by Willow Danes
She might have recovered but the illness had left behind a rash that was making her miserable. It wasn’t the blood rash, the Scourge was undetectable in her system, but whatever it was her doctors had no clue how to treat it.
“You’d think a society that has figured out how to travel across space using wormholes would have something comparable to goddamn Benadryl!” she grumbled.
He examined the array of creams and lotions that Doctor Elaran had left for them to try. The ward was still in lockdown and Doctor Elaran refused to even consider lifting it till she was completely symptom free for forty-eight hours. And that clock didn’t even start till she could lose the damn rash.
“You must not scratch,” he said. Again.
“It’s driving me crazy!”
She shouldn’t be scratching—or bitching—she knew that. G’hir females had died by the millions from the Scourge and even those who survived scarcely clung to life for weeks before inching their way to recovery. The only good part of that was children born to those women had a natural immunity to the illness.
But apparently Zerar biological weapons were no match for a human immune system. In fact, Hir’s top immunologists were already hard at work to replicate the antibodies from her blood to develop a vaccine so the Scourge would never be an issue again.
To the astonishment of her doctors she’d been up and about in less than twenty-four hours. She still felt intermittently queasy but her appetite had returned with a vengeance and for the first time ever she could out-eat Ra’kur.
For the most part she felt great.
Except for the stupid, annoying, sadistic-ants-tickling-her-skin-with-a-feather itch.
“Jenna!” Ra’kur scolded as he turned back and caught her about to dig her nails into her forearm again.
“Fine!” she gritted out. “I’ll sit on my damned hands!”
“I know you are uncomfortable,” he said, rubbing yet another cream into the skin of her forearm.
“And you must be going nuts with boredom. I know Ke’lar and the others can’t wait to get out of here.”
“You are well,” he said, washing the cream from his hands at the sink. “I have need for nothing else. And my clanbrothers are warriors. Warriors must have patience.”
“They’re certainly getting some good practice here.”
“You must not worry for them,” he said firmly. “You must concentrate on your own health.”
“Actually I’d like to think about something else. And most of all I’d like to get out of here.”
“I can understand that,” Doctor Elaran agreed as he joined them.
“Sorry,” she said, embarrassed to be caught complaining.
The hospital staff too was on lockdown in the ward until she was symptom-free. Meals and supplies were sent in and since the ward had been cleared there were plenty of rooms, beds, and space for those stuck inside. But with all of one patient whose only complaint was dermatitis, the four medics and two doctors didn’t have much to occupy them either.
“Do not be,” Doctor Elaran said with a smile. “I am only thankful the Scourge has not returned to Hir, and your resistance so remarkable to it. We have been fortunate indeed.” He nodded at her arm where Ra’kur had applied the newest cream. “Any improvement?”
“No,” Jenna admitted, miserable. “I only wish there were.”
Doctor Elaran pursed his lips for a moment. “Let me take a look and see if there is any change to the skin on your back from the ointments we applied earlier. Midmeal has just been delivered but I’d like to do a quick exam first.”
“Why don’t you go grab something to eat?” she said to Ra’kur. With so much time on their hands meals were a welcome distraction for everyone. “I’ll be right out.”
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I will see if they have sent the icy tea you like this time.”
“It’s really called ‘iced tea’ where I come from,” she said to Doctor Elaran as soon as Ra’kur closed the door behind him. “But I kinda like that he calls it ‘icy tea.’”
He gave a smile and, moving her gown aside, peered at the skin of her shoulder, his fingers gentle as he probed. “And none of the creams have given you any relief?”
“No,” she said, holding up her forearm where Ra’kur had applied the new one to show him. “The itching is just the same with all of them.”
“I wanted to run through all of the topical options first. I have something else that I know will work,” the doctor said, readjusting her hospital gown to cover her shoulder again. He held up a metal cylinder. “But it is an injection.”
Jenna gritted her teeth, using all her willpower not to dig her nails into her skin. “Frankly, right now I wouldn’t care if you had to administer it with a cannon. How long will it take to work?”
Doctor Elaran placed injector against her skin. “Immediately.”
The injection stung a bit.
“Are you sure that’s going to work?” Jenna asked, frowning against the impulse to scratch as he placed the cylinder on the table beside her. “I mean I still kinda . . . Hold on, I think—something’s—”
Elaran raised his eyes to meet hers.
He had a funny look on his face.
She gasped, trying to draw breath, and her hand went to her closing throat. “Can’t—”
“I am truly sorry.” Doctor Elaran rested his hands on her shoulders, holding her in place, his face heavy with regret. “It will be over quickly.”
Holy fuck, he’s killing me!
For an instant she was back in that college dorm room, Ricky screaming in her face as he threw her against the wall, his hands at her throat, trying to crush the life out of her. He’d been a football player, big as a Mack truck, and she’d fought because she knew if she didn’t she’d die.
Just like now.
She snapped out a kick and caught the doctor square in the balls with her heel. Moaning, he went down and she managed to draw a thin tiny breath, like sucking wind through a bitty little straw.
She made a grab at the table and lurched for the door. She had a few seconds at most before he recovered enough to grab hold of her again.
It was three spare steps across the room, each more of an effort than the last. She stumbled, catching herself against the door.
Her vision was going black at the edges as she slid downwards. With a final effort she slapped the door control and fell face forward into the hall, the syringe of whatever he’d injected into her still gripped in her hand.
Twenty-two
“Jenna?” The growled words in her ear were soft, urgent. “Little bird, can you hear me?”
Jenna forced her eyes open. Ra’kur hovered over her, holding her hand between his. His face registered relief when she met his gaze.
Her glance flickered around the room, the familiar feel of a mattress beneath her. The young blond healer—Doctor Selai—was frowning and splitting his attention between her and the readings scrolling over her hospital bed.
Doctor Elaran was there too, held between two of Ra’kur’s clanbrothers. She drew her breath in and flinched when she saw him.
“He—tried to—!”
“You are safe now,” Ra’kur soothed. “He will never hurt you again.”
“Can I have some water?” Her throat felt scratchy and sore. “Please?”
Doctor Selai took a water pouch from the side table and held the straw to her mouth himself.
After a few swallows, her throat didn’t feel as raw. She gave Selai a nod of thanks and gestured to Ra’kur to help her sit up in the bed.
“How am I?” she asked Selai, craning her neck to see the scrolling alien readout—not that it made any more sense to her now.
“Lucky,” he said. “And smart. I wouldn’t have known how to reverse the effects if you did not have the syringe in your hand to tell me what to counteract. We got to you in time to prevent any permanent damage.” He jerked his chin at her. “How do you feel?”
“Shaky. A little w
oozy.” She glanced at Doctor Elaran. Despite the fact that he’d just tried to murder her, he looked burdened, grieved, and not evil at all. “On the bright side whatever he tried to kill me with got rid of the itching.”
“No,” Doctor Selai said tightly. “That cure was simple. It seems he has been purposefully withholding the proper treatment.” Selai threw a disgusted look at his disgraced colleague. “In order to keep you here until he could find an opportunity to murder you.”
“Why?” Jenna asked sharply. “Why would you want to kill me?”
“To save my world!” Elaran cried. “And yours!”
“He is insane!” Ra’kur snarled.
“What are you talking about? Save my—” Jenna shook her head. “You mean because I got the Scourge?”
“No,” the doctor growled. “Because you are pregnant.”
Ra’kur’s head around. “What?”
“What?” Jenna cried. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Doctor Selai adjusted the monitor and his mouth parted as the readings changed. “I did not even scan for—I did not even think—!”
“But I can’t be!” Jenna insisted. “I haven’t been with anyone except Ra’kur for—seriously!—years. The only way I could be pregnant is—”
Her gaze met Ra’kur’s.
“The child is mine?” he asked hoarsely.
“By the All Mother . . .” Doctor Selai murmured, blinking up at the screen then at Jenna. “Half-human.” He looked at Ra’kur. “Half-g’hir.”
“You lied,” Jenna whispered, staring at Elaran, and then her voice rose. “You told us we could never have a child. You said it was impossible!”
Doctor Elaran’s face was taut. “I made the discovery when you were first brought to the hospital. The tests meant to help replicate blood for your injury uncovered something I did not expect. To be sure I did a full comparison of your genetic makeup and ours.” He sent a pleading look at Doctor Selai. “Look for yourself. Human DNA is part of the g’hir genome!”
“You are saying we are a hybrid species?” Doctor Selai asked, frowning. “How is that—”
“I do not know!” Doctor Elaran closed his eyes briefly. “The only explanation is that far back in our history, interbreeding with humans—or a human—must have occurred. Our phenotypes are obviously quite different, but—as you can see for yourself—procreation with humans is possible.”
“We—” Ra’kur’s throat worked. “We are going to have a child?”
“I had the Scourge. I was so sick. Is—” She was afraid to ask. She had never been so afraid of anything in her life. “Is the baby okay?”
Doctor Selai looked at the screen. “Well, I cannot claim expertise in the field of half-human half-g’hir babies,” he muttered. “But everything I am seeing here indicates you should bear a healthy female child.”
“A baby. A baby girl. I can’t believe it,” Jenna murmured, caught between grinning and tears. “Ra’kur, we’re going to have a baby!”
In the next moment she was in his arms. She could feel his trembling joy as he held her.
“I had hoped to end her life before anyone else could discover the truth.” Doctor Elaran threw a wild glance around at them. “Now do you—all of you—understand?”
“No,” Jenna said sharply. “No, I—for one—fucking well don’t!”
“Nor do I,” Doctor Selai said, turning to face him.
“Your actions are those of a madman.” Ra’kur’s eyes narrowed. “Do you not understand, fool? This is the saving of our people! We will not die out, this child signifies hope for all g’hir!”
“There will be no more g’hir!” Elaran spat. “There will only be half-breeds!”
“Every child—any child—is a gift to our kind now!” Ra’kur snapped. “Who are you to condemn our males to live out their lives alone? To decide our people should die out?”
“Hold on,” Jenna said. “You said you discovered it when you were first treating me. That’s why I didn’t come out of stasis like I should have? Because you tried to make sure I wouldn’t?”
“You should not have been able to,” Doctor Elaran admitted. “I do not know how you did.”
“I do,” Jenna murmured, remembering Ra’kur keening at her bedside. Then her head came up. “All those tests you did the last time I was in the hospital . . . That’s why I got sick when no one else has in so long. You son of a bitch! You infected me with the Scourge!”
Elaran closed his eyes briefly. “I knew if you died of the same illness that the Zerar used to kill so many of our women—if our people believed human females were just as vulnerable to the Scourge—no others would seek your kind out as mates, they would not bring more of you here. Why do so, just to watch you all die?”
“You are a monster!” Ra’kur roared, his arms tightening around Jenna. “To inflict the Scourge upon her! You are worse than the Zerar!”
“Your actions are more than criminal, they are evil.” Doctor Selai shook his head. “You were my teacher, my mentor . . .”
Ra’kur went still. “I brought you here,” he whispered and his face blanched. “I gave you over to this beast, I trusted him to care for you. I failed you—”
“No, Warrior.” Selai’s shoulders slumped. “It was I who did not question his diagnosis. I did not examine the test results with the diligence I should have. This is my fault.”
“Oh, no, hell no!” she warned them with a sharp glance. “This is no one’s fault but his!” Her nostrils flared as she turned her glare on Elaran. “Nothing but a low-down lying, murderous—!”
“I was a young physician here, in this very hospital, when the Scourge came. I watched while our females died by the millions!” Elaran’s hands curled into fists. “I will not stand by and let the Zerar defeat us now! To intermate with your kind—it will give them their victory, for we will no longer be truly g’hir!” His yellow eyes were stormy and he shook his head. “I sought only to preserve my kind, to keep our enemies from destroying us. I would never have wished you harm. I have nothing against you personally.”
“Well, that there is where I’m done gonna have to disagree with you, Sawbones.” Jenna’s eyes narrowed. “In my opinion, trying to kill me makes it pretty fucking personal!”
“What do you think the Zerar will do to your world, Jenna?” Elaran demanded. “When they discover there is a hope our people will survive? And what do you think the g’hir will do to your world?”
Ra’kur bared his fangs. “Get him out of here,” he snarled to the clanbrothers holding the doctor between them. “We will take him before the ruling council. We will have justice for these crimes!”
Jenna closed her eyes as the door shut behind them and Doctor Selai. “Oh my God . . .”
“Jenna?” Ra’kur asked quickly. “What is it?”
“He’s right,” Jenna said. “He’s right about how your people are going to react when they find out. The men here already want what you have. What do you think they’ll do now that they’ll know human women can give them children too?”
Ra’kur searched her eyes. “Why is that so terrible—to want a mate, a child?”
“But they’ll raid Earth, conquer it if they have to! They’ll go and they’ll take women from there—whether they want to go or not.”
“We will not do that,” Ra’kur said tightly. “My people are not monsters, we are not all like Elaran.”
“Your people are hunters.” She swallowed hard. “And they’re desperate. They won’t want to wait or show caution. They won’t care about how it will affect my people or my world, just that they’ll save their own. And what about the Zerar? If your enemies would use the Scourge against you, why wouldn’t they try to destroy my world too?” Tears stung her eyes. “What are we going to do?”
“I am the only one who knows how to reach your world, Jenna. We will safeguard Earth as best we can.” He enfolded her hand with his and his gaze softened. “But for now, little bird, you are well. We are together and
we are going to have a daughter of our own. Let our minds rest joyfully on that for now. A daughter with eyes like yours.”
She took a deep breath and let it out. “Yeah, you’re right. We have to make the most of what we have right now.” She smiled and intertwined her fingers with his. “Hey, I bet when she cuts her teeth she’ll have cute little baby fangs.”
Twenty-three
“I think that’s enough pillows,” Jenna said gently as Ra’kur tucked yet another one between her side and the wooden bench, the orchard of the Erah enclosure warm and fragrant around them.
Zels—the slow-moving bumblebee-like insects of this world—flitted from flower to flower, filling the sunny afternoon with the sound of their humming as Jenna settled back. She tilted her head up to feel the warmth of Hir’s suns on her face, breathing in the sweet fragrance of the cali trees’ purple and white blooms.
There was no keeping this kind of thing quiet and news of her pregnancy had already spread across Hir, but if she thought the clan doted on her before, it was nothing compared to now. She’d beaten the Scourge, she was carrying the first child the Erah clan had in years; she was the hope of an entire race.
She wasn’t even showing and the entire clan was distressed if she even frowned.
That’s probably why he brought her out here today.
“You are worried.”
She fingered the bird charm around her neck as Ra’kur sat next to her. “Of course I am. The ruling council is going to start sending warriors to Earth any day now. I hate that we had to help them at all.”
“I know. But as soon as they seized my ship they began to extrapolate the location of your world. They were going to find it even without my help; it was only a matter of time,” he said, taking her hand in his. “Recall the concessions we were able to force from them in return.”
She nodded dispiritedly. The agreement they’d made with the ruling council gave the warriors who brought women back twenty-nine days to convince them to stay. If the women didn’t agree, if they wanted to go home, they had to be returned to Earth.
