by V. K. Ludwig
Torin got up and reached across the table to grab him. “I’ll walk around with him. This child is beyond his naptime with all this excitement.”
Together they walked over to the living room where he rocked Gabriel in his arms, never taking his eyes off our son’s face. A few months ago, I would have done everything to get away from this man. Now, the thoughts of not having him in our lives clenched my heart.
“They’re adorable together,” mom said, the lines around her eyes a little deeper, her face still ashen no matter how much sleep she got. “Sometimes it’s hard to believe Torin never grew up with a dad, considering how involved he is. Not sure if I’ve ever seen a man so eager to change a diaper.”
The fact alone that mom called him a man and not a Vetusian made conversations like this a little less painful, a little more normal. Garrison Earth progressed slower than anticipated, but it did so peacefully with few incidents.
“I meet so many Vetusian males at the agency who are thrilled about adopting a child,” I said. “Makes me wonder if they have more appreciation for it. To them, it’s an honor to raise one.”
She stacked the plates and carried them over to the kitchen. “And what about the older Vetusian boys?”
“It’s… difficult.” I grabbed the rest of the pot roast and the gravy bowl beside it, placing it all on the bar counter behind me. “The moment they pulled the kids under fourteen from the strati and returned them to their families, the instructors started to have issues with the Vetusian children. And I get it. They want to leave as well. Go to those families the humans talked so much about. Problem is, they have no family to go to.”
Drinking glass went onto the bar next, accompanied by a deep sigh. “We included them all in the adoption program, but it’s not much different from how it was before. Families often just ignore kids above the age of four. Sometimes I feel like we’re touching one side to fix it, and then a piece just falls off on the opposite.”
Mom’s pained smile pinched her expression. That sympathy I had carried around with me all my life? Yeah, that most likely came from her.
“You gotta be patient, baby girl,” she said, that last part making me close my eyes and relish in the way it resonated. “Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither will be Garrison Earth.”
I folded the tablecloth but left it bunched up at the center before I walked around the counter and wrapped my arms around her. She was half the woman I remembered. Arms skinny, eyes sunken in, it was hard to imagine the healers considered her fully recovered.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t call you back when I said I would,” I whispered, that tremble which started in my elbows quickly stalled by how she stroked my back. “Please tell me you’re not disappointed.”
“Look at me,” she said in the gentle authority of a mother’s voice, clasping my cheeks between her palms. “There was never anything wrong with living your life, Eden. Not then, and not now. If dad was here today, he’d sit with Torin at the table and talk about deployments over a couple of beers. Then he’d tell you your husband’s a jackass. At home, he’d tell me that he’ll probably take him fishing on Sunday.”
I nodded, rapidly blinking back those tears. “Torin said he wouldn’t mind if you stayed with us. We’ve got plenty of room, and I could use the help.”
“No, baby girl. I’ll come to visit, but you’ll manage all this just fine on your own.” She released me from her embrace with a wink. “We both know we’d start fighting a week into it. Now let me load this fancy dishwasher and wipe down the counters.”
“You don’t have to do my kitchen, mom.”
“But I want to,” she said, jutting her chin toward Torin. “You go to your mate and spend some time with him before he has to travel to Heliar.”
On my way to the living room, I draped a blanket over Nifal, who had fallen to sleep in the armchair, his wrinkled lips shoving and pouting. Torin brought him for dinner at least once a week, where he told us stories of my mate’s childhood. Memories Torin had either lost or suppressed, but always listened to with a smile on his lips.
It was as if Nifal and I filled the missing pieces, allowing Torin to grow into the man he had always been. A loving mate. A caring father. A Warden who listened to Vetusians and humans alike and gave consideration to each side.
“Is he asleep?”
“No such luck,” he said and turned, showing me little eyes that blinked at me, the hint of a smile sitting on Gabriel’s lips. “He’s too distracted by everyone. Too excited.”
“It’ll mess up his entire schedule.”
Torin’s arm wrapped around me, the kiss he placed onto my forehead gentle. “I promise I won’t stay on Heliar longer than ten suns.”
“You’re always freaking out about traveling, although I told you a million times it’s fine. I’ve got Anna to fall back on. And Melek wanted to stop by on Wednesday.”
He made a faint noise in his throat but swallowed the rest. “Regardless of what he is, I do feel responsible for his heartache.”
“You couldn’t have known,” I said. “I just wish I would have woken up sooner. But with everything that went down that day, I’m not even sure if it would have been on my mind.” A stroke over his cheek. A deep look into his stunning eyes which glowed more again now that his travel had increased. “How are the two new Wardens?”
He chuckled. “Scared of me.”
“Doesn’t sound like that’s a bad thing.”
“Anam ghail.” The word infused the air around us. “It’s helpful when casting votes, but I’m tired of leading the Empire on my own. Takes me away from my family too much.”
“No news on Zavis?”
Teeth clenched, face in a grimace, he shook his head. “A conspiracy against true-born Wardens is hard to prove when the offender is dead. The healers’ death was over a decade ago. The prostitutes who witnessed it wound up dead or can’t be found. For now, all I can do is try to push out his trial. Request psychological evaluations. Anything that would help me gain time.”
I rested my head against his chest, listening to the even beat of his heart. “I love you, anam ghail.”
He held me tight and whispered things into my ears. Words in Vetusian I hadn’t learned yet, but somehow felt… meaningful.
I would give birth to our daughter on a Tuesday, and Torin would name her Ceangal, which meant link between worlds. Four days after that, I would take her on her first walk outside. And I would drape one of the many scarves over her Torin brought me whenever he returned from faraway places. And like that, I would carry her to the lake at the back of our cabin.
This concludes Captured. Do you have 5 minutes to spare? If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review. They mean a lot to us indie authors.
* * *
Now it’s time for me to tell you Melek’s story. The sgu’dal cheated by fate. I have included the first three chapters for you on the following pages.
My female matches two Vetusians: me, and the warrior she just killed.
Read MATCHED now!
Chapter 1
Melek
A hand settled on my shoulder, soft silicone over cold, unfeeling metal, making old dread surge from where it lived in the pith of my bones. I dragged my nail over the raw patch above my wrist, blood, and skin cells collecting underneath it.
Pleasure Bay vibrated with the husky voices of horny Vetusians and the tempting croons of the female droids, as human-looking as the mates we lacked. Because they’d died during phase one or hadn’t been found yet or, in my case, were assigned to another male. First time in Vetusian history... fuck my luck.
The place reeked of sweat and alcohol, though the rancidness of shattered dreams lingered thickly around my end of the bar.
“Bring me another one of these,” I said, wiggling the empty glass in front of the droid.
Her full lips curled into a seductive smile, sending a roil into my stomach. She raked her hand through her beautiful, shiny, soft, fake hair before she
placed her palm onto my arm. Her integrated DNA reader beeped, though I could have sworn it shouted sgu’dal with fingers pointing at me.
“Sorry, baby,” she said, her voice sensual even as she turned my order down. “Your profile says only one alcoholic beverage per sun.”
I slumped deeper into my barstool, my eyes trailing over the droids rubbing their asses from one Vetusian crotch to the next. A dark-skinned droid sat behind a warrior, hand wiggling inside his pants, jerking him off. Of course she’d stop right before he came. Satisfaction was guaranteed with pleasure droids — if you had the credits.
“Order it to my profile,” Kael’s familiar voice came from behind me.
He reached his arm out and let the droid scan his DNA before he sat on the barstool across. Narrowed eyes scanned me up and down, then followed from left to right in a slow head shake. “When was the last time you showered?”
“Good to see you too.”
He offered a thoughtful expression, his pupils jumping from one stain coloring my white uniform to the next. Unspoken words accompanied his heavy sigh. Look at you falling deep again.
“Warrior Kidan filed an official complaint at the ship marshal today.” The droid gave him the new drink, and he took a sip before he handed the glass to me. “Wants you arrested and put into temporary confinement for a while.”
I gulped down the drink, the sting of the alcohol mixing with a hot bubble of unshed tears at the back of my throat. “There’s no law saying I can’t walk by her room.”
“You can’t stalk her whenever she goes to the common area either,” he snarled. “You’re interfering with the bonding between a matched pair, which causes division among our species and the humans. Division leads to doubt, and doubt to rejections we can’t afford.”
I snorted a fake laugh. “Are those your words, or the ship marshal’s?”
He reached his arm over the bar with a sigh, letting the droid scan him for another drink. “He’s Katie’s rightful match.”
I dug my nail deeper into my tortured skin, embracing pain over grief. “Rightful? Assuming just for a moment that nothing went wrong with our profiling, and Katie truly matches us both…. What makes him more rightful than me?”
As if I didn’t know the answer.
As if my eyes didn’t betray it.
“You recently got demoted to rank two for professional incompetence —”
“Commander Torin reinstated my rank.”
“You misdiagnosed a fellow Vetusian seven sun cycles ago, subsequently causing him to die of Jal’zar ice fever because you were fucking high.” He rasped in a breath so sharp I didn’t manage to squeeze in a veto. There was no excuse for the things I had done. “My heart is bleeding for you, Melek, but you can’t keep going like this. What you’re doing isn’t fair to her! Didn’t Katie go through enough already?”
“Fair?” I let my fist slam onto the counter, a vibration skimming over the surface of Kael’s new drink. “Another male is about to bond himself to my anam ghail!”
Kael grabbed the glass and splashed the contents at me, sending a sting across my face. “Do you believe you’re the only Vetusian who got cheated? We have males matched to Earth women at the end of their life cycle. Scholars who mourn a mate they’ve never met because she counts among the casualties of phase one. And we have grown males matched to girls who…” He ripped his gaze from me, letting it drift along Pleasure Bay for a long moment before his focus returned to me. “Stop being so fucking selfish and start thinking about what is best for her.”
I lifted my stained shirt and wiped my face dry. “What the fuck was that for?”
“Burns the germs away. Don’t want to catch anything sitting next to you. You’re filthy and gross and need to get your shit together.”
My throat closed up in a cloud of shame and agony. No matter how I had cleaned myself up, turned my life around, my past couldn’t be eradicated. I was a sgu’dal, an addict. Recovered, but who gave a shit?
Over three sun cycles of sweating the drugs out of my pores and getting my life back on track. A life without my fated mate in it, as lonely as that emptiness expanding at the ruins of my core.
“Do you know you’re bleeding?” Kael pointed at my arm, concern lining his features. “Haven’t seen you with the itches in a long time. Are you… um…”
“What? No! I’m not using again.”
And yet the scratching continued, the itch a reminder of my shortcomings.
“The Department of Interspecies Relations wants this case settled,” he said, tapping the bottom of the glass against the counter. “They’re concerned that humans will reject the Gaia link, now that there’s been a case which could discredit the entire science behind it. Let her go, Melek. For her sake. For the sake of the Empire.”
I huffed, his words tormenting my heart and twisting my guts. “You’re asking me to let go of the sole purpose of my existence, Kael. I was born to be with her. Was born to love her and care for her.”
His hand settled on my shoulder. “Then love and care for her by letting her move on. Step back and allow her to find happiness.”
“With another Vetusian?”
“Yes, Melek. With another Vetusian.” He took a deep breath, his eyes going unfocused. “Sometimes, being a good mate means letting them go. We have to ignore our own desires and act in their best interest. Fate is unpredictable.”
“Fate can kiss my ass.”
A sticky flutter filled my chest. My entire life drained away to this very moment, threatening to suck me down. Our Gaia link was broken, compromised.
I glanced down at Kael’s access card, which dangled from his uniform. “If I could just see her one —”
“No chance.” His features turned to stone. “How about I walk you to the dock, so you can go back to Ardev Five and clean yourself up? Maybe eat something because you look like shit. Smell like it too.”
“Whatever.”
Calves comatose, knees weak, they carried me out of Pleasure Bay at Kael’s side. But the moment I stepped out onto the busy hallway of Seneca, I realized my day was about to reach its low.
Kidan stood a mere five steps from me, arms crossed in front of his barrel chest, the snarl on his face as black as his uniform. “Stay away from my mate, healer.”
That last word came out a breathed laugh, coated thick in amusement as if I wasn’t the guy who had stitched him together during that convoy attack. Back when I risked my life to save his, only for him to steal my mate.
Traitor.
I stood a bit straighter, squared my shoulders a bit wider. “She’s your match. Not your mate.”
“Formalities.” He shrugged one time and stepped toward me three times. “I’m sick of you lingering around her room, Melek.”
“Alright, that’s it.” Kael hurried between us and reached his arms out. “Warrior, remove yourself from this situation before it escalates.”
Kidan jabbed a finger over Kael’s arm and right into my face. “What’s this sgu’dal doing on Earth anyway, huh? Fucking junkie wasn’t supposed to be here.”
My muscles quivered, the urge to jump at him strong, but the last thing I needed was another arrest on my record.
I lifted my arms and stepped back. “I want no trouble.”
“If I find you walking by her room once more, I’ll choke the life out of you, sgu’dal.”
He kept on punching me with that word, sending a burning heat into my eyes. “It’s a hallway, and I’ll walk by it whenever I have to.”
Kael gave a punch against my shoulder without a glance, as if he’d noticed how my foot had lifted into a forward thrust.
He did the same to Kidan. “Warrior, as your commanding officer I order you to step back and —”
Kidan elbowed through Kael’s barrier. His fingers dug into my uniform shirt, pulled me against him, then thrust me back. My shoulder blades seared against the palathium wall, but that pain had nothing on the rage in my veins boiling to life.
I slamm
ed shoulder-first into his chest. Kidan stumbled back, sending a predictable punch toward my head. I ducked and kicked against his knee, his howl making Vetusians of all strati come together.
Kael shouted through the turmoil, asking us to stop, but I was having none of it. Swollen with anger and disappointment and heartache, my chest expanded and retreated in hard puffs.
That rage exploded and sent bursts of hot blood through my arteries, ready to take on that warrior trained to combat perfection. Every warrior had a weakness.
I never found his.
“Stop this!” Kael’s voice boomed against my ear, a strong set of arms wrapping around me from behind. “Stop this, or I’ll throw both of you into confinement.”
He lifted me aside, but not quickly enough to keep Kidan’s fist from crashing against my temple.
My vision blurred.
Warm tingled down my cheek.
Kael pulled me across the spinning hallway and leaned me against the wall, that bit of sturdiness against my back not keeping me from sinking to the ground.
Mumbles, shouts, and orders faded into the background. Only a ringing in my left ear and a stabbing headache remained.
“Stay away from her, Melek, because nobody gives a shit if a waste of a Vetusian like you suddenly winds up dead outside the airlock,” Kidan screamed, his voice firm but his eyes carrying something much weaker. Concern? Worry?
He wiped his palms on his pants and splayed his fingers, his face blotchy, his pupils darting around the hallway. Then he turned away and disappeared into the crowd, turning my rage to dread.
I couldn’t really articulate why, but it blossomed, sinking deeper and deeper into my stomach, making everything clench at once. No doubt he would spend time with my female now like I’d watched him do so many times.
He would buy her a coffee and lean into her for a whisper. And Katie would pull away from him for the eighteenth time because I had counted every single of her rejections.
Why did this time feel different?
