Prime Salvation (Katieran Prime Book Six)

by K. D. Jones

  “Lieutenant Daniels is a warrior and is going for training as all other warriors do.”

  “Southside is the roughest training facility we have. It is no place for a female.”

  “What do you care?” Jaxon asked.

  “She’s female, she should be protected.”

  “You should have thought of that before you took your little swim then,” Jaxon told him with a bite to her voice.

  ConEL frowned. “What does that have to do with Lucy?”

  “Jaxon no.” Kyd tried to keep Jaxon quiet, but she wasn’t going to be redirected.

  “It is because of you that she is being punished and sent to Southside to begin with.”

  “What do you mean she is being punished?”

  “Law number five. You broke it, buddy, but she is the one that is paying the price because she would not let you drown.”

  He turned to Kyd for confirmation. “Is this true? Is she being punished for risking her life to save mine?”

  Kyd nodded his head.

  “Then bring her back. I will go in her place.”

  “No, Uncle. You are not in any shape to take her place. Besides, it is done. The High Council has already ruled this punishment. There is no changing it.”

  ConEL looked deflated. He sank down on the edge of his bed feeling guilty having caused this punishment on Lucy, ashamed for not being able to control his emotions, and angry with himself for not being able to protect her as he should. If he could get back into shape, he could take her place. He just needed to get stronger.

  * * *

  Chapter Four

  “Did you find someone?” Prime Leader RendEL asked his youngest brother Prime Medic SydEL as soon as they sat down for the Midday Meal.

  “Yes. Kat and I interviewed twenty female counselors and we settled on one that we feel will be the best for Uncle ConEL. Her name is Dr. Rose Garrett. She has had ten years experience in treating patients who have suffered traumas and loss associated with the military.”

  “Do you think it will work; this counseling?” RendEL looked doubtful.

  Syd shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. Both Jaxon and Kat are adamant that it is necessary.”

  “Cassie feels that way, too. However, our males are so different from the Earth males. What would work for them may not work for us.”

  “We could ask mother’s new mate, Leo. He’s an Earth male and might know more about this counseling than we do.”

  “When is he due to return back from Kiljor?”

  “By the end of the week I believe. He stayed a little longer after his daughter, Lindsey’s, mating ceremony to help with some of the construction of new buildings there.”

  “Do you think he’ll want to move mother to Kiljor?” RendEL frowned. The idea of his mother being moved away from him, especially while she was breeding, was unacceptable.

  “No, I think he likes it here on Katiera. Besides, I don’t think mother is going to want to leave her grandchildren.” Syd smiled thinking of how protective she was over Ren’s little girls. They all were. They adored the two girls even though they were not of Ren’s blood.

  “When is Kat due?”

  “Another four or five months. The pregnancy is moving along faster than we anticipated. Kat is nervous.”

  “I am sure it will be fine. Cassie and I are here for the two of you.”

  “Thanks.” Syd sighed.

  “Is there something else bothering you?”

  Syd looked away from his brother. It was so embarrassing to admit what was going on with him, but he knew he could trust Ren. “She wants to send for JadEN.”

  Oh. Ren saw the anger and frustration on his brother’s face. JadEN and Syd’s mate, Kat had been intimate once prior to her meeting Syd. Kat and JadEN remained friends even after their romantic relationship ended. It was still a sore spot for Syd to deal with. Katieran males did not share their mates with other males.

  “What will you do?”

  “I don’t know yet.”

  Both males finished their meals and stood. “I have to get back to the Medic Wing. Uncle ConEL is getting his physical for warrior training today.”

  “When will he start training?”

  “After his first counseling session. If the session doesn’t go well, the training will be postponed. We thought it would give him the incentive to finish the counseling.”

  “Good luck, brother,” Ren called out as he left to meet his mate and their two daughters on the beach.

  *****

  “I don’t want to see them!” ConEL yelled at the Security Liaison.

  Kat walked into the room and the other security liaison tried to keep her behind him. “What is going on in here?”

  ConEL looked at his nephew’s mate and made himself calm down. The female was breeding and he didn’t want to cause her to lose the young. Kitana! Why would Syd allow her in here?

  The security liaison holding Kat back answered her question. “Prima AriELa and Prime TorEL have come to visit with their father. However, he is refusing to see them.”

  That was when SydEL walked into the room. He took one look at his agitated, fuming uncle and then at his petrified mate being protected by the liaison and thought the worst.

  “You dare threaten my mate?!” Syd rarely lost his temper but when he did—it was a scary sight to witness. ConEL took several steps back recognizing that his nephew was going into protective mode.

  “Syd!” Kat tried to get his attention off his uncle but he was advancing fast. She turned to the security liaison. “Do something before they come to blows.”

  Both liaisons shook their heads. “You don’t get in the middle of a male in protective mode.”

  Damn it! They were just going to let Syd beat the crap out of ConEL. That was what would happen because ConEL had no will to fight back. What could she do?

  “Help! It’s the baby! Syd, it’s the baby!” Kat felt awful using their unborn child to get Syd’s attention—but it worked.

  Syd heard his mate calling out to him in distress. His whole focus shifted to Kat. She was clutching her swollen belly and her face was full of fear. He redirected his path to get to her. He growled and the other males practically leaped out of his way.

  “Are you okay? What’s happening? Are you bleeding?”

  “It’s okay. I…just need you to stay with me. Take me to the other room to rest please.”

  He bent down and picked her up carefully as he carried her out of the room. Everyone breathed a deep sigh of relief. ConEL was shaking. He looked at his hand before running it through his hair. He looked at the door and found his daughter standing there. She had been crying. Kitana!

  “I would like a word with you alone,” AriELa said with an emotionless voice.

  The two liaisons shook their head. “Sorry, Prima. After what just happened here, tensions are high and it is not safe for you to be alone with this male.”

  She gave them a look that showed her station in life. “This male is my father. I will speak with him alone. Now!” The males shuffled out of the room grumbling something about bossy females.

  ConEL walked back over to the bed and sat on the edge. He looked everywhere but at her. She resembled her mother so much; it hurt to look at her sometimes.

  “I had TarAK take TorEL back to our suite so that I can speak with you, but I will keep this brief. We won’t be back here again. If you decide that you want to be a part of our family, we will welcome you. However, it will have to be you that comes to us to request this. I won’t subject my little brother to more of your rebuffs. He thinks it is his fault. I won’t let you do that to him again or to me either.”

  He looked up at her then. She looked so much like her mother. However, as he really looked at her, he saw her as her own person, as AriELa. She was strength and beauty. She was everything he hoped she would one day become. This was his beloved daughter. She once had been his whole world as he had been hers. Now, he had turned into her worst nightmare.

>   “I didn’t mean to hurt you or him.”

  “His name is TorEL. He has suffered enough without being put through this constant rejection from you. I know why you are here, what you tried to do. But he doesn’t. He wouldn’t understand. I will keep him from you to protect him in case you are successful the next time.”

  ConEL looked down at his hands. They no longer trembled but they looked odd and felt too heavy to lift up. “I am sorry, AriELa.”

  “Me, too. The Morins took my family from me all those years ago. I thought when we found you…that I had gotten the pieces of my heart back that had been missing. However, I see now that there will always be a piece that is missing. I’m okay with that. I am enough without that piece. I am enough without you. I feel sorry for you though. You could have had your family back, but you are choosing to let the Morins take us from you. We won’t bother you again. Goodbye, Father.” She walked out of the room.

  ConEL had a tear trail down his face. Everything male in him demanded that he go after his daughter, to hold and protect her. But he couldn’t seem to get his limbs to move. Something was keeping him back and he didn’t understand what that was.

  He thought about what his daughter said and knew that she was right. He was allowing the Morins to continue to hold him a prisoner. The locations changed, but he was still trapped in the fires of Kitana. He had two choices. He could either lie down, accept defeat, and let himself wither away to die or he could fight for his freedom, fight for his family, and fight for his life. Which would he choose?

  *****

  “Why are your here?” Lucy looked at AtOM with surprise. The male showed up to the shuttle that was supposed to take her to Southside and sat down beside her.

  “You were not the only one to break the Law. I was given a choice as well and I requested to go to Southside to make sure that no trouble befalls you.”

  “Why would there be trouble?”

  “You will be the only female on Southside. The males that are sent there have not been around females in months and in some cases, years. These males are going to be clamoring to get to you.”

  “Oh.” Lucy thought about it. Maybe this had been a bad idea. Maybe she should have gone back to Earth. If it was only for three months, she could have done it. But she had been afraid if she went back to Earth, the Katierans wouldn’t allow her to return. She didn’t want to take the chance that they wouldn’t. Now she was going off to do intense training with nothing but men. Hard up men who probably haven’t been with a woman in years. Just fucking great!

  “Do not worry. I will be there to keep them in check.” AtOM puffed out his chest. It was almost comical because he was sitting down when he did it. She turned her head so he wouldn’t see her smiling. She didn’t want to encourage him in his pursuit of her. Damn he was cute though.

  Her thoughts turned to ConEL. She hoped that he took her advice. She worried that if no one was there to push him in the right direction, he would fade away. That’s why she had asked Jaxon to monitor him for her. At first Jaxon refused because she was pissed at ConEL for how he had treated his family and how much trouble he had gotten Lucy into. But Jaxon relented. Lucy knew that she would.

  Jaxon seemed tough as nails, but that’s how she protected herself from being hurt. Lucy was the same way. That’s why they got along so well. But if a person took the time to get past Jaxon’s tough exterior, they would find a strong woman with a heart of gold. She would do anything to protect those she loved. It was visible in the way Jaxon interacted with her best friend, Cassie, and with Cassie’s twin daughters. They were Jaxon’s family.

  The difference was that Lucy didn’t have any family. Not since her husband killed himself. She had been on her own for so long. She wouldn’t know how to let anyone else in. She dated but not much. There had been a time that she had wanted to die, too. If not for Jaxon, she might not have lived through the worst time of her life.

  Now Lucy found that she was sensitive to people who went through something similar. She found herself volunteering when off duty at the VA hospitals. She spoke in grief groups and hoped that she made a difference to someone. She knew the signs when she saw them. ConEL was a flashing neon sign of a walking dead man.

  She hoped that whatever counseling they get for him, that it will work for him. However, she wasn’t sure that it would. People change only when they decide they want to change. Plus, the Katierans viewed things differently. The males were very prideful. It was going to be a long, rough road for ConEL and his family. She prayed for the best.

  * * *

  Chapter Five

  ConEL circled the other male. He never took his eyes off him. The other male lunged toward him, but ConEL shifted quickly to the right and escaped his grasp. He waited for just the right moment and then kicked out with his foot connecting it with the male’s stomach. He did another kick to the male’s calf making his leg give out enough so he fell to the ground.

  A whistle blew letting them know training was over for the day. ConEL bent down a hand to help the fallen male up. “Good training today.”

  “You are getting much faster, Prime ConEL.”

  “Thanks.”

  ConEL had been training for only a month and his speed and strength were much improved. He wasn’t nearly at his potential yet, but it was coming along. So was the counseling, much to his surprise.

  In the beginning, he had many doubts about the counseling sessions. No one on Katiera had ever gone through anything like it before. It was completely foreign to him. The first session had been his hardest and he hated to admit how difficult he had made things. Most of it he spent in silence. Then as each session progressed, it slowly became easier and easier. He didn’t love the sessions, but he learned a lot from each one. As he made his way back to his suite on the warrior’s floor, he thought about the first few sessions and how awkward they had been.

  SydEL had taken him to a suite they were turning into an office. He was then left there with the only other occupant, the counselor. The female was beautiful. She had dark, red hair that she had pinned on top of her head and striking blue eyes. He had never seen such pale blue eyes before. She wore black glasses, which framed her pretty eyes. If he were any other male, he would have been interested. But he wasn’t any other male and he most definitely was not interested.

  “Welcome, Prime ConEL. Please have a seat.” She pointed to a couch and then she walked to a chair facing him and sat down.

  “My name is Dr. Rose Garrett.” She smiled at him and waited until he nodded his acknowledgement. He was forced to come here, but no one was going to force him to talk.

  “I want you to know how sorry I am for what happened to you. How are you doing?”

  He said nothing.

  “I understand it must be hard to be back among your people, and your family. It’s been years for you so a lot has probably changed. Can you tell me some about what you are feeling?”

  He acted as if he was going to say something. Then he stopped himself.

  “Look, I know you didn’t want to be here. Honestly, I don’t know out of any of my clients if there is even one who actually wanted to be in counseling.” She chuckled as she thought of something. “Well, let me correct that. There was this one client. I feel it’s okay to tell you this because she is on Earth and it has been years since I last counseled her. She was a chronic klepto.”

  ConEL looked at her with confusion in his eyes.

  “It’s a person that cannot help but steal things. The courts assigned her to me one time for a month of treatment. But she came back voluntarily for two years. She never got past her klepto because…every time she came to see me, she would take home a pen, a magazine, and one time an air freshener.” She laughed as she told the story. One she told to help break the ice with clients.

  ConEL couldn’t stop himself from asking, “Why would she steal? Did she not have anything?”

  It worked! Rose gave him a genuine smile. “She had too much. But it was the th
rill of the act. Trying to see if she could do it without being caught. However, with me, I think it was a way for her to keep coming to see me. She thought of me as her only friend. I wanted to help her but knew that unless she wanted to change, she would continue with the path she was on.”

  “What happened? Why are you not counseling her now?”

  “I relocated to a new city and referred her to a colleague of mine. She still sent me Christmas cards for years after that.”

  He smiled a little. It was small and brief. Then he turned sad again.

  “What are you feeling, ConEL?”

  Why not tell her. He had to be here anyway. “Guilty. I should have protected my family better. I failed them. My mate, my daughter, my son, and my people. I failed them all.”

  “What were you thinking about that night on the beach?”

  “My mate was dead and that I should have died with her.”

  “So you are dealing with the loss of your mate that happened years ago, and you are also feeling guilty for being alive when she isn’t?”

  ConEL did not answer back. He didn’t have to. She had on day one, nailed it directly on the head within one hour of meeting him. She was good.

  “I think that our session is up for today. We are off to a good start. I’ll meet with you twice a week after your morning practice. I warn you, I will give you homework to do.”

  “What is homework?”

  “I will send you off to think about something and to be prepared to discuss it at our next session. The homework I am sending with you today is—I want you to think about if the situation had been reversed. If it had been you that had died on the Morin ship and your mate had lived to return to Katiera. What would you want for her?”

  His sessions were like that most of the time. They would discuss pieces of what happened to him. She would ask him how he felt about it. Then she would give him homework. Some were easy, automatic responses. Other things haunted him for days, even after they discussed them in their session. However, he always found himself opening up and contributing more to the sessions.