The Arena novel Chapter 72

I wake, jolting up out of bed. I’m ready to fight, to get myself and my son away from these monsters.

"Shhh, I’m here. You’re safe. You’re at home, you and Liekki.”

I feel Cedric’s arms wrap around me. I turn, curling up against him, letting him comfort me. He kisses the top of my head, his hands running up and down my back.

“Is he okay? Liekki?”

“Yes. Jena and Palila have been wonderful.”

I have to smile at that. “They helped me a lot when I first had Kenna. I had no idea what to do with a human child. They taught me how to nurse, how to change a diaper, and how to be a good parent. Seriously, without them, I don’t know what I would have done.”

“How are you feeling?” he asks me.

I take inventory of my body. “Weak. Why am I weak?” I ask him.

“You lost a lot of blood, Tana. Both Kenna and I had to heal you. Plus, I have no idea what they have been injecting you with.” I hear him swallow hard. “I almost lost you.”

I wrap my arms around him more tightly. “Did you catch them?”

“Not all of them. Troy got away.”

“He’s not the mastermind like we thought he was,” I tell him.

He sits up and looks at me. “What do you mean?”

I tell him about the Chief. “He’s human, with a hatred of all things supernatural. He wants to kill us all and create his own army of mutants. He’s sick, Cedric. Sick in the head. Truly crazy.”

Cedric begins snarling, sitting up and turning away from me.

“Cedric,” I say, reaching out to touch him. “He has my DNA and not just mine, Liekki’s, too. He knows Liekki is a Lycan. He intends to create a mutant from both of our DNA.” I feel a tear slide down my face.

Cedric turns back, pulling me to him. “We’ll deal with that when and if the time comes.”

He and I both know what this could mean. If the Chief creates a mutant, even if it’s from mine and Liekki’s blood and DNA, we’ll have to kill it. Kill our family members because of what that horrible man created.

He strokes my hair and my back. “Do you know what you need?”

“Another week’s worth of sleep?” I ask jokingly.

“That, too. But I think I might have something that will make you feel a little bit better.” He gets up, pulling on some shorts. “Don’t go anywhere,” he says before rushing out of the room.

He’s back quickly, and in his arms is our son.

I sit up quickly, still feeling the soreness in my stomach. I don’t know if it’s from the delivery or the punctures, but I don’t care at the moment. Right now, I want to hold my son. I lean back against the headboard and hold out my hands. Cedric places him in my arms before coming around the bed and sitting beside us.

Liekki immediately begins looking for my breast, and I help him find it. It takes him a few seconds, but he finally latches on. Once he settles to nurse, I begin looking him over. I count his fingers and toes, I look over his body, and finally, I look at his stomach and back. They are clear. I look at Cedric.

“You healed him?”

“With Kaylani’s help,” he says, gently rubbing his hand over Liekki’s head and down his back. “I’ll admit, I was terrified. But Kaylani is kind and patient.”