Kenzie (More Worlds Beyond Book 3) Read online

  “I’m sorry Kenzie, I should have warned you. I knew something like this would happen eventually and that’s why I had already made plans for vacation.”

  “It’s not your fault Dar, although a heads up would have been nice. I knew you and Tolan didn’t tell me everything, but it’s my fault for not asking.”

  “We are a promiscuous race. The males share females and the females will share a male. Even when we take an Ardhangini, or wife as you call it, the male will still be with other females. The Ardhangini will take her males mark on her arm, which tells all others that she is off limits…most of the time. He will only give his seed to her during the fertile time, which is once a year. The male will protect them and take care of his young, but will still seek out others for sex.” He glanced at her, and noticed she seemed whiter than normal. “Are you Ok?” He asked, but she just nodded. “I didn’t tell you because I hoped things would change before we reached home.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “When Zahin found Eliana, it didn’t take him long to realize that he loved her. Oh, they had their share of problems, but they had worked them out before arriving home. When Eliana found out that only the female takes the mark, she flat out refused to be Zahin’s Intended.” He smiled as he remembered how out of sorts Zahin had been. “When they arrived home, the King and Queen were not nice to her, and Zahin’s sister and best friend plotted to separate them.”

  “Did he betray Eliana?” She asked quietly.

  “No, he never betrayed her.” Silence filled the porch as the waves continued to crash.

  They sat there, both lost in their own thoughts when Kenzie said, “I’m pregnant.” She never looked his way so she didn’t see the confusion on his face.

  “I’m sorry Kenzie, I don’t know what that means. It sounds familiar but I can’t place where I’ve heard it.” He said while she smiled. She sipped more cafa, thinking she would soon need a refill. It really did taste good.

  “I’m going to have a baby.” Dar startled. He had heard Eliana call Destiny baby many times. He turned his whole body around to face her.

  “What do you mean you’re going to have a baby? When?” Kenzie noticed his tone sounded anxious, maybe even panicked.

  “It means I’m going to have a baby, and I don’t know when.” She said with a calm sure voice.

  “We need to go back, you need to see Cadas!” Now she knew it was panic she heard.

  “No.”

  “What do you mean ‘no’? Kenzie, we need to make sure the young is Ok. We also need to know how far along you are. We have to go back!”

  Finally turning toward Dar to look him in the eyes, she said, “No, I am not going back there. Every man or male that I have been with has cheated on me. This time I think I’m finally broken. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, why I’m unlovable, but I’m finished. I’m finished crying. I’m finished worrying, and I’m definitely finished with men. If you will let me, I’ll stay here until I have my baby, then we will go live with my family on Santar. I’ve been a nurse long enough to know that babies deliver themselves. If something does happen to me, I trust you to take my baby to my parents so they can raise him.” She said with finality.

  Dar tried to remain calm on the outside, but he couldn’t deny he felt shaken by her admission. He knew last night had been bad, but he heard the truth in her voice, she had given up…on everything. He knew he could never leave her here alone, even if she wasn’t with young. A plan was forming in his mind. He could stay here with her for a while, and then he would contact Zahin and tell him he’d decided not to return. Kenzie and her baby would need a guard, as she was carrying a Prince’s son, but he also realized that she mentally couldn’t handle seeing Tolan right now. “Ok, we’ll stay here.” He hugged her up. “But you must let me care for you. You need to eat and rest often. Understand?” She nodded. “Now we need to have first meal. You must be starving.” He said as they went inside.

  They were eating when Dar finally ask, “How far along do you think you are?”

  Kenzie looked up at him, scrunched her nose, and said, “I’m not sure, three, maybe four months. I tried to remember when I needed to change my birth control, but I had it wrote down in my calendar back home.” She noticed he glanced down at her stomach. Every day she it grew bigger, and knew it was not normal.

  “Can I see?” He asked with concern. He knew what months meant. Hell Eliana hated their measuring system and was doing her best to teach everyone hers. Dar now knew what morning, night, hours, days, months and years meant. Of course, he was one of the few that saw Eliana frequently while she was with young.

  Kenzie stood and slowly lifted her baggy shirt. She watched Dar’s eyes widen in surprise. She even let him touch her belly when he automatically reached for her belly. Apparently touching a pregnant belly is universal in every society.

  As Dar touched her belly, he felt a tiny thump. He didn’t know what it was, and would have missed it altogether if he hadn’t been paying attention. “What was that?”

  “The baby, he kicked.” She said as the first smile spread across her face. “It’s the first time I’ve felt it.” She placed her hand beside his, as they felt the baby kick several more times. As he removed his hand, she sat and they finished eating.

  “I’m serious Kenzie. If we stay here, you have to let me take care of you. If your pregnancy is like Eliana’s, it will be hard for your body to handle the baby’s rapid growth.”

  “Ok. I can already tell a big difference today in the size of my belly.”

  “Good. Maybe after first meal we can take a walk on the beach and then you can rest before second meal.” She nodded her agreement.

  Reunion

  Chapter 12

  One month later

  Tolan went to see Zahin. He felt like he was losing his mind. Kenzie had not returned and he didn’t know what to do. He paced back and forth while Zahin and Eliana sat on the couch. “Zahin, she has not come back. I can’t wait any longer; I have to see her, talk to her.” He continued to pace. He shouldn’t have waited so long to contact her. She probably thought he didn’t care.

  “What do you want me to do?” Zahin asked, concerned about his brother.

  “Contact Prince Pakhi, find out how she is. Let him know I wish to come for a visit.” Tolan continued to pace. How could he not have realized how much he loved Kenzie.

  “Ok, I will contact him after second meal.”

  “Please do it now.” Tolan asked. Zahin watched his brother and knew he couldn’t hold himself together much longer.

  “Ok, I’ll do it now.” Tolan let out the breath he was holding. He could’ve contacted Prince Pakhi himself, but it wasn’t protocol. They left and headed for the communication’s room.

  Zahin punched in the codes to contact Prince Pakhi and waited. As his face finally came on the view screen, Zahin greeted him. “Good morning Prince Pakhi, I’m sorry to bother you.”

  “Hello Prince Zahin. You are not bothering me. I trust everything is well?” Pakhi asked with curiosity in his voice.

  “Yes, everything is well. Kenzie left about a month ago, and since she did not return, I thought I’d make sure she is doing Ok.” Zahin watched as Prince Pakhi’s face changed, as alarm and then anger crossed his face.

  “Kenzie is on Sukara with you. She has not been here.” He took a deep breath. “Prince Zahin, where is my sister-in-law?” Oh shit! If she wasn’t there, then where the hell was she?

  “I’m sorry to bother you Prince Pakhi, I just assumed she had visited her sisters.”

  “Prince Zahin, I want to know where Kenzie is. You have one Standard Santarian day until I contact you. If you haven’t found her by then, I will have to let her family know. Pakhi out.” The screen went black and Zahin stood there staring at it. His mind racing, where could she had went.

  He turned and found Tolan standing there with panic on his face. “Let’s go back to my rooms and talk to Eliana. She knows her better than we do.” T
olan nodded, and followed him.

  They entered Zahin’s rooms and Eliana met them in the common area. “What’s wrong?” Obviously, she could tell by the expression on both of their faces. Zahin poured them both a glass of Tila.

  Taking a seat, he looked at his Ardhangini and said, “She was not there.”

  “What do you mean she wasn’t there?” Eliana asked, her voice climbing higher with every word.

  “She wasn’t there, she never went to Santar.” He let the information sink in for all of them.

  “Where is she?” Eliana said, almost yelling now.

  “I don’t know. You know her better than anyone, where would she go?” Zahin asked.

  “Zahin, she was here for less than a day. Hell she hadn’t even spent the night in the palace. How the hell would I know where she went?” She turned to Tolan, “This is all your fault!” She blurted.

  “I know.” Tolan said, defeated. He now knew why humans cried, he would love to release some of the sadness he felt.

  “I’m sorry Tolan, it’s my fault to. I should have explained how things worked here, but I just assumed she knew.” Eliana said, all the fight had left her.

  “No, it’s all my fault. I never explained anything and I expected her to conform. Zahin gave up all females for you, but I was determined that she would just accept things because I didn’t want to give up anything for Kenzie. I was wrong.”

  “Anyone have any ideas how to find her?” Zahin asked as everyone just sat in silence.

  “Good morning.” Kenzie said as she rolled over and looked at Dar. They spent their days and nights together. He was a great friend and she didn’t know what she would do without him. “What do you want to do today?” She asked then burst out laughing. They did the same thing every day.

  “Good morning.” He yawned. “I think today we will sit on the front porch and have a cup of Cafa, then eat first meal, maybe take a walk on the beach. After that I think you should rest.” They both laughed as she rolled to her side to get out of bed.

  Her stomach had grown over the last month, and if she were on Earth, everyone would think she could give birth at any time.

  She knew Dar worried about her. He had mentioned a time or two that is wan’t normal to be that big with a month left to go. Honestly, she didn’t know how far along she was, but she didn’t care. She felt the baby move every day, so she knew he would be Ok. “I’ll go make some cafa while you get dressed.” She said, looking back over her shoulder at him.

  Dar joined her on the porch. They sat there watching the waves, sipping their cafa as this was their routine every morning. “It’s so peaceful here.” She said. She still thought about Tolan every day, and her heart still ached for him. She knew she wasn’t being fair by not telling him about their baby. Dar had been wonderful, but she thought of him more as a friend, or a brother. There wasn’t anything sexual between them, nor had there ever been.

  “I need to contact Zahin today.” Dar said quietly. “I need to let him know that I’m not coming back right now.” He needed to stay with Kenzie as long as she refused to go back to the palace. He loved her immensely, she was like the sister he never had, and he wouldn’t let anything happen to her or her baby. She had talked to him a lot during this past month, about the males she had dated, the marriage practices on Earth, and he now understood why the Earth females acted the way they did. Why Eliana made Zahin take her mark. They would never be happy with anything less. He still felt angry at Tolan. If he had taken the time to really talk to her, he would have known that.

  “Will you tell them I’m with you?” She asked, taking another sip.

  “No, not unless he ask. If he does, I can’t lie to him Kenzie. He’s the Prince and I have sworn loyalty to him.”

  “I understand. You’re a great friend Dar and I don’t know what I would have done without you. I will also understand if you have to tell him.” They sat quietly as they did every morning and finished their cafa.

  Later that day, while Kenzie was resting, Dar went into his private communications room to contact Zahin. He punched in the private code to contact him directly. Zahin’s face showed on the view screen that lay before him and a big smile split his face. “Dar, how are you?”

  “I’m good. I’ve been enjoying the beach. I had forgot how peaceful it was.” Dar said, realizing how much he had missed his friend.

  “That’s good. When are you coming back?”

  Dar hesitated then broke the news. “I don’t know Zahin. I need to be off another month or two.” Zahin leaned toward the view screen so his face became larger, as he stared at Dar.

  “I see my Eliana has you using months now as well. What’s going on Dar?” He said with concern.

  “I just can’t come back right now Zahin. I have some things I need to take care of.” He hoped that would be the end of the conversation, but he knew Zahin wouldn’t give up that easily.”

  “Uh-huh, what kind of ‘things’ are you talking about?” When he hesitated, Zahin said, “Dar, we have been friends a long time. You were my confidant when I had trouble with Eliana. You know you can tell me anything, and it will stay between us. Tell me my friend, what is going on?” Zahin couldn’t believe he would keep something from him. They had been best friends growing up, and even now, they were close.

  “When I came here a month ago, I didn’t come alone.” He watched as Zahin’s eyes narrowed and knew he had drawn the wrong conclusion.

  “Kenzie.” Zahin said.

  “Yes.”

  “You and Kenzie are together and you don’t want Tolan to know. He has been going out of his mind Dar! She could have told him she wanted to be with you, hell you should have told him yourself!

  “It’s not like that Zahin!”

  “Then explain it to me.” He said in a low angry voice.

  “I had told you that I needed a vacation, but in truth I knew Tolan would crush Kenzie and I knew I would need to help her. That night, I saw her walking down the corridor alone with tears coming from her eyes. She didn’t even speak. I asked her if she wanted to go with me and she just nodded. Zahin, she cried tears all night, and not the silent ones.” Zahin knew exactly what he meant. “The next morning, she had given up on everything, and I mean everything! When I tell you the rest, you have to promise not to tell Tolan.”

  “I promise not to tell him, but I want keep her location a secret.” Zahin said with finality.

  “Understood. The next morning she confided in me that she was with young.”

  “SHE’S WITH YOUNG AND HASN’T SEEN A HEALER?” Zahin shouted, his face anxious and concerned.

  “No, she refused. She said childbirth was natural, and if anything happened to her, she trusted me to take her baby to her family to raise. I love her Zahin, but like a sister. Nothing has happened between us and it never will. I have to stay here and protect her though because she will not leave. Actually, she is so far along with young, I’m not sure if it would be safe.”

  “I see.” Zahin said, leaning back and releasing a slow breath. “How is she now?”

  “She seems happy, but I don’t think she truly is. She has moments where she just stares at the water and remains quiet for long periods of time. She says she doesn’t want to leave, and I can’t leave her unprotected. When she told me she was with young, I knew then I would stay with her for as long as she wanted as she carries the Prince’s son.” He said quietly, “And I would have stayed if she didn’t. She feels like family to me.”

  Zahin felt the gravity of what Dar said. Tolan would soon be a father, and his young needed protection especially outside of the palace. “I understand. Thank you Dar.” He nodded and ended the call.

  Zahin entered his common room and found Eliana sitting on the floor playing with Destiny. He watched with new eyes, realizing that Destiny would now have a cousin. “What’s wrong?” Eliana asked.

  “Nothing is wrong, well I hope it want be wrong for long.” He said with a smile on his face.

  “Za
hin, what on Earth are you talking about.”

  He laughed. “I don’t know why you say that. We are not on Earth and I’m not talking about anything there.”

  “Oh shut up. You know exactly what I mean.”

  “I do.” His smile faded. “Dar contacted me. It seems Kenzie has been staying with him on vacation. At least now we know where she is.” He watched as all the color faded from Eliana’s face. “It’s not like that Eliana; they have not been fuc….having sex. He just took her with him because she was upset over Tolan.” He had almost said fucking. Eliana had tried very hard to get all the males to use better terms. She said she did not want their daughter growing up saying that word, and it seemed to be working, at least with the ones she saw on a regular basis.

  “Shew, that’s a relief. At least we know where she is, and now Tolan and Dar will not be at each other’s throats.”

  “Where do you come up with that stuff? I thought I’d heard them all, but don’t worry, they would not be ‘at each other’s throats’, they would just punch each other repeatedly.” He said with such sincerity that she burst out laughing.

  Zahin found Tolan having second meal. He was surrounded with females, but he didn’t pay any attention to them. Shaking his head, Zahin approached him, “You’re not a fast learner are you Tolan?” He looked up with confusion.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “All the females that surround you.” He looked around and shrugged his shoulders.

  “It’s not like I asked them to join me.” He took another bite of food.

  “You’re an ass.” Zahin said, and then looked at the females, “Leave now.” They all got up except two. He looked closer and noticed it was Ginni and Jada. “Especially you two.” He looked straight at them and they reluctantly left. “What is wrong with you Tolan?”