Darla gaped at her once more.
“I’m sorry I don’t have exact answers for you. The Veslors are very guarded about their mating habits and pregnancies. Vivian Goss was a cultural specialist aboard the Gorison Traveler. She left with the Veslors after the attack that took place on her ship by the Ke’ters. That’s how she met her mate. A Veslor trading ship responded to her distress hail. I have a friend who’s also a cultural specialist, and she passes on any tidbits Vivian is willing to share.”
“Shat.”
“That’s another reason you really need to speak to Gnaw. He’ll have information you desperately need to know.” Jessa glanced down at Darla’s stomach. “I have no idea if you need to be taking certain supplements, or if you should avoid any foods. If nothing else, speak to Maith. He’s their Veslor medic.”
Darla noticed a grimace on her friend’s face. “You don’t like their doctor?”
“Let’s just say we don’t get along. I have a feeling he’s going to want to take over your care as soon as they know what’s going on and try to cut me out. I hope that doesn’t happen. I mean it when I say I believe in patient confidentiality. The fleet might own me right now, but it doesn’t mean I owe them my moral compass. If they ever try to make me pick between them and a patient, they won’t like how I respond. You can trust me.”
“I do.” Jessa had already done so much for Darla, including sticking by her side when they’d been rescued, and throughout that horrible investigation. “I won’t cut you out.”
“Just…talk to one of them soon. Maybe Maith will pretend to date you if Gnaw won’t go for it, and everyone can assume he’s the father. The last thing any of us needs is to deal with another investigation. Next time, they’ll be filing charges because we lied.”
“Will they send me to prison for lying?”
Jessa shook her head. “Not criminal charges. More like misconduct. They just punish us for that. You’re a civilian, though. They’ll probably fire you and send you back to your home world. Maybe ban you from ever working for the fleet again. I’ll just get yelled at, probably have to deal with around-the-clock supervision, and I’m sure they’ll tack on more time to my contract before I can resign.”
“What about Gnaw?”
She bit her lip and shrugged. “He’s a Veslor. I mean, I’m ninety percent sure they won’t bring up the prospect of sexual assault charges again, but he could be banned from working with the fleet. That’s why I said his ass is on the line, too. That should motivate him to be your new boyfriend.”
Panic stirred as Darla thought about what would happen if Gnaw said no. The authorities on Radison would arrest her for what she’d done by leaving in the first place, as soon as the fleet sent her home. The babies she carried would be proof she’d had sex before marriage, and once they were born, they’d take them away from her. Law breakers had no rights. Including being able to keep their children.
She shuddered at that thought. She couldn’t see the leaders on her planet doing anything good with Veslor children.
Gnaw needed to know, either way. Worst case, if she was sent home, Gnaw could petition the planet to give him the babies as soon as they were born. He was the biological father. Men, even aliens, had rights on Radison. The fact that he wasn’t a citizen could force her planet to comply or face backlash. They wouldn’t want to risk a huge scandal by keeping alien children from their father and his people. That might stop tourists from visiting.
“I’m afraid to ask what’s going through your head right now, because you have an expressive face. Your emotions appear to be all over the place.” Jessa glanced down at Darla’s stomach to indicate her pregnancy. “What are you going to do? Have you decided?”
“I’m going to tell Gnaw.”
“Good.”
“I need help with that. I don’t know how to find him.”
Jessa smiled. “I can do that for you.”
“You’re always helping me. Thank you.”
“That’s what friends are for. Let me help you sit up, and we’ll track down where the Veslors are.”
“Is that why I have a fever and headache?”
Jessa bit her lip, seeming to think about it. “Your fever is low grade. That doesn’t concern me. Veslors run hotter than humans do. It could be a result of the pregnancy. I’m not sure, but it’s possible. We’ll keep an eye on it. That damn Maith got access to Vivian Goss’s pregnancy details, so he’d know. As far as the headache, your scans are clear. It might be from stress, or maybe Veslors have some kind of pregnancy hormone that causes them. Again, that shithead would know. Your bloodwork will tell us more. It should be ready for me to read any minute. I’m going to give you a safe and mild medicine that should take it away.”
“Thank you.”
Jessa got an injector and gently pressed it to Darla’s neck. “It will work fast and this won’t hurt. Just a cold wetness, then a little pressure, and done. Ready?”
“Do it.”
It was over fast. Jessa put away the injector and smiled at her as a small beep came from across the room.
“That’s the bloodwork results.” Jessa spun and hurried to a monitor across the room, going to work on it. Darla sat on the edge of the bed and gazed at her stomach, cupping it again. She was having two of Gnaw’s babies. She closed her eyes.
Alien cubs.
She was immensely grateful that the fleet had saved them. The Elth would have been delighted that their experiment was a success. It would have been a nightmare
