aHunter4Ever by Cynthia Clement Page A

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muscular, but essentially, you’re physically the same as any other man.”
    “Even though we were born and bred on Cygnus, we were originally from
this planet.”
    “Well that’s a handy explanation.” Grace raised an eyebrow. “You’re
human, but you come from a different planet.”
    “The Ancients have existed since the beginning of time. Until a few days
ago, I thought that Hunters had been created by the Ancients to be protectors.
My leader, Ardal, has learned that we have the same genes as humans.”
    “That proves that you’re not an alien.” Grace leaned against the stone
wall with her arms crossed over her chest.
    “We have been altered.”
    She frowned. “In what way?”
    “We have special abilities that have been genetically enhanced. Hunters
have been trained since birth to fight. We also have abilities that have been
bred into us. Each of our clans has skills that are unique to them.”
    “What’s your skill?”
    “I am clan Obair. I have a gift for working with instruments and
machines.”
    “You’re an engineer.”
    “That is what you call it on your planet.” Partlan rubbed his shoulder
where the bullet had entered. His wound was only a slight ache, but lying with
his hands behind his back had not helped it. Grace straightened away from the
wall and came to him.
    “Take your shirt off and let me look at it. It was too soon for you to be
out of the hospital. Fighting with those agents must have aggravated the
incision.”
    Partlan pulled the shirt of his head. Grace peeled back the edges of his
dressing and then stopped.
    “Is there a problem?”
    “It’s healed.” Grace finished taking the dressing off and then moved him
under the light in the center of the room. “That’s impossible.”
    Partlan gazed down at her and marveled at her beauty and courage. He was
connected to Grace. Her feelings were his, which only proved that she was his
mate. There was no question about the bond between them. That’s why her doubts
were so clear to him. She did not believe him.
    Somehow he must make her understand their connection. Words were
meaningless to her, so he could only show her by his actions and thoughts. He
would do whatever it took to convince her that they were meant to be together.
She was a reasonable woman and would eventually realise that they were pair
bonded.
    “This planet has given us many strengths. One of those is that we heal
quickly.”
    “What are your other strengths?” Grace’s voice was a whisper.
    “We move faster, our reflexes are better and we age slower.”
    “How old are you?”
    “I have seen thirty-three years since I was bred.”
    Grace tilted her head as her eyes roamed over his face. Partlan held his
breath and remained as still as possible. He sensed that she was on the verge
of accepting his origins. Her eyes left his face and then scanned his chest.
Her fingers brushed over several of his scars. His stomach tensed. Her hand
rested on his upper left arm.
    “Where did you get these tattoos?”
    “They are my markers.”
    She frowned. “What do they mark?”
    “My birth, my clan and my battles.”
    Her fingers grazed over the black glyphs that were the symbols of the
Kaladin language. She tapped one of them. “What is this?”
    “It is the date of the Denebrics Campaign. We were successful and freed
many Kaladin that had been taken captive on the outpost.”
    Grace bit her lower lip. “How did you get to Earth?”
    “We crashed here almost a year ago.” Partlan kept his voice calm. “We
were being transported for execution and Ardal, our leader, chose to let us die
with honor. We fought the extinction order and took over the spacecraft.”
    “Extinction order?” Grace’s voice was hesitant. “Does that mean what I
think?”
    “All Hunters were order executed. There was a civil war on our planet and
the Kaladin lost. The Holman took over and feared that Hunters would not obey
them, so we were deemed obsolete. All breeding facilities