Dawn Endeavor 2: Hayashi's Hero by Marie Harte Page A

touched him, and he felt shy all of the sudden. “I want to talk to you about it, but this really hurts. I need your help.”
    “What can I do?”
    “I'm not sure.” Morgan frowned. “But, I can feel them so close. I think… Ava and Alicia. I need you to reach out and grab them.” His voice and image faded. “Hurry.” Kisho blinked and gasped as his breath and sight returned. His chest hurt like a bitch. But he did as Morgan had asked. He stopped moving. When Mrs. Sharpe and Ava let go of him, he latched on to their arms. He held tight, past the yells, past Tersch's bellow, and even past the fire of pain blazing through his chest.
    Dimly aware when they toppled onto him, he heard Tersch's roar and Olivia's cry for help.
    Then Fallon was there, and everything went black.

    * * *
    Thirty-six hours later

    Morgan groaned, aching all over. As he slowly rose to consciousness, he realized that though the healing process had alleviated much of his body aches, his head still throbbed. The nature of his ability, such as it was, pertained to energy, to connections. His strong bond to Kisho, despite the stubborn man's insistent denial, remained true, or Morgan would be dead right now.
    He'd pulled at Kisho's energy to heal himself, but it hadn't been enough. His ties to Alicia and Ava had done the trick, apparently. Using his lover as a conduit was a clever guess on his part, if he did say so himself. But he had a feeling Alicia wouldn't be pleased.

    He sniffed but didn't scent salt air or Jules nearby. Where the hell was he?
    “Oh good, he's waking up.” Ava's relief made him want to smile. Ava—he must have returned to North Carolina.
    He scented Kisho close. When he brushed his hand against warm skin, he turned his head and opened his eyes.
    Long, dark eyelashes fanned the shadows under Kisho's closed eyes. Asleep but otherwise healthy. Relief made Morgan light-headed for a moment. If anything had happened to Kisho, he didn't know what he'd do.
    The scent of Ava's sweet perfume lingered, and she leaned over him to whisper, “I really am glad you're better. You scared the shit out of me.” He blinked up at her. “Sorry.”
    “Yeah. But if you ever pull a stunt like that again, I'll geld you myself,” she hissed.
    Not a fan of his energy tap. Great. He couldn't wait to see Alicia's reaction.
    “Ava?” Tersch's deep voice. “Easy, baby.”
    “Stop calling me baby,” she snapped and wobbled on her feet.
    In seconds, Tersch scooped her into his strong arms.
    Morgan glanced around him as the room came into better focus. Natural shades, minimalist prints on the walls, and small plants dotted every ledge and table. He was in Kisho's room. No wonder he felt so much better. The energy all around him comforted and eased the emptiness he'd waited a lifetime to fill.
    An arm brushed his, and he turned back. “Kisho?” he rasped and fell into a coughing fit.
    Someone pressed a glass against his lips, and he automatically swallowed the cool water.
    “Thanks—” The rest of what he wanted to say stuck in his throat when he glanced up into the fury that darkened brown eyes to black. Oh hell. Mrs. Sharpe was thoroughly pissed.
    “Don't you ever do that again!”
    Okay, yeah, pulling energy without asking was tantamount to a psychic assault. But he hadn't intentionally yanked so much. He would have taken from Hawkins if the man had lesser shields. Desperate, he'd sought the one source closest to his heart. To his surprise, Morgan's attachment to Kisho apparently transcended space. Because he shouldn't have been able to pull from such a distance, let alone tap into two more powerful psychics. A Hail Mary of a plan that actually worked.
    He swallowed. “I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to, but the thought just came to me that you could help.”
    Tersch growled, “What the hell is he talking about? He's the one who made you two pass out?”
    Mrs. Sharpe poked Morgan hard in the chest.
    “Ow!”
    “Oh, hush! You're already