Fleet Commander Vorik scanned the room, scanning the faces of everyone who lived inside the bunker. They ranged from anger, hatred, and disgust. Even those like him were giving him looks that were filled with hate and disgust. He knew they were right to feel that way. He was expecting it. This group seemed to be a very tight-knit group. It was what he found next that he wasn't expecting.

As he scanned the faces around him, his eyes narrowed in on one of the girls. It was a young human. Hatred in her hazel eyes. Her arms were folded over her chest; her eyes narrowed at him. Her gaze was shooting daggers as if she could slice him up with a single look. Emotionally, that was exactly what she was doing.

Fleet Commander Vorik knew immediately that this particular female was his mate, and because of what he had done to Shadick's mate, his own mate hated him. He could see it in her eyes. His face paled as he looked at her. She was pretty with brown hair and hazel eyes. He wanted to go to her, but he knew that if he did, she would not accept him, not after what he did.

His men were stacking supplies inside the room that one of them called their control room. He had brought a medic with him who was standing by, patiently waiting to scan each of the members of the small group. The medic was watching the couples with interest.

Sighing inwardly, Fleet Commander Vorik tried to ignore their angry stares. "We brought com bracelets for everyone in the event of an emergency or the need for more supplies," Commander Vorik stated. "The medic here needs to ensure that everyone is healthy and does not need medical attention. He will only be scanning you unless there is a need otherwise." He added. Then, remembering the start of the construction of the city dome, he continued. "There will be a lot of noise outside. We are starting construction on a city dome in a few days. It's possible that it will begin even sooner. Don't be alarmed when you start hearing it."

With one last glance at his mate, letting his eyes linger for just a moment, he turned and stiffly left for the shuttle. He had lost his mate before even finding her, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Once the Fleet Commander had exited the bunker, everyone waited quietly for his men to finish what they were doing. No one moved. They waited in silence, not wanting to leave any of the Fleet Commander's men alone. The medic stood against the wall, still glancing around at all the mixed couples. It was somewhat of a shock to see so many fated pairs. It had become extremely rare in their race.

Taking a step forward, he looked around him. "I need to scan everyone," the medic finally stated, as he stepped forward. "I have orders to ensure that everyone is healthy with no underlying medical issues that need tending to."

Alice folded her arms, eyeing the medic. She suddenly snorted. "We might as well let him do his job so he can get the hell out of here," she stated, walking up to the medic. "Do your job, scan me, get it over with."

Trying not to react to the human girl's rudeness, the medic pulled his scanner out of his bag and scanned Alice, watching the screen intently. He suddenly frowned. "You have an infection," he stated.

Alice backed away. She already knew she had an issue, but wasn't sure what the alien medic would do about it. "I'm fine; it will go away," she shot back, walking away from him.

Jamie watched as she left the room, wondering what infection she had, then walked up to the medic. "Go ahead, you can scan me." He was trying not to be rude.

The medic scanned Jamie, watching the small screen. After he was satisfied, he backed away and waited for someone else to allow him to scan them. Everyone took their turn, even Nisa and Shelia. Alice was the only one with a concern.

After the medic was finished, he tried again. He looked over at Alice with concern. "You need medical attention," he pleaded. "You have an infection that needs to be remedied."

Alice stood straight, her arms folded. "Remedied? Seriously?" Sarcasm dripped with each syllable as she eyed the medic.

The medic frowned, not sure what to say or do. He had never encountered a patient like her.

Jamie, trying to get the guy out of the bunker, used the only way he knew how. He knew that the medic wouldn't leave until he followed his commander's order perfectly. He was a medical officer under a military command. All they seem to know is to follow orders. "Explain what you intend to do about her infection?" Jamie asked him calmly. His tone was neutral.

"I need to take a small blood and tissue sample. I need to study it to find out what to do," he tried to explain. He looked over at Alice. "Your infection is similar to one of ours," he continued. "Your physiology is different, so I need to study it to come up with a treatment."

Shelia heard this and decided to intervene. "What is it similar to?" she asked the medic. Her voice was calm, pleasant.

The medic blushed, his face turning a darker shade of green. "It is an infection of liquid waste," he stated.

Alice looked at the blushing medic in disbelief. She couldn't help it. She burst out laughing. "I have a urinary tract infection?" she asked.

Shelia turned to Alice. "Yes, I believe that is what he is saying. If it is painful to relieve your liquid waste, then yes. That is what he is saying."

Alice continued to laugh. Shelia's words made her laugh even harder. "Yeah, it hurts to pee," she said, still trying not to laugh but unable to stop. "Liquid waste? Really?" she asked, bursting into more laughter. Laughing so hard, she was doubling over, grasping her stomach.

Jamie, trying not to laugh as well, even he was finding the situation hilarious. "Go," he ordered the medic. "She should be fine. It's common, and we already know what to do about it."

The medic frowned. He narrowed his eyes as he scanned the room before he stalked out in frustration. Jamie closed the door behind him, then started laughing.

Once they forced themselves to stop laughing and sober up, they all quietly went into Carrie and Shadick's room. Carrie was still sobbing uncontrollably while Shadick tried to comfort her.

They had not been told what had happened when Shadick and Carrie were taken into custody. The only thing they knew was that she had been pregnant, and the truth serum she was injected with killed her child.

Once everyone was in the room, Shadick lifted his head, looking briefly at everyone in the room. He began to tell them what had happened.

"As soon as we were taken to the ship, Carrie was taken to the med bay. They examined her using the same scanner that the medic brought with him. When he scanned her, he found a fetus that was only a week old," he began.

"After that, we were taken to the cells and given the truth serum on the Fleet Commander's order. I warned him it could be bad for Carrie and our unborn child. I was bound, so there was nothing I could do to stop it. He didn't listen and ordered her to be injected with the serum anyway, not caring for her safety.

"When I came out of the influence of the serum, I realized she was no longer in the room. When I asked where she was, they told me that her body had reacted negatively to the serum and that she was taken to the med bay. No one would explain to me what the reaction was.

"I didn't find out until just before we were brought back here that she almost died from the serum and that the serum killed our unborn child. Carrie is no longer pregnant," Shadick explained. "That is why she is so upset. If the Fleet Commander had listened to me, Carrie would be fine, and she would still be pregnant."

Shelia shook her head in disbelief. "They don't even inject our kind with the serum if pregnant. I don't understand why he would order it in the first place."

"I didn't resist. I took the serum willingly. My concern was for Carrie. She knows the same things that I do, so there should not have been a problem. He didn't listen, and we paid dearly for it," Shadick stated, shaking his head.

Joe looked between Carrie and Shadick. Shadick's face was pale. He was just as upset as Carrie, only he was holding it in. Mostly to be strong for his mate. "What can we do for you?" he asked.

Shadick looked down at Carrie. "Give her time and let her rest," he stated quietly. "It's going to take both to get through this."

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