Prologue

Star Shadows

Their first time was in a sleeping bag, by a dying fire. Casting shadows on the snow, their breath mingled in the brittle Genellan night. Buccari loved St. Pierre. He worshipped her. But their union was more than emotion; it was an animal want, a life force—the most powerful, the most timeless imperative in the universe.

Afterward they stared at the uncaring stars.