“Trust this. You are safe. Nothing is going to happen, because we have the upper hand. Moorac just doesn’t know that. I’m your bond-mate, and I will protect you. I might be leaving, but you know it won’t be for long, and I’ll be in constant contact with Orla.” He pressed a kiss against her collarbone. “Right now, I want to show you how much I love you. I want to make you see stars and make your body sing for me.”
“I would like that very much.”
He captured her lips once more, brushing his tongue against the seam of the mouth. She opened for him and another sigh escaped when he entered and started to brush his tongue against hers. Their tongues danced together as Grinnell’s hands caressed her body. The soft touches made her blood race and her need grow.
She wanted to touch him as well, but he had her hands pinned down. He broke the kiss then started to press soft kisses down her neck and across her collarbone. Mehanna arched her back when she felt the heat of his mouth on her breast once again. He suckled her, making little tingles pool in her core. He released her hands, and she moved them across his back, her fingers gliding over and around his muscles. He was muscled, but not overly muscular. She loved that about him. His muscles were well defined, and she loved to outline them with her fingers.
Grinnell moved to her other breast, and she felt her heart start beating a little harder. She loved the way he paid homage to her body, but she wanted more. She wanted him deep inside her, bringing her to heights only he could bring her to. Her legs started moving.
Her bond-mate pressed a kiss to the tip of her breast and then looked up at her. The smile on his face told her he knew what she was trying to do. She didn’t care.
“Please Grinnell.”
He climbed back up her body and surged into her. She let out a gasp at the sweet invasion. She wanted to forget for a few microns, and this always worked.
Grinnell pushed himself up on his elbows and watched her face. He set a strong pace and watch her for the signs to pick it up or slow it down. She looked up at him until he hit her sweet spot, which had her closing her eyes and allowing it to wash over her. Everything tightened inside. He pressed a soft kiss against her forehead before picking up the pace. Her legs hiked up a little higher on his waist, changing the angle of his penetration.
Her breath caught in her throat as each time he filled her she felt it to her toes. Excitement filled her bones. Her body felt each stroke. Her toes curled. Her body clenched. Mehanna felt her orgasm race toward her, grab her, and fling her out into the stars.
She felt everything relax. She felt Grinnell press one more kiss against her forehead before he shifted his weight so he could take her in his arms. What she would give to keep him at her side instead of having to face Moorac.
Grinnell said goodbye to Mehanna, making her swear she would stay put. He then went to speak to the others. May and Tosci also had to stay out of sight, but Grenta and Lawaya could show up as if they had been seeing the planet. In the end, they decided to say in hiding as well, fearing they would give something away. He showed them how to order food through the computer and have it transported into their rooms.
He didn’t plan on being gone for long, but he would have to disappear for several duras to make it look like he was looking for Moorac’s niece. Cameras were already trained on every move Moorac made, but now the ladies could watch and let him know if Moorac was onto their scheme.
He walked out to his ship, powered it up, and took off. He then headed to the closest spaceport and landed. He went around, asking if anyone had seen the woman in the picture he carried. The picture was of May, not Mehanna, so he wasn’t surprised when no one had seen her. A couple of people thought she looked familiar, but they couldn’t remember where they might have seen her.
Astrid stood on the balcony off the throne room and stared out at the horizon. Moorac had been occupying this space a lot lately, so she was happy to have it to herself for a few microns. She sensed her mate just before he wrapped his arms around her.
“You okay?”
“Please stop worrying. I am fine, I promise.” She leaned back against him. “I thought I’d take advantage of the balcony before Moorac takes it over again.”
“Then what are you thinking?”
“Do you think we could be having twins?”
“Now what makes you ask that? I thought there was only one in there.” He rubbed his hands on her womb.
“I told the doctor I didn’t want to know.” Astrid put her hands on top of his. “So although I’m pretty sure there is only one in here, I could be wrong. You were a twin.”
“True, but I don’t feel like I have a twin. I didn’t grow up with him.”
“And he tried to kill us. But do you think if you two had been raised together you would have been closer?” She tilted her head so she could look at him. “They say twins have a special bond that goes beyond normal sibling bonds.”
“My brother and I had a horrible relationship.” He shifted her so she turned in his arms. “But our children will love each other. They are coming into a loving family and a safe galaxy.”
Astrid watched Moorac walk around the throne room. She touched Orla’s hand. “I think I’ll go lie down for a bit.”
“Of course.” He stood when she did. “Do you want me to walk you to our rooms?”
“No.” She looked over at Moorac. “Entertain our guest.”
Orla pressed a kiss against her cheek.
She walked to their section of the palace and opened the door to their room but didn’t enter. With a smile, she disappeared from sight and created a false image of herself walking into the room and closing the door. She walked to May’s room and opened the door. May looked up in shock.
“Okay, I know someone must have come in, but I don’t see you.” She had been sitting in a chair, staring out of the window. “Is that you, Grenta?”
“No.” Astrid revealed herself. “I didn’t mean to frighten you, but I thought you’d like to spend some time with your sister.”
“Oh, I would love that, but I was told not to move. The security system would pick me up and ruin everything.”
“I can help with that. I can block us from the system. I do it all the time when I need a little time to myself.”
“Really?” May stood up. “That would be wonderful.”
“Once I bring you there, you will have to wait for me to come back and get you.”
“Of course. This will give Mehanna and me a chance to work out how to use our powers to defeat Moorac. And I have missed her.”
“But you two didn’t even know the other existed until recently.” Astrid led the way.
“Moorac blocked our memories of each other. We were together for about ten yepas before he placed us on that planet.”
They stopped in front of a door. Astrid smiled at her, then used her ability to open the door. Mehanna jerked around when she heard the door and darted into the bathroom.
“It’s me, Mehanna.”
“May?” she poked her head back out. “Are you crazy? We’re supposed to stay put.”
“Don’t get mad at your sister, Mehanna.” Astrid shimmered into view. “I brought her. I thought you two would like to be together while we wait for Grinnell.”
“Thank you.” Mehanna bowed. “It is a little lonely here by myself.”
“I’ll be back to get you when we know Grinnell is coming back. Try to make the best of your time.” She watched as the sisters embraced before leaving them together.
After making sure he was extremely visible, Grinnell climbed into his ship and went to the next spaceport. He repeated this with all the major ports. If Moorac had any spies, they would tell him he was actively looking for his niece. After he left the last major port, he contacted Orla.
“How does it go, my friend?”
“No sign of the girl. Is Moorac there?”
“Why, yes he is.” Orla looked off-screen to the person in question.
“Can you ask him how far out he wants me to look? She hasn’t been through any of the major ports.”
Orla continued to look off-screen for a few microns. “He wants to know how long it would take to cover the secondary space ports?”
“The secondary ones? If I travel to everyone between our home and his, it could take lunas.”
“He made a face at that,” said Orla. “Send a communique to all of them asking if they have seen her. Then give them one dura to respond.”
“Sounds good,” replied Grinnell. “I’m looking forward to a little downtime. By the way, tell Astrid that I have a little surprise for her.”
“Really? What is it?” she asked.
“It wouldn’t be much of a surprise if I told you, would it?”
“No,” Astrid laughed. “But you can’t blame me for asking.”
Grinnell laughed at that. “I’ll contact you in one dura with an update.”
Grinnell set his ship down at the palace and went through his post-flight list. Once he did everything he needed to do, he climbed out and headed to his quarters. Mehanna waited for him. She had changed her hair and eye color even darkened the pigment of her skin and removed the blue tint.
“You ready?” He wasn’t sure if he was ready.
“No, but we must do this anyway, right?”
“If you don’t want to have to look over your shoulder for the rest of your life, yes. We could run, but how far and for how long?” He wrapped his arms around her.
“I know.” She rested her head against his chest. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too, and I wish I could show you how much, but we need to do this.” He held her close and wasn’t sure if he wanted to let go. “You ready to get everyone?”
She nodded.
He took her hand and led her to May’s room first, then to the other three ladies’ rooms. As a group, they headed to the throne room. He hoped they would catch Moorac off guard, even if it was for only a few microns.
He paused in front of the throne room doors to gather his thoughts. Once he was ready. he looked at his group, making sure they were ready too. Grinnell nodded to the guard, who opened the doors.
Astrid saw them the moment they entered. She rose from her chair and smiled. Orla saw her moving, then looked where she was headed. He smiled as well. Moorac was there, but out on the balcony. Since no one spoke, he ignored the royal couple as he stared out at the horizon.
Moorac leaned against the railing, outlining the balcony. He could feel magic in the air. Mehanna or May must be close. They were keeping their power under control so he couldn’t track them. Something he didn’t expect. Who could have trained them to do that?
He glanced over his shoulder and saw Astrid walking away from her throne. He turned back to the area surrounding the palace and focused on the power he could sense. No little girl was going to best him when he had gone through so much work to get what he wanted.
Closing his eyes, he opened his arms to reach out with his mind. This couldn’t be right. All of a sudden, the power was behind him in the throne room. He looked in the room again but only saw Astrid hugging a man. Then he realized it was Grinnell. Maybe he had found Mehanna but Orla hadn’t told him.
He walked in to see Astrid hug a young woman standing next to Grinnell. Magic, strong magic filled the room. Did Grinnell find her? Why didn’t they tell him? Did they think it would be a great surprise? Someone came to stand beside him, but he was too busy trying to look at the young woman’s face to figure out who had the magic to tell his intruder to go away.
“Hello, brother.”
Brother? He whipped around to find his sister standing beside him. Was it her magic that he sensed?
“Tosci? What are you doing here?” His brow furrowed as he tried to put everything together.
“I’ve been traveling with a few friends.”
“What friends?” He grumbled. “You ran and hid from me.”
“You banned me from your home. What was I supposed to do?” She took him by the arm and brought him closer to the group. “Come meet my friends.”
“If you insist.” How did she get here, and why didn’t he sense her long before this?
“I do.” The hand that grasped his arm held small stones that Tosci had empowered with counterspells, so anything he tried should be easy to stop. Her only concern was how long the power on the stone would last. The more energy he used, the more the stones would be drained until it couldn’t work anymore. She slipped them into a seam of his jacket.
“I am so happy for you.” Astrid hugged Mehanna, but Tosci was sure her brother hadn’t figured out who she was yet. He would soon enough. “I always wondered who would be able to capture Grinnell’s heart.”
“Me too,” said Grinnell as he slipped an arm around Mehanna’s waist. “She took my breath away the moment I met her.”
“I feel the same way about you, love.” She leaned her head against his chest.
“I think a celebration is in order.” Astrid clapped her hands. Her aid came to her side. They spoke quietly for a few microns before the aid left. “This is so exciting!”
“Let’s not get the baby so excited that it wants to come out before its time.”
“Grinnell, you are as bad as Orla. I’m fine, the baby is fine, and we’ve been so bored that if you try to make me remain calm right now, I will punch you so hard you will see stars.”
He gave her a look that had her ducking behind Orla.
“Now, Grinnell.”
“What, my queen?”
Astrid made a face when he called her that. He knew she hated it, which is why he used it from time to time to tease her, especially when she threatened him with bodily harm. Astrid was like a sister to him. He might have lost his parents when Varal was in control, but he found people to whom he was just as close to. He knew his parents would be proud.
“You two are incorrigible,” said Grenta. “Behave for a moment, please.”
“Yes, ma’am,” they both said. They looked at each other and laughed.
Grinnell could feel how tense Mehanna was. He was afraid she was going to break into a thousand pieces. He wanted to reassure her but knew better than to bring attention to them yet. May was still out of sight working on a few spells to restrict Moorac’s power.
He hoped Tosci was able to place the stones she had charged. This had to work.
Mehanna was the anchor for everyone else. She focused on May and Tosci, waiting for them to signal her that they were successful. She saw the smile on Tosci’s face and knew she had been able to place the inhibitors. Now they had to see how well they worked.
No one focused on her. Grinnell continued to tease Astrid, and like a mother hen, Grenta was chastising them. Lawaya was quiet, but so was Orla. He watched Astrid and Grinnell with a smile on his face, but he knew what was going to happen and was watching for signals as well.
Having Moorac so close made her blood run cold. Remembering what he put them through fueled her anger. She could sense when he came in from the balcony. Tosci kept him occupied so he wouldn’t focus on anyone else until they were ready.
Mehanna could feel the inhibitors Tosci used coming from Moorac. At least that was in place. She felt relief from May and she knew her sister had finished what she needed. Now it was time to face the man who’d raised her.
She could sense him as he passed her. He was an outsider and didn’t know how to act around the bond between Grinnell and Astrid. She had changed her hair, skin, and eye color so he wouldn’t spot her right away, but she didn’t alter her other features so he would know who stopped him.
May still stayed out of sight. He didn’t need to know that the sisters had found each other right away. If he did, he could change his tactics. Mehanna wanted him to focus on her. Ignore everyone else. She waited until he was where they wanted him to stand. Once he was there, she spoke.
“Hello, uncle.”
He spun at her words. “Mehanna.”
“I hear you’ve been looking for me.”
“I have.” He looked at his hosts for a moment.
She bet he wanted to know if they had been lying to him this whole time.
He smiled and pretended to be the loving uncle. “It’s time for you to come home.”
“Sorry, I can’t. In case you didn’t hear, I found someone who loves me.” She pointed to Grinnell.
“Don’t be silly. He was hired to find you, that’s all.” He looked at Grinnell. “Thank you for your swift work.”
“You don’t understand.” She smiled as she crossed to Grinnell’s side. “We’ve completed the bond ritual. We are one now, and there can be no other.”
“No!” he screamed.
Mehanna could feel him draw power to him, forming a ball of energy that he would use against them. She started doing the same thing.
“Yes.” She smiled like she didn’t have a care in the galaxy. She rested a hand on Grinnell’s chest. “And I’ve never been so happy.”
“How did this happen?” demanded Moorac.
“Honestly?” responded Grinnell. “I went looking for Lawaya. She also has power and looking for Lawaya brought me to Mehanna. Her beauty took my breath away.” He placed his hand on hers. “I’m the one who took her off the planet you had abandoned her on. How dare you leave a child to the elements? She had no one to teach her or help her. Be glad she’s brilliant, or she could have died.”
“That wouldn’t have happened. There were safety protocols put in place. She remembered how to use her magic to make food for herself.”
“She was a child, Moorac.” Grinnell removed Mehanna’s hand and took a step toward him. “What sort of sick experiment were you putting her through?”
“No experiment,” replied Moorac. He looked at Mehanna for a micron before focusing on Grinnell. “She needed to prove how strong her magic was.”
“Well, I think you failed at that one. She didn’t even know she had magic running through her veins when I met her.”
“How did you meet her?” Moorac kept looking at Mehanna and then Grinnell.
Mehanna wondered what he was looking for.
“As I said, I went looking for Lawaya.” Grinnell didn’t volunteer anything else.
“And who is Lawaya?”
“One of my closest friends,” replied Grinnell. After spending so much time with her, he wasn’t lying. “So, I guess you can go now. I found your niece. She’s safe and sound and happy.”
“She needs to come home with me.” He took a step toward Mehanna, which made her step next to Grinnell.
“I don’t think so. She’s with me now.” Grinnell put an arm around Mehanna.
“Like you can stop me.” He waved his hand. He growled when nothing happened. “What have you done?”
“Protected what is important to me,” said Grinnell. “You’re not going to take Mehanna from me. I won’t allow it.”
“How do you think you can stop me?” He started moving his hands.
“Do you think you’re the only one who can wield magic?” Grinnell pulled power from Mehanna and made a glowing ball in his hand.
“I groomed her to be mine.” Moorac worked his energy into the shape of a ball as well.
“Sorry.” Grinnell played with the ball he had made, the soft blue sphere fit in the palm of his hand. “You destroyed that idea the moment you sent her away.”
“And what about her sister?”
“I’m here.” She stepped from behind the column she was hiding behind. “It took you long enough to acknowledge that I exist.”
He ignored her little dig. “You look so much like your sister. Can I assume you came here with her?”
“It’s still all about Mehanna, isn’t it? I do look like her. Not something you expected? You should have. We’re twins, after all.” May glared at him. “I know you never thought I was strong enough, but you weren’t sure about Mehanna either. Did you ever wonder why? You never thought it odd that we were equal in power? That one didn’t excel over the other?”
“He won’t tell you the real truth, so don’t waste your breath. He didn’t think you were pretty enough, May. Power didn’t have anything to do with it.” Mehanna stepped up to him just as her sister did the same thing. “He wanted the prettiest of us.”
“I think we’re about the same.” May started to circle him, with Mehanna following suit. “Grinnell might argue, but he’s allowed to be a little biased.”
“My bond-mate sees beauty in both of us, Something I love about him. But most men?” She started weaving her magic. “They don’t always use the brain.”
“Is that why it took you a while to convince Grinnell to bond with you?” May was working in concert with her, creating a barrier around him.
“Yes. He didn’t want me to make a rash decision.”
“You wanted to bond with him?” asked Moorac. He looked from one girl to the other. “This wasn’t his idea?”
“No. I love him and want to spend the rest of my life with him.” She stopped in front of him. “I don’t want to have anything to do with you.”
“You’ll change your mind.” He brought his hands up and weaved them in front of her face.
“Oh, your magic won’t work on me, Moorac.” Mehanna smiled. She touched the air around him and activated the barrier she built.
“What makes you say that?” asked Moorac, as he smiled back. He moved his hands around his body then touched the same place she did. The barrier fell just as fast as she built it.
“Because I know you.” Her smile widened. He might think he was shutting down something important, but the shield was simple and designed to measure his power. May was the one who thought of that. “You used to set my sister and me against each other all the time. You pushed us to see who would be superior. I don’t care about that anymore. I only want to be happy. You won’t make me happy.”
Grinnell stepped up to her and took her hand. She shared her energy with him, filling him with as much as she could.
“You don’t understand. I only wanted to make the both of you better.” He continued to weave his hands, now building something new.
Mehanna recognized the movements from something Tosci taught her. She could feel the power he was building. If she didn’t stop him, it would be too powerful to dissipate. She started to do the same thing. Once May figured out what she was doing, she joined in, building the shield they were creating and making it stronger so that it could withstand anything he threw at them.
Moorac had to laugh when he realized they could counteract what he was doing.
“What? You didn’t expect us to know how to use our power?” asked Mehanna. “We’re not stupid.”
“I never thought you were,” he responded. He stopped weaving his magic for a moment. “I’m assuming my sister had something to do with your training.”
“Think what you want,” replied May. She and Mehanna didn’t stop building the shield they wanted to create to protect everyone.
“So, your friends. Are they from our race?” He looked at Lawaya, and Grenta. “Or are they like Astrid?”
“What do you mean by that?” asked Astrid.
“I’m sorry. I meant no disrespect. But you are Barou, right? Your power allows you to do what we can, but the moment people touch it, it dissipates.”
“Really?” Astrid retorted. She stared at Moorac. A small surafic, a small bird like creature, well known for its pretty plumage, jumped up on Moorac’s arm. Its sharp talons cut into his arm, drawing blood.
“Get this damn thing off of me.” Moorac waved his arm around, trying to dislodge the creature. All that did was make it tighten its grip on his arm. The harder he flapped, the tighter it held on. Blood dripped from the wounds it inflicted.
Astrid walked up to him and ran her hand through the bird. It shattered into a thousand pieces.
“Was that real enough for you, Moorac?” Astrid walked back to her mate’s side. “The only people who can see through my creations is someone from my race, and they have to be a master. To everyone else, it is very real.”
“I stand corrected.” He flexed his wounded arm. “But I can take the air from your lungs.”
Astrid gaped for a moment, then smiled at him. “That’s not going to work on me.”
“Why not?” he dropped his hand.
“Because you need to know where I am.” She rested a hand on his shoulder. Then she moved, but it was so quick he wasn’t quite sure where. “You see, I can create an illusion where you think I’m in one place, but I’m really in another.”
“I can do the same thing.”
“Can you make yourself invisible?”
“Of course.” And he vanished from sight.
“Ah, but I can see you.”
He didn’t respond.
“Okay, then let me prove it to you.” Astrid vanished from sight. When she touched his shoulder, he jumped and became visible. She didn’t.
“Did you see it?” she whispered in Mehanna’s ear. “A slight rippling effect.”
Mehanna smiled. She did see it. The hint of how he worked his magic.
Lawaya stepped up next, pushing until he questioned another ability. Then she showed him how she did it and challenged him to do the same thing. Mehanna watched so she could find the shimmer that showed it wasn’t real. Grenta was next. Each time someone challenged him, Mehanna did see a weakness, and it allowed her to see a pattern. And it allowed her to anticipate what he would do next.
Tosci was the one who pushed him the hardest, but she was the one who felt she had something to prove. She needed to show her brother she was a force to be reckoned with. She made rain fall on him, forcing him to create a shield to stop the water from soaking him. Then she created a wind funnel that only focused on him, wanting to see if he could block a wind that was designed for only him. That was a little harder for him to block but he was able to do it.
“Mehanna, it’s time to go,” said Moorac. He smiled as he offered her his hand.
She smiled back. “I’m not going with you Moorac.”
“But I came all this way to get you.”
“Don’t care.” She faced him, not afraid anymore. “You send me to a planet to grow up on my own, and you do the same thing to my sister. Yet you ignore her. Like you never really cared about either of us. All we are is a vessel for you.”
“What sort of trash has that man been filling your head with?”
“That man? You mean Grinnell? Nothing.” She smiled. “Your sister told me what your plan was. That you wanted to be the most powerful, and you want your children to be the same. That all you want the two of us for is to be baby-makers so you can have your progeny. Your problem is any children I have will be with Grinnell, not you.”
That comment angered Moorac. He shot a blast at Grinnell, who had to dive to get out of the way. He in turn blasted back. Moorac absorbed the energy. It didn’t even phase him.
“Mehanna,” Moorac dropped his voice. It came out like silk. It wrapped around her, drawing her attention to focus only on his words. “You belong with me. This man doesn’t care about you.”
“Grinnell, his name is Grinnell.” Her voice came out soft. It took all her concentration to remember his name.
“Grinnell doesn’t care about you. Only I care.” He reached his hand toward her once again.
“You care.”
“That’s right.” He smiled.