Cal silently came over and bent down to check that the Taoree was indeed dead. He nodded in agreement at me before he stood up. He took an awkward step toward me, then stumbled and stopped. If I hadn’t been so drained, I would have found his movements comical. Then he looked to my right and in a quiet voice said, “You know he was a bad man, Mandy. Jeremy had to stop him.”
“Jeremy?” Mandy’s quiet little voice made me turn toward her. She was standing in front of me with tears in her eyes. The sight made the cracks in my heart grow even further. God, she was going to hate me. She was going to be scared of me; I just murdered someone right in front of her.
I felt tears building in my eyes, but as usual, I pushed them down and whispered, “I’m so sorry, Peanut.”
She quickly moved closer to me and wrapped her arms around my waist as she cried. “Don’t be sorry. You saved Orry. You saved us.”
I felt a tear escape and trail down my cheek as I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her tightly to me. I was so relieved that she wasn’t scared of me and that we were all okay. I was also trying not to think too much about the fact that I just killed a living, breathing, thinking being. I hated killing Ferals, but at least I knew they weren’t functioning, living things anymore, but this was… well, it was a fucking alien. I pushed those thoughts down with all the other shit that would probably make me lose my mind if I ever actually analyzed it, and just concentrated on hugging Mandy.
When she finally released me, my hand automatically moved to search out Orrean’s until I had his hand in mine. I laced our fingers and closed my eyes as the strange warm feeling filled my chest for a few seconds before I felt some of my energy leaving my body. I took a few deep breaths before opening my eyes and finding Cal standing right in front of me this time.
He wordlessly gave me a hug, then walked over to the wheelbarrow handles and picked it up, pulling it along. I followed next to it, not letting go of Orrean’s hand.
***
I hadn’t even known I’d fallen asleep until I jolted awake at the sound of Nolan’s voice saying, “Maybe we should search for a car. We’re still over ten miles away, possibly closer to fifteen, and there is no way we can keep pulling them that far. We’re never going to make it.”
“You know how dangerous cars are, Nol,” Cal’s voice answered. “We can’t risk it.”
“We could be there in minutes, Cal, instead of hours,” Nolan argued. “At this rate we probably won’t even get there today. Look at them… we need to get there now!”
“We would never make it there, Nol, and I don’t want to lead any Taoree Legion to the freaking Independent camp.” Cal kept up his end of the argument.
As they bickered back and forth, I tried to remember how I ended up lying on the wheelbarrow with both Wes and Orrean, being pulled by my two best friends. The last thing I remembered was walking beside it. I literally had no memory of going to sleep or even stopping for dinner. Did I pass out?
“They don’t look like they’re going to make it,” Nol sounded panicky. “We couldn’t even get any water into Jeremy. How the fuck are we going to keep them alive long enough to walk there, Cal? We don’t even know what the fucking place looks like! I only know that it’s well-hidden.”
“We’ll figure it out.” Cal sounded determined, but his voice also sounded strained.
They walked in silence for a few minutes and I thought I fell back asleep, but I had no clue for how long.
“Guys, Mandy’s stomach keeps growling and I honestly don’t know if I can carry her much longer,” Tabitha announced.
“I know, we’ll switch soon, Tabby,” Nolan said. Tabby? When the hell did he start calling her Tabby?
“Mandy is starving. Her stomach has been growling for over an hour,” Tabitha—Tabby—said.
“Peanut,” Cal said, “can yo—” everyone was silent for a beat, then Cal whispered, “What the fuck is that?”
“Shit! Shit. It sounds like a car.” Nolan’s voice still sounded panicky. “Shit. They’re gonna find us. Shit, shit, shit.”
“Nolan, take a breath, man,” Cal said in a whisper. “Let’s just get off the road.”
“Even if the fucking humans in that car don’t find us, they’re gonna bring Taoree toward us,” Tabby stated, sounding like Nolan’s panic was rubbing off on her. “I mean, right? If the fucking Taoree Legion or whatever can track a car, those fuckers driving are gonna get us all killed.”
“Oh my god, Tabby, they’re going to find us. Maybe you and Mandy should run,” Nolan suggested.
“We’re not leaving any of you,” Mandy argued forcefully.
“I love you, Peanut, but you and Tabby might have to,” Nolan said.
“No! We are—” Mandy and Tabitha both started together and got cut off.
“Would all three of you shut the fuck up and take a chill pill?” Cal’s voice sounded authoritative. “No one is leaving anyone else. We stick together, always. Now all of you calm the fuck down and let’s hide behind that building there. We are going to be okay. Just calm down.”
There were murmurs of agreement all around.
When we stopped moving, I was finally able to open my eyes. I had to immediately close them again because the sun was too bright, even with my hat, making me think that maybe an entire day had gone by. I groaned in annoyance at my weakness.
“J?” Cal’s quiet voice was right by my ear. “Are you awake?”
I tried to say, “Maybe,” but it sounded more like another moan. I could hear the distant sound of a car driving, but I couldn’t tell how far or close it was. I cleared my throat, then in a voice I almost didn’t recognize, asked, “Can I… sit… up?”
“Okay, just be quiet,” he whispered as he untied my chest and pushed me to sit up.
I almost immediately regretted the change of position since I had nothing to lean against, but didn’t want to be a complainer. I opened one eye and saw Cal’s concerned face way too close for comfort, so I looked down and saw Orrean right next to me on his side with Wes behind him, also on his side—I was guessing so we could all fit. Both of them looked so frail, like skin and bones.
I—much slower than I meant to—reached both hands out and placed one on Wes’s hair and the other on Orrean’s and checked on them with my energy. Wes’s Qiren were still locked up tight with most of Orrean’s energy, and Orrean’s vitals were still dangerously low. Without thinking, I pulled Orrean’s head onto my lap, then replaced my hands on both of them, feeling dizzy.
We were up against the back of a house with blue siding. There was a swing set in the back yard, but no fence. There were chairs and a table on its side near a small staircase that led to the back door without a porch. The swing set was almost overrun with overgrown grass, and the sight made me frown. This was once someone’s home and now it’s a long-forgotten place that just exists.
“Shit, it’s getting closer,” Nolan pointed out.
I listened and was surprised that I could actually tell that it was probably only half a mile away. Then I stretched my senses out further and almost choked on my fear.
“Taoree,” I breathed out.
Cal turned to look at me with wide, terrified eyes. “It’s Taoree?”
I nodded.
“How many?”
“Three,” I croaked out as a wave of dizziness made my head swim.
I heard Nolan and Tabitha talking, sounding scared, but I couldn’t understand what they said. Someone handed me a bottle of water, so I took a sip. It instantly cleared my head some, but the dizziness remained in the background.
“We can protect ourselves better if we stay here with the house against our backs,” Cal suggested.
“They’ll be here in thirty seconds,” I warned, knowing there was no time to do anything but stay here and fight.
Cal handed me my reelian before turning and standing in front of me with his out and ready.
We all tensed when we heard the car come to a stop on the other side of the house we were huddl
ed behind. We heard the doors creak open and three doors slam shut, confirming that there really were three of them like I had sensed.
“Behind the house I think they are,” a female voice said in Taoree. For once I didn’t have trouble knowing they were speaking Taoree and not English.
“They are hiding, why?” a male voice answered. I furrowed my brow at the strange question and Cal looked at me questioningly since he couldn’t understand them.
“Humans and Taoree,” the last stated, “there are seven. They have not come out, why?” The voice sounded closer. They were obviously making their way around the left side of the house.
Right before they turned the corner that would reveal us, using my adrenaline, I shouted in Taoree, “You want what from us?”
The footsteps stopped immediately and the woman’s voice called out, “We want to help, of course.”
I switched to English, hoping the Taoree would follow suit, so the others could follow the conversation. “Who are you?” I had to take a deep breath as a bout of dizziness hit me.
I was relieved when the woman answered in English, “You may call me Alleean.” The Taoree woman came around the corner with her hands up in the universal sign of surrender. She was a little shorter than Orrean, so probably about six-foot-five, with elvish pointy ears and long black braid just past her waist and dark eyes staring right at me. She also looked different than other Taoree because she had what looked like a tribal tattoo surrounding her left eye. She seemed to be analyzing me as I aimed my reelian right at her head. She continued in English, sounding surprised, “You are human.” It wasn’t a question, so I said nothing in response. She glanced down at Orrean and I heard a small gasp before her eyes flicked back up to me.
“Don’t even think about it,” Cal said from beside me. “We will kill you if you try to take him.”
Alleean did a once-over of Cal and nodded her head at him in acknowledgement, then asked, “May my companions come out?”
“Yes,” Cal said through clenched teeth.
“This is Cokeeto.” A big Taoree over seven feet tall came and stood next to Alleean. She added, “And this is Dietteo.” Another Taoree that was over seven feet tall came out. When I glanced at the second one, I had the feeling that the two men were brothers, maybe even twins. They both had the same tattoo as Alleean. They were huge and easily the most muscular Taoree I had ever seen. I’d only seen Taoree that were tall and very thin, but these two had a lot of muscle and both had their hair braided down to mid-thigh. All three of the newcomers had their hands up, obviously trying to look nonthreatening. Good luck with that, assholes.
“What side are you on?” Nolan asked from somewhere behind me.
Alleean actually smiled a little at that. “We are Independents, of course.”
“How do we know you’re telling the truth?” Nolan asked, almost too quietly for them to hear. I wasn’t sure if he was really asking or just stating how shitty the situation was.
Alleean answered anyway, “We can take you back to our camp and save your friend before the Qiren take over… and we can help Orrean.”
I gasped. “How do you know him?”
She offered me a smile that seemed genuine despite her black eyes and said, “He is my brother-in-law.”
My eyes widened in fear. “Oh fuck, you’re married to Thelonious.” I heard the others gasp. I re-gripped my reelian, ready to shoot her at any second, even though I was quickly losing my energy.
Alleean’s eyes went wide and she took a step back. “No! Not Thelonious. I am married to Orrean’s other brother, Oziasriun. We are from the Independent base, I swear it. We want to help you.”
Cal side-whispered, “Does Orrean have another brother?”
“Yes,” I whispered back as I lost my grip on my reelian. I dropped my hand down and leaned my head on top of Orrean’s because I started to feel sick, like I might pass out.
“J!” Cal yelled, but I didn’t feel him move, which I figured meant he was still aiming his reelian at the Taoree.
“Listen to me, please,” Alleean said. “We can help them.”
I found Orrean’s hand and gripped at it. His warm energy soothed and reassured me.
“I don’t trust any of you fuckers,” Cal oh-so-eloquently said.
“You may keep your weapons,” Alleean suggested.
I turned my head to Cal and whispered, “They’re telling the truth.” I wasn’t sure how I knew, but I had learned to follow my instincts and they were telling me that they really were trying to help us. Or maybe I just knew it because of Orrean. Because he was somehow telling me to trust them.
“Okay, fine,” Cal said, “but we are keeping our weapons and we will be staying together.”
“Of course,” she said. “We need to get them in the truck.”
I managed to watch as they slowly approached us and when Alleean squatted down next to me, for reasons I couldn’t even contemplate, I whispered, “Orrean hies emm Balu.” Orrean is my Balu—whatever the fuck that meant.
I saw her black eyes—or maybe dark blue?—go wide in surprise.
Then everything went black.
Chapter Five
I never wanted to wake up from this dream. Colt’s warm body was holding me close, my back to his front. God, it felt so real. It felt like he was really here behind me. I could even feel his breath on the back of my neck and his arm around me, our fingers laced together. It felt like there was some kind of energy flowing between our palms.
I wiggled myself farther into him and I heard a groan that made me freeze. Holy Fuck! That wasn’t Colt, that was…
Wait a minute. I could feel him back there. Like actually feel him, as in this-is-not-a-dream-at-all feel him.
I took a deep breath to squash the disappointment that Colt wasn’t with me, then I settled myself back down and let myself be held. It was actually really nice. Calm, peaceful, and relaxing. He was warm and he was holding me like he wanted to protect me. I didn’t want to be protected, but having someone care… well, it was exactly what I needed. My body felt so weak and vulnerable that I couldn’t even open my eyes. I think I fell back asleep, or maybe I’d never even woken up and it was just a dream. I felt like I was floating.
The next time I became aware of my body, I still couldn’t open my eyes. I could hear voices, but it took a while before they were clear enough to understand. It was Wesley’s voice, saying, “…much longer before I can leave?” He sounded tired.
“You know it’s gonna be a little while.” That was Cal’s voice.
“Ugh,” Wes sighed.
“Don’t worry, man, just a few more days,” Nolan’s voice said.
I wasn’t sure if I had really heard them or if it was just my imagination or a dream. But I was relieved to hear their voices, to know that they were safe. Before I could hear any more of their conversation, I fell back asleep.
I felt him move a little behind me and it woke me from my peaceful sleep. I was still lying on my left side, using his arm as a pillow, and we had a sheet or something over us. He had me tucked against him with his right arm wrapped around me and that hand laced with my left so our palms were pressed together. I also noticed that we were both shirtless, so his very warm skin was pressed against mine. Before I could freak out, I noted that I did, in fact, have on underwear. Thank fuck! Though I could still feel his rather large… package pressed against my ass. His skin felt soft against mine. I had the sudden desire to run my hands all over him. I had to take a deep breath to shake off the random feeling.
I remembered hearing voices throughout my sleeping and was relieved when I remembered Wes, Cal, and Nolan talking around us multiple times. I could breathe easier knowing they were all right.
I took stock of my body and overall I felt pretty okay, though I noticed I had a zheluangi on my wrist. Apparently I’d been in hibernation-mode or some shit. My body was warm and nothing felt broken or anything. The only strange thing I could feel—besides Orrean’s body pressed against m
e—was that the hand Orrean held seemed to have something wrapped around it.
I wiggled my fingers to investigate and realized I couldn’t pull my hand away from his. Our hands were being pressed together by something—tied together, I assumed.
I finally blinked my eyes open, only to be assaulted by a bright white light. It took a while for my eyes to adjust, and when they did, I had no freaking clue where the hell I was since I was in a room with white walls and white tables with various things on them. I was too dazed to be able to see what they were. Everything looked very sterile, like I was in a hospital or something.
The most concerning thing, though, was the fact that I was inside some kind of clear tube. I moved my head around to get a better look, only to discover that the tube was completely enclosed. I had a brief panic that we were going to run out of oxygen, but I tamped that down for the moment, so I could focus on the man behind me, the mostly naked man.
Part of my brain was telling me to freak the fuck out that I was mostly naked with Orrean and god only knew where we were. But every other part of me—my heart, my body and perhaps even my soul—were screaming at me that I was safe and secure with him. That this whatever-it-was was just plain right.
With that thought in mind, I sucked in some air and turned around to face him. He was awake and helped me move our connected hands easily so they lay over the sheet down by our sides. He was also staring at me with those deep purple eyes. I rested my head back on his arm. His head was on a little pillow, so we were basically nose to nose, with me looking up a little at him.
I had expected to have a conversation with him. To ask him what was going on, but as I looked into his eyes and saw the sadness and open vulnerability in them, all I wanted to do was make him feel better. So I scooted even closer to him. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and hold him, but I couldn’t because of our connected hands. So instead, I tucked my head under his chin so my face was pressed against his neck and I was breathing in his cinnamon smell. Since I was flat against him, I couldn’t really see his chest, though I noticed a few ridges in his skin at the base of his throat and I felt more ridges on his chest and stomach. I was kinda surprised by how smooth and soft the rest of his skin felt, though.
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