The smile dropped from Tarune's face. “He's protecting Ambassador Slavern. Apparently, one of those formulas we talked about requires Dormrelian blood. I think Kliro is hoping to sacrifice Slavern to the cause."
"Did something happen?"
He nodded. “When Kevin and Kliro nabbed you and Donny, we managed to disrupt some of their plan. They'd knocked Paul out, and trussed up the Ambassador for transport.” Jake's dark eyes were hard and cold. “I showed up with eight soldiers and freed Jonah, Slavern and Paul, but they wounded four of us and escaped with the two of you.” Jake clasped his hands behind him. “Paul insisted on meeting you with the shuttle even though he probably wasn't a hundred percent. We protected the Ambassador until he got back.” The Captain frowned at her. “Now, tell me everything that happened."
Elise told him everything. “We haven't seen any dead bodies, so both Kevin and Kliro could still be alive."
"Did they say anything about what they plan to do?"
"Only that they planned the ritual blood letting to combine the DNA. Donny will die if they do it to him, Captain. It's lethal.” Her hands clasped in her lap.
"You go in there and bring him back, Dr. Fleming. I'll take care of Kliro.” He gripped her arm and helped her to her feet. With a firm hand, he led her into the room where the man she loved fought for his life.
The next few hours were heartbreaking. The wounds were closed, but he had a fever that could kill him. Elise held Donny's hand and whispered in his ear until she was hoarse. She told him how they'd get a little house on the outskirts of the colony and spend their time in the VFR exploring every aspect of their sexual nature. She poured out her heart as she pleaded with him to stay with her, love her, boss her around, father her children. For hours, there was no response.
Then, she mentioned something about an apple tree. His eyes pried open and that piercing blue gaze pinned hers. “Peaches.” Strong and clear, his voice brooked no argument.
Tears pricked her eyes. “Peaches.” She nodded. She raised his hand to her lips and tried to control the tremor in her voice. “Though apple trees are better to climb in.” As she stroked the back of his hand with her thumb, he blinked once and squeezed her fingers.
"Three.” He choked out the word.
"Three what, Donny?” She peered into his face.
"I want three kids.” His voice faded and his eyes drifted shut. “Three little Asberekians."
His chest rose and fell as he lost consciousness.
Elise glanced at the doctor. “Will he live?"
The older man frowned. “He lost a lot of blood, but something keeps regenerating his damaged vessels. I've never seen anything like it.” The man removed his glasses and wiped them with a cloth. “It may have something to do with his changed genetic structure. The fact is I have no idea. If he was a normal human being, he'd be dead. The blaster made hamburger of his femoral artery. Somehow, his body has repaired the vessel, but I don't know how."
Elise gazed at Donny's white, still face. “Wouldn't that be ironic? If all the suffering you went through with those injections end up saving your life?” He didn't move or respond.
"We should know if he's going to live in twenty-four hours or so.” The doctor placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and she nodded.
"I'm staying here."
"I think that would be best for both of you.” The doctor smiled and left the room.
The fever finally broke five hours later. Elise sobbed with relief. She had no idea what was going on outside that little hospital room. Her whole focus was to make sure Donny took the next breath. And the next one. And the next one.
She fell asleep at his side, her hand wrapped around his and her face rested on his shoulder.
* * * *
Donny's whole body ached. He winced as he tried to open his eyes and the light stung them. He flexed his left hand and realized his fingers were twined with someone's palm. Elise's dark hair that rested on his shoulder tickled his nose. He inhaled deeply and reveled in the light, clean scent that she exuded.
What had happened?
Right. The blaster from behind. Kliro had gotten off a shot and severed his femoral artery. Donny had known it right off. Why wasn't he dead? Even if Elise had cauterized the wound, he'd probably lost too much blood to still be alive.
He shifted and she stirred. Her grey eyes were bleary and bloodshot as she blinked at him. “You're awake!"
"Barely.” His voice was hoarse and it hurt to talk.
"You almost died.” She crawled up onto the bed until her body rested along his. He sighed.
"I don't even know what happened. The last thing I remember was getting into the shuttle."
"Do peach trees sound familiar?” She smirked at him.
His brows clashed together. “Peach trees? I don't know what you're talking about.” He racked his brain, and she grinned at him.
"Never mind. I'm just glad you're alive."
"I promised.” He flexed his arm to pull her closer.
She sighed and snuggled into the crook of his arm. His heart swelled until he was sure it would burst. He was a very lucky man. And when he was fully recovered, he'd show her how lucky he was. Or maybe even sooner.
"Isn't this a pretty picture?"
Elise jerked around, and Donny was unsurprised to find Kliro stepping out of the shadows. Dead. He was a dead man. Donny didn't have the strength to stop the man and despair washed over him.
The blaster was aimed at Elise, not Donny. She kept her body between him and Kliro as she glared at the Dormrela. “You're a dead son of a bitch,” she spat at him.
Kliro laughed and Donny's fists clenched. “Not before you, my dear."
The Dormrela's thick finger started to press the trigger on the blaster and, to Donny it seemed the whole world slowed down. Kliro shot the blaster and Donny used the last of his strength to shove Elise to the floor. He didn't know his own strength and she practically flew off the bed. He lifted his body from the bed and the blast blew a hole in the hospital bed.
In a heartbeat, Donny was on Kliro. Blood dripped everywhere as he ripped away from the various IVs that were connected to him. Even as Kliro trained the blaster on him again, Donny ploughed into him.
They slammed into the wall behind them and Kliro gripped Donny with all four of his massive arms. One of Kliro's hands clutched his throat. He squeezed and Donny knew he was a dead man if he didn't react soon.
Alarms screeched as Kliro began to choke the life out of him. “I always win, human. Always. Even as you die, know that the Dormrela will win, and eventually Elise Fleming will be sacrificed."
He was going to lose consciousness. His hands fought to free him and Kliro's laughter filled his ears.
Suddenly Kliro grunted in pain and the grip on Donny's throat loosened.
"Take that you fucking freak!” Elise held an IV pole up and swung it a second time and caught Kliro in the back of his knees.
Kliro roared and flung Donny across the room. As he bounced to the floor, Donny struggled to his feet. Kliro towered over Elise, his huge scaled body reaching out as she swung the metal pole at his head. She'd be killed. His heart stopped, and he scrambled to reach Kliro before the monster was able to reach her.
All the air whooshed out of his lungs as he careened into the solid alien form. Glass flew everywhere as they smashed through a large window. Then, they were falling. Falling. Above him he heard Elise scream his name as the ground rushed up to meet him.
* * * *
"How did that bastard get in here? He's dead and this is your fault!” Elise pounded her fists on Captain Jake Tarune's chest and the man didn't move. She'd never be able to get the vision out of her head of Donny's tumbling body crashed into the ground below. How could this happen? The precipice of yawning emptiness that she'd teetered on when he lay in that hospital bed fighting for his life was now her reality.
No one could survive that fall.
"He's not dead.” Jake's voice sliced through her
.
Her gaze jerked to his face. “What?” Her voice squeaked.
"Kliro's body broke the fall. He's busted up and broken several bones but—” He never got to finish.
Elise raced passed him to the prone form of the man she loved. “Donny. Oh God, Donny."
His eyes opened. Both were black and blue from the impact and he'd broken several of the vessels in his eyes so they were red. He looked horrible and wonderful all at the same time. He couldn't speak but she saw, in his gaze, that he would fight to the bitter end.
She couldn't even hold his hand as they lifted him and rushed him back to the hospital room.
As she glanced back, she noted Kliro also lived. Every extremity was crushed since the impact of Donny's body shattered Kliro's bones. His breath gurgled but he managed to speak. “Tell him—tell him—"
"I won't tell him anything you have to say, Ambassador.” She sneered the last word. “The only time I will mention your name at all is to tell him you're dead."
The four eyes glazed over, black orbs of evil clouded by hate and the massive body shuddered. As the last breath slid out from between Kliro's lungs, blood pooled all around his body. The soldiers standing around him lowered their weapons.
Kliro was finally dead.
* * * *
The blips on the monitor became Elise's whole world. For three days, Donny clung to life and the doctors had no idea how he was still living. He mended, and they didn't know how that was possible. His blood regenerated and the doctors were amazed.
Elise didn't give a shit about science or how he managed to be alive. The blips on the screen meant he was and that was all that mattered. On the third day, he opened his eyes a crack and stared at her.
Relief washed over her in a huge wave. “Donny!” She leaned over him.
His gaze was blank. “Who are you?"
Stunned, the breath whooshed right out of her lungs. “It's Elise, Donny."
He blinked and frowned. “I don't know you. Where's my Mom?"
"Your mom?” She choked out the words.
"Yeah. My mom. She's going to be pissed at me but—I did fall off my sky board, right? That's why I'm here?"
Elise stumbled back and the doctors moved in. “How old are you Donny?” one of them asked.
"I'm twelve, why?"
Her stomach heaved, and Elise ran out into the hallway.
[Back to Table of Contents]
Chapter Ten
"He regressed because of the massive injuries and genetic mutation.” Dr. Alan Zoelner's warm voice didn't make it any easier to hear. “He remembers nothing about his life after the genetic changes from the Dormrelian DNA injections."
Elise's hand grasped her belly. How long had it been since Donny woke up and she lost her lunch? And how long had it been since Jenia told her she was pregnant?
They all ran together now.
"Jonah has asked me about you. We are all concerned.” The man leaned forward. “You're working too hard."
Had it only been a month? Time flew when your life fell apart. She threw herself in her work. Even now, she was on the verge of a major discovery. Yet, Earth Central had no idea. She trusted no one.
"What now?” she asked the psychiatrist.
"Give him time, Elise. He'll remember. Part of him must."
"Why?” Despair, anguish, loss were all in that one word.
"Because S.E.X. doesn't faze him. His body reacts as if he's bonded, connected, to someone. Dr. Carstairs tested his blood. Like all the other bonded couples, he blocks the drug's effects. You are his mate, whether he remembers it or not."
She started to cry. “He doesn't know me. I'm going to have his baby, and he doesn't know who I am."
"Give him time,” Zoelner repeated. “You love him. Give him time."
* * * *
"We were wrong to try and stop the digging.” Ambassador Slavern stood beside Elise as she documented the ritual she'd finally deciphered. “We believed humans would use it to control us."
Elise took a deep breath. “You were right."
The Ambassador's eyebrows shot up and two of his hands flexed. “What do you mean, Dr. Fleming?"
"Earth Central planned to use information from this site to force negotiations to their favor,” she stated baldly. “I was a pawn in that political game."
"You have proof?"
"No.” She was honest. “I was instructed to report to Earth Central directly and to a Senator in the President's inner circle specifically."
"The Senator who sent you to me."
"The same. He wanted me to misdirect you, create distrust, so that Earth Central could use the formulas I'd discovered to manipulate and control the Dormrela and the Ang."
"And Kliro?"
She let out a breath. “He was paid by Earth Central.” Her smile was bitter. “His motives were patriotic. He thought he was ushering in a new Dormrelian era with humans as their allies. He had no idea that my government was using him.” She adjusted her labcoat. She'd lost weight and it hung on her now. “Kevin Tozer murdered Trista Locke and the Gershons in an effort to throw suspicion on both the Ang and Dormrela. Earth Central was well aware of the particulars, even if they didn't order it done."
"You are being very blunt about your government."
She met his gaze squarely. “Asberek is my home. I will no longer allow this planet to be a battleground for genetic warfare. Not if I can help it."
"The body of Kevin Tozer has not been found."
"No. The Temple must be excavated by military personnel before I can resume my digging."
Slavern smiled. “Which is why I am here today."
"Correct.” She opened up several drawers. “Let me show you what I discovered.” She removed several of the beautiful stones from their hidden place. “On Earth, there is a substance called amber that, through a beautiful accident, preserved ancient and extinct species on our planet.” She held up a luminous blue stone. “These are similar, only it was no accident. Your people learned to capture DNA coding within these stones.” She noted Slavern's face had no expression. She went on. “The ritual involves the stones being placed in a particular manner.” She strode to the center of her lab where she began to set the stones in place. Now Slavern's stance was uncertain, nervous. “The human sacrifice was not really necessary. That, I believe, was added to keep the Asberekians from trying the ritual."
She dropped the last stone in place and several light patterns appeared in the center of the stone design. In seconds, the lights arranged themselves into a familiar helix pattern. “And there we are. The genetic code so coveted by your people, so revered. Contained in each of these stones was a piece of that code. It took me months to figure out how the stones remained closed.” Months without Donny. Months of loneliness and pain. “However, I did discover it."
Slavern's four eyes were riveted by the lights dancing in the center. “And what did you find, Dr. Fleming?"
"Rachlania,” She dropped the word into the silence and let it ring.
"You lie!” His attention jerked to her face.
"No. I'm telling you what I found.” She pointed to the helix. “That genetic code contains markers that prove Earthlings, the Ang and the Dormrela originated from the same species.” She stared at the glowing lights. “But not the planet Earth. A different planet. Rachlania."
Slavern's hands were fists. “I don't understand."
"Three different planets were colonized.” Elise rearranged the stones until all the stones were blue. “Earth.” Then she switched the stones until they were all red. “Ang.” She moved the stones until they were all green. “Dormrela.” She put them back in the genetic pattern she'd started with. “You preserved these stones given to you by your ancestors. I imagine the Ang and Earth were also given these same stones. Earth probably lost their meaning soon after colonization. The Ang, who knows? But you,” she stepped close to the Ambassador, “you knew."
"I swear, we did not understand them."
&nb
sp; Elise snorted. “No? But Kliro guessed. And with my discoveries, Earth wanted to have the upper hand. At best, you've been foolish. At worst, you've plotted to control humans through genetics. I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt."
"We ... believed they were powerful but I've never seen this.” He indicated the lights.
"No?” She curled her lip. “Kliro injected Donny, not with Dormrelian DNA as we believed.” Tears gathered in her eyes. “But with this.” She indicated the unknown DNA. “This was why he's still alive. Our ancestors were superhuman. Their markers included the scales you carry, the Ang psychic ability and the human resilience."
Slavern was silent.
Tears dripped from Elise's chin. “I'm showing you this for one reason. I'm destroying every single one of these I find."
"You can't do that!” Slavern exploded.
She glared at the Ambassador. “You all wanted some super being, super soldiers. You sent Kliro to a twelve-year-old boy to manipulate and damage him. You knew!” Her anger filled the room, and Slavern took a step back. She wrapped her arms around the child growing in her belly. “Earth Central wanted the technology to make humans tougher and stronger. And the Ang just wanted control. You'd better hope, Ambassador, that the stones the Ang were given a millennia ago are lost forever. Because you'll never see these again."
She slapped her hand on a red button and kept her gaze trained on the Dormrelian Ambassador as a laser destroyed all the stones into dust.
* * * *
How Dr. Elise Fleming, persona non grata with the Dormrela and Earth Central ended up in a meeting with the Ang representatives she didn't know. But here she was with these odd beings. Their long, tentacle-like arms hung by their sides and their eyes, perched on stalks, pinned her with a soul-searching gaze.
Their voices through the Mechanical Interpreter sounded cold and distant. And why not? They were a race of cold-blooded, ethnocentric politicians. Just like the Dormrela. Just like Earth. “We are aware of the destruction of the stones."
Elise smiled. There had been no proof of what she'd done except for a hysterical statement from Slavern. She denied it and kept denying it. The lies she told didn't matter to her. After losing Donny, she only wanted to live in peace, and if she had to lie to get it, so be it. Earth Central chose to believe the story she told them. Kliro destroyed them before he died. It had been an elaborate plot of revenge on those who robbed her of the man she loved. “Kliro was unstable, I'm afraid. It was quite a loss for our archeological dig.” She spoke through the MI, her voice masked by its weird technology. She always hated the things.
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