Khol (Rescued by the Alien)

30. Epilogue

NANCY

Three Months Later

W e spent the “winter” in our cozy home, and come spring, we took an everlipe, an enormous and surprisingly friendly stingray-like creature that skimmed across the water, to shore.

Three days of walking later—though Flora rode on her daddy’s shoulders much of the way—we started up the path leading to the Indigan Clan. Our visit was a surprise, and I couldn’t wait to see the other Earth women.

Depending on how things went there, he and I would talk about where we might live in the future. While we adored our island home, it was just us three. Khol and I didn’t need anyone else, but Flora needed friends and socialization with younglings her own age. We’d talked about moving to one of the sky islands and in with the Dastalon Clan, but Khol still wanted to put his past behind him. Possibly moving in with the Indigan Clan would still give him the fresh start he craved but would fit our other needs.

If things worked out, we’d build a permanent home here and travel to our cozy island a few times a year for vacation.

The best thing of all was that the water spirit—with my help—crafted a message to send to my mom, telling her Flora and I were safe and explaining about the kidnapping and being brought here. The water spirit even sent us her reply. She’d miss us, but knowing we were safe and loved was all that mattered.

Maybe someday, I’d see her again.

We reached the outskirts of the Indigan Clan, though Khol didn’t need to tell me.

The smell of real pizza did it for me.

My grin rose, so big it made my face ache.

“Pizza,” Flora cried, dancing in a circle on Khol’s shoulders, her new pet “kitty,” Flower, on her shoulder. “I want pizza! Pepperoni.”

She’d made amazing strides with her home speech therapy.

“So do I, sweetie,” I said ruefully. “So do I.” Pizza was one of the few meals the water spirit couldn’t quite get right. Maybe it was their cheese that held a rubbery texture. Or their purple tomato sauce that didn’t taste like tomatoes. Or their pepperoni that might look vaguely like what I remembered from Earth but melted when you placed it in your mouth .

A sound in the woods behind us sent me spinning. At first, I thought it must be a drettire, the purple, squirrel-like creatures Flora sometimes called kitties.

But then I saw him. Khol was a big guy, especially when compared to a human male, but this guy . . . He had to be at least five inches taller than Khol, and he was wider.

My gaze met his, and I saw so much sadness there, that I couldn’t suck in a breath. Such profound loneliness. My bones ached in sympathy. Was he one of the Indigan Clan?

Khol stopped beside me, and I turned to face him. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“It’s—” When I looked toward the woods again, the male was gone. Had I truly seen him or was the sunlight streaking through the thick lavender vegetation playing tricks on my eyes?

The more I stared in that direction, not seeing anything, the more doubts crowded into my mind.

“Nothing,” I finally said, and we continued walking.

We climbed the hill and rounded a bend. I gasped, coming to a stop, gazing at enormous, blue-scaled creatures that glimmered in the sunlight as if they were made of crystal. But they couldn’t be, could they?

“Hepadons,” Khol said with a smile. “If we live here, we’ll raise a few to ride.”

“How do you get up on something the size of a minivan?”

“You’ll see.” He was used to me using Earth terms as comparison, and he’d heard of minivans already .

“Oh, my god,” someone cried out from farther up the hill.

Three women raced toward us with their hair flying out behind them, followed sedately by Zuldruxian males.

“Go,” Khol said with a smile, urging me to meet them.

“I wanna run too,” Flora said with a pout.

He lowered her to the ground, and I took her hand.

Laughing, we raced toward the women, and when we reached them, we all stopped, staring at each other in awe.

“I’m Vanessa,” one said. She glanced over her shoulder. “My gorgeous mate is Aizor.”

One of the males stopped behind her and grunted, his gaze scanning my frame in a polite way. His arm went around Vanessa’s waist, and when the fabric pressed close, it outlined the start of a baby belly. Pregnant?

I suspected I might be as well.

Tears filled my eyes at the thought of having friends, of seeing my children growing up in this amazing world with others just like them.

“I’m Nancy,” I said, wiping away my tears.

One of the other women barreled into me, lifting me off my feet for a hug. “I’m Amanda. I’m with the gruff guy, Xax.” She lowered me to my feet but kept hold of my hands. “And this,” she tilted her head toward the third woman, “is Kerry. She and Nevarn have mated as well. Welcome.”

“Welcome,” Kerry echoed with a big smile. Nevarn nodded .

I took in the males standing nearby, their protective gazes on their women, and my heart soared.

And while Flora danced around us all, showing off Flower to her new friends, Khol came up behind me and placed his hands on my shoulders. Leaning forward, he kissed my cheek.

“Happy, mate?” he whispered by my ear.

“Yes,” I said, my face stretching in an even bigger grin. As wonderful as it was to meet new people, I was already secure and content with my mate.

Tipping my head back, I smiled up at him. “I couldn’t be happier.”

I hope you enjoyed Nancy & Khol’s holiday story!

Pick up the rest of the Zuldrux Warriors Series here .