BELONG

THE FALLEN WORLD SERIES BOOK 4

C.R. JANE

MILA YOUNG

CONTENTS

Join C.R. Jane’s Readers’ Group

Join Mila Young’s Readers’ Group

Join C.R./Mila’s Joint Readers’ Group

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Epilogue

Copyright

Siren Condemned

Chapter 1

About C.R. Jane

Other Books by C.R. Jane

About Mila Young

Other Books by Mila Young

Belong by C. R. Jane and Mila Young

Copyright © 2020 by C. R. Jane and Mila Young

All rights reserved.

No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review, and except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

For permissions contact:

crjaneauthor@gmail.com

milayoungauthor@gmail.com

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

To you, our readers. For always looking at the sky and seeing possibility. Thanks for supporting Ella and her aliens. We love you.

JOIN C.R. JANE’S READERS’ GROUP

Stay up to date with C.R. Jane by joining her Facebook readers’ group, C.R.’s Fated Realm. Ask questions, get first looks at new books/series, and have fun with other book lovers!

C.R.’s Fated Realm

JOIN MILA YOUNG’S READERS’ GROUP

Join Mila Young’s Wicked Readers Group to chat directly with Mila and other readers about her books, enter giveaways, and generally just have loads of fun!

Mila Young’s Wicked Readers Group

JOIN C.R./MILA’S JOINT READERS’ GROUP

Join C.R./Mila’s Joint Readers’ Group to chat directly with C.R. & Mila and other readers about their cowrites, enter giveaways, and generally just have loads of fun!

Join Fallen World Series Group

1

P regnant.

I stared out through the window, past the multicolored trees at the lavender ocean that stretched out before me.

A baby.

I still couldn't wrap my mind around it.

I stroked my stomach absentmindedly as I watched the lavender waves roll gently onto the shore, so alien but so beautiful at the same time.

A strange cerulean blue serpent-looking sea creature jumped in and out of the water. It moved smoothly along until a giant blood-red fish creature with five eyes burst out of the water and snapped it up, causing me to jump back a step despite the fact that I was on the shore and safely encased in our safe house.

It was amazing that a place could be so gorgeous, yet so dangerous at the same time. Every creature on this planet - including the Vepar that I was desperately in love with - was designed to lure you in and then destroy you.

I rubbed my stomach again, a wave of nausea hitting me as I thought about the immense task it would be to keep this baby safe if we were to stay on a place like Veon. My baby needed three fathers just to have a chance.

Except I didn't know if they were really the fathers though, did I? They had said all the right things...about how they would love my baby, whoever it belonged to, as if it were their own...but was that true? Two of them would always have been left out regardless, but at least they would know that the baby belonged to one of them.

In this situation. I rubbed my stomach again...I couldn't think about it. Parents on Earth who adopted kids claimed to love those kids as much as the kids they birthed. They couldn't all be lying about that.

My nausea only intensified. Which reminded me how lucky I was that one of my lovers happened to be the most brilliant scientist on Veon, and perhaps anywhere, as he'd been creating things to try and make my pregnancy easier since before I'd even gotten pregnant. That fact alone should have eased my worries. They had wanted a baby so badly, they'd been planning for it, despite how against it I'd been since they met me.

I wasn't against it now...that was for sure.

My mom had told me stories about how she'd loved me from the moment she'd found out that I existed. And I remember wondering how that was possible. How could you love someone you'd never met?

And now, I knew.

Since the moment I saw Corran's elated reaction, signaling that my pregnancy test was positive, I had been irrevocably in love with my baby. It could come out with green tentacles and one eyeball, and I knew that I would still love it forever and ever.

"Little darling," I whispered to it softly. The Veon did have better than average hearing, so there was a chance I guess that it could actually hear me, even inside of me.

Although I was being silly, since there was no way that the baby had ears yet. The little flutter that I kept thinking I was feeling since Corran gave me the news was just my imagination.

I wondered what kind of mother I would be. Would I be able to keep my temper? Would the long nights be hard or easy? Would I know all the right things to say when they were sad, or when I needed to teach them something?

Thoughts of being a mother inevitably made me think of my own mother and how very good she had been at it. She would have been the best grandmother. The very best.

She will be the best grandmother, I thought fiercely, trying to stay positive. I'd found my father somehow, despite the fact that he hadn't even been on Earth. I could find my mother if she was out there. The guys had already promised to help me, and one thing I'd learned about them was that when they sought out to do something, it happened.

We would find her.

Random memories flitted through my mind as I thought about the kind of mother she was.

There was this one time when she had to go into surgery on Valentine's Day, and she felt so bad that she couldn't be with me that she stayed up all night getting surprises ready for me to wake up to. I remember I'd wandered out into the living room and there had been pink, red, and white balloons everywhere-on the ceiling and on the floor. There had been special presents and a special Valentine's cake. She'd been exhausted for her surgery, but she'd never put herself first. My father and I were always top of her mind.

I wondered if I could be even close to that good of a mom.

"Where are you, mom?" I whispered through the window, focusing on that strange lavender-colored sea once again.

I'd once been scared of the ocean. The sheer vastness and emptiness of it had made me feel alone and terrified.

The emptiness of the skyline in front of me was comforting now. After months of being on the run, I savored feeling alone. I would stay here forever it if was possible and the whole world wasn't falling apart around us.

That made me think of the guys, and the whispered conversations they'd been having since we'd been here. I frowned, thinking of how protective they still were...would probably always be. I would be grateful for that trait when our child was born, but it still drove me crazy when they overdid it with me.

Speaking of the guys...where were they?

Since the news of my pregnancy broke, one of them had always been close by.

I tore myself away from the view and set off down the hallway to track them down. We needed to get a plan together for how we were going to find my mother before I got too pregnant to do anything. We still had at least 6-7 months before that happened, but the less cumbersome my belly was, the better off we all would be.

As I approached the main room where the Veon version of a living room was, I heard raised voices. I sped up, trepidation tingling down my spine. All the stakes felt higher since finding out about the baby. And whatever they were yelling about...it just sounded like more bad news.

"I know I can fix this if we can find the source," Corran was saying to Derrial and Thane as I stepped into the room. They were standing around a table watching a hologram display a scene of mass chaos. I shivered as I realized what it was.

It was more of the infected Vepar that we'd encountered when we went to visit Thane's mother. Except what was being shown on the hologram looked like it was a thousand times the amount of infected that had been in that mental health facility. It reminded me of that one movie I'd seen back on Earth, World War Z I think it was called.

Except this apparently was real life.

"Is that happening right now?" I squeaked out, causing all three of the guys to turn their attention immediately towards me, various looks of concern and dismay on their faces. They obviously hadn't wanted me to see that. But I was glad that I did.

"Ella, you should be resting," Corran said as he approached me, his eyes dipping to my stomach, even though it was much too early for me to be showing. "You look pale and exhausted."

"Thanks," I said wryly, causing Corran to give me a very uncharacteristic eye roll. "I just need one of those magic shot thingies. I've thrown up three times so far this morning." Corran was already pulling one of the syringes out of a drawer before I could finish my sentence. I shivered just looking at the needle. I'd been on the wrong side of a shot like that too many times since meeting the guys.

It's not like that anymore, I scolded myself. Corran gave me a questioning look at the nervousness bleeding out onto my face, but I answered him with a reassuring grin. Old habits died hard for me apparently, but I was working on it.

The prick of the needle was gone in an instant, and then I began to feel blessed relief as the nausea instantly started to fade. The Vepar really needed to share technology like this with Earth. There were a million expectant mothers that would kill for relief from morning sickness.

"Feel better?" Corran asked, brushing a kiss across my forehead. I pulled him towards me before he could step away, burying my face into his chest and inhaling his delicious scent.

"Love you," I whispered, and felt his chest rumble with pleasure.

I had fought this thing between the four of us for a really long time, and it felt so freeing to give in to the feeling of love that had been beating to get out from almost the very beginning.

Finding out that I was pregnant had finally pushed me to stop being so wishy-washy with everything in my life, including my relationships.

Taking one more second to savor Corran's embrace, I stepped away, expectantly looking at the other two, who were looking at the two of us with a mixture of jealousy and warmth. The hologram had been shut off.

"How many are they saying have been infected now?" I asked, striding to the table and picking up the hologram device, trying to figure out how to get it working again.

"Give that to me," Thane grumbled, taking the device from me and flicking it on once again. We all watched in rapt silence at the footage of the crazed Vepar trashing cities and towns. The horns and different colors of their skin only added to the surrealness of the video.

"They're saying it's only a couple of thousand right now, but knowing the council, I'm sure it's three times that number," murmured Derrial as he watched a group of the infected demolish a government building in just a few minutes.

"Do you have any guesses about what's happening?" I asked, biting a nail nervously. I cringed when two infected Vepar tore into a Vepar man who had been trying to run away from them.

I saw the guys exchange glances with each other. "Alright, what are you hiding?" I growled, putting my hands on both hips and giving them what I hoped looked like a stern glare.

Derrial sighed. "I liked it much better when I didn't ever listen to you," he chided, but the complaint only came out halfhearted. "We think it has to do with the fertility experiments they were doing on the side. The medicine mixtures involved in that sort of thing are highly sensitive, it's why Corran was supposed to be the one in charge and monitoring everything, one wrong mixture and anything could happen. And it looks like something did happen," he said, gesturing to the screen where what easily looked like a thousand of the infected were running at breakneck speed towards a group of Vepar soldiers.

"Okay, you can turn it off," I said with a shiver, looking away before the soldiers were destroyed.

"Do you think there's a cure?" I asked, wondering if my father and the guys' families were safe or if they needed help.

"I think I could figure it out. But I need to find the source first, and since the council had hundreds of these secret labs based on those files I stole, it's not an easy task figuring out which lab is the culprit. And I can't even think right now if its multiple labs that are contributing to what's going on. Different strains of this infection could be the end of Veon," Corran explained, his eyes focused far off, likely already mapping out a plan for if that occurred.

"Have you heard from our families?" I asked, walking to the machine in the wall and punching in a request for a soup that I'd come to love. I wouldn't have normally had an appetite...but pregnancy problems.

"Lanton's been communicating here and there. So far, their city hasn't been attacked," Thane answered.

I stopped perusing for food and glanced back at him. "How's your mom?" I asked quietly.

He just shrugged. "Dad hasn't given many details. She obviously wasn't going to get better just because she left that place and was back with him. But he's determined to take responsibility for her this time. That's all I can ask of him."

I nodded, wanting to go over to him and hug him, but knowing that he didn't want the pity that came with mention of his mother.

The hologram started up behind me and more reports came in of new attacks on cities. My hunger dimmed. I began to think about the infected finding and attacking our safehouse, hurting our child. The room all of a sudden became stifling.

I turned to face the guys, who were once again hunched around the table watching the hologram aptly and making plans. "Is it safe for me to walk outside?" I asked, feeling like I was going to suffocate if I didn't get out of here.

Corran looked over at me concerned, I'm sure seeing how pale I looked. "Yes, of course. Just stay within the trees and where we can see you out there,” he said, gesturing to the transparency of the dwelling's walls.

I quickly walked over to one of the walls and waited as an entrance appeared, allowing me to go outside. The breeze coming off the water immediately helped to calm me down. Our safe house was meant to be as open as possible, both the walls and the ceiling allowed you to see outside, but there wasn't anything that could replace the feel of the breeze against your skin and the sound of the leaves rustling on the trees.

It was at least half an hour before I sensed that they were behind me, watching me. I turned around and saw my three lovers, standing right outside of the domed structure, watching me pensively.

"What is it?" I asked worriedly, striding towards them, expecting to hear more terrible news.

"It doesn't usually happen like this," said Derrial. "Once you're mated, there's a ceremony that you do right away, but it doesn't really matter, because the expectation is already there that you belong to each other forever."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, confused, even as a nervous tickling sensation started in my stomach at the intense way he was looking at me. Like I was the only thing that existed in the world.

"He means that it's still your choice whether you are going to be ours. It took us a while to get there, but now the only way this can happen is if you choose to be with us forever."

"Are you asking me..." I began.

One by one, they got down on one knee, similar to when they had asked for forgiveness. But this time, I knew this was for something completely different.

I hadn't really been the kind of girl that dreamed about her wedding day. Once my parents disappeared and all I'd had was Cherry, I'd stopped thinking about happily-ever-afters and walks down an aisle in a pretty white dress. And I'd certainly never dreamed that I'd end up with three Vepar as husbands.

But seeing the three of them all down on one knee I realized that somehow my reality had become much more romantic than any scene I could have created in my head.

"I love you," began Corran. "I love you in a way that's illogical to me, someone who's only cared about numbers and cold hard facts his entire existence. You are my dream. You are the only thing I could ever not live without. Marry me. Love me. Choose me," he said in quiet voice threaded with more emotion than I'd ever heard from him, even when he found out that I was pregnant.

Before I could answer, Thane began to speak. "I didn't realize that I was looking for you, until I found you. And then we fucked it all up, over and over again. But somehow you're still here, and somehow you still love us. And I just want the chance to show you how much you've changed my life, how much I love you, how I would do anything for you, forever and ever. Marry me."

I turned to Derrial next, knowing that it wouldn't be my turn until all of them had spoken first.

"I saw you first, you know. I'd never had such an immediate reaction to another being before. I knew that I wanted you, that I had to have you, that there was no other option. It was obsession at first, but maybe it was always love too. There is no one else in all of the galaxies that could ever complete me the way you do. You are my moon, my stars, my end, and my beginning. I will never love another the way I love you. I will never put another above you. You will always be my everything. Marry me," Derrial almost whispered, his voice also heavy with emotion like the other two.

I was crying. How could I not? Somehow, since the moment I saw them in that nightclub, our paths had always been leading to this. And maybe I didn't see that at first. Maybe at one point, all I'd seen were monsters. But now, all I could see were my saviors, my loves, my future.

I would always love them. That was never going to change. I'd never felt more confident about anything than the fact that they would always love me, they would always want me, and they would always do everything in their power to be there for me.

There was no other answer that I could give.

"Yes," I told them, my voice so hoarse from my tears that it was difficult for the words to be heard.

But of course, with their superior Vepar hearing, them not hearing me wasn't an issue.

The three of them were all around me. They devoured me as they showered me with love.

Derrial pulled me towards him and started to brush kisses down the side of my neck.

"Tomorrow, you'll be ours. We won’t wait any longer," he growled as he bit down on my shoulder roughly, sending shivers across my skin.

"Tomorrow?" I asked breathlessly, finding it hard to concentrate as Thane started down the other side of my neck and Corran's lips met mine.

Corran pulled away for a second, and my lips immediately tried to follow his. He laughed deliciously. "We're done waiting. Tomorrow, we'll have the ceremony. We'll take care of everything."

For a moment, I thought about walking down the aisle in a white dress, my father on my arm as he gave me away. And then I let that thought go.

I didn't care if we got married in the middle of a swamp surrounded by wild creatures and swarms of mosquitos, I would marry them anywhere.

Tomorrow.

2

N one of the guys were in bed with me when I woke up the next morning. Thane Jr. was still curled up on the pillow next to me, tiny musical sounding snores coming out of him as he slept. It took me a moment for the consciousness to fully hit me, and when it did, I sat up in bed in a flash, waking up Thane Jr. and sending him running into my arms, his little body trembling.

It was my wedding day.

A gliding sound caught my attention, and I turned towards the bedroom's entrance and watched as a cart with a table and a tablet rolled towards me, stopping right beside the bed. I stared at it for a moment, not sure what I was supposed to do with it, before I finally grabbed the tablet. As soon as I touched it, all three of the guys appeared on the screen.

I watched, confused, as they began to speak through the screen.

"We've been studying up on human weddings, and we know that it's a tradition on your planet not to see the groom until the wedding ceremony," Corran began.

"That's a stupid tradition by the way," Thane growled grumpily next to him, and I laughed at the disgruntled look on his face. I thought it was a stupid tradition too.

Corran elbowed him and continued. "We wanted this day to be everything you've ever dreamed, so we set up some surprises. First up, breakfast in bed. Eat up, sweetheart, today's going to be the best day of our lives."

I looked around, wondering where breakfast was, when suddenly I saw a plate piled with food on top of the tray that had just been empty moments before when I grabbed the tablet.

And it was filled with all Earth food - eggs, bacon, pancakes - all food that I hadn't eaten since coming to Veon.

Luckily, Corran had given me my nausea medicine the night before, and I was still feeling perfect. I attacked the food with gusto, savoring a little taste from home. I was a little salty that the guys had been holding back from me about the ability to get Earth food. I'd eaten so many strange things over the last few months that I deserved a freaking medal.

Once I devoured everything on my plate, I got up to get out of bed. Suddenly, the tablet came on again, and once again, I saw all three of my men.

"It's time to start getting ready, pet," said Thane. "If you walk into the bathroom, I think you will find a few surprises. I can't wait to marry you," he continued before the tablet once again shut off.

I walked to the bathroom eagerly, thinking that whatever it was probably wasn't going to rival the pancakes I'd just eaten, but it was still going to be good.

I was wrong, it did rival the pancakes.

I loved Veon technology.

Somehow, the guys had transformed the bathroom into an area that now resembled a fancy day spa, those ones on Earth that I never could afford. There were two hologram attendants waiting patiently for me, which was a little creepy, but the bath that they'd drawn filled with flower petals and scented oils along with the massage table that was set up in the middle of the room promised good things.

The attendants disappeared momentarily while I slipped off my clothes and settled myself on the massage table, covering myself up with the white folded sheet on the bed. The bed was set up for a prenatal massage, complete with a donut hole looking pillow for my stomach, even though I didn't have anything resembling a bump at the moment. I still appreciated the gesture and hoped that whichever of the guys had created this could recreate it again and again throughout my pregnancy.

What followed next was the most amazing experience I'd ever had. I was pretty sure that I would marry my hologram masseuse if given the chance. I'd never felt so relaxed. All of the stress I'd been holding in my muscles disappeared, and as I slipped off the bed into the bath that was still perfectly warm, I'd never felt better. I wasn't sure how they were doing it in their holographic state, but I once again chalked it up to a Veon technology win.

One of the hologram attendants appeared next to the tub and began to wash my hair, putting an assortment of different creams and serums in it as she did so. The service, of course, came with a head massage, and I was practically purring by the time she finished. The oils in the tub were jasmine and orange-scented, heightening the entire experience.

I stepped out of the tub, drying myself off with a warm towel that one of the attendants had set up near the tub. I knew that I could have cleaned myself instantly in one of those machines that I loved so much, but I was grateful to do it the old-fashioned way - that is, if the old-fashioned way came complete with more luxury than I'd ever dreamed.

I was led to a chair where they began to buff and polish my skin and nails. My nails were painted a soft pink color, and my skin was softer than it had ever been in my life. My hair was next.

Using a machine that looked like a more high-tech version of a hairdryer, my hair was dried and then curled, pulled up into a half-up, half-down hairstyle with soft tendrils framing my face.

I was turned away from the mirror for makeup. That process took forever, and I was a little afraid that I was going to look like Mimi Bobeck from The Drew Carey Show when she was done.

They didn't let me look at the final result, instead, leading me to a room off the spa-bathroom that I was sure hadn't existed before today.

A long rack was set up in the middle of the room, and three rows of shoeboxes were set up in a line in front of the rack.

The tablet had made its way into the room, and it blinked on as soon as I looked at it.

"I saw that show once on your human television. Say Yes to the Dress or something like that," said Derrial, making a face. "I know we can't give you that same experience, but hopefully, we've created something a little like that. I've been assured by our computers that these dresses are all the right style. I love you, baby," he said before the tablet clicked off.

Hesitantly, I walked over to the rows of dresses. I knew they didn't wear things like this at Veon weddings. I'd heard the girls talking about what a Veon mating ceremony was like during the trials, and it made my heart explode with how they were trying to mimic a human wedding, even though it was so different than what they were used to.

I shuffled through the dresses, my eyes getting larger and larger with each one. They were gorgeous, the kind of dresses you could imagine a princess wearing, not a poor girl who'd never worn brand named clothing in her life before meeting the guys.

It was the second to last one that stopped my heart. It was almost an exact replica of Kate Middleton’s wedding dress, with the exception that it had what looked like pink diamonds all over it.

I teared up just looking at it, suddenly wishing more than anything that my mom could be here today to see this.

Unfortunately, that wasn't something that the guys could deliver on today.

The attendants had disappeared when I'd come into the room, but they reappeared once again as soon as I'd chosen my dress.

There were a few sets of lacy undergarments set up beside the rack, and my skin heated just thinking about them taking it off of me.

I chose a bright white pair that seemed perfect for a bride, and slipped them on before allowing the attendants to help me put on my dress.

I really needed to ask the guys about the technology that they were using for these attendants, because I still couldn't believe that I could feel them despite the fact they appeared to be holograms and appeared and reappeared in an instant.

Although the back of the dress appeared to have a row of hundreds of buttons holding it together, the designer of the dress had hidden a zipper underneath the buttons that made putting it on much easier than I'm sure it had been for Kate Middleton.

The dress fit perfectly, better than anything I'd ever worn before. I'd expected the dress to feel heavy since there were so many layers, but the dress must have been made out of a special kind of cloth, because it almost felt like I wasn't wearing anything, as it was so light.

I was finally led over to a giant mirror that had appeared on the wall, and I gasped as I looked at the stranger staring back at me. It was me, but it was a much better version of myself. I'd never imagined that I could look so good. The attendant who had done my makeup had managed to accentuate all of my features perfectly so that I still looked like myself, but as myself if I was a magical fairy princess.

A wave of longing once again passed over me as I imagined what my mother would have said to me at this moment, how there would have been tears in her eyes. I thought of my father's reaction when he would have first seen me. The pain at their absence was almost crippling, and I had to take a few deep breaths in order to calm myself down.

"Are there any changes you would like made?" the hologram attendant asked in a worried sounding voice. Obviously, my reaction was not what they were programmed to be going for.

I gave the woman a tremulous smile. "I look perfect. Thank you so much," I told her, not knowing the proper procedure for thanking a fake person.

She smiled and gave a small bow before disappearing from sight.

I began to be nervous as I looked at myself in the mirror more. It was really happening. This was really my wedding day, and I was about to marry three aliens. How did this become my life?

Looking at my side profile, I squinted because it almost seemed like I suddenly had a small bump...which was impossible. There was no way I would be showing already. I guess I'd just eaten too big of a breakfast.

I didn't have any regrets.

The tablet began buzzing behind me to get my attention, and I stopped staring at my new bump and walked over to grab it.

My three men once again appeared on the screen as soon as I picked up the tablet.

"There's a little present for you lying on the bed," Derrial told me. "I'm sure you look more beautiful than I can even imagine. And I can't wait to marry you. Come out to the main room after you find your surprise," he said before their images disappeared from view.

I walked out to the bedroom and found a blue velvet colored jewelry box waiting for me on the bed. With trembling hands, I picked up the box and opened it. Inside was a pink diamond necklace and matching earrings that perfectly matched the pink diamonds on my dress. They were more gorgeous than words could describe. I slipped them on and then hurried out of the room, ready to make this wedding happen.

I stopped short when I saw the back of a man talking to Corran's parents in the living room.

It was my father. He was here.

Corran's parents let out little sounds of surprise when they saw me and then my father turned around to see what they were looking at. His eyes immediately welled up with tears at the sight of me and he rushed towards me. He looked so much better than he had when we'd dropped him off and I knew I would feel eternally in debt to Derrial's parents for taking such good care of him.

He looked like he'd just finished with a tropical vacation instead of imprisonment.

"You're here," I gushed emotionally as my father gave me a careful hug, not wanting to muss my dress and makeup.

"And you're beautiful," he told me, the same emotion threaded throughout his voice.

He pulled back to look at me. "You look like a dream, my angel," he told me. "If only your mom was here to see you like this." Great wracking sobs started to come out of him, and I soon followed him, giving him a giant hug that I'm sure wreaked havoc on everything the attendants had just spent hours doing.

After a few minutes, my father pulled away, wiping his eyes. "I'm sorry. This is a happy day. Forgive your old man for getting so emotional," he said with a sniffle. I saw that both Derrial and Corran's parents were standing by the door looking at us sympathetically. I gave them a tremulous smile.

Suddenly, my holographic ladies appeared and started buzzing all over me, trying to fix the destruction I'd just caused. They stepped away after a few minutes, looking satisfied with their handiwork.

"Let's get you married before I mess up your makeup again," my dad said with a wink, looking recovered now. Corran and Derrial's mothers both came up to me, cooing over my dress and accessories.

"We couldn't have picked a better mate for our sons," Tenly, Corran's mother, whispered to me after giving me a gentle hug. Koria, Derrial's mother, just beamed at me with watery eyes after she pulled away from our hug.

All of a sudden, Lanton walked in from outside, stopping as soon as he saw me and giving me a loud whistle that sounded very human. "The boys are getting restless, darling," he told me. "We'd better get this show started."

I nodded and blew him a kiss, glad that he could be here. I'm sure that Thane's mother was somewhere close as well.

They were all here.

Everyone I loved, except for my mother.

I chose not to dwell on that, giving them all a smile I hoped looked grateful.

Koria went over to the counter and grabbed a bouquet of light pink Veon flowers that I'd never seen before. I inhaled the soft, almost tropical scent of them. Koria gave my shoulder a light squeeze and then led everyone out besides my father.

"You ready for this, my darling girl?" he asked me, his voice still gruff from the emotion he was trying to control.

"Ready," I said, marveling for a moment at how much I meant those words, despite how everything had started with Derrial, Thane, and Corran.

"Let's do this then," he said as he led me towards the door.

My jaw dropped as I saw what had been set-up. The guys must have messed with the transparency of the walls and programmed them to keep showing the outside of our house as it usually worked...because what I was seeing now was nothing like what I had seen through the walls all morning as I was getting ready.

Instead of the colorful forest that had resembled a cotton-candy colored fall backdrop, there were now flowers blooming everywhere, so colorful and numerous that it was almost too bright for my eyes. The flowers framed a small path that led to a white wooden arch that was also covered with an explosion of flowers.

The flowers faded from view though when I saw my three Vepar standing up there, dressed in their usual tight uniform looking outfits with the exception that these were white.

I belatedly noticed that white stool looking seats were set up in front of the arch and were occupied by our families.

My dad patted my hand and began to lead me down the aisle as a soft harp sounding melody began to play a tune that I'd never heard but was so beautiful that it made me want to cry.

The walk seemed to go on forever as I resisted the urge to run towards my beautiful men. The three of them were staring at me as if I was everything good in the world. Thane, my usually stoic warrior, had tears in his eyes. Derrial looked like he was having to hold himself back from coming towards me. And Corran looked like he couldn't believe how lucky he'd somehow gotten.

The three of their gazes on me at once left me feeling heady.

After what seemed like half a lifetime, we made it to the arch where my men were waiting for me.

"You take care of my girl, you hear me?" my father ordered, his voice hitching as he spoke.

Derrial took my hand from my father's. "Forever," he vowed, the intensity in his eyes sending a blush over my cheeks.

My father gave me one more kiss on the cheek before walking over and joining the other parents on the stools that I realized were hovering a few inches in the air.

Butterflies erupted in my stomach as I continued to stare into my lovers' eyes.

Derrial opened his mouth and began to speak, a cacophony of strange words in a language that didn't resemble the Veon language that I'd been around for months. Somehow, I knew the words he was uttering were older than the Veon language. They sounded sacred...they sounded binding.

Thane and Corran began to join him, following along with him word for word. The words rushed over me, and even though I had no idea what they were saying, I could feel their almost magic quality spreading through my veins. As I listened, it was like the bond between the four of us became a tangible thing, brightening and strengthening until it was so strong that it could never break.

They finally stopped speaking and the three of them just looked at me proudly. Derrial leaned forward to kiss me, but I held up a hand to gently stop him. They had just given me their vow, and I wanted to do the same.

I'd had the attendants give me three simple gold-colored bands. It had taken a bit since I don't think wedding bands had been programmed into their abilities. I pulled them out of the binding at the bottom of my bouquet where I had been keeping them.

My hands were shaking, but I managed to slide a band on each of their left hands.

"I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine," I whispered, recalling my mother's stories of her Jewish heritage and my parent's wedding vows. "I, Ella, take you Derrial, to be my husband, and these things I promise you. I will be faithful to you and honest with you. I will respect, trust, help, and care for you. I will share my life with you. I will forgive you as we have been forgiven, and I will try with you to better understand ourselves, through the best and worst of what is to come, for eternity," I vowed to him.

I then moved to Thane and Corran and said the same vows.

All four of us were crying by the time we were finished, and my three men each took their time kissing me, each kiss so hot and deep that my body was on fire when the three of them finished.

Of course, the Vepar being the bloodthirsty people that they were, there was one more part to the ceremony. Corran took out a small knife and cut a cross-looking incision into all of our hands.

He then picked up a small gold bowl that had been sitting on the ground behind us and squeezed his hand until a drop of blood fell into the bowl. He then handed it to Thane, who did the same thing, followed by Derrial. Derrial then wrapped his hand around mine and helped me to squeeze one drop of blood into the bowl. As soon as my blood touched theirs in the bowl, a purple mist began to rise from the bowl. The mist collected and spread, suddenly surrounding the four of us, so thick that I could no longer see the flower colored meadow we were standing in. Images began to appear in the mist. There was a little girl, with Derrial's green eyes and my hair, being tossed up in the air by Thane. Corran and I were curled up on a porch watching a sunset with two suns instead of one fading into the distance. Derrial was making love to me by a lavender-colored waterfall. The four of us were eating dinner along with a little girl and three little boys, all perfect combinations of myself and my four men. On and on the images appeared until my heart felt like it was going to beat out of its chest at this glimpse into what must be our future. It was a future more beautiful than anything I could ever have imagined for myself, and I craved it with every fiber in my being.

The mist eventually faded, and I realized that the four of us had at some point during the montage of images sunk to our knees. All four of us were steadily weeping, more love reflected in their eyes than I'd thought possible.

We were then joined by our family members as they all rushed around us, sinking to their own knees as they embraced us, doing a lot of weeping of their own.

I had never felt such happiness, such completeness...such hope. At this moment, anything sounded possible.

At this moment, I felt more love than I could have ever dreamed.

WE'D JUST SAID goodbye to our families, and I watched as the ship that they'd flown in on disappeared from sight as the invisibility shields that Corran had installed to keep our location secret engaged. Even the sound of the ship's engines was muted as they took off. I didn't get the burst of homesickness that I thought I would get saying goodbye to my father again. As I stood there on the porch, Thane's body wrapped around mine, and with my two other new husbands on either side of me, I felt home.

There had been a short reception after the ceremony, a combination of Veon and Earth traditions that managed to somehow meld perfectly together. There had been a five-tier wedding cake that resembled any celebrity's wedding cake back on Earth. But there had also been a purple slug type dish at the wedding dinner that the guys had somehow managed to get me to try. I wouldn't be repeating that mistake any time soon.

Regardless of the purple slug incident, it was a time spent with lots of laughter, and lots of love.

Our families hadn't been able to see the images in the purple mist, but there was a lot of reminiscing about what had happened in all of their wedding ceremonies. I was grateful that my dad hadn't gotten a glimpse of me rolling around in bed with my three new husbands.

I felt so much peace as I stood there in front of our home and the sound of the engines faded off into the distance...peace, but also a greater awareness that I'd just gotten married and how much my body was ready to seal the deal with my lovers.

Taking things into my own hands, I pulled away from Thane and grabbed each one of their hands as I began to lead them back into our home.

They quickly caught on to what I wanted. In their eagerness, Thane swept me into his arms and the four of us practically flew into our bedroom.

I wasn't nervous at all I stood in front of them, the three of them staring at me hungrily. I turned around and throatily asked Corran to unzip me. He quickly complied, and my gorgeous dress was soon pooled at my feet, leaving me in nothing but the white lingerie I had put on earlier. I heard their quick intake of breath, and it only made my own lust spiral higher.

Unsurprisingly, Derrial stepped up first, spinning me around so I was facing him. His lips brushed mine, gently at first, sending tantalizing shivers down my spine. He deepened the kiss, his firm mouth nibbling and caressing. Heat quickly rose between us, and he began to devour me.

The rest of the world faded around me, until all that existed was his lips against mine and the sensations building up inside of me. His tongue flicked teasingly at my lips, until I parted them to admit him.

He broke the kiss long enough to lay me back on the bed. Before I could blink, he'd ripped my underwear off. "Open your legs for me," he ordered. Despite how many times I'd been with them, my face heated and my heart began to pound. I obeyed him though.

"Wider," he urged me. His hand moved to my knees, pushing them apart. "Beautiful," he murmured as he began to softly tease my swollen lips.

He bowed his head over my lap, and I gasped as he blew a teasing puff of air across my folds. An instant later, I cried out in surprise and jerked as he began to stroke me more insistently, his caress making me wild.

He chuckled, a low, satisfied sound, and touched my clit. I cried out with surprised pleasure and unconsciously thrust my hips upwards, spreading her legs further apart.

"Just like that," said Thane from somewhere around us. His voice brought the room back into focus, and I saw that Thane and Corran were both lounging in chairs, in different states of undress, their eyes sparking as they touched themselves as they watched Derrial and I.

Derrial brought my attention back to him as his fingers hit the perfect spot, again and again, teasing and circling with just the right pressure. I moaned against his mouth and clung to him.

Pleasure gathered like a thunderstorm on the horizon, but Derrial didn't seem in a hurry to push me over the edge.

"Derrial…please…" I begged in a ragged whisper. He cradled me with one arm as his finger slid in and out, meeting little resistance from my slick, throbbing flesh.

"Sweet Ella," he said hoarsely. "You're so perfect." He returned to kissing me, his mouth devouring mine, his tongue ravishing me as he quickly penetrated me with a second finger, then added a third. A soft, pleading moan escaped me, muffled by his mouth as he continued to caress me, winding my arousal ever higher. My tension continued to gather like a storm in the pit of my stomach, and I burned with need. He gave me one last punishing kiss, and then sweet, hot lightning struck across my senses in an explosion of pleasure. I cried out and writhed against his fingers, the pleasure almost unbearable.

“Derrial,” I breathed, pulling on his arm. “I want to feel you inside me,” I begged.

Placing his elbows on either side of my head, Derrial rocked his hips, sliding his cock back and forth along my folds. A tingle began again where he was rubbing me. As the tension mounted, I closed my eyes. He lowered his mouth to mine, and after another deep kiss, slid his lips over to my ear and nibbled. Wave after wave of sensation flashed over me, through me. It felt like I would die if he didn’t bury himself inside me soon. I reached down between our bodies to palm him. He was hard steel encased in smooth silk. Chills ran up my spine in anticipation of having him fill me completely. He wrapped his hand around mine and guided his cock to my opening. I released him and wound my arms tightly around his neck, tilting my hips to ease his entry. He covered my mouth and slid his tongue between my lips, even as he pushed himself home. I arched my back, moaning as the slow glide triggered every nerve ending in its path. Moisture blurred my vision. Balancing on his elbows, he cradled my head in his hands while keeping his hips still. “I love you,” he whispered. I shivered as the husky tones of his voice washed over me.

“I love you too.” I ran my hands down the ropes of muscle on his back, until I could curl my fingers around the tight globes of his butt. There was a reverence in his eyes as he began to move. A tightening feeling began to build up in my core as he withdrew one inch at a time, until only the head of his cock remained inside me. When I could stand it no more, he plunged. He repeated this over and over until I cried out.

With a knowing look, he grinned at me. “What do you want, baby?”

“More,” I begged. Lowering himself completely on me, he gripped my ass, tilting my hips up, and began pounding into me with short hard strokes. With his face in the crook of my neck, he kissed and nipped at my shoulder. Suddenly, I was desperate to feel his bite. I gripped his head and tried to push him lower. When he didn’t understand, I made a mewling sound of displeasure. He lifted his head, and I knew by the sexy look on his face that he was teasing. With a seemingly innate understanding of my needs, he raised himself to his knees, pulling me tightly against him so my bottom rested on his thighs. Bending over me, he tugged one of my nipples between his teeth. The feeling, between a tweak and a pinch, along with the relentless pounding of his cock, sent me over the edge. As my world exploded into a kaleidoscope of color and sensation, I clutched his head against me and called out his name. He released my nipple and bit me right above my chest, sending me into another orgasm immediately. After a long drink, he pushed up on his hands, and thrust high and deep a few more times before achieving his own release and collapsing on top of me.

Only then did I become aware again of my other two husbands still in the room, their breaths heightened as they watched us. In a flash, Thane was beside us, pushing Derrial off of me. “My turn, brother,” he growled, and Derrial reluctantly slid off the bed and settled in another chair nearby.

Thane’s mouth descended on mine in a highly charged kiss, shooting my arousal sky high again in a matter of seconds, even though I’d just had several orgasms already. The kiss reverberated throughout my entire body, my inner walls clenching tightly. It didn’t matter that I’d just had Derrial. I wanted Thane inside of me just as badly.

Pushing past the emotions strangling me, I whispered, “Make love to me.”

He growled again in response. Without a word, he flipped me over onto my stomach and pulled my hips up until I was on my knees, spread wide. His large hand pressed on my back until my face met the pillow that smelled like all three of my men. I inhaled deeply, the scent flooding me with even more moisture. A shudder roared through me as his warm tongue took a long, slow swipe. He groaned, like I was the best thing he’d ever tasted, before gripping my hips tightly and plunging into me.

We moaned in unison. After holding still for a minute, as if he was savoring the sensation, he began to move. He pulled out so only the tip of his cock remained inside me, and then he pushed slowly until he was all the way inside, as far as he could go. His fingers on my hips held me in place, keeping me from pushing back and accelerating the rhythm. Then he began alternating long slow glides with short fast ones. Nine long, one short, eight long, two short… It was my new favorite pattern. In only a few more cycles, he’d be pounding into me.

With each deep stroke, the sensations intensified and my anticipation ratcheted up a few notches. Fuck. I wasn’t sure I’d make it to the ten short, fast strokes. Thane was giving me everything I wanted.

Gritting my teeth, I braced my arms and held on for the ride. It didn’t matter that I couldn’t catch my breath - I’d already gone to heaven. His strokes changed, deepening, filling me.

“You feel how deep I am? Do you feel how you’re mine?”

I gasped at his delicious words. I sure felt owned in this moment. He placed a stinging smack on my butt. At the same instant, he plunged deep inside me, deeper than ever before. The momentary flash of heat and the full-body pleasure of his penetration flung me over the edge. As wave after wave of sensation reverberated throughout my entire body, he continued to hold me tight, pounding into me, never letting up on the speed or power of his strokes. Even before the contractions inside me completely subsided, his teeth sinking into my shoulder sent me over the edge again.

This time he joined me. With a loud groan and a final tremendous push that sent me sprawling, he came too, collapsing on top of me, his lips pressed against my shoulder as he took one last sip of my blood before finally releasing me.

Looking up, I saw Corran standing there, his cheeks flushed with desire. “Do you need a break?” he asked in a hoarse voice as Thane pulled out of me and got out of the bed. I shook my head and held out my hand to him. “I want you,” I said in a throaty whisper, and it was the truth. No matter what had just happened with Thane and Derrial, I would always need Corran. I would always want him.

And my wedding night would not be complete until I felt each one of my husbands deep inside me. This was a night I never wanted to forget.

I curled a finger and called Corran to me. Just seeing him stare at me like I was his world left me shivering with excitement.

He gave me a dangerous smirk as his hands slid down the front of his chest seductively. My insides thrummed, and I drew my lower lip between my teeth, gnawing on the flesh. This man was breathtaking.

Thane rolled off the bed, his cock still hard, glistening with our slick. Derrial was on the other side of the bed, his hand on his erection. These men were insatiable and all mine.

Corran unbuttoned his shirt in slow motion as I propped myself to lean back on my elbows., my legs crossed at my ankles.

“Take it all off,” I teased, and blew him a kiss.

He shouldered the shirt down his strong arms, and all I saw was muscles. The perfect specimen of a man with angles and lines that left me weak with desire. The way his torso narrowed down to a lean waist that led down to a thatch of dark hair and… my mouth was parched. His cock stood so stiff and tall, the tip glistening with pre-cum. Corran was hot.

A quick shuffle, and he’d kicked off the pants that had sat low on his legs.

Everything about him had me burning, and the liquid fire between my thighs dripped.

“Fuck!” Corran growled. Then he spun and walked out of the room.

I jolted to sit up in bed. ‘Umm, Corran, are you coming back?” I glanced over at Derrial and Thane, who both shrugged their shoulders.

Just as fast, Corran whipped back into the room and shut the door behind him with finality. Then he smirked at me.

“What did you do?” I asked, looking him up and down, scanning his open hands for a clue, anything.

Suddenly, a strange weightlessness flared over my body, like I was effortlessly floating. My heart started accelerating at the weird feeling. The whole room was lowering around me, and a whimper fell from my lips.

“Corran?”

But his whole body was lifting up off the floor.

“It’s okay, gorgeous,” he said.

I went to push myself backward as unease clung to me. But my hands pushed through the bed… I jerked to glance down and found myself floating too. “Oh, crap. What’s happening?”

My insides leapt with the sensation of falling, like I was on a rollercoaster at Six Flags. I cried out as I lost complete orientation. I reached out frantically to catch myself, arms and legs flailing. All I saw were Derrial and Thane levitating near the bed, watching me.

Strong hands grasped my waist and drew me. “Ella, I got you. I’ve just switched off the gravity in this room. Your brain is telling you that you’re falling but we’re all just floating.

I clung onto his arms, breathing heavily, trying to tell my head to calm down. “Scared the hell out of me.”

“Sorry, angel, thought it might be a nice surprise.”

I laughed. “It’s a surprise all right.”

“Think of it as floating in a pool without the water on your skin,” he explained, and when I imagined myself that way, I found my calm. I still wasn’t letting go of Corran’s arm, but now I felt like I was inside the Fizzy Lifting Room from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Except, the four of us were all naked, and I was likely about to have my first mid-air sex.

When I glanced over to the other two, Derrial winked, and Thane’s hand was still somehow gripped around his cock eagerly.

Corran’s lips were on my neck, and my skin rippled. Then he swung me around to face him by my shoulders. The ability to just float and move with such grace was exhilarating. Corran kissed me, his tongue pushed past my lips, dancing with mine. My body pulsed against his, sending wave after wave of heat through me. It didn’t matter that I’d just been with two of my husbands. Hot liquid still built in my core.

He dragged me close, our chests mashed together, my body on fire. Gently, he slid a hand down the back of one of my thighs and guided my leg around his hip, then did the same with my other leg. His mouth brushed over my neck, finding the soft skin beneath my ear and nibbling on me.

I relinquished control to Corran, wanting him to take me. And as if sensing my decision, he pulled back from my neck with a devilish smile on his lips.

“You ready, gorgeous?”

“Fuck yeah, she’s ready,” Thane responded on my behalf, and I laughed as I looked over to him and saw he wore the sexiest expression ever. He loved seeing me with the other men.

“Do you even know what you do to us?” he groaned, his eyes glazed over with lust.

Derrial wore the same look.

“I’m the luckiest girl in the whole freaking universe, because if this is what our sex nights are going to be like, I won’t be seeing much of the outdoors.”

“Outdoors is overrated,” Derrial added, chuckling, and I basked in the sound.

I loved seeing my husbands so playful and flirty.

“She’s mine right now.” Corran grabbed my ass and squeezed it as he pressed the tip of his cock to my opening.

I gasped at first from feeling him… Corran was not just medium or large, he packed an incredible size. “You alright, beautiful?”

“Yes.” I stared into his stunning hazel eyes as my whole body purred beneath him. “Don’t make me wait,” I teased, running my hands over his shoulders, and held onto him as I adjusted myself over his cock.

He unleashed a panty-wetting roar before pushing a bit deeper into me. “Love it when you try to boss me around.”

“Hey -- Ahh…” I cried out as he then drove into me unceremoniously. My fingernails dug into his skin. He held me tight.

Each time he thrust into me, the momentum sent us gliding across the room. It was the strangest feeling to be suspended while Corran held me locked to him. When my back kissed the wall, he pinned me in place and fucked me.

I moaned as my body exploded with my building desire. I felt every stroke as he adored me with his cock, his mouth on my neck before he tipped his lower and found the top of my breast, licking me.

We danced in each others’ arms, lost in the moment. My body tightened as his fingers gripped my ass cheeks.

“Things I want to do you…that I want you to do!”

I melted to hear that gravelly dominating voice.

Sharpness pierced my breast as he bit down into my flesh with sharp canines.

My heart raced at double time while he drew my blood, drinking from me while bringing me closer and closer to the edge of arousal.

He swept his tongue over my bouncing breasts as he rocked in and out of me. “You’re so fucking wet and tight.”

I wanted to reply to say that he was so fucking big, but all I managed were moans. Heavy breaths.

“You are so perfect. Come for me, babe. Squeeze my cock with that sweet pussy.”

Hearing those words ignited a trigger inside me…and holding anything back now was ridiculously impossible. He thrust that hard, thick dick into me.

“Fill me, please.” I broke into screams as the orgasm broke through me. I shuddered as my sex quivered around him, squeezing him.

“Fuck! You’re strangling my dick. Don’t you dare stop.”

I convulsed in his arms with the most insane orgasm.

Corran pushed us off the wall right then. He howled with his own release, pulsing inside me.

Connected, we stayed locked together and floated around the room as if we were one. Fluidly, we glided, our bodies rocking in unity. And all I could think was how perfect we were wrapped in each other’s bodies.

My body trembled as Corran held me as close as he possibly could. I looked up at his face and asked, “How do we get down?”

It was Thane who chuckled as he floated just over the bed, tugging himself.

“Who said anything about being finished?” Corran teased, and leaned in to kiss me.

And I knew this was exactly where I needed to be...where I wanted to be.

3

I  supposed with the planet of Veon in chaos mode, I really should be terrified. And I was when I thought about it, no question about it. People were scared to leave their homes. A virus was spreading, and zombie-like Vepar roamed the streets. The council remained broken and corrupt.

But amid all that jumbled mess, I had just married three of the most incredible Vepar. I had to keep reminding myself because it felt so surreal. Coupled with being pregnant, my life itself had morphed into a movie. A crazy, alien one where I had no idea what exactly was growing in my stomach, but I’d love the baby regardless.

Truth was, I wouldn’t change a thing about my situation for the simple reason that if this insanity hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have met my husbands. After everything we went through I understood that now.

We found my father, and next we’d find my mother. Good vibes had me rolling out of bed, even in a world breaking apart at the seams. The fact that my entire body was sore was just another sign of how good the last couple of days had been for me.

Sunlight poured through the window, and the smell of something savory like eggs wafted on the air. The bed lay empty of my men. Not finding my clothes anywhere, I picked up Thane’s shirt from the floor and dragged it over my head. His masculine scent covered me, and I embraced it, loving how much his scent alone put me at ease.

I stepped into the kitchen, the floor cold under my feet. The three of them stood around the kitchen counter. Corran was placing eggs into a machine on the counter that resembled a microwave, and seconds later, he opened the door and the plate was filled with fluffy scrambled eggs. I still hadn’t gotten used to how incredible the technology was on this planet, but I wasn’t sure I could go back to the hassle of cooking from scratch.

The table in the middle of the room was filled with eggs, bacon, and waffles. I salivated at the sight.

Derrial turned to me first, his smile intoxicating, those green eyes to die for. With all three now staring at me, all I could remember was the most incredible night of my life. Their affection, their hunger for me, the insane sex marathon. They were my soul matches, my protectors, my lovers.

“Morning, my husbands.” It felt so strange and dorky saying that, but also weirdly comforting.

“Hey, babe,” Corran said.

“You look gorgeous,” Derrial added.

Thane strode over, wearing only blue pajama pants that sat dangerously low on his chiseled hips. He was incredible to look at, and just staring at his bare chest had warmth searing my insides. Add to that his infectious smile, and no wonder I lost myself to them. His lips brushed over mine, and it was heaven. My skin prickled, instantly reacting to his touch.

“Morning, my pet. Are you hungry?”

I laughed at his question. “How much food did you all make?”

“We did some research and tried to make every human breakfast dish for you. We hope everything tastes the same.”

My heart sang. I reached up and cupped his face, raising myself on tippy-toes before kissing him back. I melted against him, wishing I could have eternity to spend in their arms. “I love this so much.”

It wasn’t long before we all sat around the table to eat. I took a mouthful of the eggs, which surprisingly tasted similar as they would back home. The bagel turned out more like sweet bread, and the waffles more savory than I was used to. But I didn’t care and ate them, suddenly starved. Between the four of us, we nearly finished everything on the table.

I sipped the lukewarm coffee, then said, “With everything happening, I think we need to find my mother. We found my father, so maybe she’s still in one of the Khonsu female camps.”

“Exactly what we were discussing this morning,” Derrial murmured before taking another bite of the bacon. “There had been rumors that the Khonsu used a nearby moon to hold their females.”

I immediatly started imagining my mother trapped at a Khonsu camp on some remote moon... I pictured her inside a cage with other females. Similar to the state we found my father in. My stomach tightened with worry that we wouldn’t find her. That somehow, I was too late. My heart gave a hard thump at that thought.

Stop it, I thought to myself. I couldn’t let myself think like that, or I’d paralyze myself with dread.

Corran, who sat next to me, must have sensed my tension as he placed his hand on my thigh. “We’ll turn this universe inside out to find her. I give you my word.”

I leaned against him, and he wrapped an arm around my back as he kissed my brow.

“You three search the local moons, while I’m going to try to sneak into a few labs and see what I can find on the antidote for the virus.”

I swallowed hard as reality pushed everything else aside. “Are you sure you should return there alone?” That honeymoon feeling dissolved into the background when there were so many more pressing issues.

Corran nodded, his eyes glinting as he tried to smile to ease my worry, but the smile was forced. “It will be easier to sneak around on my own.”

The last few times we went to a lab, I was kidnapped by the feral, invading Khonsu race, then impregnated by the council, and then attacked by the virus inflicted Vepar. I hated those labs.

Thane tapped the comms on his wrist, and a holograph of a television screen appeared at the end of the table. We all turned to the new broadcast of a street view of the city. Three homeless men and a female stood near a storefront together. Torn clothes, dirty faces…something I didn’t think existed on this planet. They huddled close, the wind tugging on their clothes. The view was patchy and grainy, and from the angle, it seemed this was filmed from a permanent street camera.

Unease slid through me, and I breathed out shakily as I watched them talking casually.

Next minute, they looked over to the street, and their eyes flew open. A small group of infected Vepar rushed toward them at lightning speed.

I flinched, and Corran held me tight.

The virus ridden had pale faces, clothes ripped and hanging off their dirty and injured bodies.

They attacked those poor people where they sat, the savagery ripping me to shreds. I was going to be sick. I squeezed my eyes shut, unable to view the attack anymore.

“It’s okay,” Corran cooed in my ear. “That scene is over.”

I opened my eyes to a screen listing the number of expected infected per region. The numbers were staggering, and suddenly, the earlier peace I felt vanished. Fear slid into its place.

“See what you can find, but no heroic shit,” Derrial muttered to Corran. “Call us if you need backup.”

I sat there, still in Corran’s arms, trying to smile and hide the trepidation rippling over me. That news footage freaked me out, as it reminded me how horrific the situation was getting. I slid a hand over my stomach, thinking about the little life inside me coming into this world. Around me were three Vepar who could make a difference, so I couldn’t be in better company.

After we finished breakfast, I went to get dressed. I stood in front of the full-body mirror in the bathroom, looking at myself sideways, pushing my stomach out, trying to picture myself with a huge belly. The deep blue dress I wore drew in tight around my waist and chest, pushing my breasts up, the rest falling loosely to my knees. I’d lost quite a bit of weight since coming to Veon with all the stress and lack of eating as a result. But if I kept eating meals like I did this morning, being too skinny wouldn’t be a problem for long. Especially with a baby bump coming on. I looked at my reflection again, and swore that I saw a bump still. I guess it was from the large breakfast.

Part of me was beyond ecstatic to have a family of my own, to meet the little angel inside me. I didn’t want to think too much about things like what they would look like and get myself overthinking. There was no turning back now, right?

It was hard enough pushing aside the worry that I didn’t know who the real father of my baby was… If my men were truly okay with it potentially not being one of theirs, then I was okay too.

I ran my shaky hands through my loose hair, still slightly damp, and pouted my rosy lips.

I could do this. Today was all about finding my mom.

“You look spectacular,” Corran said.

He met my gaze in the mirror. He was standing in the doorway to the bathroom, arms deep into the pockets of his black pants. He wore a matching, long-sleeve top.

“And you look ready to go all ninja on someone.” I laughed at his confused expression and sauntered over to him before wrapping my arms around his middle. Pressing myself to his chest, I listened to his beating heart. His body radiated heat, and I drank it in since most of the time, I felt so cold.

“I’m about to head off, gorgeous.”

Glancing up, I locked eyes with him. He tilted his head forward to brush his lips against mine. He held me tight, kissing me deeply, his tongue sweeping into my mouth. Everything about him made me feel even more intoxicated. I loved the way my body reacted, how incredibly sweet he tasted, how his hands always roamed over my body like he couldn’t get enough either.

“You are everything to me,” he breathed into my mouth.

“I love you. Please be careful. I can’t lose you.”

He kissed my face while my stomach somersaulted with a sudden flare of panic that he’d get caught by the council, or attacked by the infected like those poor people on the news.

Air. I suddenly needed fresh air, as so many emotions came at me like a raging storm. Tears pricked my eyes at the thought that somehow, with this world going to chaos, I’d lose the men I’d fought so long to keep.

Corran pulled back from me while I ducked down the hall and opened the balcony door. A breeze swished over my face, and I inhaled deep. My heart raced in my chest, my head slightly dizzy.

“You alright?” Corran stood behind me, his hands wrapping around my waist. His breath was on my ear, gentle and soft, comforting me.

I nodded. “Think everything just hit me at once.”

He rubbed my arms and held me close, encasing me in his love. “Nothing will harm you. And we have too much at stake to let anything happen to us.” His large hands swept over my stomach.

“We ready?” Thane called out from the kitchen.

“What do you think?” Corran whispered in my ear. “Are we ready to do this?”

I turned around in his arms, searching his eyes for a sign that he was confident that he would return back to me. What I saw filled me with hope and belief that everything would turn out well.

My mouth tugged upward at the corners. “You’re right. No more panic.”

“That’s my girl.” He kissed my lips and then collected my hand into his before we returned to the kitchen.

Derrial and Thane were both dressed as if they were headed out to battle. Black heavy leather pants. Thane’s had straps across the thighs, and he wore it with a red fitted jacket, zipped up to his neck. He reminded me of Star Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy. Derrial wore a long black coat with a matching top underneath. Simple, but they both looked deadly and sexy as hell.

“I feel like I’m underdressed,” I said, staring down at my dress and black combat boots.

“You look perfect.” Derrial closed the distance between us and slid his hand in mine. “Are you ready to go?”

The first thing I learned since coming to Veon was that things were unpredictable, and the best approach was to be alert and expect the worse. So, I nodded and glanced at my three husbands. “I’m ready. Let’s go find my mom.”

4

F rom up in space, everything looked tiny and beautiful. I glued myself to the window of our small cruiser as we approached the moon, Vetov. Cloud-blurred contours and a mottling of oranges and purples covered its surface. I assumed they represented oceans and continents. Nothing near as beautiful as I remember Earth from space with all those spectacular blues, but it still left me in awe.

With an utter lack of motion from our ship, we descended to the moon’s surface.

So many emotions jumbled into a heap inside me, tugging me in every direction. Derrial and Thane didn’t say a word, but left me alone with my thoughts. My heart raced while my knees bounced in my seat.

An urgency pulsed through me that I had to hurry to find my mother, that I was running late. Fear brought on darker thoughts.

Derrial murmured something into his ear piece about us coming in for a landing. And it didn’t take long before we descended. I could make out a landscape of orange and green meadows and bright yellow trees. Mountains in the distance crowned the area. One thing about these alien planets were how spectacular they were with the bright colors.

There were no docks to pull into here, but open territory, which meant lots of walking to reach nearby settlements.

My heart skipped a beat as we hurried down. The moment we landed, I unbuckled myself and leapt to my feet, too restless to sit a second longer.

“Slow down, my pet,” Derrial said, his brow furrowed as he studied the comms screen on the dashboard of the ship. “I need to get locations of all settlements first.”

I grunted and stepped into the back of the cruiser where Thane grinned at me. He snatched me by the hips as I passed and drew me toward him. I fell onto his lap, my arms reached for his shoulders out of instinct.

“It could be dangerous out there, so you stay with us at all times. No running off, understand?”

A few months ago, I would have disagreed. Except now, I nodded because it wasn’t just my husbands or myself I might put in danger anymore. But our baby. “I know, I’m just excited and nervous, and feel like I might explode from all the waiting.”

He cradled me in his arms, holding me close against his chest, and kissed my brow, my nose, then my lips. “I know how you’re feeling. I’m hoping this is the place, and we find your mother quickly.”

“Me too.” I leaned against him and tucked my head against the curve of his neck. He ran his hand over my hair, which calmed my nerves.

“Alright, I’ve got it all,” Derrial announced the moment I finally relaxed.

We stepped outside into a cold atmosphere, despite the lack of clouds and the sun out in full force. The air smelled fresh with a hint of pine…except there were no pine trees in sight.

Derrial stood at the rear of the vessel where a latch opened up. Thane went to join him, while I looked around. It didn’t look anything like Earth’s moon. This place was lush and inhabited.

The door to the cruiser slid shut and the whole thing shimmered to an invisible finish. Corran explained to me once that the effect was created with a reflective mirror technology and a bit of illusion.

I looked around and found no sign of my two husbands, so I assumed they were still behind the cruiser.

The crunch of grass sounded behind me, and I spun around.

An invisible window rolled down in front of me to reveal the inside of a car. Derrial sat in the driver’s seat of a vehicle also with invisibility shields that reminded me of a 4WD in height. “Get in,” he said.

I approached the back and stretched my hand out through the air until my fingers brushed a metal finish. Running my hand down the surface, I found a latch and flicked it. The door opened in front of me.

Not wasting a moment, I jumped in and shut the door. Black leather seats, dark upholstery, this car reminded me of a limousine. “This is a very fancy ride.” I leaned toward the front where the men sat. Thane stretched his hand between their two seats to reach me and took mine in his. “The vehicle is a bit run down, but it does the trick.”

“Run down? This looks fancier than my whole apartment.” I laughed as I settled down and Thane turned back to face the front.

And we were moving. Just like the cruiser, the drive was smooth, with what I imagined was the universe’s best suspension.

An array of buttons covered the door offering various drink choices, each filled with different colors, from blues, oranges, and greens. I pressed the clear one. A panel instantly popped out, and I flinched. A glass slid out, filled with what looked like water. I picked it up and smelled it. No real scent, so I sipped it. Refreshing water ran down my throat. Then I gulped the rest of it down in one go.

When I set the glass back down on the panel, it drew back into the door and the panel shut. The technology in this world astonished me.

As I sat back in my seat, I noticed Derrial looking at me through the rear-view mirror, his gorgeous eyes smiling.

We kept driving, and I looked out at the open landscape of rolling hills, then we drove around an enormous purple river. The surface was pristine, the sun glinting like jewels against the water.

How could something so beautiful be home to the vicious Khonsu? Last time I encountered them I’d been kidnapped, then I was forced to participate in an insane Mating hunt. So the idea of going anywhere near these aliens again terrified me.

“How much farther?” I asked.

“First settlement isn’t far,” Derrial explained. “This must remind you of road trips humans take often.”

I shrugged. “Sort of. Guess there are some similarities, like we’re in a car and driving.”

“So, what’s missing?” Thane asked, glancing at me over his shoulder.

“Music, snacks, lame jokes...a fun destination. But to be fair I’ve only ever been on one road trip with my old friend.” Cherry came to mind, the only close friend I thought I had, except turned out she was only using me. In truth, I was too scared to do anything about it, as I didn’t want to be alone after losing my parents. I sighed heavily, remembering life before I left Earth. That girl who was timid and scared was no longer me. I’d come so far since arriving on Veon, since falling in love, since surviving so many almost deaths. And… I lowered my attention as I rubbed my stomach, which almost felt like a little bump. Or it could be all those waffles I ate for breakfast.

A sudden explosion of fast beat music burst from the car speakers. I jumped in my seat as Thane rapidly pressed buttons on the front dashboard of the car.

Derrial was saying something, but it was too loud to make it out.

“That’s very loud,” I called out.

The panels on the doors flipped open and threw out green crispy packets at me. I flinched back at the sudden commotion. I snatched one from my lap to see an image of a snapple on the front, so I ripped it open to find fresh slices of the fruit.

“Sorry,” Thane yelled, just as the music flatlined.

“Oh, that’s better,” I said, and pushed a piece of snapple in my mouth. It was crisp and moist.

“The music only has one volume level, and well, at least you got some snacks.”

I nodded and swallowed the food. “Not exactly road trip food, but it’s good.”

Thane’s smile was contagious, and I loved seeing him proud. “Do you still miss Earth a lot?”

His question threw me off guard. “Parts of it. Like the places where I hold the fondest memories. The botanical gardens. The zoo where Dad would take me. Feeling safe most of the time… I miss that part a lot.” I shrugged. “I used to miss it a lot, but lately, I’ve hardly given it thought. My home now is where the three of you are.”

Thane blew me a kiss, and my heart beat a bit faster.

I leaned forward in my seat and stared out through the front window at the path we drove alongside a lofty stone mountain without anyone in sight.

“Why couldn’t we just fly here if you have an invisible aircraft?” I asked.

“Space cruisers are easily detected, so we can’t risk being seen near any villages to avoid an all out attack. They will shoot before asking questions.”

Suddenly, I lost my appetite, and I pushed my third packet of snapple slices on the seat next to mine.

Up ahead, a crowd of trees clustered together. We slowed down as we approached and parked on the outskirts.

Panic skittered down my spine. “What now?”

“You stay here,” Derrial explained. “And we go and scope out the area and make sure this is a camp.”

I frowned and sighed loudly.

“We want to know you are safe,” Thane added. “Even if this vehicle is detected, which is highly unlikely, the locks are impenetrable.”

My muscles tightened, but I nodded as both of them stared at me expectantly.

“Good. We won’t be long.”

“Be safe,” I said.

They shut the doors, and I watched them sprint into the woods, vanishing into the shadows. I slumped back in the seat and reached for my half uneaten packet of snapple, suddenly hungry again.

The car still ran, as it pumped out cool air, and I kept looking out to see if they had returned, even though they’d just left.

Anxiety stretched through me as I sat there and waited. And waited. And waited.

When I caught movement from up ahead, I shuffled forward in my seat. Derrial and Thane strolled back almost casually, which told me this settlement wasn’t a camp. Now fear gripped my spine at the possibility that the rumor they heard about this moon having female camps was just that - a rumor.

The next two locations on the map proved just as useless. We reached the fourth place, which consisted of a group of over-sized warehouse buildings huddled in a large circle. We pulled up toward the rear of a shed, when the car made a strange clunking sound. Then it stopped suddenly. I lurched forward from the movement, and fear shot to my heart.

“What the hell was that?” I asked, glancing out to the metal buildings not too far from our position. I didn’t see anyone walking around.

“Fuck,” Derrial growled. “We don’t need this now.”

Goosebumps swept down my arms.

“Engine failure? How the fuck?” Thane muttered.

“I don’t know, unless I check the motor, and that means standing out there in plain sight.”

“Are we still invisible?” I asked, gripping onto the door handle.

“Unfortunately, no. And if we can’t fix the motor with no tools or parts, we have no choice but to go on foot.”

A terrible feeling sank through my gut.

Derrial tapped his comm on his wrist and raised it to his mouth. “Corran, we need urgent extraction. I’ll send you coordinates.”

Corran was probably too busy sneaking about a lab right now to hear our call.

“So, what do we do?” My brain stuttered, and I felt vulnerable out here. We were sitting targets. “Wait for Corran to come get us?”

“We need to move on foot and fast,” Thane answered, and I didn’t like his answer at all. Us out there with nowhere to go.

“And pray to the universe no one finds the vehicle before Corran arrives.” Dread wove through their words, and now fear coiled tighter in my chest.

We were trapped. This couldn’t be happening.

5

We peered out from the edge of the forest toward the open yard. Long grass and blue weeds smothered the land. Six similar warehouse structures surrounded the area, each facing each other in a semi-circle. Why else would they have these out in the middle of nowhere, but to hide something…to hide the females they kidnapped. My gut clenched at the idea that maybe my mom was in this settlement.

A place run by Khonsu, alien creatures who infiltrated the Vepar’s homeland and kidnapped their females for breeding. Add to that, the Khonsu used a type of glamor technology to conceal their real appearance to look like my Vepars. So detecting them wasn’t always easy.

With a flick of Derrial’s hand, we ran from the woods to behind a stone building the size of a large shed…perfect for keeping prisoners.

Another hand signal, and Derrial pivoted around the opposite side of the building. Thane and I inched forward on this side.

The silence grew heavier, and I was certain the next planet over could hear how hard my heart hammered.

Thane twisted his head to look at me and whispered, “Let me check the front, then when I give the signal, you join us.”

Before I could even nod, he darted forward and slipped around the corner. Crap, he hadn’t even told me what his signal was, so I rushed forward and stuck my head around the building to watch.

He and Derrial both fiddled with a lock to the door into the place.

I looked around the area, surveying the location, when my sights fell on someone sitting on a bench in front of the next building near us. He wore gray clothes, which easily blended him in with his surroundings. He had to be a Khonsu.

The Khonsu shot me a venomous glance, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air for our scents. He looked normal…like one of the Vepar. Short gray hair, tiny horns over his temples with a burley build. Khonsu were primal and wild and I could see the wildness in this creature’s eyes. He didn’t say anything, but slowly rose to his feet.

Shit! Panic launched to the back of my throat. “Thane, Derrial,” I whispered loudly, but they didn’t hear me.

I ran to them just as the Konshu darted across the field toward the black warehouse across the field.

“Fuck, he’s spotted us,” I blurted, pointing.

Both men snapped around and saw where I showed them.

Thane’s face blanched and he leapt into a run, moving faster than I’d ever seen anyone move, closing in on the alien in seconds.

The Khonsu yelled out just as Thane lunged into him, bringing him to the ground with a thud.

They rolled on the ground, fighting, the thump of dull punches from Thane, who straddled the alien. In seconds, he leapt up and snatched the creature’s legs before dragging him our way. I couldn’t take my gaze off the Khonsu who no longer resembled a Vepar, but took his own form - pale skin and hair, and dead eyes black as the night. I remembered well the fact that these monsters had a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth. I wanted nowhere near it.

My skin rippled with fear, but I refused to panic. I wasn’t the one trapped by these things and prepared for breeding. And just the thought had me scolding myself that I’d have such a thought. I kept fidgeting with my hair, unable to stand still. I struggled to keep it all together as fear coiled in my chest, and all I could think was that an army of Khonsu was about to come racing out of the sheds any second now. We had no car to escape, and who knew how long before Corran arrived.

I didn’t want to panic. I’d been through so much since arriving in this universe, but it wasn’t just me anymore… there was a little innocent baby inside me that I had to care for. Maybe I’d made a mistake by coming out here with them.

Thane dragged the Khonsu into the bushes in the woods.

As if sensing my unease, Derrial slid an arm around my waist and drew me against him. I wrapped my arms around him and pressed myself to the warmth of his body.

“We won’t let anything happen to you.”

Thane heaved for breath. “Okay, new plan. We need to check what’s inside each of these sheds damn fast.” He raised his hand with what looked like a laser pointer.

“Is that a key?” I asked.

He leaned closer and kissed me on the lips. “You bet it’s a key, pet. We stick together and do this quickly.”

I pulled free from Derrial and shuffled to face the building to our back. “Let’s start here,” I said.

Derrial pointed the pencil-shaped object at the padlock surface, emitting an orange beam of light. In two seconds, the lock clicked open.

I bounced on my toes, eager to get inside. Thane took the lead and opened the door. He peered inside and sighed loudly. He glanced back and shook his head. But I needed to know what he saw, and as he moved out of the way, I stuck my head inside to a huge enormous empty room. Broken crates and a few blankets lay in a heap to indicate there were living beings here at some point.

“Babe,” Derrial murmured, and took my hand. “We need to go.”

I nodded and followed him to the next shed, which was exactly what the Khonsu had been guarding, so my hopes sky rocketed we’d find something.

Thane opened the door hastily, and shut it quickly behind him.

Dread collided into me, and I exchanged worried glances with him. “He’s found something, hasn’t he?” I whispered.

Derrial nodded and leaned closer. “If he doesn’t come out in a minute, I’m in there. Otherwise, he’s scoping for guards and danger and he’ll be right out.”

I kept glancing over my shoulder, staring at the other buildings. Our saving grace was that they didn’t have windows, so unless more Khonsu emerged from the building, they wouldn’t see us.

My head was spinning. Derrial was deadly quiet, not breathing heavy or sweating like me. The breeze picked up, bringing with it the scent of forest and animals. The utterly agonizing silence sat on my chest, and to be honest, when we spoke about coming out here, I’d assumed we’d find a small camp and women huddled somewhere near in a cage. Delusional hope on my end.

“Has it been a minute?” I trembled, my gaze flipping between the door and the rest of the field.

When the door to the shed opened, I flinched backward and bumped into Derrial who caught me in his arms.

Thane stuck his head out. “All safe. You gotta come in here.”

He opened the door, and we both hurried inside as Thane closed us in.

It took my mind a moment to work out what I was looking at. On the three walls in front of me were metal cages stacked on top of each other, four cages tall. Each was easily six-foot high and wide, except there were people inside them.

Something in my gut twisted at the sight. Only females filled the cages…maybe half a dozen in total.

Derrial and Thane rushed forward and started to release them from their imprisonment, starting with those higher up. Together they helped each other climb the top, then used the laser key to open the doors.

I couldn’t move, couldn’t breath as I selfishly scanned the faces for my mother. It had been so long since I had seen her, and she looked like me everyone said, so I searched the cages. The room was dimly lit with the only shards of light slicing the dark through holes and cracks in the ceiling and walls. The first woman I found appeared about my age. Blond hair and wild blue eyes, and human. She lacked horns or a tail or those stunning colorful eyes Vepar were known for.

She pressed herself to the metal bars. “Please let us out before they return. Please.” Her voice trembled, her face stained with dirt and dried blood. “The things they do to us if we don’t behave. I don’t want to die.” She lashed out a hand through the bar and snatched my wrist. Her grip was weak. She looked thin and so exhausted. Tears rolled down her cheeks. She stared at me blankly, like she’s seen so many horrible things, she was completely stunned.

“We’re going to get you out, I promise.”

Her fingers uncurled from my wrist, and she withdrew back into her cage, sitting in a corner, rocking herself.

The ache in my chest as seeing her agony carved me in half. Why hadn’t the Vepar council demolished these camps if they suspected they existed? Or were they too busy lining their pockets and creating a new virus strain to care about fixing the existing problems?

Quickly, I moved to the next cage, which sat one higher, and a woman with golden curls and short white horns stared down at me with desperation in her eyes.

What surprised me was how quiet everyone was, and I suspected they knew noise meant the chance of them not being rescued. Whispers drew my attention to Thane, who hopped down, carrying a young girl who wore a tattered yellow dress. She had to be fifteen, maybe sixteen.

I wanted to murder these Khonsu, rip out their spines for destroying these people’s lives. The more cages I searched, the more my hope dissolved at finding my mom.

The next cage I stepped in front of left me breathless. I dropped to my knees and watched a young mother with black horns and red eyes cradling a tiny baby in her arms. They were both fragile and my eyes pricked with tears. I wanted to scream at the cruelty, but it was heartbreak that climbed up and over my body, icing every cell in my body.

“You’re going to be free,” I promised, and she lifted her gaze to meet mine. The fabric from around the baby’s head slid down to reveal a tiny bundle with tiny pointy horns running in a line across the top of his brow. It did so all around his face, and that was when I noticed a long white tail flicking over the mom’s lap.

The woman didn’t say anything, her expression stoic like she’d forgotten how to feel, then quickly covered her sleeping baby.

“He’s beautiful,” I said, my breath hiccuping. “What’s his name?”

“Jihl. She’s a girl.”

“I’m so sorry, I-I…”

“It’s hard to tell at this age. Who are you?” she asked bluntly, her eyes squinting my way, studying me as if trying to see right through me.

“I’m Ella, and I’m looking for my mom who was taken from Earth. I’m hoping she was brought here and I can find her.”

The woman studied me for a long pause. “They used to bring and take females from the other buildings, but then they consolidated everyone who remained in here. I’ve been in this cage for three weeks, and seen enough death to last me a lifetime.”

“You’ve been stuck in here for three weeks?” My heart bled, and trying to keep my head straight seemed impossible when I just wanted to burst out crying for these prisoners, for this woman and her child, for my mother going through this.

“I’ve been hoping my husband will come and find me, but he hasn’t.” Her voice trembled.

“He’s been trying, I’m sure of that. Not many know the Khonsu keep female camps on this moon though.”

I turned around and waved down Thane while wiping the escaping tears. The heavy burden of this place clung to me like boulders, weighing me down. I’d never be able to unsee this.

I wiped away the unstoppable tears as an ugly pain clogged in my throat.

When Thane looked at me, his face paled. “Are you alright?”

I shook my head, dying on the inside at seeing the suffering.

He kissed my brow and held me tight for a few moments. His breaths were on my ear. “Trick is to focus on the act of rescuing and nothing else.”

I shook my head, except it was too late… I was thinking about everything but the rescue. I was thinking about how a child ended up in here, about how I’d feel if it was me in that cage with my newborn.

“Remember how much I love you.” He then broke away and hurried to release the woman and her child. I quickly turned and helped her out as she clasped onto her baby, ready to fight to the end if anyone touched her.

My baby was still unborn, but I already felt that same protectiveness of him or her. I’d give my life to protect my baby. And that meant destroying every last one of these camps.

“Is your name Ella?” the woman asked with the softest voice, drawing my attention. I snuck in a quick wipe of my eyes and smiled at her, trying to put on a brave face.

“I thought you looked familiar. I may have seen your mom in one of the other buildings.” She rocked her baby in her arms, staring at the child as she hummed a soft song.

Her words cut through me, and suddenly the room tilted. My heart pounded in my chest. I was too afraid to ask the question. Each inhale grew shorter, and my insides were a chaotic mess of panic and sorrow. All these years later, and it felt like I’d just lost Mom. Like I stood over her empty grave long after everyone left. It was the only way to give myself closure without going crazy.

“So she’s still alive?” I gasped, more to myself. “What building is she in?”

When the woman glanced up at me, grief swept over her expression. Then she gave me a heartbreaking shake of her head. “There was an explosion in that building, and no one survived. I’m so sorry, Ella.” Her eyes glistened at delivering the news.

Suddenly, my whole world shattered like glass.

My soul darkened.

I no longer felt my body… it wavered and my legs fell out from under me. I hit the floor, falling to my knees. Tears welled in my eyes and drenched my cheeks as I choked on my breaths. I clenched my fists to my chest, fingernails digging into flesh, breaking skin. Nothing took away the pain. Nothing ever would.

Long ago, I grieved the loss of my mom, said my farewells. But since finding my dad, I grasped onto the hope that my mother was still alive too, that somehow, I’d find both my parents and be a happy reunited family again.

Except now, my heart was splintering into thousands of shards.

“She can’t be dead.” The whispered words escaped past my lips.

6

T  hane crouched next to me having overheard the Vepar’s news about my mother. “Oh, baby, I’m so sorry.” He drew me into his arms and held me tight, and I couldn’t hold it together anymore. I just broke down and ugly cried against his chest. The cries shredded through me like a storm, unleashing the years of grief I’d held onto.

He clasped a hand to the back of my head when I finally quieted down and kissed my brow. “I love you,” he whispered.

I finally drew back and wiped my tears. Derrial approached me while others neared as well. All these prisoners who were terrified and shocked at how close they had come to death.

Derrial drew me to my feet by my hand and embraced me, his strong arms like belts around me, holding me, reminding me I was no longer alone in this universe. I had my three husbands and Father.

The ache in my heart deepened, but I wiped my eyes and put on a brave face in front of everyone else. “I’m okay. Let’s find a way to get everyone out of here.”

“What we need is one of the Khonsu ships,” Thane explained.

The Vepar female with golden curls and short white horns cleared her throat, and we all turned to her. She wore a tattered dress that hung loosely around her thin frame. “I saw one of their cruisers. They keep it in the building right on the edge across the field.” She pointed toward the door in that direction.

Just as Derrial’s mouth parted with a response, a loud boom from outside stole his words.

I flinched and bumped back into Thane. He clasped my hips, drawing me closer, protectively. Everyone stared toward the door and silence fell over us.

“Quickly, get down in the corner and stay low,” Derrial ordered. With a flick of his hand to Thane, both of them darted across the enormous room, then shoved their backs to the wall on either side of the door, their laser guns drawn.

I ushered everyone to crouch together in a corner where the shadows were the darkest. Bending down, I waited shoulder to shoulder with the mother and her child.

My heart beat so fast. The silence strangled me, and sweat dripped down my back.

Voices streamed from outside, growing louder as if they stood just outside the door. I stiffened at realizing we didn’t lock the door, and they’d know someone was in here.

My pulse raced in my veins, and we were here in the open, making us an easy target. I choked down every breath, trying to calm myself.

When the door swung open, four Khonsu charged inside. Huge brutes as big as bears.

My blood turned cold at the sight.

Their gaze all swung in our direction as if they could see in the dark. Maybe they could. My body numbed and I felt completely paralyzed with fear. All I could think about was my last encounter with them and I wanted to run for my life.

A sharp, shrill sound reverberated against the walls just as one of the aliens fell face first, smoke wafting upward from his back.

They turned on Derrial and Thane, guns raised. The horrific sound of the shooting had me flinching. Everyone around me murmured, and the baby broke into a scared wail.

Derrial shot one man in the gut, then threw himself into a forward roll to miss a fired laser. Thane slammed the back of his gun into another man’s face, and in seconds, the two had disposed of the Khonsu.

My heart leapt at how swiftly they fought, how strong and fast they eliminated the enemy. I couldn’t possibly love them more if I tried as there was something exhilarating at seeing my protectors battle. They were my everything.

Thane stuck his head outside, while Derrial crossed the room in seconds. “We all need to go now.”

“Are you sure we’re safe?” a younger girl asked, her face so pale, I was worried she might pass out.

“We’ll all be safer trying to make a break than stay in here,” I said. “Take my hand, you can run with me, alright?”

She didn’t move at first, and I understood the feeling of panic being so heavy that even the thought of running became too daunting.

“Raemy, you know we can’t stay here,” the mother said, rocking her crying baby to a soothing gurgling sound. “You’ll end up as a breeder, or we’ll die if we stay. We need to leave.”

Raemy nodded and tears slid down her face.

I offered her my hand, and she took it, her touch trembling against mine. “Just run, no matter what. We are getting out.”

She wiped her tears and gave me a crooked smile. Raemy had the thinnest horns I’d seen on any Vepar. And the palest hazel eyes, reminding me of a deer.

“Let’s go,” Derrial instructed, and we rushed toward the door. Then we stepped outside where the wind was icy, and ran for our lives.

I felt anything but cold as adrenaline drove me. Hand in hand with Raemy, we cut across the field with everyone else. Thane in front, Derrial behind us, all making for the shed and praying to god the cruiser was there. Otherwise we’d need a plan B, and I couldn’t for the life of me think of a plan B right now.

I sucked in each breath, terror clinging to my ribs.

Thane shot the lock to the door on the last building from a distance. Then he sprinted forward faster, his boots hitting the ground hard. He ripped open the door and his shoulders sagged.

No, no. Please, no!

The closer we got, the more the empty building came into view. My stomach sank right through me, and now panic came at me in waves. To run. To scream. To do something other than stand out here, vulnerable on enemy territory.

Thane’s face blanched when he turned toward us, but he didn’t show the panic, but held himself strong and in control. “Everyone inside, now!” He was always two steps ahead.

I released Raemy’s hand as she darted inside, and I stopped near my husband, sidling up to him, my arm grazing his. “What do we do now?”

He clutched my waist and held me close, and I felt the quiver in his touch. He was scared too. “I’m going to go find the ship, because they might have it in a different location. Derrial will stay here and guard you all.”

“Please be safe.”

When he met my gaze, a softness swept over his expression. “I’m sorry we brought you with us. We never should have put you in danger.” A hardness crept into those spectacular blue eyes, and the pain in his voice touched me. I saw the ache in his expression and how much this upset him.

“I wouldn’t have let you go without me. How would you know who my mother was?”

His frown deepened, and I saw the sorrow and pain in his eyes. “I love you so much. I’ll die before I let anything happen to you and our baby.” He kissed my face, then ushered me into the building and shut the door.

Our baby.

The words whirled in my mind. We still had no idea who the father was, yet these gorgeous Vepar in my life loved us just the same.

I moved quickly into the building with the other women. Derrial stayed at the door, and opened it an inch so he could spy outside.

The other women huddled together, and I pressed my spine against the wall, then we all waited.

So many emotions battled inside me. My whole body shook, muscles tensed. Derrial looked over to me with so much devotion in his eyes, it softened the worry gripping me.

We just had to get these people to safety, that was priority. Focus on the job, not my emotions. Not that my mother died in this camp. A tear escaped from the corners of my eyes, and I blinked to push them away. If I started crying again, I’d never stop. I couldn’t let myself picture Mom’s last days, the terror she felt, the helplessness.

Tears fell faster now, my chest splintering, and I abruptly pushed myself away from the wall.

Stop it, I scolded myself.

I walked over to Derrial, needing something other than being inside my own head. “Anything?” I asked.

“No one’s come out yet.”

“Maybe there’s no one else here. Just the four Khonsu you and Thane finished off,” I whispered hopefully.

“That would be ideal, but I doubt it. If Thane comes back with no news on a cruiser, and I hear nothing from Corran, we will need to get everyone away from this camp. We’re sitting targets right now.”

Fear slid down my spine at his words.

He reached over and cupped the side of my face, and something shifted. Gone was the warrior, and in its place, my husband appeared. He spoke with a heavy sigh. “I’m so sorry about your mother.”

I nodded, unsure what to say because the situation sucked so hard. I wished for anything that I didn’t come to this moon. Then I could still grasp onto the hope that Mom was still alive, rather than feeling like my insides were utterly broken like glass. My hand instinctively fell to my stomach. How was I meant to be a mother without having my mom to help me?

A great bang sounded at the back of the building we were in. I flinched around in response, along with everyone else. No one moved or dared to make a sound.

My heart pummeled in my chest as I imagined dozens of Khonsu coming for us.

The front door pushed open, and a shadow fell on us. I spun, a small cry escaping from my lips.

Thane pushed the door open wider, and I breathed a sigh of relief, wanting to scream at him for scaring the hell out of us.

“Out the back, fast!” he commanded, his voice terrified.

No one argued. Thane took the lead, and we all followed. It was only when Derrial and I reached the side corner that a terrifying war-cry came from behind us.

We both twisted around.

A handful of Khonsu poured out of a building all the way at the end of the field.

I rocked on my heels and terror slammed into me.

“Oh, shit!” I whimpered.

Derrial snatched my hand, and we ran around the corner for our lives.

Quickly catching up with everyone farther from the camp and in an open area surrounded by woods, I gasped at the sight.

An enormous black spaceship sat in the field. The surface glinted in the sun, oval in shape, it had arched windows around the vessel. It was easily the size of two of the warehouse buildings, so that was why it was parked here…no way it would fit indoors.

A door slid open and stairs slid out.

“Everyone on now!” Derrial hollered, dragging me and pushing me onboard. We scrambled together, my skin crawling as I kept looking over my shoulder.

Black walls and nothing else in this room of the space cruiser.

Thane sprinted to my right and lasered the wall where a door slid open to reveal a huge flight deck.

A shot hit the side of the doorway.

One of the women screamed, and I scrambled deeper into the cruiser just as the river of Khonsu rushed toward us. Derrial dove inside. I threw myself to the panel near the door and hit the button, just like on Corran’s vessel.

Stairs withdrew into the side of the ship as our ship began ascending. A Khonsu hurled himself upward, his hands on the entrance ledge, snarling.

Derrial stomped down on his fingers, and the alien screeched before releasing his grip. The door zipped shut.

My heart beat so fast, that was all I could hear. I turned to find all the women huddled against the back wall, terrified.

And as the realization finally hit that we had actually escaped, they all cheered and threw their fists into the air.

Derrial embraced me and kissed the side of my head. “Go join Thane, I’ll find everyone somewhere more comfortable to stay for the flight. I’m guessing this cruiser is used to transport a lot of prisoners.

“That was so close, I still can’t believe we got away,” I said as the woman with the baby approached. Without a word, she simply gave me a side hug as she still held onto her bundle.

“Thank you for everything,” she whispered, and then smiled as she went to join the others, who walked through an open door that led to a wide corridor.

My chest clenched with her words. I took a deep breath and made my way to Thane, who sat in the huge flight deck, taking us off this damn moon.

I COULDN'T HELP but watch out the back window of the bedroom I'd eventually hid away in, scared that the Khonsu were suddenly going to send out a fleet after us. But as the moon faded from sight and we flew to the other side of Veon, and we appeared to still be alone in space, I gradually relaxed.

But with that relaxation came sorrow, sharp and intense. The chaos of our rescue mission had distracted me from the full brunt of finding out that my mother was dead. Now, safe on the ship, there was nothing to block me from experiencing the full range of emotions that the news of her passing had brought. I had mourned my mother for years, but that mourning was always laced with the possibility that I would somehow see her again.

My mourning had almost been frozen in place at the time that I had lost her as a younger girl. And now, even though I was a grown woman about to have a child of my own, I felt like a young girl again that had just been abandoned by her mother.

I let out a hiccupped sob as I stared out into space, feeling so alone, even though I knew that wasn't the case.

I idly rubbed my belly, the movement already becoming a habit, even though there wasn't much to rub.

I felt guilty at what I was feeling. I wasn't the one who had died in a Khonsu camp. Although my experience with the Khonsu camp wasn't something I would forget any time soon, because of my breeding capabilities, I'd been relatively protected compared to what other prisoners would have experienced. But my mother...she must have felt so alone in the end, trapped in a small cage, the cries of the other prisoners around her. My mother had always been a gentle soul. She hadn't been able to watch the news because most of the stories made her too sad. She would stop by every beggar on the street and give them whatever she had in her wallet, even though my dad always told her they were just going to buy booze with it. She spent hours in her garden, lost in her own pretty world, and her whole life's goal was to make my father’s and my life the best it could be. What it must have felt like for a soul like that to be trapped in such a brutal, ugly place.

Had she been terrified in the end? Or did she welcome death as a chance to escape the hell she'd found herself in?

My thoughts haunted me. I could still picture her face as clear as day, the loving way she would look at me, the sweet words that she would speak to me. I understood heartbreak now. I'd thought I'd experienced it before when I first lost them, and after I thought that my men had betrayed me...but this was something else. This was my heart actually aching inside of me. This was my heart beating so out of control that it felt like my chest was going to explode.

This was the heartache that they sang about in country songs, the kind of pain that artists spent their whole lives trying to put into words and into pictures.

Having to say goodbye unwillingly was a monster like none other. Especially when that goodbye was permanent.

And I wept. I wept like never before. It was a full-body kind of cry, the kind where your whole body shakes and you can't breathe because you're crying so hard.

I'd lost myself in my sorrow, and it was only the feel of Thane's arms around me that brought me back.

"Baby," he whispered in a voice as soft as a sigh. I turned so that I was facing him and melted against him, wanting him to somehow take this pain away from me. I couldn't stop crying and my tears soaked his uniform. He didn't say a word about it though. He just stroked my hair softly as my pain continued to flow out of me.

“Tell me it gets better," I begged him in a hiccupped voice. Although Thane's mother was still alive, who she had really been...his actual mother had died a long time ago. I know Thane understood grief and had somehow managed to live with it. I needed his strength right now more than ever.

I suddenly couldn't deal with what I was feeling. I was certain that if it continued, I was going to die right then and there. It might have sounded dramatic, but anyone who has experienced true pain would know what I was talking about.

I pulled on his uniform frantically. "I need you to make me forget. Just for a little while. I can't breathe," I explained to him as Thane looked at me concerned.

I tried to kiss him and he let me, but he prevented it from going any deeper than a light brush of lips.

"Please," I begged him.

"Pet. I don't think you're in an okay state of mind right now. I don't think that will help," he tried to tell me, gently trying to keep some distance between us. But I wasn't having any of that.

"Make me forget. Do it," I ordered, and Thane stared at me, torn.

"Promise you won't hate me later," he whispered in a throaty voice. I just pulled him towards me without answering. I locked eyes with him. Thane's sapphire eyes sweltered as they gazed deeply into mine, and I could see a longing in them. Despite what he said, Thane wanted this.

Desperate to feel better, I leaned in and placed my lips on his. There was nothing cordial about this kiss as I crushed against him with hopeless need. I almost expected him to pull away from me again, but he didn’t. His arms rested on my hips, drawing me close. As my lips pressed against his, he began to kiss me back, gentle at first, but then more intensely. Thane's tongue parted my mouth open, and the tip slid inside, making me sigh softly. His hands moved from my waist to my back and then lower, squeezing my ass to pull me even nearer to him.

I could feel his need pressing through his uniform. It sent a wave of desire coursing through me. Thane lifted me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, gripping him like a vice as he pinned me against the wall. Thane carried me to the king bed, laying me gently on the silk cover, his lips never leaving mine. I felt his weight as he hovered above me. Though he was a large, muscular man, his heaviness wasn’t uncomfortable, it never would be. Having him on top of me felt like the most natural thing in the world. It was the comfort I needed right now, to feel like I wasn't alone.

His hand slipped past the waistline of my pants, moving downward inch by inch, sending tantalizing chills down my spine. After what felt like an eternity, he finally cupped my sex in his hand. I groaned, my body swollen and sensitive with need. He inserted two fingers inside of me, air hissing through his teeth when he felt how wet I perversely was, despite the situation.

I closed my eyes and basked in pleasure as his fingers continued moving in and out, almost to the tune of my heart as it thumped against my chest. Soon my back arched off of the bed, and my toes began to curl. I was getting close, so close, when suddenly, he stopped.

I looked up to see the uncertainty still in his eyes.

I narrowed my gaze, annoyed that he wasn't giving me what I needed, even as I knew in the back of my mind that everything about this situation was wrong.

My agitation quelled when Thane quickly began to take off his clothes.

I stared at his naked body, appreciating the curve of every muscle, knowing that I would never get used to such perfection. His abs rippled as he moved, making him look more like a god than man. My eyes moved down slowly, taking in his tantalizing body and letting it distract me from everything else. My eyes flicked to his again, and this time I saw a burning plea within their depths.

Unable to wait any longer, I grabbed Thane's bicep and pulled him toward me. I let out a sigh of relief as he eased inside of me, the pleasant pressure filling me to the brim. I ran my hands over his flexed muscles, a coating of sweat making them gleam in the starlight that streamed in through the windows. Thane's hips moved against mine as we synced our tempos, the two of us getting lost in a familiar dance that got better every time.

I forgot everything else and focused on the pleasure building up inside of me. Thane's breathing accelerated as he picked up speed.

"Are you close?" Thane asked, a tinge of desperation in his voice that I knew meant he was doing everything he could to stop himself from coming before I did.

Belatedly, I realized that although the sex felt phenomenal as usual, I wasn't even close to coming. My sorrow was making sure of that. "I'm about to come," I assured him, wanting him to finish even if I couldn't. Thane let out a moan of frustration, and then he let out a loud groan as he finally came. Staying inside of me, he rolled us gently so that he was beside me instead of on top of me.

"Fuck," he muttered. "I'm sorry. I couldn't stop myself."

"I love you," I told him, not caring in the least bit that I hadn't orgasmed. I knew what we'd just done was a very unhealthy way to cope, but connected to him like this, I felt a little less broken.

As long as Thane, Derrial, and Corran were around...I would never be alone.

We stayed entwined for a long time, and the pain eased enough in my heart so that breathing was a little less painful.

Thane's comm on his wrist vibrated suddenly, and Derrial's voice came through the speaker barking at Thane to get his ass to the deck and help him.

"I can tell him to fuck off," Thane whispered, stroking my hair softly as we continued to stare at one another.

"No, this was selfish of me. You need to go help. I need to go help," I told him, pulling away from him reluctantly.

I got off the bed and began putting my clothes back on, missing his comforting touch already.

"It won't ever stop hurting," he told me as he laid there still watching me. "But one day, you'll wake up and realize that you can think more about the good times with her instead of thinking about the fact that she's gone."

I pursed my lips, trying to prevent myself from crying again. Who was I to have the luxury of grieving, when the twelve women out there had been to hell and back in a way that couldn't be fixed?

Thane got out of bed and hurriedly put on his clothes as well. "Can you help the women and see if there's anything I need while I find out what Derrial needs?" he asked hesitantly.

I tried to look tougher than I was, giving him a resolute nod, determined to pull my weight and help these women. At least in that way, I could honor my mother's memory.

Thane gave me a long kiss, and then he was gone.

I took a deep breath and followed him out into the hallway, going the opposite way to where I knew the women had set up shop. Although there were several bedrooms on the ship, much nicer than I would have assumed the Khonsu capable of possessing, the women had chosen to stay together. I think after so many years of being locked up in cages side by side, they needed the comfort that only their close proximity to each other would bring.

As I walked, I felt a strange twinge in my stomach, almost as if little butterflies had taken up flight. Stopping in the hallway, I rubbed my stomach, wondering if I'd eaten something strange. It was disconcerting. I knew you didn't really feel anything with your first baby until around eighteen weeks, and I was far off from that. I'd have to ask Thane and Derrial if they had anything for stomach issues that was safe to take when pregnant.

I walked into the large common room where pillows and blankets had been laid out on the floor. The sofa-like seats in the room had been dismantled and the cushions laid out as makeshift beds. While some of the women were sleeping, most of the others were talking softly, their eyes flitting around the room like they still couldn't believe where they were.

I found the Vepar and her child, and automatically gravitated closer to her. I was intrigued by the baby's horns and tail, really realizing for the first time what having a baby with alien DNA inside of me could actually entail.

She gave me a smile as I sank to the floor next to her, and continued to softly sing to her baby that was struggling to keep her eyes open. My stomach did the strange twitching again, and I rubbed it absentmindedly as I stared avidly at the baby.

"How far along are you?" she asked me as the little darling finally succumbed to sleep.

"How did you know?" I asked.

"I overheard your men at the prison camp," she softly explained. "And it's a pregnancy thing, the constant rubbing of your belly. I did it too."

"Not far along," I answered, smiling at her as I caught myself rubbing my stomach once again. "Just a month or so."

She pursed her lips, like she was trying to hold back a smile. "Oh dear," she said.

"What?" I asked, alarmed.

"Your baby is part Vepar, is it not?" she asked.

"Yes," I answered, leaving out the fact that I didn't know what part Vepar the baby actually was.

"At a month along, you're already a quarter of the way done," she explained matter-of-factly as if she was trying to deliver the news quickly like you would tear off a band-aid.

My mouth dropped open, panic rising up and overcoming the steady drum of sorry that was constantly pulsing through me.

"You're just joking, right?" I whispered, the small bulge under my fingertips taking on new meaning.

"No," she said slowly now, her face a little wary in reaction to the panic that flooded my features at the news that I was going to be a mother in under three months.

"Oh," I responded lamely, my eyes widening as I absorbed the news. A rush of irritation passed over me that none of the guys had bothered to tell me that. But they'd probably been waiting for an ideal time...like not during a wedding. I didn't have the best track record of handling major surprises well.

My eyes flicked to the baby, and I got the awful realization that she most likely didn't know who the father of it was either.

She saw my look, and pulled the baby closer to her protectively. "It's from their experiments, but she's not a monster," she exclaimed vehemently.

"I would never think that," I responded honestly. I had always believed that monsters weren't born...they were made. It was the only way that I could deal with the fact that my baby was half stranger.

"She's some species that I'm not sure of. The Khonsu transfers all failed, killing the female host immediately. I was lucky that they had switched to other transfers when it was my turn," she explained in a hollow voice. "I never thought I would get the chance to have a child. It's been so long since any Vepar woman has succeeded. I'll never regret what I've been through," she whispered.

"My baby is from an experiment too," I told her haltingly, my voice choked up from witnessing this woman's strength. "I'm the first Vepar/human transfer they've done."

Her eyes swam with tears as she reached out and softly touched my hand. "Then you know that loving them was the only option you ever had."

I nodded, cradling my tiny bump protectively as the butterfly type feeling started up again.

"You said that I'm a quarter of the way through...Would I be able to feel the baby already?" I asked.

She smiled. "Yes. I felt her within two weeks. It's incredible isn't it?"

I nodded, unable to form words. I was awestruck that I was actually feeling my baby. The woman yawned just then, and I realized that I needed to stop bugging her so that she could get some sleep. They had all been through so much.

Just then, it hit me that I hadn't gotten her name yet. "What's your name?" I asked, feeling stupid that I hadn't asked her for it yet.

"Hasso," she responded with a smile, and I nodded as I stood up.

"Please let me know if you need anything. I'm going to go check on the guys on the flight deck, but I'll be back."

"Thank you, Ella," she said sweetly as she laid the baby down next to her and curled up on the cushion that she'd laid out.

I was smiling as I left the room, something that I hadn't thought possible under the circumstances. But every slight twinge in my stomach signaling that my baby was in there brought another me another spark of joy.

Thane and Derrial were pouring over a map when I reached the flight deck. The Khonsu technology on the ship was more primitive than the Vepar, but still far exceeded that of Earth's.

They both looked at me concerned when I came in, but I waved them on to keep doing whatever they were doing. I huddled in a chair in the corner and stroked my stomach softly, lost in thought about everything that had happened over the last fourty-eight hours. I wouldn't ever be able to say that my life was boring. After all of this was over, that's what I wanted. Boring. Everyday. Forever.

Just then, the comm came to life on Derrial and Thane's wrist. The one on their wrist held the ability to see the person you were talking to, so they had started using it instead of the earpiece one.

Corran's voice came through the comm, and then a second later a holographic image of him appeared. He was frantic looking, hurrying through some kind of hallway it looked like at a rapid run.

"I'm on my way. Your message just came through," he said frantically. "Where's Ella? Is she okay? Our comms have never failed before. The council must have had some kind of block in this lab that prevented messages from getting in or out. I only got your message when I snuck back out."

He ran a hand through his hair and then pulled at it, looking like he was going to have a nervous breakdown.

I got off my chair and darted over to the table so he could see me. I hated how panicked Corran's voice was.

"I'm right here," I said reassuringly. "And we're fine. We got out of there. You don't need to come."

He held up a hand, almost as if he was tracing the image of my face. "What aren't you telling me?" he asked, his voice a little calmer. "How much danger were you in?"

I cast a guilty look at the guys, not wanting to give Corran the full picture of how bad it got when he was on his own important mission. I went for diversion.

"We were able to rescue twelve female prisoners," I told him, my voice not as happy as it should have been when delivering the news, because it made me think of my mother again.

Derrial saw how much I was struggling and pulled me towards him. "Ella found out her mother had passed," he said somberly, and Corran's face dropped at the news.

"Shit," he said as he put a hand across his eyes as his face wrinkled with pain. "I'm so sorry, baby."

"It's not okay. But eventually, it will be," I told him. "But we shouldn't even be talking about this right now. Are you safe? Did you find anything?"

Corran frowned. "This wasn't the site the mutated virus originated from," he said annoyed. "But I did find a document that had the location of some of the other labs. I just can't believe that the council had all of these operating right under my nose."

"We were a little distracted when we went to Earth," Thane said jestingly.

A hint of a smile appeared on Corran's face as his gaze flicked over to me once again. "That we were."

There was a loud noise in the background of Corran's comm, and he looked behind him and cursed. "I've got to go. I'll send the coordinates of the labs to you just in case you need one. I'll just be going down the list."

There was another loud boom, and he started running, throwing glances behind him every couple of seconds like someone was chasing him. My heart raced, and a scream was caught in my throat as I watched him. This was the definition of true helplessness.

"I'll send a message when I'm back on the ship, but I've got to go," he said, before his image disappeared.

I grabbed Derrial's wrist and began to press on the comm. "Get him back on," I begged before Thane gently grabbed me and pulled me away.

"Corran knows how to handle himself, but he needs to be able to concentrate," he told me, but I could see the fear that lingered in his eyes.

I don't think I would survive if something happened to him.

I had already lost so much.

We waited tensely for Corran to alert us that he had made it back on the ship. I paced the room, every sound that I heard made me look hopefully at Derrial and Thane that it was Corran trying to send us an update.

But so far, it never was.

I had just made what seemed like my hundredth circle of the room when all of a sudden, sharp pains started to shoot through my stomach. I sunk to my knees and held it protectively.

"Ella," Derrial and Thane both cried, dropping what they were doing and running to my side. "What's going on?"

"It hurts," I gasped. "I think something is wrong with the baby."

I let out a hiss when another sharp pain darted through me. The guys looked at me in panic, obviously having no idea what to do. This was Corran's territory, and he wasn't reachable at the moment.

"Maybe some of the females have medical training," Derrial exclaimed, hoisting me up into his arms and racing out the door of the flight deck and down the hallway to the room I had visited earlier.

"Do any of you have medical training with pregnancy?" Derrial shouted as we made it into the room. He startled the females, and several of them lunged for cover, obviously thinking we were under attack. I'm sure our panic wasn't great for their already fractured nerves.

Hasso was at my side in a flash, another Vepar holding her baby. She knelt by my side. "I have a little bit of training. When I was in school, I thought I would learn what I could just in case I ever did get pregnant," she explained as she softly started pressing on my stomach.

The pains continued. The only thing that comforted me at all was the fact that I could still feel the little butterflies every couple of minutes, signaling that the baby was moving.

"Do you have anything I could use to listen?" Hasso asked.

"I'll go check what Corran left with us," Thane answered as he jumped up and sprinted out of the room.

"Lay her down," Hasso ordered Derrial, and he quickly obeyed. Thane returned a few minutes later with something that resembled a human stethoscope. Hasso grabbed it and pressed it against my stomach as she listened from the other end.

"The baby's heartbeat sounds strong, but obviously without imaging capabilities, it's hard to know for sure," she said somberly.

Everyone was silent for a minute as they watched me grit my teeth as pain ripped through me.

Hasso suddenly jumped up, startling all of us. "Wait. Has she done the Arcathian ritual yet?" she exclaimed.

Thane and Derrial looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

Hasso rolled her eyes, looking decidedly less like she thought I was in mortal danger, and more like she was angry with the guys.

"Every pregnant Vepar must bathe in the Arcathian waters at the start of her pregnancy. The flowers in the water give off some kind of compound that is necessary to the vitality of the baby. Ella might be human, but that baby is part Vepar, and she must complete the ritual in order for this pregnancy to make it."

"How did your baby...?" Thane began, closing his mouth when he realized how sensitive his question was.

"My baby does not have Vepar blood, so there was no need to complete the ritual," she explained fiercely, protectiveness over her baby springing forward again. Hasso was the exemplification of a mother, her love for her child practically bled out of her.

"How do we get to these waters? I've never heard of them." Derrial asked a bit suspiciously like he didn't believe that it actually existed.

"It's something that's passed down from mother to daughter. It's why you haven't been told of it," Hasso responded as she sent a sympathetic glance my way. Not that my mother would have known about these waters either. She would have been able to help me decorate the nursery though, I randomly thought as another streak of pain hit me.

She fired off a set of strange words that evidently were the coordinates in Veon. Derrial looked like he had a million questions, but he hustled out of the room to steer us to our new destination.

Evidently, I was about to take a swim.

7

L uckily, the Arcathian waters were only a few hours away, because the pain I experienced was almost unbearable. If pregnancy could feel like this already...what was labor going to feel like? I sure hoped that Corran had some alien version of an epidural, because I was not prepared to have a natural pregnancy after this.

I told Thane this, and he barely repressed his grin. He obviously didn't realize how serious I was.

I felt a small shake as Derrial landed the ship, and a minute later he was back in the room. Thane already had me in his arms though.

I wasn't going to complain about being carried everywhere. The pain was enough that it would knock me to my knees every time.

Hasso followed us as I was carried off the ship, but the rest of the females chose to remain on the ship. Which I was grateful for. I'd gotten the impression from Hasso's description that this was usually a private event. I'd already been impregnated with a room full of scientists, a fact that I couldn't think about. It would be nice to have some relative privacy for some parts of this pregnancy.

We stepped off the ship, and I gasped as I looked around. The area looked completely different from the other parts of Veon that I'd seen. I was quickly learning that Veon had just as many different terrains as Earth. I wasn't sure why it surprised me still every time. We were surrounded by what looked like sand. Except it was the whitest sand that I'd ever seen. A more brilliant white than even the beaches I'd visited once as a child in Orange Beach, Alabama. The sand was so bright that it hurt my eyes after being in the relative dimness of the ship and my eyes watered as I adjusted. I had expected the water to be lavender-colored like the sea in the area we'd been in before. But this water was more like water you would find on Earth, with the exception that it was far clearer than any water you would find there. The clarity of the water allowed me to see that there didn't seem to be any creatures around at least this part of the water. At least I would be able to see if a predator was about to attack me.

Besides its remarkable opacity, what made the water even more unique were the giant gold flowers that covered every inch of the sea's floor. The petals were at least three feet long, and they shimmered as if they'd been sprinkled with gold pixie dust.

Without realizing it, I had started to push away from Thane. It was like my body knew that it needed whatever power was waiting in those waters.

The pain I'd been experiencing seemed to be abating a bit already as well.

Thane reluctantly put me down as he eyed the water distrustfully. It was true that some of the most dangerous things on this planet were also the most beautiful. But something told me that water wasn't one of those dangerous things.

I walked towards it, taking off my shoes as I did so. I stepped into the water and immediately, a tingling sensation started to spread from my toes up towards my head. Without thinking about any modesty, I began stripping out of my outfit until I was left in nothing but my underwear and bra. I continued walking into the water until I was covered up to my chin.

The tingling sensation continued to spread and with it now came a soft heat that made me feel like I was bathing in a warm bath. I was aware that Thane and Derrial were watching me, a quick glance around told me that Hasso must have returned back to the ship, because I couldn't see her.

I floated on my back, enjoying the sensations. The pain in my stomach had completely disappeared. The fluttering of my baby had picked up though. The water seemed to have excited it.

"Are you going to join me?" I asked the guys. "I'm feeling much better. The water is incredible." I closed my eyes again as I heard the sounds of the guys stripping. Light splashing told me they were in the water, but I didn't bother opening my eyes. I was too comfortable.

Derrial and Thane both softly stroked my stomach as I floated. I opened my eyes and smiled at them. "Doesn't it feel wonderful?" I asked.

"What does it feel like for you?" Thane asked, cocking his head as he studied my surely euphoric expression.

"There's tingling all over and a warmth, almost like I'm having a hot stone massage or something," I explained.

"It doesn't feel like that for me," responded Thane with a fake pout.

"Nor for me," added Derrial. "It must have special properties that only affect women...or pregnant women.

"Mmmmh. Regardless, it's amazing. I wish Corran was here. His science mind would be exploding right now." No sooner had the words left my mouth than I stupidly realized that I shouldn't be enjoying myself right now. Corran was in trouble still.

"Relax, pet," soothed Thane. "Derrial heard from him while he was flying here. Corran's safe on his ship and headed to the next laboratory."

"You promise?" I prodded, wanting to make sure he wasn't just saying that to try and make me feel better, like they'd been prone to do in the past.

"I swear," Thane answered, and I let myself relax again.

Finally, after at least an hour had passed, I stopped floating and stood back up. "Did Hasso say I was supposed to do anything special besides swim?" I asked, dunking myself for good measure, just in case I had to get completely covered by the water for the ritual to work.

"She said that you needed to eat a petal from one of the flowers," Derrial said, diving down under the water and plucking one of the large petals from the luminous flowers.

"Is she sure?" I asked, eyeing the flower.

"She hasn't let us down yet," said Thane. Agreeing with that, I tore off a small piece of the petal and placed it in my mouth. Immediately a sweet flavor exploded in my mouth, the taste exceeding even the best food that I'd ever had. I devoured the rest of the petal, unable to stop myself as Thane and Derrial watched me, amused.

"This is the best thing I've ever tasted," I tried to say with a full mouth. This time, both Derrial and Thane flat out laughed at me. But I didn't care, I was too busy stuffing my face.

It was so delicious that as soon as I was done, I took a deep breath, preparing to dive under and get another petal to eat.

Thane stopped me before I could dive under. "Sorry pet, Hasso specifically said you were only to eat one petal. More than that can be addictive."

I did feel like a druggie desperate for a fix at the news that I could only have one. "I need it," I whined, realizing how crazy I sounded as soon as the words came out of my mouth.

Derrial just kissed me in response.

"Do you think I've stayed in the water long enough?" I asked as I realized that as many healing properties as the water seemed to have, it also held a bit of danger as well that I wasn't in the mood to test. "I could stay here forever, but I don't think that's wise."

"I think we are good to go whenever," answered Thane, and I closed my eyes and soaked in the warm, tingling sensation one more time before I started to swim towards the shore when I spotted another smaller flower. And I couldn’t help myself but take it with me, figuring it might be something I could have when I was alone. The temptation to not put it all in my mouth now was almost unbearable. I immediately missed the water the second I got out, and it took all I had to drag myself back to where the ship was waiting for us.

But the pain was gone, and my little baby's kicks felt stronger than ever.

Veon was a strange but magical place.

When we got back on board, the women were all in the same place we had left them and Hasso was rocking her sleeping child. I mouthed thank you and blew her a kiss, not wanting to wake up the baby. I would need to do something else to show her my appreciation when all of this was over.

I went to a room to change out of my wet undergarments. Corran, ever prepared, had attached compartments of our clothes when we left the other day that although appeared to be as thin as an envelope, held several changes of clothes along with other supplies. I was never going to get used to Vepar technology, but I was grateful for it now that we had lost our ship that held the rest of our supplies.

After I'd changed, I placed the tiny flower in a small paper and wrapped it up before placing it into my pocket as I didn’t want the guys to think I was weak and couldn’t resist the plant. Which clearly, I couldn’t, but I’d keep that to myself. The flower made me feel incredible, and I was doing this for my baby.

Then I headed to the flight deck where Thane and Derrial had gone as soon as we'd returned to the ship. They'd already taken off by the time I got there, and they were discussing the best place to drop off the rescued women before we went to meet up with Corran.

There didn't seem to be any good options besides Derrial's parents for where to leave the women, but we'd already asked a lot of them by taking on and nursing my father back to health. Twelve women plus a baby was too much.

"What if we took them to one of the safe houses for the time being?" I asked, and Derrial put a hand to his head in frustration.

"I obviously haven't been sleeping enough. Of course, that's the best option. There are unlimited food and clothes at our safe houses, and they can always camp out on the floor like they have been on the ship."

I nodded eagerly, glad we'd come up with a solution.

Derrial typed in the coordinates for one of the safehouses and away we went.

We'd been traveling for about an hour when the ship seemed to hit something. The whole vessel rocked and shook, throwing us out of our seats. I managed to grab on to a handle on the console in front of me and prevented myself from flying across the room with the impact.

The ship righted itself and we all got unsteadily to our feet. Thane and Derrial flew to the controls, pressing buttons and trying to read on the scanner what had happened.

All of a sudden, the screen flicked on in front of us and one of the council members appeared, armed with a cocky smirk.

"Distracted on the job?" he sang as he looked at Derrial and Thane gleefully. "The old you would never have missed a council ship tracking you down."

My guys looked like they wanted to jump through the screen and choke the council member. Fear gripped me like a vice.

We were never going to be safe.

8

THANE

F uck! I seethed as the Councilman smiled at us through the screen. He was right. We had been distracted, and I was furious that they’d managed to track us down.

"Surrender," he ordered.

All I could think about was how much I wanted to shove my fist into his face. Instead, I jabbed a finger at the off button on the screen and just growled under my breath.

"They're going to shoot us down?" Ella's panicked voice melted my heart. Getting caught by the council wasn't an option. Not when we'd be locked up for life...if they didn't kill us first. And what would they do to Ella and our unborn baby? The council was behind the virus spreading through Vepar, taking so many lives. Their experiments led to this disaster, and suddenly I knew what they were going to do. Frame everything on us.

I checked the radar with a wide radius to another ship speeding up behind us from a fair distance. Even in this cloud cover, he’d track us down with ease.

"They're not going to get a chance," Derrial murmured, and I realized belatedly I’d been speaking out loud.

I glanced back to see him holding Ella tight and looking at me with fear in his eyes. Hell, we were fucked, alright.

"So, what are we going to do?" Ella asked, her voice shaky as her gaze drifted to the coms screen. "What about all the women in this ship? The baby? We can't endanger them." The worry on her face twisted an invisible blade in my heart. She was right. Of course she was, but our choices were limited.

"We're going to jump out of ship," Derrial announced.

Ella's mouth dropped open as she stared at him incredulously. "Are you crazy? How is that woman's baby going to survive a jump?" She pulled out of Derrial's arms and started pacing back and forth.

I met Derrial's gaze and nodded. "I think it can work. We leave the women on the ship."

"Exactly my thoughts," he responded.

"What are you talking about?" Ella asked.

“Pet." Derrial reached out and took her hand before taking it to his mouth to kiss her fingertips. I adored seeing the affection she received, because she deserved so much more.

"Thane is going to set the cruiser on auto-pilot with a destined landing position, which he’ll give to the council. There’s heavy cloud cover farther ahead, and the ship’s got exactly three parachutes with non-detection shielding. It's how those bastard Khonsu have been sneaking into cities to steal women."

Ella was shaking her head. "I've never jumped out of a plane and I don't know what to expect." Her words were running into one another. She was so adorable when she got nervous.

Derrial held her tight, covering her face with kisses. "You won't be alone. But it's the only way for us to escape, and the women to survive. If the council gets ahold of us, I’m worried what they’ll do to you. We need to leap to safety right under their noses."

Derrial gave me a nod, and I turned in my seat to the controls, sending the council coordinates of where I'd be landing. A perfect spot right in the middle of a park near residential homes to draw just enough attention from locals to see the terrified women emerge from the cruiser. For one main reason - the women's presence would gain a lot of attention, and meant more time before the council sent a search party for us. By then, we'd be long gone.

I shot the message to the council and waited for their confirmation. Moments later, a word flashed up on my screen.

Agreed.

I set the coordinates in auto-pilot, then shot Corran a message of our change of plans and where to come and meet us next. I hoped he wasn’t caught but just distracted. Then I sprung to my feet.

My heart thumped in my chest as I marched across the flight deck. I approached Ella and cupped the sides of her face. "Hey, gorgeous. I need you to do something while Derrial and I prepare our jumps."

"What is it?"

She looked at me with those heartfelt eyes that gripped my very soul. I would do anything she asked, anything that kept her safe. My heart hammered and gut twisted at the idea of her and our baby hurt. I'd kill before I let anything happen to her. She was mine to protect, because if anything happened to my beautiful Ella, I'd never forgive myself.

"I need you to speak to the women and explain to them the ship is taking them to safety. That they are to tell everyone that we saved them from the Khonsu, in particular the media."

"So, you want them to give everyone our names?" She arched a brow, as if questioning my decision.

I nodded. "Their arrival will gain media attention, and we might as well use the opportunity to show people we aren't as evil as the council paints us."

"That's a good idea," she said. "Don't think it will change their minds, but we’ve got nothing to lose, right?"

"Exactly." I leaned in for a quick kiss on the mouth, but the moment our lips touched, I lost myself.

The way she mewled from my kiss went straight to my head, along with the heat and growing arousal. I gripped her waist and drew her closer, then really kissed her. Tongue plunging into her mouth, her gorgeous breasts pressed against my chest. Blood rushed to my dick as she nibbled on my lower lip and moaned. And we kissed until the room spun with me. Until nothing remained but the primal need between us.

She breathed just as fast as me, and if were anywhere else, I'd carry her to a room to strip her down before fucking her.

Derrial cleared his throat. We broke apart, our heads touching, her long lashes blinking as if she'd just awoken from a dream.

"Later, gorgeous." I leaned in closer to her ear. "Later, I'm going to lick you all over and fuck you real slow."

She gasped in my arms, and my cock punched at her reaction. Every sound she made was like nectar to me.

"We need to move fast, now," Derrial reminded me, and he was right.

Ella slipped out of my arms, her full lips red and raw from our kiss, and already I wanted them back.

"I'll speak to the women and be back in five minutes."

Derrial and I nodded, then we set on getting everything ready for our jump.

By the time Ella returned, Derrial and I were strapped in our parachutes. I turned to her. She was studying the straps, fingering the harnesses.

"Is everything alright?" I asked.

"Are you sure this will hold me? It just doesn't look sturdy enough."

"You and I are jumping together, baby," Derrial stated, taking her hand in his.

"You're going to be fine," I reassured her, cupping the side of her face. She meant the world to me. "Priority is jumping out now that we're in cloud cover.” I pressed the button on her strap sitting just below her left shoulder to activate the invisibility device to any sensors once she exited the plane. I lowered my hand to the rip cord dangling from the strap across her chest. "Once you’re outside, follow Derrial’s instructions. This cord will spring open the parachute." Underneath she wore a full body suit the color of the clouds to help protect her against the cold.

She nodded, but fear shone in her eyes.

"We need to go," Derrial said urgently.

"Let's do this," she said.

I was so proud of her at that moment, and I slammed a hand to the sensor on the door. It swished open in a heartbeat, and a gush of cold wind burst inside, freezing my cheeks. I tapped the sensor built into the head gear. A transparent mask slid over my face, and the other two did the same.

Derrial drew Ella closer to the entrance. And without hesitation, they leapt out hand in hand without a single sound. Wasting no time, I tapped my invisibility shield button, then I hit the sensor on the wall, then lunged outside as the door shut behind me.

Cold air slammed into me and tugged at my hair and jumpsuit. I fell through the clouds fast, until I came out and saw the other two not far below. Falling from such a great height felt much like flying. Down below, the land was a tapestry of country fields, and farther in the distance, lay the heart of the city.

I leaned my body forward in Derrial’s directions, my arms tight by my side and I accelerated faster and faster. They grew closer, and before reaching them, I pulled up, muscles taut to not lose my balance.

Ella’s head twisted in my direction, and her expression surprised me. She was beaming a smile and waved to me. My little vixen loved skydiving. I tucked that piece of information into my mind for later.

Derrial was pointing to an open landscape slightly to our right then back at me, instructing our destination. I nodded. The landscape came closer to use, looking larger now.

He and Ella tugged on their rip cords, and their parachutes blossomed overhead, hauling them away from me.

I followed suit, and my whole body jerked upward, the hardness cutting into my armpits and sides. I tugged lightly on the toggle on the left and glided toward to the left. Adrenaline pumped through me, and I fucking loved the feeling of falling and seeing the ground rush up to me. That sensation of almost dying tugged at my heart.

When I finally touched the ground, I stumbled forward a few steps before stopping. Without wasting time, I unbuckled the harnesses and let them drop down around me as I looked up to see Ella coming down. Her face was panicked as she came in ahead of me.

I threw myself into a run after her and caught up fast. Her feet dangled, the toes of her shoes almost touching the ground. The moment her feet touched the ground, she was still running forward from the momentum, her body tilting forward. I swooped in and collected her, holding her still.

“I got you.”

She was breathing so hard, her mask fogged up. The parachute fell around us, and I quickly unlatched her. She tapped her temple and the mask vanished. I did the same, and she burst into laughter.

“That was incredible! Oh my gosh, why haven’t I done it before?”

I held her close, even if she was shivering uncontrollably from the adrenaline rush. “If Veon is ever back to normal, I will take you skydiving every weekend,” I promised her. “But for now, we need to move and fast.”

Derrial had already unbuckled from his parachute and ran toward us. “Corran is here!”

Just as the words left his mouth, a searing heat grazed over my back, and I turned as Corran’s ship appeared out from under the invisibility shield, and winked in the sunlight.

The panel slid open to the doorway into the side of a cruiser, and Corran stood there. Eyes strained, shadows underneath, hair messy as though he’d been running his hand through it over and over. His heaved for each breath, his posture curled forward enough to tell me he’d been working tirelessly. I’d seen him this way before when he worked himself to the bone to find a solution in his experiments. I studied his face for any indication that he found a cure, except he gave none. Fear speared me like lightning. I took a tentative look at Ella who studied Corran just as closely as me.

“Get inside,” he ordered tersely, and the three of us rushed inside.

The door shut behind us, and I needed answers.

Ella was at Corran’s side, concern flashing over her expression as she studied him and took his hand in hers. Her care and love for each of us was endless, and my heart beat a bit harder at the reminder of how lucky I was to call her my wife. How lucky all three of us were.

“What did you uncover?” she asked, her voice choking as she waited for good news like all of us. A solution to our problems.

“The city is almost overrun, but I found the location of a laboratory in the middle of the city that might be the source to all the chaos with the infected. So, that means that’s the one place that is most likely to have some information on an antidote.”

“Then we go to the city,” Derrial agreed, his voice firm and determined to eradicate the spreading sickness. Just like we all were…all I wanted was to spend time with my new wife away from danger and prepare for our newborn. I had no doubt Derrial and Corran were the same. So, we needed to find this damn antidote, then clear our names.

I gritted my teeth just thinking about how much was still unknown for us.

Corran kissed Ella on the brow, then pulled back and returned to the driver’s seat. “Let’s head off. We’ll break in and see what we can find.”

I took Ella’s hand and drew her with me to a seat and made sure she was buckled in.

“I’ll drive,” Derrial said, to which Corran didn’t object but slumped in the front passenger seat.

We ascended in no time, and I glanced over to see Ella rubbing her stomach. She had definitely started to show a bit already. Reaching over, I stole a quick kiss.

“You look beautiful,” I whispered.

She looked up at me with a sweet smile, one that told me her mind was miles away and she was trying to hide her emotions. I was certain they had everything to do with the loss of her mom. I wanted nothing more than to hold her in my arms, inhale her into me so nothing could ever touch her. Nothing could hurt her.

“I’ll be alright,” she said, as if reading my mind, then reached over and smoothed out the crease at the bridge of my nose.

I loved how strong she was after everything she’d gone through. And after so much, I’d give up everything to keep her safe.

The rest of the trip went by quick and we descended in what looked like a small park in the city. With chaos running amuck, we could easily leave our concealed ship here without detection.

When the cruiser gave a small jolt from our landing, I unbuckled my belt and was on my feet. Staring out the front, there was nothing but trees and a small kids’ swing set. In the distance, lofty buildings surrounded us.

“We move fast,” Derrial said, already on his feet and heading to the door before looking at us. “And we stick together no matter what.”

“How far is the lab?” I asked as Ella pressed up against my side and I slid my arm around her waist.

“Just a few blocks. Not far at all. We just shoot any infected on sight and don’t make too much sound to draw any attention.”

“Then, we’d better hurry,” Ella said.

Derrial opened the door and hopped out. He checked the perimeter around the ship. Once we returned and waved a hand, we all followed as a close group. I quickly took the lead, my tactical training making me the best person to help us avoid detection. I knew this city like the back of my hand. At one point, my team had been in charge of putting a security system in place to protect it. Looking around, it didn’t seem that the council had bothered using it to protect the city from the infected.

We moved down a side street and kept to the sidewalk before taking another backstreet.

The place was barren and empty. Storefronts smashed in, rubbish rolling across the road in the howling wind. There was a sadness to see our home in such decay. If nothing was done, the place would turn to wastelands. So many lives and homes and memories lost. This wasn’t how I wanted to see my home planet end up. My heart clenched, but I swallowed back the boulder in my throat and kept going. This wasn’t the time to get sentimental or let anything get in my way.

Movement caught my attention from an old building up ahead. It was only three stories tall and looked like it had been used as an information storage center before it had been destroyed. I stopped and the others did the same. “Infected just ahead,” I whispered, my heart pounding.

“Go round the building then.” Derrial pointed to a side road just ahead.

If we moved quickly enough without sound, then we wouldn’t grab any attention.

Corran held onto Ella and they rushed forward.

In their rush, Ella accidently kicked a loose rock from a broken wall and it skittered right across the road like a rocket and smacked into the old building near the infected.

In that exact moment, the building exploded and ignited into a fiery ball of yellow flames and stones, billowing outward. The booming sound reverberating over the city with such ferocity, it shook me to the bones.

We all flinched backward.

“Oh fuck!”

Ella screamed and we all darted for our lives down the side street.

9

ELLA

"What the fuck was that?" growled Derrial as we stared at the smoldering wreckage of the building behind us that we’d passed. The air was thick with smoke, and the only reason I wasn't on the ground was thanks to Thane grabbing me at the last second and taking the brunt of the aftershocks of the explosion when it went off.

I was trembling with shock. If I hadn't been clumsy and kicked that rock...we would be nothing but cinders right now because we would have been too close to the blast.

Thane let me go and then hunched over, his body slightly shaking. He looked like he was about to be sick. He suddenly straightened up, and I knew by the look on his face that I wasn't going to like whatever else came out of his mouth. "You need to stay here, Ella. There's no way we're bringing you with us," he said firmly.

I didn't want any of us to go, but I knew we needed to get in that laboratory. But there was no way that I was going to let them leave me behind. I had already made a vow that we weren't going to be separated again. Crazy or not, our separation from Corran had about done me in. I had promised these men an eternity. I wasn't going to let them leave me prematurely.

"That's not happening," I told him quietly, but resolutely.

His face fell. He looked to Derrial and Corran for help. They all looked like they wanted to agree with Thane, but knew that it would be a losing endeavor. "You don't understand. They've triggered the traps," Thane said fervently. "If they've changed things from when I designed them, we'll all be dead."

"Traps?" I asked, my voice rising with a bit of hysteria.

"The Battalion Project?" asked Derrial sharply. "That was you? I thought that was just a myth. Fuck."

Thane nodded, ashamed. "I was head of that project." He turned to me. "Pet, if you remember, I was once upon a time head of security for the council and all of Veon. One of my projects was to protect one of the important government buildings located in the center of this city. They told me it was an archive for our world's history. But evidently they were lying. My team and I set traps throughout the city that could be triggered in the case of a Khonsu attack-" His voice broke off. "I never imagined they would be used against me."

We were all quiet for one shocked moment before Derrial took control. "Do you still remember where all the traps are?" he asked.

Thane seemed to respond to the authority in Derrial's voice, and he squared his shoulders, a determined look appearing on his beautiful face. "I do, but if they've changed anything-"

"We'll just have to take that risk," said Derrial, cutting him off. "There's little risk that they did that though. The council has never been one to get their own hands dirty with hard work. I'm sure they didn't think they'd be using it against the person who designed it. We've been good foot soldiers for a long time now."

"I can't put Ella's life in danger like that," said Thane, sounding desperate.

"We're not leaving her," said Corran all of a sudden, sounding exhausted. He looked like he was about to fall over. "I'm not willing to leave her behind and I'm also not willing for the three of us to be separated. I'm going to need help once we get to the lab. It's been..." His voice broke. "It's been a rough few days," he finished quietly.

"Let's get started," I announced, trying to keep my voice level, despite the fact that the baby had chosen that moment to give me a choice kick.

At some point in this pregnancy, I needed to rest. Which reminded me…

"We have less than three months to figure all this shit out. Let's go," I ordered, finally letting them know I'd found out the kind of a big thing they'd neglected to tell me about Vepar pregnancies.

The three of them all looked guilty. "Sweetheart-" Corran began, but I made a slicing motion with my arm.

"We can talk about that little detail you left out later."

They nodded, and then Thane took a deep breath. "The first layer consisted of bombs. We had it triggered that every twelve steps or so, there would be a crack that if stepped on would trigger the explosion. So long as we don't step on any of the cracks..."

This put a whole new meaning on the nursery rhyme "don't step on a crack or you'll break your mother's back."

Derrial grabbed my hand. "Stay close to me," he ordered and we all began walking. We all followed Thane who was counting the steps we took. The walk was tedious, as it quickly became apparent that twelve steps was not a lot in between traps. I'd decided very early on that I wasn't going to step on any cracks...just in case. This only made us slower going. It took us three hours to get through two layers of the city, something that we usually could have walked in less than fifteen minutes.

But as we stepped over the last crack, we were all still alive, so I guess it was three hours well spent. It was eerie to see a city so deserted, but with this laboratory being the epicenter of the infection, it made sense that the city's inhabitants had run. Many of them not making it very far, based on the large amount camped outside the walls still.

I had never seen Thane look so on edge. I wanted to soothe him, but now wasn't the time.

"Fuck, Fuck, Fuck," he said, and then he took few deep breaths as if to calm himself down.

"What's next?" asked Derrial, who only seemed to be getting calmer as Thane fell apart.

"As soon as we step onto the next street, a gas will start to pour out of the buildings. It's a hallucinogenic gas. It creates illusions similar to what the Khonsu can do. The effects will fade as soon as you get past the layer, but it's designed to be a hell of a trip on the way."

"What kind of hallucinations will it be?" I asked in a trembling voice as I thought about the torture I'd gone through with that first Khonsu.

"Bad ones, pet," Thane said apologetically. "Every fear you've ever had, magnified."

We were all somber with that knowledge.

"Will it hurt the baby?" I asked. We had just survived potentially being blown up, but somehow subjecting the baby to potentially poisonous gas seemed like a pretty big deal. I was definitely not following what the pregnancy books said. I wish there was a pregnancy handbook on how to survive your pregnancy in an alien world.

"It's compru gas," Corran explained. "Besides the hallucinations, there aren't any adverse effects. The council's used it on prisoners for years to get information out of them." He shook his head and I knew what he wasn't saying was his role in creating it. I'm sure all of my Vepar were really regretting their early lives right now. "We have to go," said Corran tiredly, and I knew he was thinking about all the people he'd left beyond the city's walls that still needed help.

We all seemed to take a collective breath as we stepped into the next row of buildings.

Thane was correct. As soon as we stepped out from beyond the building we'd been hiding behind, little holes opened up at the bottom of the domed structures and a fluorescent looking green gas started pouring out.

At first, I didn't notice anything besides the fact that the gas seemed to be making me a little bit tired.

But that changed quickly.

I screamed as a horde of Khonsu began running towards me, each of them holding their whips. I crouched down in the street with my hands out in front of me, but when a moment passed and I felt nothing, I opened my eyes to see that the Khonsu were gone. It had just been an illusion.

The rest of the guys were struggling just as much. Derrial was actually sobbing at whatever he saw. Corran disappeared right in front of my eyes, replaced by a corpse of him that was bleeding from large cuts all over his body.

"It's not real. It's not real. It's not real," I chanted as great sobs wracked my body. I couldn't stop myself from leaning forward to try and touch it. As soon as I did so, of course, Corran's dead body disappeared, and I became aware of his live body standing in front of me once again.

By this time, Thane was screaming, shouting my name over and over again as he looked all around me as if he had lost me. I tried to go to him, but I was stopped when my mother appeared in front of me. She was on her knees, begging to be spared.

"Mom," I called out, running towards her.

It continued like that for what felt like an infinite period of time. Every bad thought I'd ever had, every dream I'd woken up from in a cold sweat, every fear that I'd internalized...they were all there. Appearing before me over and over again, until I was sure that the world had ended and there was no happiness to be found anywhere. The air was filled with the screams of my hallucinations and that of my lovers.

I would never be the same after this. Never.

I had just convinced myself that we had somehow died and were now trapped in hell where we were being tortured, when it was like a haze seemed to clear around me and suddenly I found myself and my three husbands standing back in the street, completely alone, and completely hallucination free.

All four of us were ashen, shaking, and soaked in sweat. Corran was the first to move. He grabbed me and hauled me into his chest. "You're here, you're here," he repeated over and over again as he assured himself of my existence. Derrial and Thane didn't try to take me from Corran. Instead, they crowded around until we were all in one big embrace, locked in each other's arms.

We stood there for at least fifteen minutes, just trying to reassure ourselves that we were all alive and together. Derrial tried to shift away at one point, and I made a savage squeaking sound before yanking him back towards me. We only were able to move again if they all stayed close enough for me to touch them.

"What's next?" asked Derrial hoarsely. And I knew we were all wondering whether we could survive whatever was "next" after the nightmare we'd just made it through.

"The next layer is designed to flood and drown any intruders if you step in certain spots. Just follow behind me and we should be fine."

We arranged ourselves in a line, me right behind Thane with Derrial behind me, and Corran at the end. As in the first layer, we walked slowly. I made sure to step exactly where Thane stepped.

We'd made it three-fourths of the way through the rows of buildings that made up this layer when I heard a panicked grunt from behind me. I looked back and saw that Derrial was holding up an exhausted-looking Corran, who must have stumbled.

That was all it took. A roar shook the street as water started to flood in from all directions. The water was immediately up to my shins and it was quickly rising. I couldn't even tell where it was coming from, because it was like the area had transformed into a lake with how much water was coming in from every direction.

"Run," yelled Thane as he grabbed me and hauled me forward. A quick look at Derrial and Corran showed me that Derrial had his arm around Corran's waist and was attempting to drag him forward. Corran looked dead on his feet, like he was going to pass out at any minute.

The water was quickly rising, making it harder and harder to run as we sloshed through the street.

"We need to get to higher ground," Thane yelled back at us as he continued to drag me along. Derrial and Corran were losing steam as Corran was barely helping Derrial at all at this point to move them both along. "The flooding is designed to rise to the level of the roofs and dissipate after a few hours. We figured that most threats wouldn't be able to make it to safety in time."

No kidding. Like right now.

Thane kicked open a door, and water started to flow in after us as we darted inside. Since the city had been shut down, the technology that would regularly have flown us to the next level wasn't working. There was obviously something to be said for old-school things...like actual stairs.

"Stay here," Thane ordered, like I was somehow tempted to go off on my own. He ran to the far wall where a beam led up to the second floor. He started to climb the beam, his muscles flexing with the effort. I hoped he had a plan once he got up there, because there was no way that I was going to be able to climb that. And neither was Corran. Another look at him showed me that his face was even paler than before. I wasn't sure if he was sick or just exhausted. How were we going to get him through the city if the rest of the levels were like this?

Thane somehow leaped from the pole to the balcony of the second floor. He then pulled a rope from the satchel around his waist, tied one end around himself, and then threw the other side down to us.

"Climb up," he hollered. Derrial was by my side in a flash, leaving Corran to sit on a chair that had floated by. The water was still rising, and it was above his waist in the chair.

"Hop on my back, Ella," Derrial ordered, and I hoisted myself upon his back, trying not to choke him as I threw my arms around his neck.

Derrial then began to climb up the rope. I was so happy for the Vepar's superior strength, even if it had been used against humans from the beginning. I didn't think there were very many human men or women that could climb a rope with someone on their back.

Derrial was breathing heavily when we finally made it to the top. Thane had been straining to hold up our weight as we climbed, but there was no time to rest. Corran was still down there, and he'd had to stand up as the water was too high. I could see him rocking back and forth unsteadily as he tried to stay standing as the water pushed against him.

Derrial quickly tied the rope around his waist and held onto it as Thane scrambled down the rope, a bit slower this time as his muscles had to be burning. Corran was a lot larger than me, and it was painful to watch how slow Thane's progression was up the rope with Corran on his back. Corran was trying to help. I knew that if he was at full strength he would have no issue getting up the rope. But that was not the case now.

Looking down, the water was high enough that it would have completely enveloped us if we were still standing on the ground floor.

Thane had to stop several times and I let out a small scream when Corran almost slipped off. Thane managed to stop him just in time, almost at the expense of one of his arms getting ripped out of its socket as he held onto the rope with one hand and held onto Corran with the other.

He groaned as he pulled Corran back up so that he was steady on his back once again.

I think I held my breath until they got to our floor, because I was feeling light-headed as the three of them all collapsed to the ground breathing heavily.

I ran over to them and hovered, needing to be close to them. I glanced down at the floor below and the rapidly rising water. We couldn't afford to try and recover. The water was rising faster and it would soon be to our floor.

How were we going to get to the roof though? There was no way the three of them could handle another rope climb.

Thane staggered to his feet and jogged to the far wall. "There's an escape hatch that leads to the roof on every building, and there should be some kind of emergency ladder here somewhere," he explained as he began to run his hands all over the wall. "Found it," he exclaimed triumphantly, and I watched open-mouthed as a ladder seemed to just appear out of the wall. I'm sure they could explain the technology to me later but a lot of what I saw on this planet appeared to be magic.

"You first, pet," Thane called as he all but pushed me onto the ladder. I realized his hurry when I felt water rush over my foot, it had reached our level.

I hurried clumsily up the ladder, my feet only slipping once. "Now what?" I called down.

"Just push up on the ceiling right above you," called up Thane.

I was expecting it to give me trouble, but as soon as I pushed on the ceiling, it flew open, showering me with fading sunlight.

I pulled myself out onto the roof and gazed down the opening as the guys began to climb up.

Derrial pulled himself up first, and I moved aside to make room for him. The roof was domed but it was such a large building that there was plenty of room for us all to be on a relatively flat part of the roof.

Thane was last up. He'd had to help Corran up again. As soon as Corran fell onto the roof he was out, passed out from sheer exhaustion. He still hadn't told us all that had happened while we'd been separated, and I was scared to find out. The fact that he'd had to experience it all alone...I never wanted that to have to happen again.

Thane and Derrial sat on either side of me as Corran slept behind us. We stared out at the still-rising water. I hoped Thane was right that it was designed to stay below the rooftops. Some of the smaller buildings were almost completely covered, but the building we were on was one of the highest in the city.

"How did I get here?" I whispered as I watched the water rise. The baby chose that moment to give me a sharp kick, and it just reminded me what a dangerous world I was about to bring it into.

"It will all work out, Pet," Thane said softly to me as he put an arm around me. I realized that he had been watching me instead of the water.

I smiled at him sadly. I wasn't sure he could say that.

"So what's next?" Derrial tried to joke. "Fire, earthquakes, rabid dogs?"

Thane sighed. "There's a few more traps. One opens holes in the ground that the intruder falls through if they step on specific spots. Another is a pack of rabins..."

Derrial took a huge inhale when he heard that.

"What is that?" I asked anxiously, scared of Derrial's reaction.

"It's similar to a cat on your planet. Except its bite creates excruciating pain that can lead to heart failure," Derrial explained reluctantly.

"Of course it does," I sighed.

"Let's get some rest. We can talk about everything tomorrow," said Thane. "Corran won't be able to go anywhere for awhile anyway."

I nodded, glad for the rest, even if I was anxious to get to the lab and start actually solving all the problems we were facing.

Despite my fear of the water and what we were going to face tomorrow, I fell into a deep sleep filled with images of the hallucinations I'd suffered from earlier in the day.

It wasn't a peaceful sleep, to say the least.

CORRAN WAS ALREADY up when Derrial woke me up, and my heart clenched with how much better he looked after a good night's sleep. I was afraid that he'd been sick or worse...was beginning to be infected. But there was no sign of any symptoms today in the bright morning light. Corran evidently had just been extremely tired.

I next looked out to see how the water was looking, and I was shocked that there was no sign of it. The ground and all the domed buildings looked completely dry. I knew Thane had told us it was going to subside, but actually seeing that happen was something else.

After eating some crackers that Thane explained were from the military, evidently packing quite the caloric punch, it was time to set off. We made our way down the ladder to the second floor, and then used the rope to get to the ground floor. Derrial carried me down the rope this time. Thane and Corran both used the same beam that Thane had climbed up first yesterday to get down.

And then we were off to whatever hell waited for us.

I just knew as Corran gave me a kiss and grabbed my hand, that despite everything, I was where I was supposed to be.

10

I t was too quiet in this section of the city. After the constant booby traps of the last few layers, it didn't make much sense that now that we were so close to the laboratory that it would now be a walk in the park. Thane and his team hadn't put anything in this section of the city, stating that this was where the soldiers were supposed to be stationed to protect the building. But the street we were walking down was completely deserted. There were no signs of any soldiers.

We stayed in the shadows, close up to the buildings still, but the chaos of the rest of our trip was nowhere to be found.

"What do you think is going on?" I whispered to Derrial. He shook his head, reminding me to stay quiet. One of the traps we'd gone through had been triggered by any sound. That hadn't been fun.

I wouldn't risk testing it, but the silence was almost more unnerving than the death traps had been...almost.

We turned the corner, and that's when I realized why there didn't seem to be any traps or soldiers in this section of the city...because they weren't necessary, due to the hundreds upon hundreds of infected Vepar we'd just stumbled across in the road surrounding the building that housed the lab.

The infected Vepar at the hospital where we'd been visiting Thane's mother had been crazed. They'd been desperate to attack us.

These infected Vepar were decidedly not crazed...at least at the moment. They were walking slowly, as if they were all in a trance. It was impossible to miss that they were infected though. Nearly all of them held ghastly wounds where they had been attacked in the near past. If the council's infection didn't finish them off, the infection that was growing in their wounds certainly would.

As terrified as I was of them, I also felt immense anger on their behalf that their own government had done this to them. I just hoped that Corran could figure out an antidote, and that all of these poor Vepar wouldn't remember what they did while they were infected. That would probably be hard to deal with, if you could remember tearing another Vepar's flesh off their bone with your mouth.

We were frozen in place as we watched them. "Is there another way into the facility you think?" I asked hopefully, even though I knew the answer would be no.

"We need some kind of diversion," said Derrial, ignoring my question. "If we could blow something up down the street and get them moving that way, we could hopefully make it in before they saw us."

"It will take a little time to figure out the code to get in. Every lab we have has a complicated set of security protocols. I'm sure that this one would be no different from the others. Especially if they were working on so many things they weren't supposed to."

"Alright. Create a big enough explosion to get us through the next few streets and allow us to crack a few codes. Sounds simple enough," said Thane sarcastically. But I could tell that my soldier was already working through the logistics of everything. If there was a way to do it, he would figure it out.

"Aha," said Corran quietly as he pulled two small vials out of his waist satchel and handed them to Thane. "Shellum and Wenciom," he explained.

Thane's eyes lit up, but Derrial just shot Corran a look. "What are you doing with Shellum and Wenciom? And how do you have big enough balls to carry those things around your balls?" he whispered with wide eyes.

"What are they?" I asked confused.

"Two powders that if combined, create quite the chemical explosion," Corran answered me matter-of-factly. Derrial was still looking at him like he was crazy...or he had big balls. I really couldn't tell.

"I'm going to circle around and blow up that eating hall down the street," Thane told us, pointing at a small, silver-colored domed building a few blocks down, or at least, what would be blocks if the Vepar did things that way.

"Wait," I whispered urgently, grabbing his arm before he left. Fear was coursing through my body at what would happen if he separated from me right now.

"Pet, I'll be right back," Thane reassured me as Derrial tried to pull me away from him.

"Okay," I answered, but I was still holding onto his arm tightly.

"Ella," Thane said again, and I finally pried my fingers off his arm. He was gone before I even blinked.

I paced back and forth beside the building we were hiding behind, practically gnawing my fingernails off. Derrial was keeping watch, and Corran was fiddling on a device, trying to see if he could hack into the council's information database in order to find blueprints of the lab. Unfortunately, the guys had been the ones responsible for setting up the security for the council's database, which meant the job had been well done and it was almost impossible to get in.

Derrial suddenly grabbed me and gently took us both to the ground as he covered my body with his. "Thane's almost to the building. The explosion will knock us down," he explained. Corran crouched down beside us, also trying to shield my body with his. It said a lot about how bad the situation we were in was that I didn't even feel a tingle of lust at their close proximity to me. They were just that incredible.

The explosion went off. The ground rattled under us, and the two buildings we were in between shuddered. I would have definitely gone flying if Derrial hadn't had the foresight to get me on the ground first. Debris went flying everywhere, and I couldn't believe that two tiny vials could create an explosion that large. I couldn't even comprehend the damage that large amounts of those compounds could create. I just hoped that Thane had managed to find something to get behind. I didn't know how he could have set off the explosion and gotten to safety in time. My heart was thudding painfully fast, and the baby gave me another kick, evidently not liking the weight of Derrial and Thane in its space.

I really needed to get an ultrasound of this baby - if they did that on Veon - so that I could stop calling my baby an "it."

In the aftermath of the explosion, the eerie silence came back, somehow quieter than before. Derrial and Corran slid off of me, and Derrial darted to the edge of the building to see if the infected Vepar had taken the bait. He pumped a fist as we watched. I assumed that meant that Thane had been successful. We needed to run to the lab...but where was Thane?

I got my answer when there was the sound of running feet coming from behind us and then Thane was there, swooping me up into his arms as he slowed down to a jog and began heading towards the lab. "We don't have much time," he exclaimed.

Derrial and Corran were right behind us as we left the safety of the building. I let out a sharp inhale as I looked down the street and saw the horde of infected gathering at the explosion site.

Where the restaurant had once stood, there was now nothing but a small crater. The infected were pouring in from other streets, and I shivered at the sight. There was even more of them than I'd thought. And they'd definitely picked up speed. That desperation that I'd seen in the infected Vepar was definitely there now as they pushed each other to get to the explosion. Corran was going to have to explain the science behind what the council's failed experiments did to the Vepar's brain to make them behave like this. The Vepar hadn't allowed our schools to teach us about their genetic makeup, so I had no clue if their brains were similar to ours or had different parts. Would humans be similarly infected?

I remembered that I needed to pay attention when an infected suddenly darted out a side street and came flying towards us. Derrial met it before it could reach us, slinging what looked like silver string towards the Vepar, who was frothing at the mouth and had a particularly nasty looking neck wound. This wasn't like any string I'd seen before however, because it sliced the Vepar's head off like it was cutting through butter and not muscle and bone.

Thane and Corran continued to jog towards the lab like nothing had happened, and I was once again aware of the fact that the three of them were predators. I was a bit lucky that I wasn't their prey anymore.

We got to the entrance of the lab without any more Vepar appearing and Corran went to work on his device trying to crack the code that was required for initial entry into the lab. Corran had explained that there would no doubt be eye scans and other security systems in place as we went in, but if we couldn't figure out this initial code, it wouldn't matter. Once again thanks to the systems that Derrial, Corran, and Thane had created together under the council's direction.

The three of them started brainstorming possible things to try after Corran's initial attempts failed. I took a step away from them to check on the status of the infected. The entrance to the lab was set in from the outside walls of the lab, providing us somewhat of a buffer, but it wasn't enough to make me feel safe in the least bit.

I'd no sooner had that thought when an infected Vepar woman appeared in the entryway and charged towards me, running as fast as she could.

The guys weren't quick enough since they were behind me, and she was on me before they could stop her. She managed to take a bite out of my arm that had me screaming in agony. Thane tore her off of me while Derrial once again used his silver string weapon to end her life.

But the damage had been done.

I was trying to be quiet as I moaned, but the pain was so intense that it was hard to do that.

"Fuck," Thane all but roared, causing Derrial to push him against the wall and cover his mouth in warning.

Corran tore off my top and was examining my wound with frantic eyes. It was bleeding furiously, and I was lightheaded just from the sight of all the blood flowing down my chest and over Corran's hands as he tried to slow the blood. He looked frantic, devastated. I could see it in his eyes how bad this was. Somehow, I'd never allowed myself to comprehend what would happen if I became infected. Would the baby automatically become infected too? Or could Corran somehow pull it out now and just use their technology to help its development outside my womb. I started crying, and I threw a hand over my mouth to dampen the sound.

"Put your hand here," Corran ordered Thane and Derrial. "I have to get us in this building."

Derrial released a still struggling Thane and flew over to me, replacing Corran's hand with his own. Corran continued working on his tablet although I knew I wasn't imagining that he was working at a much more intense pace than before.

There was a slight tremor to Derrial's hand as he held it against my bite. "I'm so sorry, baby. So fucking sorry," he kept chanting as I tried to control my tears that were caused by a mixture of fear and pain. Thane had recovered enough to help Corran, and they were both muttering feverishly about different options.

"I'm in," Corran suddenly said excitedly as he tapped on the screen a few more times. "I just needed to insert a virus in the central nebulium of the program." I had no idea what that meant but I didn't really care since the door to the lab had just opened.

Derrial gently picked me up, still keeping pressure on my bite with one hand, and ran me inside followed closely by Thane and Corran.

The blood kept pouring out from underneath Derrial’s hand and the panic was growing in Derrial's eyes. The opening slid shut behind us and we were in a small box of a room. The walls, ceiling, and floor were all the same bronze color, and I felt a little bit suffocated even as the world started to spin around me. I couldn't tell if it was from the bite or the blood loss but either way it didn't seem like a good sign.

Derrial laid me down gently on the floor, still putting pressure on my bite. Thane knelt down beside us while Corran went to the wall opposite where we'd come in and started to type on his tablet, presumably to try and get us to the next section of the lab.

Cursing when it didn't immediately open, Corran ran over to us to inspect my wound. Derrial moved his hand so that Corran could see the damage and I saw them all flinch as the blood flow increased. Derrial quickly put his hand back.

"We need to get the wound cleaned and get it sewn up," said Corran as he began to grab supplies from his pack. Thane also grabbed things out of his pack and Derrial's, since Derrial only had one hand at the moment.

"When I say three, move your hand, and I'm going to replace yours with my own and this cloth that should disinfect the wound. It can't do anything-" He stuttered over his words. "It can't do anything about the virus, but it can prevent another type of infection from growing. Who knows what that woman has bitten lately?"

I shivered just thinking about it, and Derrial glared at Corran. "Sorry," Corran responded, his cheeks flushing.

"Focus," Thane ordered gruffly, his voice sounding choked. Corran nodded and grabbed the cloth that was supposed to disinfect me.

"This is going to hurt at first, Ella. But there's no other way for me to do this with the supplies we have," Corran told me apologetically.

I nodded stiffly and gritted my teeth. At least the pain might help distract me from the fact that a virus could be spreading inside of me right this very minute about to turn me into a mindless savage. At least I could console myself that we had made it to the lab, and even if I was infected, Corran would hopefully soon have access to something that could eventually cure me. If I didn't infect the guys first…

"Fudgeeeee," I squealed as Corran doused my wound with the cloth and began to apply pressure. Evidently I had missed the countdown with my dour thoughts. The pain was ten times worse than the peroxide or alcohol we would use on Earth to clean a wound. Why was it again that everything on this forsaken planet had to be a million times more extreme than its counterpart on Earth?

A bubbling sound was coming from underneath the cloth and it was strange, but it was almost like I could feel it making its way into my muscles, cleaning everything out. It was also leaving a numbing sensation in its wake, so although the initial pain hurt like a bitch, it was almost worth it to get some relief.

"Still hurting badly, angel?" Corran asked, and I realized how avidly the three of them were watching me. I shook my head, weakly.

"It's numbing the area now," I explained, and he nodded satisfactorily.

"Unfortunately, it's not as much numbing as we would need so you don't feel this next part at all, but it will help to make it tolerable," he explained as he held up a small red device that had an extremely sharp needle protruding from the bottom of it.

"What is that?" I asked with widening eyes.

"It's similar to a needle and thread I suppose," answered Corran, pressing something on the device.

"You're going to use that to sew my arm?" I asked, horrified. It was all I could do not to try and move away from it. I'd never been fond of needles, and the one on that device looked particularly unappealing.

"It's alright, pet," said Thane as he ran a soothing hand down my cheek.

"Ready?" asked Corran, holding the device over the cloth as he prepared to take it off.

I nodded and looked away. Even as a child I couldn't watch them giving me shots at the doctor. I didn't think this experience was going to help cure me of that fear.

Corran pulled the cloth away and immediately replaced the cloth with the device. Immediately, I felt a sting around my wound and a low buzzing sound filled the room. Corran was right, it did still hurt. It kind of felt like being stung by a bee over and over again, not a fun feeling at all. But I had to admit, it was more preferable than bleeding out in this tiny room that was beginning to give me claustrophobia.

"That will take a minute to sew all that up, and then we'll run my healing device over it for good measure," said Corran, pulling on his lip as he watched the little machine continue to work. "I'm going to work on getting us out of here." He moved to stand up and then hesitated. "How are you feeling, love?" he asked, his eyes worried and searching.

"Weak," I responded honestly.

"Anything else?"

"Not yet," I answered, and he nodded, taking a deep breath before standing up all the way this time and walking over to the wall. "Do you think our baby will be alright?" I called after him in a broken voice. The three of them froze at my question.

Corran turned and rushed back to me. "I promise I'll do everything I can to help you and our baby, Ella."

I brushed a tired kiss across his lips. I knew that already. But I hadn't missed that he couldn't give me a yes or no about the effects the virus could have on our child.

A tear trickled out of my eye, and my fear was reflected in the eyes of my three men.

Corran stood up, suspiciously wiping at his eyes as he walked back towards the wall and got to work.

We sat in silence, nothing but the sound of the small machine and Corran's occasional curses as his attempts to hack into the system failed.

The buzzing went on for a while, and then stopped suddenly. Derrial and Thane came closer to me to inspect the bite, nodding satisfactorily when they saw the job it had done. I glanced down the best that I could at my wound. It was just another reminder how amazing Vepar technology was. The stitching was so small that you could barely see it. An injury like this would have left a hideous scar on Earth. I doubted I would even have one even though the bite had gone down into my muscle.

If only a scar was what I had to worry about.

Corran came over with the small silver device that I had seen work miracles on other injuries. "Why didn't we just start with that?" I asked curiously.

"With injury to the muscle like that...and the chance of infection, I like to do a bit of old school medicine before using this. It's an amazing feat of technology, but it's not perfect."

"Corran admitting that something he created isn't perfect...it's a miracle," Derrial smirked and a tiny smile made its way onto my face.

Corran shot him an annoyed glare and then hovered the device over my skin, making the stitches disappear completely. My mouth parted in shock. It looked like I hadn't even been bit, with the exception that there was blood all over Derrial and me.

"How are you feeling?" Corran asked again.

"Tired, but not crazy?" I told him and he nodded seriously once again before getting back to work. This time Thane followed him over the wall to help him.

I yawned, and Derrial pulled out one of the blowup pillows from his pouch and set it up on the ground.

"Why don't you try to sleep? It looks like it might be a while for them to get past this set of security measures and your body needs as much sleep as it can get."

I didn't even try to argue, immediately laying down on the pillow and letting Derrial cover me with a foil looking blanket that I had discovered was actually the warmest blanket I'd ever experienced.

I was asleep before I took my next breath.

WHEN I WOKE UP, Derrial was passed out on the floor next to me, Thane was sitting against the far wall - watching me like he was standing guard in case I woke up and tried to attack everyone - and Corran was still working. It didn't seem like he'd made any progress while I was sleeping, based on the small tick in his cheek, his hair that was all over the place, and the stressed shadows under his eyes.

"You're awake!" Thane exclaimed, jumping up and stalking towards me. Corran stopped what he was doing to come over to me as well. I was still groggy from sleeping so heavily so it took me a moment to remember where we were and what we had been doing. It hit me then - I had been bitten by an infected Vepar. I immediately took stock of my body.

I felt sick, but it was the kind of feeling that came from needing more sleep and from going through something traumatic and painful, like having your shoulder ripped open. I didn't seem to have any urges to go after anyone in the room, and I still seemed to have a clear head. The baby gave me a sharp kick just then, and I rubbed my stomach carefully. It would seem that so far, so good.

"You're still you," Thane said as he examined me critically.

"I think so?" I responded, shrugging my shoulders.

"Corran, how long has it been taking for Vepar to get infected?"

Corran held a device to my forehead that I knew from past experience was taking my readings. "Within a few hours," he murmured in a distracted tone as he read whatever information was coming off the device.

"How long has it been?"

"Ten hours," answered Thane, his voice growing excited. "She's probably not going to get it if she hasn't already?"

Corran wasn't as quick to agree with that statement, but he looked like he was getting a little excited as well. There had been a general air of sorrow and despair in the room before, but that was quickly dissipating.

Belatedly, I realized what he'd just said. "I've been sleeping for ten hours just now? And you still haven't been able to get us into the main part of the lab." Corran flinched at my questions and I immediately felt bad. I knew he was trying as hard as he could to figure it out.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, choosing not to answer my question-which I didn't blame him for. "You have a low-grade fever."

"I feel achy," I admitted. "Like right before you get the cold or something."

Corran nodded like he'd expected that, but his mood seemed to improve even more.

Surprisingly, I yawned again. Thane was lowering me back to my pillow before I could say another word. "You should try and sleep more. Between carrying a Vepar baby and someone trying to eat you, you need to sleep as much as possible."

I wasn't quite as tired this time, but again, I didn't put up a fuss. And surprisingly, despite the fact that I'd just slept for an incredibly long amount of time, it didn't take me long to fall back asleep.

When I woke up the next time, it was because Thane had just picked me up and was about to carry me through the opening that had finally appeared on the far wall. Through it, I could see a large room that resembled some of the other Vepar labs I'd been in.

Corran had done it, we were in!

11

I  felt like crap. Like I somehow contracted the worst flu in the world, and then compounded it with my head feeling like it might explode and my emotions blurring into one great heap.

But I pushed on, because we’d come this far. The answer to the infected had to exist in this laboratory. The bitemark on my arm still throbbed, and I was terrified I’d soon become one of the sick, and that included my baby.

We’d been through so much, fought so much, struggled so much. So I refused to let this thing beat me.

Thane held me tight and dragged me deeper into the lab. It was a large room that could easily fit fifty people standing. A large counter ran down the middle and another against the back wall, filled with all kinds of technology I couldn’t begin to comprehend. But Corran smiled for the first time in days and raced up to the wall of glass refrigerators with shelves of vials of different serums and god knew what else kept in here. The place smelled sterile and like antiseptic. I assumed the scientists would have been horrified to see us in here without proper gear.

The room seemed to tilt around me, and Thane swept me off my feet and carried me across to where a medical bed lay near the refrigerated samples.

Derrial joined Corran in searching everything in this place while I lay there trying to steady the room from dancing so much in my head.

“See if you can get some rest or even sleep while I help Corran.” He studied me all over like I was the experiment, but I knew he meant well. His hand touched the skin on my arm just below the bitemark. I flinched.

“It’s so sensitive,” I explained.

His fingers moved up and gently pressed on my shoulder, and I winced. He did the same across my collarbone, and the pain followed.

Worry pushed his thick eyebrows together, and he didn’t need to say anything. I knew the look. “It’s spreading, isn’t it?” I couldn’t bring myself to ask the question of how long I had before it really changed me and I became something other than myself.

He held my hand and pushed away the loose strands of hair caught on my eyebrows. “Don’t worry. We are going to find a cure, and you will be the first to be healed.”

As much as he tried to smile, I watched the crack in his demeanour. The terror behind his gaze. The slight shake of his hand against mine. He was terrified and wouldn’t show it in front of me. Except, I was beyond scared now. My thoughts were so far beyond that.

I held onto his hand tight. “Please, you must do something for me.”

“Of course.” He ran his hand through my hair as I looked up at him from the medical bed. “Anything.”

“If it looks like I’m not going to make it, you need to save the baby.”

His face paled, and I tightened my grip. “Please, Thane. If it’s too late for me, promise me you’ll save the baby.”

His eyes glistened, and he swallowed loudly, struggling to find his words. “Oh, Ella. Even if I have the strength to make such a promise, I don’t know if the little one is infected or not. We haven’t done enough tests to properly understand how this virus works.”

The words were a blade to my soul, and I wanted to scream and cry. Except, I knew he was right. My throat thickened and a tear trickled down my face that he wiped away with a thumb.

“Ella, please don’t cry. Don’t give up hope. We made it this far. You have one of the best scientists in Vepar in this room working on it. If anyone can find the cure, it’s Corran.”

I nodded, not trusting my voice.

Thane leaned down and kissed me sweetly. “Just rest for now. I’m going to see what I can do to help.”

“Thank you,” I murmured and watched him head over to the other two. All three were whispering so low, I couldn’t make out their words.

Then all three broke out into a frantic rush and began checking every single thing in the room. Cupboards. Vials. What looked like test tube bowls sitting on the counter inside a plastic transparent box. My head hurt too much to even try to make sense of everything here.

But I just watched them. My three husbands, who were working frantically for me, for our baby, for their planet.

All I could think about was how I first met Derrial at the nightclub back on Earth. How that one decision to go to a club had changed my entire life. Where would I be now if I didn’t go out that night? Would the Khonsu have tracked me down, and I’d be one of those women trapped in the farms?

I felt a spark of appreciation that I had met these Vepar. Without them, I never would have found my father or discovered what happened to my mother. I never would have found love in a world ravaged and torn apart.

Looking up at the ceiling, the fluorescent lights shone with a blue tinge, and I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to push all thoughts out of my mind. To calm my racing heart. To stop feeling like I might pass out from the panic strangling me.

I had no idea what was going to happen, but Thane was right about Corran, and I had every faith in them.

Unsure how much time had passed, it was Corran’s strong voice that lured me out of my half sleep state.

“It’s the contaminated blood samples,” he explained as Derrial and Thane approached him. I pushed myself up on my elbow and stared out toward them, listening to them.

“This proves they have been testing the virus here, and we’re going to continue their experiments until we find that cure.”

I trembled at hearing both the fear and excitement in his voice. This was a step forward as he’d found some progress, except what if he didn’t uncover the antidote in time for me? In time before the council arrived and arrested them?

Laying back down, I tried not to overthink and trusted my three husbands could do this. I lay in bed and tried to fight the wave of exhaustion pulsing over me. I shut my eyes once again and tried to drift off.

I didn’t remember falling asleep, but when I groggily opened my eyes, the three Vepar were still working frantically in the lab, Corran calling out instructions. He sounded frustrated and roared at one stage.

I stared at the frustration and anger on his face.

“Fuck. That’s the sixth trial and none of them are fighting the virus.” He dragged a hand through his hair, shadows dancing under his eyes. My heart hurt to see his struggle, how he would never stop until it killed him.

“Keep going,” Derrial barked.

“I’ve tried every technique to eliminate everything the scientists could have used to create the virus. It comes down to a chromosomal level, as the scientists have manipulated nature. They removed DNA, replaced it, changed it so much that it mutated into the infection taking over Veon. So maybe I was wrong, and there was no cure after all. All I have are the samples of Vepar blood they experimented on to develop this pathogen, but not how to undo the mess they created.”

“We need some of those samples,” Derrial stated, his voice stoic and authoritative. “That shows the council has used these labs to test on Vepars. And right now, I’ll take any fucking bit of evidence against them that I can get.”

“Yes, but I still haven’t found a cure.” His voice shook and I knew what he was thinking...he thought of me as he glanced my way with dread in his gaze.

Fear settled heavily in my heart.

“Maybe we need to come at this from another angle,” Thane suggested. “You’re trying elements already used in the creation of this plague… What if it needs a different element to counteract it?”

Corran huffed. “There is a very slim chance anything like that exists in this lab they haven’t already tested. I don’t even know where to begin.” He clasped his hands behind his head as a strained expression washed over his face. “Nothing I’ve tried has created any impact on the virus.”

“Then we test again,” Derrial muttered. “We keep going, in case we missed something.”

I lay back down, feeling hollow. Corran’s fear affected me. If the best scientist couldn’t find a solution, what hope was there for me and everyone else? The bite mark on my arm pulsed as if it had its own heartbeat. The strange thing was, that I didn’t feel much pain now at all, but more like numbness. And that terrified me because it meant one thing… my body was getting closer to assimilating and changing.

The shock of that realization jolted through me. I hugged my stomach. I didn’t want anything to happen to the innocent baby inside me. I felt like screaming.

Corran was using sophisticated equipment, and he still had no luck.

Their conversation kept playing over in my mind about his failed tests. My hand remained on my small belly that churned as I thought back to the Arcathian waters. At how easily they eased my pain and gave my baby energy. What I needed was to bathe in those rejuvenating waters, as they would make me feel better. I knew they would. The tingling over my body from the experience drew away the pain. With that memory came the gorgeous gold petals that I’d eaten that had tasted like the nectar from the gods.

My hand instinctively went to my pocket where I had taken one of the flowers. It would be completely squashed now, but I pushed myself to a sitting position. Slowly, I pulled out the flower and unwrapped the crinkled paper where inside lay a broken and bent stem. Somehow the long petals survived unblemished. The golden color was as vibrant as I remembered it, shimmering under the lights in the lab. And just looking at it had my mouth salivating as I remembered the sweet taste that lay somewhere between honey and the sweetest melon.

Thane’s words came to mind again, and my words fell from my lips before I could give them enough thought. “What if we try experimenting with the properties from the Arcathian flower?”

All three looked over to me, confusion pulling at their features.

“Those waters were miraculous and helped with the vitality of the baby, right? And my pain disappeared completely. So these flowers have healing properties. Isn’t that what we need? Something to help heal the mutated cells? I’m probably saying it wrong as I don’t know the technical words, but what if Thane is right and something like this can help?”

I lifted the paper with the flower in my other hand. “What do you think?”

“You snuck out a flower?” Thane asked. “You were going to eat it, weren’t you?” He smiled as he shook his head.

“Lucky I didn’t.”

Derrial crossed the room in a few long strides to reach my side. He took the flower and smiled at me. “Smart thinking.” He turned to the others. “I agree with Ella. We try out the healing properties of this plant.”

Corran studied the flower in my hand, his brow pinching.

“You said it yourself, we’ve exhausted all other options,” Derrial continued.

Corran nodded. “Fine. We have nothing to lose. I’ll add that to the tests as I do another round of the previous tests in case I missed something. Let’s move fast.”

The three were back at it, and I lowered myself back down, feeling strange all over like I wasn’t quite in my own body. It was a hard sensation to comprehend.

I glanced up at the white ceiling, tired of being inside laboratories. If we ever survived this and escaped, I wanted freedom and to enjoy the outdoors as much as possible.

The baby kicked. I smiled, then placed a hand over my belly and felt the small movements. Despite all the darkness burrowing through, joy pushed to the surface to feel a life inside me. To hold my baby for the first time would be the most precious thing to me. Tears slipped out from the corners of my eyes, thinking that such a chance might be ripped away from me.

I wiped my eyes and shut them, trying to forget everything, to somehow fall asleep again as I waited. For so long, nothing happened, but when someone touched my arm gingerly, I fluttered my eyes open.

Corran stood over me. “I need to take some of your blood, beautiful.”

I quickly nodded and stuck out my hand. “Take what you need.” He wasted no time in finding the vein on the inside of my elbow and I turned away as he used a syringe to extract blood. After all this time in labs, I’d think I would be used to needles, but I still hated them just as much.

I stared at the white wall next to me, blinking away the tears, hating how emotional I was getting. “Do you think the plant will work?” The words escaped my lips.

“We’re about to find out.” Moments later, he whispered, “And I’m done, gorgeous.” Then he folded my arm over my stomach.

I turned as he stole a kiss and lit up my insides. He was gone just like that, and the three of them busied with testing my blood. I didn’t want to overthink if we would succeed, because I wasn’t sure I could take anymore bad news. My gut roiled at the thought.

I pushed myself up to sit on the edge of the bed, unable to lie down another moment. I had no clue how long this part would take. Derrial and Thane crowded around Corran, and they all stared into the glass-like incubator. I shifted to the side to see robotic hands placing a drop of the serum Corran created into a small round dish that had something red inside...I assumed it was my blood.

Then Corran turned to the computer screen on the counter, and frantically typed something. Seconds later, the screen was filled with numbers and symbols along with a line chart. None of it made sense to me.

A startled sound came from Corran as he turned to me. Derrial and Thane studied the screen results closer.

But Corran crossed the room. “Ella, I don’t know how you knew that the flower would work, but its properties are reversing the virus. It’s killing the infection in your cells at such a rapid rate, I can’t believe it.” His smile was infectious and the most amazing thing I’d seen in days.

He cupped my face and kissed me. “I think we did it!” He beamed an explosive smile.

My response came out as a hiccupped cry because I still couldn’t believe it. “You found the cure? Holy mother of all things, you did it. I’ll be cured and so will all those people out there?” I clung onto his arms, happy tears rolling down my cheeks.

“It should work,” he admitted. “I mean I would need more time to test this out, especially for side effects.”

“Use it on me,” I interrupted. “I can feel myself changing, and I don’t want it to be too late for the baby.”

He stared at me as if ready to argue, but I didn’t give him the chance.

“If you don’t, you might lose me. For our baby, I need it. Please, Corran. We don’t have much time.”

I watched the pain cross his face at his decision.

“I think we should,” Thane added. “Those results are spectacular. And her body responded so well in the Arcathian waters.”

“Agreed,” Derria murmured as he approached me.

“Are you sure about this?” Corran asked me.

As if his question lured the sickness in me, that strange pain swept over my chest. I shut my eyes for a moment as the sharp pain flared over me.

“Yes,” I finally gasped. “Please yes.”

“Alright, get her ready,” he ordered and rushed back to the test as Derrial helped me back on the bed. He pushed the sleeve of my other arm up and found a vein easily. “We want to put it straight into your bloodstream for fast results.”

Another wave of pain rolled over me, feeling like dozens of knives raking over my skin. I nodded my response, biting down on my lower lip to fight the ache. Thane was there and wiped a small tissue that smelled of alcohol over the skin.

I looked into both of their gazes. At their love, their worry, their hope.

“Everything will be okay, I know it will,” I reassured their fear more than mine.

As Corran returned, holding a very large syringe, my mouth dried.

I cringed and looked away, every inch of me tense.

A sharp prick pierced the skin, and I clenched my teeth as the sting lasted for the whole duration. Once done, Thane wiped the tissue over the spot once again.

“And done,” Corran said, returning to the counter where he worked.

I felt nothing at first, then small tingles started up my arm that quickly spread over my body... not too different to what I felt in the waters.

A sudden explosion boomed somewhere in the building.

I flinched upright, my heart pounding into my ribcage. My three Vepar froze, the blood draining from their faces. Then voices sounded just outside the door to the lab.

“Fuck!” Derrial murmured. “The council found us!”

I blinked in bewilderment, too terrified to move or make sense of what was happening.

A shudder ran through my body. We finally found a cure and now we were going to get caught!

12

A n explosive bang hit the door to the lab.

A small cry slipped past my lips as panic curled around my chest. I couldn’t breathe as I backed away.

“We’re trapped!” I whispered, my hands pressed to my chest. I wanted to scream and run, except I had nowhere to go.

Corran snatched a small cooler bag and placed a handful of blood vials inside, then rapidly typed like a maniac on the computer. I had no clue what he was doing, but he had to hurry.

Derrial took my arm and pushed me behind him.

“Corran,” Thane roared. “Is there another way out of here?”

Corran spun to face us, his face pale as snow. “At the back,” was all he said as he darted to the rear of the room. Fiddling with something on the wall, the next thing we knew, a door slid open before my eyes and led to a dark passage.

We didn’t wait another second and ran just as the lab doors burst open, slamming into the wall with a resonating boom.

I dove through the secret doorway, as did Derrial and Thane on my heels. My heart banged so hard in my ears. I frantically turned around to see Corran slapping a hand to the wall inside the dark passage, and the door slid shut. We were thrown into darkness.

In seconds, a small beam of light ignited from the pen Corran held, streaming light like a flashlight.

Without a word we followed him, traveling down a dark tunnel. Cemental walls and ceiling guided our path, and we descended down a set of circular escape steps. I held onto the cold, metal railing for dear life and rushed down the three flights of stairs.

My heart thundered when explosions detonated upstairs and the stink of smoke reached up. They were burning down the lab. So how long would it be before they discovered our escape route?

Corran led us left just as overhead, a boom shook the whole building. Voices came so loud now that I knew they had found our passage.

My feet moved faster down a passage, until Corran stopped and I bumped into him.

He fiddled with the control panel, and next thing, the door slid open to a back alley behind the building.

Behind us, the rush of feet pounded the stairs.

The hairs on the back of my neck lifted.

Feeling intense fear in my chest, I moved quickly outside, and we all ran like the devil chased us down the sidewalk. I didn’t remember ever running this fast in my whole life, but nothing was stopping me.

I moved on pure adrenaline. It wasn’t long before Corran soon had us careening back toward the quiet park. No one was around, just the trees swaying from the wind. We scrambled inside the cruiser, and I collapsed into a seat, gasping for air. I couldn’t keep doing this...running for my life. I was so tired of being terrified.

Derrial dove for the driver’s seat and had us ascending in record time. Thane rode shot-gun, while Corran stood nearby, staring outside as if expecting the worst. When he turned to me, his face was ashen, his thick hair the color of mahogany messy, and caramel eyes wild and filled with fear. Much like my own.

Once we had flown so high that we were practically in space, all I could see was a huge portion of the planet. It looked gorgeous from up here…lots of greens and yellows and purples like moving swirls covered the planet’s surface.

“What now?” I asked.

“Now, we need to hide out and make sure there are no side effects to you,” Corran explained. “To keep you safe because you are the most important thing to us.”

“Right now, I feel incredible,” I replied.

He half smiled at me. “Because you are still high on adrenaline from the chase. What you need is to take a hot shower and let your body relax so I can keep track of how you’re responding to the serum.”

“And your body is changing as it prepares for the baby,” Thane said. “We can’t risk you getting hurt now.”

I fought back the emotions that this ordeal still haunted me with. “You’re scaring me a bit. Is there something I should know about the upcoming birth?” I got to my feet.

Thane and Corran exchanged looks before glancing at me with soft smiles.

“Tell me,” I demand. “I have to know what to expect.”

Corran shook his head. “Not yet, kitten. First, you heal and nurture your body. That is most important right now.”

I hated not knowing, but I also knew how stubborn these Vepar were when it came to getting them to reveal a secret. I had time until the birth of my baby, so I’d keep working on convincing them.

“Have a shower and rest. Leave the rest with us for now, please.” Corran was at my side and he kissed my nose and my cheeks and chin, and finally my lips. “We need to see how your body reacts to the serum.”

When he nodded, I did the same, parroting him because I knew he was right.

“Shower sounds perfect.” I headed into the rear of the cruiser where our living quarters were. I had spent so much time on spaceships that they felt like a home, which was a strange thing to think.

By the time I showered and dressed in fresh clothes, I felt somewhat normal. What just happened came crashing down on me as I entered my shared bedroom with my husbands. A large bed in the middle of the room waited. Deep blue bed sheets looked crisp and so inviting. Except I found myself returning to the built in wardrobe behind me. There, I pushed my head inside and inhaled the faint smell of my Vepar, even the slightest smell of them calming me. Derrial’s woodsy and musky scent stood out the most, and I savored the way the smell made me melt with comfort.

I couldn’t explain it, but I needed my Vepar next to me. But they had to work out where we were going and our next steps. I’d join them as soon as I had a small break. So, I grabbed an arm full of their clothes and tossed them onto the bed. Then I climbed into the bed and curled myself in the middle of them, drawing the shirts and pants and jackets closer to me like a cocoon. In my head, I knew this was crazy behavior I couldn’t explain, but something about having their clothes around me put me at ease.

As exhaustion wracked my body and mind, I refused to make sense of it all and just closed my eyes.

SIX WEEKS Later

THE ANTIDOTE CORRAN created with the healing flowers from the Arcathian waters worked. They more than worked… they cured me of everything from the ache I’d always had in my elbow, to the sore neck pain I got when I didn’t sleep well, and even the spider veins on my thigh vanished. Most importantly, the bite I got never infected me.

I rubbed my now huge belly as the baby kicked, restlessly. The pregnancy moved so quickly that I still couldn’t believe how large my stomach had grown in such a short time. Both excitement and fear sat on my mind, and I was left unsure exactly what to expect for the birth. And none of my men would elaborate on what I was to expect, which only made my mind go wild with ideas on what would happen.

After escaping from the lab, we’d been hiding out in a safe house away from the city to keep a fair distance from the council. Just us four in a small undetectable house while my baby belly grew bigger and the three Vepar worked tirelessly on mass producing the antidote serum. Along with figuring out how to best distribute it to the greater population. The process of mass production had taken them longer than expected due to the constant trips back and forth to the beach to collect the healing flowers and remain undetected. Then they ran across problems in making larger batches.

Recently, they had sent squads of a small handful of family and friends they trusted to administer the antidote. To themselves first, and then everyone they knew. It was a small start, but it meant the serum in their bloodstream made them immune to a bite. All this under the nose of the council. They’d been slowly building a team of supporters with the hope they would spread the word once they were ready with more serum.

From what they’d told me, and what I’d seen on the news, Veon was wrecked and would need to be rebuilt. It was horrible to see the planet fall apart at the seams.

I let the three of them focus on the solutions while I dealt with my growing belly.

The baby was coming in two weeks...according to Corran, though by my size, I somehow doubted there was any more space for the baby to grow inside me.

Fear built in my chest as I still had no clue what to expect, and they always changed the topic when I asked questions. Which of course, made me worry a million times worse.

I stepped in front of the mirror in the bedroom, standing sideways, looking at how large I looked.

“You look more beautiful today than I’ve ever seen you,” Derrial said as he stood in the doorway, admiring me. Just having his eyes on me heated me instantly. Since settling in this house, our sex life had intensified, and the majority of the time, I instigated it. I felt constantly horny lately in their company, as if their presence alone ignited my arousal.

“You have to say that as you’re my husband,” I teased him as I looked at my reflection once more. My long dark hair had grown so much longer since I left Earth, and I looked so puffy, I sighed. “Gosh, I look like a giant marshmallow.”

Derrial stepped close and stood behind me in the mirror, his arms looped around my wide stomach. His lips found the tender curve of my neck and kissed me up to my ear.

“All I see when I look at you is an incomparable beauty. My heart beats faster. And…” He pressed his groin against my ass, and I gasped at the hardness of his cock.

“That’s what you do to me, my pet, from just looking at you. You are the love of my life, Ella.”

I adored the way he stared at me with such admiration, but underneath lay a sliver of fear for me. I couldn’t help but love how much he struggled to rein in his emotions around me. My heart squeezed. I shouldn’t have expected that reaction, but it still took me by surprise.

His mouth dragged across my neck as his hands swept to my shoulders and pulled down the straps of my dress. He pushed the fabric down my arms, and the material shivered all the way down to my feet. I wore nothing underneath as I had just come out of a shower.

Derrial swiftly grasped my breasts and squeezed, his fingers pinching my hardened pebbles. I moaned against him, heat already pooling between my thighs at his touch.

His breath hitched as he rocked his hard-on against the ass. Next thing, he took my wrist and turned me around before guiding me to the bed. He swept me off my feet and into his arms, then he lay me down on the mattress, my ass still to the edge of the bed.

“Spread your legs for me, my pet.”

I quivered when Derrial spoke to me with such authority. I pried open my knees. His gaze lowered down my body, and the way he stared at me with such primal, intense hunger that it sent a flame of heat through me. He dropped to his knees between my legs, and his mouth was on my heat in seconds.

I arched my back, a moan streaming past my mouth. Fuck. Damn. The flat of his tongue rubbed over my clit, and desire overflowed over every inch of me. I couldn’t breath as he devoured me, my mind whirling with desire, my heart racing.

My head grew dizzy from the building climax. I writhed, loving every velvety lick. My heart thundered. I was on the verge of exploding when he pulled back, as if sensing my build up.

He rose before me, already peeling off his shirt up and over his head. He was so muscular, from his strong jaw, clean and shaven, to those angles cutting across from his chest and powerful biceps. My body reacted, nipples hardening.

“Shuffle farther up on the bed,” he asked as he unbuckled his pants and dropped them before stepping out.

I pushed myself up but never looked away from the stiffness of his large cock. I inhaled and exhaled forcefully at the sight.

“I want you so damn much,” he murmured as he climbed onto the bed, crawling toward me with his hands and needs. He gently rolled me onto my side as he positioned himself behind me. His chest plastered against my back. His hand reached down to lift my leg as he slid his thigh between mine. His fingers found my drenched heat while his mouth kissed my neck.

“It feels amazing,” I purred.

His hand moved up to the curve of my hip and maneuvered himself for easier access. I felt the thickness of his cock sliding between my ass cheeks and to my slick heat.

I gasped, my body responding instantly, liquid fire coating the insides of my thighs. I was breathing harder and faster.

Derrial guided the tip of his cock to my opening. My whole body tensed, anticipating, craving him. “I want to be balls-deep in you. I can’t get enough of how delicious your taste and smell, how your soaked pussy sucks on my cock. I dream about fucking you most nights.”

A shiver coiled tight in the pit of my gut. Derrial’s words completely undid me. I shook with need. “Please take me,” I said. “I can’t stand it any longer.”

His hot breath skated over the burning flesh of my neck. He leaned in close and ran the tip of his tongue around the outside of my ear. Then he pushed into me. I cried out from the pleasure it brought to have him stretch me. All thoughts dissolved as only the two of us existed at that moment. He thrust into me, in and out, faster, the friction igniting a fire inside me. He fucked me like he’d been holding out for months. It had only been days.

His body grew so hard and tense against my back.

The groaning sounds that came from him drove me insane with need.

His fingers found my nipples and pinched them as he fucked me from behind. I grew wetter the deeper he drove into me, my body completely at his mercy.

He pulled out of me then slammed back in, his fingers deftly flicking and tugging at my nipples. I moaned, dying for more as I rose to a peak. The harder he took me, the quicker I escalated, and he pushed me over the edge.

I cried out as I shuddered with the orgasm rocking my body. In that same moment he groaned loudly and pulsed inside me, filling me. He held me tight as we both floated on pleasure. Our bodies pressed together, covered in sweat.

“You are so perfect, Ella. You are everything I want.”

I opened my mouth to respond when I spotted Corran and Thane near the doorway, watching us. Their hands were on their cocks, and I loved the way they stared at me.

Today wouldn’t be an overly productive day for me, but what a day it would be.

13

I  was enormous. There was no other way to describe me. Looking at the black and white dress I was trying to squeeze myself in, I was reminded of Kim Kardashian's unfortunate "killer whale" dress during her first pregnancy. This was not a flattering look for someone who resembled an enormous whale.

It was amazing to me how fast my body had changed. Three and a half months ago, I'd been a tiny thing, half-starved and rail-thin from everything I'd been through on this planet. Not saying that was a good look at all, but it was incredible that my body could go from that...to this, in that amount of time.

Maybe I was just forgetting what human pregnancies were like, but I couldn't recall any of the pregnant people that I'd seen on Earth ever getting this big. I turned to the side and examined my belly. Corran had assured me that there was only one baby in there, but I wasn't sure that he was telling the truth. This better not be one of those things that they decided was better that I found out at birth than before. We'd done an ultrasound, but the image had been suspiciously blurry. Somehow I didn't think that Vepar technology - which was always leagues ahead of Earth on everything else - would somehow be lacking in the ultrasound department.

I guess it didn't really matter, there was nothing more that I wanted from life than this baby, healthy and here in my arms.

After some prodding, I'd finally convinced the guys to get me information on a Vepar birth. Of course, there wasn't anything out there about how it would go for a human who was carrying a Vepar, but the information was still useful just the same. It at least explained some of the odd things that I'd found myself doing.

For example, I'd begun nesting. Now I knew that on Earth, it was called nesting when a human mother began cleaning her house, organizing, and putting the nursery together in preparation for the birth. But my version of nesting had been nothing like that.

I was literally creating a nest that consisted of every piece of clothing from my husbands, blankets, and pillows that the safe house had, along with all sorts of other things. The instinct to create this "nest" was so strong that at first, I hadn't even realized I was doing anything strange. That is until the guys asked where all their clothes had gone, and we realized that they all had ended up in the giant pile of things that I'd put together.

I'd started hoarding snacks as well. I would get sealed packages of snacks from the blessed Vepar machine in the kitchen that gave you whatever food you wanted, and I would hide the snacks in various places in my nest. Apparently, my subconscious was very worried about being hungry while giving birth.

I'd also made Corran get rid of the feature that allowed you to see outside. I needed my nest to be dark and cozy. I had the guys bring in pieces of furniture to put around the bed so that the room didn't seem as big, since my limited supply of blankets and pillows limited how large the nest could get.

I spent most of my time in the nest at this point, adding little things here and there. This safe house also had the machine that could make you clothes, and I'd been having fun getting it to create little baby outfits. Since we'd decided right before Corran did the ultrasound that we weren't going to find out the baby's sex until he or she was born, I was having the machine create clothes for both genders. Those found their way into the nest as well.

I'd seen the guys exchanging amused glances, but I didn't care. Besides, the information that Corran had given me said this was totally normal. I'd checked a few times to confirm that, since I felt like I'd been going crazy.

There were some other odd things that I knew were not normal for a human pregnancy. For example, besides the ever-present feel of the baby pummeling the hell out of my insides, every once in a while, I would feel something sharper jab into me. The first time that it had happened, I'd shrieked, sending the guys hurtling into the room. I'd thought that it was just a sharp kick until it happened again, and I realized that there was no way that was a foot unless that foot had a sharp set of claws attached to it…

Luckily, the book assured me that my baby was not going to be born with claws. But it would most likely be born with horns...and maybe a tail. Vepar didn't learn to hide those traits until they were at least ten years old. At first, I'd been a little disoriented about the extras my baby would come with, but then I'd thought of Hasso's sweet child, and it no longer scared me. Horns or not, I was going to love the hell out of this baby and think it was the cutest thing on Veon.

Another strange thing, I could actually hear the baby inside of me. And I didn't mean that I could hear its heartbeat with a stethoscope. I could actually hear the baby, clear as day, every time it cooed, gurgled, and cried inside of me. It was like my stomach had been stretched so thin that there was nothing in between the baby and me but skin.

Corran assured me this was not the case, and the baby information confirmed that, but it was exceptionally strange to be trying to have sex with one of your husbands and for the baby to begin crying.

I guess it was good preparation for after the birth.

Most of the rest of my symptoms were pretty normal for humans. I wanted to eat everything in sight, but the baby had gotten so big that I could only eat a few bites at a time before having to take a break. Of course, then I would be hungry again half an hour later. Keeping myself fed was a full-time job.

My swelling was also terrible. My feet could barely fit into shoes since my legs and ankles were so large so I spent most of the time barefoot. Since walking on cankles wasn't the most fun, and I was beyond tired anyway, I spent most of my time curled up in my nest, reading up on the baby. Whenever I wasn't in my nest I was either eating, cleaning, or setting up for the baby, even though I knew we would have to leave the safe house soon after the baby's birth.

The thought of leaving our little home filled me with dread. Alone in the middle of nowhere, it was hard to remember how terrible the rest of Veon actually was. The temptation was enormous for me to just forget about all the problems that existed out there. But I knew we couldn't do that. I wanted a world where my child would be safe. And that wouldn't happen without us, that much was clear based on the news that continued to stream in every day.

"Owwww," I all of a sudden hissed as a contraction hit me. I'd been having Braxton Hicks the last two months, but over the last week, the contractions had been getting heavier and heavier. Corran hadn't needed to tell me that it was almost time for the baby to get here. My body was making that part clear.

I'd just caught my breath when another contraction hit. There'd barely been a couple of minutes between the two of them, and my heart began to race.

Was today going to be the day?

Panic coursed through me. I couldn't be a mom, especially a mom of an alien baby. I didn't know the first thing about motherhood. I was going to mess everything up. And how was I going to keep my baby safe with everything going on? Its parents were the most wanted beings on Veon.

"Fuckkkk," I all but screamed as another contraction hit, cutting off the doomsday road I'd been heading down.

Derrial popped his head into the room, a concerned look on his face.

"Everything alright, love?"

"Nooo. Everything is not alright. I think the baby is coming," I wailed as I struggled to get off my nest. I had to pee and eat and make sure the baby's room was ready.

"The baby's coming...today?" Derrial asked in a panic.

I screamed as another contraction hit me. Weren't these supposed to build in intensity? How was I possibly going to survive if they were already this bad? Corran had better have figured out the right dose of epidural to give me because....fuckkkkkk.

My knees buckled from the pain, and Derrial barely made it in time to catch me.

"I'm not ready,” I sobbed.

"Let's get you back in bed, baby," he soothed. He pressed his comm. “Get in here," he barked into it before sweeping me into his arms and walking me to the bed.

He had just set me down right in front of my nest when I felt something wet and warm trickling down my leg.

We both stared at the floor in astonishment as a small puddle collected under me. "Did I just pee?" I asked in horror. I needed to go to the bathroom but…

"Your water just broke," said Corran as he rushed in. "Clean that up," he barked at Derrial before gathering me into his arms and helping me into the nest. "Bring me some towels," he ordered Thane, who'd just rushed in as well.

"Ahhhhhh," I yelled out as another contraction hit. Thane handed Corran a wet towel and a dry towel, and Corran wiped me down, helping me out of my undergarments so I was just in the comfortable nightgown type clothing that the machine had created for me earlier that morning.

"Spread your legs, I'm going to check you," he commanded me gently, and I took a deep breath before spreading my legs wide. Corran inserted a finger to check me, and I flinched from the pain. "Your cervix is still as tight as a rock," he explained. "And you're only dilated to a one. It's going to be a while yet."

"How is it hurting this bad at a one?" I sobbed as another contraction ripped through me. I knew I had an above-average pain tolerance so this wasn't about me being a wimp.

"We don't have anything to compare your symptoms to, Ella. You're the first..."

"I know I'm the first," I screamed as tears rushed down my face. I knew I was out of control...but this seriously hurt. It was like my insides were being forcibly ripped apart. "Is there anything you can give me?" I whimpered, not sure how I was going to make it.

Corran was already shaking his head though. "If I give you anything for the pain right now it could delay the labor, basically freezing you at this point which could be dangerous for you and the baby. We're going to have to wait until you're at least at five before we can do it."

Derrial had settled in beside me and was holding my hand while I cried. Thane was pacing behind Corran as he ran his hands frustratedly through his hair.

The next hours were literal hell. I'd tried to imagine what labor was like, tried to remember what people I'd talked to back on Earth had mentioned about it, but nothing could have prepared me for this. I'd been crying the entire time, unable to stop since the contractions were coming in one after the other, barely giving me a breath to recover before the next one hit.

The worst thing was, in all of that time, I had only progressed to a four.

I started to sob harder at the news, and Derrial started yelling at Corran that there had to be something they could do.

"I'm going to start the epidural. It's a little different process on Veon, but it’s still a needle in your spine," he explained, and I nodded gratefully, up for anything if it could mean that there would soon be relief.

I remembered that one of my mom's friends had said she loved delivery day. She and her husband got a break from her other kids, she would get the epidural early, and then they would spend the day watching movies and reading as she progressed.

"Loving" delivery day was probably the last thing I would say at this moment. Thane had tried to put up a movie for me at one point, trying to help me take a mind off what was happening, but after I threw one of the books I'd hid in my nest at the screen when the female actress looked a little too pretty and skinny for my current pregnant self to take, we'd all quickly decided that movies weren't going to work.

Derrial helped me set up as I tried to breathe through the almost constant pain. Corran cleared off the area with the cleansing solution and then he picked up a shot looking object that seemed closer in size to a sword than any shot needle I'd seen on Earth.

"What the hell is that?" Thane asked in horror. I was right there with him, trying to decide if I really could live through the pain I was dealing with because that thing was going to slice through my spinal cord.

"I know it looks a little menacing, but you will barely feel anything after the skin numbing solution kicks in," he explained as he applied said solution with his other hand.

"There's no way that can go in me," I squeaked, and Corran moved it out of my eyesight. Thane could still see the needle from his vantage point and he looked like he was about to pass out.

"Take a deep breath," he said. "You'll be thanking me for this later."

I nodded, tears squeezing out of my eyes as I took my deep breath right after a contraction had stopped.

Sure enough, somehow I only felt a small pinch as the needle went in. Corran talked me through the whole process and within five minutes, my contractions felt like light period cramps instead of the soul-shattering contractions they'd been prior.

My whole body shook as I laid back down in my nest. The adrenaline rush from hours of extreme pain was hard to recover from and Corran frowned as he examined my vitals. "Your heart rate is a little low," he muttered as he concentrated on listening to my chest.

"How is that possible?" I whispered, feeling light-headed. "It feels like my heart is going a million miles a minute."

"How are you feeling?"

"There's barely any pain...but - " My voice broke off as my lungs seemed to close up. It was hard to breathe and I felt so freaking tired.

"Ella!" Corran yelled sharply. "Stay awake!"

"She's having a reaction to the epidural," he explained as I faintly saw him reach to unhook the device in my back from the medicine that had been flowing into it. He then grabbed another bag of fluid and attached it to my IV.

A few minutes later and the fuzziness that had built up in my head, and the pressure in my chest...they both eased, and I was able to start breathing again.

Unfortunately, with those changes came the return of my contractions.

"You're going to have to do this unmedicated, baby," Corran explained softly. "We can't risk that reaction happening again."

I cried as I nodded. There was no other choice, and screaming and protesting wasn’t going to change the fact.

Pain. That's all I was conscious of for the next few hours. Hours that seemed like days. Everything was pain.

I was only faintly aware of the others' presence in the room. All of my concentration was on surviving the next contraction. I'd begun to progress, thank heavens. So I lived for the checks that would get me closer and closer to it all being over.

"It's time to push," Corran announced triumphantly and I mustered a small smile right before I almost broke Derrial's hand that I was holding as another contraction rolled through.

Corran pressed a button, and a small table suddenly rose up from the ground at the bottom of my nest. Derrial and Thane helped me scoot so that I was right up against it.

"Ok, I want you to take a deep breath and then push as hard as you can," Corran explained and I nodded hesitantly. It hit me once again that I was about to meet my baby. Everything had hurt so much that I hadn't really been able to think about it much.

Taking my deep breath, I began to push. And I pushed, and I pushed, and I pushed.

And the baby didn't budge.

"Fuck," Corran muttered as he brought up the complicated ultrasound type system to the side of my nest and held it over my stomach.

"What?" Thane asked anxiously. He hadn't stopped looking nauseous.

"The horns are preventing the baby from coming out," he said quietly. "Ella's vagina doesn't have quite the stretching capability as a Vepar mother's would to accommodate them."

"The horns?" I gasped out. "Our baby is stuck inside me because of its horns?"

Corran nodded, not making eye contact with me. They thought I was freaked out because our baby had horns, but I was actually way more freaked out over the fact that the baby was stuck inside of me because of the horns."

Corran began gathering supplies. "What are we going to do?" I groaned as another contraction hit. They were basically constant now, maybe fifteen seconds in between each one.

"I'm going to perform a cesarean," he said calmly, despite the fact that I knew Corran had never done one before.

Thane looked like he was about to pass out, and Derrial's hand was probably broken from me holding onto it so tightly.

"Is that really necessary?" I asked, knowing it was a stupid question.

Corran stopped what he was doing and knelt next to me. "Ella, you are doing so well. And I know it hurts, and I know you're scared. But we're about to meet our little baby. And then all of this is just going to be a faint memory. Because it's going to be here." There were little tears gathering in his eyes at his little speech. Hell, everyone had tears in their eyes at his little speech.

I nodded determinedly, until he brought another bag to my IV. "What's that for?"

"I can't just use an epidural for this because of your reaction. I'm going to have to knock you out. But luckily, our drugs are much more concise than you’re used to and I'll be able to wake you up as soon as you're sewn up."

I cringed at the thought of being knocked out with my insides splayed out, but a quick glance at the heart rate monitor showed that the baby's heart rate was showing it was starting to be stressed.

No sooner had I said, "Ok," then everything faded to black.

THE SOUND of a baby crying was the first thing I heard when I woke up. It took me a minute to open my eyes, but when I did, everything hit me at once. That was my baby I was hearing.

"You did so good, love. She's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," whispered Corran as he handed her to me.

A girl. We had a girl. I started sobbing as I examined our baby who was wriggling in my arms. She'd stopped crying as soon as he laid her in my arms. She had dark hair, so dark it was almost black, and almond-shaped, hazel eyes that looked the same shade as Corran's. I knew that human babies were usually all born with blue eyes, but Vepar babies must come out with their eye color already in place because the proof was right in front of me. She had bow-shaped lips and a tiny nose. And...she had two tiny white horns.

She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen and I immediately burst into tears as I looked at her.

Looking up at my men who were all gathered around me, they were all openly sobbing as well. My heart felt like it had expanded in size by a million somehow. I'd never known I could love something so much, so immediately.

She let out a little cry that sounded like a dove cooing and we all laughed through our tears. "She's probably hungry, my darling," said Corran in a choked voice, and he helped me take off my top so that I could bring her to my breast.

To my surprise, she immediately latched and started sucking, her eyes closed and her tiny fist clenched on top of my breast.

I had been wrong before at feeling like home. We'd always been missing something before this. Only now, with her, were we truly complete, were we truly home.

"I'm so proud of you, my pet," Thane cooed and pressed a kiss against my forehead.

I smiled tremulously at him.

"Thank you for giving us a family," added Derrial, blinking furiously as he tried to control his emotions.

"I love you," added Corran.

Despite all the pain and agony, this was the best day of my life.

WE'D BEEN parents for a few days now. We'd all instantly agreed that we should name her Rory, short for Aurora, after my mother's name. We were all exhausted, but the happiest we'd ever been. I spent every second in my nest with Rory, while the guys took turns in the room with me while the others would work on the antidote and keep up to date with what was going on around us.

Despite my fears that I wouldn't be able to be a mother, I realized quickly that most of being a mother was just loving your baby. She kept us awake most of the night, and even with the fancy Vepar diaper technology, I was pooped on at least twice a day. And sometimes I cried when she refused to latch. And I still just loved every second of it.

Vepar babies advanced faster than human babies, but because Rory was half-human, she developed at a speed more advanced than a human, but less advanced than a Vepar baby. It was fascinating to see her change almost every day though. She smiled constantly. And because of how advanced she was, you couldn't even say it was gas. Everything the guys did was funny to her, but she was a momma's girl through and through. She liked to be holding on to some part of me at all times and her upper lip would quiver if I left the room for even a minute. I didn't mind it one bit. She laughed at two weeks old, and I wanted to bottle up the sound and keep it forever. It sounded like a tinkling of bells, very different from a human laugh. And it was the most amazing thing I'd ever heard.

We were in heaven.

A couple of weeks passed like this and as much as I tried to block it out, I knew that we had stayed away for about as long as we possibly could. The guys were getting more and more concerned with what was going on, and with what the reports were saying, it wouldn't be too long anyway before the trouble out there would find our safe house.

We had no other choice.

Our babymoon was about to end.

14

“A re you sure about this?” I asked Derrial nervously over the breakfast table. Here we sat, eating fluffy pancakes with berries while talking about disrupting the whole planet of Veon.

Derrial nodded and took a mouthful of pancakes, as if we casually talked about what we’d do with our day. “We’re good to go. The serum is ready to be dispatched worldwide to everyone needing it. And the only way to get distribution is to let everyone know what the council has been up to. To show them evidence of their corruption. To cause distrust so that when we offer our serum, more people will be inclined to accept it and see the truth.”

“We’ll need to overpower the council,” Thane added, supporting this decision. “It’s the only way to derail their plans and save everyone.”

I pushed my plate away, my stomach feeling queasy. “So, you’re going head to head with them?”

“Not quite,” Corran answered. “If our plan works, we won’t be alone in this battle.”

I shifted in my seat uncomfortably. “I’m just scared this will backfire. The council will never go down without a fight.”

“And that’s what we are counting on. No one will stand up to them alone, but as a collective, people will stand up and fight,” Thane explained.

Derrial and Corran nodded.

All three looked at me and smiled like I had nothing in the world to worry about.

I bit on my lower lip, thinking it over, praying this plan worked. “I know you’re right. It’s just me being worried. We are a family now, and we have Rory to care for.”

Derrial leaned closer and took my hand in his. “This is why we have to stand up to them. They’ll continue to walk over anyone in their way and they’ll continue to destroy our people. If we don’t fight, what sort of future will we be leaving for our precious little girl?”

My heart clenched at hearing the ache in his voice, at what was at stake. I looked at each of my three husbands, loving each one of them with everything I had. If it wasn’t for them, I never would have found this new future. And that was a future worth saving beyond anything.

“Okay, we do this, but we’ll just be super vigilant,” I said, knowing even as I said it what I was asking for wouldn’t be possible.

Derrial got up. He was the leader, the Vepar with the strongest political position in Veon besides the council. The Vepar knew him and the hard work he’d done for their kind over the last hundred years.

“It’s time,” Derrial said strongly as he got to his feet. “Thane, prepare the media channels to ensure we tap into every single airwave. Corran, you’re with me during the talk.” Derrial looked over at me. “This will work, pet. You will see.”

I loved his confidence and believed in him. Everyone had left the table to get ready so I checked on my angel who was still fast asleep in her crib, then had a shower and dressed. Next, I packed a bag with baby clothes, formula, diapers, and everything else our parents would need to care for Rory. She would be safe with them while this went down. I couldn’t have her with us in case something went wrong. That wasn’t a risk I was willing to take.

My stomach churned with worry about what we were about to do, but if we did nothing, then what? We kept running while the planet of Veon became a wasteland?

The sound of voices drew my attention, and I slipped out of the nursery and moved quickly down the long hall with white halls and to the far room where the three of them had started the broadcast.

Pressing my back into the wall just outside the room where Derrial and Corran were broadcasting themselves, I remained silent and listened as Derrial finished introducing themselves.

“Veon is devastated. Our futures are in jeopardy, and the infected fill our streets. The council is doing nothing to help because they don’t know how. They are responsible for the virus that has taken your loved ones, yet they do nothing to help you. For years, our council has been experimenting for a way to aid our women in becoming fertile again. But they haven’t been experimenting just on humans. They also have been experimenting with Vepar. They’ve treated our kind like animals.” There was a pause, and I heard a small electronic click.

“The images you are seeing on your screen,” Derrial continued, “are the test papers of the subjects from the council’s laboratories. It clearly shows they are Vepar and being experimented on. These are the same tests that resulted in the virus outbreak that now plagues our lives and devastates our planet.”

Derrial swallowed loudly. “This is our chance to stop the council’s destruction and bring back the Veon we once loved. They must be stopped. I invite you to join us to finally make the council responsible for their actions. The coordinates flashing across your screen is where we will be meeting today at 16:00 hours. Show up and show your support to save our planet before it is too late.”

A loud click sounded of the broadcast ending, and both of them sighed heavily.

“Fuck!” Derrial announced. “That has to work. Did that broadcast reach all the various council airwave channels too?”

“It sure fucking did. And I’m sending them a copy just to ensure they don’t miss it. We need them there.”

“We’re finally doing this,” Corran added, and they cheered. But I sensed the fear in their voices. This was a massive gamble and could just as easily turn against us. So having as many supporters turn up as possible was the key to success.

I stepped into the doorway, unsure how to feel. Scared. Excited. Worried. Still, I smiled. “I may need another quick rundown on using a huge laser gun.”

Thane smiled. “Kitten, I’ve got just the weapon for you. It will fit perfectly in your tiny hand, but will blast someone’s face off.”

“Now you’re talking.” After everything we’d been through, I was ready to eradicate the council and help Veon rebuild itself into a strong world where people didn’t live in fear. I was tired of being scared, and I wanted a bright future for Rory.

“First, we need to drop off our angel at our parents,” I added. “Then I’m ready to kick ass.”

“That’s my girl.” Derrial stretched out his arm toward me, and I accepted his hand. He drew me closer and my husbands all closed in around me. We huddled closer, and I bathed in their warmth and love. Their presence alone encouraged me to stand tall and not back down. We were in this together, and it reminded me why I fought so hard to survive. When I left Earth, I thought I lost everything, but I’d been wrong. That was the moment that I finally started to find myself.

“Today is going to go down in history,” Corran said. “It has to be the start of a new beginning. Otherwise, we’ll all need to move to a planet as far away as possible because if the council survives today, they’ll hunt us down across the universe.”

On that foreboding note, we separated to complete our tasks.

“DO YOU THINK ANYONE WILL COME?” I asked Thane who stood next me in Farilion Park. These were the coordinates they blasted over the airwaves for a final stand off between the Vepar and the council, to finally put an end to their tyranny.

“I pray to the universe they do,” Thane responded. “ I sent out requests to all our allies and friends. They should also join our forces.”

Except, right now the forces were four of us and an empty field. Had the broadcast worked? I couldn’t stop shaking from the trepidation. What if the people didn’t believe us despite the evidence Derrial showed them? What if they preferred better the devil they knew, then actually standing up and fighting back?

The longer we waited, the more the trepidation dug its claws into my chest. I felt vulnerable standing at one end of the field. Our ship was shielded in the trees not far in case things went to hell and we needed a fast escape. But I hoped it didn’t come to that.

The laser gun at my side felt heavy on my belt. The wind blew past, rustling the brightly colored leaves of the nearby trees.

We waited.

The place remained empty of allies.

Empty of our supporters.

Empty of the enemy.

I turned to Derrial when movement across the field caught our attention. I jerked around, my heart in my throat, my fingers grazing the hilt of my gun on my belt.

A river of soldiers suddenly poured out from behind the trees, streaming across the field in front of us. All I saw were their black uniforms, the once brightly colored greens and purples swallowed by darkness.

Any hope I’d held onto now dissolved around my feet. My three Vepar closed in to my sides, weapons raised, except we were out-matched. I knew that. They had to know that.

Fear gripped my chest and squeezed the life out of me.

Breaths caught in my lungs, and a scream rose through me. The council had arrived with the full power of their army against just us four. There was no sign of the council members, but they were near, hiding like gutless rats on their ships.

There were dozens of soldiers...hundreds. More coming out from the tree lines ahead of us.

I gripped my gun, and my muscles tensed.

We’d made a mistake… a terrible mistake. My arms trembled as terror flashed over my thoughts. We had to turn and run.

And all I could think about was never seeing my little angel ever again.

15

I  embraced every sliver of emotion I felt - all the fear and rage - taking it into me as I readied for the unknown.

The four of us faced a monstrous council army. There was no way we could win, no matter how many weapons we had. Not alone. Our gathering in this park was meant to be more about a power play, to show the council the people of Veon had had enough, all under the watchful eye of the media, but not even they turned up.

This was supposed to be an event for everyone to finally see the council’s devious actions.

What it was, was a failure.

No one had come but the enemy. How could no one else have come? Did no one care about their futures, about their leaders’ deceitfulness, about the virus wreaking havoc across Veon?

“We need to get out of here.” My words trembled as my feet slid backward. I gripped Derrial’s arm. “Please, this is suicide.”

“Derrial,” a deep male voice called out over the field, seeming to come from the sky itself, almost god-like. Except it belonged to one of the councilmen I disliked the most. His voice was deep and nasally.

It was Chloped. He’d been the one who ordered blood tests on me when I first arrived on Veon and stared at me like I was a science experiment. Just thinking of him had my skin crawling. I loathed him then and I detested him even more now.

“You started a war today,” Chloped growled, his voice screaming over the open field as if the place was hooked up with speakers.

“A war you will regret,” another council member added, while another two voices in the background mumbled something.

Derrial stood tall, his chin high, never showing fear. And I admired him so much at that moment. The odds were against us, but he didn’t panic or lose his head.

There were four councilmen ruling over Veon. I pictured all four of the weasels hiding in their ship nearby, watching us, too scared to show their faces.

My blood boiled.

Derrial lifted the comm on his wrist to his mouth, and snarled, “You killed so many innocents.” His voice roared as though he spoke through a microphone. “You unleashed the virus killing our people and now you hide from the mess you’ve made.” Derrial turned his attention to the army a good fifty feet away, yelling, “How can you support a council who is killing your families? Who is destroying our planet?”

The river of soldiers never moved or responded. They were trained to be nothing more than mindless fighting machines.

I swallowed hard, and sweat dripped down my spine. They were too far away for me to see the reactions on their faces or if they even cared. Were they so far gone that they did as they were told, not even concerned with the repercussions?

“Enough! Do not spread such lies.” Chloped hollered. “You have once last chance, Derrial, Corran, and Thane. Admit to being instrumental to the spread of the infection on Veon and I will let your human survive. It’s too late for you three.”

“No,” I gasped. “He’ll kill me and our...” I couldn’t bring myself to even say her name in case anyone heard us. I didn’t want anyone to know we had a baby girl… me, a human birthing a Vepar baby. My baby girl and I would be hunted for eternity. I wanted to help the Vepar be able to bear children again, but not at the expense of my own life and future. Which was why councilmen like Chloped could never be left in charge.

Thane’s arms wrapped around me, standing behind me and holding me against his chest in a protective manner.

“You have no other choice,” Chloped reprimanded. “Do the right thing for once.”

I seethed at his arrogance. Thane breathed heavily behind me, Corran’s face twisted into pure fury, while Derrial held himself composed. But I knew him well enough to know he was a bomb on the inside ready to go off.

An icy wind shrieked past.

Derrial glanced over his shoulder at me, the blood drained from his face. He’d run out of options. With no backup, our hope disintegrated. No one else would know the truth of what really happened, what the council covered, and we… we’d be a distant memory. My three husbands would be murdered. I’d be chained in a laboratory and tested on… and what about Rory? How long before they found out about her? What would they do with the first half-human, half-Vepar child?

I couldn’t think about that because already my chest splintered at the thought.

Stepping out of Thane’s arms and closer to Derrial, I took his hand in mine and held his gaze. “We have to run for our lives. We need something to distract them to give us a chance to escape.”

The sorrow on his face speared in my heart. “Listen baby,” I said. “I think the council did something to stop everyone from coming to find us. That’s the only explanation I can think of for why they wouldn’t come. So we need to escape and find another way to let the world know. Otherwise, the council wins here today, and they’ll lie through their teeth. We’ll be blamed for everything.”

“I know,” he muttered, his gaze lowered for a moment before turning to Thane. “Do you still have that trial drone you were testing for weapon use?”

“Yeah, but it’s back at home. I’ll activate it now to come here for the perfect distraction. But we need close to ten minutes before it arrives.”

Corran stepped forward. “Let me try.” With the comm to his mouth, he lifted his chin and addressed the council, wherever they were hiding.

“Councilman, Chloped,” he began. “We all came into this with one mission. To help Vepar females fall pregnant again. What if I said I found the solution that could help millions of Vepars? Release the rest of them and you can take me. I’ll give you everything you need and so much more.”

My heart dropped through me. I reached out to grab him. “No, you can’t do--”

Derrial snatched my arm and drew me back against him, his hand over mine. “Shhh. He knows what he’s doing. We need the time.”

Silence followed, while Thane frantically tapped the comm on his watch, calling his drone. In truth, I was worried it wouldn’t get here in time.

“I don’t negotiate with terrorists, you should know this, Corran,” the councilman’s voice boomed.

“After how much our people have gone through, I would have thought someone like yourself would embrace such a discovery.”

No response for a long while, and my body trembled. “What if they just shot at us?” My muscles tensed as I stiffened. Derrial held me close to him, an arm around my waist.

“Chloped needs you alive, and he’ll never accept Corran’s offer. He’ll take you both, but he won’t openly shoot us in case you get injured.”

That small bit of information made me stand up strong in front of my men as their shield.

“I want the human! The rest can die!” Chloped growled.

The soldiers lunged toward us, and just as Derrial said, they didn’t shoot when I stayed near my men.

My blood ran cold, and a strangled cry escaped past my lips.

And just like that, my world fell into absolute chaos. This was what everything had come down to.

Death.

Derrial’s hand locked with mine tightly. The four of us violently snapped around and ran toward our hidden ship to our right to the side of the cluster of trees. Time felt like it stood still as terror squeezed my heart.

Adrenaline punched my gut, driving me faster. I no longer felt my limbs or any pain. Just the pure need to escape. My brain felt numb. All I could think about was my angel and never seeing her again. Having her grow up without her mom.

A blur of shadows slid out from the woodland ahead of us. A heartbeat later, and more soldiers emerged, coming right for us. Blocking our path.

We halted, and I frantically scanned for another escape. My heart thumped so hard, my knees were so weak from the terror gripping me.

Fear twisted my gut. I cried out with pure shock, with the dread of what was coming for us. I couldn’t let them take my men from me. I couldn’t. Tears drenched my cheeks as I shoved forward and in front of my husbands so they couldn’t dare try to take a shot at them.

Derrial grabbed my wrist and we were running, away from both swarms of soldiers. I looked over to Corran, his eyes darkening and bathing with fear. Thane was the same...we all were because it was clear we were trapped. How far could we really get?

I couldn’t stop crying as I pictured losing everything. I finally found my own family, gained what I thought I lost, and now… now these monsters were going to rip it away from me.

Thundering footfalls pounded behind us, closing in fast.

We ran but we weren’t fast enough. When my heel caught on a rock, I slipped out of Derrial’s grasp and fell to my knees.

Panic wrapped around me. I jumped to my feet quickly as the army closed in.

I screamed out of pure terror. Everything was too late. We’d lost… we’d fucking lost and I wanted to just cry as my insides shredded to nothing.

Thane had his arms on my waist, dragging me backward, and I spun and ran with them.

My body wracked with sorrow, and desperation clung to my ribs.

A sudden explosion of voices came from behind us, booming like a thunderous storm.

I twisted my head back. The skies behind us were dotted with cruisers, dozens and dozens of them all descending onto the field.

My heart beat too fast, my brain too terrified to make sense of what was going on.

An explosion of Vepar appeared from all around us… rushing toward us with weapons raised. But the closer I looked, the more I realized these weren’t soldiers. They were civilians, rushing toward the army, not us. They shouted and roared with fury as they turned vicious on the soldiers.

Those chasing us forgot us and soon turned to those attacking them.

We stopped and I gasped for air as I stared out at the sheer mass of Vepar coming to our rescue. They were easily ten Vepar to every soldier.

“They’ve come!” Thane cheered. “Everyone has arrived.”

I hiccuped a cry because somehow the universe brought in the cavalry, saving us by the skin of our teeth.

In front of us, the once calm field was now a war zone. The Vepar were angry, and I didn’t blame them. They’d been lied to, cheated, mistreated and infected. And now they fought, finally able to express their rage with understanding about what really happened.

Soldiers ran in every direction, knowing when they’d been outnumbered. Others fought but were quickly taken down by so many Vepar males mostly, fighting ferociously. Punching and ripping apart any soldier who fought back.

Thane held me tight, Corran and Derrial on either side of me. I suspected they would have loved to join the battle, but they also didn’t want to leave my side. And I didn’t want them to leave either.

“We need to track down the council,” Derrial finally said.

Without a word, we all darted past the chaos, the yelling men, the pleading soldiers on their knees.

But we ran through the mass fight, following Derrial as if he sensed exactly where the Councilmen hid.

I didn’t hesitate or question him. Or any of my men. They were spectacular, intelligent, and I trusted their instincts.

Just as we burst out of the battle, a silver oval shaped cruiser ascended out of the pocket of trees up ahead.

“Fuck!” Derrial raised his laser and shot, but they were too high up now. He growled. “Sonofabitch! No fucking way are they surviving.”

A small beep sounded on Thane’s comm. He looked down at it and smirked. A few taps and he lifted his gaze.

“They aren’t going anywhere,” Thane happily explained. “Now, watch for the fireworks.”

We all looked up as a black drone appeared, a fraction of the ship’s size. That little thing zipped across the sky and rushed up right for the silver cruiser.

The drone slammed into the ship, exploding on impact. And in that thread of a heartbeat, the whole cruiser burst into flames, blasting apart in the sky.

Boom! The sound deafened me at first. The flames blotting out the sun, smoke and dust rising from the broken bits of ship that remained dropping out of the sky.

I couldn’t help but cheer. I never thought I’d ever celebrate the death of someone… but these four nasty pieces of work didn’t deserve life after all the ones they stole.

While the world would soon find out what happened here today, I couldn’t believe how close we came to losing everything. How lucky the planet now was to be rid of four monsters who led Veon to ruins.

Derrial turned to me and lifted me into his arms, then kissed me. He smiled brightly. Corran and Thane stood closer, holding onto me. Around us the battle ended. Soldiers fell to their knees, accepting defeat. There was so much to fix and get right.

But those things could wait a little longer. I met my husbands’ gazes as a silent heartfelt moment passed between us. A reminder of the lifelong commitment we made to each other on our marriage day that we’d be together for life.

“I love you Derrial. I love you Corran. I love you Thane. I have no idea how we got so lucky and survived today. But let’s make a promise to never try to save the world again?”

Thane burst out laughing first, followed by the others. I couldn’t help it and joined in as their smiles and cheers were contagious.

I was ready for a new start in our lives together. A new beginning on Veon.

16

T  hree Months Later...

THE AFTERMATH of war was never the happily ever after that people thought it would be. It was wishful thinking to believe that everything could instantly go back to normal. Despite the serum and the fact that the council was gone, the council's actions had left a dark mark on the Vepar people that would take a very long time to disappear. Many of the infected had died in the initial months before we'd discovered the cure, and all those that we had saved carried memories that would never go away. I had hoped that they wouldn't be able to remember their actions after the serum was administered. But of course, that would be too easy. Counseling centers had been built all over the world to help out the previously infected to come to terms that the raging monsters they'd become weren't really them.

Veon as a whole needed to be almost completely rebuilt.

There was no government in place, but as my husbands were the de facto leaders of the rebellion, most of the responsibility fell on their shoulders to help try and put it back together. They left first thing in the morning and came home late at night, exhausted and overwhelmed. I tried to help where I could, but I still had a newborn to take care of, so I could only go with them for a few hours each day when their parents would watch Rory. I spent most of my time trying to help the women who were still being retrieved from the secret camps that the council had set up to perform experiments and the Khonsu camps where women were also imprisoned. There was not a moment of the day that I wasn't tired, but after a lifetime of not really knowing what my purpose was in life, it felt like maybe I'd finally figured it out.

The Khonsu remained a threat, they always would be, but without the resources that the council had been sending to them - something that set off world-wide horror throughout the Vepar people after it was discovered - the Khonsu would never be the threat that they were.

I'd decided to stay home today, needing a break due to the sleep regression that Rory was currently going through. I was rocking her in her bedroom when Derrial popped his head in, immediately gravitating towards Rory.

"Can I finish up?" he asked eagerly, already reaching for her. I nodded, giving him a soft kiss and leaving him to put Rory to bed.

Thane and Corran walked in the front entrance just as I was grabbing a glass of water.

"Pet," Thane murmured exhaustedly, scooping me up in his arms and spinning me around as he kissed me fervently. Corran grumpily pulled me out of Thane's arms and leveled me with another kiss that had me seeing stars.

What we felt for each other only seemed to intensify each day, and it was hard to believe that I was actually loved so completely by three different men...aliens.

After Corran set me down, they both eagerly got dinner from the kitchen and then settled down at the table to eat. I noticed right away that they were quieter than usual. Derrial was eating as well now, and although they were tired every night, they still always kept up conversation with me. Tonight, there was only pensive silence.

"What's going on?" I finally asked. And it was like the three of them took a collective breath.

"Today was an interesting day," Derrial finally answered. "The three of us were asked to take over the council and become the leaders for our people."

I wasn't that shocked. They'd basically been in that role since the council fell. They all seemed very weird about it though.

"What aren't you telling me?" I pushed.

"That would mean that we would have to stay on Veon," said Corran carefully. And I nodded with a frown. I wouldn't have expected anything else.

"We want you to make the decision," added Thane. "If you want to go home, we'll say no."

And there it was. The issue that was obviously tearing them up. If they were appointed as the head of Vepar society, then my dreams of returning to Earth...they would remain just that...nothing but dreams.

Except...I couldn't remember the last time I'd thought of Earth. I tried to look inside of me for that longing that I'd constantly felt in the beginning when I'd come to Veon.

And I couldn't find it.

How could that be?

It was like it didn't matter anymore.

It took me a few minutes. A few minutes where I knew the guys were waiting desperately for my response. In the beginning, I would never have believed them that they would actually give up on ruling to return to Earth with me. But now...I didn't doubt it for a second.

And it just reinforced it for me that I didn't need to travel back to Earth to be home. They were my home. Rory was my home.

I was home.

"I don't want to be anywhere but here with you," I finally said truthfully.

"You don't need to lie to us," said Derrial exasperatedly, and I went up to him and grabbed his face with both hands.

"I've learned that home is a person...and not a place. I've told you this before, and I'll tell you again. I would go anywhere if it was with the three of you and Rory. And I would be happy there. My love for you has no regrets."

There was a long silence, and then the three of them were on me at once. My happy cries filled the air as the three of them let me know just how happy my words had made them.

CORRAN

Eight Months Later...

IT DIDN'T MATTER, I told myself, even as I performed the test. Rory was ours no matter who her father was. And that really was how I felt, how we all felt. But as she grew more every day...there were just so many things about her that I recognized that I was beginning to think wasn’t just a coincidence. Because they were all things that I did.

Like the fact that she was already talking in almost complete sentences despite being just a little over one years old. And the fact that she could already recognize and identify numbers and words. Her IQ was off the charts, as mine had been. And although she had the sweetness and personality of her mother, the rest of her, including her eyes...they seemed to be just like me.

And that's why I was here, even though the others would kill me, performing this paternity test.

I placed the lock of Rory's hair into the machine and waited with bated breath. The machine made a small whirring sound as it analyzed the data.

And then it was done. I pressed the button that would show me the results with trembling hands. I was really regretting doing this, because there was no way I could be her biological father.

But Melba Cryon had been the scientist that did the transfer. We had always gotten along, and I’d frankly been shocked to find out that she was working with the council. I’d always considered her a friend before that.

I shook my head. No, it was better to keep low expectations. It didn’t matter. This was just for science’s sake that I was even doing this.

And then I looked at the results.

I sunk to my knees, something I’d never done before Ella had come into my life. And now it was something I found myself doing often.

I was Rory’s biological father. Melba had used my sample that I’d submitted.

My love didn’t feel any different, I felt more complete somehow. Rory had been mine in all the ways that counted, but now I could say that she was my blood as well.

I had originally decided I wasn’t going to mention it either way. Ella would be disappointed in me that I even tested it, but I think she would understand. She knew the way my mind worked, the questions that always burned inside. But now that I knew the results, I was burning to tell the others.

I flew my craft to our home. Ella had loved our safehouse by the Cardian sea. She’d loved looking out and seeing the colorful forest and the lavender sea right outside of our door. We’d expanded it, making it an actual home instead of a temporary safehouse and now it was a strange mix of an Earth home and a Vepar home. But then again, maybe it wasn’t so strange. We were a mix of Earth and Vepar, after all.

I heard giggling as I walked in the door, and I immediately headed to the living room area where I knew my family was gathered. If we were home, we were all together, always.

Rory was riding around on Thane’s shoulders, giggling wildly, as he galloped around the living room floor like he was that Earth creature, a horse I think they called it. I snorted at watching the fierce Thane, former captain of all of Veon’s special forces, pretending to be a horse of all things. Derrial was wrapped around Ella on the couch. He was whispering in her ear, I’m sure trying to convince her to sneak off with him while Thane kept Rory busy. She was laughing and pretending to say no, but I knew that if I wasn’t coming in with my news, he would have her in the bedroom sooner rather than later. We couldn’t keep our hands off of her.

She held a gentle beauty that only grew more attractive to me every day. The Vepar people had unanimously called for her to be the first human placed on the Veon Council, and she was now overseeing Veon-Earth relations. She of course immediately made substantive changes to the way the Vepar treated her planet, namely that we weren’t in charge anymore. We were working together. And there were no women being kidnapped any longer for fertility experiments. She had unwittingly been the factor for changing the fate of her world. And I knew that she would never recognize how truly remarkable she was.

Ella’s face lit up when she saw me, and Rory struggled to jump off Thane’s back to toddle towards me. Her brain was far ahead of her age, but things like walking were still about average for others her age. Similar to how I’d been.

“Dad!” she screeched, and I picked her up and swung her around, savoring the sound of her little laugh. She yawned just then, signaling it was time for a nap.

“I’ll go put her down and be right back,” I told Ella, Thane, and Derrial. Ella blew Rory a kiss and then gave her own giggle when Thane took advantage of the empty spot on the other side of her.

“I love you, Daddy,” Rory cooed as I laid her down. “When I get up from my nap, can we go over prime numbers again?”

I laughed, throwing my head back. I had never laughed before Ella had come in my life. Now with her and Rory, I found myself doing it all the time.

“We’ll do prime numbers, and I’ll teach you all about what happens when a black hole swallows a star.”

Her eyes lit up, and she snuggled into her blankets, eager to go to sleep so she could wake up again. She was a little ball of energy. And all mine.

I left her room and walked to the living room, where my family had not so mysteriously disappeared from. Smirking, I walked to the bedroom where I knew Thane and Derrial would have dragged Ella to take advantage of Rory’s nap. It’s what I would have done.

Ella was already half undressed when I walked in. Derrial and Thane were eying her like they were going to eat her.

“I have some news,” I said carefully. Ella sat up and looked at me.

“What is it?” she asked nervously.

“I did a paternity test,” I blurted out.

“You did what?” gasped Ella, her face filled with hurt. “I thought you said it didn’t matter?” Thane and Derrial looked like they wanted to punch me.

“It doesn’t...it didn’t. But surely you’ve seen things about Rory that have made you wonder?” I hurriedly explained.

Ella hesitated, and I could see that she’d had the same thoughts as I did. She hadn’t known me as a child obviously, but Rory’s thirst for knowledge and her gold-hazel eyes couldn’t be missed.

“What did it say?” asked Derrial carefully.

“I’m her biological father,” I told them, unable to keep the smile from beaming out of my face.

“What!” the others exclaimed at once. “Melba must have used my sample for the implantation. Not sure how she could have done it accidentally, so it must have been her way of trying to apologize for what the council was making her do.”

Ella was softly crying, and I knelt down in front of her. “Why are you crying? This should be happy news,” I whispered to her softly.

“I just don’t know how I ended up getting everything I wanted, when I didn’t even know how badly I did want it,” she said.

And my grin grew even wider.

“Lucky bastard,” hissed Thane, clearly jealous. He pulled her down to the bed and tore off his shirt.

“What are you doing?” Ella asked through her happy tears.

“Trying to make a baby, of course,” he smirked at her.

“But we already know we can’t do this the natural way,” commented Ella, and Thane’s smirk only spread.

“But we can certainly try our hardest,” he told her as Derrial came up beside them.

“I’m in,” added Derrial, stripping off his shirt.

I had a feeling that I’d be having to get the lab ready sooner rather than later for another transfer.

“Are you coming?” asked Ella throatily as Derrial kissed his way down her neck while Thane finished undressing her.

“Always,” I said as I walked toward them, beginning to strip as well.

We couldn’t have babies the natural way, but I would always be up for trying.

Any other thoughts soon disappeared as the three of us took turns with our mate. Our Ella. Our everything.

EPILOGUE

ELLA

T  hree Years Later...

I WAS EXHAUSTED as Corran laid the little bundle in my arms. Caspian let out a little growl that had the four of us in the room laughing. He was definitely Thane’s child. After Corran’s announcement, Derrial and Thane had quickly gotten to work convincing me to do a few more transfers so they could have biological children with me as well. Derrial’s sperm had proved to be of the superhero status, and I’d ended up with identical twin boys during the transfer. It was the first set of twins in Veon history, and Derrial was as proud as could be. Dalton and Titus were energetic, balls of fire that could only be tamed by their brilliant older sister.

I knew I’d been missing something however, and so when Thane had asked for it to be his turn, I hadn’t argued. Now, with Caspian in my arms, I knew we were complete.

“Give me an hour, and then we can let our families in,” I told the guys, who all looked like they were in heaven right now as they watched me hold Caspian.

“Lela is going to go crazy when she sees him,” said Derrial with a laugh, commenting on my dad’s new Vepar wife, who happened to be in love with my kids like they were her own. Everyone had been shocked when Lela and Dad had fallen in love. I wasn’t sure that he would ever find love again after losing my mom. But Lela had fallen head over heels for my dad, despite the fact that he was a human. She had lost her husband during the first few weeks of the virus outbreak, and she and my dad had been able to grieve together. And then fall in love.

I was so happy for both of them.

“They all will,” I said softly, stroking Caspian’s soft little cheek.

“I’m going to let the rest of our babies in to see their new brother,” said Thane, striding towards the door.

A minute later, our three children were rushing into the room, eager to see the new addition. It was exhausting having three kids under four, but every second was worth it.

As I looked around the room at my little happily ever after, I was reminded once again how far I’d come from that lonely girl, just trying to get by on Earth.

I’d somehow found a place to belong.

I’d finally found my home.

Keep reading for Chapter 1 of Siren Condemned, the first book in C.R. & Mila’s new paranormal series, Thief of Hearts!

Siren Condemned

C. R. Jane & Mila Young

COPYRIGHT

Siren Condemned by C. R. Jane and Mila Young

Copyright © 2020 by C. R. Jane and Mila Young

All rights reserved.

No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review, and except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

For permissions contact:

crjaneauthor@gmail.com

milayoungarc@gmail.com

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

SIREN CONDEMNED

The sirens have been captives for so long that we no longer remember our pasts…

Our masters have stolen our song, the source of all our power, and made it punishable by death to use it. Our bodies, our minds, and our talents all belong to them.

The vampires.

I’ve been sent to the darkest of all places, Nightmare Penitentiary for my next assignment. But I’ve promised myself this assignment will be my last… no matter the cost. I’ll do whatever it takes to free my people, even if I end up shattering the hearts of three captivating men who have the power to change my future forever.

One will sacrifice himself for me. One will shatter my soul. And one will kill me to save me.

Welcome to Nightmare Penitentiary. Escape is my only option.

CHAPTER 1

I t was midnight.

My birthday.

And wasn’t it ironic that today was both the beginning and the end of my life?

Or at least, that was what it felt like.

Because you see, today, my powers were going to finally come to me.

And today, the vampires would take it.

I SAT ON MY BED, fiddling with the gossamer threads. Anyone who looked at my life from the outside would think that I'm privileged, spoiled even. But they don't know anything about me.

I stretched out, blowing out a sigh as I waited for my powers to come in. It was past midnight. Had they come in already? Was I supposed to feel something?

I was kind of expecting something cool to happen. Maybe a burst of light, a chorus of angels...something.

So far, none of that had happened.

I opened my mouth and sang a verse of my favorite Halsey song because humans really know their music...but nothing feels different.

And so, I wait.

A lot of the other girls I talked to didn’t really know what it felt like to use their power, and they refused to talk about what it felt like to receive the power at all. They reasoned that because they were going to lose it anyway, what was the point of using it at all? That way, they would never know what they were missing.

But I couldn't do that.

I had to know just for a few seconds if that's all I got, what it felt like to be powerful. To be whole. To be what I was born to be.

The vampires made sure the rest of our lives never felt like that.

My mind inevitably drifted to tomorrow, and what that meant for me.

Tomorrow, I would enter the family business. Mama had been grooming me for it for the last few years. How to dress...how to talk...how to act...how to please a man. How to be a beautiful face and nothing else.

A lifetime of being nothing. That's what eighteen meant for me.

I once read a book about the sirens. I found it in the school library, and although I'm sure that most of it wasn't true, one thing did stand out to me.

Sirens once had control. The waves, the depths of the sea, the weather...all of it was ours.

And then one day, all that power disappeared.

My thoughts dissipated as my chest started to burn. I rubbed it absentmindedly, thinking maybe I had some indigestion from all that lettuce my mother had forced me to eat for dinner.

The burning began to spread, however, until I felt like I was on fire. Looking down at my skin in panic, I half expected it to look burnt to a crisp.

The pain grew so intense that I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out. It was like I was being reborn at that moment, changed from the inside out.

I laid there and felt like I was dying as the burning somehow intensified until my world was narrowed to just a pinprick in space. No wonder none of the girls I knew had wanted to talk about this. I couldn't imagine a greater pain than this. I guess this explained how my mama could do unmedicated childbirth like it was nothing.

Just when I thought I couldn't take a second more, and the burning became so great that I believed I would become nothing but embers at any time, the burning disappeared as quickly as it had begun. It left me a throbbing, shaking mess from the adrenaline still coursing through my body.

Tears were streaming down my face. I had been in so much pain that I didn't even realize that I was crying.

Lifting my hand to brush the tears off my face, I gasped in surprise. The skin on my hand almost seemed to be glowing...it was like there was a backlight reflecting off my hand. I started examining my entire body and saw that the strange light had taken over every inch of my skin. There were other changes as well.

I was more…

That was the best way to describe it. My skin was smoother, my dark hair was thicker and longer, my lips were fuller...everything about my looks was just...more.

What was even stranger than the way my skin glowed and what also seemed to have improved, was the fact that I felt stronger. Like there was a power inside of me that was just waiting to come out and play.

And I didn't even have to wonder what it was. I just knew. It hummed through my mind.

I opened my mouth, and it was just instinct, this song that I was all of a sudden singing. A song as old as time itself. A song of my people.

It flowed from me, weaving its spell on everything around me. Storm clouds were gathering in the distance outside the window I now stood in front of. Wind was picking up from the east and racing towards me. All of nature was bending to my will.

I felt powerful. I felt magical. I felt like who I was supposed to be.

I didn't know how I could live without this feeling ever again.

I WOKE UP IN A DAZE. At first, I didn't realize where I was. The last thing I remembered was standing in the pouring rain in my manor's backyard as the wind raced around me.

Somehow, I ended up back in my room on the floor.

And somehow, I fell asleep.

Staring at the clock, I wanted to cry. Julian would be here any minute. And then everything would be gone.

A knock sounded on my door just then, and a hiccupping sob burst out of my mouth.

The door opened a second later, and Mama stood there, perfectly primped and coiffed as ever. She was Julian’s little pet.

And I hated her for it.

I hated her acceptance of our life. I hated that she’d paraded me in front of Julian since I was a little girl, and that she ignored the heated glances he gave me. She ignored the promise in his eyes for what was to come for me.

She was a selfish, terrible excuse for a woman. If only her outside appearance matched the ugliness inside of her.

She looked triumphant as she stared at me from the doorway.

Rosalind Alexander was a beautiful woman. And beautiful was probably an understatement. She was stunning. The kind of being who garnered stares no matter where she was or who she was talking to.

She was the darling of the vampires' courtesans, and very proud of that fact. Icy blonde hair, blue eyes that could and did charm any man. She was perfect, perfectly evil.

"What are you doing on the floor?" she asked disdainfully.

As much as I wanted to tell her to go fuck herself, I refrained.

“Julian will be here soon. Get changed," she ordered, looking at my pajamas that consisted of an old rock concert tee and a pair of cheerleading shorts like they were disease-ridden.

"Yes ma'am," I replied, trying my best to sound respectful. Because she controlled my future right now. I was hopeful that at the very least, she would ease me into the business rather than throwing me to the wolves all at once.

When I didn’t move quick enough for her liking, she marched over to me and slapped me on the side of my head. “Get up,” she barked before striding away, confident that her orders would be obeyed. She’d specifically hit me on the side of my head rather than my face so that there wouldn’t be any visible blemishes. Julian wouldn’t like that, and all my mama cared about was him.

Wasn’t it a pity for her that all she wanted in life was him and all he wanted was me?

I shivered at the thought.

I went through the motions of getting ready. There was a certain order to getting ready that I'd been taught practically before I could walk.

Wash my face, moisturize my face, apply lotion all over my body. Apply makeup. Get dressed. Do my hair. Apply perfume in certain places.

I didn't even have to think about it.

Thirty minutes later, I stood there in front of my mirror, the perfect daughter once again. There were no band tees worn during the day. Just like there would be no birthday cake today. It was just how things were.

I walked over to the window, trying to delay the inevitable.

I could still feel the power coursing through me. So much power that I could leave right now if I wanted to and everything would bow to me.

Except for the vampires. They would eventually find me. And then they would destroy me. Just as they had any siren who dared to step out of line in the past.

We didn't talk about it, but my great-grandmother had been one of those killed for daring to rebel. It was my family's greatest shame, one my mother and grandmother spent their whole lives rectifying. It was only me that secretly thought about her. Thought about her and wanted to be like her.

Without the whole dying part though obviously.

I wasn't sure how the vampires did it. But it was a principle in the paranormal world that everything had something that was bigger and badder than them. And although the sirens were much more powerful than many of the paranormal creatures out there, the simplest explanation was that the vampire was the siren's shark. Ten out of ten times, the shark would beat the fish. And ten out of ten times, the vampire crushed the sirens.

Another knock sounded on the door, and I wanted to cry. I opened my window and quickly began to gather storm clouds, the process instinctive. As the perfectly sunny day suddenly became dark and cloudy, and rain began to fall, I savored the mist coming in through the window, even though it was ruining my hair. I would take my punishment for not looking perfect, just so I could feel it one last time.

The knock beat on the door again, this time louder and more urgent.

"Coming," I called out sharply, even knowing that the servant on the other side of the door was just doing their job and had no role in this.

I took one last inhale, memorizing the way I felt at this moment, and then I closed the window and walked to the door, not bothering to fix my appearance one bit.

Betsy, one of our maids, was waiting for me outside the door. She was usually one of my favorite servants, always full of gossip and intrigue to tell me. But today I couldn't even muster up a smile for her.

"Happy Birthday, miss," she said softly, and I nodded at her in acknowledgment, proud of myself for managing to keep my lip from quivering.

She examined me as we walked, and I knew she was noting how different I looked at the moment. I knew most of the changes would disappear after Julian did whatever he was going to do. The glow in my skin would definitely go. But there were some things that would stay, like my longer hair and eyelashes and my larger lips. Traits I wasn't grateful for in the least bit. I had enough time trying to keep beings away from me, I didn't need even more things enticing them.

Betsy didn't understand, but the reason she liked me so much, the reason why she had no problem working hard for us around the house day after day for practically nothing wasn't because of my naturally winsome personality. No, instead it was because all sirens were born with something that attracted everyone around them. Some sirens were more powerful than others, but we all held that same basic trait. Men...and women...happened to fall in love with us, wanted to be our friend, wanted to be near us, all the time. It wasn't something that could be taken away. It was just intrinsic to our very nature. Of course, that whole shark thing came into play with that ability as well, and the vampires didn't have a problem falling in love with us. Instead, they used our ability to get what they wanted from other species, and they used our above-average looks to give themselves pleasure.

The Goddess Mother up in the heavens must have had a cruel sense of humor.

"You look nice, miss," Betsy commented softly and it was all I could do not to roll my eyes. I controlled myself, even though the looks of pity and lust she was throwing my way made me want to punch her in her friendly face.

We finally made it into the "parlor" as Mama called it, which really was just a glorified term for living room.

And there he was.

Julian Morgenstern in all of his glory.

And he really was a glorious sight. The perfect predator to drag in his prey. His eyes immediately met mine as I entered the room, and his mouth curled up into a possessive smile.

Although I knew Julian was at least a few thousand years old, he would appear to any human to be in his mid-30s. He had blonde hair that was almost silver looking, it was so light. His hair was offset by his striking dark brown eyes, so dark that they almost appeared black if you weren't in good lighting. He was tall, with perfectly carved muscles that, thanks to his vampire heritage, would always be there...even if he decided to eat bonbons on the couch for the rest of his life. He had an aristocratic nose and a cruel mouth, and everything about him made me want to flee his presence.

Women of all species fell all over themselves to be with him, but for reasons unknown to me, all Julian Morgenstern wanted was me.

His eyes greedily took me in, not missing a detail. He didn’t seem perturbed at all by the fact that my hair was wet from the storm I’d created. If anything, he looked excited about it.

“She’s strong, Rosalind,” he commented, beginning to walk a slow circle around me as he examined me from all angles. “Much stronger than I thought. It’s almost a shame…”

I stiffened, hoping against all odds that he was actually thinking about letting me keep my power.

It was a stupid hope though. Julian suddenly called for his servant, Frederick, to bring him something.

I thought about getting on my knees to beg, or calling for a storm, or running like I dreamed about earlier. But I did none of that. I just stood there like my feet had turned into stone.

Frederick walked over to him and handed him an object covered in a silky red cloth. Julian carefully pulled off the cloth, revealing what looked like some kind of glass ball.

“Look familiar, Rosalind?” Julian commented when he noticed how Mama’s eyes were locked onto the ball.

I glanced at her, confused. But I didn’t stay confused long.

Julian walked towards me until he was standing uncomfortably close to me. He stared down at me feverishly for a moment.

What happened next would live in my dreams for a very long time. Julian opened his mouth, so wide that his jaw looked like it had become dislocated. I stared into the black hole of his mouth, terrified as he began to make a strange sucking sound.

As soon as the sound began, I experienced a strange pulling sensation. As if my life source was being siphoned out of me. I tried to move as a gold mist began to stream out of me, but I was locked into place. All I could do was watch horrified as the gold mist—which I recognized to be my power, based on how weak I was beginning to feel—floated into the glass orb.

Julian’s eyes rolled backwards in pleasure.

He had always been the baddest monster in the room...but this was on a whole other level.

Julian took every last drop of my power.

And when he was done, and the glass orb was pulsing with the golden light of what he had stolen from me...I felt like I had died.

KEEP READING Siren Condemned at books2read.com/sirencondemned

ABOUT C.R. JANE

A Texas girl living in Utah now, I'm a wife, mother, lawyer, and now author. My stories have been floating around in my head for years, and it has been a relief to finally get them down on paper. I’m a huge Dallas Cowboys fan and I primarily listen to Beyonce and Taylor Swift…don’t lie and say you don’t too.

My love of reading started probably when I was three and with a faster than normal ability to read, I’ve devoured hundreds of thousands of books in my life. It only made sense that I would start to create my own worlds since I was always getting lost in others’. I like heroines who have to grow in order to become badasses, happy endings, and swoon-worthy, devoted, (and hot) male characters. If this sounds like you, I’m pretty sure we’ll be friends. I’m so glad to have you on my team…check out the links below for ways to hang out with me and more of my books you can read!

Visit my Facebook page to get updates.

Visit my Amazon Author page.

Visit my Website.

Sign up for my newsletter to stay updated on new releases, find out random facts about me, and get access to different points of view from my characters.

OTHER BOOKS BY C.R. JANE

The Fated Wings Series

First Impressions

Forgotten Specters

The Fallen One (a Fated Wings Novella)

Forbidden Queens

Frightful Beginnings (a Fated Wings Short Story)

Faded Realms

Faithless Dreams

Fabled Kingdoms (2020)

The Rock God (a Fated Wings Novella)

The Timeless Affection Series

Lamented Pasts

Lost Passions

The Pack Queen Series

Queen of the Thieves

Queen of the Alphas (2019)

The Rise Again Series

The Day After Nothing (2020)

The Sounds of Us Contemporary Series (complete series)

Remember Us This Way

Remember You This Way

Remember Me This Way

Broken Hearts Academy Series

Heartbreak Prince

Academy of Souls Co-write with Mila Young (complete series)

School of Broken Souls

School of Broken Hearts

School of Broken Dreams

School of Broken Wings

Fallen World Series Co-write with Mila Young (complete series)

Bound

Broken

Betrayed

Belong

Thief of Hearts Co-write with Mila Young

Siren Condemned

Siren Sacrificed

Stupid Boys Series Co-write with Rebecca Royce

Stupid Boys

Dumb Girl

Crazy Love

ABOUT MILA YOUNG

Mila Young tackles everything with the zeal and bravado of the fairytale heroes she grew up reading about. She slays monsters, real and imaginary, like there's no tomorrow. By day she rocks a keyboard as a marketing extraordinaire. At night she battles with her might pen-sword, creating fairytale retellings, and sexy ever after tales. In her spare time, she loves pretending she's a mighty warrior, walks on the beach with her dogs, cuddling up with her cats, and devouring every fantasy tale she can get her pinkies on.

Join my Facebook reader group.

Visit my Amazon Author page.

Sign up for my newsletter for newest releases, exclusive excerpts, giveaways and loads of games.

OTHER BOOKS BY MILA YOUNG

Gods and Monsters

Apollo Is Mine

Poseidon Is Mine

Ares Is Mine

Hades Is Mine

Winter’s Thorn

To Catch A Fae - FREE

To Seduce A Fae

To Tame A Fae

Haven Realm Series

Hunted (Little Red Riding Hood Retelling)

Cursed (Beauty and the Beast Retelling)

Entangled (Rapunzel Retelling)

Wicked Heat Series

Wicked Heat #1

Wicked Heat #2

Wicked Heat #3

Elemental Series

Taking Breath #1

Taking Breath #2

Fallen World Series Co-write with C.R. Jane

Bound

Broken

Betrayed

Broken Souls Series Co-write with C.R. Jane

School of Broken Souls

School of Broken Hearts

School of Broken Dreams

Beautiful Beasts Academy Co-write with Kim Faulks

Manicures and Mayhem

Diamonds and Demons

Hexes and Hounds

Secrets and Shadows

Passions and Protectors

Ancients and Anarchy

Table of Contents

Title Page

Contents

Copyright

Dedication

Join C.R. Jane’s Readers’ Group

Join Mila Young’s Readers’ Group

Join C.R./Mila’s Joint Readers’ Group

Full Page Image

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Epilogue

Copyright

Siren Condemned

Chapter 1

About C.R. Jane

Other Books by C.R. Jane

About Mila Young

Other Books by Mila Young