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~ SASHA ~

"You can\'t meet them like this," Nick said a minute later after he\'d finished laughing, his voice quiet, but firm.

"Meet who?"

"The decision makers."

Shit. She\'d forgotten about that. She grimaced and took another drink from the glass. Nick stared down at her but did step back so she had more space. She was grateful. It gave her a moment to think.

"Actually," she said after a moment, "if anything this has just convinced me I need to talk to them more."

Nick\'s eyes narrowed. "How so?"

"Because they\'re the only ones who can let me get the females out of this hellhole," she said, meeting his eyes with a lot more courage than she felt.

Nick sighed like he was disappointed. "You\'re not seeing this clearly at all."

"Yes, I am."

"No," he said pointedly, "You\'re not. You need to understand that having them here, using them for experimentation is what\'s keeping them alive."

"How can you say that? Did you not see those females in that second apartment? They are falling apart at the seams, Nick. You\'re killing them! And I\'m guessing your domesticated Chimera might be a little healthier because they aren\'t being haunted by a missing bond, but there\'s something desperately wrong there too. You\'re killing these women!"

"They aren\'t women, they\'re females."

"Who cares what word we use—you\'re killing these people!"

"They aren\'t pe—"

"Nick, for fuck\'s sake. They are intelligent beings with feeling and hearts and emotions, and they\'re going to die if they stay here!"

"They\'re going to die if they don\'t stay here. So how long do you want to keep them alive?"

Sasha\'s head jerked back. "What?"

"I\'m trying to tell you, Sasha, those females are only alive at all because they\'re needed. You can\'t forget the goal here: The goal is to improve the entire human race. Project Abraham is Zev, but Zev is only the beginning. Once we figure out how to make babies that have that blend, once we can get humans reproducing, the entire world changes. You realize that, right? Right now the men I work for believe those females are the link between what Zev is, and what we are. If you steal them away, or convince my bosses that they aren\'t needed… they\'ll be killed. It\'s that simple. They are expensive and time consuming. And as long as they\'re providing hope that we\'ll get where we\'re going, they\'re safe. But the minute you remove them from the equation, there\'s no more reason to keep them alive."

Sasha\'s jaw went slack.

Then Nick moved to checkmate. "The same is true for you, you know?"

Sasha blinked. "What?"

Nick folded his arms. "The reason you\'re here, the reason you\'re alive, is because you provide hope. The project is now in phase two. You\'ve bonded with Zev. It\'s time to see if you\'re the doorway we need into phase three."

She recoiled in horror. "If you think you\'re going to put me in the breeding arena—"

"No, Sasha. Geez. Zev being in the breeding arena was a test—not just to see if he could get them pregnant, but to see if he could form the bond. But now he\'s formed the bond with you. So the next step is to see if you\'re two for two. But that\'s where things get tricky for you."

"How?"

He leaned in. "Because if you can. If you do? And your baby is everything they think it\'s going to be… we don\'t need the Chimeran females. At all. The game plan shifts. Now we need the males. It all circles back, Sasha. As soon as we know the foolproof way forward, any other players that aren\'t necessary to that process… they become an unnecessary drain on resources and time."

"How can you talk that way about living beings?" Sasha whispered. "You can walk down that hallway and have a conversation with those females! You can connect with them! Make friends with them! They can have lives and mates and families. How can you act like they\'re nothing but… but… broodmares?"

"Because if I don\'t, this place will kill me in a week," Nick snarled, then snapped his mouth closed as if he hadn\'t meant to say the words. He shook his head.

Sasha was stunned. Was it true? Did he have a conscience he was ignoring? Or was it all a ploy to get her to trust him.

"This is what I meant about finding common goals, Sasha. It\'s not as simple as you think. Because if your common goals don\'t include another piece of the puzzle, that piece goes in the trash. So… don\'t be so quick to decide you\'re getting the females out of here. My advice is to focus on you and Zev, and your safety as a couple. The rest… you can work that out later."

"No," she spat. "No. I am not going to sit here, knowing what these people are going through and just… sit here!"

"Then you\'re going to die, and Zev\'s going to be heartbroken, and they\'re going to decide he\'s useless, and he\'ll die too, and you\'ve defeated the program, but saved no one, because without him, the rest are done. We start over.

"You want out of here? You want to be with Zev? Great, then you\'re the key. It\'s all in your hands, Sasha."

"How can you even say that?"

"Because if you\'re pregnant, you hold all the cards. If you\'re pregnant that\'s the most precious commodity these men have ever encountered. You get a lot of power, then. You get a lot of sway. Maybe… maybe even enough to save some other lives. Who knows?"

Sasha swallowed. "You think if I get pregnant they\'ll let me demand the other females? Back in Thana?"

Nick shrugged. "Who knows? I know that\'s more likely to be successful than any two-bit plan you\'re trying to hash up to get into this place and steal them. So… maybe?"

"No, Nick. No maybe. If I\'m meeting these men, I need to know exactly what will work and how to get them on my side. Tell me: If I\'m pregnant, what will it take? What would tempt them to free the females back into Thana?"

Nick regarded her thoughtfully for a long moment. Sasha held her breath. Then he raised his hands as if he was surrendering. "A straight exchange," he said.

"Of what?"

He held her gaze, and his went sharp. "Your baby for their lives. That\'s the only thing I can see that would tempt them."

Absolutely. Fucking.. Not.