Page 3 of Monsters in My Bed
Vizruk blinks. “Why were you like urine at us?”
A giggle escapes me. “Because I thought…I thought you threw me in there to die.”
My monstrous mates shoot me a horrified look. “Of course not!” Osz bellows. “You are our other half. We cannot live without you. We were trying to save you.”
“Remember, we saw what happened to Mark’s mother. We knew if we didn’t take you to this most sacred place, we would lose you, too.”
“Well, an explanation would’ve been nice,” I grumble. Both shoot me a look full of remorse, and I can’t be angry at them. “Is the sinqol alive?”
“Yes, it’s what formed Vasuriad.”
I cock my head at Osz’ answer. “But I thought you were formed from human emotions?”
“We are, but your world is too bright—too full of pure emotions like love and hope—for us to survive. Our pain opened a portal to this realm. The sinqol is Vasuriad’s first inhabitants. We have a symbiotic relationship with it that allows us to see in the darkness of this land.”
“So they—it—healed me?”
I already know the answer, but seek confirmation because I’m convinced the glowing blue liquid did just more than cure me. It infused me with its essence. I feel stronger, more powerful,different.
“It rectified anything wrong in your body and helped you give birth.”
Brushing my sopping wet blond curls from my face, I contemplate this new reality. I gavebirth. It dawns on me maybe that’s what that burning sensation was when I first regained consciousness. Birth isn’t painless by any means, and I wasn’t expecting to experience it when I was dropped into the pool.
“But I didn’t give birth—I laid an egg.”
“This was in your body, in your womb. Vasura eggs enlarge in size in increments to accommodate the growing baby inside—from what we observed. There are three sizes. The first size is minuscule and the longest gestation period. The second size is still relatively small, but the third size eclipses the other two.”
“And the gestation for the second and third stage are very short in comparison to the first,” Vizruk adds.
I roll my eyes. “Everything is short in comparison tohumanpregnancy. So my stomach split when the egg was, ah, transitioning from one stage to another?”
“Exactly.”
My mouth twists in a pained grimace to think this is how Mark’s mom died, literally torn asunder by her own son and left to bleed to death. Viz places a hand on my shoulder, as if sensing my sadness. I cover it with mine and squeeze.
“So what do we do with the egg? Do I need to sit on it?”
My twin mates stare at me likeI’vegrown a second head. “Why would yousiton it?!”
“To keep it warm…it’s what birds do on Earth.”
“Are you a bird?” Osz asks dryly, and I mock glare.
“No, but all eggs, no matter the species, need to be kept warm.”
“It’s warm enough in here. The egg is safe. Of this, we can reassure you, since we watched over Mark until his birth.”
I want to point out that observing one Vasurian-human birth really didn’t make them experts, but then again, it kinda does so I keep my mouth shut. I just want my baby to be safe and healthy, and I’m going to have to trust my monstrous mates to know what’s par for the course.
“Ok…how long before it hatches?”
Viz shrugs. “Depends on the baby, yeah? Not very long, though. Besides, I have the perfect thing to take your mind off the egg.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I stand protectively in front of my baby. I don’t want to take my mind off of it. The twins take in my stance and set facial expression.
“We need to claim you again, rodzen,” Osz attempts. My traitorous body clenches at the word ‘claim’.
Doesn’t it remember we have a baby to look after?!
