Chapter 14 · Tamer of the Ash Wilds - Chapter 14: A Sample from Six Years Back

The scanner beeped twice. Lin's face on the squad lead's screen, green box around it, and a name he hadn't heard in months.

Dr. Lin.

Not Lin Xu. Not scrap-town brawler. Dr. Lin, like someone pulled him out of a file that should've stayed buried.

The squad lead's hand went to his sidearm. "Don't move."

Lin didn't. Crunch was still shaking in his arms, frost melting off grey fur, and the three other squad members had rifles trained on his chest. Moving seemed like a bad idea.

Vira stepped between them. No weapon. Just her and that too-calm voice she used when things were about to go sideways. "He's with me."

"Step aside, nomad."

"He's with me," she said again. Slower this time. "And unless you want to explain to your garrison commander why you shot a retrieval target in the middle of a lockdown, you'll lower that."

The lead didn't lower it. But he didn't fire either.

Lin's heart hammered against his ribs. Crunch's claws dug into his jacket, and he could feel the beast's breathing start to even out. Not good.