Finding Hope: Book Ten of the Running in Fear Series

by Trinity Blacio

  Chapter Eight

  Everyone was sleeping, but Hope was wide-awake after sleeping all day. She didn’t know what the little bears and Gourd had put in that hot chocolate, but Hope had never slept so soundly before. She smiled and glanced at Gourd, who was passed out snoring. It would seem even alien men snored. Following three very active cubs around all day appeared to have done her three warrior men in, especially since they weren’t used to active children. But all three had managed to keep her babies busy and happy, and for that she was truly grateful. Her family was slowly bonding.

  But now it was time to deal with the bullshit while everyone was sleeping. Knowing Valda waited by the door for her, Hope glanced once more at her men before appearing next to her. Hope had chosen to wear the garb her men wanted her to wear, since it was easier to move in if a fight did break out.

  Valda wrapped her arms around her, hugging her tight. “Thank you for protecting me and getting me out of their arms. I swear if I twitch, one of them wakes up,” Valda said, smiling as she stepped to Hope’s side and moved with her toward the commons.

  “I have to admit I think this gift is fun. It did come in handy when I was with Aurora yesterday, that’s for sure,” Hope said.

  “Do you really think this powwow is going to change anything or their minds?” Valda asked.

  “I have no idea, but we need to clear the air now if we are going to live here together,” Hope said as they stepped into the commons. Hope could smell the fresh air filtering down to the tunnels, and the need to release her bear was strong, but she pushed it back.

  Suzanne, Shelly and Cecilia stood off to the side, shaking their heads and frowning.

  “Well, it looks like everyone is here, I think,” Hope said and Valda nodded. “I really do hate confrontations,” she said as they walked toward the two in question.

  “So, do I, but the problems among us need to end so we can start to live again,” Valda said.

  “Agreed,” Jaycee and Lissa said, coming to meet them halfway.

  “I’ll start,” Jaycee said. “I want to apologize. After I left your home, not even my mates would speak with me.” She sighed. “But when your little ones came by with their hot chocolate… Well, it was as if a dam burst inside of me.” Jaycee reached out and took Hope’s hands. “I have never been more ashamed of myself. I know it’s no excuse, but with the children, this war, waiting forever to have it done in 48 hours—not to mention when the fool, Mark got hurt—well, it all came to a head and I’m afraid you were the person who was new.” Jaycee pulled Hope into her arms And gave her a bear hug.

  “If you want to turn me into a toad or something, I’ll even give you the spell.” Jaycee pulled back, wiping her eyes, sending Hope pictures of her mates as toads eating flies.

  Hope laughed. “I think I’ll pass on turning you to a toad, and believe me, I totally understand about the dam breaking. It happened to me too,” she said. “But I’d still like to know what Gourd put in that hot chocolate. I’ve never slept so soundly.”

  “Ha, you and me both,” Jaycee said. “I crawled into bed for a nap and didn’t wake up till an hour ago. But I have to admit I feel 100 percent better.”

  “You know you’re not the only one. Do you think they did something to the chocolate?” Lissa asked, frowning. “I didn’t sense any magic.”

  “Who knows with my men. They’re so advanced, even more so than my brother’s family, I believe,” Hope said, stepping back as Lissa took Jaycee’s place. “There’s so much to learn that sometimes I have to stop the information from coming in.”

  “I know what you mean. So, when everything went quiet, well, we freaked out. I’m sorry, what I did and the way I acted was stupid and childish. Please let us start over?” Lissa asked, hugging Hope tight.

  “I think we are all starting over, so I don’t see why we can’t, but ladies, this isn’t over,” Hope said, stepping back and nodding to one of the large tables. “Why don’t we have a seat?” she said and Valda nodded. “Since we’re still not allowed up top.” Hope rolled her eyes and Valda snorted.

  “It’s not over, is it?” Jaycee asked and Hope shook her head.

  “I mean, most of those things have been destroyed, but we’ll never know when they’ll pop up again. I hate to say it, but I have to let you know that some of them will want to try and kidnap me, since it’s obvious that I’m the last of their leader’s bloodline. Well, except for Valda’s siblings.” Hope reached over and squeezed Valda’s hand. “I have this strange feeling that Kanji knew his time was coming close to an end. It’s one of the reasons he wouldn’t allow me to be transported to their hiding place. I truly believe he knew I’d kill their mate and he and his family unit would die.”

  Valda typed her fingers on the table. “It would be nice to believe that, but we have to be careful here. Sure, a few are decent, but most of these things have only one purpose: mating and making more children, no matter what the cost. But I do wonder how and where my siblings are.”

  “My question to you, ladies.” Hope leaned forward. “What if Valda’s father has hidden the children here on our planet somewhere? If we found them and they were small enough, would you allow them to live here with us?” Hope asked, shocking all of them. “Remember, I have their DNA—or I did, according to my men.” Hope kept her gaze on Jaycee and Lissa just in case.

  “Even on Earth there were prejudices. Any child can be brought up to accept the good, if given the chance. I have a feeling we will be meeting others living out here, as with your men, Hope,” Jaycee laughed. “I mean, I used to read a lot of hot romance novels about alien lovers, but for it to be a reality is something that will take time to get used to. But then again, all of this is something like a dream.” Jaycee leaned forward. “Another question: do we stay down here or go up top to build again?”

  “Don’t you think we should be in on this discussion?” Gourd said, appearing behind Hope and placing his hands on her shoulders. Fand stood next to her, his hand resting on her arm. Looking around, Hope saw the other men moving into the room toward their mates.

  She peeked up at Gourd, smiling. “We were settling things between us. Since you and the children gave us that wonderful hot chocolate earlier, we slept all day. Now we’re wide-awake. Now is a perfect time to talk without distractions, don’t you think, ladies?” she said, glancing over at Jaycee and winking at her.

  Jaycee laughed and patted Remi’s hand on her shoulder. “We know you guys are tired, so go home. As you can see, we are just sitting her chatting, not exploring the island, not roaming around, just nice and safe enjoying each other’s company. I mean, we are really not so adventurous anyway, right?” she said, getting a groan out of each of the men.

  “Did you know that our kind really don’t need that much sleep?” Gourd said, sitting down next to Hope as chairs appeared for each of the men. “I believe you were asking about having our homes on the surface?”

  “That is a good question,” Remi said, wrapping his arm around Jaycee and lifting her. He took her seat and placed her in his lap.

  “We also must take into account that this ship-planet is still changing. It’s young, according to Aurora and her mates,” Owen said, lifting Valda and placing her in his lap.

  Valda rolled her eyes and winked at Hope, resting her head against his chest. “I think we need to stay down here for the first few years. I mean, most of us are used to Earth. Except for Hope’s mates and Aurora’s, we haven’t traveled around and don’t know what’s out there. But is it agreed we stay close to Earth help with its recovery?”

  “I have to agree, I mean it’s not like we can’t go up for outings and such, but I believe our homes should be down here. Why risk being hurt if there’s another attack? And I agree. We should help Earth build itself back up,” Jaycee said.

  “I agree on helping Earth too. It will take them a while to rebuild, and we have to help them recognize they are not alone in this world, to take a more open, but cautions approach. Gourd ha
s already been helping our people with the strange animals and insects that are now on our old world. Suzanne, has you friend Leda heard anything from the top officials yet?” Remi asked.

  Suzanne leaned back on Dominic’s chest and shook her head. “I hate to see her go, but I believe Leda and her mom are going back to Earth. Leda thinks she can do more there, kind of like a go-between for us and them. Tor and Jared are looking for places to settle, but I think it would be best for them to settle close to Grant and Seth, since they have already started to rebuild.”

  Dane nodded. “Both of them come from a family of strong workers, and I always believed Grant would make an excellent alpha. They could use your friend’s help.” He looked over at Remi. “You know, maybe we should have a meeting with them and Leda.”

  “Why don’t you bring them here? It would be easier for them to come here, and that way the women can attend this meeting. After all, they do have some ideas,” Gourd said, earning a snort from Hope.

  “Maybe we can talk some sense into them when they get here. Did you hear about that club they want to open and the so-called new rules he’s thinking on imposing on the females down there?” Jaycee growled.

  Remi smiled. “We don’t know if it’s true, so there is no sense in you getting all upset.”

  “Since you are here and all…” Hope looked up into Gourd’s eyes. “I would really like some fresh air, just for a few minutes? It’s been a while since I allowed my bear to run free without having to worry.”

  “Same here. My wolf would love a run,” Jaycee said, looking up at Remi. “And we will be discussing these rules later,” she said as Suzanne, Lissa, Shelly and Cecilia pleaded with their men.

  Gourd frowned and looked over at Remi, then at Dominic. “Has the one threat been taken care of?” he asked and Dominic nodded.

  “We have found no others and the air has been clear for the last six hours. But if we do this, all of you must listen to us. We still don’t know how much damage was done, especially since that last attack when Hope got hurt,” Dominic said.

  Gourd nodded. “It would give us an opportunity to scope things out,” he said, looking down at Hope.

  “You going to change into your bear form?” Hope giggled and jumped away from him, hearing Jester’s growl in her head.

  “Woman, you just wait,” Jester said. “I’m going to impress you soon.”

  “I know you will,” Hope said. She laughed, then glanced at Gourd as he came toward her. “If you hope to challenge the leader for the den, you have to get used to your bear form,” she informed him.

  Remi stood and looked at Gourd. “Which man are we talking about? I know a few dens that are here.”

  Gourd growled. “The one that left my woman and three kids behind. Oliver Tayden’s den. He has to answer for what he did. How can you walk away from three children when their parents are dead?”

  Remi and Dane growled. “I had dealings with this man. He’s a tough SOB, but it’s time for him to go after he did that.” Remi nodded. “But Hope is right. If you want to challenge this man, you will be expected to be in bear form. He goes by old-school rules from what I’ve heard.”

  Hope giggled, glancing back at Gourd as she walked with the women toward the opening with Valda at her side.

  “I was thinking maybe we should have some more openings leading above ground. This way we have easier access to get down below when we need to. We could even have them sealed up when there is a treat,” Valda said. “You know, like the other ones.”

  “I know that many of the demons are building a tunnel down the mountain. Dominic told them there was no reason for them to cut themselves off from the rest of us. There are a number of different species here. I know I saw a few foxes also. Plus, we must not forget there are a number of humans here too. They are more vulnerable than we are,” Valda said as Owen and Dominic stepped in front of them.

  Valda rolled her eyes as he and Dominic glanced back at them. “Stay here till we make sure it’s clear,” Owen growled, seeing what Valda did. “We will be having a talk with you about your disrespect, little lady.”

  Valda glanced at Owen. “I wasn’t disrespecting, it’s just silly. We are all trained to scan and battle, Owen. It’s not like we are simple-minded or weak,” she said, placing her hands on her hips.

  “Valda, we know you and the others aren’t weak. That you are strong and capable of handling yourselves, but all of you have done enough. Let us do this for you. It’s time for you ladies to relax for a while,” Gourd said, wrapping his arms around Hope and pulling her back against his chest as Fand joined Owen and Dominic.

  “I hate to say it, but I think it’s going to take a long time till I can relax again after years of always looking over my shoulder,” Hope said as the other women nodded.

  “You’re not kidding,” Jaycee said. “Some nights I’ll get up and be confused about where I am. I have to get up and check on the babies just to reassure myself everything is okay.”

  Remi came up to Jaycee and hugged her from behind, placing a kiss on her neck.

  Suzanne and Lissa nodded, as did Cecilia. “Let’s not forget the nightmares,” Cecilia said, shaking and rubbing her arms before Clayton came up to her and surrounded her with his arms.

  “Ever since we heard they were allowing the council here, I’m afraid she’s been nervous,” Clayton said.

  Remi growled. “If I had my way, they’d be back on Earth, but so far they have been behaving. In a way it’s a good thing, now that the council has been dissolved. Grant and his brother won’t have to deal with the headache of them butting in, and they have no say here or anywhere anymore.”

  Gourd kept his arm around her as the all clear was given and they went out into the night air. The sky was beautiful, the stars were bright, but different than Earth’s, a little closer, and Aurora’s moon planet was bright as ever. “This is what I miss the most: the quiet and breathtaking views without having to worry about being attacked.” Hope laughed. “Well, like when I had with my mom was alive.”

  Valda sighed next to her. “I have to agree with you. Sometimes at nights I’d just sit up and watch the stars, it was so peaceful,” she said as they came upon the path to the old houses. Already Hope could see that they were partway destroyed. “I didn’t realize they were hit, or that we suffered so much damage. Guess that’s how much we were all out of it.”

  “All five of you were like a beacon. We couldn’t get near you for a good hour, not until you all fell to the ground,” Dominic growled. “But one good thing was that not one of the heliokillers could get to you. A few did try, but they burned before getting five feet next to you. You ladies have one powerful weapon to use when in need. But let’s hope we won’t need it for a very long time.”

  “It drains them and leaves them vulnerable after. I don’t believe they could do this often; it takes too much out of them. Even now they are still not fully recovered, are you?” Gourd asked.

  Hope sighed. “Yes and no. Mind-wise I’m fine. I’m a little stiff and sore, hence why I wanted to take a walk, stretch and let my bear out. Plus, I haven’t shifted since you decided to convert me,” Hope said, giving him the side-eye right before she allowed her bear to take over.

  “You up to the challenge, old man?” Hope teased, knowing that all her mates were far older than she was as she took off through the trees. Jaycee, Cecilia, Lissa and Shelly followed her in wolf form, Suzanne flew up in her dragon form, and Valda shifted, running at Hope’s side as they made their way toward the old houses to check out the damage.

  Hope had to admit that having the ladies next to her felt great, almost normal.

  “Hope, wait for us,” Gourd growled, and sure enough, he and Fand were in bear form making their way toward her. White and large, Gourd stood out among the different-colored plants.

  “I’m impressed, Mighty Old One,” Hope said, stopping at the entrance to what used to be their homes. Gourd tripped and almost landed on his face, but righted himself i
n time.

  “I swear,” Gourd growled shifting back to his normal form just as Hope did.

  “You’ll get there. A bear’s body is big, but once you get used—” She sniffed the air, growling just as the one person she didn’t want to see came out of the woods, staring at her in his bear form. Oliver Tayden shifted as his second came up next to him, also in bear form.

  “Just what I don’t need. I thought this area was supposed to be protected from others walking around here,” Hope grumbled, knowing all that had changed when they had moved their homes underground.

  “Who brought the nutcase here?” Oliver’s second, Alan, growled, shifting and stepping forward, but that was as far as he got.

  Growls not only from her men, but the others, Jaycee, Cecilia, Lissa and even Suzanne came flying down close to the two men, letting lose a little fire and making them do a jig to avoid it.

  They all laughed as both men jumped back, glaring at Suzanne as she landed to the side of Dominic and Blair.

  Fand stepped forward into Alan’s personal space. “If you ever, I mean ever, say that again, I will allow our pets to make a meal of you without a second thought.” As he spoke, the four Naperones surrounded Hope, standing on their hind legs, ready to attack. Their growls and snapping fangs had both men retreating back into the woods.

  Oliver pushed Alan into the woods, his gaze never leaving Hope’s. “Are you going to be a part of our den?” he asked.

  Before Hope could speak, Gourd slid in front of Oliver. “Your den only for a few more days. Let it be known here and now that I am official challenging you next week for control of it. It’s about time your people start living without fear of your punishments and anger.”

  Oliver laughed. “I’ve seen you in your bear form. Do your really wish to challenge me? You might be big, but you can’t even walk.” Oliver’s gaze turned toward her again and traveled down her body.

  Hope stepped back, not liking the look he was giving her.