Wicked Legends: A Dystopian Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy Collection

by hamilton, rebecca

  “If your father had caught you in there...” Linda began.

  “Kat’s been throwing up all afternoon.” André glanced at his watch. “I was waiting till you got home before I left for practice,” he said, skirting down the stairs. “Keep an eye on her for me, okay, Mom?”

  Katrina woke to the smell of chicken noodle soup. She sighed, catching a glance of herself in the mirror. Her eyes still held the dark shades of exhaustion and her left cheek was marred by small red blemishes where her face scrunched into the pillow. She did look like shit. She picked up the glass and wandered down to the kitchen. “Hi, Mrs. Robbins,” she said and set the cup into the sanitizer.

  “How are you feeling?” Linda asked, glancing at her.

  “Eh,” she replied and sat at the table. “I’m so tired.”

  Linda crossed the room and pressed her wrist to Katrina’s forehead. “You don’t have a fever.”

  “That’s what André said earlier,” she said. “He took care of me today.”

  “I know. I caught him in your room.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Linda went back to stirring the soup on the stove. “It’s okay. I’m not going to tell Matt.”

  “You’re not?”

  “No. André was just trying to make you comfortable.” She looked back at Katrina. “Right?”

  Katrina nodded and put the back of her hand to her mouth, bolting to the downstairs bathroom, sliding onto the floor in front of the toilet as the ginger ale came flowing up. She put her forehead on the cool porcelain. “I can’t seem to keep anything down today,” she said as Linda appeared in the doorway.

  Linda’s brow creased. “How long have you been feeling this way?”

  “I’ve felt sick for a couple of days but I’ve been exhausted for the last couple weeks,” she said and proceeded to dry heave.

  Linda picked up the phone, calling her doctor. “Can I bring her down now?” she asked after explaining the situation. “I’d really like her checked out,” she replied. “Yes, I can have her there in ten minutes.” She hung up the phone, collecting Katrina from the bathroom floor, and helping her to the hovercraft, before zooming to the doctor’s office.

  After providing both a urine sample and a blood sample, Katrina headed back into the exam room where Linda waited for her. “Thanks,” she said and stretched out on the table.

  Linda nodded from the chair in the corner.

  The doctor came in a few minutes later, consulting Katrina’s chart. “Well, it seems you are dehydrated, little lady, and we need to get some fluids into you.”

  “Dehydrated?” Linda asked, standing and crossing to Katrina’s side.

  “Yes, dehydrated.” The doctor turned back to Katrina. “You need to drink at least sixty-four ounces of liquid a day in order to keep hydrated in your condition,” he added. “Especially in the early stages.”

  Katrina blinked. “What condition?”

  The doctor looked at the chart and back to Katrina. “You’re pregnant.”

  Katrina’s mouth fell open in shock. Pregnant? I can’t be pregnant. I’m only a junior in high school.

  She met Linda’s gaze as the doctor fed the intravenous line into her arm. The first emotion she recognized was disappointment but underneath, she swore she saw a flash of envy. She sent a reassuring smile her way and Katrina offered a bleary one in return. She was not ready to be a mother, at least not yet. Too many questions, too many fears fluttered through her mind and she bit her lip, her vision tripling behind the sheen of tears.

  “Do you want me to go get André?”

  Katrina nodded, not trusting her voice.

  “I’ll be back with the father in fifteen minutes.” Linda turned on her heels and walked out of the doctor’s office.

  Fifteen minutes later, André walked in, his eyes landing on the IV attached to her arm. “Are you all right?” he asked, bringing his gaze back to hers.

  “I’m pregnant.”

  André broke out in a smile. “Really?”

  “It’s not a good thing.” She wiped her face.

  André walked over to her. “We’re married, remember?” He sat on the edge of the bed. “Is everything all right with the baby?” He pointed at the IV line.

  “Yeah. I’m just dehydrated. I need one more bag and then I can go home.”

  André nodded and the grin returned.

  “Stop smiling like that.”

  “I’m sorry, Kat, but this doesn’t upset me at all,” he said. “Quite the contrary.”

  “I’m scared.”

  “I’m here,” André said and took her hand. “There is no need to be scared.”

  “I’m not ready for a child.”

  He listened to her train of thought and sighed. “My DNA is very similar to human DNA.” He kissed her hand. “I think the gestation is close to the same too,” he said, “and it’s our child.”

  Katrina looked at him. “We’re still in high school.”

  André shrugged. “So.”

  Katrina closed her eyes. “How are we going to afford a child?”

  “Don’t worry about that. I’ll think of something,” he said, his expression growing serious. “All the things you’re worrying about aren’t the issue, are they?”

  Katrina looked into his blue eyes. She loved him but she was scared to death because of who he was and what that could mean in a child. “What if the baby isn’t right? What if the combination of our DNA produces a monster?”

  André tilted his head, his eyes showing the depth of his love for her. “What if it produces an angel?” he drawled softly, countering her fears. “What if we produce a new beginning for the human race? One that can exist outside the walls of the domes?”

  Katrina closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, she smiled a little. “I guess we’re having a baby.”

  The smile reached his eyes, making them sparkle. “Does my mom know?”

  Katrina nodded.

  André looked toward the door, wondering why he hadn’t picked that up from her on the way over. She was usually so easy to read. He crossed to the door and pushed it open. Linda was leaning against the wall. “Hi, Mom. You can come back in if you’d like.” He smiled as he held the door open for her.

  She looked at him as she passed. “I haven’t called your father.”

  André nodded. “I want to be the one to tell him.”

  “He’s not going to be happy.”

  André shrugged. “You know what, Mom? I don’t care. I’m happy and Kat’s happy and that’s all that really matters.”

  Linda sat down. “It’s not all happiness and sunshine, André,” she said. “Having a child is a lot of work.”

  He nodded. “I know. It’s the second biggest commitment, next to marriage.”

  “No, it is a bigger commitment than marriage,” she corrected. “The welfare of your child comes before anything else.” She paused and looked at them both. “It comes before football and homework, prom and graduation. A child is first. Their wants and needs trump all.”

  André took Katrina’s hand and squeezed it. “I know,” he said, looking at his mother.

  Katrina put her free hand on her stomach and looked up at Linda. She didn’t have the same conviction as André, but she nodded.

  The nurse came in and changed her IV bag. “You should be good to go in about a half hour.”

  Linda stood and handed André the keys to the hovercraft. “I need to get supper ready for your father.”

  “We’ll be home once they let her go,” André said and turned back to Katrina. The color was back in her cheeks and the circles under her eyes had faded a bit. “How are you feeling?”

  “A little better.”

  The doctor came in. “I assume you are the father?”

  “Yes.”

  The doctor took note of the wedding band on André’s hand. “You two are married?”

  “Yes, sir, we are,” André answered. “For a little over a month now.”

/>   The doctor scanned the chart. “It looks like your wedding day prompted more than just nuptials.”

  “When is she due?”

  “May, June time frame. When was your last period?” he asked Katrina.

  “I’m not sure. Beginning of August?” she said. “But I can tell you the date that we probably conceived. It was either August fifteenth or sixteenth,” she said, reciting the day André made love to her for the first time as well as the day they were in Chicago.

  “Then we are looking at roughly around May fifteenth,” he answered, plugging the dates into the chart.

  Katrina raised her eyebrows. She might not make it to finals and that irritated her, along with the prospects of going through senior year with a child. But André was so damn happy about this that she sighed and focused on what the doctor was saying.

  “…prenatal vitamins and you will need to drink lots of fluid so you don’t get dehydrated again.” The doctor scribbled on the screen and the prescription came out a few moments later. “Do you have any questions?”

  André opened his mouth and then closed it, biting his lip like he did when he was trying to formulate a delicate question. “What kind of complications could we be facing?” he asked, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

  “Your wife is a healthy woman in great physical shape, so she is at a lower risk for complications,” the doctor began. “However, with that said, there is always the risk of miscarriage in any pregnancy but that risk gets lower after she completes the first trimester. Warning signs to look for throughout the pregnancy include serious cramping, spotting, and dehydration. If any of those occur, you should bring her here immediately.” He handed them the bottle of prenatal vitamins. “Try to maintain a healthy diet, and I want to see you every month if all goes smoothly. If we hit some bumps, I’ll want to see you more frequently.” He looked at the IV bag. “I’ll send the nurse in to take that out and before you leave, please make your next appointment,” he said and headed toward the door. “If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call the office.”

  “Thank you,” André said and turned his attention back to Katrina. “You look so much better.”

  “I feel so much better than I did earlier,” Katrina said as the nurse came in.

  The nurse removed the IV and handed them an instruction sheet before showing them out of the office.

  “My father is going to blow a gasket,” Katrina said as they got into the hovercraft and headed toward the house.

  André shrugged. “My dad isn’t going to be happy either but we’ll deal.”

  Katrina pulled the visor down and glanced in the mirror. “I look like shit.”

  “No you don’t,” he said and grasped her hand and kissed it.

  Matthew pulled up as they were getting out of the hovercraft and he sent a glare in André’s direction. “Where were you?”

  “Tell Mom I’ll be in in a few minutes,” André said and watched Katrina trot up the steps and enter the house. Turning his attention back to his father, he took a deep breath, ignoring the intimidation inspired by the full military attire Matthew wore. He leaned against the hovercraft. “We need to talk, Dad.”

  Matthew nodded for him to follow and placed his briefcase on the porch, sitting on the steps and indicating for André to do the same. “What’s on your mind?”

  André took a deep breath. “A few things. First, I’m not real happy with the arrangements,” he said, picking at a hangnail on his thumb.

  “Tough.”

  “I think since I’m gonna be a father, I should be able to share a room with my wife.” He leaned back to watch Matthew’s reaction.

  Matthew went to speak but stopped as the words sank in. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Kat’s pregnant.” André crossed his arms. “It’s time to change the living arrangements.”

  Matthew shook his head. “No, the arrangements are not changing.”

  André uncrossed his arms, the bite of anger creeping in. “She’s already pregnant, Dad. You don’t have to worry about that variable anymore.”

  Matthew glared at his son, and stormed into the house.

  André immediately followed. “Dad, you’re being ridiculous.”

  Matthew stopped in his tracks. He turned slowly toward André. “My roof, my rules,” he replied. “You don’t like it, you can leave,” he added and headed toward the master bedroom to change.

  André mumbled something unintelligible under his breath and stormed into the kitchen. He sat down, the moody air rippling around him conveying to his mother and Katrina that all did not go well with his conversation. “Can you talk to him?” He looked up at his mother, exasperated.

  “About what?” Linda asked, stirring the soup and looking over her shoulder at him.

  “The living arrangements.”

  Linda raised her eyebrows. “This doesn’t change anything, André.”

  Katrina and André exchanged a look and she silently asked him to let it go. “We are married, damn it!”

  “You are also just seventeen,” Linda said as she turned her attention back to the pot on the stove.

  “We are going to be parents!”

  Linda glanced back at him and shrugged. “While you are under our roof, you play by our rules.” She recited the mantra she and Matthew had agreed upon that first night. They planned to stick to their guns no matter what was thrown their way.

  “Do you and Dad fucking practice that?” André snapped.

  Linda turned on him. “That language is not to be used in this house!”

  André stood up. “Fuck you!” he screamed and turned to storm out of the kitchen.

  Matthew stood in the doorway, his face red with anger, and his open palm connected with André’s cheek, the loud slap silencing everyone in the room. “You do not talk to your mother that way.”

  André’s hand flew to his cheek, his eyes wide as both the sting of the slap and the surprise at finding Matthew blocking the doorway sunk in.

  Katrina burst into tears and skirted by them, pausing long enough to give André a look conveying her disdain before bolting up the stairs.

  André started after her but Matthew grabbed his arm. “Sit your ass down,” Matthew growled and pointed at the kitchen chair.

  André looked toward the stairs and back at his father. “No, Dad. I need to go talk to my wife.” He yanked his arm, but Matthew’s hand clamped around his biceps like a vise.

  Matthew swung him around and into the kitchen chair, planting his face within inches of his. “Right now I don’t give a damn what you want,” he began. “You have royally screwed up that girl’s life.” He pointed toward the stairs. “You don’t even have a clue, do you?”

  André shrank away from him, confusion overtaking the anger. “What are you talking about?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.

  Matthew took a step back from André. “Whatever career aspirations she might have had, you have screwed. Do you know how hard it’s going to be for her to finish high school with a child? Do you?”

  André slowly shook his head.

  “And college is going to be damn near impossible for both of you.”

  “So,” André replied.

  “How are you going to support your family?” Matthew asked.

  André nodded toward Matthew. “The same way you do.”

  Matthew blinked. “You think Commander Lawrence is going to allow you in the military after what you’ve done to his daughter’s life?”

  André looked at his hands and shrugged. “Yeah,” he mumbled, sheepishly looking up through his bangs.

  Matthew laughed. “André, I have a doctorate in aeronautical engineering. I was in college for eight years before I enlisted. I wasn’t a high school dropout. Do you know what happens to dropouts?”

  André shook his head.

  “They become losers living off society or criminals who end up either in prison or worse. So what makes you think you can live the way I live? What
makes you think the commander would give you any sort of chance?”

  André looked at the floor. “Because I can teach people to do the things I can.”

  Matthew took a step backwards when André raised his eyes.

  Fire red blazed over his eyes; his battle to hold in his anger began to waver. “I am smarter than any of the kids in my class and not one of them can do this.” He tilted his head; the entire kitchen set lifted into the air. He smiled and set it back down. “Imagine being able to stop any threat aimed at you or someone you love without scrambling for a gun.” His voice rumbled in his chest. “How much do you think that’s worth?”

  “How the hell are you going to do that?” He pointed at the kitchen set. “No one on Earth has that power.”

  “I can teach anyone to tap into their inner strengths, even you,” André snapped.

  “Bullshit,” Matthew said.

  André shrugged and got up to leave the kitchen. “Whatever,” he said over his shoulder and wandered away, leaving Matthew and Linda in the kitchen staring after him.

  Matthew spun toward his wife. “Do you think he can?” His eyes grew wide with the possibilities. “Do you think it’s even possible?”

  Linda looked at the empty doorway and back to her husband. She took a deep breath. “Yes. I think he can do anything he puts his mind to, Matt,” she said with a sigh. “André may not be all that swift on the common sense side of things, but academically, he is far superior to kids his age. And he has more insight into the human spirit than either of us. So yes, I think if he sees it, the possibility is there.”

  Matthew digested her answer and looked toward the door thoughtfully.

  Linda stared at her hands, struggling with the next thing she wanted to say. “He may be seventeen in years the way we see them, Matt, but I think he’s much older than that underneath.”

  He looked back at Linda.

  “Sure, he still does some of the stupid things a normal teenager does...” She trailed off. “But...” She shook her head. She turned toward the forgotten dinner, turning the burners off and formulating her thoughts. “I’ve stood by the rule you laid down when they came back, but with this new development, I think they should be together,” she said. “They’re going to need each other, Matt.”