There was a knock on the door and Gemma stuck her head in. “Is now a good time?”
Megan gestured to her. “Be my guest.”
Her fellow physician came to the bedside. “I’m making the others wait until I’ve done a quick exam. And I won’t let them stay, unless one or both of your sisters wants to sleep here tonight and help.”
Megan rested her hand on Gemma’s. “Thank you for all your efforts. I would have died without you.”
“All in a day’s work,” Gemma said cheerfully, although Megan took note of the dark circles under her eyes. “The Badari healers helped and of course your mate’s blood was indispensable. I’d love to write up this case history for the Sectors Journal of Obstetrics but I guess for the foreseeable future only you and I are going to know the lessons learned.”
Grinning, Megan said, “I’d love to co-author the article with you. We do need to put our heads together before anyone else has a baby here.”
“But not today.” Gemma touched the baby’s head. “You have a beautiful daughter. Good work, Mom.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Two weeks later, Megan stood in the stone circle deep in sanctuary valley, holding Hope, with Mateer at her side. Aydarr was on the platform in front of her and the entire pack was gathered around them. For a few hours today the valley was guarded only by the most trusted human soldiers.
When Aydarr had told Mateer and her about his desire to have a ceremony welcoming Hope to the pack, she immediately objected. “You’re not doing a blood oath with my baby.”
The Alpha’s smile was warm as he shook his head. “Of course not, have no worries. Hope was born a member of the pack with full rights. But you have to agree she represents something huge for the Badari, being our first ever naturally born child. I want to recognize this milestone in our history, to thank the goddess and to establish a ritual for welcoming future children into our midst. We’ve always said the cubs were the most important priority, even when we were all imprisoned and virtually helpless to protect them. Hope is no less important.”
Megan sighed and cuddled the baby closer. “I don’t want her to be overly burdened with this status as symbol. She’s a child. She’s entitled to a childhood, despite there being nothing normal about our lives right now.”
Mateer growled deep in his throat. “We’ll make sure she has the life she deserves, my oath on it.”
Aydarr switched to telepathy and spoke directly to the baby although allowing her parents to hear him. What do you think, little one? Should you and I stand with your parents and the pack in the goddess’s circle and give thanks?
She’s a baby—she doesn’t understand. Irritation made Megan more terse than usual when addressing the Alpha.
Doesn’t she? Aydarr stood patiently, gazing at Hope, who stared at him with the hint of golden light in her eyes. The Alpha stretched out one hand and the baby grasped his finger, holding tight.
Hope’s vocabulary extended to coos and cries at this stage, and the unsubtle expression of simple needs but Megan couldn’t deny the flash of green and the subtle hint of the goddess’s perfume in her mind, clearly coming through from her daughter, directed at Aydarr.
“All right, we’ll do the ceremony,” Megan said. “But then she gets to be a baby, not a symbol.”
“Agreed. My fondest dream is for your daughter to be the first of many,” Aydarr said.
And so now here we are. Megan glanced across the circle, touched by all the support she’d received. Even the most toughened warriors in the pack had stopped by their cave to bring flowers or special foods, or even handmade toys for the baby. The human residents of the valley had been equally generous, and the reaction to what Harker had attempted to do was condemnation.
Timtur sang a blessing song, thanking the Great Mother for the addition of Hope to the pack, and then Aydarr left the platform to stand directly in front of Megan. He took the baby into his arms, as they’d previously agreed he could do, dropped a careful kiss on her forehead and raised her high for the pack to see as he said, “We welcome our newest member, Hope, daughter of Megan and Mateer.”
The pack let out a loud cheer but the baby merely cooed contentedly and Aydarr restored her to Megan’s arms.
“May there be many more such happy occasions,” Aydarr said.
Megan and Mateer moved to seats set up at the side as Timtur sang the first notes of a new chant and Badari drummers provided an accompaniment for him, making the heart beat faster. Hope seemed fascinated by the whirling dancers who occupied the center of the space although she soon yawned and her eyelids grew droopy. Mateer rose and joined the dance as if unable to stop himself but soon enough the empty seat was filled by Yonn, the young alpha-born.
“May I hold her?” he asked.
Megan was surprised but agreeable. She showed Yonn how to cradle the baby in his arms and support her head adequately. The boy settled in the chair and held Hope to his heart. “She’ll have many older brothers to watch over her,” he said, glancing at Megan. “The grown Badari warriors can be her uncles but my fellow cubs and I have acknowledged her as our sister in our own hearts.”
Touched, Megan blinked back sudden tears. Her emotions were all over the place these days as her hormones tried to regain pre-pregnancy normalcy. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to have all of you to watch over her. I love the idea.”
Yonn grinned. “No doubt we’ll annoy her at times too. Certainly the older cubs irritate the younger ones on occasion, mostly when the little ones want to do everything the bigger ones can do.” He gave her a sideways look, ducking his head as if embarrassed but persevered. “I think your daughter will be a bold, fearless one, having you and Mateer as her parents.”
Megan had a feeling he was right.
Jill joined them. “Do you mind if I hold my niece?” she asked Yonn.
“Of course, pack leader.” He handed her the baby with great care and then stepped into the dance circle, effortlessly picking up the step and the beat and disappearing in the crowd of Badari.
“I never was one to think much about motherhood,” Jill said, stroking the baby’s downy cheek with a fingertip. “But now, I’m getting broody.”
“I meant to talk to you about that—”
Jill shook her head, lips set in a grim line. “I can’t, not yet. Aydarr and the pack and the humans need me to be at the top of my fighting game until this war with the Khagrish is won and we’re all safe. He and I discussed it again last night and we’re in agreement. Frustrated because we want to be parents more than anything but winning the war comes first.”
“I-I’m sorry.” Megan was at a loss for what to say but she couldn’t argue with her older sister.
“Neither of us is happy about it, but we’re realists.” Jill rocked the baby in her arms. “I’ll enjoy babysitting Hope and any other infants who arrive. Didn’t the old Terran myth talk about giant birds delivering babies? Which when you think about it is rather a frightening idea.”
“There were definitely times I would have settled for a bird bringing me a baby, versus enduring the contractions.” Megan smiled, thinking of what Darik and Nicolle had shared with her the night before, but it wasn’t her news to announce. She’d advised the couple to wait, even before telling the Alpha, since the first few months of a pregnancy could be uncertain, but she suspected Aydarr would figure things out. His connection to all members of his pack was complex and intense. Both Nicolle and Darik positively radiated happiness and of course were one of the few pairs who had shared blood for medical purposes. “Gemma and I are going to design a protocol for doing a minimal Badari-to-human transfusion for couples who want to try for a baby, figure out what the least invasive procedure might be but we haven’t had a chance to think about it in any detail.”
“You have a lot on your mind right now, sis. And I think maybe your daughter has a lot in her diaper.” Wrinkling her nose expressively, Jill laughed. “I’ll help you change her.”
Together Megan and he
“It means so much to them,” she said as she took care of her daughter’s needs.
Jill had no problem following the thought. “It means everything to all of them. Being able to have children and actually have a future fulfills a deep need in their souls. The Great Mother knows what she’s doing, I guess.”
“Thankfully,” Megan said in all seriousness.
“Aydarr’s going to announce the formation of the human council tomorrow night when we have the all-valley gathering to celebrate Hope’s arrival,” Jill said as they prepared to return to the main area.
Surprised, Megan considered the idea and felt good about it. “What made him change his mind?”
“He doesn’t think anything could have derailed Harker’s madness but he believes at least a few of the men who were drawn to what Harker was selling might have been saved or diverted perhaps if there had been a human organization here in the valley. A structure more concrete than the admin set up for onboarding new arrivals and assigning tasks, etcetera.” Jill shrugged. “I don’t know. Throughout history there have always been malcontents and those who hate for no reason, but I encouraged Aydarr to move forward. If—when—we win this planet and move into the next phase of creating a civilized world, there has to be true co-operation between the Badari and the humans who choose to stay and some form of governance will be needed. This is a start.”
“I’m glad I’m a doctor, not an Alpha or an Alpha’s mate,” Megan said frankly. ”This is all above my pay grade. But if anything good comes from my having been kidnapped, I’m all for it.”
Jill squeezed her arm and moved aside as Mateer came up to them.
“How are my ladies doing?” he asked, leaning over to give first Megan and then the baby a kiss.
“I’m tired,” Megan admitted. “Do you think anyone will notice if we slip away?” She watched the dancers for a moment. “The party’s going pretty well. No one will miss us. And the baby is a convenient excuse to go home.”
“Your wish is my command.” Mateer held out his arms. “You seem exhausted, mate. May I have the honor of carrying you and Hope to our cave?”
“I like to travel on my own two legs but I’ll admit the idea of curling up and letting you do the walking is really appealing right now.” Despite the skillful work done by Gemma in operating on her and saving her life, Megan was sore and achy. She refused painkillers since she was nursing and the Badari blood was taking care of any risk of infection but she’d been through a lot in the last few weeks. The Badari healers had been generous with their time, performing long chants and sending waves of their special power into her, which had helped.
Of course, the baby was waking every two hours or so all night to nurse, which was exhausting.
“If you don’t mind giving me a lift, I’d be grateful.”
For answer, her mate swept her up and held her close, pivoting to follow the path through the forest leading to the residence area.
She knew there were several Badari warriors flanking them, on Aydarr’s new standing orders that neither she nor Hope should be left unguarded. I’m sorry to pull the soldiers away from the party.
It’s their honor, truly. All are volunteers but of course the entire pack volunteered. Mateer’s mental voice held amusement. In some respects Aydarr is as nervous as if he was the new father himself.
Good practice for him. Megan yawned and fought off an urge to sleep, tightening her hold on the baby. I should have put Hope in the carrier. Did anyone think to bring it with us?
Skyl has it. Not much further but we can stop and transfer her now if you’re worried.
I’ll make it. Probably a good thing we can’t do anything but actually sleep together for six weeks or so yet because you’d be making love to a willing but snoring woman tonight. I have the emotional desire but no energy to act on it, not even with your big sexy body curled next to me.
I’ll survive and when we do make love again, the experience will be all the sweeter. I can wait. Mateer was reassuring. I love you more than life itself. The fear of losing you brought me to my knees.
She kissed his cheek as he began the climb to their cave. “We’ve been through so much together,” she said in a whisper, “And we triumphed over the worst the Khagrish could throw at us and you defeated Harker’s deranged scheme. Together, we’re unbeatable.”
“Did the goddess tell you that?”
“She didn’t have to.” Megan snuggled closer to her mate as he entered their home and the MARL power unit brought up the lights to a subtle glow. “Some things a woman just knows.”
***
Thank you for reading BADARI WARRIOR’S BABY!
I hope you enjoyed the adventure (and, of course, I’d love a review if you have time and the inclination to write one. Even a few sentences would be wonderful. Authors relish reader feedback).
Next up will be REEDE, also in 2019 (late summer probably), continuing the Badari story and the quest to defeat the Khagrish enemy.
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USA Today and Best Selling Author
Veronica Scott grew up in a house with a library as its heart. Dad loved science fiction, Mom loved ancient history and Veronica thought there needed to be more romance in everything. When she ran out of books to read, she started writing her own stories.
Seven time winner of the SFR Galaxy Award, as well as a National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award, Veronica is also the proud recipient of a NASA Exceptional Service Medal relating to her former day job, not her romances!
She read the part of Star Trek Crew Member in the audiobook production of Harlan Ellison’s “The City On the Edge of Forever.”
Keep in touch with Veronica, via Facebook, Twitter, and her Blog.
Also by Veronica Scott
Science Fiction Romance
Sectors New Allies Series
Aydarr: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Mateer: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Timtur: The Teacher’s Alien Healer (Badari Warriors): In the Stars Romance
Note: Timtur is book 2.5 in the series timeline.
Jadrian: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Darik: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Gabe: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Kierce: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Camron: A Badari Warriors SciFi Romance Novel
Also available: Badari Warriors: Sectors New Allies Book 1-3 Box Set (Aydarr, Matter, Timtur)
The Sectors SF Romance Series
Wreck of the Nebula Dream
Escape From Zulaire
Mission to Mahjundar
Hostage to the Stars
Trapped on Talonque
Star Survivor
Danger in the Stars
Two Against the Stars
The Fated Stars
Lady of the Star Wind
Star Cruise Series
Star Cruise: Marooned
Star Cruise: Outbreak
Star Cruise A Novella:
Stowaway Plus Rescue and Golden Token Short Stories
Star Cruise: Songbird
Star Cruise: Mystery Dancer
Historical Paranormal Romance
The Gods of Egypt Series
Priestess of the Nile
Warrior of the Nile
Dancer of the Nile
Magic of the Nile
Ghost of the Nile
Healer of the Nile
Lady of the Nile
Song of the Nile
Fantasy Romance
The Captive Shifter
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