Page 29 of Barbarian Daddies

I’ve managed to peep through the keyhole occasionally, just enough to see some of the people coming in and out of Selina’s private quarters. Mostly young Sky Tribe soldiers going in with sour looks on their faces and leaving with satisfied grins in the middle of the night.

“You seem upset,” I say to Mina when she comes in with my breakfast. I’ve been here for two days, and I’m certain I can build a better rapport with the girl. “Did something happen?”

The girl leaves my tray on the table in the middle of the room, gaze fixed on her sandals as she walks to the windows and pulls the curtains open to let the sunlight in. I’m still in bed, exhausted from the stress and anxiety of my captivity.

I’ve yet to figure a way out of this place, nor have I heard anything about Maur or Kai’s bodies showing up—only that most of our party were killed and their corpses tossed into the sea. Selina is too much of a megalomaniac to do the same with the clan leaders’ bodies, though. She’d hang them by the city walls if she had them.

I’m clinging to any hope I can that I will see my men again.

“Mina, you can talk to me,” I say.

“I don’t think there’s anything you can do to help,” the girl says, slowly turning around to face me.

At her young age, she’s as tall as me with thick hips and broad shoulders. Her skin is a light shade of red, still darkening as she matures. Her black hair is combed into a tight bun resting on the back of her neck, while her horns grow in two symmetrical spirals from the top of her head. She’s pretty, with plump lips and a rare radiant smile, but her crimson eyes glimmer with tears.

“I don’t think anybody can help me.”

“What happened?”

“You can’t tell anyone.”

“Why would I tell anyone? I’m a prisoner here,” I say softly, trying my best to gain her confidence. I absolutely wouldn’t tell anyone, anyway. This is enemy territory, after all.

Mina lets a heavy sigh roll from her chest and slowly walks across the room, stopping by the table for a moment. The gray service dress she’s wearing covers her figure, and as soon as she’s out of here, she’ll have to cover her head and face again with the black scarf currently hanging over her shoulders.

“I bled today, for the first time,” she says, shuddering with grief. “I’m ripe for the picking.”

“Whoa,” I whisper, then clear my throat and think of the best way to comfort her. “I’m sorry. Normally, having your first period should be more exciting, I guess. You’re entering womanhood, your hormones will be acting up, you’re still growing and discovering your own body. I mean, it’s a mixed bag of emotions, already. But what does it mean for you here, in this current hellscape?”

“It means they’ll force me into the reproductive center,” she says.

“I thought only women over eighteen go there.”

“These are desperate times. General Sharuk recently decreed age is no longer a mandatory admission factor.”

“Admission. What an audacious word, considering you’re forced into that place,” I can’t help but scoff. “Have you told anyone?”

Mina shakes her head. “Just you.”

“Good. Keep it that way. Don’t let anyone figure it out, either. I can teach you how to hide the heavier flow. I can recommend a good painkiller that’ll help you navigate these days of the month. It’s an herbal mixture, so you can make it into a tea.”

“How do you know about our herbs?” the girl asks, slowly moving closer.

“I’ve been here for three years, Mina. I’ve studied your natural world and its resources to the best of my abilities. Back home, I was a doctor. A surgeon with some knowledge of virology among other things.”

“Why did you come to Sapphire City?”

“I was trying to get a better look at the research lab.” I decide honesty is the best policy with a girl who likely sees her own people as the enemy in these circumstances. “I’ve been working on a possible cure for the plague, but I need better equipment. I was hoping I’d find it here.”

“All you’ll find here is captivity,” she murmurs, shaking her head slowly. “They don’t care about a cure anymore. They only care that our species finds another way to survive. My children and the children of other Sunnaite women will serve the hybrid children of your kind, or so says General Sharuk. Breeding humans and Sunnaite men will bring forth a stronger species, resilient and resistant to any viral strain.”

I chuckle dryly. “Either she’s an idiot or she’s lying to you all. We’re not resistant to any viral strain. We’re only resistant to this one.”

“She is lying. I’ve always suspected that.”

“What about the others in the city? Do they all agree with what she wants and what she’s doing?” I ask, watching Mina as she takes a few more steps toward me.

“Some do, some don’t. I think they all just want to survive, but they don’t know which way is better,” she says. “Many agree to our breeding program. Plenty have said yes to bringing more human women over, as well. Yet we all want to find a cure for this plague. If we had the cure, we’d all be at ease. Nobody wants others to suffer so we might survive, that much I know for sure.”

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