Page 117 of Bred by the Alien Prince

Fran and Derek exchanged another glance, then nodded. "We can arrange that," Fran said softly. "You can use the comms room to send messages, make calls. It's the least we can do."

"I want to contact my mom and sister," I said to Lorvian, my voice barely above a whisper. "It's been so long, and I need them to know I'm okay."

Lorvian nodded, his hand finding mine and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Of course, my love. Take all the time you need."

Fran sneered at me one last time before turning to guide us away to one of the smaller buildings on the grounds. The inside resembled a cafe with a coffee bar though no one was behind the counter and the display cases were empty. On the other side of the room were rows of private booths.

I entered one, my hands shaking as I input my mother's contact information and prayed it remained the same. The operator's voice crackled over the speaker, explaining the process and the one-hour time limit. I barely heard them, my heart racing as I waited for the call to connect to her cellphone. The operator explained that my name should pop up in the ID.

When my mother's voice finally came through, tentative and disbelieving, I felt tears spring to my eyes. "Mom?" I whispered, my throat so tight for a moment I thought I couldn't breathe. "It's me. It's Caspian."

For a long moment, there was only silence. Then, a choked sob. "Caspian? Is it really you?"

I broke down then, the tears flowing freely as I poured out my heart to her. I apologized for running away, for not contacting her sooner. She apologized too, for the social media videos, for making me feel like I had to leave.

We talked for the full hour, catching up on everything that had happened and she told me where she was and what she was doing when the news broke of finding sentient alien life. I told her about my adventures, about Lorvian and the life we were building together. She was certainly weirded out that I had fallen for one of these aliens, though I didn't mention the pregnancy or my transformation, not yet. That was a conversation for another time. The last thing I needed was her passing out on me, and I wasn't sure how much info Earth had on us though I was sure the others could have told everything.

As the call ended, I promised to contact my sister next time, to send them both my love. I left the booth feeling good, like a weight had lifted from my shoulders.

I found Lorvian in the HQ office he used the last time he was here, his expression serious as he spoke with someone over the comms. When he saw me, he ended the call and pulled me into his lap.

"My brother will remain in charge of Outer Worlds," he said softly. "But there will be no more colonists sent, not until we better understand the situation. Some of my other siblings have fleets positioned near Earth, to protect Erevan as the humans adjust to their new role in the galaxy. So far, there have been no conflicts. Peace seems to be holding."

I let out a shaky breath. "That's good," I murmured, tilting my face up to his. "I'm glad."

Lorvian kissed me then, his lips soft and tender against mine. "Are you ready to go to our new home?" he asked, his eyes shining with love and hope.

I smiled, my heart full to bursting. "I am," I said simply. "Let's go."

Back on our ship, we found Cormac out of bed, hopping around on his one leg as he cursed up a storm.

"Were you just going to leave me here?" he demanded, his face red hot. "Not even bother to tell me we were back at the colony?"

I sighed. "We didn't want to disturb you, Cormac. You needed to heal."

Cormac scoffed. "I need answers, is what I need. I want to talk to that bastard Erevan, find out why my mom had to die."

Lorvian's expression turned somber. "Erevan claims that she leaked information to Regis that caused the Ignis attack, Cormac. That's why she was killed. I don't expect you to accept that, but it's what he told me when I asked on your behalf."

Cormac's face contorted with rage and grief, his hands balled into fists at his sides. "I don't believe it," he spat. "Not for a second."

"Come with us to Eros," Lorvian said as gently as a man like him could. "I have an inventor there who can fit you with a prosthetic leg, and help you regain your mobility. You can always come back here and curse my brother to the stars and back."

Cormac hesitated, then nodded curtly. "Fine," he muttered. "It's not like I have anywhere else to go. Earth isn't an option anymore, not for me."

Cormac had lost so much, and suffered so deeply. I hoped that, in time, he would find some measure of peace and happiness on Eros, but only time would tell.

Lorvian gave Connor the order to depart once Mei performed a head count of the others, and I watched as the human colony disappeared from view, the planet shrinking to a distant speck as we ascended into the stars once more.

I leaned against Lorvian, my head resting on his shoulder. "Do you think we're doing the right thing?" I asked softly. "Leaving them behind, starting over somewhere new?"

Lorvian pressed a kiss to my temple, his arm tightening around me. "I do," he said firmly. "This is my brother's project and his headache, not mine. Xil would most likely handle Daruuk and Tavi. And the humans want us all gone. Eros is the perfect place to get lost in. It's a new beginning, our home, our place."

I nodded, whatever the future held, whatever challenges we might face, I knew we would face them together.

As the ship carried us across the vast expanse of space, towards the shining promise of Eros and the life we would build there, I allowed myself to hope, to dream, to believe that anything was possible. The universe was ours now, and we would make the most of it, one day at a time.

EPILOGUE

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