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“Not that you’re keeping track.”

There is no way to keep track of time these days, only by the placement of the moon and sun in the sky, but I wait for nightfall just the same. I always wait for the moments when I have him all to myself, when he’s unburdened by the duties of leadership and protecting our hive.

“I’m going to offer our new friends some food. I’m sure they’re hungry.”

“Friends now?” His brows furrow as he lowers me back to the ground. “Don’t get attached.”

“She’s a young girl. Don’t forget that, Six. In spite of the Alphas, she survived the Deadlands. I’m curious to know more about her.”

“You and your stories.” Hooking a finger beneath my chin, he plants another kiss to my lips. “What will you do with all of them?”

“Someday, I’d like to write a book. Something that will carry them into the future, so our children will know where they came from.”

He rests his hand against my stomach, his forehead pressed to mine. “How strong their mother was to tame such a beast as their father.”

“I’d spin you slightly different, but you got the general idea.” I giggle when he digs his fingers into my ribs, tickling me as he holds me hostage in his arms.

“Go offer them food. But know, if either of the men lays a hand on you, I won’t hesitate to kill them.”

“And should the girl lay a hand on you?”

“She deserves a reward for being so bold.”

“I was talking about me.”

“So was I.” He smiles then, a rarity with Six, as most times his face is furrowed with concern, and I steal the opportunity to kiss him again before exiting the cave.

The three newcomers sit around the fire, separated from the wary few who guard them, while their friend rests in Heseya’s tent, under her care for the night. Grabbing three bowls of stew, from a pot left out from dinner earlier in the evening, I cross the camp and come to a stop before them. The Alpha and female seem to hesitate, staring down into the broth, while failing to accept it. The younger male beside them is much more eager, snatching up his proffered meal, but he pauses midway to his mouth, eyeing his comrades beside him.

“If I was planning to poison you, I wouldn’t have wasted three perfectly good bowls of stew,” I say, prodding the food toward them again. “Takes a lot to feed this crew.”

The male takes his first, tipping it back. He gives a nod toward the younger girl, and she accepts her bowl, also tipping it back.

Fiercely protective of her. In a way, he reminds me of Six.

“You escaped Calico.” I take a seat on one of the many available rocks beside them and raise my hands to warm my palms by the fire.

“You did, too,” the girl says before tipping her bowl back again. At the confusion that must be written on my face, she stares down into her bowl. “I saw your Alpha carry you out before the doors sealed.”

“You were there that night?”

“They took my Alpha. We’d hidden away near a waterfall north of there. They tracked the slave bands.”

My eyes dart to the band still attached to the blond Alpha’s throat, similar to the one Papa removed from Six years ago. Unfortunately, I no longer have the key. “How did you manage escape in the first place? They grew to be a fortress after I left.”

She jerks her head, and I twist to see Kenny, glaring at her from across the bonfire. “He helped us. Jammed the computers, so we’d go unnoticed.”

“That’s how his girlfriend was killed.”

“Roz was my best friend. A sister. I’d have never hurt her.” Her jaw shifts as she pulls her knees up, wrapping her arms around her legs. “In hindsight, I’d have taken her place.”

The comment nabs the attention of the Alpha beside her, who frowns before tossing his bowl onto the ground.

“The man you spoke of, trapped inside the hospital, he didn’t escape with you?”

“He did. He was captured a few days after.” Now she’s the one glaring back at Kenny. “I’ve no doubt he led them to us.”

I catch sight of the slave band at the Alpha’s throat again. “So, he helped you, then sent Legion after you. How did you evade capture then?”