Kenzie (More Worlds Beyond Book 3) (14 page)

    
Kenzie stood and slowly lifted her baggy
shirt.
 
She watched Dar’s eyes widen in
surprise.
 
She even let him touch her
belly when he automatically reached for her belly.
 
Apparently touching a pregnant belly is
universal in every society.

    
As Dar touched her belly, he felt a tiny
thump.
 
He
didn’t
know what it was, and would have missed it altogether if he hadn’t been paying
attention.
 
“What was that?”

    
“The baby, he kicked.”
 
She said as the first smile spread across her
face.
 
“It’s the first time I’ve felt
it.”
 
She placed her hand beside his, as
they felt the baby kick several more times.
 
As he removed his hand, she sat and they
finished eating.

    
“I’m serious Kenzie.
 
If we stay here, you have to let me take care
of you.
 
If your pregnancy is like
Eliana’s, it will be hard for your body to handle the baby’s rapid growth.”

    
“Ok.
 
I can already tell a big difference today in the size of my belly.”

    
“Good.
 
Maybe after first meal we can take a walk on the beach and then you can
rest before second meal.”
 
She nodded her
agreement.

Reunion

One month later

    
Tolan went to see Zahin.
 
He felt like he was losing his mind.
 
Kenzie had not returned and he
didn’t
know what to do.
 
He paced back and forth while Zahin and Eliana sat on the couch.
 
“Zahin, she has not come back.
 
I can’t wait any longer; I have to see her,
talk to her.”
 
He continued to pace.
 
He
shouldn’t
have
waited so long to contact her.
 
She
probably thought he
didn’t
care.
 

    
“What do you want me to do?”
 
Zahin asked, concerned about his brother.

    
“Contact Prince Pakhi, find out how she is.
 
Let him know I wish to come for a
visit.”
 
Tolan continued to pace.
 
How could he not have realized how much he
loved
Kenzie.

    
“Ok, I will contact him after second
meal.”

    
“Please do it now.”
 
Tolan asked.
 
Zahin watched his brother and knew he
couldn’t
hold himself together much longer.

    
“Ok, I’ll do it now.”
 
Tolan let out the breath he was holding.
 
He
could’ve
contacted Prince Pakhi himself, but it wasn’t protocol.
 
They left and headed for the communication’s
room.
 

    
Zahin punched in the codes to contact
Prince Pakhi and waited.
 
As his face
finally came on the view screen, Zahin greeted him.
 
“Good morning Prince Pakhi, I’m sorry to
bother you.”

    
“Hello Prince Zahin.
 
You are not bothering me.
 
I trust everything is well?”
 
Pakhi asked with curiosity in his voice.

    
“Yes, everything is well.
 
Kenzie left about a month ago, and since she
did not return, I thought I’d make sure she is doing Ok.”
 
Zahin watched as Prince Pakhi’s face changed,
as alarm and then anger crossed his face.

    
“Kenzie is on Sukara with you.
 
She has not been here.”
 
He took a deep breath.
 
“Prince Zahin, where is my
sister-in-law?”
 
Oh
shit!
 
If she wasn’t there, then
where the hell
was she?

    
“I’m sorry to bother you Prince Pakhi, I
just assumed she had visited her sisters.”

    
“Prince Zahin, I want to know where Kenzie
is.
 
You have one Standard Santarian day
until I contact you.
 
If you
haven’t
found her by then, I will have to let her family
know.
 
Pakhi out.”
 
The screen went black and Zahin stood there
staring at it.
 
His mind racing, where
could she had went.

    
He turned and found Tolan standing there
with panic on his face.
 
“Let’s go back
to my rooms and talk to Eliana.
 
She
knows her better than we do.”
 
Tolan
nodded, and followed him.

    
They entered Zahin’s rooms and Eliana met
them in the common area.
 
“What’s
wrong?”
 
Obviously, she could tell by the
expression on both of their faces.
 
Zahin
poured them both a glass of
Tila
.
 

    
Taking a seat, he looked at his
Ardhangini
and said, “She was not
there.”
 

    
“What do you mean she wasn’t there?”
 
Eliana asked, her voice climbing higher with
every word.

    
“She wasn’t there, she never went to
Santar
.”
 
He let the
information sink in for all of them.

    
“Where is she?”
 
Eliana said, almost yelling now.

    
“I don’t know.
 
You know her better than anyone, where would
she go?”
 
Zahin asked.

    
“Zahin, she was here for less than a
day.
 
Hell she
hadn’t
even spent the night in the palace.
 
How
the hell would I know where she went?”
 
She turned to Tolan, “This is
all your
fault!”
 
She blurted.

    
“I know.”
 
Tolan said, defeated.
 
He now knew
why humans cried, he would love to release some of the sadness he felt.

    
“I’m sorry Tolan, it’s my fault to.
 
I should have explained how things worked
here, but I just assumed she knew.”
 
Eliana said, all the fight had left her.

    
“No, it’s
all my
fault.
 
I never explained anything and I
expected her to conform.
 
Zahin gave up
all females for you, but I was determined that she would just accept things
because I
didn’t
want to give up anything for
Kenzie.
 
I was wrong.”

    
“Anyone have any ideas how to find
her?”
  
Zahin asked as everyone just sat
in silence.

    
“Good morning.”
 
Kenzie said as she rolled over and looked at
Dar.
 
They spent their days and nights
together.
 
He was a great friend and she
didn’t
know what she would do without him.
 
“What do you want to do today?”
 
She asked then burst out laughing.
 
They did the same thing every day.

    
“Good morning.”
 
He yawned.
 
“I think today we will sit on the front porch and have a cup of
Cafa
, then eat first meal, maybe take a walk on the
beach.
 
After that I think you should
rest.”
 
They both laughed as she rolled
to her side to get out of bed.

    
Her stomach had grown over the last month,
and if she were on Earth, everyone would think she could give birth at any
time.
 
She knew Dar worried about
her.
 
He had mentioned a time or two that
is
wan’t
normal to be that big with a month left to
go.
 
Honestly, she
didn’t
know how far along she was, but she didn’t care.
 
She felt the baby move every day, so she knew
he would be Ok.
 
“I’ll go make some
cafa
while you get dressed.”
 
She said, looking back over her shoulder at
him.

    
Dar joined her on the porch.
 
They sat there watching the waves, sipping
their
cafa
as this was their
routine every morning.
 
“It’s so peaceful
here.”
 
She said.
 
She still thought about Tolan every day, and
her heart still ached for him.
 
She knew
she
wasn’t
being fair by not telling him about their
baby.
 
Dar had been wonderful, but she
thought of him more as a friend, or a brother.
 
There
wasn’t
anything sexual between them, nor
had there ever been.

    
“I need to contact Zahin today.”
 
Dar said quietly.
 
“I need to let him know that I’m not coming back
right now.”
 
He needed to stay with
Kenzie as long as she refused to go back to the palace.
 
He loved her immensely, she was like the
sister he never had, and he
wouldn’t
let anything
happen to her or her baby.
 
She had
talked to him a lot during this past month, about the males she had dated, the
marriage practices on Earth, and he now understood why the Earth females acted
the way they did.
 
Why Eliana made Zahin
take her mark.
 
They would never be happy
with anything less.
 
He still felt angry
at Tolan.
 
If he had taken the time
to really talk
to her, he would have known that.

     
“Will you tell them I’m with you?”
 
She asked, taking another sip.

    
“No, not unless he ask.
 
If he does, I
can’t
lie to him Kenzie.
 
He’s the Prince and I
have sworn loyalty to him.”

    
“I understand.
 
You’re
a great
friend Dar and I don’t know what I would have done without you.
 
I will also understand if you have to tell
him.”
 
They sat quietly as they did every
morning and finished their
cafa
.

    
Later that day, while Kenzie was resting,
Dar went into his private communications room to contact Zahin.
 
He punched in the private code to contact him
directly.
 
Zahin’s face showed on the view
screen that lay before him and a big smile split his face.
 
“Dar, how are you?”

    
“I’m good.
 
I’ve
been enjoying the beach.
 
I had forgot how peaceful it was.”
 
Dar said, realizing how much he had missed
his friend.

    
“That’s good.
 
When are you coming back?”
 

    
Dar hesitated then broke the news.
 
“I don’t know Zahin.
 
I need to be off another month or two.”
 
Zahin leaned toward the view screen so his
face became larger, as he stared at Dar.

    
“I see my Eliana has you using months now
as well.
 
What’s going on Dar?”
 
He said with concern.

    
“I just can’t come back right now
Zahin.
 
I have some things I need to take
care of.”
 
He hoped that would be the end
of the conversation, but he knew Zahin wouldn’t give up that easily.”

    
“Uh-huh, what kind of ‘things’ are you
talking about?”
 
When he hesitated, Zahin
said, “Dar, we have been friends a long time.
 
You were my confidant when I had trouble with Eliana.
 
You know you can tell me anything, and it
will stay between us. Tell me my friend, what is going on?”
 
Zahin
couldn’t
believe he would keep something from him.
 
They had been best friends growing up, and even now, they were close.

    
“When I came here a month ago, I didn’t
come alone.”
 
He watched as Zahin’s eyes
narrowed and knew he had drawn the wrong conclusion.

    
“Kenzie.”
 
Zahin said.

    
“Yes.”

   
 
“You
and Kenzie are together and you don’t want Tolan to know.
 
He has been going out of his mind Dar!
 
She could have told him she wanted to be with
you, hell you should have told him yourself!

    
“It’s not like that Zahin!”

    
“Then explain it to me.”
 
He said in a low angry voice.

    
“I had told you that I needed a vacation,
but in truth I knew Tolan would crush Kenzie and I knew I would need to help
her.
 
That night, I saw her walking down
the corridor alone with tears coming from her eyes.
 
She
didn’t
even
speak.
 
I asked her if she wanted to go
with me and she just nodded.
 
Zahin, she
cried tears all night, and not the silent ones.”
 
Zahin knew exactly what he meant.
 
“The next morning, she had given up on
everything, and I mean everything!
 
When
I tell you the rest, you have to promise not to tell Tolan.”

    
“I promise not to tell him, but I want
keep her location a secret.”
 
Zahin said
with finality.

    
“Understood.
 
The next morning she confided in me that she
was with young.”

    
“SHE’S WITH YOUNG AND HASN’T SEEN A
HEALER?”
 
Zahin
shouted,
his face anxious and concerned.

    
“No, she refused.
 
She said childbirth was natural, and if
anything happened to her, she trusted me to take her baby to her family to
raise.
 
I love her Zahin, but like a
sister.
 
Nothing has happened between us
and it never will.
 
I have to stay here
and protect her though because she will not leave.
 
Actually, she is so far along with young, I’m
not sure if it would be safe.”

    
“I see.”
 
Zahin said, leaning back and releasing a slow breath.
 
“How is she now?”

    
“She seems happy, but I don’t think she
truly is.
 
She has moments where she just
stares at the water and remains quiet for long
periods of
time
.
 
She says she
doesn’t
want to leave, and I can’t leave her
unprotected.
 
When she told me she was
with young, I knew then I would stay with her for as long as she wanted as she
carries the Prince’s son.”
 
He said
quietly, “And I would have stayed if she didn’t.
 
She feels like family to me.”

    
Zahin felt the gravity of what Dar
said.
 
Tolan would soon be a father, and
his young needed protection especially outside of the palace.
 
“I understand.
 
Thank you Dar.”
 
He nodded and ended the call.

    
Zahin entered his common room and found
Eliana sitting on the floor playing with Destiny.
 
He watched with new eyes, realizing that
Destiny would now have a cousin.
 
“What’s
wrong?”
 
Eliana asked.

    
“Nothing is wrong, well I hope it want be
wrong for long.”
 
He said with a smile on
his face.

    
“Zahin, what on Earth are you talking
about.”
 

    
He laughed.
 
“I don’t know why you say that.
 
We are not on Earth and I’m not talking about
anything there.”

    
“Oh shut up.
 
You know exactly what I mean.”

    
“I do.”
 
His smile faded.
 
“Dar contacted
me.
 
It seems Kenzie has been staying
with him on vacation.
 
At least now we
know where she is.”
 
He watched as all
the color faded from Eliana’s face.
 
“It’s not like that Eliana; they have not been
fuc
….having
sex.
 
He just took her with him because she
was upset over Tolan.”
 
He had almost
said fucking.
 
Eliana had tried very hard
to get all the males to use better terms.
 
She said she did not want their daughter growing up saying that word,
and it seemed to be working, at least with the ones she saw on a regular basis.

    
“Shew, that’s a relief.
 
At least we know where she is, and now Tolan
and Dar will not be at each other’s throats.”

    
“Where do you come up with that
stuff?
 
I thought
I’d
heard them all, but don’t worry, they would not be ‘at each other’s throats’,
they would just punch each other repeatedly.”
 
He said with such sincerity that she burst out laughing.

    
Zahin found Tolan having second meal.
 
He was surrounded with females, but he
didn’t
pay any attention to them.
 
Shaking his head, Zahin approached him,
“You’re not a fast learner are you Tolan?”
 
He looked up with confusion.

    
“What are you talking about?”

    
“All the females that
surround you.”
 
He looked around
and shrugged his shoulders.

    
“It’s not like I asked them to join
me.”
 
He took another bite of food.

    
“You’re an ass.”
 
Zahin said, and then looked at the females,
“Leave now.”
 
They all got up except
two.
 
He looked closer and noticed it was
Ginni
and Jada.
 
“Especially you two.”
 
He looked straight at them and they
reluctantly left.
 
“What is wrong with
you Tolan?”

    
“Besides the fact that
Kenzie is missing?”
 
He
asked,
his voice angry.

    
“And if she showed up now with all the
females surrounding you, what would she think?”
 

    
“I’m not fucking them, we are just
eating.” Zahin ran his hand down his face with exasperation.

    
“I’ve found Kenzie.”
 
Tolan stood up in a hurry.

    
“Where is she?”
 
He demanded his heart racing.
 
He had to find her, to talk to her.

    
Zahin narrowed his eyes at him.
 
He remembered how he felt when Eliana went
missing, but if he let Tolan around Kenzie right now,
he’d
just upset her again.
 
He still
didn’t
have any idea about Earth females.
 
“Let’s go to my rooms Tolan and I’ll explain
what I can.”
 
He knew that
wasn’t
what he wanted to hear, but agreed anyway.