Page 18 of BaOBy

Others had seen the resemblance too. Looking at both women and frowning. Even the man at her side had a perplexed look on his face.

But it was Chancellor Yce’s next words that frightened Catalina. “Grace is a human doctor who specializes in childbirth.”

Her gaze jumped to meet Baby’s. He nodded. “Last night, I explained everything I knew to my brothers, their mates, and the Father. He reached out to Grace and Falcon. They’ve been researching all day. Grace would like to ask you a few questions.” He reached out to take her hands in his. “Will you give us a chance to help you, Cat?”

Catalina was afraid. Then she remembered what Casey had told her. Urging her to believe in Baby and the brothers. Was she strong enough to take a chance? Looking around the room, and at the people on two monitors, Cat realized she had never had anyone on her side before. She always wanted a family who would have her back. Now she had it. She needed to trust that they’d try to help. She met her green alien’s eyes—and nodded.

Chapter Twelve

Catalina

Grace’s voice was compelling. Strong. “Catalina, how long ago were you kidnapped from Earth? And do you remember where you were taken from? It would help me understand what terms you might be familiar with.”

She shrugged. “I was young. Seven or eight maybe. I could read simple sentences in English. As near as I can figure, I’m somewhere around twenty-seven years old. I don’t remember anything about where I came from. I could talk, and for a long time, I remembered a few songs. Those have faded now. But the woman I lived with, my first owner, taught me how to read and shared her books. For some reason, she had quite a few books from Earth. All were in English. One was called an en… cyclo… pedia. Did I say that right?” At Grace’s nod, she continued. “So, between what I’ve learned over the years and my translator, I should do okay.”

Cat glanced at Casey and Cameron. They nodded. Cat grinned. “Plus, Casey and Cameron can help me figure it out.”

Grace turned and smiled. “Okay, that helps me a lot. Now I’ll tell you about me. I’m an obstetrician. An OB is a doctor who focuses their efforts on pregnancy, childbirth, and a woman’s reproductive system. I do all of that, but I specialize in genetics and genetic counseling—which is what a child inherits from their parents. Your hair and eye color, health traits. I also work on environmental issues that can cause health problems for the woman and child. I’ve always done a great deal of lab work in my practice. Trying to help circumvent health issues and genetic diseases that are often passed from the mother and father to the child,” she explained.

Leaning in, her gaze locked on Cat. “This is important for you because I’m often called upon to save the mother—when carrying a pregnancy to full-term would kill her. I also want to state—that I understand that you are not the mother of this fetus. It is not a baby in my eyes, nor should it be in yours. It is the method an evil man selected in order to kill you. Your life is what is important here. Are you willing to let me help you?”

The woman’s green eyes focused on Cat. Grace was telling Cat that she wasn’t unique. The circumstances were different, but the doctor had dealt with this before. Slowly nodding, she pleaded. “Yes, Grace. Please help me.” Cat reached for Baby again, holding tight to his hand.

Grace smiled. “Absolutely. Now I need some specifics. How long ago were you impregnated?”

“Three months.”

The dark-haired doctor frowned at her. “The gestational period for the raptizaer is ten months. You look as if you are closer to six. I’ll have Cameron run a couple of tests so we know what is going on.”

“Oh. I forgot.” Cat stood and turned away from the room and the monitors. She reached under her dress and pulled out the pillow. Spinning back, she flattened the dress to her body. “Sorry. I’ve worn the pillow day and night for over a month. I wanted my guards and the Andaran to believe my stomach was larger. That it was hard for me to move around and made me clumsy. That way, they don’t watch me as close as they would otherwise. They believed I was too big to climb out the window in my room.”

Grace beamed at her. “Brilliant!”

Chancellor Yce beamed and applauded her actions, as did the others in the room. Casey and Cameron hooted with laughter. “You go girl!” coming from both women.

For the first time in her life, Catalina felt as if she belonged. That she had family and friends. She could feel the smile on her face and a heavy weight… lift from her heart.

“Do you know how far along the other women are? I was told the Andaran implanted three additional Earth females with raptizaers. Is that correct?” Grace asked.

Cat closed her eyes. The question reminded her that this wasn’t over. That it wasn’t just her. Taking a deep breath, she explained, “There are three women. I’ve never spoken to them, as Jacanas keeps them sleeping. They have tubes in their veins that run to bags that the guards change. I was told their nutrition comes from those bags, and probably the drug that keeps them asleep. I can tell you that all three of them are very thin. Their bellies are so round now that they are kept on their sides. Like this,” she made a half circle from under her breast to the bottom of her stomach.

“So, there isn’t a lot of time,” Grace murmured.

Cat shook her head. “It’s worse than that.” She rubbed her cheek where she still had a visible bruise. “The Andaran came to the house yesterday. I was in the room with the three women. I often read to them. I hid the book and hurried out into the hall. Jacanas was furious.” Rubbing her cheekbone again, she sighed. “As evil as that man is, he rarely lowers himself to actual violence. He prefers psychological torture and uses his guards to deal with the actual beatings. But he hit me yesterday after I refused to choose a woman so he could torture me.” She couldn’t stop shaking.

Baby pulled her into his arms and held her tight. “It’s okay, Cat.”

“No, no, Baby it’s not okay. It’s horrible.” Tears rolled down her cheek.

Chancellor Yce moved in front of his desk. “What do you mean, Catalina? What did Jacanas want?”

Closing her eyes, as if she could make it go away, she swallowed. “He wanted me to choose one of the women. He’s coming back tomorrow night, with plans to wake one of them. His goal is to force the raptizaer to fight its way out—and make me watch it. So, I know what to expect when my time comes. If you are going to save the woman with the brown wavy hair, you need to rescue them before tomorrow night.”

Chancellor Yce exploded, “I want that man dead! Lan, call in BinjaOB. Is he out of stasis?”

Cat didn’t miss the sudden grins on all the brothers’ faces, including Baby’s. Lan nodded. “Yes. We are all awake. He’s out getting a feel for the area. I’ll ask him to join us.”

“Do that.” The powerful man took a deep breath, controlling his anger. He turned to the doctor and her mate. “Grace, Falcon, do you have any idea how to help these women?”

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