Winter Stars — Edita A. Petrick

In ten thousand years of bitter conflict, the enemy has not revealed its greatest secret…and the humanity has no idea how close they are to extinction.

Five years ago, a deadly conflict unfolded in a jungle clearing on a distant Rimworld -- Synoor, otherwise known as the last galactic frontier.

A young girl lost her heritage and was cast out to survive in a complex and hostile galactic society. Those who were her caretakers for thirteen years, blocked her memory of who she was, how she came to be their ward and most importantly why, then faded from the galactic scene. Unwanted by her parents' star-clans, and ostracized by those who should take care of her upbringing, Kitaya lives for the infrequent trans-galactic calls from Karin. The young doctor is the only one who knows that Kitaya is a seed of new galactic order -- a formidable telepath who one day may even eclipse the frontier gods who cared for her for thirteen years and then cast her out. But that's not why she remains Kitaya's friend. Five years ago, she matched Kitaya's DNA against her parents and the DeWynter nobility refused to accept the Rimworld foundling. It's when Karin realized that everyone outside the Rimworlds wants nothing more than to lock up the child who is not just the hereditary DeWynter duchess but the Princess Royal of Bollidor.

Each time Karin visits Kitaya in her remote quarters in the royal palace, she is able to make Kitaya remember snippets of her life before the tragedy in the jungle. She knows that it won't be easy for Kitaya to re-discover her mental talents without revealing herself to members of her extended family, but progress is measured in tiny steps, not quantum leaps.

Finally, the day arrives when Kitaya is allowed to leave the world that has been her prison for five years. With Karin by her side, they head for Caritan, the birth-world of Kitaya's father and one of the four Core worlds of the Confederate Union. Their first joint assignment is mundane…or so it seems. Providing escort to a drone convoy carrying supplies for worlds that lie on the other side of the Neutral Zone -- in the enemy's backyard. It's a test and a trap -- and they both know it. The marine humanoid race that has been in a state of conflict with the mostly human populations of the Confederate Union, is known for its cunning and cruelty. Since the two have been mortal enemies for millennia, and the aggression is always about the borders and galactic expansion, there are no secrets to uncover…then again, there has never been a human telepath of Kitaya's skill and magnitude going out on convoy escort through the enemy territory.