ReEmergent -Guardians of Vesturon [4] (29 page)
Six Months Later
Maddie felt the pains rip through her in the middle of the night...of course. Why didn’t this happen at noon? Or at two in the afternoon? It was always the middle of the night. She slipped out of bed and walked into their huge bathroom. Her goal was the timer she had sitting on the counter because she didn’t want to wake Rayn until she knew it was time to head to the Medical Facility.
Spying the clock, she looked at it to see it was five after two in the morning. She leaned against the counter and waited. Exactly six minutes later, another contraction hit her. It was so strong it forced her to double over. This was strange and nothing like she’d expected. She knew they’d be painful, but these were crazy strong. Five minutes later, another hit her and she started to worry. At this rate, she’d be down to one minute apart in no time flat. She hurried back to the bed to wake Rayn.
When she shook him by the shoulder and he saw her standing there, he knew something wasn’t right. He flew out of bed and nearly knocked her over. Dashing to their closet he pulled some pants and a shirt on. Then he scooped her up in his arms and ran down the steps.
“
Your parents.”
“
I’ll call to them later.”
“
No need,” they said at the top of the steps. “We heard your distress, Maddie.”
Rayn was ripping open the front door and Maddie was groaning by the time the transport was pulling up.
“
Talk to me sweetheart.”
“
They’re really coming fast and furious. I wasn’t expecting this,” she panted.
Annalise and Rowan were climbing in they were off. “It won’t take us long to get there.”
“
I woke up and the first one was six minutes and then the next was five and now I don’t even know.” Another one came and she clenched her teeth so hard, Rayn thought she was going to crack them.
“
Bloody hell! Mother, is this normal?”
“
I’m not sure Rayn. We’ll be at the Medical Facility shortly so help is just around the corner.”
“
Maddie, squeeze my hand if you need to.”
“
No! I don’t want to break it.”
“
You won’t and if you do, I just get the damn thing fixed.”
Another one hit her again and Maddie screamed, “I don’t think I’m going to make it!”
“
What! Of course you’re going to make it. You’re young and strong Maddie!” Rayn assured her.
“
I meant to the Medical Facility, you goofball! I think I’m gonna have this baby in here!”
“
What? You can’t have a baby in here!”
“
I have to push Rayn. Now. You have to help me.”
“
Me? What am I supposed to do. You’re the one having it?”
“
Bloody hell you moron. You need to get the baby! Annalise, will you help him? Annalise?”
Everyone was just looking at her like she’d lost her mind. Maddie knew she was going to deliver that baby and no one in the transport was going to help her. She did the only thing she could think of and she screamed as loud as she could, “Jurek, I need you now!”
And thank heavens, he was there, knocking Rayn out of the way. He put his hand on her forehead, calming her down, and then he told her when to push. A few minutes later, Jurek handed Maddie a chubby little baby girl.
Rayn was still blubbering about not knowing what to do, Annalise was still not speaking and well, Rowan just sat there with a stupid grin on his face.
Maddie looked out the window as she held her daughter, Mariah Madeline Annalise Yarrister, and noticed they just arrived at the Medical Facility. She started laughing. Rayn suddenly realized he was the father of a beautiful baby girl (lord help that child) and Jurek wondered if he’d ever get his life back.
********
Mariah was two weeks old and the Yarrister clan was gathered for a celebration of her birth. She was the perfect blend of her parents, with pale pink skin, a head full of copper curls, and the brightest emerald gems for eyes. As soon as she was born that child’s legs started kicking and hadn’t stopped moving since. Everyone said she was just like her mother.
Tesslar was home for a weeklong stay. He had decided to be part of the minion recovery team and had been down on Earth, running the Guardian Compound, where he would return as Commander.
Sadly, Athyna Monteveldo, January’s half sister, was still off in the delta quadrant of the universe, and had decided not to return to Vesturon. The pain of Therron’s (her one true love) death was still so fresh in her mind it was like it happened yesterday. She spoke with January every week, but doubted she would ever get over the loss of him. Returning to Vesturon would only open those wounds and that was something she couldn’t bear.
Saylan and Xarrid were back, and Saylan was truly a miracle. Xarrid had called her his reEmergent. She was like the phoenix that had risen from the ashes. She knew if it weren’t for Xarrid it would never have happened. Jurek, who was also at the celebration, stomped his foot, demanding he had a part in it as well.
Both Saylan and Xarrid looked at him and the telepathic conversations started flying between the three of them. An unbreakable bond existed between them now and it would last for the rest of their lives. Anyone witnessing their exchange could nearly feel their emotions uniting them...it was almost tactile it was so poignant.
Xarrid had rejoined the Guardians, but also did some work for Jurek when he needed him. Saylan was talking about coming back to work too, but Jurek wanted her to wait another six months. She had agreed to that, and then she would start some administrative work.
January had given birth again, two weeks before Maddie and this time she had a girl. They named her Liana Marissa, and Rykerian and January were again fighting over who got to hold the tiny thing. She looked exactly like little Therron with a head full of blond curls and the brightest blue eyes.
It seemed things were beginning to balance out again on Vesturon. However, terrible events were still unfolding in other places in the universe. It was becoming a very dark and dangerous place. Earth was slipping further away from the humans and they had little hope of regaining control. Jurek and his team would continue to help, along with the Guardians, but it seemed they had a long and difficult journey ahead of them. The Guardians understood what lay before them. They had their missions and work cut out for them, but they were Guardians after all...
I am power. I am strength. I am the wind. I am speed. I am courage. I am faith. I am hope. I am fierce. I am loyal. I am steadfast. I am true. I am protection. I am honor. I am a Guardian of Vesturon.
THE END
To My Wonderful Readers
I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for being such dedicated and loyal Guardians fans these past two years. When I started this series, I never imagined how many of you would have grown to love these characters as much as I. My vision was to see Maddie and Rayn end up with their Happily Ever After, but all because of you, The Guardians went way beyond my wildest dreams. I made a promise to myself when I began this project and that was to end it when I still loved the characters and all of their impossible entanglements. So often I have found myself reading series that after the fifth or sixth book, the stories become stale and flat. I didn’t want that to happen with the Guardians. That’s why I have chosen to make
reEmergent
the final installment. So with the biggest thank you and the largest hug imaginable, I want to say you have made this one of the greatest experiences of my life.
As many of you have followed me into my adult romance novels, you know that I have written several contemporary romances, and I will continue on this path. You never know what the future holds though, as I like to test the waters, if you will. I hope you will continue to follow me and stay in touch, because if you noticed in the ending of
reEmergent
, things are quite unsettled in the Universe. Just because I’ve closed the final chapter of
The Guardians of Vesturon
, it doesn’t mean there won’t be another to step in and help save Earth!
Now, for my adult readers out there, if you enjoyed getting to know Jurek in
Determinant
, and reading more about him as “Errand Boy” in
reEmergent
, you may want to pick up a copy of
Dark Waltz, A Praestani Novel
. In there, you will find many more interesting things about his character!
Follow A.M. Hargrove
www.facebook.com/AMHargroveAuthor
www.facebook.com/anne.m.hargrove
And now for an Excerpt from
Dark Waltz, A Praestani Novel…
Chapter 1
The Planet Vesturon, 2030
Sarah turned her head as she heard footsteps approach.
“Well?” she asked the Guardian as he came to a halt in front of her.
“I think you may have something here.”
“Go on.”
“I have accessed all of Thomas’ Guardian records via the official CompSys and they’ve been wiped clean. It’s as if your brother never existed.”
“What? That’s impossible!” Sarah jumped to her feet and came nose to nose with Shandro Tellus.
“Please Sarah, you need to remain calm. If you can’t, I’ll be compelled to use my Power of Tranquility on you. I, more than anyone, realize the disappearance of his documents is highly irregular.”
“Don’t you dare use any of your Vesturion Powers on me, including Tranquility! I do not need to be lulled into a false sense of security right now. And you call this ‘irregular?’ You have got to be kidding me Shandro. People don’t just disappear out of the CompSys. I
knew
it. I just knew it!” Sarah began pacing, her mind spinning with all sorts of horrific scenarios.
Shandro reached out for her arm, but she snatched it out of his grasp.
“So help me, Shandro. Don’t you dare put me under your spell! You damn Vesturions and your supernatural Powers,” she spat, giving him a nasty look. “For months I’ve had my suspicions but no one would give me any answers. I knew Tommy wouldn’t just disappear and not say anything to me. But why the cover-up? What do you think is going on?”
Shandro shook his head and massaged the back of his neck.
“I can’t say. I can’t even hazard a guess. Whatever it is, it goes all the way to the top.” He looked at me knowingly.
“Are you saying, ‘The top,’ as in The Yarristers? Rowan Yarrister, and his sons, Rayn, Rykerian, Xarrid and Tesslar? The Great Leader, Rowan Yarrister, of the planet Vesturon, kind of top? The Leader of the Universal Free Rule kind of top?” The Universal Free Rule, or UFR, was the ruling entity of the universe, the one that maintained order and ensured freedom for all life forms everywhere.
Sarah narrowed her eyes as she fumed, “What the hell are you trying to tell me Shandro? Are you saying that
my brother-in-law,
Rykerian’s family is involved in Tommy’s disappearance? And that my sister January probably knows something about this? Because if that’s the case, I’m marching my ass over there right now and we’re going to have a come to Jesus meeting over all of this!”
“Calm down Sarah or I’m leaving here and not coming back. I’ve risked my position over this and possibly compromised the safety of several of the Guardians who report to me to get this information. If you confront your sister and her husband, this whole thing will blow up in our faces and we’ll never find out anything. Do you honestly think they will admit to knowing anything? Think about it! Use your bloody head!”
Sarah fidgeted with the buttons on her jacket and realized Shandro had a valid point. As a Guardian of Vesturon himself, he had risked a great deal to help her. She had been to Rykerian and January’s several times over Tommy’s disappearance to no avail. What made her think they would tell her anything now?
“You’re right...as usual. So what now?”
Shandro was by her side in a flash. Of course, he was a Vesturion, and aside from being impossibly good looking, they had all sorts of supernatural Powers, one of them being Speed. Yeah, he was an alien and all, but he was a fine specimen of one, if she did say so herself. He put his hands on her shoulders and said, “Let me think about this for a day or so. See what I can come up with. Perhaps I can find something they didn’t wipe out. We know where he was before he disappeared. Maybe there’s a link to someone who saw him last.”
He moved his fingers and lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes. For as long as he could remember, he had loved her. She was his best friend’s sister, so he had said nothing, but had harbored his feelings in silence. It pained him to see her hurting the way she had been these last months. He knew how close Tommy and Sarah were. He would stop at nothing to help her find him.
Sarah promised herself that she wasn’t going to cry. It was so hard to hold back all the tears, but when Shandro smiled at her she couldn’t help but smile back. She knew that what he felt for her was far deeper than what she felt for him. As much as she wished she could return those feelings she knew she would only ever love him as a brother.
“So what’s next?” she asked.
“Wait to hear back from me. I’ll let you know something as soon as I can. And please, say nothing to your sister or her husband. Not a word Sarah.”
“Thanks Shandro. I know how you feel about Tommy. I know you miss him too.”
Shandro nodded and walked away.
********
Sarah replayed the last few months in her head. Her last conversation with Tommy had been normal. He was on Earth with his team of Guardians, where he’d been stationed for six months. They were trying to wrest Earth out of the hands of the Xanthians. Those nasty Xanthians…that parasitic species had ruined everything. Eighteen years ago they’d hired a team of terrorists and unleashed a deadly disease on humanity that had wiped out over sixty-five percent of the human population. Then the Xanthians had invaded Earth with the sole intention of assuming leadership and relocating their entire species there. They wanted Earth’s natural resources because they had depleted the ones on their home planet. It hadn’t worked out exactly like they had planned, Sarah thought with a smirk.