Page 69 of Mated to the Vikings

“Agreed,” Erik snarled as he inched closer to the hybrids. “We will find a way to help you.”

I knew his promise was one he needed to say, but one I didn’t believe would hold any credence.

“You mentioned you were inoculated before leaving Earth. Is it possible that Dr. Forrester knew about this disease?” Erik asked.

“But I’m human,” I insisted, trying to put the pieces together.

“What if you weren’t meant to remain entirely human?” Brexin asked, the question haunting.

“That can’t be the case. You said it yourself, Brexin, there are very few females here,” Erik huffed.

“There would only need to be a few to start a new lineage.” I heard my words but couldn’t buy the answer. We were all missing something. With Dr. Forrester still being on Earth, he had no real control. A shocking thought popped into my mind. What if he was already here? I struggled to remember the last time I’d seen him, and it hadn’t been on the day of the flight.

“Brexin, do you always know when the shuttles arrive from Earth?” I asked eagerly, even though I had a feeling I already knew the answer.

“There’s no way we could, not with the various storms wreaking havoc on the atmosphere. Case in point. My guess is we’re going to have a torrential thunderstorm today.”

“Fucking fantastic. That will make the return trip treacherous.” Erik guided us out of the room. “We can’t do anything for these creatures until we have some answers.”

“You’re right. Let’s go before it’s too late.” As I locked eyes with Erik, I was astounded by the light of love filtering into them, but there was more and I knew…

It was already too late.

We continued to hear their malevolent wailing as we headed down the stairs. Other hybrids were out of their rooms, searching for answers. By the time we made it to the second floor, soldiers had already overtaken the facility, storming throughout.

“Steen,” Brexin hissed. “He’s afraid of them.”

“As he should be,” I said, biting back a moan.

“Will they all become sick?” Erik asked, shoving two guards aside then grabbing his weapon.

I placed my hand on his, begging him with my eyes to be careful. We had no idea what we were ultimately facing.

“There was no rhyme or reason on my planet before. One member of the family fell to the disease while the others were fine. That’s what baffled our doctors.” Brexin held us back as another group of soldiers rushed up the stairs. “Steen planned this.”

The weight of two civilizations seemed firmly planted on my shoulders, leaving me questioning my abilities. I sensed Erik’s terror, fear that he would lose control. We were pushed and shoved as the soldiers continued their rampage, locking down every creature no matter their cries of abuse.

We weaved our way through to the exit, my heart racing by the time we were outside. The sky had quickly darkened, creating ominous shadows dancing down from the taller buildings. And in the middle of the street stood Steen, holding court as if this had been a plan all along. Without thinking, I raced toward him, villainous rage swarming into my system.

“How dare you! You’ve known what was going to happen all along. What were you waiting for, confirmation when David began to change, becoming sicker by the minute? Why choose him as my mate?” A guard rushed forward to push me away until Steen merely shook his head. I could swear there was a gleam in his eyes. I could feel Klar’s presence behind me, his heavy breathing.

“Careful, my king,” Klar said under his breath.

“The time for being careful is over, Klar. There are few options left. What we all feared is happening and there’s nothing we can do to stop them.” Steen’s body faltered, his face flushing. “I selected David for your mate for the very same reason I also selected Erik. Because they are or were still mostly human, capable of producing children with you. My hope was that the Galerian DNA would survive, producing children with our lineage.”

“And why is that so important? You have children on Galerius. Why didn’t you simply make a deal with your buddy on Earth to contact your planet and bring you home?” Erik’s bitter words were like a shot between the eyes.

Steen reared back his shoulders, prepared to throw a punch.

“Go ahead, King. Take your best shot,” Erik laughed.

“This isn’t getting us anywhere. Answer Erik’s question. Please. We are running out of time, but you also know this. You wanted me brought here for a reason and I think this is it. These hybrids didn’t all start out as humans. You knew the second I saw the group I’d figure this out. Didn’t you? Some are them are your own kind, an attempt to make them more human. Did you sell their souls, Steen, or were they simply abducted by your orders?” Steen could easily take my life, directing me to be punished in a way I would never recover from. I expected the worst. What happened was anything but.

Steen’s features softening, he closed the distance. “You could never understand the horrors of what our civilization had been through over the last several years.”

“Try us, King,” Erik snarked.

“Wait. Let him finish,” I begged.