Chapter Forty-Four Zann
I pace the interior of the strange building with Davix and Krish watching me anxiously.
I do not know why we are here, only that Curran promised we would be able to see Corrina if we came to this place.
He did not want to let us back onto the base, but it has been agony not being able to see Corrina.
It doesn’t matter that it has only been five days since her attack.
It feels like an eternity. But Curran was adamant that we could not return to base yet.
He was also adamant that no one know where we are.
We made arrangements with our work crew to be gone, but they know only that we will not be working our usual shifts.
I hear a noise outside and am instantly on alert.
Davix, Krish, and I have been waiting here in the dark as Curran instructed.
And now there is someone outside. We crouch in the shadows, waiting.
I hear footsteps and then the door swings open, and Corrina’s scent washes over me.
She closes the door behind her and switches on a light, and I feel like my hearts stop beating for a moment.
She is clearly still weak from the attack, but Corrina is here and I cannot contain my joy.
I stand and start towards her, watching as her eyes widen in surprise.
Then I am suddenly afraid that she will not want to see me, to see us.
I pause as her eyes fill with tears, and then she is dropping her bag and moving towards me and I scoop her into my arms and press my face to neck.
“Corrina,” I murmur, and I feel her squeeze me tightly.
“You are here,” I say, pulling back to look at her. “You are safe.”
“I’m here,” she says, tears still running down her cheeks.
“You are sad to see me?” I ask.
“No,” she says hurriedly. “No, sad is not at all what I’m feeling right now.” But she is still crying.
Krish and Davix approach slowly, and she spreads her arms to welcome them. I watch as they crowd close to her, Davix burying his face in her hair and Krish pressing his mouth to her neck. And then I am stepping forward and she is surrounded by us, and everything feels right.
“I don’t understand,” she says softly, leaning back but not so far that she is out of our grasp. “What are you doing here?”
“Curran told us to wait here, that we would be able to see you if we did,” I answer. She stares at me for a minute and then she begins to laugh.
“Of course he did,” she says, shaking her head. “Nowhere I could be safer indeed.” I tilt my head at her curiously. “I’ll explain later.”
“Davix,” she says softly, turning to him, “I’m sorry. I think we need to talk.”
“First, there is something we must tell you,” I say. I glance at Krish and Davix, and they both nod at me. “Davix heard what you said to Slade,” I say with a sigh. “And I think we understand, but we cannot change what we have done in the past.”
Corrina looks at me strangely. “What are you talking about?”
“You said you would not to be with someone who was able to breed, to fuck, without emotional commitment. We bred with many females, but we never formed emotional bonds with them. It just wasn’t our way.”
Corrina still looks confused. “I know that. Why would you be telling me this? We’ve talked about the differences in procreation and sexual attraction between our species. It might be strange for me to wrap my mind around sometimes, but I understand. I do.”
I let out a relieved breath. “Then perhaps you will also understand that if you were to be our female, we would never seek another.”
“I, what?”
“If you were to be our female, we would never seek another. We are too old for breeding, but we still would not want to be intimate in that way with others. We have only ever wanted you.”
“I think I need to sit down,” Corrina says suddenly, and Davix scoops her up into his arms with one hand behind her knees and another supporting her back. He carries her over to a couch and sits down, settling her in his lap.
“Are you well?” Krish asks, worriedly. “Do you need something to eat or drink? Do you need medicine for pain?”
“I, no,” Corrina says, glancing down at Davix’s hand on her thigh as he holds her in his lap. “When you say ‘our female’ what do you mean? Like I would be like a broodmate to you? A sibling?”
Davix’s emphatic no almost dislodges Corrina from his lap, and she squeaks in surprise. It is adorable.
“This is all new for us,” Krish says, sitting beside Davix. “We do not form bonds between partners the way that humans do.”
“Not usually,” I add, sitting on Davix’s other side. “But we have formed an attachment to you that is different. That makes us feel and want more.”
“If you would let us, we want to touch you. And have you touch us. For pleasure. For sex.”
“You’re interested in a relationship with me that is sexual in addition to emotional? All three of you?” Corrina says cautiously.
“Of course,” I say quickly. “We are brood brothers. We have always shared everything. If that is something you would want.”
Corrina stares at me for a minute and then she begins to laugh. “This is real, right? It’s not an effect of some medication Wenschel gave me?”
I reach out to take her hand and Krish strokes his fingers through her hair. “I cannot say if you are experiencing side effects from some medicine, but we are here and we are real. Will you consider if you would want such a relationship with us?’
“No,” Corrina says, shaking her head, and there is a sudden, sharp ache in my chest. “I don’t have to consider it,” she adds, hurriedly.
“The answer is yes, yes I want to try a relationship with you.” She turns in his lap to face him, bringing one hand up to touch the side of Davix’s face.
“I didn’t run away from you because I don’t want you,” she says softly.
“I just needed space because I didn’t know how I could possibly choose to be with one of you if you all felt the same.
And because I didn’t want to risk our friendship, our relationship, for something that was just sexual.
You mean too much to me to risk losing that. ”
“You make me feel,” Davix signs, and I quickly translate for him just to be sure that Corrina understands.
“You make all of us feel things we have never experienced before,” Krish adds. “It is strange, but we all want more.”
“So, what happens now?” Corrina asks softly.
“We will make a proper nest so that you have somewhere to rest,” I tell her. “And, if you are sure it is what you want, maybe we will practice touching.”
The sweet, ripe scent that I have grown to love blooms as Corrina’s breathing speeds up ever so slightly. “I’m sure,” she breathes.