The Inquisitors (The Space Merchants Book 6)

by Wendie Nordgren

  I untied my skirts and showed them what we had.

  “You stole stuff from the speedboat?” Terre asked.

  “Well, yes. Go without waste paper for a few days and you’ll realize its importance.”

  “Let’s take stock of our situation,” Tracy said.

  We began looking around the yacht. Comfortable shaded seating was on the deck. In the main cabin, there were cases of bottled water, boxes of meal bars, and several baskets of fruits, and breads.

  “You have got to be kidding me,” I said.

  “What’s wrong?” Tracy asked.

  “Nothing,” I said.

  Sparrow said, “He did a job on it. There’s no way for me to restore power. We’re stuck out here until he or someone else comes for us.”

  “The waste units and showers work,” Terre said. She was coming out of a cabin. “There are two bedrooms. Each one has its own bathroom. We’ll have to share.” She said it like it was a labor.

  Terre and I took one room, and Tracy and Sparrow took the other. Each bathroom had a shower, sink, and waste unit. This wasn’t a survival challenge. It was glamping, glamorous camping.

  “Oh, dear. It seems as though we will be forced to wear what we have on. He left us no changes of clothing,” Terre said.

  “What do you care? You’ll probably run around naked,” Tracy said. “Anyway, that might not be a bad idea. It’s hot in here.”

  “Do the windows open?” Sparrow asked.

  Soon, we had a breeze flowing through the cabin.

  “We have plenty of food and water. We have luxurious shelter and bathrooms. This shouldn’t be too much of a challenge,” I said.

  “There’s no power. What are we going to do for five days?” Sparrow asked.

  We searched the yacht some more. There weren’t any games, books, arts, or crafts in the cabin or staterooms. On the top deck, we did find life jackets and fishing gear. As night fell, we sat on the deck, told stories, talked about our husbands and the strange things they did, and discussed everything we wanted to get to do. It turned out that Tracy and Sparrow were also curious to visit Earth. Inwardly, I groaned. After a dinner of fruit and ration bars, the four of us decided to call it a night.

  I woke up hugging Terre’s arm. She was trying to yank herself free. She started laughing and couldn’t stop.

  “Sorry. I cuddle.” I yawned.

  “And, you drool! I’m going to shower.”

  I smirked at her. Then, I left our room, grabbed a bottle of water, and went up to the deck. I closed my eyes and inhaled as the strong breeze tugged at the hair that had come free of my braid. The sky was full of pink and purple shades. Tracy joined me. She plopped down on a lounger and drank some water while frowning at a ration bar.

  “Having the same thing for breakfast and dinner is not very appetizing,” she complained.

  “It’s a good thing Inquisitor Rovek is so sweet on you. My team and I each got a ration bar and bottle of water a day. He tied the boys up, smeared a flesh-eating enzyme on their clothing, and made me swim from the boat to the island to save them. They were naked until I shared my clothes with them. We had to sleep on the ground under a lean-to the boys made.”

  Tracy scrunched up her face. “I don’t care for the sound of any of that. This is a very nice boat.”

  Something in the water caught my attention. “Oh, look! Dolphins!”

  Tracy came to the rail to look. “Those aren’t dolphins.”

  “What are they?”

  “Sharks. It’s a herd of them. They may be eating before swimming to deeper water. It appears as though a storm is coming. Sharks can sense a change in barometric pressure and will head down deep where it is safer for them. Come away from the railing.”

  “Can they jump up here?” I asked with wide eyes.

  “I’m more worried about you slipping overboard. Come on.” She sat down and patted the seat beside her.

  When Terre and Sparrow joined us, Tracy warned them about the sharks and the weather. I went down to our room to shower. Tracy had been correct. By lunchtime, a driving rain forced us from the deck and below. With the windows closed against the downpour, it was stuffy. We sat in darkness listening to the wind and rain. Then, the waves began to toss the boat. The four of us shared a meager meal and called it a night. I placed a pillow between us, so I wouldn’t drool on Terre in my sleep. It worked, but the tossing of the ship kept me from entering a sound sleep.

  As morning edged closer, bile rose in my throat. I sat up and ran for the bathroom, falling to my knees in front of the waste unit. I threw up over and over. My retching woke Terre and had an ill effect on her. I could hear her being sick in the sink which made my own nausea even worse. I was sick over and over until only dry heaves wracked me. I pressed the button on the waste unit and turned on the shower. Making a cup of my hands, I rinsed out my mouth. I could hear Terre rinsing out the sink. The boat continued to lift and drop. Then, it would bounce from side to side.

  Together, we left our room and sat with bottles of water and wet cloths over our eyes. Terre was moaning pathetically. When Sparrow and Tracy woke up, they didn’t offer to nurse us back to health because they were just as sick as we were.

  “Could it be food poisoning?” Terre asked.

  “From meal bars, fruit, rolls, and water? It’s doubtful,” Tracy said.

  “We’re all seasick. Once the storm passes, we’ll be fine,” I promised.

  I was a filthy rotten liar. The storm passed, and the ocean calmed. Still, we thought we were going to die. The four of us had returned to the deck. It was cooler once the rain had slowed to a steady downpour, and the waves had calmed. We had brought our pillows and blankets with us. Currently, the four of us were puking over the side of the boat. After I felt empty, I rinsed my mouth with bottled water and spit over the side. I felt sorry for the sharks for being forced to swim in what we had been doing. I helped Sparrow over to her lounger and covered her up.

  “It’s the flu. It has to be the flu,” Tracy said. She was on her knees with her forehead pressed to the deck.

  After I got her situated, I went to the bridge with the small vid-screen Rovek had given her and secured the door. I called him. He looked surprised to see me. “You win. You’re right. We’re wrong. Males are stronger. Blah, blah, blah. Bring Phillip. We’re all dying from the worst case of the flu ever. He may want to quarantine us. I don’t want the babies getting sick.”

  “You’re ill?”

  I saw him making another call. “We are all vilely ill. We thought it was food poisoning or the storm, but it’s got to be the flu. Just hurry. We really need help.” I hung up on him and made it to the deck in time to be sick again.

  I could hear Tracy crying softly to herself, but I was too sick to help her. Every time the boat moved, I could taste the bile rising in my throat. Terre couldn’t take being on her lounger and instead had curled up on her side on the deck. When Sparrow crawled to the railing, I joined her. Then, my mind calmed, and I was cocooned in stillness and quiet. Collapsing into it, I slept.

  When I regained consciousness, I was in my bed at Dario’s house with Yukihyo and Nico to either side of me. Yukihyo jumped off the bed and out of the way as I darted to the much nicer waste unit. I felt his hands holding my hair while I was sick again and again. Nico passed me a cup of cold water with which to rinse out my mouth. Then, Yukihyo carried me back to bed. Zared put a cold wet cloth on my head.

  “Am I dying? Are we all dying?” I heard someone enter the room.

  “You’re not dying, Cupcake.” Phillip took the cloth away from my eyes and smiled at me. He looked a little too happy in my opinion.

  “What about my friends? Oh, stars, Phillip. I really am dying. Give me an injection. Anything. Just make it stop.”

  “You, Terre, Tracy, and Sparrow are all perfectly healthy. There’s nothing to worry about.” He smiled happily at me.

  “Phillip, go fuck yourself.”

  He laughed at me and activated h
is scanner. “If you’ll look at the screen, I can show you the cause of your intestinal distress.”

  An image appeared. Everything in my mind stilled. It was a scan of my uterus, and it wasn’t empty. “Phillip, is that a baby? Am I pregnant?” I touched the image and stared at it until it blurred. I wiped at my eyes.

  “Indeed, you are, Cupcake. Congratulations. Rest. Relax. I’ll be back to check on you in a little while.” Phillip kissed my forehead and left me alone with eight grinning males.

  I couldn’t keep my hands away from my stomach. I was pregnant. I had been so afraid that after losing Luca’s baby I wouldn’t be able to have another child. All of those deep fears came pouring out of me as I cried. Yukihyo held me to his chest.

  “Is she alright? Is she in pain?” Dario asked in a panic.

  “She’s happy,” Zared assured him. “I’ll run you a bath. You’ll feel better clean and in something more comfortable.”

  Drex said, “Teagan, I brought you a cup of coffee.”

  The smell of it hit me the wrong way. Yukihyo’s arms opened quickly as I darted from the bed. Dario got in my way, and dizziness as I tried to move around him made me collapse. Dario caught me before I could hit the floor which was good for me but bad for him when I threw up all over his crotch.

  “I’m so sorry.” Tears streamed down my face.

  “It’s alright, Teagan. Can you take her?” Dario asked.

  Eli took me and helped me out of my clothing and into the tub. He ran a wash cloth over my face while Nico washed my hair.

  Yukihyo said, “Take that away. She’ll only be able to handle sips of fizzy water for a few days.”

  “I’m terribly sorry about this,” Drex said in a mortified tone. He returned with freezing cold fizzy water that I sipped from a straw.

  Nico and Eli dried me off, and Fitz dressed me in a gown and put me back to bed. Zared towel dried and braided my hair. Then, Farowyn wrapped me in the safety of his arms and held me while I returned to sleep. All of my husbands still hovered in the room when I woke up again. Farowyn helped me sit up but kept me enclosed within the safety of his arms. Drex appeared with more freezing cold fizzy water which I thirstily sucked down. He rushed away to get me more.

  “Do you think you could handle a few bites of anything?” Yukihyo asked.

  No sooner had the thought of plain toasted bread entered my mind than Zared strode from the room to get it. I laid my head on Farowyn’s chest and closed my eyes.

  The next day, I was feeling a little stronger and managed to keep down oatmeal and dry toast. I had gotten hugs and kisses from my babies along with a few minutes of their attention, but they were eager to go and play. They had lots of new cousins with whom to play, and there was no end to the amusements offered at the Galerius Estate. I had plenty of time to rest, recuperate, and think. My thoughts dwelled on my last pregnancy. I had to be careful and not engage in any type of stressful or strenuous activities.

  “How are you feeling, Cupcake?” Phillip’s blue eyes twinkled at me.

  “Better, but scared.”

  Concerned, he asked, “Why are you scared?” He sat beside me on the bed and held my hand.

  I took a few deep breaths before confiding in him my darkest fear. “I lost Luca’s baby. What if….”

  Phillip kissed my hand. “Cupcake, I can assure you that this little nugget is snuggly in there, all burrowed in, and not going anywhere.”

  His professional opinion helped to alleviate some of my fears.

  “I’m thinking I should drop out of the Academy. I want to prove I can do it, and I want Neema to have opportunities, but I can’t risk this baby for a future she may not even want.”

  Eli and Drex watched me in concern from where they sat across the room with their vid-screens.

  Phillip became thoughtful. “I have an idea. The coursework would give you something to do. It’s the physical stress you need to avoid.” He pulled out his vid-screen and began tapping away at it. “There.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I wrote you a doctor’s excuse and forwarded it to Dr. Savelli, Praetor Galerius’ Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Fotri, and your Papa. If we can’t get you out of the physical training components of the program, we can appeal.”

  “Thank you, Phillip. Where is Terre? Are they still sick?” I was kind of hurt that she, Tracy, and Sparrow hadn’t checked on me. Violet had been in and brought me a book to read before running off to keep Poppy and Kaoti quiet.

  Phillip grinned. “I need to go check on them.”

  “Is it the flu?”

  “Nope.”

  “Well, what’s wrong? I thought we all had the flu or food poisoning.”

  Phillip laughed. “Nothing is wrong. You’re all perfect. Terre is perfect! I’m going to be a father! Xavier is going to be a father. Jazon is going to be a father. Your nine husbands are going to be fathers, again. Kaoti’s going to be a father, again. We’re all having babies! Now, I need to go check on our other mothers to be.”

  “What?” I sat up. “Phillip!” Happy tears leaked out of my eyes.

  “Yep. All of you are solidly knocked up. You should see Jazon. He’s a nervous wreck. It’s great.”

  Yukihyo and Zared came in with trays and grinned at me. Zared said, “Every wife in this house is with child. It is a joyous time.”

  My eyes locked onto Zared’s. “Whose child do I carry? Can you sense it?”

  Zared laughed.

  Yukihyo said, “We have decided that it will be more amusing if you do not know whose child you carry. Lady Wife, you will have to wait.” He grinned at me. “It will be something to look forward to discovering.”

  “Know this. All of us love you, and the child you carry. He or she has the love of nine devoted fathers,” Zared said.

  “Chirp!” Thunderdrop said from where he sat perched on my stomach.

  Phillip kissed my forehead. “Okay. I’ve got rounds to make and more mothers on whom to check. I’ll be back.” He left.

  Yukihyo, Nico, Fitz, Zared, Drex, Eli, Dario, or Farowyn could have fathered my child. It would be weeks before scans would tell me anything. “Did you know I was pregnant before I went with Rovek?”

  “No,” Yukihyo and Zared answered at the same time.

  “We would have warned you had we known, Lady Wife,” Yukihyo assured me.

  I relaxed against the pillows. “Why am I experiencing the sickness so early?” No one answered my question. I began wondering how far along each of us was.

  Eli said, “Teagan, we must warn you of something else.” Dread filled me, but before I could ask, Eli continued. “The Empress and the Lady Dacia know and are on their way here from Parvac.”

  I asked, “Is that a bad thing?”

  Zared said, “Not in my opinion. Neema will watch your every move and won’t allow you to lift a finger. You won’t argue with her as you do with us. To do so would devastate her. She is desperate to demonstrate her love for you.”

  “Oh.”

  I wondered if letting Momma fuss over me for a few months would help to mend her heart over the time that had been stolen from us. Zared and Yukihyo stood before me with trays of food and waited for me to indicate which light meal I would prefer. I chose the crackers and fizzy water over the potatoes and milk. Then, I gave up on insisting that I was capable of nibbling on crackers without assistance. Dario held one to my lips as if he were terrified it might hurt me. Drex stood nervously by with fizzy water. Farowyn was hounding Eli to share with him all resources concerning Parvac gestation, and Fitz had moved the blankets aside to rub my feet. Zared and Yukihyo exchanged mischievous smiles. I narrowed my eyes at the two of them, sure that they knew far more than they were saying.

  The End

  Thank you for reading!

  If you enjoyed Teagan’s adventures, please consider leaving a brief review on Amazon. I would love to hear from you! Also, you can visit me at www.wendienordgren.com or find me on Facebook.

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  Wendie Nordgren, The Inquisitors (The Space Merchants Book 6)