by Kate L. Mary
When Nyko and I finally broke through the trees and our village came into view, it was buzzing with activity.
“Looks like something’s going on,” Nyko said as he slowed his horse to a stop.
I nodded in response, earning a grin from my friend. While I was happy to remain silent most of the time, Nyko liked the noise and bustle of being in a crowd. Life in the Fortis village was hard for him because he’d been an outcast, but that had all changed. Like me, Nyko had found his place in this world.
My friend had just slid off his horse when Mira emerged from the hut in front of us. She paused for a moment, looking around, and when her blue eyes landed on him, a smile broke out across her face.
“You are back!”
My friend chuckled and waved to the animal he’d killed. “Would’ve been sooner if this bastard hadn’t been so wily. I had to track him all the way to the other side of the wilds.”
Mira’s smile didn’t waver when she looked my way, but the second our eyes met, I knew. It was time.
“Indra has been having pains.”
I hopped from the horse, barely pausing when my feet hit the ground before taking off. “Is she in our hut?”
“She is!” Mira called after me.
I looked back long enough to see her and Nyko embrace.
People called out to me as I charged through the village, passing my sister, who was busy teaching a group of children how to read. She paused when she spotted me, but I didn’t stop. My focus was on one thing—getting to Indra.
My heart pounded in sync with the thud of my feet. This was a happy day, but the memory of my mother dying in childbirth was a hard thing to forget. Nyko’s wife had met with the same fate, and I couldn’t shake the thought that Indra was at a greater disadvantage. I was Fortis, big by nature, but she was a small woman who took after her Sovereign mother. Bringing my child into this world might prove difficult for her.
When I reached our hut, I paused outside the door to catch my breath. The last thing I wanted was to alarm my wife when she was already in a delicate state, but no matter how long I stood outside the door, I found it impossible to calm my nerves.
Finally, I gave up and went in.
The first sound I heard was Indra’s cry of pain, and it froze me in my tracks.
“Push, Indra,” Anja said.
My wife cried out again as I took in the scene. She was on our bed, her legs pulled back while Anja knelt in front of her. Indra’s face was red, and Xandra stood at her side, wiping her brow with a damp tuft of fur.
I didn’t move until Indra cried out yet again.
“I see the head!” Anja called out. “You are almost there, Indra!”
I moved then, crossing the hut to my wife.
She looked up at my approach, her eyes hazy, and smiled. “You are here.”
“I’m here,” I said, kneeling next to her.
Indra grasped my hand, giving it a squeeze. “The baby is almost here.”
I couldn’t speak, so I simply nodded. Seconds passed before Indra once again groaned, and then she was pushing again, Anja urging her to breathe while Xandra wiped the sweat from her face.
Everything seemed fuzzy and unfocused after that. I kept Indra’s hand in mine, holding it while I prayed to the gods that everything turned out okay. It wasn’t until my child’s first cry cut through the air that I was able to relax.
Indra smiled at me while my wife’s sister held the baby up, grinning. It was a small thing that squirmed and cried, with a head full of dark hair.
“It is a boy,” Anja said, smiling, her eyes filled with tears.
A boy.
My son.
Indra and I had a son.
Somehow, the child found his way into my arms, and I turned to my wife. She was crying, smiling, and looking at our son like he was the most amazing thing in the world. I couldn’t disagree.
“Look at him,” she said.
“He’s amazing,” I said.
“More than amazing,” she replied. “He is free.”
The End
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Acknowledgments
Just like before, I have to thank my sister-in-law, Rebekah, for telling me to watch The 100, as well as Netflix for making it available to stream, and the show’s creators for creating such an amazing world. They also get the credit for introducing me to a whole list of unique names to use, as do the creators of the TV show Outsiders for giving me the name Asa, and Point Break for allowing me to think of the name Bodhi.
A very special thank you goes out to Diana Gardin for allowing me to borrow the term passage markings, which she used in her own novel, The Lilac Sky, as well as my SIL who helped me come up with the name for my city guards, the Fortis.
This world was such an amazing place to create, but it was also a huge undertaking, and I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to give me such great feedback. The enthusiasm of people like Cheer Stephenson-Papworth and Mysti Holsinger-Stitt, who rallied the participants in the BOD Reads group to make Outliers the April book, means more to me than I can possibly say. All I can say is: thanks for being so awesome!
Jan Strohecker, thanks for being that first critical eye after I finished writing the novel, and for helping pick out any holes in the world building and plot. Thanks to my first readers and typo hunters: Courtnee McGrew, Cheer Stephenson-Papworth, and Mysti Holsinger-Stitt. Thanks also to Lori Whitwam for her editing genius, and Amber Garcia, for the great PR representation.
As always, I am forced to acknowledge my husband and kids and how amazing they are. Whenever I’m really into a project, they get neglected, and I appreciate not only what good sports they are, but also how supportive they are. My husband especially has no problem picking up the slack, doing laundry and running the kids to events, so I can get just a little more done, and I couldn’t ask for a better support system!
Also by Kate L. Mary
The Broken World Series
Broken World
Shattered World
Mad World
Lost World
New World
Forgotten World
Silent World
Broken Stories
The Twisted Series
Twisted World
Twisted Mind
Twisted Memories
Twisted Fate
The Oklahoma Wastelands Series
The Loudest Silence
Zombie Apocalypse Love Story Novellas
More than Survival
Fighting for a Future
Playing the Odds
The Key to Survival
The Things We Cannot Change
Surviving the Storm
The Blood Will Dry
Collision
Tribe of Daughters
The Outliers Saga
Outliers
Uprising
Retribution
When We Were Human
Alone: A Zombie Novel
The Moonchild Series
Moonchild
Liberation
The College of Charleston Series
The List
No Regrets
Moving On
Letting Go
Anthologies
Prep for Doom
Gone with the Dead
About the Author
Kate L. Mary is an award-winning author of New Adult and Young Adult fiction, ranging from Post-apocalyptic tales of the undead, to Speculative Fiction and Contemporary Romance. Her Young Adult book, When We Were Human, was a 2015 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards Silver Medal winner for Young Adult Fantasy/Sci-Fi Fiction, and a 2016 Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal winner for Young Adult Science Fiction. Don’t miss out on the Broken World series, an Amazon bestseller and fan favorite.
For more information about Kate, check out her website: www.KateLMary.com
Kate L. Mary, Outliers