by Mikayla Lane
Emily just nodded her head and turned back to Dagog.
“I know because I have a message for you from Granala. Do you remember when you were younger and terrified of the stories of the sibiox she’d tell you boys when you were young? How you would have nightmares about them and come running to her in the night, your clothes soaked in your own urine and tears streaming down your face?”
Dagog turned a terrible shade of red, and his composure visibly crumbled.
“Shut up, you lying bitch! That never happened!” Dagog growled in fury.
“Do you remember how afraid you were that the sibiox were coming to rip your throat out? You would shake in fear for hours, begging her to keep you safe from the cats. It’s not the cats coming for you, Dagog, it’s every soul you’ve ever harmed,” Emily accused as she stared hatefully at him before continuing.
“The cats will be nothing compared to the army of those you’ve brutalized and destroyed. She’s tried to warn you over and over again in your dreams, telling you what is to come, and you are too stupid, too arrogant, and too evil to listen. The nightmares you have every time you close your eyes are her gift to you, and it is only the beginning of the retribution heading towards you,” Emily repeated, listening to every word Granala said.
Dagog roared in rage.
“You can’t know that! How do you know that! You lying fucking bitch! I’m going to rip your fucking head from your shoulders . . .”
Suddenly there was a flash of light, the screen blanked out, and Koda looked at Kit in shock.
“Sorry, Soda Pop, I think I hit the button a little early,” Kit said with a shrug.
He was obviously not the least bit sorry about blowing up the Relian ship and cutting off Dagog’s verbal tirade against Emily.
“I think it’s a shame Dagog wasn’t on the damn thing,” Ratarran said, clapping a hand on Kit’s shoulder.
“Maybe next time,” Koda added as he put an arm around Emily’s shoulder and placed a kiss on her cheek. “How did you know all that? Even I didn’t know he was scared of the sibiox and wet himself.”
“I wasn’t kidding; your mom told me to say that. I have a feeling she’s been making his sleep one long nightmare after the other,” Emily admitted.
“Is she still here?” Koda asked, looking around.
“No, she left when Kit blew the ship. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was haunting him; she’s not happy with how he turned out,” Emily said, hugging Koda around the waist.
Koda remembered very clearly what his mother could do when she wasn’t happy, and he almost felt sorry for Dagog, but if there was one thing his week trapped in his own body told him, it was to live for the future and not the past any more. He squeezed Emily before stepping back and taking her hand.
“As you were, gentlemen. If he happens to send another ship . . . blow it up before it can hail us. Ignore any more attempts to communicate. Let him stew in his own juices,” Koda ordered, before he pulled Emily out of the room and back into the lift.
“What are you doing?” Emily asked. “Shouldn’t you be handling this? What if he tries to attack?”
Koda backed her up against the wall in the lift and took her lips in a searing kiss. When she melted into him, he pulled back and led her out of the now open door and down the hall to their quarters.
“I already handled it. He won’t attack, so there’s nothing left to handle . . . but you,” he said as he led her through the living room and into the bedroom.
As he pulled her towards one of the walls, it slid open on its own, revealing a bathroom that caused Emily to gasp.
“Oh my . . .” she whispered, looking longingly at a huge sunken bath the size of a small pool.
“Do you have any idea how much I love you?” Koda whispered as he fingered the bottom of her shirt.
Emily put her hands on his chest and leaned into him as she smiled up at him.
“If it’s anything like the love I have for you, then it’s pretty awesome, huh?”
Koda chuckled and held her tight for a moment, grateful to even be standing there with her in the flesh.
“I don’t think there could ever be a doubt how much you love me. After everything you did . . . you and Joey,” Koda said, trying not to choke up as he turned away from her.
Emily wasn’t having none of that. Not today. It was technically her wedding day, and it wasn’t going to be somber or sad. She reached up and gently turned his face to hers.
“What we did was no different than what you went through on your own to come back to us. I think we’re even now,” she whispered then stepped back to start taking her clothes off. “First one in gets to wash the other one.”
Koda looked at her, almost already disrobed and grinned as he leaped into the pool, splashing her and soaking the floor as the internal pumps came on with a whisper to drain the water from the floor.
Emily looked at him with her mouth hanging open in shock and her soaked hair hanging down in wet strings. She watched as he grinned broadly and slowly peeled his wet clothes off, putting them on a small shelf in the bath.
“You crazy man, it’s going to take you twice as long to get those clothes off now,” she teased as she finished disrobing and took the wide steps into the pool.
Koda tripped and sunk into the water as he tried to pull his wet pants off, and Emily laughed as he came back up spraying water everywhere, his pants held aloft like a trophy.
“You may have had a few seconds on me, but I won,” he growled teasingly as he stalked through the water towards her, his heated gaze making her shiver in anticipation.
Emily backed away from him until he had her pressed against the wall of the pool, then she put her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck.
“So, why aren’t you doing something about Dagog or telling Grai about it? Shouldn’t you warn him?” she asked.
“Ratarran will have already sent a vid of the interaction to Grai, and there’s nothing to do but ignore the asshole until he actually does something. Besides, I have an incredible and irresistible mate who has waited long enough for me to be the man she needs to attend to,” he said with a grin as he leaned down and gave her kiss that curled her toes.
Emily was so wrapped up in him that she didn’t realize he’d moved to the steps until he sat down and slid her closer to his hard heat. She moved her hips against him and smiled when he groaned and flexed his fingers against her bottom.
She leaned forward and kissed his neck, loving the way it made him shiver in her arms. Excited over the way she seemed to affect him, Emily touched and kissed him the way he’d done her earlier until he couldn’t take anymore and pulled her hands behind her so she couldn’t touch him.
Undaunted, Emily shifted and swiveled her hips until she was able to get him inside just enough to make him let go of her arms with a gasp. He held her hips, trying to keep her still while he regained control, but she was having none of that.
She put both hands on his shoulders and lowered herself onto him as she took his mouth in a fiery kiss of her own. She fought her smile when he grabbed her hips and fitted her perfectly against him so she could slide him deeper inside.
“I love you so much, baby,” Emily whispered.
“I love you too, my beautiful mate,” Koda whispered before deciding that it was time for him to take over.
*****
Grai was watching the vid of Koda’s encounter with Dagog, and his fists clenched in rage. He knew that Dagog had spies all over the planet, and the Alliance actions over the last few months would have make it clear to Dagog that they were looking for someone.
He watched the vid again, swelling with pride at the way Koda handled it so calmly. He found that he really liked Kit and would have to send him a gift for having taken matters into his own hands by blowing up that ship.
Grai shook his head at the most startling information, given by none other than Emily. He had no doubt the information she shared had come from his mother. The horror and
fear that had crossed Dagog’s face had been real, and so had his subsequent embarrassment and fury over the revelation.
Grai had never known of his brother’s fears and was wondering if there was a way to use it against him when he heard a chime at the door to the conference room at beta.
“Come in,” he called out as he turned off the vid and faced the door. He was more than a little surprised to see who was there.
“What is it?” he asked, standing immediately as he saw the serious expressions.
“We need to speak with the Alliance leaders. All of you,” Amun said, his voice shaking a little.
Grai looked closely at both of the doctors and noted that Lauren looked pale and like she was going to be sick.
“Now,” Lauren whispered, her hands shaking as she placed her comm and several files on the table.
“It’s late . . .” Grai began when Lauren cut him off.
“Do it now! We don’t have time to screw around with this, and everyone needs to know, Grai, not just you.”
Grai raised his brows at her outburst and called out to the other leaders through the shengari’ as he contemplated what could possibly have caused both doctors to look as if they’d been scared to death by something.
“They will be here shortly,” Grai told them after receiving confirmation. “Why don’t you sit down until they get here?”
Amun began to pace as Lauren placed her head on the table, keeping her hands on the items she put on the table earlier.
Grai steepled his fingers, his heart began racing, and he felt an overwhelming sense that something was about to change their lives forever. He just hoped like hell it would be good news for once, although judging by the reactions of Amun and Lauren, he didn’t think that would be the case.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Two Days Later
Emily rolled over and cuddled closer to Koda, not wanting to get out of bed. It was their last day alone before they went back to beta and moved Joey onto the ship with them. Although she was excited about seeing how Joey would react to the ship and her new room, right now she just wanted to enjoy being close with Koda.
“I know you’re awake. Don’t you want to get up and see Joey before we have to go to the all-hands meeting?” Koda whispered as he pulled her close and hugged her.
“Of course I do. I’m just so comfortable right now I don’t want to move,” she admitted with a smile before looking up at him. “How are you doing? Are you OK with speaking at the meeting?”
Koda sighed and ran a hand down his face then gave her a squeeze.
“I think if Grai had asked me to talk to anyone about it before the crash, I would have refused. Now, after everything we’ve been through, I can’t imagine leaving anyone to suffer like that alone. That’s because of you. You saved more than my life, you saved my soul, and I will spend the rest of our lives trying to love you as you deserve,” Koda whispered, hugging her close.
Emily felt the rush of tears and forced them away.
“I was just there for you; you did all the work. Don’t discount the effort and determination you had to come back to us. I know how hard it must have been, but I’m so grateful you did because I can’t imagine my life without you,” Emily said.
Koda rolled her onto her back, using his elbows to keep his weight from crushing her.
“I can think of a way to spend some time this morning if you want to stay in bed.”
Emily giggled, knowing exactly what he meant as she felt his length pressed hard against her thigh, and she wrapped her legs around his waist and leaned up to kiss him.
*****
Grai paced the conference room at Dillon, thinking of the multi-world meeting they were having in two hours. His thoughts were interrupted by Traze coming into the room.
“All the communications are set up and ready for the meeting. Have you heard from Koda and Emily? Is he going to be all right talking?” Traze asked, his concern evident in his tone of voice.
Grai smiled and nodded his head.
“Our brother has changed a lot since his accident. He’s found a strength inside of him that we knew was there all the time. I have a feeling we will be pleasantly surprised at the way Koda will handle things from now on,” Grai admitted, truly happy for his brother.
Traze sat down in one of the chairs as he avoided Grai’s gaze.
“Do you think Mom talked to him? Do you think maybe Emily could talk to her for us too?”
Grai sat down beside him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“You know, I’ve beat that ball around in my head since the second we knew Emily could speak to the dead. Her comments to Dagog only made me want to port to that ship and badger her into trying to talk to Mom for us,” Grai admitted.
“What stops you?” Traze asked, looking at Grai with sad eyes.
“The knowledge that what Emily does isn’t a parlor trick, and like all of the other hybrids, she deserves the same respect we’d give someone who doesn’t have that ability. I also think the only reason Mom came was because Koda desperately needed her, and if we ever needed her like that, she’d be there for us,” Grai explained, hoping to alleviate some of Traze’s sadness.
“Damn,” Traze muttered. “I’d rather not see her if I have to go through what he did to do so.”
Grai chuckled and squeezed Traze’s shoulder.
“I know what you mean. I think if that was a condition of seeing her, I’ll wait until I leave the physical plane.”
“So, are you going to tell me what the big deal is about this meeting?” Traze asked.
He’d been aggravating Grai about telling him for two days now, and Grai had refused.
“Brother, I thank the gods it is not something that any of us brothers have to be concerned about. I just wish it was better news for everyone else. You have only another few hours to wait, and Reven is waiting for you to join Melina before the meeting,” Grai admitted, seeing the sadness come back in Traze’s eyes.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to be around her. Not until I . . . I don’t know. Calm down or something,” Traze hedged.
“Brother, now is the time for you to be with her. Just as it is time for Tristan to become more familiar with Bayla, his mate. Trust me, Traze, your mate will understand you better than anyone else will. Do not let her young age stop you from being with her and learning one another. Melina deserves your emotional support now, just as she will in the future, and you’re best to learn about her now,” Grai advised.
“I’m afraid,” Traze admitted as he sat heavily in one of the chairs.
“What could you be afraid of? I honestly don’t think she’ll kill you. She appears to like you,” Grai grinned at his brother, hoping he’d smile.
“Grai, I’ve been so angry since we thought Koda was taken, and I can’t seem to shake it. I’m afraid I’ll yell at Melina or hurt her feelings, and I don’t think I could live with myself if I hurt her. I don’t want her to hate me,” Traze admitted.
“Avoiding her will not make it better. In fact, avoiding her will cause the hurt you’re afraid to create because she won’t understand why. I think you’d do well to speak to her of your feelings and your fears. After what she’s been through in her young life, I think you will be surprised at her level of understanding,” Grai assured her.
Traze snorted and stood.
“I can barely explain it to myself. How can I explain it to a . . . child.”
Grai slapped a hand on Traze’s shoulder.
“That child has been through almost as much in her life as you have, and you have over a hundred years on her. I didn’t say you should give her gory and detailed specifics, but explaining why you’ve been avoiding her would be a good way to start a conversation.”
Grai saw the defeat in Traze’s eyes at his words and walked him to the door of the conference room.
“Go to Reven and explain it to him. Ask him if you can talk to Melina about it, and I guarantee he’ll give the t
wo of you some alone time. But I wouldn’t push it on the time thing. He’s pretty protective of his all-female family,” Grai said with a grin.
“He got that damn dog on me the last time I tried to get her to come to her window. I used to be able to sneak over and talk to Melina in between missions until that puppy, Wolfen, grew into that huge beast that Bayla rides like a damn pony. Now, I can’t even get to the property line without that thing sounding off like a living alarm system,” Traze complained with a pout.
It reminded Grai so much of when his brother was younger that he smiled and hugged him.
“I look forward to the day when you and Melina are lucky enough to have a daughter of your own. I can’t imagine the outrageous steps you will take to protect her, but I’m going to enjoy watching it,” he admitted, leading Traze to the door.
“I’ll see you there,” Traze said, hugging Grai before heading down the hallway.
Grai walked over to the conference room table and sat down. He put his head in his hands and tried to sift through the many things running through his head.
“I assumed I would find you here,” Ivint said, coming into the room with Dread in tow.
Grai stood and clasped Dread’s outstretched hand.
“I am glad you could make it.”
“Considering what is about to be revealed, I thought it would be best to stand beside you,” Dread admitted.
Grai laughed mirthlessly.
“I have a feeling that our people are going to be a little shaken, and we’re going to have to make ourselves more available for explanation to those with questions.”
Grai wasn’t looking forward to the questions when he still had so many of his own.
“Amun and Lauren have created a fact sheet that includes what they think will be the most asked questions and the answers to them. They’ve also trained the high level medtechs to answer questions so we should direct most of our people to that as a resource,” Ivint added, grateful to the doctors for thinking of it.
“We’ll definitely mention the resource at the meeting,” Grai agreed. “I think we’ll need all the help we can get with this situation.”
