Chapter 48 Healing Touch

Chapter 48 Healing Touch

Iris Vale stood at the window of the mountain lodges master bedroom. It was dimly lit by a bedside lamp. The lamp cast a glow over everything. The snow fell outside in curtains. It was silent and peaceful.. Iris did not feel peaceful. She felt like there was a storm raging inside her chest.

Her body hurt in places. She had a graze on her arm from a gunfight. Her muscles were sore from running and fighting. Her heart felt like it had been hurt badly. Iris thought about the children. There were ten of them. Maybe eleven if they counted Theo. Theo was fighting somewhere. He was in Victor Langs clutches. Maybe there were more children. The numbers kept growing. Each number was a weight on her soul.

Lucien entered the room quietly. He had just checked on the children in the nursery wing. He looked tired. The stitches on his side were pulling tight. He had changed into a black shirt.. There was already a stain where the wound had reopened. Luciens eyes found Iris immediately. They were soft with love and guilt. He crossed the room. Pulled her back against his chest.

Iris felt the heat of his body through her clothes. It made her feel grounded. Lucien murmured against her hair. "You should be resting " he said. "The children are asleep. Amara gave them sedatives to quiet their dreams. Grace is watching over them with Sophia."

Iris leaned back into Lucien. She closed her eyes as his arms wrapped around her waist. His hands were protective over her stomach. It was like he was thinking about their future. "I cannot rest " she whispered. "I see Lilas face when the clone spoke with her voice.. Theos empty shell in the body bag. How do we keep going Lucien? How do we keep fighting when every victory feels like another loss?"

Lucien turned her to face him. He cupped her face with his hands. His thumbs brushed away her tears. "Because they are our children " he said. "Every single one of them.. Cloned.. Stolen. They call us Mommy and Daddy. I failed them once. I will not fail them again."

Iris saw the vulnerability in Luciens voice. It cracked something inside her. She rose on her toes. Kissed him. The kiss was slow and deep. It was a reaffirmation of life. Then it deepened with hunger. Lucien groaned low in his throat. His hands slid down to cup her ass. He lifted her effortlessly as he backed her toward the bed.

They fell onto the mattress together. Clothes were shed in a tangle of limbs. Luciens mouth was everywhere. Iris arched into him. Fingers threaded through his hair. She pulled him closer as heat pooled low in her belly. When his mouth found the apex of her thighs she moaned loudly. Lucien devoured her with strokes. The pleasure built fast and sharp. It was an escape from the terror outside.

Iris came hard. Lucien moved up her body. He slid into her in one thrust. They moved together with need. Luciens strokes were powerful. Each one was a claim against the darkness trying to take their family. Iris wrapped her legs around his waist. She met every thrust. Nails raked down his back as another orgasm crashed over her. Lucien followed with a groan. He spilled inside her. He held her like she was the real thing left in their crumbling world.

They stayed joined afterward. Bodies were. Breathing in sync. Lucien brushed hair from her face. His eyes were soft with wonder and pain. "You are my weakness " he whispered. "The one thing that makes me human.. I would not trade it for all the power in the world."

Iris kissed him softly. She traced the scar on his jaw. "Then lets use that weakness to win. For all of our children."

The intimate moment shattered with a knock on the door. Captain Reyess voice was urgent. "We have movement on the northern ridge. It is not Victors signature. This is something. They are not attacking yet. Just watching.. We just received a package at the outer gate."

The package was a wooden box delivered by drone. Inside lay a single lock of hair tied with a pink ribbon. It was Theos hair. There was a note: Theo misses his mother. Come get him before we finish what Victoria started.. The Continuum

The family gathered in the war room. The children were huddled together on the couches. Their small faces were pale with fear. Elias tried to comfort Lila.. His own hands shook. The newborns fussed in the carrier. Grace sat quietly. Her small body was tense.

Dr. Amara Soto opened the box with trembling hands. "The hair is real. Fresh. They have him.. There's a data chip."

The chip contained a video. Theo appeared on the screen. He was strapped to a chair in a room. His small face was streaked with tears. "Mommy. Daddy. I'm still fighting.. The cold lady says I have to choose. Save me before midnight. I love you."

The screen went dark.

Lucien roared. He slammed his fist into the table. "I will burn them all."

The real twist came from the second file on the chip. It was a report. Theo was not the one they had taken. During the chaos at the mill they had extracted DNA from the newborns. Rose, Lily and Violet had been cloned in vitro. Three tiny lives were growing in artificial wombs somewhere in Victors facility.

Seventeen.

The number was a curse. Iris felt the room spin. Lucien caught her as her knees buckled. He pulled her into his arms as the children cried. The emotional breakdown was complete. Parents were sobbing openly in front of their babies. The weight of seventeen lives was crushing them.

As the family held each other in the light a new transmission arrived. It was from the template, the thirteenth child. She spoke with a voice that was both ancient and childlike. "I can save them. All of them.. I need one thing in return. Let me stay. As your daughter. The one you never got to hold. Accept me. I will destroy The Continuum from the inside."

The choice was impossible. Iris looked at Lucien. Both of them were bleeding, exhausted and utterly human, in their terror and love. Lucien pulled her close. He kissed her forehead as the children gathered around them. "We accept.. On our terms. No more chains. No lies. Just family."