The pain of a bright light shot through her eyelids. Aleigha opened her eyes slowly. She was tied to a bed in the med clinic. Her wrists and ankles were tightly bound to the bed.

When she realized she had failed, tears fell down her cheeks. She couldn't help it. She would have to try again. She wasn't supposed to be found. She had thought it was all over.

Niki stood at the foot of her bed. Her eyes were fixed on her, fear in her eyes.

Aleigha turned away from her sister, not being able to bear the look on her sister's face. "Who saved me?" she asked. It was barely a whisper. Her throat was raw from the makeshift noose.

Niki stared at her sister, the dark purple bruise from the rope around Aleigha's neck, from the pressure of the noose. "The guard found you when he did his rounds," she told her. "Why would you do something so stupid?"

Aleigha's tears fell. She was having a hard time speaking. "I no longer have a mate. I was imprisoned for trying to save us. I don't know what has changed. I can't live without Merrick loving me. I saw hatred in his eyes. I don't know why, but the bond is severed. I don't want to be here. I can't be here. Not anymore.

Niki's face paled. "How do you know if the mating bond with Merrick is severed?"

The tears fell more freely. "I saw hatred in his eyes. I could see it had severed. He walked away without saying anything. I only saw hatred. There was nothing else."

Niki, stiff with her own grief from her sister's suicide attempt, looked at her sister. "Don't do anything. I want to talk to Merrick and Vorik." She told her, then stormed out of the clinic.

Once gone, Medic Kaul entered the room, standing beside her bed. Aleigha turned to Kaul. His features were neutral. There was no hatred, but no love or friendship either.

Aleigha turned to Kaul. "End it for me. Please," she pleaded. "I have a right to die."

Medic Kaul looked at her. There was no emotion whatsoever. "No," he said firmly, checking her bindings, and then exited the room.

The tears fell further. She was surprised there were even any tears. She was severely dehydrated.

Once Kaul had disappeared, she was left alone. Her limbs ached from being tied down. She thought about how she could end her suffering. She knew she couldn't stop eating; they would force a tube down her throat and feed her. Because she was bound, they might anyway.

She didn't know what to do. She wasn't supposed to survive. She thought she had made sure of it. Apparently not.

Nearly two hours later, Niki walked in with Vorik beside her. His features were stern. Aleigha looked at Vorik; tears fell down her face. She swallowed, not sure what to say.

Vorik stared at Aleigha. "Why would you try something so stupid?" he asked. It was a repeat of her sister's words.

Aleigha's tears fell; she couldn't speak. It took a few moments to collect herself. After several moments Aleigha finally spoke. It was more of a plea. "Kill me," she pleaded quietly. "I can't live with a mate that no longer loves me. He won't even let me see my son. Please," she pleaded again. "Kill me. I can't take it."

As she spoke, Niki's face grew paler. She didn't like her very strong sister talking that way.

Aleigha continued. "I spent three weeks trying to return but couldn't. They watched me. I was a prisoner. I wanted to come home but couldn't. Now that I'm here. I want my suffering to end. I can handle a lot, but not this," she sobbed. Her voice shook with each syllable. Pools of tears accumulated on the bed beside her on each side.

Vorik looked at her in shock. He wasn't used to Aleigha being so fragile.

"Please," she sobbed, pleading with him.

Vorik couldn't take seeing her that way. His face paled; all the color had drained from it. He turned and left the clinic. He needed air.

Niki came up behind Vorik, ready to argue. "You're not going to give her what she wants, are you?"

Vorik shook his head slowly. "No. I won't kill her." He told Niki. There was raw pain in his own eyes. "I will not end her life for her."

"Why does she think Merrick's mate bond is broken? She said he looked at her in anger and hatred. She said he wouldn't let her see her child," Niki continued.

Vorik's face paled further. "I don't know. Merrick hasn't said anything about it. I have to talk to him." He told her, turning abruptly and disappearing around a corner. He had stalked away with purpose.

Niki walked back into the clinic. Medic Kaul was pulling a feeding tube from a compartment and heading for Aleigha.

"You're going to force-feed her?" Niki asked. "You're going to make her worse." Niki was about ready to attack Kaul. She didn't want to force her sister to endure the feeding tube. Both Mia and Hope had told her it was painful.

"She's a prisoner. She can't eat while bound. She has no say," he stated coldly, storming into Aleigha's room.

Niki watched as Medic Kaul hooked up a machine and forced Aleigha's mouth open, shoving the tube down her throat. Aleigha choked as it passed through her throat and into her stomach. The machine pumped nutrients into her stomach. Aleigha still struggled.

In anger. Niki pulled her bladed staff and held it to Kaul's throat. "Why the fuck is she a prisoner?" she demanded to know. "She had to escape the camp to come home, but everyone is treating her like a prisoner. Why?" she demanded angrily.

Medic Kaul's features were unchanged. "She was brought to me as a prisoner; that is how she will be treated," he stated evenly.

Niki's eyes narrowed. "My sister has saved your life more than once. Hurt her again, and I will slit your throat myself. I don't even know why she's being treated as a prisoner. She's not one. She hasn't done anything wrong."

Kaul pulled the comm link with one hand, trying to avoid the blade at his throat, and called Council leader Vorik on the comm link. "Sir, we have a situation in the clinic that requires your presence," he stated evenly.

Only moments later, Vorik stormed in. The first thing he saw was Aleigha gagging on a feeding tube, then Niki holding a bladed staff to Kaul's throat. "Take it out," Niki ordered Kaul. "It's hurting her. She's choking on it."

Medic Kaul looked to Vorik, who nodded for him to listen. He quickly took the tube out. Blood poured out of Aleigha's mouth and pooled onto the white sheets of her bed. Without the feeding tube, she started choking on her own blood instead.

Vorik rushed to her side and untied her bonds, and made her sit up. "Scan her," he ordered Kaul. "Feeding tubes aren't supposed to cause bleeding."

Kaul pulled a scanner off the shelf and scanned Aleigha. His face suddenly paled. "She has internal bleeding." He spoke aloud. "The tube ripped through the walls of her stomach."

Niki shoved the tip of her blade into Kaul's throat. A small trickle of blood near his Adam's apple dripped down his neck. "Fix it," she ordered.

Everyone could see that Niki was in a panic for her sister.

Medic Kaul looked to Council Leader Vorik who nodded. "Save her."

Medic Kaul backed away from Niki, then pulled some devices out of a cabinet and started working on Aleigha while Vorik held her upright. Blood continued to pour from her mouth.

Niki turned to Vorik, her eyes in slights. She was angry. "Why is my sister treated like a prisoner. She has been trying to escape that camp for three weeks. I can see the injury on her head. The guard hit her. I'm going to kill him for that, by the way. I know she used the Kreq shuttle to try to escape. I also know she ended up killing the camps leader and second in command. I want to know why the fuck is my sister a prisoner?" Niki demanded.

Before Vorik could answer her, Merrick stormed in. Niki pulled a second blade, whipping it toward him, stopping in his tracks to avoid it severing his head. Niki kept one blade on Kaul and the second one now on Merrick.

Aleigha was covered in blood, her face growing paler with each passing second. She was losing too much. Niki looked at Merrick, who seemed unbothered by Aleigha's bloody appearance.

Niki's brow raised. "Did you see what she wrote in her own blood?" she hissed at Merrick. Merrick ignored her, looking at Aleigha.

Seeing his unconcern for the one that was supposed to be his mate and mother of his child, Niki did a sidekick, throwing Merrick against a wall. She thrust the blades forward, causing her blades to scissor at his throat now. "Did you or did you not read what she wrote in her own blood before she tried to kill herself because of you?" Niki growled.

Merrick turned to Niki. "Move aside," he said coldly. His eyes were narrowed in anger.

Niki sneered. "I'll move aside once your head is severed from your body," she spat.

"Move aside," Merrick growled, his anger growing.

Aleigha suddenly convulsed. Her face started to turn blue from lack of oxygen. Her skin was growing cold. Kaul stepped back. His face was unreadable.

Niki looked at Merrick, forcing her to look her in the eye. "If she dies, you die." Then turned to Kaul. "And you too."

Vorik looked at Kaul. "Save her," he ordered.

Kaul pulled a breathing tube from a shelf and inserted it carefully into her throat, turning on the machine that gave her air and pumped her heart.

Tears fell down Aleigha's face as she looked up at Vorik. "Please, let me die," she pleaded through all the tubing. Vorik looked her in the eyes, realizing that she could no longer see. "Please," she pleaded again. "I can't live without my mate or son. I can't be a prisoner for trying to save us. I tried to escape, but I couldn't," she sobbed. "They watched my every move. I couldn't escape. I tried. I tried so many times."

Vorik watched as her unseeing eyes turned cloudy.

Vorik turned to Merrick. "Bring her child. I don't think she has much time left," he whispered. His own tears fell down his face. Looking at Niki, "Let him bring her child. She needs to see her child."

Niki lowered her blades from Merrick's neck. He quickly left the clinic. Bloody tears fell from Aleigha's eyes.

Moments later, Merrick reentered with Aleigha's infant son in his arms. Niki stopped him with her blade, then took the infant from him and took him to Aleigha's side.

Vorik took the child from Niki, holding it close between him and Aleigha. He grasped her hand and set it gently on her infant. "Your child," he whispered to her.

They all watched while Aleigha stroked the child gently. The tears fell thicker. "Vorik?" she asked weakly. "Take care of my baby when I'm gone. It has to be you."

Her hand fell limply to the side as she wheezed. Merrick stood by in shock, watching.

Vorik looked up at Kaul. "If you can save her life, do it," he ordered.

Kaul nodded slowly, taking Aleigha's cold body from Vorik. He set her gently on the table and began to treat her.

Niki looked at her sister, her own tears falling. She turned to Vorik. "I will not live without my sister," she stated in a broken speech. "If she dies, I don't want to live either."

Niki walked away without saying another word. Vorik watched her go before turning his attention to the unconscious Aleigha.

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