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you saying?"
    "That somehow your body miraculously healed itself."
    Jarek stared at his brother-in-law, certain he hadn't heard right. "That's not possible."
    "Tell me about it. I've run all kinds of tests, searching for an explanation, but there is none. Yet the evidence is there. You were definitely injured. The wound is new and so is the scar tissue. And I can't discount the eyewitness accounts of four people I know and trust."
    Stunned, Jarek closed his eyes, trying desperately to recall the events leading up to the shooting, and the actual shooting itself. He felt Nessa stroking his hand. Vague images shifted and focused. A woman, with flowing black hair and blue eyes, lying beneath him on a silken cover…both of them naked. The Pleasure Dome! His eyes flew open. "Where was I when I got shot?"
    Nessa and Chase exchanged glances. "At the Pleasure Dome on Saron," she said softly.
    Then that part of the memory was true. But there were a lot of gaps. "How did I get here?"
    "Radd's sister is a courtesan at the Dome," Chase explained. "She happened to be nearby and heard the blasts. When you asked her to contact Celie, she apparently connected you with us and did as you requested. Very astute lady. Celie and the others brought you here. It's only been one cycle since you were shot. They're all still here, as a matter of fact. Celie's ship is docked with mine, and Sabin's is docked with hers. Blake flew your ship out, and it's docked with Sabin's. We've got a full crew. Hell, we've got a space station."
    Jarek still couldn't call up the details. "When can I talk to the others?"
    "Rest a few more hours. Then, if you can keep down some liquids, we'll let the gang visit."
    Jarek's recovery seemed to progress rapidly from there. He drank some broth, even stood and took a few steps, although his legs were shaky. The effort tired him, but his mind was alert, and bits of memory began returning.
    Chase gave the okay for visitors, and Nessa, Celie, Blake, Lionia and Radd all piled into the sickbay, with Sabin and Moriah right behind them. At least Sabin had survived the encounter with his mate, Jarek thought, deciding now was not the time to tease him about his carelessness. Chase removed the screen, so the group could crowd around Jarek. He felt foolish, lying there with everyone towering over him, but accepted the fact he was still too weak to be up.
    In view of his brush with death, he was glad to see his friends, who were more like family. Sabin was also a Shielder, and like a brother to Jarek. Sabin had married Moriah, a mastermind smuggler, six seasons back, inheriting a ragtag community consisting of seven women and one starship mechanic. Not just any mechanic, either; Radd was the best in the quadrant.
    Celie, Moriah's younger sister, now headed up the highly profitable delivery service. The Shielders had benefited tremendously from Sabin's alliance with Moriah, gaining a badly needed lifeline of supplies and medicine. And Radd generously offered his services, keeping the aging Shielder fleet in running order.
    Then there was Jarek's sister, Nessa, and her husband, Chase, a highly skilled physician. Together, they all formed an extended family, Shielder and non-Shielder, whose members were extremely loyal to each other. Blake wasn't an immediate member of the "family," but he was a good and trusted friend. He gave Jarek the once over. "You're looking a hell of a lot better than when I last saw you."
    "Considering what I've been told, that's a good thing. Fill me in, will you?" Jarek requested. "I remember someone bursting through the panel and shooting me, but not much after that."
    "I hope you remember the events before that," Blake said. "The lady with you was a real beauty. And you were—ah—without clothing, so I assume the evening wasn't a total loss."
    "And if it wasn't, I hope you have a current birth control patch," Moriah sniffed, shooting Sabin a scathing glare. Looking somewhat laser-shocked, her mate wisely moved a