Alpha Dom and His Human Surrogate by Caroline Above Story

#Chapter 264 – To the Temple

Ella

As soon as the boat pulls up to the dock, I’m by the gangplank, eagerly waiting for the sailors to lowes it. One of my hands rests on the underside of my swollen belly, holding my child close. The doctor that Sinclair a*signed to come with us examined me the moment we stepped foot onboard after our trek home from the desert and confirmed that Rafe’s heartbeat is still there, though fainter than he’d like.

I need to get of this boat, now, I think, my eyes wide as I watch the sailors hurry to lower the plank so that I can scurry off of it. I have a job to do, and the sooner it’s done, the sooner I can rest.

Stop, my wolf begs inside of me a word I don’t think I’ve ever heard her say. She’s usually run!, or fly! or go! Never stop, caution, wait. But today, I can feel her pacing inside me, worried.

We are weak, she cautions. The pup…

I can’t, I growl back at her, impatiently watching the plank finally touch the dock next to us. We have a job to do – we have to help everyone survive

“Ella!” Cora calls, running out of the boat’s small cabin. “Ella, wait!”

I turn to her, my face fierce. “Either come with me or stay here, Cora,” I warn, my eyes flashing. But you can’t hold me back –”

–

“Ella,” she says, grabbing my arm as I put my foot on the gangplank, ready to rush forward.” Please, you barely made it out of the desert – you are not well enough for this – your doctor ordered you onto bedrest weeks ago – he told you to walk no more than forty minutes a day! You’re risking your health, your child!”

“And if I don’t?” I bite out, spinning on her. “How many will die, if I don’t get to that temple and deliver the Goddess’s gift?” My eyes fill with tears and my lip trembles as I look my sister in the eye, my hand still pressed against my poor child. “Are their lives worth less than mine? Worth

less than my child?”

as she utters the word. “At least, to

declare, ripping my arm from her hand. “Don’t watch. But you can’t stop

anymore, not knowing what I know. I can do so much good if I can only

When I stand firmly on the dock, I turn, my

her feet

protests. “If you insist on killing yourself, I’m going to be there to witness it.

and feel honestly a little lighter now that I have my sister at my side. I turn and as one we head

out behind us, but neither of us turn.

1/3

–

–

or not – I’m faster than him.

which is filled with smoke and rubble. I’m horrified by what I see. Some houses look almost untouched while others are in total ruin. Whole neighborhoods which I used to walk through are demolished, their beautiful tree–line streets ripped to shreds. It’s horrible to

if I can get there….damn it,

allowed me to speak to Sinclair if he, too, were dreaming. It was a

–

have given

the only thing that’s keeping me going. And of course – of course I know that my poor baby is the one paying the price of all of this. It’s the cause of all of my anxiety, the only thing that I thought about during the long trip here. The all–encompa*sing question that kept me up at night: was my child the price we would pay for peace? And then,

within me screams no, but the

wolf, but I was raised as a human on purpose, so that in this moment I would know the meaning of