~ Zev ~
Yhet swallowed and it sounded like a cow had been sucked down a marsh. But Zev didn't move, just waited. "Are you… really here, Zev? Are you staying? Oh, if you aren't I shouldn't have embraced you, they'll sll you on now and—"
"Don't worry about it, Yhet. I embraced you. I'm staying. I am," he said firmly, not letting himself question the decision. There was no way he was leaving Sasha again. He reached for her hand again and held onto it to soothe himself while he waited for Yhet to spit out whatever it was he didn't want to say. "Yhet?" he said through his teeth.
"Yes?"
"I won't be angry, but you need to tell what you're thinking… about the City?"
"The City is fine, at least, I an, the City itself," Yhet said, wringing his hands. "But we don't live in it anymore."
"What?! Why not?"
"There isn't enough of us anymore."
Zev stopped breathing. He couldn't have heard that correctly. "You… what do you an, there aren't enough of us?"
Yhet winced. "Zev, do you know what Xar's going to do when he realizes you're back?"
"Yes," Zev said darkly. "It's unavoidable. But I can handle it."
"What is he talking about?" Sasha hissed at him. He shook his head, not taking his eyes off of Yhet. That male had the best heart Zev knew, but he was guilty of not saying things he thought would hurt people. He was still young enough that he hadn't learned that often the things they didn't want to hear were the most important to speak.
"I don't know," he said to Sasha. "Yhet? Don't be afraid. Just tell . Whatever it is, I'll deal with it. What do you an there aren't enough of you for the City anymore?"
"And what are they going to do to Zev because he ca back?" Sasha broke in. "I thought you said this was a safe place, Zev!"
He squeezed her hand and cut her a look.
I'll tell you when we're alone, he said into her mind. Right now I need to get my friend to talk. He knows sothing important.
She didn't know it yet, but she'd soon learn that when Yhet was nervous it was really important to keep him focused, or he might run just to avoid conflict. Her brows pinched but she gave a short nod and closed her mouth.
Zev turned back to Yhet and waited, knowing the tension would be too much for him.
The Sasquatch looked back and forth, nervously, between him and Sasha. Then he threw up his hands. "When you left, the researchers ca just a few weeks later. Xar had only just established dominance. He wasn't… he hadn't found his way yet. The researchers removed most of the females and offspring."
"What?!"
Yhet winced, but he nodded reluctantly. "Our numbers… we're down to a couple hundred, I think? Mostly male. And mostly in mourning." Mourning was what Yhet called the loss of a mate that brought any Chira to their knees within years. "We're dying, Zev," Yhet rumbled quietly. "And Xar blas you."
*****
~ SASHA ~
It was heartbreaking to watch. Zev had been alight since they'd arrived in Thana. Even though she was nervous and off-balance, it had been a joy to see him smile again, to watch him reunite so happily with his friend.
But when the massive man said they were dying, the light in Zev's eyes stopped dancing and began to burn.
All the cold determination and ruthlessness she'd sensed in him the night before when he'd been fighting with those n and trying to get her out safely was back.
His eyes went dark.
"Xar blas for sothing that happened when I wasn't here?"
Yhet nodded, though his face was the picture of an apology. "We had been so busy fighting for Alpha and establishing the new way, we weren't paying attention. The humans ca and… they just took them."
"How could they take so many?" Zev's voice was hoarse, and almost as deep as Yhet's. Sasha squeezed his hand.
Yhet's chin went down and he shook his head sadly. "I don't know. I wasn't here. I was walking. It was a difficult ti. So much tension and fighting. I wasn't here. The others don't seem to know either, or won't tell if they do."
Sasha watched Zev pull himself together and force himself to offer his large friend comfort. He let go of her hand and stepped forward, speaking quietly and rubbing the man's arm. But his hand was shaking when he reached for him, and she could see the tension in him.
"So, if they aren't in the City anymore," Zev said a minute later, "where is everybody?"
"We made a village," Yhet said and lifted a hand back towards the trail he'd followed to reach them. "It's closer to the gateway and—"
"Why would you want to be closer to the gateway?" Zev hissed.
Yhet looked confused. "Because it's easier for the humans," he said as if that must be obvious.
"Why would Xar make it easier for the humans?"
"Because, Zev. They said if we help them, they'll bring our families back. You must understand how… how important that is. You brought Sasha. After five years!"
Zev turned to look at her then, despair and anger written all over his beautiful face. She stared at him, uncertain exactly what had happened, but clear on one thing: This place that Zev had brought her, this haven of safety, sounded like it wasn't nearly as safe as he had thought.
She took a deep breath as he stepped up and wrapped his arms around her.
"Don't worry," he murmured into her ear, stroking her hair. "I can protect you. Don't be afraid."
Sasha clung to his waist and buried her face in his chest just to feel him close.
But she didn't believe a damn word he was saying.
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