Star Caressed

Chapter 1

10 years later

He noticed the trembling fingers first. The courtroom was silent, as his footsteps echoed in the lobby.  "Please listen to me, I didn't plant the bomb on the kid.", the suspect pleaded with conviction.

Daniel observed the suspect and leapt into his mind. His shields were weak and his mind was soft yellow and a cool blue. A direct path with no crossroads. Straightforward and kindhearted. No strokes of baffling intensity or torrid emotions. With a neutral expression, he gave his final judgement.

"True. He's been framed."

The officers gritted their teeth as their investigation once again led to a dead end. The suspect gave him a grateful smile and was led out.  People hurried out of the courtroom, intimidated of his presence.

Judge Nathan ruefully gestured him to come close.

"How are you, Daniel?"

Daniel looked at him with a calculating gaze. Nathan was a big man, and was friendly towards him. Today, he looked worn out and defeated. Perhaps even desperate.

"Fine. What do you require of me?"

"Always straight down to business, eh?" Sighing, he continued, "But, yes, I need you. The pressure on this case is building. The media's hunting the law enforcement down. It's been 2 weeks since the bombing."

The bombing near River Hudson. A boy of 12 years, Rhys, was strapped with a bomb on his back. It seemed that he managed to escape from the clutches of his captors, as the bomb had exploded in an isolated area, with no civilian casualties. The entire country was rocked by the incident. Just an hour before, the boy had uploaded a video on social media, with tears streaming down his face, and he had said," There are more like me. Save them, if not me."

"What do you require of me?", he repeated.

"I want you to go to Mistville."

"He was a shifter?", Daniel asked in surprise. Mistville was a well-known shiftertown. Shifters lived in harmony and they were gregarious creatures. This kind of activity would have shattered their foundation.

"No. We don't know his whereabouts. One if the shifter cubs had called in to state that he'd spotted the victim in town 2 months ago. I want you to investigate."

"Okay."

"Just like that? Thought I'd have to persuade you."

"He was 12.", he said. "Just 12."

When he was 12, he was under training. He was torn apart from his family at 8, when his powers had developed. The officers had dragged him to the institute and his wailing mother had tried to stop them. When he was 13, he learnt his parents had crashed in an accident. A black void had consumed him, leaving him in despair, but he was forced to continue training. He couldn't remember them much, but when realization dawned upon him that he was left an orphan, loneliness crippled him. That was when he started to coach himself into oblivion. Training became life. He turned out to be one of the most powerful Stars.

Stars were the society's most valued individuals with different powers. There were memory, telekinetic, shape-shifting and many other kinds of them. But they were extremely rare and dangerous to come across. They were the secret weapons of the government.

He was the only Justice Star in the world. He could search a man's mind, explore their deepest secrets and humiliations, and find his loyalties. He could kill with a flicker, not just with his muscular built, but also with his mind invading others and extinguishing their life light. To him, minds were kaleidoscopes and mazes, the vivid colors and intensities revealing character and passion, and roads exhibiting complexity and perceptions. He was groomed to be an instrument of the law, until his conditioning failed and he became his own man. He couldn't trust easily. But, through the years, he'd made few solid friends who knew who he really was.

He arrived home at evening. His huge property was guarded by dozens of men. "Uncle Dan!", a voice called out. Felicity ran from her room and hugged him. He'd saved her from prison when she was 2, from his very first case. Today, she was 12 years old, and had her grandfather's piercing eyes. She was the only one he truly loved.

"How was the math test? Did Lucy apologize after stealing your bottle?", he asked her.

"It was easy. I used your multiplication trick. Yes! I did what you told me to do."

"Stare. Pin. Conquer.", they said together and laughed.

"Pack your bags, we're going to Mistville for the break."

"For a vacation?", she jumped.

"For an investigation."

"Okay. It's your turn to do the dishes."

"When is it ever your turn anyways?" She swatted his arm and skipped out.

Lily knew how to be tough. As the pack's alpha, she was fierce, but when Nathan had called her  to accommodate a Star into her territory, she was furious. Stars were rare in the society, influential and powerful. Along with ruthless and coldhearted as per reports. The pack was already in a state of distress when Trey had admitted that the boy Rhys was in town. That too, without her permission.

Massaging her forehead, she called in her second-in-command Beta, Zachary. Zach was a strong wolf, in his late twenties. He was family and would always support her. Crunching on his energy bar, he stomped into her office.

"Seriously Lily? You called me in at 7 in the morning? I couldn't go for a run, too!"

Chuckling, she said, " Don't blame me. The Justice star is coming to investigate."

Mouth agape, he exclaimed, "You're kidding me! He's like a legend."

"I've read about him. He isn't just a lie detector, they believe he can go in the depths of a mind to find anything, secrets or strategies. Don't let him mess with you."

"What's the plan?"

"We have to be accommodating, for first. Support him in the investigation."

"And?"

"Bust him up if he meddles in Pack business or screws with our heads.", she rolled her eyes.

"That's more like it.", he laughed heartily.

"How's pack?"

"Dylan reported that training is going on smoothly. Morgan needs financial aid and wants you to have a look at her proposals. Cody is working on the face recognition tech improvements you told him about. And the school wants you to meet the cubs for support after the incident."

She pondered for a moment. "Send Morgan in at 10. I'll go to the school by 2."

She was proud of her council. Her gamma, third-in-command, Dylan, was in charge of training the cubs in animal form and was the officer in charge for patrolling. Morgan had economic plans, while Cody worked on the technological improvements. Her pack had around 10,000 residents. They were prosperous and the cubs were adorable and smart. What else could she want?

Saturday morning came fast. Her tiger was going crazy and she had no idea why. The pack had their morning run together. She had gone to Hannah's place in the morning. She was a close friend of hers and 4 months pregnant. She had lovingly stroked her stomach and linked with the new pack member coming along. It would be loved, she thought. She could sense the baby's blooming conscience and soothed it with her alpha touch. It was her responsibility to look after each member. Hannah and her mate would do well with their cub.

God help her, she prayed, while going to meet the Star. She'd studied about his verdicts and cases. It'd bothered her how he wouldn't hear the back drop story of any of his suspects, and only saw black and white. Stories mattered, conditions and upbringing mattered. Besides, creeping into anyone's mind was a direct invasion of privacy.

She walked up to the restaurant and gave him a call. Inside, her tiger was purring and jumping up and down. "Stupid tiger", she muttered.

Behind her, she felt an unknown presence engulfing her senses. Her tiger was restless, and the world around her slowly dissolved into crystals, as her stomach churned with anticipation.

She turned around, and crystal blue eyes pinned her down, gleaming like diamonds in silent approval.