by Montana Ash
A gasp escaped him when he felt a flicker of awareness shoot up his arm. It was nothing like the intensity of forcefully taking from Max or other wardens but was reminiscent enough of the good old days when he was a normal warden that he allowed a small smile to curve his lips. Beyden smiled back and nodded his head, encouraging him to keep going. Dex focused hard and felt a wonderful warmth replace the almost constant coldness – despite Max’s massive energy boost. He could feel the vitality slowly seeping into his molecules and although it was a glorious feeling, he didn’t actually feel the need to keep going or drawing on that power.
He could stop.
Deciding he had to prove that to himself as well as all the others in the room, he released Beyden’s arm and stepped back. He barely resisted the urge to pat himself all over and rush to the nearest mirror to see if the exchange had wrought any further changes to his appearance. He felt warmer, that was for sure, and thought maybe his arms weren’t quite as pale either.
“You did it!” He heard Max crow right before he ended up with an armful of curvy redhead. He allowed himself to pat her once on the back before hastily moving away from her. He didn’t need his head removed from his shoulders right when he was starting to have a little hope again. Looking around the room, nobody seemed quite ready to deck him for touching their liege and he began to breathe a little easier. He smiled tentatively at Max and once again bowed in thanks to Beyden.
The knight was grinning as he slapped him on the back, “Good job Dex.”
Dex almost ploughed forward from the strength of that friendly back pat. Big, strong bastard, he couldn’t help thinking once again. But he was damn grateful for that fact.
TWENTY-ONE
“Max, can I talk to you for a minute?” Cali asked before walking from the room. The display in the other room had solidified all her hopes where Dex was concerned. There was now a real chance that he could reclaim a life. But that bright spot was marred by her liege. She stopped by the bookshelves in the library, thrusting her hands on her hips;
“What’s the deal Max? Why wouldn’t you let me help Dex? Don’t you trust me to do my duty?” Cali was pissed and hurt and confused. When she had seen the vulnerability in Dex’s eyes as he glanced around the room, hoping someone – anyone – would step forward and offer their vitality, she had felt herself melt a little more for the once proud warden. Stepping forward, she had not expected to have been essentially slapped back by Max. She hadn’t outright told Max that Dex had been her brief bed partner over a month ago but she figured Max had likely worked that out given the pool scene, the constant sexual tension … and oh yeah, the fact that she could see their damn souls. She was incredibly disappointed in her liege that she appeared to be so disapproving of Cali. It was just one night of sex.
Max sighed and took a seat on the couch near the door to the garden. “Of course I trust you to do your duty. And I want Dex to get help any way possible, especially regarding his ability to recharge.” Max held up a hand for silence when Cali would have jumped in, “But not by you and not in that way. At least until I can figure out if it’s okay or not.”
“What does that mean?” Cali frowned. “If it’s okay for Beyden then it’s okay for me. We are both paladins.”
Max nodded, “You are indeed. But you have something Beyden doesn’t have.” She said cryptically.
Cali snorted rudely. “What, a vagina?”
She saw Max wince, “Yeah. Pretty much.”
Cali stopped her angry pacing. Really? A vagina? Max had never been sexist before. What was going on? Obviously this had something to do with her sleeping with Dex. Maybe she should have been more upfront about that. “Is this about me sleeping with Dex? I know you know.” She added when Max whipped her head up.
“It is. But not in the way you think. I think you two would be great together if you’d both be willing to work on your baggage. He’s strong, Cali, and so very noble. Imagine the type of ingrained strength it must have taken to survive all these years on the cusp of hell and not give in to temptation? I think a man like that would give everything he had to the woman he loved. And you have so much to offer a man, even though you don’t believe so; generous, warm, fun, loyal, strong, stubborn. I think you could make him whole like nothing else could.”
That was all just a little too deep for Cali. She had slept with the guy once – well one and half times – and although she would love the opportunity to have another taste of the sexy beast, she was by no means thinking in terms of permanency. “Then what is it then?” She asked, genuinely perplexed but no longer mad.
Max focused her eyes seriously on Cali’s, searching for something Cali had no clue about, before finally answering; “It’s because of the baby. You’re pregnant.”
*****
Say what now? She was pregnant? Max was telling her she was pregnant? She wasn’t sure what Max was playing at but her wackiness had just reached a whole new level – a level that quite frankly Cali didn’t appreciate. It was absolutely impossible that she was pregnant. She hadn’t had sex in nearly a year … and Dex didn’t count. He was a freaking chade for crying out loud! “That’s not funny, Max.” She told her.
“No,” Max sighed, “I don’t suppose it is.”
Cali narrowed her eyes at Max as she pulled out a chair and moved it closer to Max’s so they were practically touching. “I’m not pregnant Max.” She said firmly.
“I’m sorry this is unexpected, Cali. But you most definitely are.” Max’s response was just as firm and Cali felt herself start to sweat a little.
She began counting back to her last period in her head but found she couldn’t focus over the beating of her heart. It was impossible. She was on the pill and had been for years. Sure, she missed a few here and there – what woman didn’t? But she had never even had so much as a scare before. She took a deep breath to calm herself and began counting again. Her last period had been longer ago than she had thought but that was only because she had decided to skip the sugar pills last month when Max had been hurt. She hadn’t wanted to worry about cramps and chocolate cravings when her liege and her Order had needed her. So technically, she hadn’t missed a period, she had just skipped one. Heck, she was still taking the hormone pill every night. As soon as she stopped those for more than two days in a row her period would return right on schedule.
“It’s been eight weeks right?” Max asked, drawing Cali back from the brink of her pill calculations. “Two weeks after your last period, you slept with Dex. You would have been due for another two weeks later but it never came. Because you’re pregnant Cali.”
“No.” Cali shook her head. “I skipped the last lot of sugar pills. That’s why I didn’t get them.”
“Oh, no wonder you didn’t notice then.” Max said, “But sweetie, you wouldn’t have gotten your period anyway. That was four weeks ago. You are now eight weeks pregnant – six weeks since conception.”
Dammed if Max didn’t sound very sure of herself and her information, Cali thought. And it was really starting to freak her out. Periods aside, she would know it if she was pregnant. There would be signs … right? “I have no symptoms. I’m not sick. I’m not pregnant.” Maybe if she kept repeating it, it would make it true.
“Not everyone gets sick as I understand it.” Max replied. “Besides, you do have at least one symptom; your boobs are bigger.” Max pointed out.
“What? No they’re not.” Cali palmed her breasts, testing their weight. They did feel a little fuller – a little firmer too. Axel chose that moment to enter the room and his handsome visage morphed into a wicked grin as he eyed her holding her breasts.
“Ladies. Anything I can help with?”
“Out Axel. And make sure the others stay out there as well.” Max responded instantly.
To his credit, Axel quickly nodded his head and left, ensuring the door was firmly closed behind him. Cali squeezed her boobs one last time, noting a mild sensitivity that she hadn’t noticed before and looked down at
her flat stomach. She had been more tired than usual but that was to be expected given the craziness going on. She had also been off her morning coffee, she admitted. Usually the dark, bitter brew was a morning staple but lately she hadn’t been able to stomach it. “Max …” Her voice quavered.
The short woman made quick work of the distance between them, pulling Cali into a hard hug. “It’s going to be okay, Cal. It’s just an itty bitty baby. Nothing to be scared of.”
Cali’s laugh was a little hysterical and a little watery. “Are you sure Max? Really, really sure? I’ve only slept with one person in the last year, so it would mean …”
“It would mean that Dex is going to be a father.” Max finished.
“But how is that possible? He’s not … normal.” And that freaked her out even more. What if there was something wrong with the baby? What if it was like the devil’s spawn or something?
Max laughed and punched her arm, “It’s not the devil’s spawn. It’s just a baby. I know Dex isn’t your run of the mill warden but at the time he was juiced up enough by my energy to be able to bleed and … do other things. I’m thinking his bodily functions were normal enough to get the job done.”
Cali swallowed convulsively. “Are you sure Max?” She asked again.
“I’m sure, Cali. About two weeks ago, I noticed an extra little light emanating from you. It’s all soft blues and greys, very delicate and new. It’s a new soul, sweetie.”
“A new soul?” She looked down and lifted her shirt but all she could see was skin.
“Yep.” Max said. “A perfect, innocent little soul.”
Before she could respond to that Axel barged in again, his eyes going straight to her stripe of exposed flesh, “Okay, I’m not sure what you girls are doing in here and I really wish I had time to explore this further but alas, I don’t.”
Cali rolled her eyes at the notorious flirt and covered her stomach with her top. “What is it Axel?”
“Just thought you might want to know that Ryker and Dex are in the gym fighting.”
“Fighting?” Max and herself yelled simultaneously before running for the gym.
Sure enough, Ryker and Dex were stripped to the waist in the centre of the workout mats.
“What’s going on?” Max demanded, her eyes never leaving Ryker and Dex who were slowly circling each other. Ryker had a scythe in either hand.
Darius shrugged, looking wholly unconcerned for the welfare of his brother. “Ryker needs to know Dex isn’t a chade anymore. And I think Dex needs to know too.”
“So they’re going to beat each other up to prove it?” Max’s voice was incredulous.
“Would you prefer they sit around and discuss their feelings for the next week like a couple of chicks?” Axel snorted, receiving death glares from the three ‘chicks’ in attendance. “A couple of punches, a few body slams and they’ll be over it. This is much more efficient. Trust me.” Axel added with an excess of charm.
“And you’re okay with this?” Cali asked Darius. The man was his brother after all. Where was the loyalty?
Darius merely shrugged, his hazel eyes never leaving the two opponents. “Maybe I need to know more than anyone.”
Fantastic, Cali thought sarcastically. Her immediate superior, good friend, and saviour was going to beat the shit out of the father of her non-existent child. Could this day get any better? She refused to let her hands cup her stomach in that classic gesture all pregnant women seemed to do. There was no need for that nonsense anyway because she wasn’t pregnant, she told herself. A bit of nipple sensitivity and the word of a goddess were hardly proof, she assured herself.
TWENTY-TWO
Dex did his best to ignore the number of spectators in the room and instead focused on the very lethal paladin in front of him. When Cali and Max had left to have their little chat, the male posturing had begun. Ryker had asked him even more questions – questions he had no answers to – and had demanded an itinerary of his past forty years; Where had he been? Who were the other ‘half-chades’? Where could he find them? Even if Dex knew the answers, there was no way he would disclose their locations. This was all still too new and although he trusted Max implicitly, he wasn’t yet sold on the others.
And they were clearly not yet sold on him if the gleam of anticipation in their eyes was anything to go by. They had all seemed more than happy at the turn of events when Ryker had asked him ‘if he wanted to go a round’ with him on the mats. At first, he had cringed – nope, he most definitely did not want to spar with the very cranky, very aggressive paladin with the massive chip on his shoulder. But the taunting smirk on the dark-haired man’s face had pushed all of Dex’s buttons. He thought he could beat him did he? Well, not only had he been fighting in wars for centuries before Ryker was even born, he had been fighting creatures of nightmares for the last four decades. He had never been a typical, helpless warden who allowed his charges to fight for him. He was a soldier and a warrior in his own right and he could beat the pup with one hand tied behind his back. Besides, if they were inviting a ranger to the house, he needed some practice.
A quick glance at Darius had revealed an indifferent façade bordering on boredom as if he couldn’t have cared less that Dex was about to get the shit beat out of him. And maybe he didn’t. Maybe all hope of a real relationship was truly lost. Or maybe he needed to prove his worth to his brother, prove that he was no longer an aberration of nature. He could be just as vital as any of them once again. He had proven that earlier that morning in the pool with the delectable Cali, he remembered fondly. And yeah, maybe teaching Ryker a thing or two would also help Cali’s opinion of him, so it was a win-win. At the very least, he could unleash some of his frustrations on the big goon.
“So, Freak. Ready to dance?” Ryker taunted.
Dex’s expression didn’t change, nor did his relaxed stance. He’d had years to cultivate patience and although his wasn’t as legendary as Darius’s, he still had more than enough to outwit the paladin.
“What’s the matter? Chade got your tongue?”
Okay, that one stung a little. Talking was something he had closely associated with his humanity. Every time it was lost to him, he had felt his humanity eroding more and more. Still, he waited for his opponent to make the first move and was impressed at the speed such a large man was able to achieve. He moved in low and fast, sweeping out a leg at ankle height. Dex easily jumped the appendage, landing lightly on his feet a good metre away. He saw Ryker’s eyes narrow a little and knew he had obviously forgotten that Dex was linked with air – he was incredibly light on his feet.
Deciding to get things moving, he made a small motion to the left and watched Ryker mirror it before quickly pivoting to the right. Obviously, Ryker believed he was feinting or bluffing and that the true attack was going to come from the right. Dex grinned in satisfaction when his swift left-hook landed solidly against a hard jaw. Dex never bluffed.
Ryker grunted, bringing up his hand and wiggling his jaw before giving a small smile and charging back in with a spinning round-house kick that landed heavily against Dex’s shoulder. He followed up the kick by arcing the scythe in his left hand directly at Dex’s head. Dex grabbed his opponent’s beefy forearm, stalling the slice of a blade across his neck and placed a steady foot on Ryker’s right knee. One quick, hard twist of the captain’s wrist at the same time as he exerted pressure on his knee, had the big man down and his scythe dropping to the floor. Dex immediately swept it away with his foot and they both watched as it skidded across to the edge of the mat. He released his hold and stepped back, watching as Ryker eyed him as if waiting for him to pick up the discarded weapon. Dex had no intention of doing that. The scythe was the weapon of paladins – he had no right to touch such a blade. He had always fought with swords and fists and that wasn’t about to change now.
Ryker stood and raised his eyebrows, “You don’t want the blade?”
“It doesn’t belong to me.” He replied, seeing a hint of grudging res
pect in the other man’s brown eyes, before he continued, “Besides, I don’t need it. Unlike some people …” Yeah, he was taunting Ryker now, but with his heart pumping and his blood beginning to flow as sweat beaded on his forehead, he was beginning to feel truly alive.
Ryker grinned, surprising him as it was a genuine smile, lacking the usual sneer and disdain. He bent and placed his second scythe on the mat before kicking it away as well. “Now you’re talkin’.” He said and crooked his finger, “Bring it.”
Dex was all for a bit of friendly banter but … “Bring it? Really?”
Ryker merely shrugged, “I live with Max.”
And that explains that, Dex thought in amusement. He had been on the receiving end of her quirky and rather morbid sense of humour dozens of times over the years. He could only imagine what living with her was like. No doubt she was contagious. People that vibrant often were. Getting his head back in the game, he rolled under Ryker’s extended arm, coming up behind him and giving him a swift and insulting kick to the rear-end. The man growled and rounded on him, landing a blow in the exact centre of his chest. The blow knocked the wind out of him momentarily but he was still able to remain standing. He watched as Ryker took a step back instead of following up and his eyes narrowed;
“You’re pulling your punches.” Dex said. He didn’t know why and he didn’t care. It was fucking insulting. “Stop it.”
Ryker flicked his eyes over him before shrugging, “Okay.”