TAKEN: Journey to a New Home (23 page)

  “I’m going to guess that the fact our translators don’t always translate your language is deliberate.” Tabitha observed.

  “It is indeed. We have too many secrets to let the Zargazian language loose,” he told her with a regretful look. “If there are no questions…,” he looked around and saw none. “Then I will see all of you on the dock on Deck one, we’ll be taking a hired vehicle to NaLada’s at eighteen hundred or six.”

***

  At five minutes to the hour Dezek, Fazon and Rev left the bridge and headed for the shuttle bay where they would exit to the dock. Fazon looked slightly grumpy. Dezek noticed because the man had been smiling a lot more since Wendy had joined the crew.

  “Problems with your mother?” he questioned.

  “Just the usual, she isn’t happy I’m not captain and she’s trying to run my love life again,” he grumped.

  “You haven’t told her about Wendy?” Rev looked surprised. “Are you nuts? You put a cuff on that female.”

  “No I haven’t. I didn’t know she’d be visiting NaLada Suka. I don’t want to have an argument with her. I was hoping Tota would be with me when I broke the news,” he sighed. “She wants me to have dinner with her tomorrow. She’s insisting on introducing her best friend Tryska’s daughter to me
again
.”

  “You could take Vax and Rose. That would help curtail her behavior,” Dezek suggested. “You know Vax would be willing to help.”

  “I know but I hate to ask him to dinner just to ‘push’ my mother,” Fazon said. “He’s too good a friend to be treated like that.” Many thought the friendship between the two men was odd including Dezek himself. Fazon was a brute, in size and demeanor, if you were honest about it and eleven years Vax’s senior. The qualities made him a great second where he frequently played devil’s advocate to Dezek’s decisions as a good second should. Vax while not small was slightly smaller in size than average males and much more sensitive. Vax’s empathy was so powerful that sometimes it handicapped him. It occasionally made logical choices very difficult for him when it meant someone would be hurt, physically or mentally. But the friendship worked for the two men and worked well.

  “Maybe just having him present will make her behave,” Dezek suggested. “You know how much your mother thinks about appearances. She’d never get into it in public with you. So tomorrow take Vax and Rose with you and ask if any of the other ladies and crew would like to go also. She’ll be on her best behavior in front of company.”

  “Thanks. That’s a great suggestion. I’ll talk to Vax and some of the others.” They exited the lift and found all of the women and the other males joining them. They started down the ramp from the dock and Samantha teetered slightly. Fazon quickly stabilized her despite his size the man was fast on his feet.

  “Are you alright?” He asked her.

  “Yeah, I seem to be a little off balance today.” He and Wendy exchanged a look and he nodded.

  “Here, I’ll just carry you to the bottom,” he told her and gently lifted her off her feet. He set her gently down and she was blushing fiercely. Something she rarely did.

  “Sorry. Thank you.”

  Wendy put an arm around her and leered at Fazon, “He’s good for something, huh?”

  Everyone laughed including the blushing Samantha. Dezek noticed Nyman who wasn’t laughing was giving Fazon a dirty look. He had to look away when Nyman maneuvered between Fazon and Samantha telling the larger male he’d look after Samantha. Dezek wondered how long it would be before that romance bloomed.

  They disembarked from the hire vehicle in front of his NaLada’s home twenty minutes later and Dezek could already smell the delicious scent of Phenian samat roasting. A Samat was a six-legged grazing animal that was raised for meat. It was tender and succulent when cooked right but chewy and bland if done wrong. NaLada knew the difference and never disappointed. Dezek opened the door and yelled like the little boy he’d once been.

  “NaLada, I’m here!” Sienna raised a brow but smiled shaking her head.

  “We’re here,” Moz’s and Tek’s correcting statement made everyone laugh. The woman in question appeared from a side door and came with arms outstretched to hug each one of her grandsons. She was as tall as Ashaa, had a beautiful smooth ivory complexion that looked ageless, pretty blue eyes and black hair that was braided into many small braids that started along her scalp and flowed down her back. She was very regal in her demeanor but Sienna didn’t feel like she was snob when Dezek introduced her. She welcomed everyone and kissed cheeks.

  “NaLada, this is my mate, Sienna,” Dezek said with a proud smile.

  “You are just as beautiful as my daughter said,” she told Sienna hugging her and kissing her cheek. Sienna and Dezek had been conversing on video with his parents since he’d given her the cuff. Sienna really liked Lodan and Sela. She knew instantly she was going to like Palai also. After Moz introduced Taylor who also had been on those ‘calls’, Palai was giddy with excitement. “You both chose so well they are just beautiful,” she told her grandsons. “Your mother must be over the moons.”

  Tek introduced Blanca who was hugged just as fiercely, as Palai winked at Tek. Dezek then introduced everyone else.

“I am very glad everyone could make it. I’d love for all of you to call me NaLada Palai. I am so looking forward to having you all for guests,” she told them as she ushered them through the house to open court yard the house seemed to surround. There were other guests in the area and Dezek spotted his parents whose presence was a surprise.

  “Lada,” he shouted as he picked her up and swung her round, “you didn’t tell me you’d be here!” He hugged his father then while his mother was busy hugging Sienna and Taylor.

  “The two of you are even more beautiful in person if that’s possible,” Sela told them both as she hugged. The two women introduced her to the rest of the group. It was when Lodan hugged Sienna and then Taylor that pandemonium broke loose. Sela looked at her husband startled for a moment and then started jumping up and down with glee as if she were a teenager instead of a female with grown sons. “I get grandbabies! I get grandbabies!”

  “Sorry son, I never could keep secrets from that female,” Lodan said shaking his head.

  “It’s fine, Tota, I already warned them both that you would know the minute you touched them and Lada would know right after that,” he said laughing.

  “Tek, your mother will be here shortly. She decided to pick up dessert. Blanca, my daughter will be very pleased to meet you,” Palai told the teen.

   “Black holes, you’d think I’d never been out with a female before,” Tek muttered under his breath.

  Shortly after Tansa arrived and was introduced to Blanca. Tansa hugged her son and told him he had great taste. To everyone’s surprise this made Blanca blush. Tansa was extremely excited that Blanca was having a girl much to Blanca’s relief. She had expressed concern to Sienna that she was worried about what his mother would say about a female who was with child. Tansa and Sela were plotting to spoil the little girl rotten within minutes. 

  Everyone had settled into seats while sipping before dinner drinks. Intuition started nagging at both Sienna and Dezek just the door chimes sounded and Palai frowned.

“I wonder who that is. Everyone is here,” she said as she started for the door. Fazon started cursing under his breath as he heard Palai welcome his mother, grandmother and father. At least his father was here. Palai flowed back into the room and ever gracious introduced the other three arrivals smiling when all of the males stood in good manner’s form. “We have a surprise. Everyone let me introduce you to Fazon’s NaLada Suka, his mother, Deka, and his Father, Hazin. They’re joining us for dinner.”

  Dezek looked at Fazon whose jaw was locked tight. He squeezed Wendy’s hand. Wendy looked up at him and rose, walking over to his parents with him.

  “Mother, Father and Grandmother, I’d like to introduce you to Wendy. Wendy, these are my parents and grandmother.” His mother’s eyes narrowed as she looked down on Wendy and saw the way Fazon kept a hand in the small of her back during the introduction.

  “Hello,” his mother’s tone was filled with ice. His father nodded and his grandmother smiled at Wendy, but it wasn’t a nice smile. His mother and grandmother were two of kind.

  “Mother, Wendy is my chosen mate,” Fazon explained further and saw his mother’s look turn glacial.

  “What?” she asked as though she didn’t understand what was said.

  “I have chosen Wendy as my mate, mother,” Fazon repeated and took Wendy’s left hand with his own and showed his mother the cuff set.

  “No.” Deka stated bluntly.

  “Excuse me,” Fazon said startled.

  “I said no. You are not taking this creature as a mate,” Deka stated in an imperious tone with a haughty look.

  Fazon’s face took on a thunderous expression. “You don’t get to pick my mate, Mother. I do,” he growled.

  “I am your mother and you will not use that tone of voice with me. I will not accept this backward, uncivilized fat creature in my family,” Deka told him in the still haughty demeanor. Tabitha standing next to Sienna sucked in a breath and said small prayer that caused Sienna to look at her with a raised brow. Tabitha shook her head.

  “Backward? Uncivilized? Fat?” Wendy said in an incredulous tone. “Lady, you don’t even know me,” Wendy informed her while Fazon struggled with his temper. “If you get your nose gets any higher in the air, you’re going to drown when it starts raining. Considering you’re the one throwing insults you have a lot of nerve calling me backward and uncivilized,” Wendy told her hotly. “At least my mama raised me be polite and not barge into someone’s home and invite myself to dinner while putting on airs.”

  “Mother, you will apologize to Wendy and NaLada Palai. Your behavior is unacceptable. I will not tolerate your rudeness to Wendy and to NaLada Palai. Wendy is my chosen; you have no say in the matter,” Fazon told her in quiet dangerous tone.

  “Well, I will not tolerate my son choosing such a pathetic useless female for a mate. She’s human. She has no connections, no wealth, and no power. She doesn’t even have parents you can benefit from. You can do much better. You are my son. My Family name is better than this,” Deka told him furiously as she waved a hand in Wendy’s direction. “You choose the wrong friends and I tolerate it. You make ridiculous career choices and I have tolerated that, too. This goes so far beyond unacceptable that I cannot allow it. And she’s fat!”

  “She’s my mate,” Fazon thundered. “She’s pregnant with my child!” He roared.

  Silence swept across the room. Deka arched a brow, “Are you sure it’s yours? You have the right to deny it.”

  Fazon turned to his father, “If you do not remove her from this house, I will bodily throw her out on her bony ass myself.” His voice was deadly quiet.

  “If I leave this house you will no longer be my son,” Deka told him coldly.

  “I don’t know that I’ve ever been your son,” Fazon told her. Deka stormed out of the room with her mother following her. His father was still standing in there.

  “You need to fix this son,” his father started only to be interrupted by Fazon.

  “NO. I will not allow her to treat my mate and my friends so horribly. Wendy is my choice. She is pregnant with my child. For someone to even suggest that a father deny his child is a reprehensible thought in our society. For you not to recognize that and call her on it hurts me even more than her thinking it,” Fazon told his father sadly. With those pain filled words, he turned his back on his father and buried his face in Wendy’s shoulder. Wendy stared at his father with narrow, angry eyes. His father looked at the others and turned and left the room. Sela got up and went and put her arms around Wendy and Fazon.

  “I’ve always wanted another son,” she told Fazon when he lifted his head. Palai went over and hugged the couple also.

  “Welcome to the family,” she told them playfully. “Why don’t we put this away and enjoy dinner. We have another baby to celebrate. And celebrate we shall.” Slowly the party came back to life and when they departed at the end of the evening Palai refused to accept Fazon’s apology.

  “Young man, you have no need to apologize. If you hadn’t stood up for the female wearing your cuff and carrying your child, I’d have found a switch in the garden to get after you with,” Palai told him with affection. “You and your beautiful Wendy are always welcome here.”

  He hugged his gracious hostess and told her how thankful he was to have her as a friend.

***

  In their quarters, Fazon stood staring out at the city scape on the view screen.

  “Regrets?” she asked him as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

  “Yes. That my parents aren’t better people,” he told her sadly.

  “I love you anyway,” she told him with saucy smile. “The bony ass comment almost made me start laughing though.” She laughed now. “I thought she was going to swallow her tongue when you said that. I’d much rather be a shrew than have a bony butt.” Wendy started to giggle. He picked her up and dumped her on the big bed.

  “You maybe a shrew, but you’re my shrew.” He leaned over her and kissed her soundly. He pushed her shirt up and kissed her reverently on her stomach and laid his head down there. “I will never deny my children.”