it felt hot, but then she realized she was crying.
“I don’t want to die,” she whispered, her heart twisting at the thought.
Po’grak’s body rolled off her suddenly, the weight of him gone so she felt like she could breathe again.
That was when she saw Jaxor.
He was on top of Po’grak, his face contorted in fear and rage. Erin watched as he plunged a long, gleaming sword straight into Po’grak’s chest, pinning him to the earth. Jaxor pushed the sword so deep that the hilt was flush with the Jetutian’s plated armor. He’d pierced it through the armor in his strength and in his fury.
Erin’s vision wavered again and she blinked, looking at Jaxor. Po’grak was still on the ground, and his breaths sounded raspy and thick.
Jaxor was off Po’grak in an instant and at her side. Erin looked up at him, her lips dry, her tongue tasting strangely metallic.
Blue eyes and a grim, handsome face. The sight of him made her cry harder, made her heart flutter and clench in sorrow and relief.
His hands shook as they smoothed back her hair. “Rixella, oh Fates, you…you need to lie very still, tev?”
“You did come,” she whispered, reaching up towards him.
He grabbed her hand, holding it, his grip strong and warm. She was starting to feel cold, but she wasn’t shivering.
“Vaxa’an!” Jaxor bellowed loudly, his voice echoing through the line of trees. To her, his voice was hoarse and raspy when he said, “I will get you help, luxiva. You will be well.”
There was something important and then she remembered. Her eyes flicked toward Po’grak and she said, “The vaccine, Jaxor. Get…get the vaccine.”
She saw it then, the glimmer of the needle in the moonlight. She tried to reach for it, but her limbs were heavy and weak. She was so, so tired.
Her eyes fluttered shut. Then she heard, “Nix, look at me, rixella. Look at me.”
“You did come,” she whispered.
Then everything faded.
Chapter Forty-Two
When Erin woke next, it was to bright light and her first thought was: is this heaven?
But if this was heaven, surely it wouldn’t hurt this much. That was her second realization as she groaned.
“Oh my God, she’s waking up,” came a familiar voice. A flash of red hair appeared. “Erin, Erin it’s Lainey. How are you feeling?”
“Lainey,” came a second soft voice. “Don’t crowd her. Give her some space.”
Cecelia, Erin knew, that soft voice unmistakable.
Her vision sharpened, though the room still swam a bit. “Where am I?” she whispered, her throat so dry that she imagined it could tear like paper.
“In the command center,” another voice chimed in. When Erin’s gaze connected with Kate’s, the brunette smiled gently, something wrapped tightly in her arms. She was cradling it like…like a baby. “In the Golden City.”
Erin’s breath hitched, but her head gave a hard, dull throb.
“Enough. Out. All of you,” came a fourth, hardened voice. When Erin looked over at the new voice, she saw it was the old Luxirian doctor. What was his name again? “Even you, lavrix’an. I am sorry.”
“Of course, Privanax,” Kate said, inclining her head. Privanax, that was his name. From the bundle she was cradling, Erin saw a small, chubby arm emerge, the flesh tinted a soft blue from the light.
“Wait,” Erin whispered, struggling to sit up, confused and disoriented and dizzy.
Privanax forced her back down into a supine position and Erin turned her head to see that all the women were there, now filing out the silver door. Kate, Beks, Cecelia, Taylor, Lainey, Bianca, and Crystal.
“Crystal,” Erin whispered, stunned and relieved. The blonde came over before she left, pressing her lips to Erin’s forehead. Tears swam in Erin’s vision and she grasped for her hand. “You’re okay.”
“Yes, I am,” Crystal whispered, squeezing her hand, though Privanax frowned at the blonde, giving her a hard look. “I’m here and safe. Now, you rest. We can talk later.”
Then Erin watched as she, too, left. When the room was cleared, all except for Privanax, Erin felt a little more centered, a little less overwhelmed.
“I am sorry for that, female,” Privanax said. “I told them they could wait, but I did not want them here when you woke. I did not expect you to wake for another span.”
“I—it’s okay,” Erin said, finding her voice. She looked down at her body. She was in a light-colored tunic, her legs bare and strangely pale. There was a heavy ache just over her right breast, and when she peeled the neckline of the tunic back, she saw a white bandage