The clan mother tapped a finger impatiently on the desk. “Our females struggle with fertility as it is. Do not take this personally but consider: does my son need to be mated with a human female who is not providing young?”
Reggie felt heat rise in her face. She was insanely offended, regardless of her mother-in-law’s intentions. And it sure as hell was personal to her!
“And I said no, Mother,” Vadal hissed angrily. Reggie blinked. Never had she heard Vadal use that tone before, and certainly not with his mother. His mother looked equally shocked, which really said even more about it.
He raised up on his coils, his crown coils agitated as he gave voice to his temper.
“I told you—and I tell you now again—that I love Reggie and will not sever my mating bond with her. The Mother has joined us, and that bond is forever. This is not about honor; it is about my hearts. My hearts will not survive being forced from her. I speak truthfully on this. I also can tell you without any doubt that Shaagra will not accept any other female in our nest.”
“And I as well,” Walooth said firmly behind her. His voice was steady with his conviction. “I may not be a nest-brother, but I am still a member of the family and I would not accept any other female. Reggie has my hearts.”
Reggie stared at him and blinked back tears. No matter how terrified he’d been of confronting Esfalee, he stood up to her for her. She felt a curious warmth settle in her and she squeezed Walooth’s hand to convey even a small part of what she was feeling. He looked at her and his eyes softened to take on a look of ruby-dyed chiffon silk.
Esfalee huffed irritably, but there was a certain warmth gleaming in her eyes. “You males speak as if you have a choice in such things.” Her words sounded harsh, yet her lips twitched slightly with maternal indulgence.
Reggie straightened her shoulders. Vora was matriarchal; she was the mother of her own nest, so to speak. It was her duty to speak in support of her males. No one else would if she did not. Without her, they would be under the authority of their female relations. She kept them as safe as they kept her.
“Respectfully, Mother, these are my males—all three of them,” she stated with a meaningful look at Walooth that brought a smile to his lips. “You cannot take them from me without my consent when I have made no offense, and I will not relinquish them willingly. We will have young as the gods decide, and believe me, I’ll welcome them when they come, but that is the concern of our nest.”
Reggie bit her inner cheek, hoping she hadn’t just pushed the female too far. She wasn’t sure if murdering one’s daughter-in-law was one of the many taboo things on Vora.
To her surprise, her mother-in-law laughed.
“I thought maybe you were not a strong enough female for your nest, but I see that I was wrong. Very well, daughter. Your nest is yours to rule. Since you have established your authority over your nest, tell me, what would you wish for Vadal’s purpose now that the Kampi threat is gone and their aircrafts confirmed far from Vora. Would you have him return to Evath?”
Reggie couldn’t help but grimace at that idea. She searched Vadal’s expression for a clue to his desires, but his face was carefully masked. She was on her own with this one. Great.
She took a deep breath and spoke honestly, figuring she couldn’t go too wrong there. “I want Vadal to pursue what makes him happy. In truth, I prefer our lives in Norveth territory over Evath, and I suspect Shaagra has greater purpose here, but I won’t ask him to give up on his dreams for my comfort. He is a doctor and has an important future ahead of him. I can’t in good conscience stand in the way of that.”
Esfalee slowly leaned back, a curious smile on her lips as she regarded her. Her eyes turned to her son.
“Well, Vadal? Since you are of the inclination to make decisions today, what direction would you like your life to take?”
Vadal hesitated, his brow furrowing in deep thought for many minutes.
“Mother, I would like to stay in Norveth territory, but continue my studies here with your blessing. My family is happier and better off here than in they would be in Evath territory. With Reggie’s help, and the cooperation of our clan, I think I might be able to work here.”
Esfalee’s expression of surprise at his request turned quickly to quiet contemplation. “Will you no longer assist in the healer’s alcove then? Will you abandon the welfare of our clan?”
Vadal’s jaw dropped. “Of course I will not! I can be both healer for our clan and do my research.” He turned a fond gaze on Reggie. “My mate demonstrated clearly before all of us that many things are possible if you dare reach for it.”
Esfalee nodded in satisfaction. “Very well. I find this agreeable. Anything you need for your research, Vadal, make a list of it and the clan will fulfill it.”
Vadal grinned. “Thank you, Mother.”
Reggie looped one arm through Vadal’s and the other through Walooth’s, hugging them close to her.
“Come on, guys. Let’s go home.”
Chapter 18
Reggie was rudely awakened by a fierce cramp, followed by a wet gush down her thighs. A musky, metallic odor drifted up as she scrambled from the pillows. Her period had returned and not with a light trickle. No, the blood seeping down her thighs looked like something straight off the set of a horror movie. Gross.
With a wrinkled nose, Reggie hobbled her way out of the room, desperately squeezing her thighs together as she made a beeline for the cleansing unit. Cranking the showers on full blast, she groaned at the hot water soaking into her cramping muscles.
She had no idea what to use for her sudden feminine hygiene issues. Vora didn’t have things likes tampons or pads. As far as Reggie knew, Vori females didn’t menstruate.
Vadal’s deep voice startled her when he suddenly spoke just outside the bathing cubicle.
“Reggie? There is blood on several pillows. Are you bleeding? Come out so I can examine your injury,” he insisted.
“So not necessary,” she hollered through the glass-like enclosure.
“Reggie, get out here,” Shaagra’s voice growled.
Great, now two of them are—
“Reggie…?” Walooth’s hesitant voice joined her mates.
Crap. Make that all three males had somehow managed to squeeze themselves into the cleansing unit.
“Guys, seriously. Get. Out. I’m fine. I just need to deal with my returning monthly visitor and I’ll be right out.”
“Who is in there?” Shaagra hissed on a deep rolling growl.
“My period, guys. My freakin’ period.”
Silence.
Someone cleared their throat.
“Reggie, I have no knowledge of who or what a period is,” Vadal spoke in slow soothing tones that illogically and immediately offended her. “But I would be happy to see to your care if you would just come out where I can examine you.”
“You really want to help?” Reggie asked sweetly.
“Yes,” all three males chorused.
“Leave me alone and find me something absorbent for the bleeding over the next few days,” she snapped.
“You are going to bleed for days?” Shaagra’s voice rose sharply with his question. “Vadal, there must be something wrong for anyone to bleed for days. Fix her.”
Reggie started to slowly bang her forehead on the smooth wall.
“You can’t fix it unless you never want to have nestlings. And I swear, if you don’t leave me alone, find me some absorbent, a handful of Midol, and hopefully some food smothered in chocolate, I’ll make sure you can never reproduce,” she growled out.
The room fell into shocked silence. Reggie immediately felt like a heel. She never talked to them that way. Even though she was miserable, they didn’t deserve for her to take it out on them.
“Yes, of course, Reggie,” Walooth murmured, making her feel even worse.
She took a deep breath in and slowly let it out. Pressing a small panel to turn off the water, Reggie stepped out and looked at three
somber Vori males practically on top of each other in front of her.
Vadal drew forward from among them and wrapped a warm towel around her. Gently he began to rub her dry with the soft fabric. None of them seemed able to meet her eyes. Shaagra was glaring somewhere over her shoulder, his face tense with worry and ire.
She really put her foot in it this time.
Gently she reached for Shaagra, stroking her hands alone his jaw and into his crown coils. He sighed and leaned down into her hands.
“I’m so sorry, Shaagra, I didn’t mean it. I would never do something so terrible to you. To any of you.”
He let out a long, ragged breath and pulled her close against him. “I know, Reggie,” he whispered.
“I really am sorry guys. I’m being a complete and total bitch. Obviously Vori females have very different reproductive systems. Look, fertile human women menstruate once a month as part of their reproductive cycle. It is perfectly normal and safe,” she added that last part for Vadal’s benefit especially. “I’ve been on a hormone that blocks my fertility, but now that it’s out of my system, my body is going back to its normal functions.”
Vadal nodded thoughtfully. “That explains much that you said to Mother as to why you had not begun to breed.”
“What is a female ‘dog’ and why is Reggie acting like one?” Walooth whispered to Shaagra, making the other male quietly hiss at him to be silent. Reggie felt her lips twitch, barely managing to stem the tide of her laughter.
Vadal frowned at Walooth and asked, “Now that we understand what’s going on, more importantly, I would like to know what this Midol and chocolate is that you need?”
“They’re what makes a period easier to endure,” she stated miserably. “Midol helps with the pain, and chocolate is a sweet from a special bean grown on Earth that’s loaded with sugar and everything necessary to make you feel good. They’re absolutely essential.”
“We need to get the comm system installed so we can comm a trader and see if they can acquire these things from Earth, if this is going to be a monthly reoccurrence,” Shaagra hissed lowly to Vadal.
Vadal clicked in agreement.
“While you’re at it, tell them to load up on tampons,” Reggie joined in.
Vadal frowned thoughtfully at her. “I can’t do much about this chocolate you want, although I can make a trip to Norveth and look for something sweet for you if that is what you need.” Reggie brightened enthusiastically at that. “In the meantime, if you are experiencing pain, I can give you something to relieve it. What kind of pain is it?” he asked as he glided through the door and headed to his private office he established since they moved into their nest.
“Pain in my abdomen from the muscles cramping,” she said, scurrying to keep up with him.
“I can go to Norveth,” Walooth volunteered with a small smile.
Vadal gave him a smile and offhand nod as he dug through his supplies for the medication he was looking for. Walooth, needing no further encouragement, turned to leave but didn’t get past Reggie before she snagged him and drew him down to press a thankful kiss to his cheek.
Walooth drew back, his eyes wide and fingers creeping up to gently touch where she’d placed her lips. His face blushing, he gave her a blindingly bright grin before he whipped quickly out of sight.
Reggie relaxed and stuck out her arm eagerly when Vadal approached with a small glass vial and his inoculator that she recognized from the vaccinations he’d given her when they met.
“This should take effect very quickly once it hits your bloodstream,” he murmured as he pressed the inoculator against her skin. In under two minutes, Reggie felt a cool wash of comfort flood through her system.
If it weren’t for the clarity of her thoughts, she would have suspected that he gave her something that made her high as a kite.
“Now that is some good stuff,” she sighed with a smile.
***
Walooth made his way back from Norveth with several fiber-bound packages, each one containing a different sweet for Reggie to try. He really had no idea what tastes would appeal to her.
He stayed away from things that he figured she would shy away from, like the falaath-covered ormi. The crunchy winged insects covered in sweet golden syrup were a personal favorite of his, but he had heard stories of the way she reacted to eating the shoyla and suspected that she would not welcome eating any sort of insect. Reggie seemed to be oddly sensitive to such things, and he wondered if that was normal with humans.
Walooth shook his head. It didn’t matter. Reggie was perfect to him. He was happy to do this small thing to make her comfortable when she was not feeling well.
He was so eager to return that he did not see the males lurking near their nest until he was on top of them. Walooth was brusquely knocked down, his packages scattering in front of him. He squinted up and saw a couple of large males leering down at him. These were no relations of Vadal that he was familiar with. Must be visitors, he figured as he slowly picked himself up and scowled at them.
The males chuckled, their tails whipping at him, the sharp barbs protracted and lightly cutting him with stinging blows. He gritted his teeth and coiled up on himself, covering his more vulnerable spots with his tail, the end rattling in warning. Hearing the soft rattle, the males laughed.
“Look at this tiny male,” one rasped, his voice deep and menacing. His nose wrinkled up. “I do not know why any female would take such a puny male into her nest, yet I can smell the pheromones of nest brothers all over him. He is better served to use as orluyth bait,” he chuckled, his tail whipping him again.
The other male laughed and snapped his tail out, alternating with his companion so that Walooth didn’t have a moment when he wasn’t getting whipped. He closed his eyes and hunkered down, hoping that like the males of his clan they would eventually get bored of tormenting him.
The laughter died when a deep growling hiss sounded above him. Walooth opened his eyes to see a heavily barbed, scarred orange tail sweep out above him protectively, brutally slashing into both males with each crack.
“Shaagra,” the male who had been taunting him hissed. “You would attack males of your own clan?”
Walooth looked up wide-eyed at Shaagra. Relief and gratitude flooded him when the male looped his tail protectively around him and crouched down over him, his tail a loud, threatening crescendo as it rattled. Shaagra had his eyes narrowed at his attackers as if he did not recognize them.
“You would attack one of my nest?” he hissed. “You are my clan—you know my scent markers—and still you dare? Do you not think if I found him to be an unworthy male that I would not have rejected him from my nest? Walooth is mine and under my protection.”
“Our protection,” Vadal clarified. Walooth hadn’t heard him approach, but the male was staring at his attackers with anger of the likes he’d rarely seen.
“Oh, Walooth,” Reggie sighed, and her cool hands gently touched his bleeding shoulders. Walooth shuddered in pain yet yearned for her touch to continue, so he did not pull away. Vadal’s warm arms surrounded him and lifted him, breaking him away from Reggie’s gentle grip, yet she followed close behind as Vadal hauled him back into the nest.
“As soon as I get you healed, you go and get hurt again,” Vadal teased as he lay him on the thick cushions in his resting room. Walooth closed his eyes and wrapped his arm around Reggie, holding her close to him while she gently bathed his wounds. She leaned down and pressed her warm, soft lips to his forehead, allowing him to continue holding her the entire time that Vadal gently treated his minor injuries.
“How is he?” Shaagra asked from the doorway.
Vadal smiled over at the other male, his eyes warming with affection. In that moment, Walooth understood with clarity why Vadal had never chosen him. They’d been friends and close, but he never had that sort of deep connection with him. Yet now he had a family, and both Reggie and the males were expressing affection for him. It was more than he’d hoped for. He sa
w a different kind of look from them when they looked at him lately, one that made him feel loved and cared for.
“Walooth will be fine,” Vadal said gently. “Just some minor wounds.” He frowned. “What is wrong with your clan, Shaagra?”
Shaagra made a disgusted noise. “Those two have always been difficult. They are distant cousins of mine, and I have never known a minute where they were not making trouble. They can never resist tormenting those who they think are smaller or weaker than them. They did it to me for a time until I quickly outstripped them in size.
“They are down here with a few of my other cousins for the annual trade with the Etale clan, but they have been warned to stay clear of our nest and our family. They are getting away with nothing more than a few scars—I will not be so generous next time if I have to protect our nest from them.”
“Gods, Shaagra, I hope not all males in your family are such complete dicks!” Reggie stated in abhorrence.
Shaagra frowned. “I do not understand this comparison to the male reproductive member. You usually call them cocks, do you not?”
“They have many names, but that’s beside the point here. When used as an insult, it means that they’re not good for anything other than pushing their way around,” she said matter-of-factly.
“So… it is not a compliment?” Shaagra asked, searching for clarification. Walooth wanted to laugh, despite the painful scratches on his cheek.
Reggie blew strands of hair out of her face and leveled Shaagra with an exasperated look. “No, it is not a compliment. It’s the exact opposite of a compliment. Calling someone by a word used for sexual parts is never a compliment.”
The Voris' Mate Page 17