Page 36 of The Alien's Private Redemption

Angela stilled, her limbs suddenly too heavy to move, and Saul lifted her from her mother's battered arms.

"Why didn't you wait for me?" he asked, and Angela could feel the whip of disapproval in his words. Her mother flinched.

"We tried," she said, her voice choked with tears.

"I don't know who you are, mister, but we've already delayed too long. There's a-"

Uncle Saul growled in a voice Angela had only heard a few times in her life. She watched his fingers flex against his leg, his nails just a little too sharp against the fabric of his pants. She'd seen those nails longer once, when he'd scaled the cliff behind their house to rescue her kite. But like the strange ripples in his shadow, nobody else ever seemed to notice these things about him.

"I do not care about who is waiting. Your desire to rush, your refusal to wait, has damaged my niece."

"She's here because her injury is urgent," one of the nurses protested. "Waiting for you could have killed her."

"Refusing to wait for me almost has," Saul snapped.

"Who are you, then? Why did it take you so long to get here? Why did we have to wait for you?"

Angela could feel her uncle turn to look at the woman.

"I'm Uncle Saul," he said, his voice filled with poisoned honey. "And you wait for me because anything that puts her in danger, I will be there to deal with the consequences."

"What does that mean?" the nurse demanded.

"It means," Saul said. "That we should get Angela into the machine. And after that, we'll discuss whether or not this is your last day here."

Uncle Saul lifted her from her mother's arms and strode through the doors. He laid her down on the bed in front of the machine and caught her face between his hands.

His eyes shifted to a shining, solid green, and the rest of the room faded into shadows.

"It is not time yet, little one. Relax and have no fear. Nothing in here can hurt you."

Angela didn't nod, she couldn't, but she knew Uncle Saul could feel her desire to behave. He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her forehead.

His eyes shifted back before he turned to talk to the nurses, but Angela caught a glimpse of scales along his neck, shimmering like dewdrops before smoothing back to skin. She'd learned long ago not to mention the things she saw when Uncle Saul changed - it was their secret, like the way he could speak in her mind when she was scared.

Uncle Saul was there, his hand cool against her forehead, his shadow stretching protectively over her like wings.

Everything was going to be alright.

Chapter 16

Zoric was stunned by what he saw in Angela's mind, his scales rippling with shock and disbelief. The memory had been crystal clear - not just images and sounds, but emotions and sensations that couldn't have been fabricated. When he looked up at Ae-cha, he could see the excitement warring with fear in the way her own scales shifted patterns. She had recognized it too - the impossible truth hidden in a child's memories.

Through their Bond, he could feel Angela's exhaustion and confusion, but also a deep sense of safety associated with the memory. She had no idea what Uncle Saul truly was, or what his presence in her life meant. The implications made Zoric's heart race - he'd heard stories, whispered legends, but had never believed them.

"It's not possible," he told Ae-cha, his voice rough with suppressed emotion. His claws flexed against his legs, leaving tiny scratches along his scales.

"But it could be," she responded, her scales flickering with patterns he hadn't seen since their shared history lessons. The Elite and The Remnant had very different perspectives on their shared history but they'd discovered some things in common when they'd been forced to the bargaining table.

"It's not. They don'tdothat. And certainly not with humans. What that memory is implying is centuries-"

Colonel Schuh burst through the door, the sharp crack of it hitting the wall making them all jump. Angela collapsed fully into Zoric's arms, the shared memory having drained what little energy she had left. The moment was broken, but the questions it raised would haunt him.

"Our next ride will be here in twenty. Get on your feet and out so we can give these soldiers back what little space they had," the Colonel ordered. He looked over at Angela and his brow wrinkled. "Is she asleep?"

"No, sir," Angela said quietly.

You need rest,Zoric sent her.I can feel how exhausted you are.

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