Misunderstood Miracles

by Norma Jeanne Karlsson

  Once Jeff and I have ironed out the details of our plan, I turn to Bethany, who’s sitting on the couch across from us with Alannah as they fake swallowing Tic Tacs.

  “Bethany, I need you to tell me everything you know about shields and bearers,” I request gruffly.

  “I don’t really know anything. Doctor Slone isn’t forthcoming with us. She tells us what to do, how to research, but she doesn’t provide any details. Half of the specimen I test and research, I don’t even know who they came from,” she grumbles.

  “Deacon’s a vest,” I announce, gauging her reaction.

  She almost chokes on her Tic Tac. She didn’t know.

  “I need to know more than I do about the bearers. Who they are. Where they came from. How long will it take for the memory wiping injections to wear off for them?”

  I’m all over the place, but we’re losing time.

  “What memory wiping injections?” she asks honestly confused.

  “The injections we’re given once a month. I think they’re to maintain the loss of memory the bearers have. They don’t work on me and Twenty-eight is now immune to them. He remembers everything too.”

  “I…what?”

  “Stay with me here. You know we get injections. You administer most of them. What are they?”

  “Vitamins,” she responds with the confidence of a lying toddler.

  “Bullshit,” I huff. “If you’re not gonna help us, get the fuck out. I don’t have time to play games.”

  “The syringes are pre-filled and waiting for me on the first of each month. Some of the bearers have vitamin deficiencies. The bearers who have been here the longest. Vitamin C, D, B-twelve, magnesium, iron, pretty much all of the long term bearers have low levels. I run the blood work myself.” Now she sounds like a normal person, her brown eyes not holding lies.

  “There’s somethin’ else in those syringes,” I grumble.

  “If they’re administering something once a month to maintain memory loss, it obviously wears off,” Alannah interjects. “If we can find records of where the bearers come from, we could try to get them home or find their families.”

  “Doc, they don’t have any families left.”

  “Doc?” Jeff and Bethany question in unison.

  “Cardiothoracic surgeon,” Alannah responds dismissively, locking her big blues on me. “I’m alive, Kane. Don’t discount that.”

  “They wanted my baby. That’s the only reason you’re alive,” I growl.

  She starts to argue with me, but I put up a hand to silence her. That gains me a promising scowl.

  “Are there records?” I ask Bethany.

  “We all chart everything on tablets. At the end of the day, they’re gathered up and given to Doctor Slone. The next day there’s nothing on the tablets. That information has to be going somewhere. I don’t know where that is though.”

  “Her office. I need to get into her office.”

  “You’re not the most tech savvy person in the world,” Alannah points out.

  “I smash phones pretty well,” I snark.

  “Me too,” she jokes back with a coy smile on her lips.

  “I’m good with computers,” Bethany announces. “I have access to Doctor Slone’s office since I’m the one who turns in the tablets.”

  Finally, shit is falling into place. Tomorrow is the day. Either I’ll be free of this place, or I’ll start World War III. It doesn’t matter as long as Alannah and my son are safe. Bethany may be able to find me answers. Jeff may be able to disable the security system. Alex and the dragons may be able to get this ball rolling with their end of the deal. I don’t know what they can do.

  I know what I can do.

  Tomorrow, every other person in Canyon Nine will learn how talented I am.

  “How’re you feeling?” I ask Alannah as I slide in between the sheets and gather her against me.

  She was able to cheek the pills Deacon brought up after dinner. We passed them off to Jeff, who was going to give them to Bethany. She won’t have enough time to figure out what they are before we put our plan into action, but she’ll try after we escape.

  “Tired, overwhelmed, pissed, sad, confused and happy,” she mumbles against my naked chest.

  “I was askin’ about the puking, but thanks for the emotional checklist,” I snark, earning me a smack on the chest.

  I want to talk to her, but the cameras are back to functioning, and I know we’re being watched closely. That’s the only reason I’m silent and the only fucking reason my dick’s not inside my woman. I could keep the blankets over us Superman-style, but I’m not willing to risk it. So my hard-on will have to deal. He’s not happy about it.

  “Want me to take care of that for you?” Alannah purrs, running her tiny hand over my straining cock.

  “No,” I growl, pulling her hand away from me. “I’m not an exhibitionist.”

  “I’ll keep it under the covers,” she assures me and tries to dive under.

  “Alannah, knock it off,” I grumble, yanking her up my body until she’s laying almost on top of me.

  “Pregnancy makes me horny,” she says through a shrug as I brush a few errant pieces of light blond hair from her face.

  “Pregnancy makes me horny too,” I respond through a sly smile. “I’ll prove it to you soon.”

  “Do you think he’s okay?” she asks softly, rolling off me to rub her belly.

  I push her to her back and pull up her purple T-shirt before palming her bump.

  “He’s fine,” I whisper, pressing my lips to her stretching skin.

  “You’ll be an amazing father,” she declares, running her hand through my hair.

  “I’ll be a fuckin’ weird father,” I snort. “It’s good he’s got you for sanity’s sake.”

  I climb up her body, settling between her legs before pressing my lips to hers.

  “I love you,” I whisper against her mouth. “Everything’s gonna be fine. I promise.”

  I kiss her slowly, allowing our tongues to meander and mingle. I absorb her sweet minty taste as I drink her in. Alannah’s hands rest at the nape of my neck while I cup her cheeks, tilting her head so I can deepen the kiss. My woman groans as my mouth dominates hers while she arches into me.

  I grind my cock against her pussy, only separated by the thin material of her pajama pants and my boxer briefs. As I move, my brain quits remembering why I’m not inside her. The hormones have taken over.

  I pull the blankets up over my back before dragging her pants off, happy to find no panties. Then I tug my underwear off. I take no time burying myself to the hilt and even less time to start thrusting into Alannah when she wraps her ankles around my hips.

  I feast on her neck as she whimpers. Pregnancy has made her more reactive. Not that she wasn’t before, but this is more intense. I think I’ll keep her pregnant as much as I can. We’ll have twenty kids and create our own superhero group. The Warrior Shields.

  “Do you want more kids?” I ask, slowing my strokes.

  “Weird question and bad timing. Get back to work,” she scolds.

  I stop moving completely so she’ll answer. When her electric blue eyes glare daggers at me, I start to chuckle.

  “I don’t find this funny,” she sneers, clenching her pussy tight around my cock.

  That stops my laughing, but I still wait for her to answer.

  “Yes,” she hisses.

  “Good,” I retort and slam into her. “Because I plan on filling you with as many babies as you can take,” I purr into her ear.

  “Yes,” she moans.

  “Is that what you want, Alannah? Do you want my cock inside you every night, growing our family? Tell me what you want, and I’ll give it to you.”

  I don’t know why I’m talking to her like this. I’m not usually much for conversation while having sex. But something about the way she reacts to my voice while my dick’s inside her is enticing. She moans more. She arches harder. And her pussy gets wetter.

  “I
want everything with you,” she whispers.

  That breaks my resolve and my need to talk because my need to fill her with come takes over. I pound into her, panting against her neck as she scrapes my back. Then I take her mouth in an all-out assault of her body. I thrust my cock and my tongue in tandem as I run my arms beneath her body, holding her as close to mine as I can get her.

  Alannah screams my name into my mouth as she comes, but I don’t relent. I continue powering into her with my lips covering hers. Over and over I bring her to bliss. I watch her fall apart beneath me. I bite her soft neck, annoyed that I can’t mark her. I rub her clit to bring her over the edge when she begs me to make her come again. I take her to the brink of insanity.

  I show her how devoted I am to her. I show her how much I love her. I show her how I’ll protect her. I show her how beautiful she is. I show her that I’ll never leave her again. I show her what our life will be. I show her everything, praying to Sorcha’s gods that this isn’t the last time I’ll experience the love of my life.

  As I’m slowing my strokes after coming with a primal roar, the Earth shakes. Literally.

  “Get dressed,” I command in an all too familiar scene.

  I drag my stupid white sweat suit on as Alannah scrambles into a pair of snug maternity jeans that fasten below her bump and a long-sleeved black T-shirt with a sign on her belly that says ‘Loading: 75% Complete’ with a bar filled three quarters of the way.

  “Do you think we’ll have a nerd kid?” I ask, nodding at her shirt.

  “It’s cute and funny. And as usual with you, weird question!”

  I shrug as Jeff comes barreling in the room, not bothering to knock.

  “There was an explosion in the facility. Evacuation protocols are in effect. It’s time,” he orders.

  Evacuation protocol means all the bearers will be corralled into a small room in the white dungeon while the attendants secure Canyon Nine. We were hoping to cause this ourselves. I’m uneasy at the idea it’s happening on its own, but I won’t squander the opportunity.

  I interlace my fingers with Alannah as we hurry out of the apartment. We jog toward the elevator, but it won’t be functioning. The lights are dimmer than normal, and there are red flashing lights blinking within them.

  The building shudders again as we make our way to the escape route. The only reason I know the tremors beneath my feet are from explosions is because Jeff told me. Otherwise, I’d think we were experiencing earthquakes.

  I keep my fingers tightly interwoven with Alannah’s as we follow Jeff. There’s a nagging feeling creeping in. I shouldn’t be running toward the white dungeon. I should be going to the surface. I have to trust the plan we have in place. I have to…as much as I feel like I shouldn’t.

  We finally come to a door that leads to a hallway running parallel to the backward/forward shaft of the elevator. Once we’re through the hall, we go through another door where we find metal stairs. It’s a long cavernous way down. I force my feet to move, dragging my woman with me. Three more explosions vibrate around us. The last one knocks a few small pieces of concrete around us and my level of discomfort rises.

  Alannah clings to me as a few bits of concrete land in her hair and on her shoulders. Seeing the tiny amount of debris peppering her results in a growl billowing from my chest.

  When we finally burst through the door into the white corridor, it’s eerily silent. There are no flashing red lights, no attendants racing around, no bearers in sight.

  “What the fuck?” I snarl as we jog behind Jeff.

  He looks over his shoulder with an expression of impending doom. Not the reassurance I was hoping for.

  We pull up to a stop before the common room but past the lab. There are no doors here. Or at least I thought there weren’t. Jeff waits for a moment and then the glossy white paint splits in two, revealing all the bearers unconscious on the floor in a very small white square room. They’re lined up in rows as if their bodies are awaiting identification after a mass murder. But they aren’t dead. They’re drugged.

  Alannah and I step in as Jeff whispers, “I’ll be right back.”

  Then the door slides shut, closing us in complete darkness. I finally found my womb, but it’s not going to bring me life. The overwhelming feeling within me says this black box will be the place my life ends. And so be it. I’ll gladly give my life to save Alannah and our son. It’s a small price to pay.

  “Kane,” Alannah says shakily.

  I scoop her tiny body up to my chest and hold her fiercely. Reassuring her. “We’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

  She nods against my neck, clinging to my shoulders as I try not to lie. I don’t want her to worry, but I’m pretty fucking certain we won’t be fine. The wall opens behind us, and Jeff quickly fills the space.

  “Here,” he grunts, shoving a white pillowcase at me as I right Alannah’s feet on the floor.

  The makeshift bag is filled with shit, but the first thing my hand finds is a flashlight.

  “When the doors open, run back the way we came. Do you remember how to get to the surface?”

  I nod. It’s one of the things we discussed the most earlier. He didn’t draw me a map, but I don’t need one. I’m used to flying blind with only a visual to work from.

  “Five miles west. Don’t fuckin’ stop until you hit the town.” He won’t be with us. That’s not part of the plan.

  “Jeff—”

  “You get them outta here. Don’t wait for me or anyone else. You haul ass and don’t look back,” he orders gruffly before pressing his lips to Alannah’s forehead.

  “Jeff, please,” she pleads.

  “I’ll be fine,” he assures her in that fatherly way he always uses with her. “Take care of that baby.”

  “Thank you for everything,” she responds, hugging him tightly.

  He squeezes her back before releasing her to slap my shoulder a few times. Jeff hesitates for a moment and then turns on his heel, leaving us in the dark once again.

  I flip on the flashlight and start digging through the pillowcase, finding what I need. I rip the syringes out and pass them to Alannah.

  “Who first?” she asks with confidence.

  “Him,” I instruct, shining the light on Alex.

  She quickly kneels down, finds a vein on his arm and injects him. When nothing happens, I feel sick. What if this is a ploy? What if these syringes are filled with something deadly instead of something to wake them up? What if Bethany fucked us over? What if…

  “Kane?” Alex mumbles, rubbing his eyes with both hands.

  “Thank fuck,” I breathe out in relief.

  “Who’s next?” Alannah questions, her mind clearly focused on the task as she looks Alex over quickly, nodding at me that he’s okay.

  “Those three,” I respond, helping Alex to his feet.

  She moves to the dragons as Alex and I hover, unable to help much.

  “What the hell happened?” Alex asks me.

  “There’re explosions goin’ off somewhere in the facility. You didn’t feel ’em?”

  Now that I ask, I realize I haven’t felt anything since we got down here. Either they’ve stopped, or we’re deep enough that we can’t feel them.

  “No. I was asleep in bed, and now I’m here. Fuck,” he huffs, scrubbing his face.

  There’s no way all of the bearers were drugged and moved in the time it took us to get down here. This is Canyon Nine’s doing. I’m sure it’s their plan for Alannah and me, but I can’t figure out the angle. I need time I don’t have.

  Alex pops his shoe off as Thirty-seven comes to.

  “Here,” Alex grunts, yanking one of the scalpels from the insole.

  Why does everyone have shoes on if they were asleep?

  “It’s okay,” Alannah soothes Thirty-seven. “I’m Alannah, Kane’s…” she trails off not knowing what to call herself.

  “Woman,” I grunt.

  “Thirty-seven,” he introduces himself with that cocky smirk on his li
ps directed at me.

  Alannah swiftly checks him over before moving to the other dragons. Thirty-seven climbs to his feet and shakes my hand. This is taking too long. There’s no way Alannah can do this all by herself in time.

  “I can help,” Thirty-seven announces.

  “You know how to do this?” I ask as Alannah injects Thirty-six.

  “I think so,” he responds with some confidence and some confusion.

  I hand him some syringes, and he goes to Thirty-five. He moves with the same precision as Alannah, injecting the vein with ease. There’s a spark of awe in his face as he stands up, looking at me.

  “Holy shit,” he says quietly.

  “You inject that side, and I’ll do this side,” Alannah instructs him and he quickly obeys, moving to the other row of bodies.

  “What do I do with them?” Thirty-seven asks, nodding at the blades.

  I dig in the pillowcase again and find a small packet with smaller packets of powder in them. I shake them, and he nods, indicating I’m capable of pouring shit in people’s mouths. Alex snatches it away from me and goes to work while I try my best to shine the light where everyone needs it. Thirty-five and Thirty-six jump in to help. And before much longer my woman is reassuring some very freaked out bearers.

  When questions start pouring from their mouths, I ask everyone to wait until all of the bearers are awake. I don’t want to have this talk more than once. Because these are good, trusting people, they all agree easily.

  Thirty-nine is the last to come to. It took him the longest to wake up. So much so that Alannah was watching him with worried eyes, checking his vitals as she rubbed his chest vigorously. When his black eyes finally opened, my woman hugged him tightly. She’s still hugging him.

  “Doc,” I say, clearing my throat.

  “Sorry. You had me worried,” she says sweetly to Thirty-nine.

  “What’s going on? Who are you? Where are we?” he asks the same questions the other bearers have. It’s time to answer them.

  The dragons and Alex flank my sides as Alannah backs into me. I pull her against my front with one arm around her shoulders the other, shining the flashlight onto the back wall.