Serena's POV:

The day went by fairly slowly. Darien got more irritated with each new arrival and he made sure that I remained close to him at all times. He even leaned against the doorframe of the bathroom door when I had to go in there.

He was starting to come across as more than just a bit paranoid, although I knew he didn't really trust any of the Tarulk who were arriving. Most of them had retreated upstairs due to Darien's unrelenting glares, although a handful hung out in the kitchen.

They would be gone this evening and our flight was in three days, so I just had to be patient. Nick would be remaining here since he kept this large house as a kind of travel stop or rest place for Tarulk. Alex would be leaving with the others since his siblings were still back on his planet.

Alex was the only one Darien didn't seem concerned about. I wasn't entirely sure why, but Darien trusted him around me. Alex understood the soulbond the best and accepted me simply because I was Darien's soulmate. It did give me someone else to talk with and he had quite a few funny stories.

The doorbell rang and Nick went to answer it. I couldn't hear what was said, but Darien swiftly rose to his feet with me in his arms. Wind blew past me with his speed for a second before he put me on the floor behind the couch. He leaned down to whisper, "It's the police. Stay down."

I remained sitting on the floor where I was out of sight of anyone at the door. Alex appeared in my sight as he took a seat in the chair beside me. I knew Darien had asked him to guard me. Nick called, "Hey Darien, the door is for you."

"Who is it?" Darien played along like the perfect actor. Nick didn't answer him and I heard the door creak open further, allowing whoever was there a clear view of the room. They would be able to see the living room with a few Tarulk present, but I was hidden from their sight.

"Is something wrong, officer?"

"We need you to come down to the station with us as we verify your identity. It should only take an hour of your time."

"This is rather sudden. Can I ask why?"

"You have probably noticed the similarities between yourself and a high profile kidnapper on the news. We need to ensure that you are not him."

I was surprised that they were here. There was no way that the paramedic could have known where we were going since we were on foot when we left the immediate vicinity. How they had found us was a mystery unless someone else had seen Darien leave this house when he had been coming for me. That explanation seemed far more likely.

"I did notice, sir, but I assure you, I have never kidnapped anyone." Well, he was honest. I had gone with him willingly. Despite the situation, a thread of amusement appeared through my worry.

"That is what we need to verify. It will only take an hour and we will provide a document to prevent any other officers from apprehending you if someone else stops you. If you don't come willingly, we have a warrant for your arrest, and will also do a background check on everyone we find in the house and on the premises."

If they searched the house, they would find me. I had no good alibi as to why I was hiding behind a couch either. I knew Darien didn't want to leave me, but he wanted me in the hands of the police even less.

He sighed gustily and I knew he was irritated, "As you can see, I have company. Are you sure this is only going to take an hour?"

"Yes, sir. We will make it our top priority."

"Very well. But I will get my friend here to drive me. I do not want to sully my reputation if someone takes a picture of me in the back of a police car when I have done nothing wrong. Which station are we going to?"

"Crestwood station. You can follow the police car and I will drive behind you, although normally we do not allow such concessions."

"We will come, but we know our rights. I happen to know some of the best lawyers in the country from our golf tournaments, so I advise you to step lightly."

The rustling of light jackets sounded before the door closed. I remained where I was in case they had forgotten something. Several minutes later, I tilted my head at Alex as a silent question. He nodded, "You are safe to come out now. The vehicles are gone. I will warn you if anyone pulls up."

I stood up and came out from behind the couch, although I simply took a seat on the couch I had hidden behind. The chair Alex was in and the couch were right beside one another. Alex was alert and taking his guard duty seriously as he kept an eye on both me and the others in the room. The others kept their distance as they had before.

Alex reassured me, "He won't be gone long. Those fake IDs are as good as the originals. Nick had made sure that Darien had several alibis for the time when you were supposedly kidnapped."

That was a relief. I wasn't sure what I would do if they tried to keep Darien there in a jail cell, although chances were that he wouldn't remain there for any longer than he wanted to. "That is good. Does it really count as kidnapping if I went willingly?"

He chuckled and shook his head, "The only problem is that they don't know that, and Darien would lose it if someone closeted you away to interview you and ensure that you hadn't been brainwashed."

I snorted in good humor, "I hate to break it to you, but the soulbond might actually be guilty of brainwashing and it is quite good at influencing both of us. Think about it for a moment, this is the first time I have actually sat on an actual piece of furniture in this room."

He was amused, "That doesn't surprise me with such a new bond, especially considering how many times it has been disturbed. I also doubt that you overly mind him doing it."

I smiled at the ceiling at the truth of his statement, "No. The mate bond makes it impossible to object."

Alex examined me, "The mate bond should have settled enough that being apart for a few hours shouldn't overly bother you. How is it feeling?"

I considered it, "I do miss him already, but it isn't painful or overly distracting. He just left a few minutes ago, so I guess we will see how it goes."

He nodded, "Let me know if it starts bothering you. If it bothers you, then it will be affecting Darien's mood."

I nodded, that made sense. "The bond is still quiet, it seems to have settled a fair bit today. I can tell he is moving further away, but the bond isn't twisting or pulling more strongly than usual."

Alex looked at me in shock, "You can tell his location from the bond? Do you actually feel the bond twist or know it is doing so from how it affects your own emotions?"

I blinked in surprise and pointed towards the one wall, "I can tell he is in that direction and that he is getting further away from how the pull is changing, but that is it. I am pretty sure that I am feeling the bond. It seems to twist whenever Darien gets worked up or angry, or if I get scared."

Alex was still looking at me in surprise, "I hadn't realized that you felt the bond so strongly. I thought you only felt the usual mate attraction and separation pain. Did you ever mention this to Darien?"

I shook my head, "From how he described it, I thought it was normal so I didn't mention it. Is it that unusual?"

Alex nodded slowly, "Most Tarulk soulmates feel the intense attraction, pull, and separation pain. Fewer than quarter of them can actually feel it as an actual entity as you seem to be describing it, and even fewer can tell the direction of their soulmate. Darien said he could feel the bond twist, but he wasn't able to sense direction or distance."

"So what does that mean?"

He looked at me solemnly, "It means that the soulbond is even stronger than we had suspected, which partially explains why Darien reacts the way he does."

Alex was suddenly on his feet and between me and an approaching Tarulk that I hadn't noticed. Alex crouched defensively and growled at Alfred. Alfred held up his hands in a peaceful gesture as he stopped. "I mean no harm. Nick just sent me a text, Darien is asking how the human is doing."

Alex didn't leave his fighting crouch, "She has a name and it is Serena. You better let Nick know if Darien catches him calling her a human like that in his texts, that he will likely regret it."

Alfred nodded and took a seat on a chair without getting any closer to my bodyguard. He pulled out a cellphone and looked at me, waiting for a response.

"I am fine. You can let him know that the police all left."

He nodded as he swiftly made and sent the message. His phone dinged with a new message, and he read it before looking at me, "Darien is just going into the station now, so he will be incommunicado until he is done. Do you want anything to eat while we wait?"

I shook my head, "Thank you, but I am not hungry." Even if I had been, I didn't want to know what several of them might do to my food. Sure I could purify it, but the thought of someone spitting in my food still made it unappetizing.

I heard the garden door open and my eyes widened as Tristan and Clair cautiously came inside. Alex snarled at them as a dagger somehow appeared in his hands. I didn't even know that he had been wearing a dagger. I had never seen a dagger in person before, and the presence of the sharp blade as well as the unwelcome duo had me shifting nervously in my seat.

They slowed down, but didn't stop their approach as they watched Alex warily. Clair spoke, "We just wanted to apologize to Serena for what we did, and Darien wouldn't even let us inside."

Tristan stopped with a look of disinterest, he was clearly not going to participate in any apology, and was likely just here to keep Alex from attacking Clair without provocation, but Clair took a few more steps forward. Alex snarled as he swiped his dagger through the air as a warning, clearly in no mood to let anyone near me. Clair stepped back even though she had been well out of reach, looking at Alex in surprise.

Clair decided that this was as close as Alex would let her come and she looked at me with sad eyes, "I wanted to tell you how sorry I am for what we did. It wasn't right. The only reason we even considered it was because we knew Darien would get you and these two out unharmed. I just want to apologize for my actions before we leave. I hope you can forgive me."

All of the Tarulk on this level were watching in curiosity or confusion. I really wished that Clair had skipped this apology. Why couldn't she have just left a letter? It seemed a bit much to forgive her, although I had always been the forgiving type. I didn't trust her and I just wanted to escape this uncomfortable conversation.

I nodded slowly, "I forgive you. Although I don't agree with what you did. You knew that the research center wouldn't release them and there was no way to predict how the scientists would have behaved."

She shrugged, "There was no other way. But we knew how Darien would react. He wouldn't leave you in there and nothing in that place could stop him."

That was beside the point. Those scientists could have restrained me differently and used my welfare to control Darien. Clearly, she did not see things from my angle, but life was like that. People always saw things differently. There was no sense in arguing simply because I didn't agree with her. Some arguments just weren't worth continuing, and I didn't really want to continue this conversation, so I remained silent. Clair realized that I had nothing to say in response to that.

She sighed and looked at her feet with an almost pained expression, "I hope you can forgive me again."

I gave her an odd look, suddenly uneasy, "For what?"

Alfred and Tristan suddenly lunged at Alex and managed to wrestle the knife away from him as several others quickly jumped in to help subdue him. I scrambled off of the couch as I backed away from the snarling and growling group on the floor. Even with five against one, they were having a hard time restraining Alex.

I was so focused on them that I didn't notice Clair had circled around the group and had gotten behind me until she grabbed my shoulders and put a cloth over my mouth. My fighting training once more deserted me as I futilely struggled against her strength. I was terrified, not knowing what was happening. The bond twisted sharply in my fear as the pull increased.

The cloth had a foul sharp smell to it and my head started swimming. I heard Clair whisper in my ear, "I'm sorry, but this is the only way to stop the Dranek from taking over our planet. I hope you can forgive me."

My muscles lost all strength and shortly afterward my mind went black.

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Author's Note:

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