Page 52 of Designation Prey

A pang of some emotion goes through Liam. Is it hard for his boy to ask? To resist even to this small degree? His hand is squeezing his thigh and he forces himself to let go. If he were there, he’d have his hand on Daniel’s neck to keep him calm.

“Suppressants and hormones to help you with the first few weeks of reentry into society. To help you not make an impulsive decision, it’s standard procedure to supply suppressants to soldiers coming out of cryo-stasis. It’s often quite difficult for soldiers who’ve been in stasis to reintegrate, even with their loved ones. Three years have passed,” she says, and attempts a half smile, but then she’s looking down at the information before her, eager to get through the evaluation.

“Does it say who is here for me?” Daniel asks, voice uneven. “Did you see who it was? Please?”

The doctor frowns. “I don’t know. I’m sorry. They just give us the assignments in the morning. Half the time there isn’t anyone here to meet a submissive coming out of stasis. You’re lucky.”

Daniel’s brows pull together, lips twisting downwards briefly. Then he swallows the pills, washing them down with a small plastic cup filled with water.

Liam has to look away. His poor boy. How many times has he had to rely upon the doctors and take drugs when he didn’t want them? How many times has he had to trust people who didn’t care about him or view him as anything more than another task to be completed?

“He’s coming home with us tonight,” Logan says.

Robert winces. “We need to talk to Daniel first. Liam, did you know suppressants were standard procedure?”

“Of course.”

Robert nods. It’s the first time he’s seen anything like approval on the Dominant’s face.

“He’smybrother. He’s the only real family I’ve ever had. I need time to talk to him, to explain and reconnect. And he’s suppressed. They both are. Surely, the designation decision can wait a day or two?”

“I want to do more with your brother than fuck him,” Liam says.

“Do you?” Logan blinks back tears.

Which is a disaster because Robert is going to take one look at his submissive being emotional and of course he’s going to do whatever Logan wants.

Liam turns his attention back to the TV and sees Daniel disappearing behind a screen.

“Where is he going? Is he coming here?” Liam asks. The guard in the corner looks up at them from his crossword puzzle.

“He’s gotta shower and piss. They have to test his urine and wait for a few blood tests to come back before you’ll see him. Probably another hour,” he says, and goes back to doing his crossword.

Time crawls by. Finally, the door opens and another doctor comes in. They all shake hands and the doctor explains that Daniel is doing great and will get dressed and then come and meet them.

“Commander Stone, I do see a request from you stating that you would like to claim Private Burrows. There’s one from a few years ago and another one from this morning. I assume since you are here, that is still accurate?”

“What the fuck?” Logan asks.

“Is he still bonded to me?”

“We didn’t see any trace of a bond in his bloodwork. Three years in stasis would weaken any bond. His bonding numbers were low when he went into stasis,” she says.

“Of course. But yes, I will discuss it with Daniel, and assuming he agrees, I want to claim him.”

“Wait. I’m hisbrother. He needs to come home with us first,” Logan says, stepping forward.

“Logan, honey,” Robert murmurs, and frowns. “It’s Daniel’s decision.” He throws a look Liam’s way. There’s a nod of approval, as if Liam’s finally done something right.

“We do give all submissives and Dominants coming out of stasis, if they do not have a legally binding contract in place, suppressants that last for approximately twenty-four hours. This is for their own protection. Because he was bonded when he went into stasis and lost the bond, we’d like him to stay suppressed for a week or two. Get him in with a doctor to see how he’s adjusting before he comes off of them. We will take the commander to a reunification room first, and then you can be reunited with your family member,” she says, and looks down at the form. “Uh, your brother.”

“Mytwinbrother,” Logan argues. “I should see him first.”

“Unfortunately, soldiers with designations have different needs than normal people. A Dominant who wants to make a claim on a submissive has priority.”

It’s the best piece of news Liam has had all fucking day. Or year. Okay, it’s the best news he’s had since Daniel left their cabin three years ago.

“Let’s go,” Liam says, not bothering to look at either of the men as he’s led out of the room.

---