Rescued by the Alien Warrior Hope Hart (literature books to read TXT) 📖

“We were. But with everything that’s happening, Dragix is beginning to get nervous I’ll be taken. He’s a threat to anyone he decides is his enemy on this planet, and if the Dokhalls have been studying him enough, they’ll know all they need to do to get him to fall in line is threaten me—just like they attempted to do to Rakiz. So I’m going to stay here while Dragix goes hunting.”

“Well, I can’t say I’m disappointed to have you around. Beth and Alexis are staying for a while too.”

Charlie nods with a smile, linking her arm through mine. But her expression says her mind is clearly elsewhere, and I narrow my eyes at her.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

I tilt my head, and she glances around us before a deep sigh leaves her. “I’m pretty sure I’m pregnant.”

I bounce, throwing my arms around her. “Oh my God. I’m so happy for you!”

Her smile is small, and I freeze.

“This is a good thing, right?”

“Oh yes. Of course. I mean, I never thought I’d have kids, but then I never imagined I’d meet someone like Dragix. And he’s the last of his kind. I know he loves the idea of having a family.”

“So what’s going on?”

“I haven’t told Dragix yet.”

“Uh-huh. Why?”

She smiles at that. “There’s no way he’ll leave me behind to go hunt the Dokhalls. It’s still so early. This is my first missed period, and we both know how these things can go. I don’t want to distract him until I know for sure.”

I nod. “I get it. I think you should tell him soon though.”

“I will. I just want to be certain. I don’t want to get his hopes up. And there’s no point distracting him from his revenge plans unless I’m sure. Anyway, thanks for listening.”

“Anytime.”

“So give me the deets. I know all about Nevada’s cave baby, which is what I’m calling her until Nevada punches me,” she says, and I laugh. “But what exactly happened with Vivian and Sarissa?”

I fill her in, and her mouth drops open as we arrive in front of Nevada and Rakiz’s tashiv.

“Holy shit. So they’re just going to stay there?” She frowns. “I don’t like it.”

“Neither do I. I want us to all be together.” I nod toward a group of the human women who landed with the last ship as they walk toward the training arena. “It was difficult explaining the decision to those guys. It sounds like Sarissa was the one holding everyone together on that ship.”

“God. Logically, I know it makes sense, but…”

“Yeah. You should’ve seen that marketplace though. I had no idea there were people on Agron trading with other planets. This could really be our opportunity to get out of here.”

Charlie angles her head, her gaze steady on my face. “And you’re sure you want to take that opportunity?”

I sigh. “I don’t know. I want that opportunity to exist though. For the other women, if not for me. And I can’t deny I miss my life on Earth.”

“And Tagiz?”

“Well…”

“Are you two going to stand outside my house and gossip all day? Or are you going to come in and see my daughter?” Nevada is standing in the doorway, hands on her hips.

Charlie bursts out laughing. “I was giving you a chance to have some time to yourself.”

Nevada rolls her eyes. “Tribe queen, y’all. There is no time to myself. I accepted that when I took this gig. Get in here.”

We follow Nevada inside her tashiv, finding she’s entirely right. Rakiz is having a serious conversation with Dragix, Tagiz, and Terex in the main room, their voices hushed.

Tagiz’s gaze finds mine as I walk in, and he scans my body, his eyes warm. I nod at him, pretending my heart doesn’t break a little more every time I see him.

Dragix says something to Tagiz, drawing his attention, as we follow Nevada back into her bedroom.

Ellie is sitting near the bed, the baby in her arms. She beams at us as we walk in.

“Isn’t she adorable?” Her voice is hushed, and Charlie practically trips over her feet as she bounces over to the baby.

“Naaaw. Good work, mama.”

Nevada smiles, sitting on the edge of her bed. “I couldn’t have done it without Zoey.” Her smile turns into a smirk as she glances at me. “Maybe you should consider a career as the camp midwife.”

I shudder at the thought. “No, thank you. I’ll leave that business to Moni. Give me an amputated arm over a fully dilated cervix any day.”

The other women crack up, and the baby opens her eyes, a tiny cry escaping her lips.

“Someone’s hungry,” Nevada says, holding out her arms. She pulls up her shirt, positioning the baby at her breast, and she immediately quiets.

“Did you get much sleep last night?” I ask.

“Nope. Rakiz is going to kick everyone out soon so I can nap. He’s instituting a new rule—no meetings in our tashiv. He’s going to use a kradi instead while we figure out what our new sleep schedule is going to look like.”

Charlie plunks herself down on the bed next to Nevada, and I lean against the wall.

“Have you named her yet?” Charlie asks.

“Yep.” Nevada grins. “Meet Danica. It was my grandmother’s name. I never met her, but it means ‘morning star.’ After everything we’ve been through, it seemed fitting.”

Ellie brushes away a tear as she smiles at them both. “It’s beautiful, Nevada.”

I nod. “I love it.”

Rakiz pokes his head in the door. “They’re leaving now, karja.”

Charlie gets to her feet. “We’ll let you get some rest.”

Charlie leaves us outside the tashiv, murmuring something about talking to Blair—one of the new women. Apparently they’ve bonded, and they seem to have a lot in common.

Ellie hesitates as we watch Charlie stride away. She opens her mouth as if she has something to say and then clamps it shut again.

“What’s going on, Ellie?”

“It’s okay. You’ve got a lot going on. I know you’re having…issues with Tagiz. I can wait a few days.”

Her face is pale, and