Chapter Twelve
Selena
“Selena, let me take you to your nestroom,” Zirene purred, wrapping an arm around me. “I’ll have Symi deliver dinner, if you want, while we retire for the night.”
As wonderful as that sounded, a part of me still felt wrong spending the first night back on Destima without my Favored. Eyeing their pale, sleeping forms in their Cryopods, I knew that this was for the best, but that didn’t alleviate any of my guilt.
“Can I bid them goodnight?”
Zirene looked over my head toward my Favored and nodded. “If that’s what calls you.”
Standing on my toes, I gave him a peck on the cheek and thanked him before walking between their Cryopods.
Staring at my mates, I took in their weakened states, promising myself that I would do anything to heal them.
“Both your body and mind need rest before you tire yourself out. Even I can’t help you right now,”Vowels warned.“You mustn’t worry. Healing your princes will be easier than your Favored but not impossible. Listen to your Shadow, and retire for the night. A lot has happened today.”
“You believe they will be okay?”
“Now that I’ve seen and scanned them, yes. I have no doubt,”he soothed.“But you must know that the healing process won’t happen overnight. Staying here and neglecting your conscious mates won’t help.”
“I know. I am just worried that if I leave, I may never see them again.”
“They will be across the hall from you, waiting in the infirmary for you to wake them. Trust your clan and your friends; they will make sure nothing happens to them.”
“I will… I do… I just wish things were different.”
Sighing, I knew Vowels was right, but I couldn’t shake the wish that my clan could be whole again. We were so close but still not complete.
I kissed my Favored’s foreheads through the glass and bid them goodnight before returning to Zirene. The room silently watched me as if what I had done was foreign to them. Xylo’s fathers held each other, both nodding at me when our gazes crossed.
Leaning into Zirene, I thanked the room and let him lead me out of the infirmary’s Cryopod chamber and across the hall. Zirene’s tail decided it was the appropriate time to rub against the back of my legs, making him seem as clingy as Odelm could be when he was worried. I wondered if it was a show of possession, or need, because of the length of time we had been apart.
“Are you all right?”
Zirene looked down at me and huffed as we halted in front of the nestroom’s double doors.
“It was hard for me not to claim you in that room for all to see,” he muttered, sounding ashamed as he placed his hand on the scanner. “I know that you aremine, but you are alsotheirs. I need you, but they need you, too, which complicates our time together.”
Abeepsounded as the double doors opened, revealing a domed terrarium sitting behind the mountain’s waterfall.
Two types of dome walls enveloped the room. A glass window was directly in front of me, covering half of the room. The other half had vidscreen paneling, displaying a variety of landscapes found on my moon.
“What is this?”
“This is your vidwall.” He pointed to one of the screens, which changed to display the Cryopod chamber with a perfect overhead view of my Favored. “Kaede has graciously given you access to the older models of his drones to use as vidrecorders.”
He pointed to another screen, and the display switched to a room I had never seen. There was a large, padded bed similar to my nestbed, but much smaller, with three familiar bodies curled up together.
“Our cubs,” I gasped, covering my mouth. “Are those our cubs?”
“Yes, Selena,” he purred, rubbing my arm affectionately. “I made sure some of Kaede’s drones were sent with my sister to record them while they are with her. Not because I didn’t trust her, but because we can’t be too careful with our cubs—the future of the Aldawi empire.”
“You did this for me?”
“You are not only the Queen of Destima but also the Beacon of the Aldawi empire. I don’t think you fully fathom how much power you wield. Many citizens would be honored to work for you at a moment’s notice. On top of that, you know how to use the dreamdome and have the resources to build anything you can imagine.
“I wanted to provide our clan with the resources to heal together, surrounded by our trusted friends and family—”
