Aleigha and Jada sat on the bed, side by side. Jada sobbed into Aleigha's shoulder, a renewed memory that her child had died during the procedure to take the residue out of her fetus.

Aleigha tried to be a good friend. Jada was like a sister. She had been since she first started training her with the bladed staff.

"Aleigha, Jada, come to the door!" a stern voice called from the isolation dorm's entrance. It was a guard with high-ranking insignia on his collar.

Both girls stood up slowly. One was actively sobbing, the other had tears falling silently down her cheeks. When they reached the isolation door, four guards stood waiting, flanking the high-ranking guard. Aleigha and Jada looked at each other before steeling themselves.

The barrier opened, and the guards rushed in and quickly bound them, not giving the girls time to react. Neither of the girls spoke nor fought the guards. They knew something was going on. They just didn't know what it was.

Aleigha and Jada were roughly pushed out of the dorm and toward the cells. Once there, they were stripped and placed in the light fabric of prisoners, then shoved roughly into a cell. The barrier quickly activated as they both fell to the floor from being pushed too hard.

Aleigha looked around the cell. She was surprised they put them in the same cell. After she stood up, she helped Jada to stand and gently guided her to a corner and sat down, letting her lean into her shoulder.

"I think we're too strong for them," Aleigha whispered. "I think something happened that scared them. Something that they think we will retaliate for. That's all I can come up with for why we're here. We didn't do anything to be thrown in here."

Jada, still sobbing, nodded. Her tears soaked the thin fabric of her clothing.

"My list of heads I'm going to take from shoulders is growing. Every guard that has touched us. Medic Kaul and Vorik," Aleigha hissed, continuing. "If I had a staff, we would be out of here, and they would all lose their heads."

Jada looked up at Aleigha, her eyes turning hard. "I want Kaul's," she sobbed. There was a steeliness to her voice. "I want Kaul's head on the end of my staff for everyone to see. He didn't even have emotion when he killed my baby. He didn't even care."

Aleigha smiled, remembering what she had done to Steve. "You can have his head; I'll cut his guts out of him. I'll let them spill onto the floor around him.

Jada nodded in satisfaction. She wanted to see him suffer. She wanted to take her time and let him suffer for as long as she could.

The cell darkened as time passed. Food was delivered on trays. Neither girl moved to eat. They stayed in the corner. Aleigha was against the wall, Jada in her arms, trying to comfort the girl's grief for her lost baby. Jada's sobs continued, unable to be comforted.

More time passed, and the trays were taken untouched. The guards didn't care that they hadn't eaten. In Ramesian society, prisoners meant nothing. They were there until the Council Leader decided to kill them. Aleigha wondered when Council Leader Vorik would decide to kill her and Jada. The biggest question she had, though, was why.

As the cell began to light up, a shadow passed in front of the barrier. Neither girl looked up to see who it was. They figured it was the guards doing their rounds.

When the shadow stayed at the cell front unmoving, it caused Aleigha to look up. It was Merrick.

Aleigha gently stood up, trying not to disturb Jada. She stumbled to Merrick, who was watching her with unreadable black eyes. She had never seen him look at her that way. It made her fearful of what might have happened. When she continued to look into his eyes, she realized what was wrong.

She couldn't stop her own tears from falling. The mate bond was still intact. It was fading, but it was still there, just barely. There was a barrier that prevented her from going to him. Although it was barred, there was also a plasma barrier that prevented moving between the bars.

"Merrick," she whispered. "I have missed you," she sobbed. "I love you so much."

The tears fell more rapidly. Merrick just watched her, saying nothing. His eyes remained cold, distant.

"Where is my baby?" she asked. She was afraid of the answer, but she needed to know. The last time she saw her son, the medic was taking him to the clinic. "Where is Finn?"

Merrick stood silently at the cell front, watching her.

"Please," she begged. "Where is my son?"

"I left him at home. Your sister is watching him," he said quietly. His voice was even. She couldn't detect any emotion in his tone.

"Why are we here?" Aleigha asked. "Why are Jada and I here? We've done nothing wrong. Why are we here?" she repeated.

Merrick shrugged, his demeanor changing from cold to cold hatred. "You left the dome and joined a group of humans who are against us," he snickered. "Jada is a threat."

"I didn't join them. I had to escape to get away from them. I went there to try to calm the situation. I didn't go to join them. I told you that in my letter before I left," she cried. Aleigha couldn't stop the tears from falling. Renewed sobs that she couldn't stop.

Merrick shrugged, uncaring. "It doesn't matter. You left. That's what matters."

Aleigha looked into his eyes. She could see the bond fading with each passing moment. They had been separated too long. They needed physical contact between the two of them to strengthen it again. That couldn't happen with the barrier preventing physical contact.

"I want to see my sister," she suddenly blurted. "Jada needs to see her mate too."

"If I feel like bringing them, I will. I don't believe I will. You two don't deserve it," he spat, then promptly turned and stormed out.

"We didn't do anything wrong!" she cried out. Her tears spilled down her face. "We didn't do anything wrong," she repeated quietly.

A deep resolution sunk into her gut. They had to escape. There was no future for either of them if they didn't escape. They would be executed sooner or later. They didn't need a reason to execute prisoners. The fact that they were prisoners was reason enough. It didn't matter that they didn't do anything wrong.

Aleigha leaned against the wall as her tears continued to fall. Merrick was long gone. The hall door slid open, and Orik rushed through. She watched him peer into each cell, looking for his mate.

Aleigha stumbled to Jada, her grief of losing her family hitting her hard. Her gut told her Merrick would never let her see her son again.

"Jada?" she whispered down at the sobbing girl. "Orik is here."

Jada jumped up, rushing to the front of the small cell, and eyed Orik, who was still frantically looking for her. "Orik?" she asked. "I'm here."

Orik stopped at the cell front. His eyes met Jada's. His head turned to the approaching guard. "I need to touch my mate. She is grieving for her child. She needs me," he told the guard.

The guard was Mikiel, Seeran's friend. He looked behind him and then quickly opened the cell. Jada flew into Orik's arms, her sobs renewed. They held each other for a long time.

Mikiel looked at Aleigha. He looked a little tense as he watched her slide down to the floor, her own tears falling.

She looked up at Mikiel. "Why am I here? Why is Jada here?" It was barely a whisper. "I want to see my sister Niki. I need to see her."

Before Mikiel could answer, the hall door slid open, and Council Leader Vorik came down the hall. Jada, Orik, and Aleigha stiffened.

Vorik studied Jada and Orik for a few moments. Jada didn't try anything. A sigh of relief left his lips.

"Orik, you can take your mate home," he stated, then looked at Aleigha. His eyes going hard. "You will remain."

Turning, he walked away. The door to the hall closed behind him.

Aleigha looked up, her eyes hard at the door that closed Vorik out. "He took my family; he took my freedom. He will die for this," she hissed. "I will take his head for what he's done to me. I don't care if his mate is like a sister; he will die for what he's done to me."

Mikiel looked at Aleigha, "They will execute you for trying," he stated quietly.

Aleigha's head snapped toward Mikiel. "It doesn't matter. They're going to execute me anyway. It doesn't even matter that I didn't do anything wrong. I did nothing, yet I'm here. They will still execute me just because they made me a prisoner. As long as I succeed in killing him, there is no reason left for me to live."

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