesco and Chaney walked side-by-side, the wolf-man tilting his head to look up at the powerful bruin now and again. It was evident that they were conversing telepathically, though Jask could not hear anything they said without making a special effort to penetrate the courtesy shield they had established to spare his sensitivity.
    Melopina walked just in front of him, talking neither normally nor telepathically. Her spritely, friendly attitude had changed. She had withdrawn into herself, a brooking expression on her pretty face, and she pointedly avoided looking at Jask Zinn
    He knew he had hurt their feelings.
    That couldn't be helped.
    He did not know whether to be relieved by Melopina's change in attitude toward him, or whether to be disappointed. As he watched her walking in front of him, he decided that he was a little of both.
    Lunch was an ordeal. The food was good enough, but hidden conversations coursed all around Jask. Often the espers broke into hearty laughter at some expression of wit. Each tune this happened, Jask felt, irrationally, that they were laughing at him, for he had not heard the silent joke that had triggered their mirth. He ate in silence. He did not look at them, but stared at his plate-except for a few furtive glances at Melopina, who was curled most deliciously on the lush green