The Bright-Revelation, page 8
I smiled. “Most kitchens are the same. Just gotta look hard enough.”
I put my drink down, pulled the sheets back from the bed, kicked my boots off, stripped down to my underwear, then climbed on beside him with my drink.
He turned back to the screen. “There’s nothing at all. But it doesn’t mean much, it just means if there is any chatter they’re using really, really secure networks.”
“I wish I could help more.” I leaned on his shoulder
He didn’t answer me at first. “I’ve booked you in with the doctor in the morning.”
My hand instantly went to my stomach, and I put my drink down. “I probably shouldn’t have anything I don’t know. What if it makes me sick?”
“I don’t know.” He put his own drink down and turned to me. “I’ve never known there be major pregnancy issues with any crossover species. With you though, as human and compatibility with me, I’m out of my medical depth.”
“Let’s see what this doctor says, if anything.” I moved to lie back on the bed. The tight space awkward with two of us. I scooted as close to the wall as I could, and when he’d taken his clothes off, he lay in front of me, then wrapped his arm around me.
“It’s been a tough day,” he said. “Let’s try to get some sleep.”
I reached down for the blanket and settled somewhat, tucking it around me. I knew he wasn’t sleeping. His heart beat fast, and then even faster. I looked up at him, saw the wetness to his eyes.
I scooted up the bed as much as I could, and I kissed him.
His eyes held mine. There was such sadness and yet warmth from him.
“There’s no one watching us here,” I said. “You don’t need to be anyone you’re not. Or pretend you’re okay when you’re not. When I’m not.”
“I don’t know what I expected. You. All of this.” His chest rose, then he blew out one long breath. “I should go sleep somewhere else. This is so hard, being with you like this.”
He moved to leave me, and I panicked even more. I put my hand on his chest. “Please, don’t leave me. I can’t do this.”
His body instantly responded to mine, and he stopped, easing back down. Hands drifting down my back, holding onto me.
“No pressure,” I said. “Just us.” I leaned down to kiss his chest once more.
“Ella,” he growled. “I’m not going to lie and say I don’t want to be here, to be with you. Are you sure?”
“If this is just the drugs or not, I don’t know, but I’ve never wanted anyone here more than I do you, right now.” It was hard to admit it, drugs scared me. But it was the truth.
He settled down and within a few minutes I was listening to his slow steady breaths. I was glad he’d finally settled.
My mind, however, wasn’t settled at all yet. Thinking of how I felt for him, how he made me feel. How much I wanted him in my life. I thought about Stockholm Syndrome, but this wasn’t that. His pheromones? The way he smelled drove me wild, even right now. I wanted to seduce him. I pushed that thought away, thinking of seeing the doctor tomorrow, missing Louise. Even the idea I couldn’t pick up a phone and speak to Mom, talk to her about the pregnancy.
It broke me.
I tried not to cry, yet slow sobs escaped.
Marik stirred, pulling me in tighter to him. Only then did I let myself cry.
I woke by myself the next morning. I guess it was morning. At least it felt like it. I could hear water running from the back. I moved and felt something sticky between my legs, this felt wrong. Panic flooded through me and I threw the covers back to see. Blood.
I pushed myself up, went to the bathroom and relieved myself. I sat for a moment watching Marik in the shower washing off then, sucking in a breath, I moved to join him.
He jumped seeing me slide in, but I wanted the warmth and him.
I didn’t hesitate to tell him. “I’m bleeding,” I said.
“Fuck,” he said, wrapping me into his arms.
I held onto him, the hot water washing over us both. “But I have a history with hard pregnancies. How long ‘til the appointment?”
“A couple of hours,” he said. “Is it bad?”
“I’m not in any pain,” I replied. “It’s not a lot of blood. But it’s there. Something’s wrong.”
He reached for the soap for me and I took it. “We can go in early. Are you okay to walk there? I could probably ask Lazarus for some info on rides?”
“I can walk, somewhat, but if there’s a lot of people around it might be best to get a ride.”
I started to wash off, the line of red snaking down my legs. “I don’t suppose you know if there are any female products here, maybe you could nip out and get something. Just don’t want to bleed everywhere if I don’t have to.”
“I think most ladies use cups, or special pants that absorb it.” I saw him frown. “Not really something I’ve thought much about, sorry. There’s a shop up the row that has clothes and other essentials, I’ll grab us both a few things.”
I could see the panic all over his face, his brows scrunched lines I’d never seen before and I reached for him. “I’m not panicking yet. Let’s see what the doctor says, it’s not uncommon for some spotting.”
He swallowed and nodded. “Okay, I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
When he left me, there was this cold which followed. The hot shower didn’t quell that space.
I stayed pretty still, watched him get dressed, then he left the bathroom. Only then did I wash off, clean my hair, and then get out. I’d hoped he would be back by the time I was ready to dress, and he was.
“I took a guess you were a small,” he said. “Really not sure on these, but it’s all they had.”
I took the clothes from him; they were much better than those I had. “Thanks.” The underwear looked like the sort he mentioned: absorbent. I’d work with it. At least it would keep me clean and not feeling horrid.
I dressed, the clothes a little big on me, but that was okay too. He’d stripped the bed and left it tidy. I found him in the kitchen.
“Lazarus said the staff would be in at nine, so we can head out then,” he said carefully, eyeing me. “He’s arranged for a shuttle to pick us up, it’s a short trip across the station then.”
I smiled at him and said, “We got time to grab something to eat?”
“Sure, you sit, I’ll make something nice and basic.”
I moved to sit at one of the tables while I could watch him in the kitchen cooking. It was nice to see. Kind of homey. Knowing he could cook interested me a lot. Relaxed me.
It wasn’t long before he popped the plates in front of us and I ate hungrily.
“You’ve never lost your appetite much,” he said. “What was the pregnancy with Louise like?”
I cringed and stopped eating.
“Sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t ask.”
“No, you can ask,” I said. “It doesn’t mean answering is always going to be easy.” I put my fork down and drank before answering. “It was a difficult pregnancy,” I answered honestly. “The doctors couldn’t work out why. I was healthy, Ryan was too.”
“He’s not just human though,” Marik said.
“I never thought of that, and certainly didn’t know at the time, but yeah. It could have been something that just didn’t mesh well with us. Maybe this is the same?”
“Possibly,” he said.
I picked up my fork again and carried on eating and talking through some of the difficulties. “High blood pressure, constant spotting. Always panicking over every little thing. Honestly, when I went into labor for real, I think both Ryan and I were terrified something else had happened. When Louise finally appeared, holding her in my arms was the most wonderful thing I’ve ever experienced. The way she looked at me. Like I was her everything.”
“Because you were,” he said.
I smiled at him. “I miss her,” I said.
There was a click in the doorway, and it opened. “We should go,” he said, and cleared our plates away.
Jayden and another girl stepped in, but he didn’t bat an eye at us, and neither did she. She smiled and went straight to the kitchen.
9
The shuttle waiting for us at the side of the row of shops was little more than something to stand on and strap in. But it then sped off, and I was glad I didn’t have to walk. However, I couldn’t watch it zip in and out of the people and other shuttle things either. It was scary. I held onto Marik and buried my head in his chest, trying my best to not let the motion make me feel sick. I had just eaten after all.
He held onto me, then unstrapped me at the other end. I was on shaky feet now. “Sorry,” I said.
“Don’t be, you’ve never ridden one, my brain thinks of you as part of this world. I’ll be a little more careful in what we do.”
I stared at the building we were in front of; I couldn’t quite get used to the fact that the inside here was as large as my home city. It stretched up high, and I stared at it while he went to the door and pinged for us to get in.
The nurse who met us at the front had a wonderful smile, she seemed human. That made me feel better right away. She led us in and spoke slowly for me to take in what she was going to do. She left Marik out in another room, which upset him, but I understood. “The doctor will be in later, I’ll be the one doing the scan and any other tests, if that’s okay.”
I could only nod and then waited while she directed me onto the pad at the side of the room. Much like in the facility, it was strange to be scanned up and down by nothing more than a beam of light. I didn’t think anything was happening, but I knew it worked. I could see something on the screen. Then she indicated for me to sit, and I did. Marik came back in the room then.
He sat with me and we both waited until an older man came in. He seemed to be human but had scales down one side of his face. Almost like a half and half. He smiled at us and opened his 3D imaging scan of me.
“You didn’t know if you were pregnant or not?” he asked.
I glanced at Marik. “I’ve been having some issues,” I said. “My cycle isn’t regular, so I didn’t know. I’ve been bleeding some today.”
“You are barely pregnant,” he said and tapped the screen. “A few days at most, and you two aren’t fully compatible. I’m surprised the pregnancy took at all, but there it is. The cell growth is fine, the attachment to you has a little issue. I can repair it, but the risk is great at this early stage.”
“Will the baby survive?” I asked, not really wanting the answer.
He stared at the screen for a while, then looked at us both. “It has a fifty-fifty chance. Maybe a little higher because of your Bright capacity.”
I didn’t know how this worked. Everything was so new to me.
“There’s a few anomalies,” he added. “I’m not saying you’re lying, but the fertility drugs are still in your system. It could also be that which is hyper affecting the pregnancy.”
“I… have no idea what they were giving me,” I admitted with a shiver.
He raised an eyebrow. “They?”
I balled my fists. “Heightened senses. Deep sexual need, constant hunger,” I said to him and glanced to Marik. “I’m sorry,” I mouthed, then turned back to the doctor. “I’ve been an experiment, and so has Marik. Would you scan him for me as well, please? Make sure there’s nothing wrong?”
“Wait,” he said. “You think they were drugging me too?”
I nodded, my arm touching his, needing some contact for comfort. “Had you ever thought about anyone else but your job before I turned up? Why were you specifically assigned to see me half naked and up close? They baited you too. They more than wanted this. You know it.”
Marik looked at the doctor. “I’ve funds to cover it, if you will.”
The doctor stood. “Of course, please come with me. I’ll do it myself. It seems you’ve need to keep this off the records?”
Marik didn’t need to say anything, but he followed the doctor out of the room back to where the nurse had done my 3D scan.
I sat and waited while the doctor did the scan, my mind a mess. Marik wouldn’t want me either when all this was out his system. I didn’t know how I really felt about that. Disgusted. Used. It wasn’t his fault though, or mine.
The both of them came back in a few minutes later. He sat before us, looking over Marik’s results. “You are quite the young man, Marik Takah. But yes, you’ve been drugged. And for quite some time, it seems. Not just with fertility enhancements.” He stared at Marik and my stomach flipped for him. “Look, I’m no Bright specialist, but I believe they’ve been suppressing your development there as well.”
His face fell. “What?”
The image the doctor brought up then was one I’d only seen for myself, not any other person in the system. This was fascinating.
I stared at it, not really understanding it. He had two, four, six, eight meridians open? Was I reading that right?
Marik was shaking his head, a deep scowl etched into his usual smooth face. “How long?” he asked.
“It looks like many years. I would even say since you were born, but that would be pretty horrific to go through as a child.”
“That would mean my aunt was doing it,” he said. “What about my sister? The others were much older, and she didn’t come to help out with us until my mother died.” He physically shook, and I stood to wrap my arms around him, hold him. “I don’t have a band, what does that mean?”
“I’m honestly not sure on being without a band. As for your aunt, it’s a possibility. I also don’t know your sister’s specifics, but your brothers are high up in the Bright Lord society, correct?”
“Yes,” he said. “None of this makes any sense.”
“It does,” I whispered to him. “Hence they wanted your sister.”
“What kind of drugs?” he asked. “What are the other side effects?”
He let out a sigh. “It looks like the both of you are going to go through some physical discomfort. You’re going to suffer a lot, I’d imagine.”
“We need to get somewhere safe,” he said. “We can’t be here with that going on.”
“I have a friend on Zen’aar,” the doctor said. “If we can get you there, she could care for you. She’s the best I know.”
“Who?” I asked, concerned with the more people that knew, the more at risk we’d be.
“Her name’s Ammie. I’ll pass you her direct details, Marik.”
His eyes glazed over, and Marik nodded. “Thank you. How long have I got before side effects kick in?”
“Get there as fast as you can. It’s not safe for you to stay here, that much is clear.” When he stood, he leaned forward with an outstretched hand and added, “I’m going to wipe everything from my computers, there will be no records of anyone being here today.”
“Thank you.” I moved to shake his hand, and he took mine lightly.
“Take it easy on yourselves,” he said, his eyes drifting between us both. “I don’t know what’s been going on with you, or where you’ve been. It’s clear that someone does, and your every move has been tagged for these experiments.”
I held his hand tight. “We’ll let the truth out, when we’re safer and we’ve spoken to his family,” I said.
“There’re changes coming, that much is clear. Tytan Shade is rumored to be in the system. Though that’s on real down low.”
Marik moved to the door. “Do you have any other information on him?”
The doctor shook his head. “I’m sorry, they’re just rumors. No one has ever come back from the dead before.”
I shivered. Dead? He meant that. Tytan died to become Ryan? And vice versa, had my husband perished on earth?
I wobbled slightly and Marik steadied me, making sure I got out of the doctor’s practice in one piece.
“We’re leaving for this other place now?” I asked.
“If I can find a safe passage, yes. We’ll go back to the cafe and I’ll look from there. You okay with that?”
I stood in the middle of the walkway, the shuttle thing still there waiting to take us back. “I’m okay with it. I want you to be looked after. If we can’t cope here, then we go where it is best. Plus, she’s a doctor. If there’s any other issues with me, it’s a good place to be, right?”
He held onto me and then helped me onto that shuttle, the ride back a little less scary, and this time I managed to look out from hiding and watch the world as it zipped by around us.
The cafe had quite a few people inside it, but Lazarus was eating in the back when we walked in. Jayden and the young lady were rushed off their feet. Marik motioned to the back, and we both walked around the queue and went to the booth.
I sat down first, Marik next to me. I leaned my head on his shoulder, exhausted. He smoothed the hair out of my eyes, and kissed my forehead, taking my hand in his.
Lazarus looked up at us both and indicated to his son. Jayden brought over some cold drinks and sandwiches in a flash and then ran back to his post.
“How did it go?” Lazarus asked, his hands wringing his emotion out for us both to see.
“We both need hospital treatment,” Marik said with a sigh. “Highly specialist treatment. We’ll be leaving as soon as I can get a ship out to Zen’aar.”
Lazarus raised an eyebrow. “That’s not too far from here, but still in Mara territory,” he said. “You sure?”
I poured us both a drink and I drank deeply from the cold glass. “I’m not going to lie anymore,” I said to Marik’s concerned look. “Lazarus,” I said. “You’ve been kind to us, you obviously know Marik’s brother—if not his whole family—pretty well. But you don’t know me, or where I’m from. Or why all of this is so stupidly important.” I let out a sigh, then said, “I’m Tytan Shade’s human wife.”
His jaw dropped. “The rumors are true then?”
“You’ve heard something?” Marik asked.
“I went digging all over the underground networks last night. There’s been talk that a secret Mara testing facility was compromised. That the Mara are looking for the people involved and that one of them was Tytan Shade.”
