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can’t afford to put that much into the development. We’ll never recoup the cost. Find me another site,” she said, attempting to sound cool and in control despite the unsettling effect of Lucas’s presence.
    This time he did repeat her words into the phone. After listening for a moment, he said, “They’re not backing down. But they have a counteroffer for you.”
    â€œI’m listening.”
    â€œThey’ll give you the land in exchange for fifty percent of the profits and a signed agreement that none of the houses be sold to the Psy. They also want covenants placed on all the deeds ensuring future owners can’t sell to the Psy either.” He shrugged. “The land has to remain in changeling or human hands.”
    It was the last thing she’d expected but Lucas’s eyes said he’d known. And he hadn’t warned her. It made her wary. Was he trying to provoke a reaction from her? “Give me a moment. This isn’t a decision I’m authorized to make.”
    Walking a distance away, though it wasn’t strictly necessary, she connected to her mother through the PsyNet. Usually they used a simple telepathic link, but Sascha wasn’t strong enough to send over such a long distance. The blunt illustration of her weakness served to remind her to stay on guard. Unlike other cardinals, she was disposable.
    Nikita answered at once. “What is it?” Part of her consciousness faced part of Sascha’s in a closed mental room in the vastness of the PsyNet.
    Sascha repeated the offer and added, “It’s definitely a prime location in terms of changeling needs. With the SnowDancers putting up the land, our investment is halved so sharing profits isn’t going to cut into our bottom line. We might even do better in the end.”
    Nikita paused before answering and Sascha knew she was doing a data search. “Those wolves have a bad habit of trying to take over anything they have a hand in.”
    Sascha had a feeling that most predatory changelings had a habit of doing that. Look at Lucas—he’d been trying to take her over since the moment he’d laid eyes on her. “They’re not known for property investments. I think this may be an emotional reaction against letting control of their land fall into Psy hands.”
    â€œYou could be right.” Another pause. “Draft an agreement stating we have control over everything from design to construction and marketing. They have to be a silent partner. We’ll share profits but nothing else.”
    â€œWhat about their demand that no plots be sold to us?” Us. The Psy. The people to whom she’d never really belonged. But they were all she had. “It’s legal under the Private Development laws.”
    â€œYou’re the head on this project. What do you think?”
    â€œNo Psy is going to want to live out here.” This much space scared most of her race. They preferred to live in nice square boxes with defined limits. “It’s not worth fighting over and we don’t have to pay Lucas his million if he doesn’t sell all the units.”
    â€œMake sure he understands that.”
    â€œI will.” Her gut said that the panther was way ahead of them. Lucas didn’t strike her as anybody’s fool.
    â€œCall me if you have any problems.”
    Nikita’s presence winked out. When Sascha returned to Lucas, she found him rubbing the back of his neck as if something had irritated it. Her eyes followed the motion of his arm, fascinated by the sleek lines of muscle obvious even under the leather-synth jacket. Every move he made was fluid, graceful, like a big cat on the prowl.
    It was only when he raised a brow that she realized she’d been staring. Fighting a blush, she said, “We’ll agree to their demands if they agree to be a silent party. And that means not a sound out of them.”
    He dropped his hand from the back