Page 99 of Chosen By Swift

“Don’t be.” He grasped both of her hands and hauled her to her feet. “If anyone should be apologizing, it’s our kids.”

She laughed and then asked, “Do you think anyone will believe them when they say they survived their firstskydivebefore they were born?”

“It will definitely make for a good story.” He scouted the area ahead and decided this was far enough. “There.” He gestured to a tree with strange bark. “I’ll be right here waiting for you. If you need help—.”

Alys snorted with amusement. “Swift, I’ve peed in the woods more times than you have probably.”

“Fair enough, but I’d also like to point out this isn’t the woods you’re used to,” he remarked.

“True.” She disappeared from sight, and he kept his gaze fixed on the sky above them, searching for any signs of a rescue ship. When she emerged from the shadows a short time later, she said, “I always wanted to see the ocean and visit the beach, but I really didn’t mean like this.”

Swift laughed and curled his arm around her shoulders. She leaned against his chest, and he pointed out the approaching lights of a rescue vessel. She clutched at his shirt, and he gave her shoulders a squeeze, silently comforting her.

Their rescue would be the end of this terrible experience, but it was only the beginning of something sneakier and uglier happening in the war with the Splinters.

Tonight, everything had changed.

The war was entering a new phase.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Five Months Later

“Move back so we can see the whole bump,” Bonnie ordered with a wave of her hand. Her smiling face filled the screen on the tablet, and Alys wondered if getting a satellite communication unit installed at the farmhouse was such a good idea after all. “Come on! Hurry!”

Alys walked back from the dining table until the entire curve of her belly could be seen. “There. Happy?”

“Oh my goodness!” Mama exclaimed. “Alys, I think I’m going to have to frog those booties and hats I crocheted and remake them in a bigger size.”

“Mama!” Bonnie chided.

“What? I’m serious, Bonnie. Look at that belly! Those babies are going to be nine pounds apiece!”

“Mother! Really!” Wendy scolded from somewhere in the background. “You’re going to scare Alys with all this talk of giant babies!”

“Alys isn’t a simpleton. She knows her babies are going to be bigger than normal coming from a father the size of an ox.” Her mother turned her attention to Alys. “It’s a good thing you’re so sturdy. You’re built for this sort of thing.”

“Oh, Mama! Stop!” Bonnie urged, her voice high-pitched with mortification.

Alys wasn’t sure if she should be upset or amused. “Thanks, Mama.”

Their mother sent a triumphant look in Bonnie’s direction. Turning her attention back to the screen, she asked, “Are you still doing your walking every day?”

“Yes, Mama.”

“And you’re counting kicks a few times a day?”

“Yes, Mama.” She had told her mother about the continuous monitoring patch she wore, but her mother was stuck in her traditional ways of doing things. Her motherly advice matched that of the women’s clinic on the ship so following it was helpful. “I’m also eating plenty of vegetables and meat.”

“Be careful with the milk and cheese,” her mother warned.

“I am, Mama.” Milk products here were treated and tested to prevent any sort of bacteria. Back home, though, it wasn’t uncommon for entire families to fall ill from bad raw milk.

“And how is your sleep? Are you finding it more difficult?”

“Yes,” she admitted.

“Can you get the sleep tea there? A nice warm cup of that right before bed always helped me when I was nearing the end,” her mother advised.

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