The War for Mare (The Fall of Man Book 3) by Jacqueline Druga

it?”
    “A life jacket. Just put it on.”
    “It has no sleeves. How can it be a jacket?”
I asked.
    “It’s just the name. It will keep you
protected in the water should you need to go in.”
    “A life… jacket. Is it yours?”
    “You can say so.”
    “You are giving me your life… jacket?”
    “Yep.”
    “Then I shall wear your life jacket
proudly.”
    “Good. You’ll look real cute.”
    I wasn’t familiar with what ‘real cute’
meant, but I assumed it was a compliment. I felt my face grow hot
and I wanted to do nothing but smile at Davis. His intentions with
me were becoming more apparent. First the clothing, the release,
the new home, and he was sharing his life jacket with me. I was
something new, but I was cured with a name like life Jacket. It
definitely was symbolic and part of some sort of human commitment
ritual. One I’d gladly take from Davis.

TWENTY-FIVE – VALA
     
    My knowledge of
conception was limited to the act that Marie described to me. There
was nothing about what she told me that was appealing. Yet, if I
wanted to be safe, to have the upper hand, I had to conceive a
child with Iry.
    There were no guarantees that the Savages
were indeed gathering under the leadership of Anubis and the queen.
My only assurance would be to see for myself, and the only way to
do that would to be with child.
    It was another means of entrapment. Again, I
was drawn in and captured by the Ancient world. I spent most of my
life living under their thumb, absorbing the knowledge they wanted
us to know, dreaming one day of making my escape and defeating
them. However, it seemed the only way to save mankind was to be a part of the Ancients. It was something I was not ready
for.
    As a Mare I learned I had unbelievable
gifts. The ability to see, to travel from my body, to fight like no
other warrior. My advantage was my mind. Anubis was stronger and
was controlling that. I hated that I was not in control of anything
anymore.
    My sister was out of my control, and I was
now wed to an Ancient.
    Twice Anubis had pulled me from my world
into his. Whether it was to taunt or mislead me, the fact remained
he did accomplish it.
    Real war with the Savages or not, the first
battle stone was cast the moment he drew me in.
    Actually, it was before that: when they took
my blood. If the queen went from Savage to upright with one taste,
it sickened me to think what would become of her if she had a
second dose.
    I had to be prepared for the fight.
    Unfortunately, the best armor for me was a
child I neither wanted, nor was ready for.
    How to even go about it was the question.
Iry seemed content to find another option. Run, escape, and get
somewhere far. But we were dealing with Anubis reaching to me from
a different plane, it didn’t matter where I went, he would find
me.
    I needed advice. Before I embarked on the
mating ritual with my husband, I needed to speak to someone. With
my mother and Marie both dead, and Susan now unequivocally an
enemy, I sought out a wise soul to speak with. Someone human.
    She looked full of wisdom like Marie,
although she wasn’t quite as old as most elders in the elder home.
I had seen her many times and she always was pleasant.
    “Thank you so much for making the time to
talk to me,” I told her. “I know you are busy with your work. So
you know now what my dilemma is?”
    “Let me see if I got this right. You want to
have a child with your husband but you don’t know what to do?”
    “No.”
    “Has anyone talked to you?”
    “My friend Marie told me things about the…
the act.”
    “So you haven’t consummated your marriage
yet?”
    “What is that?”
    “The act.”
    My eyes widened. “No.”
    “You need to do so to conceive a child,” she
said. “You obviously love your husband if you married him. Intimacy
should not be a problem.”
    I wanted to tell her that there was more to
the story.
    “Making love and being intimate can be a
wonderful experience when it is with someone you