Take Her to HeVan

by Lucy Kelly

  “I haven’t seen the whole station yet. Maybe we should finish the tour first and then come back after,” Marla said, trying to buy some time.

  “You’re only a tiny bit nervous because you don’t know what’s going to happen, exactly, so we’ll go inside and talk to the medical. After everything is explained to your satisfaction, then you can decide what you want to do, okay?” said Karlo.

  Marla looked at Karlo, then back at Charl, and then around at the others waiting patiently for her and knew she couldn’t back out of this. “Okay.”

  They went in as a group and the medical officer came forward with a smile on his face. “Hello, you must be Marla. I’m Medical Officer Birman. How was your first visit off-planet?”

  “It depends; are you going to do something that’s going to hurt?” she asked.

  “Not at all—in fact, I can guarantee you won’t feel a thing. Why don’t you come over to the med-bed? Your Ankida can come with you, if you want.”

  He led them to an examination area and gestured to the med-bed. Beds were one thing that appeared the same everywhere she’d been so far. With Charl’s help, she got up and then lay down on the bed.

  “That’s fine. Now, I’ve looked at the scans Markus took. I’m going to take a second scan because my scanner’s bigger,” Birman said with a wink.

  Pressing a screen in the wall, a machine dropped down from the ceiling.

  “Now just relax and hold still, if you can. The scan won’t take long.”

  After positioning it over her feet, he started the scan sequence by touching the screen again. Once the scanning machine was back in the ceiling, Birman looked at the data flowing on the screen in front of him. A minute later, he turned back to the bed and showed Marla an instrument.

  “Well, so far so good. I’ve confirmed Markus’s diagnosis and you do need a minor medical procedure to get you back in perfect condition. Would you mind providing a DNA sample? It will help me give you the best care possible,” said Birman.

  Marla had seen people give DNA samples on TV with the swipe of a swab on the inside of their cheek. She didn’t mind that, so she gave her consent.

  “That’s fine then. Now, this is a pressure syringe. It has an anesthetic in it. You’ll feel a little groggy, go ahead and sleep if you want to. By the time it wears off, we’ll be done and you’ll be able to leave with your Ankida. Okay?”

  Marla looked at Birman and then over at Karlo and Charl. She knew they were worried and yet they still didn’t push her. They let her make the decision; it was her body.

  “Okay, good as new sounds great. Go ahead,” she said, waving her hand in a motion of acceptance.

  She still had all her clothes on and he didn’t use the “s” word so she wasn’t worried anymore about going under the knife. She had been worried for nothing; they weren’t planning on open heart surgery.

  After he gave her the injection, she did feel a little loopy. She smiled at Karlo then looked at the doc. “Psst, doc?” She gave him a smile and crooked a finger at him, waiting for him to bend over. She was already so out of it she didn’t realize Karlo and Charl could hear her. “Can you do anything about cellulite? Oh, and even better, can you work on my ass? It doesn’t work right, cuz I’m …” she got no further; the drug had taken full effect.

  Birman checked her pulse and pain response; she was under full anesthesia. “I’ll take her into surgery now. The procedure should only take a couple of hours. Do you know what she was asking me about? Does she have another medical issue? Nothing came up on the scan.”

  Charl’s face heated. “Marla is the first Join not of Nephilim descent. Humans are not biologically designed for sex with multiple partners. She doesn’t have all the same pleasure centers and her body doesn’t prepare itself for penetration in her throat or ass the way it does for the others,” he explained in a stilted voice. “Please pay no attention; Karlo and I are very happy with our Beleti. We don’t wish her to be different for our sakes.”

  “But she doesn’t experience the same level of pleasure. I will do nothing. However, I will research this and give you what information I discover. You can then share it with your Beleti. Now, if you will excuse me, I must proceed with her healing.”

  Detaching the med-bed from the wall, he wheeled it out of the exam room and down the hall to the surgical room. Another medical met him in the hall; they would perform the surgery together.

  While Marla was in surgery, Karlo and Charl sat in the waiting area with Suzanna and her Ankida. At one point, they heard a baby cry.

  “Dax is here with his twins. He sits with them for hours every day; he rarely leaves their side,” Jeze explained.

  “Is there anything we can do to assist him?” Karlo asked, Charl seconding him.

  “Many have asked. He’s determined to be all parents to his babes. He worries Queen Addie will give his girls to a woman to raise. I’ve told him no one will take them but he is still convinced if he takes them back to HeVan, the head of his House will give them to a childless couple,” Jeze said.

  “He could come to our ranch. Marla would welcome them,” Charl said.

  “I will give him your offer. We had already offered him a place on the new ranch Sarah has bought in Montana. I don’t want to make any decisions for him. The more control he has, the less he’ll worry,” Suzanna said.

  “You are wise, Commander. In the same situation, I would feel the same as Dax,” said Karlo.

  “So I guess this means I’ll be losing two good men. You’ll both want to give up your duties to live down on Earth with your Join?” Suzanna asked, changing the subject.

  “Yes, Commander. Are we leaving you short-handed?” Karlo asked.

  “I have re-enforcements coming from HeVan. Grace is choosing them for me so we don’t have to be concerned about another Hend.”

  “Is there news about Nin Grace? She has recovered from the attempt on her life?”

  “Her Ankida Justyn says she is still on bed rest, though she is expected to fully recover. It was a close thing; if not for the healing powers of the Nam-Nin, we would have lost her,” said Tyr.

  They were all silent for a moment; how anyone could think to kill one of the females come to help their race? It was unthinkable.

  After a while, the conversation picked up again. The first hour passed quickly, the second seemed to last twice as long. When they were halfway through the third hour, Karlo and Charl began to worry. Markus had told them the procedure would be less than two hours. They were pacing the floor when Birman appeared in the doorway, four hours and fifteen minutes after the surgery started.

  “How is she?” Karlo asked.

  “Is she alright?” Charl asked.

  Karlo’s and Charl’s words overrode each other.

  Birman smiled at them. “Your Beleti is fine. She will sleep for another hour and then begin to wake. The initial procedure went as expected; her heart is fully healed.”

  “Then what took so long?” Charl asked.

  “Her DNA tests revealed that she would have an early death from cancer of the ovaries. We also found a hereditary gene for a neurological disease that effects memory and cognitive ability. Since she seems reluctant to have medicals treat her, we repaired both problems. It took the extra time to map her genome and make the necessary changes. She will need additional gene therapies over the next year. I will provide the data to Markus so she need not return to Far Star Station,” Birman explained.

  “I thank you. We would not wish to lose her, now that we’ve found her. However, I’m still going to let you explain it to her. She can get mad at you then, instead of me,” said Karlo.

  “Why would she be angry?” asked Birman, perplexed. “We have added many years to her life and increased the quality of those years.”

  “Don’t try to understand now, Birman. When you have a Join, then you’ll find out,” said Suzanna. “Congratulations, guys. Why don’t you go on back and be with Marla?”

  They didn’t need to be
told twice; they immediately left to go to her.

  After they left the room, Suzanna turned back to Birman. “Did you tell them everything?”

  “No. The cancer in her ovaries was already present. It took some time to fully eradicate it from her body. I’m surprised she wasn’t already having symptoms. We were able to save the ovaries, though she may have some difficulty getting pregnant until her healing is complete. The gene therapies Markus will give her will help with that,” answered Birman.

  “You have to tell them all of it. Marla deserves to know what’s going on with her own body. Understand?”

  “Yes, Commander. I had not planned to keep it a secret. I just felt I should tell Beleti Marla the whole of it first,” he said.

  “Okay, just so we’re clear. You did well. Now, give me an update on Dax’s girls.”

  For the second time that afternoon, Birman smiled.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Marla woke up alone for the first time since she had Joined with Karlo and Charl Darvik. She took the opportunity to stretch out her arms and legs, flexing the muscles in her legs by pointing and relaxing her toes. Then she arched her back, reaching her arms to the side and up to push against the headboard. Groaning, not because it hurt, but because it felt so good, she finally relaxed and looked around.

  Usually surrounded and held tight by her Ankida, she luxuriated in having the bed to herself. A part of her wondered why and another part of her was enjoying the moment. Of course, she wouldn’t want to wake up alone all the time. She loved her men and she loved that they loved her.

  The best thing that had ever happened to her was Karlo crashing into her barn. Her eyes started to tear up again. Reaching over, she took a tissue from the box by the bed. Every time she thought about all the things the doctor had told her, how close she came to dying… Now she was going to have this great life with two of the greatest guys. She was going to live, and she was still going to have babies. Not getting Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s in her old age was another plus. She felt bad for all the people on Earth who wouldn’t be cured the way she was.

  Of course, she wasn’t completely cured. Markus would be giving her treatments for the next year. She was thinking about the other changes her body would be experiencing as her treatments progressed, when her musings were interrupted by the door opening. Karlo and Charl came in carrying a tray.

  “Ooh, breakfast in bed? I’m really liking the way you guys are spoiling me,” she said with a watery smile.

  “You’ve been crying again. What’s wrong, why were you crying?” asked Charl as he put the tray over her lap, while Karlo helped her to sit up and plumped up the pillows behind her.

  “I’m happy,” she said before blowing her nose.

  As she looked over the food on the tray, Karlo and Charl exchanged confused looks over her head. Shrugging their shoulders, they sat down on either side of the bed and faced her.

  “Aren’t you guys going to eat?”

  “We ate already. You were sleeping so soundly we didn’t want to disturb you. So we showered and visited the dining hall. We brought back the tray hoping you were awake,” said Karlo.

  “Then your timing was perfect, because I only woke up a few minutes ago and was wondering where you both were. I was also having fun hogging the bed. I liked not being so squished up for a change,” she said before taking a bite of her eggs.

  She looked up and saw the dismay on their faces then she thought over what she said and nearly spit the eggs back out when she laughed.

  “Don’t get me wrong; getting squished by you is better than hogging the bed by myself any day. I only meant that since you both had deserted me for food, I made the most of my solitude,” she said before giving them a good view of her dimples.

  The three of them joked their way through Marla’s breakfast. After breakfast and after Marla had showered and brushed her teeth, they started packing for the trip back to Earth. They had stayed on the station for eight days so Marla could get the first round of treatments in the medical bay. Now they needed to get back to Earth for the annulment proceedings. Medical Officer Birman had given them a package with the rest of Marla’s treatments. So once a month, she would have to travel to Wisconsin for Markus to finish up where Birman had left off. She didn’t mind; it would give her an opportunity to help Sarah establish a breeding program for alpacas at the Sanctuary.

  After a picnic in the fully repaired arboretum, they went to the launch bay to take the shuttle home. By now, being familiar with the trip, Marla loaded up with movies and a few board games. The guys also brought some popular games and activities from their own planet to share. Far Star Station had an extensive movie and activity library that had been put together by both the women from Earth and the men from HeVan. When you were living on a space station at the edge of the solar system and weren’t a scientist, you had to find things to do.

  Most of the women had started out living as if they were on a vacation. Then once they had relaxed into their new lives, they took advantage of the advanced learning techniques offered by the Nephilim. Living on a space station at the edge of a solar system also had lots of opportunities to study.

  Marla made some good friends she planned to stay in touch with via the satellite phones provided by Karlo. There were so many changes in her life, Marla took a deep breath and watched the station get smaller and smaller on the view-screen. Still, even with all the wonderful and awesome things she’d seen, she was looking forward to getting home to her ranch. She thought of the history of the Nephilim and knew the hundred and fifty years her family had been on its land in Colorado was a blip on the historical timeline in comparison.

  Still, she was pleased her Ankida were willing to give up their homeland for her. When she brought it up, they just told her they were starting a new dynasty. Was it any wonder she loved them so much?

  The trip home was several hours shorter than the trip out and yet it seemed longer because she wanted to get home. Instead of heading to the ranch, they went straight to Boulder. The extra time spent at Far Star Station meant the waiting period was over. Marla had a court date on the morning after next for her annulment. She’d used her new satellite phone to call Mr. Edwards from the shuttle by linking up through the com systems.

  At first, they had planned to get the annulment and then get married right after. However, Mr. Edwards had recommended they stay overnight in Boulder and get married the next day. That way, the date the marriage was registered would be one day later than the day the annulment was recorded. Neater—and it would forestall anyone causing problems for them. Marla agreed both for the reasons Mr. Edwards gave her and also because it gave her a reason to stay overnight in Boulder with her guys. Shopping and hotel sex were both on her must do list.

  They checked into the nicest hotel in Boulder after flying in from Chicago. Since she had a free day before she was due in court, she and the guys went shopping. Both Karlo and Charl had black cards. The Nephilim had great wealth, so she used one to do some private shopping at the lingerie store. Sure, she was already married the Nephilim way. Now she was going to be married more traditionally, and she wanted a really special wedding night.

  At nine o’clock the next morning, Marla, Karlo, and Charl met Mr. Edwards in the hallway outside of Judge Davis’ courtroom. True to his word, he had helped them by putting the annulment on his docket as quickly as he could.

  “Well, Marla, are you ready?” he asked her.

  “Absolutely, do you think Jake found out? He hasn’t done anything to stop us?” she asked him.

  Until the Judge actually declared her proxy marriage to Jake O’Brien annulled, she was worried something bad would happen.

  “If he found out, he’d have to be here today in order to contest the annulment. Neither he nor his attorneys have approached me about the papers he was served with.”

  “When I do get married tomorrow, that means I will have completed the terms of Granddad’s will. Does that mean the ranch will fin
ally be mine?”

  “Yes. Come see me after the wedding and we’ll go over it. Then I’ll file the final paperwork necessary to complete probate and complete my term as executor. Now, shall we go inside? We don’t want to be late for our court appointment.”

  “Of course,” Marla said.

  The four of them went right into the courtroom. The Judge was finishing up a different case, so they all sat down quietly and waited to be called.

  It didn’t take long before the bailiff called hers and Jake’s names. She approached the front of the room with Mr. Edwards, Karlo, and Charl following behind. They sat at the now empty left hand table in front of the rows of chairs for witnesses and the public.

  “Marla Jones is present. I’m Paul Edwards, her Attorney-of-Record in this action.”

  “Is Mr. O’Brien present?” asked the Judge.

  “He doesn’t seem to be, Your Honor. I have an affidavit here by Deputy Sheriff Tucker. The required documents were served to Mr. O’Brien. He’s had more than the required twenty days to file against the annulment,” explained Mr. Edwards, pulling the necessary papers out of his briefcase and handing them to the bailiff, who handed them to the Judge.

  “Thank you. Everything here is in order. The annulment is duly registered on this day and it will be recorded as such. Are you still in a mind to marry your young fella there, Miss Jones? You are once again Miss Jones, after all,” said the Judge with a smile.

  “Yes, sir, I am. His brother has arrived to stand as witness and best man,” she added, indicating Charl.

  “Good. I take it you’ve regained your wits, Mr. Darvik, and you are free to marry Miss Jones? We’re not going to find out you were married to someone else, too?”

  “No, sir. My memory returned when I saw my brother. I’ve never been married. I love Marla and only want to marry her,” said Karlo.

  “Fine, then, be at my chambers tomorrow afternoon at two and I’ll perform the marriage then. Don’t forget to get a new license. It’s been thirty days so your previous license is no longer valid. We don’t want any technicalities to invalidate your marriage this time.”