A Grim Baby
A Grim Baby
By M.K. Eidem
A Grim Baby: Tornians Book 8
By
M.K. Eidem
Turtle Point Publishing, Inc
Copyright © 2022 by Michelle K. Eidem
Cover Design by Judy Bullard
Edited by: azedit@ziskoturtle.com
All rights reserved: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without the express written permission from the author.
All characters, places, and events in this book are fictitious or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is strictly coincidental.
License Statement
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or if it was not purchased for your use only, please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Synopsis
It’s a busy time within House Luanda. Women are finally choosing Warriors. A facility is being prepared for the first willing females from Earth.
The time is drawing near for Grim and Lisa’s daughter to be presented, and Grim is struggling with it. The thought of his Queen being at risk terrifies him.
Then Grim discovers another threat that affects not just his queen but every Tornian, Kaliszian, and person on Earth.
New life and old grudges are revealed during this fragile time, and only the Goddess knows what will happen.
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
About the Author
Additional Books
Chapter One
“Grim.” Reaching over, Lisa gripped his arm and then whispered more urgently, “Grim.”
Instantly awake, Grim searched the darkness for his Lisa. Reaching behind him, he touched the bowl containing energy crystals, illuminating the room. What it revealed stunned him. His Lisa lay next to him, pale and trembling, covered in sweat. “Lisa, what’s wrong?”
“The…” Groaning, she curled over her protruding stomach, wrapping her arms around it as another contraction hit. “The baby,” she gasped. “Something’s wrong.”
Grim jumped from the bed, the sheet going with him to reveal a dark, red stain spreading from between Lisa’s legs.
“Lisa…”
“Get. Rebecca. Grim,” she gritted out through clenched teeth.
Grim rushed to the doors of their resting chamber. Tearing them open, he roared, “Rebecca!”
He raced back to Lisa’s side, dropped to his knees, and gripped the hand his love held out to him. All before his command could bounce off the walls of their home on Luda. “What can I do?”
“Stay with me,” she begged between pants.
“Where else would I be?” he asked, kissing the knuckles of the small hand crushing his. “You are my love, my life, my heart.”
“As you are mine.”
Rebecca hurried into the chamber carrying a bag. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw the bloodied sheets. She immediately went into doctor mode.
“What’s going on here, Lisa?” she asked calmly, but Grim saw her hands tremble as she opened her bag.
“I don’t know,” Lisa gasped.
Keeping his grip on her hand, Grim slipped behind her to support her shaking body. He lovingly cupped his hands over hers on the rock-hard mound of her stomach.
“Did you fall?” Rebecca asked, pulling out the handheld scanner.
“She was fine when we went to bed,” Grim answered. As Lisa doubled over in pain again, he ordered, “Heal her!”
“I have to scan her first.” Rebecca moved to Lisa’s other side and lifted the scanner, but nothing happened.
“What’s wrong?” Grim demanded.
“The scanner isn’t working.” Shaking the device, she tried again, but it wouldn’t turn on. “The crystal must be depleted.”
“Replace it!” Grim growled at her.
Face pale, she stuttered, “I—I don’t have one with me.”
“Then get one!” Grim’s roar sent Rebecca flying from the room.
“Grim…”
His gaze dropped back down to his queen, and his heart broke at the pain he saw in her eyes. “I’m here, my love.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
His pulse leaped. “For what, my love?”
“For breaking my vow to you.”
His heart skipped a beat, then pounded out an urgent note in his chest. “What? What do you mean?”
“This isn’t normal, Grim, and I….” She convulsed in his arms, her words breaking off.
“You what?” Grim demanded, his arms tightening around her, trying to lend her every bit of his strength.
“I’m not going to survive this,” she finally got out.
“No!” he roared in denial. “I won’t allow it.”
She gave him a sad smile. “I love you, Grim. Vow, you’ll take care of our girls. All three of them.”
He reared back in dismay and horror. “No!”
“Yes!” Reaching up, she cupped his jaw. “Vow it to me, Grim. Our girls are going to need you.”
This wasn’t what they’d planned. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. “The girls need you. Fight for us, my Lisa.”
“I am, I vow. I am.” She paled even more, and her breathing grew erratic. “Grim…”
“Yes, my Lisa,” he said as her hand clutched his tight enough to turn her knuckles white.
“Tell the girls I love them and that I’ll always be watching over them.”
“They know, but I will.”
“I love you, Grim,” she whispered, her gaze locking with his. “I regret nothing if this is what had to be, to be loved by you.”
“Lisa…” His voice broke. The light in her golden-brown eyes dimmed.
“Vow, my love,” she breathed.
“I vow.”
A blinding flash of light obscured her face from him, followed by a clap of thunder that shook Luanda to its foundation as Lisa sighed her last breath.
“Lisa!” he roared, his heart shattering.
Chapter Two
“Grim!” Lisa waddled as quickly as her enlarged stomach allowed from the cleansing room into their resting chamber. “What’s wrong?”
Grim sprung out of bed, his chest heaving, and charged across the room. His arms wrapped around her, and he buried his face in her neck. He breathed in her unique, living scent until he could find the words. He’d never had such a vivid dream before and never wanted to again.
“What’s wrong, Grim? Why are you shaking?”
His Lisa must have gotten out of bed because their daughter insisted on kicking her bladder if she lay flat for too long. It happened several times a night, and normally he woke as soon as she moved. For some reason, it hadn’t happened this time.
“You’re here. You’re all right,” he
murmured against her neck.
“I am.” She sank her fingers into his hair and gently caressed his scalp as another rumble of thunder rattled the windows. The storm that had been brewing all day had finally decided to release its wrath. “I just needed to use the cleansing room.”
Pulling back, he gently framed her face with his hands and gazed deeply into her golden-brown eyes, full of life, love, and concern. For him.
“Why didn’t you wake me?”
“Because you were exhausted,” she said as if it should be obvious. “You were gone before the sun rose yesterday and barely made it back in time to have last meal with us. I would have woken you if I needed help.”
“Never do that to me again, my Lisa,” he growled, giving her a hard kiss. “Never. My heart couldn’t take it.”
He knew he wasn’t making sense by how her brows drew together as she searched his gray eyes intently.
“Grim?”
He didn’t try to hide what he was feeling from her, letting Lisa see his genuine fear and grief.
Lisa knew Grim’s concern for her had grown as her size had blossomed. He was constantly checking in on her and ordering her to rest. He was especially vigilant whenever Rebecca was away from Luda, tending to the other females who had conceived. Tonight, his exhaustion had caught up with him, and all his fears and concerns must have manifested into the nightmare. Then the violence of the storm had awakened him, and she’d been gone.
“I’m here, Grim,” she reassured him. “Whole, alive, and safe.”
He took a deep, shuddering breath, straightened, then slowly released it, letting go of as much of the fear and despair as possible. He never wanted to experience something like that again.
“Come. Let’s get you back to bed.” With an arm around her waist, he guided her back to the bed and then carefully lifted her up into it.
“Thank you,” she murmured, gently kissing his lips. The height of their bed had always been a challenge for her since it was Tornian-sized. She’d compensated by using a small step stool, but that no longer helped due to her burgeoning size.
“You will not get out of this bed again without first waking me,” he ordered. “Vow it, my Lisa.”
“All right. I vow it. But expect to be awakened quite often since your daughter seems to enjoy sitting on my bladder.”
Grim would take that over how he’d felt when he’d awakened in their bed alone. “That matters not. What matters is that I know you are safe.”
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Grim was true to his word and was immediately up three more times to help her to the cleansing room before Luda’s sun rose. All without a single complaint. Now they were sitting with the girls having first meal, but she could tell whatever nightmare he’d had was still affecting him. She wished she could do something to calm his fears but knew there wasn’t. Not until she safely presented their daughter.
“Can you come play with us in the garden this morning, Manno?” Miki asked, looking at him hopefully.
“I’m sorry, Miki. I cannot. I have training this morning.”
“With the trainees?” Carly asked, drawing her manno’s attention.
“Yes, Carly.”
“Can we come watch?” Carly asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
“No, my Carly,” Grim answered, standing to leave. “It is not a place for you.”
“Oh.” The sparkle went out of Carly’s eyes, and she looked back down at her plate.
“Are you two done eating?” Lisa asked.
“Yes, Mommy,” they answered at the same time.
“Then go wash your hands, and we’ll go to the garden.”
“You’re going with us, Mommy?”
The surprise in Miki’s little voice hurt Lisa’s heart. Had she been neglecting her children? These last moon cycles had been hectic, with new warriors arriving every few weeks, all hoping that one of the women under Grim’s protection would choose them.
They’d also been dealing with the ramifications of Ull traveling to Earth and making sure Rebecca was protected as she traveled between the Tornian and Kaliszian empires to care for the other pregnant women from Earth. Rebecca had also been traveling to Betelgeuse to examine Isis.
Then there were her normal duties as Grim’s Queen, which were slowly growing. At first, there weren’t any since Luda hadn’t had one in over five hundred years. The duties having been absorbed by warriors. Now, she and Montfort met daily, and he’d become something of a private advisor for Lisa. He kept her informed on what was going on so small things didn’t become big problems.
She’d left the general running of the house in his more than capable hands. After all, what did she know about scheduling the warriors’ duties? She informed him what she wanted done, and he made sure it was. Not unlike when she’d first arrived on Luda. As for the kitchen, besides some Earth recipes that had become hits, she didn’t interfere. She also sat beside Grim when he heard disputes from the citizens of Luda. Some she found quite hilarious and struggled to keep a straight face, while others were serious and heartbreaking.
She’d tried to make sure none of that interfered with the time she spent with her daughters, but it seemed she’d failed. They had adjusted well to all the changes in their lives during the last year, but they were still young children. Her children. And she needed to do a better job.
“I am. Now tell Grim goodbye.”
“Bye, Manno.” They each rose and quickly went to hug Grim, who leaned down and kissed the top of their heads.
“You girls be good today,” he told them.
“We will, Manno,” they chorused and were gone.
“And you, my Lisa,” he leaned over to murmur against her lips, “will not overdo.”
“I’ll be fine,” she promised, returning his kiss.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
“Keep your sword up, Trainee Larna,” Grim barked at the young male as his sword dropped for the third time through the exercise. The tip of his blade immediately came back up. “Return to your positions.”
The twelve first-year trainees quickly sheathed their practice swords and moved to their original locations.
“Again!” he ordered.
The trainees withdrew their swords and moved through the intricate steps they’d been learning under Grim’s tutelage, their swords stabbing, slashing, and swinging. Right up until after one of the more intricate moves, Larna’s sword flew out of his hand and impaled itself in the back of the thigh of the trainee in front of him.
“Argh!” Trainee Dia cried out, gripping his leg as he dropped to the ground.
“Alger!” Grim shouted to his long-time friend and the Captain of his Elite Guard, who was observing the drill as well, as Grim immediately moved to the trainee’s side.
“Don’t move, Dia,” Grim ordered as he gripped the trainee’s leg preventing him from doing just that. “Alger!”
“Here,” Alger dropped down to his knees on the other side of Dia, the handheld repair unit in his hand.
“Ready?” Grim looked to Alger, who gave him a quick nod after turning on the machine. Grim shifted, a knee replacing his hand to immobilize the leg, and swiftly removed the sword. Before Dia could cry out, Alger had the repair unit on him.
“Remain calm, Dia,” Grim ordered. He could tell Dia was trying hard not to cry. “The repair unit will have you healed shortly.”
Grim was frowning at the length of time the machine took to finish. Handheld repair units were vital for warriors in battle as they quickly healed the most life-threatening wounds a warrior received until he could get to a portable or deep repair unit. They were kept on every training field because injuries happened. But it shouldn’t have taken the unit this long to heal such a minor wound.
After Alger removed the device, Grim reached down and helped the trainee stand. “You’re done for the day, Trainee Dia. Report to medical and have Healer Hadar scan you in the deep repair unit.”
“I’m fine, my King,” Dia told him ev
en though he winced when he leaned down to pick up his sword.
“Are you disobeying an order from your king, Trainee?” Grim’s deep growl had the youth paling.
“N—no, my King,” he stammered. “I would never do such a thing.”
“Then report to Hadar!”
“Yes, my King!”
As Dia left the training fields, Grim turned his attention to Larna and demanded, “Hand!”
Trainee Larna stood at attention, his sword hand shaking as he extended it to Grim. Grabbing it, Grim jerked the much smaller male closer as he examined it. It was normal size for a male Larna’s age, but the broken blisters covering it weren’t normal.
“How did this happen, Larna?” Grim’s gaze locked with Larna’s.
“My King, my sword slipped…” Larna began.
“Not the injury to Dia,” Grim cut him off angrily. “We all saw how that happened. How did these happen?” he demanded, shaking the hand he held slightly.
“Through training, my King,” Larna told him quietly.
“Why haven’t you had this treated?” When the trainee looked away instead of answering, Grim’s growl deepened. “Answer me, Trainee Larna!”
“My King, my… my manno told me that reporting such minor injuries was a sign of weakness and that I was never to show weakness.”
“So instead, you allowed one of your brother warriors to be injured?!”
“No!” Larna’s gaze flew back to Grim’s. “No, my King! That was never my intention.”
“Yet that is what you did.” Grim dropped the injured hand and demanded, “Why did your manno send you to me, Larna?”
“Because you are the greatest, fittest, and most worthy warrior the Tornian Empire has ever had. To be trained by you brings honor to my bloodline.”
Grim didn’t reveal how shocked he was by Larna’s declaration. Yes, he knew there were many who wanted their males trained by House Luanda. More than he could possibly take. But he didn’t believe he deserved such an accolade. He was just a warrior, after all.