"Not a damn thing, I guess," Gavril admitted reluctantly. "I tend to upset her most of the time."
"She carries your child. I'd think you'd be trying to keep her calm and happy," Edward observed. "If you'd noticed what I did when you first showed up to take her away from my home, you might worry a bit more about what's going on with her. She was pale to begin with, but she blanched when you appeared. Is that any way for a wife to react when the father of her child appears? Is there someone who can take me home, now?"
"I will take you, and Reah will come with you." Nefrigar appeared inside the room, a sleeping Reah in his arms. "I placed a healing sleep; I ask that you feed her after we arrive. I will shield your home and surrounding area, just as I have done with this one. My love does not need more violence," the Larentii added.
"Wait!" Kevis and Gavril both shouted as Nefrigar folded Edward and Reah away.
"Reah?" Fingers stroked my jaw when I woke. A view of gishi fruit groves, stretching for clicks met my gaze when my eyes opened. Now I knew the voice in my head—it had been Edward, all along. I wasn't sure he knew how much I was coming to love him.
"Where am I?" I asked, shoving my thoughts aside.
"You're on the balcony outside my suite of rooms," Edward answered from above. I discovered that my head was in his lap and we sat on a swing of sorts that had a canopy stretched overhead. It looked to be late afternoon.
"How did I get here?" I asked, sighing with pleasure as Edward's fingers continued to stroke my face.
"Your Larentii brought both of us," Edward replied. "Are you hungry? Comfortable? Tell me what you want, sweetheart."
"Avocados and tomatoes," I sighed. "But I'm too comfortable to get up."
"Reah, I wish I could keep this moment forever," Edward said. "I'm happy."
"This is the perfect view," I said. "And you get to wake up and see it every morning."
"And you could wake and see it every morning, too. If you want. Come on; let's find avocados and tomatoes."
"It's a pregnant thing," I salted the sliced avocado and tomato on my plate. "This is so good," I sighed, taking my first bite.
"Do I get a bite?" Edward grinned. I fed him some of each. "I like this stuff, too, I just don't eat it together all that often."
"Are we ready to make ice cream?" I asked.
"We sure are. And the ice-cream makers are programmed to add the right amount of everything, so only you and the comp will know the recipes. And word has it that the patent might be rushed through the screening process," he grinned at me. I might be able to watch that grin for a long time.
"Edward," I said, setting my plate of food aside.
"What, sweetheart?"
"Will you kiss me?"
He didn't reply, he just did. And very nicely, I might add. And I got a ride on Edward's back after I finished eating; he carried me through his house that way until we reached the media room.
"These are old vids from when I was young," he loaded them into the vid system. I saw a much younger Edward, along with others. He did have freckles splashed across his face and was completely adorable.
"These are two of my friends, Salidar and Ashe," Edward pointed out a boy with dark hair and eyes, laughing with a taller boy, who had light-brown hair and blue eyes. "Salidar is a werewolf," Edward added. "Ashe, well, he's something different, too. That's Ashe's mother, Adele," he went on. I stared at the woman. She had dark-blonde hair, brown eyes and she was laughing at something Edward's friend Salidar had said. "That's Sali's dad, Marcus, and his mother, Denise." I nodded as he introduced each one to me.
"You loved them, didn't you?" I hugged his arm as he sat beside me.
"I did. They were the first real friends I ever had. Some of them are dead, now."
"I'm sorry, honey," I said, leaning my cheek against his shoulder.
"I've been told that people are reborn, but it's never the same," he said.
"I talked to Zellar's ghost," I agreed. "For real. That isn't the crazy talking. He said he's being punished. Do you know who Zellar is?"
"No," Edward shook his head. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, though. I wanted him to kiss me again. He did without being asked.
"Ask Ry or Teeg or Lendill about Zellar," I said. "They can give you as much information as you want." I wondered if Zellar's corporeal head still rested inside the treasury on Karathia.
"This suite connects to mine through that door," Edward indicated the door between our rooms later, as I stood inside my new bedroom. "It'll stay closed unless you want it open."
"All right," I nodded.
"Ah, just in time," Kevis folded in. "We have time for a short talk before bed," he announced as if he belonged there.
"Do you need a room as well?" Edward lifted an eyebrow at the doctor.
"Probably. And I had an argument with several others, who all wanted to barge in, too."
"There's plenty of room, but I don't want them to upset Reah," Edward said.
"Will they upset you?" Kevis looked at me.
"I don’t know," I sighed. "Farzi and Nenzi won't, but they're in the middle of a harvest."
"Reah, they have six brothers. I'd feel sorry for them if they couldn't be gone for a while," Kevis pointed out. "And Astralan is about to wear a hole in the floor, pacing."
"Fine. If Edward doesn't mind," I grumbled. Kevis grinned. All of them, including Tory, showed up in ticks.
"I'm going to bed," I told all of them.
"But I get a little time," Kevis said.
"Fine," I snapped again. He followed me as I wandered into a closet that had somehow been stocked with clothing. Had Edward done that for me? How was he so good? How? Kevis watched as I dressed for bed, brushed my teeth and washed my face.
"Now, you never did answer my question about the ASD," he reminded me as I settled into the huge bed. Plump pillows at my back, I wriggled in the comfort of it. "How did you feel about working for the ASD?"
"I didn't like it most of the time," I answered honestly. "I learned a lot, but felt I was used. By Norian, Lendill, everybody."
"You had special talents, Reah. Were they utilizing what they had?"
"Yes. It bordered on abuse at times. I was nineteen when I was shoved into Arvil San Gerxon's camp. I was barely out of RAA training, and since Norian and Lendill wanted all the information on him that they could get, I was placed in some terrible situations. I watched one of my kitchen helpers get shot in the head right in front of me, and then Arvil's mistress died the same way, because Arvil was angry after they'd slept together. I watched other people die, too. None of them in a nice way."
"Did Arvil ever mistreat you?"
"Not in a physical sense. When his brother and cousins died, he made Teeg and me his heirs. After Arvil was killed in an ASD raid, Teeg took over, told me he was taking my half of Arvil's fortune because I'd violated the contract Arvil had us sign and disappeared with Farzi, Nenzi and their brothers. He betrayed me, then. I thought I loved him up to that point."
"And he hasn't offered you anything since then? Since creating the Campiaan Alliance?"
"No." I hugged myself. These were bad memories for me. "And when I was injured in the explosion years later, when Lendill sent me after Zellar, Teeg grabbed me, tied me to a bed, blindfolded me and had Jes treat me when he should have sent me home so Karzac could take care of me."
"How do you feel about my father?" Kevis asked.
"I love your father. He's like the father I would have wanted. Tough when he needs to be. Protective when that's needed. He was good to me from the start. I hope you get along with him," I added.
"I do," Kevis smiled slightly. "I never doubted his love, or my mother's."
"You were lucky," I said, leaning back and closing my eyes.
"Why do you think your mother married Addah Desh?"
"I don't know," I opened my eyes to stare at Kevis. "I can't imagine that he had a romantic bone in his body, so I can't answer that. I've gotten very little information on my mother. Even Fes didn't know much about her, and there weren't any photographs left after she died. Marzi probably destroyed them."
"It's too bad you didn't run into Addah's ghost, then, instead of Zellar's."
"Addah didn't destroy worlds. He just destroyed his children," I said. "Perhaps his father or mother mistreated him—he never talked about them."
"You think he might have treated others the way he was treated?"
"Maybe. But that's really not an excuse. If you know something is wrong that way, it's up to you to change it."
"You never hit your daughters, did you?"
"Are you kidding? And put them through that? No," I shook my head violently.
"I don't want to upset you, Reah, so let's back away from that for now," Kevis said gently. "Do you need someone to spend the night with you? I imagine any one of your mates would be willing."
"I don't want sex right now," I mumbled, feeling embarrassed.
"Reah, they know that. Torevik should have remembered before pushing it as he did. And his admission later was most unfortunate. I think he doesn't believe as his father does, but he loves his father. That bit of prejudice his father holds has influenced Tory. He's working to overcome it."
"Maybe that'll come in handy with his next mate," I muttered sarcastically.
"Reah, the question still stands. Do you want company for the night? Just to provide a warm shoulder?"
