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Quaranteam Down Under: Part 3
Sunday, 4 January, 2026
Quaranteam Down Under: Part 3Returning Home.Based on a post by SilverRyden, in 15 parts. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels. Lottie continued her briefing; "Ok, so going back to the production of the serum, we need it expedited. We're still going to get shipments from the US for the immediate future, but they're also supplying it to other countries, and we don't want to be stuck on their timeline any longer than we have to. So, our first priority is securing our own supply line. Once you let us know that the serum is in production, we will alert medical personnel around the country and begin distribution of the serum to them, before we gear up and present the solution to the whole country. As much as we're not fond of it, there will be a priority system. Military to a certain threshold. Then medical personnel, followed by construction and labor, then onwards from there."Rayne interrupted, not understanding the significance."Sis ..” Lottie raised an eyebrow at him and he paused. "Sorry, Captain, what is the significance of inoculating construction and labor crews that early? Now, I don't mean to say they're non-essential or anything, I just want to understand the significance."She nodded at him, smiling. "It's a perfectly valid question. The construction crews will be involved in mass renovations. For example, your current lodging is what, a two bedroom condo? How many other units are on your floor?"Rayne thought about it for only a moment. "I think ten or twelve? Though I think most of those are currently unoccupied; for obvious reasons.""Well, once your Team expands beyond yourself and Stella, as it will very shortly, what do you plan to do for space?""I hadn't really considered that since I wasn't originally planning on having more than one partner. However, I assume everyone would continue their current living arrangements.""Not quite. When we said that Teams are like a family pod, we were serious. We plan to consolidate all of the units on your floor into one, or at the most two large condos. For that we'll need the support of construction crews and the like. Part of our operating plan involves consolidating as much of the population as possible towards the city centers for the foreseeable future, except for those communities providing vital services, like agriculture and the like. That, however, is something for us to worry about. Just know that that's part of the plan."Rayne could see Hasumi suddenly smile and start typing away, and he half expected to see either his Discord or phone light up, but nothing came. He watched her for a moment before Annabelle spoke up again, her eyes flicking back and forth across one of her own screens."Captain, I don't see any manufacturing data for the serum. Are we going to have to work that out ourselves?""No, Miss Periera. We have that data but didn't send it with the initial info packet as it's deemed too sensitive for the moment. Everyone here is cleared for it, but we aren't going to provide that over an open line. It will be provided to you once your roles are established and the project is officially underway. Any other questions?"Hasumi spoke up, sounding somewhat more eager than Rayne was comfortable with. "How soon can we expect to begin our own, uh; integration into this 'Team'?""We have already set aside the doses required for you but will be staggering the introductions so as to avoid overwhelming Rayne. Most likely scenario is you will be introduced in pairs. In addition, it will be contingent on the results of the Oracle testing. So please ensure you complete the survey immediately. And I do mean immediately. Anything else?"A few others asked regarding the timeline for the project and were given a fairly simple answer, As soon as humanly possible. At that moment, a text came in on Rayne's phone and he checked it.Get your survey done now, Ray. Tell Stella to do the same. I expect you two will have a very high compatibility, but we'll send someone around to pick Stella up shortly. She'll be held for a couple hours for observation and then we'll bring her back. Tomorrow, we'll be moving you to your second partner. Pack your stuff. Only things you can't do without and any valuables. Clothing and essentials. What Lottie mentioned about the renovations is actually already underway. You'll have the whole floor and the one above it once we're done, but we'll be relocating you to a temporary home for the time being.He slid his thumb across the screen and formed a reply, confused. Why are we being relocated already? There's still room, and if you haven't started the Reno work then we should be fine, Lettie.No good, Ray. They'll probably be knocking down walls by day's end. Pack for Stella now, and you can pack your stuff after. Just do the survey first. And don't baulk at answering!Rayne knew that was an exaggeration, since the crews wouldn't even have had time to look at the building plans in that short a timeframe.What aren't you telling me?A lot, Ray. But when hasn't that been the case? Just trust me. Remember, we've met a number of these girls before and we know you. We'll try to make sure the process is as painless as possible, okay?Fine. I can't say I dislike any of these ladies, so I'll have to figure it out. If Ty can handle my two firebrand sisters and that Israeli beauty, I can manage a menagerie of my own.That's the spirit. Now get that damned questionnaire done.Rayne looked back at the meeting, and watched as it began to wrap up. He realized he'd probably missed a few details, but he was sure Stella would let him know if there was anything crucial. He let her know about the evening pick-up and they both made fresh cups of coffee as they opened the questionnaire.Neither of the pair had any idea what they were in for, and Rayne nearly did a spit-take when he had to search up the meaning of Abasiophilia. Humanity was absurd, and it didn't help that a certain face popped into his head the moment he read the definition. Rayne felt the shame wash over him. He'd never defined Hasumi by her disability. But at the same time, he couldn't deny she was attractive. Not to mention she was probably his closest friend, after Stella. He sighed as it struck him. Grabbing his phone, he typed out a message to Lettie.You're planning to circumvent the process and pair me with Stella and Hasumi, aren't you?There was barely a moment before he could see the dots on the screen indicating she was typing. How'd you work it out so fast?You're moving us. No construction crew would start knocking down walls until they'd done their surveys and planned out the build, so there's no need unless the other person you're pairing me with has needs that can't be met here. Under the circumstances, the only needs I can't see being met here are mobility. Which means Sumi. Are you sure she wants this?Hah. She's the one who suggested it. We became friends when you brought her to that last barbecue, and we talk pretty regularly. You and she get along like a house on fire, and if Stella wasn't so amazingly perfect for you, I'd be pushing her at you instead, if she hadn't already thrown herself at you.So that flurry of activity from her near the end of the meeting was her texting you?Sure was. Enough of this discussion for now. You can get the details directly from her tomorrow. Finish the survey and message me when Stella's done too. We'll process it, though the two of you would get paired anyway since you have a pre-existing relationship, but it never hurts to know.Thanks Lettie. I'm just about done so I'll check with Stel.Stella was indeed done and he finished his own only minutes later, so Rayne sent one last text to confirm and then began helping Stella pack her things. From what they understood, she wouldn't be able to help after he imprinted her, so they'd get her sorted and then Rayne could handle his own. When the military came knocking, Rayne greeted the Corporal at the door and was told that he could expect Stella back within a few hours. He figured there was no sense in getting bogged down in thought, so he set out to prepare for dinner. As for Hasumi, he'd get in touch while he cooked. He needed time to think about things, but he knew he wasn't mad. If he had to choose anyone to be his second partner, he never would have hesitated to mention her name. He just didn't know that she'd be so open to the idea herself.It was definitely something to consider.Richmond, Victoria, Australia, October 22, 2020, 5:26 PMHasumi had already begun to panic. She'd put forward the idea of having Rayne and Stella stay with her while the renovations occurred, but now that she'd had time to slow down and think about it, she was terrified. Hasumi knew Ray. She knew that he was head over heels for Stella. Oh, she had tried to find a partner for herself, but she always compared them to the man in her heart, and nobody measured up. She would love for Ray to reciprocate her own feelings, but now was utterly terrified that this move might push their relationship in precisely the wrong direction. If he ended up resenting her, she had no idea what she'd do.She grabbed her phone and was about to send a text when the doorbell rang. Wheeling herself over, she looked through the doorbell camera and realized the person she was just about to contact was already here."Lettie, I didn't expect it to be you coming to get me. It's nice to see you in person though.""Hey Sumi, we're not going anywhere just yet. I'll be taking you to the base in the morning, since we only need to keep you in observation for a few hours. I just figured you'd be freaking out by now and could use a sympathetic ear."The pair retreated into the house and made small talk while Hasumi prepared a pot of tea. It gave her a moment to collect her thoughts and she launched into it as soon as she placed the cup in front of her friend."Lettie, did I make a mistake? Rayne's my best friend and this could ruin that."Lettie took a sip of her tea and smiled, shaking her head. "I doubt that. Rayne loves you too, you know. It might not be a complete romantic love right now, but he does. Aside from Lottie and me, and maybe Tiberius if it ever came to it, there are only two people in the whole world that my little brother would drop everything for. Stella is obviously one. You are the uncontested other. I don't think I need to say more than that.""I get it, but he just seemed so against the idea, you know?""It was the timing. With everything he learned today he went from very confused to utterly happy to completely furious over the course of a few short hours. My brother isn't prone to that kind of mood swing, so the news really had him unbalanced. You remember Tiberius, right?""Your friend? Yes, of course.""Well, I got to see his reaction to all of the news firsthand, and he's a traditional kind of guy, most of the time. Lottie and I telling him we both wanted him almost made his head blow up, but he already loved both of us so it was really just a matter of accepting that there's a new normal. He's still not exactly happy with the situation as a whole, but it's not us that he has a problem with. Rayne's in the same boat. He hates that the situation is forcing this, and more so because of the timing. But he absolutely doesn't hate you. So don't worry. In fact, I bet he's making dinner prep and planning to call you while he cooks. That feels like a very Ray thing to do."Hasumi giggled. She could actually picture the scene. "It is a very Ray thing to do. Thank you, Lettie. I do feel better. And if he doesn't call, I'll call him."The pair spent some moments in silence before Lettie spoke again."There's another thing I wanted to ask of you, Sumi. Once the actual project starts, Ray's going to be really busy. We're going to have him overseeing both projects due to his background and the fact that he has the highest level security clearances. That will mean he's basically inundated in paperwork most days. Because of that, I'd like for you to be the one actually leading the production team after tomorrow. We weren't exaggerating when we said we need everything up and running as soon as humanly possible. Once we have a stable supply, we can expedite vaccinating the whole country.""I can certainly do that. Why after tomorrow? I assumed you wanted us to get started yesterday?""Well, you won't be able to do much of anything tomorrow, since you're getting paired up. It's likely to knock you out for around eight to twelve hours, maybe more.""I see. Is Annabelle going to be leading the research team again?"Lettie nodded, looking a little awkward. "That's right. Miss Periera is good at what she does. I do feel that she might be the one to throw a bit of a wrench in the works as far as the Team goes though;”"What do you mean by that? Is she against the idea?"Lettie managed to look contrite, while still openly chagrined. "No, no. Nothing like that. Surely you picked up on the tension between her and Rayne earlier?"Hasumi looked thoughtful as she replied. "Yes, but they're always like that. Their relationship is something unique to them. They're not exactly hostile to each other, but they'll never be best friends." She paused, taking a sip of her tea. "In my homeland, we'd call what they have a kusare en. Translated, it's something like, 'rotten relationship'. They've known each other for a while so they tolerate one another and can work together when necessary, but they'll never be genuinely close unless something really forces the issue.""I feel like there's more to it than that, but I can't put my finger on it, exactly. Do you know if she's ever made a move on Rayne? Has he ever spoken about that to you?""I've never heard him mention anything like that. Is Annabelle a danger to Rayne?""I don't believe so. But I don't know her like I know you, so just be careful."Their conversation rambled from there, but Hasumi was feeling more at peace now. It was the ringing of Hasumi's phone that brought their discussions to an end, and she let out a giggle as the caller's name popped up."Just like we thought."Lettie laughed. "You best answer that before he gets fidgety, Sumi. I'll let myself out. See you in the morning."Taking a deep breath, Hasumi tapped the button on her phone. "Hi Rayne. Should I bother to ask what's up or just throw myself at your mercy?"He sounded almost taken aback. "Why would I ask you to do that? Hasumi, you're my best friend. You're a wonderful woman, and I'm beyond honored that you want to be with me. I mean, I was utterly oblivious, but I get why you never said anything; I was with Stella. So, I suppose it's on me to say, I'm sorry I hurt you with my blindness. I never intended that.""You didn't hurt me, Ray. You were simply you. But I need to know. Do you feel anything for me? I mean beyond our friendship? Can it be as I hoped, even though you already have Stella?"There was a pause as Rayne considered her words. Hasumi held her breath, feeling her stomach drop further with each moment that passed."If I'm being honest, Hasumi? Yes."She gasped, overjoyed at the response. "But?""There is no 'but'. It just may not be an instant thing. I already love you as my friend. You never have to fear that. But am I in love? I'm certain that will come. Anything else is a consideration for future me.""Thanks for being honest.""Thanks for being you. Thanks for offering your home. I don't know if they actually plan to start construction as fast as they say, but it's good to know we have somewhere to go. But above all, thank you for just being there, Sumi.""Just promise me one thing. Promise you won't let this take anything away from Stella, except exclusivity."Rayne actually chuckled. "My good friend told me earlier today that love isn't finite, and he laid down quite the compelling argument for that. So, I plan to see if I can give life to those words. I'm glad I'm starting off easy.""Easy?""Easy. After all, I'm already more than half there with you. The onus is on me to open my mind and give you the love you deserve."She gave that a moment in her head. "Can you answer something for me?""I can certainly try.""If, and I do mean if, things hadn't worked ..”Rayne didn't wait for her to finish. "You. I was actually thinking about that after the meeting. I admit that I get along alright with everyone else. But I don't have anything like the connection I have with you or Stel. That's why I said I got the easy start."Hasumi laughed. Rayne knew her too well. They continued chatting, planning for the upcoming days. Hasumi dropped an extra bombshell when she said that they'd both be moving into the master bedroom with her. Rayne sputtered until she reminded him that she was openly bi and knew that Stella was too.It was almost 8PM when Rayne suddenly stopped speaking for a moment."Looks like Stel's back, Sumi. Just got a text saying she's in front of our building. I'll get going, but we'll talk more tomorrow, okay?""See you, Rayne. I'm glad I can openly say this now. I love you. Goodnight."Hasumi hung up and leaned back. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Maybe they could make it work after all.Rayne's Condo, Melbourne CBD, Victoria, Australia, October 22, 2020, 7:51 PMRayne hung up and let his body fall forward onto the table. When he said got an easy start, he hadn't lied to Hasumi. Not really, at any rate. It was certainly going to be easier to come to terms with any feelings he developed if it was with her. But was he going to feel guilty about developing those feelings in the first place? Damn straight. Stella had always been entirely onboard with his friendship with Hasumi, but how this would pan out he couldn't say.He even knew that Stella was technically bisexual. She'd opened up to him when they first started dating, and Rayne had been aware even then that she had been offering the option of a threesome if he'd just promise to stay with her. To his credit, he'd never even considered taking her up on the offer and told her that if she still wanted to experiment, that wouldn't bother him, so long as another guy wasn't involved.He was still lost in thought as the door opened, and a rather flushed Stella stepped inside. She was clearly uncomfortable, and Rayne was immediately concerned as she launched herself at him. She'd already undone his belt by the time he realized what was happening."Stella?!""No time. Bed. I need you to fuck me. Now." Her clipped speech was getting Rayne's hackles up. He'd seen her horny and worked up, but she was never like this."What the fuck, babe? What happened?"Stella stopped pushing Rayne long enough to give him a look loaded with more lust than anything else, but she replied."This vaccine. They said it'd make me horny. They never said by how much. God. I can barely think straight. Ray, please, just take me!"Rayne was concerned. He remembered the documents, they did indeed say that the woman's libido would increase after being injected, but they also said it was a gradual process; something that got worse over days, not hours. This was distinctly alarming and he made a mental note to look into this, or he would have, if he didn't have an insistently horny fiancée groping him at that moment."Babe, you are making it very hard to think."She didn't miss a beat as she pulled off her dress. "Then stop thinking and just make it very hard!"What could he say to that? Rayne shrugged and decided he'd just go with it for now. Stella had already gotten his pants and boxers around his ankles, so he stepped back, separating from her only long enough to step out of them and kick them aside, while fumbling for the buttons on his shirt. It was infuriatingly slow progress but he managed, and when he looked back up, she stood in front of him in all her naked glory.Stella didn't wait any longer. She dove towards Rayne again and wrapped herself around him. Instinctively, he kissed her, one hand gripping her ass while the other slid between her legs. Two fingers probed her slit and his eyes widened."Jesus fucking wept, you're utterly soaked!" Rayne pulled his hand back, sticking one pussy-soaked digit into her mouth. She obliged, her lust-maddened eyes fixed on his own. Retrieving his hand, he stuck the other finger into his own mouth and savored the taste. Rayne loved oral, both giving and receiving, but Stella was clearly in too much of a hurry for him to work his magic. He'd never felt so desired and now his own lust was going out of control. He sat down as he felt the back of his legs hit the bed and Stella crawled on top of him, her bountiful chest heaving as she broke their latest kiss."Claim me, Ray. I'm all ready for you. Ready to be yours forever. Stick that fat log in me and mark me. Fuck me senseless and put your baby in me, baby. I don't care how many others you have, as long as you never let me go. Now fuck me!"He didn't need any more invitations as he lined himself up. He may not have been the biggest man, with roughly 8 inches to his name, but he had girth and he'd never had complaints, always leaving his partner satisfied. He was at full mast now, and as he lined up, Stella felt it and slammed her hips down. When her hips met his, she froze, her eyes going wide.Stella went haywire.Her entire body spasmed and she let out an ear-piercing wail as the orgasm shook her harder than anything she'd ever experienced before. Rayne leaned back and rolled, leaving Stella on her back as he drew his cock most of the way out and then slammed it home again. He vaguely recalled something about a 'priming orgasm', but the through fled as Stella clawed at his back, still in the throes of it."Don't stop. Don't. Ever. Stop. Pound me into the mattress. That was the most amazing thing I've ever felt, and it was because of you, my love. Now rail me and claim your slut wife. I'll do anything for you. Just mark me, baby. Make me forever yours."Rayne grunted as he thrust, interspersing it with kisses as he brought himself towards the inevitable end. He slowed for a moment and pulled out, eliciting a whine from Stella before he pulled her up onto her knees and drilled his way back in from behind. Taking one of her tits in each hand, he railed his way into her, grinning as her voice jumped an octave with almost every thrust.Finally, after several more minutes, he couldn't hold it any longer and pulled her into his arms, whispering into her ear as his ejaculation overtook him."I love you. We'll make this work Stel. I promise."As his load painted her insides white, Stella shuddered violently and her screams reached a crescendo, clawing at him even harder before everything suddenly cut off and she fell limp in Rayne's arms. His heart thundered in his ears after the exertion, and as he lowered Stella to the mattress, he could faintly hear the whispered words, ones that would come to haunt his dreams in weeks to come."Imprinting; Imprinting;”Rayne sat on the sofa, a drink in hand and a notepad discarded to one side. He was looking at his phone, having just sent a text off to Tiberius. All of his concerns had come flooding back after he'd left Stella in the bedroom, and he needed advice. Fortunately, it wasn't seconds before the phone began to ring."Hey mate. I figured you'd be messaging me soon. Done with business?""I dunno whether to be insulted or laugh."Tiberius' laugh was almost maniacal in its vehemence. "Not my fault if you were a one and done guy tonight, mate.""Very funny. I mean, I read about it, but that whole 'imprinting' thing is creepy as fuck, Ty.""Tell me about it. I went through the process three times in quick succession. I mean, I basically passed out shortly after the third myself, but still, it sent shivers down my spine. But I take it that's not the only reason you messaged.""Yeah. You've got a contact with the US team, yeah?""Of course. She's my old friend. Why?""Is she a scientist? I need to discuss something with them. I don't know if it's an outlier case, but Stella's libido was supercharged tonight. She basically attacked me once she got in the door, and it really seemed like she was struggling to maintain control of herself. I know that the woman's libido is supposed to be raised, but the paperwork also led me to believe that was over the course of several days. Stella had been gone for a number of hours, Ty. Either the serum they're giving us is different, or we Australians have enough differences in our biochemistry that it's affecting us differently." Rayne paused, taking a moment to prepare himself for what he knew would be an awkward question. "I can't believe I'm asking this, but can you tell me if my sisters and Talia presented similar symptoms? Were they aroused beyond normal, barely coherent and such?"Tiberius' voice had no trace of humor in it now. "Ray, I can tell you for certain that all three of them were highly aroused, but I don't know for certain whether that was out of the ordinary or not. As for them being coherent? Yes. They seemed to all be in control of themselves for the most part, I think? It's not like I'd ever slept with any of them before yesterday.""Oh. Right. Ok, can you ask any of the women from the other pilot Teams? We need data. And I really need to talk to the Americans.""Mate, right now there are a grand total of eight women that have been injected. Two other Teams have been formed, with officers on base as their central pillar. That number will double tomorrow, and then I can ask the others about it. Those women are probably in the imprinting state right now, so asking them anything will be impossible until then. But I'll tell ya what, mate. I'll ask our medics to keep an eye on it, and I'll let Grace know. I'll give her people your number, so they can get in touch. Because if what you're telling me is legit, then even after we stop our rush measures, we may not have the same kind of leeway the Americans did in getting people paired up. That's going to seriously fuck with our timelines and planning, so it's important to know." He chuckled, but there was something derisive in it. "We need to change our planning because people might be in a hurry to get laid. What the actual fuck are we doing, Ray?""Science can be fucked up sometimes, Ty. There are too many unknowns with this serum. The paperwork tells me a lot, but there's still so many holes to fill that I don't even know where to begin. I'm hoping Sumi or one of the others has some ideas, because I sure as hell don't. To be fair, this whole DuoHalo situation is completely fucked up. So much about the virus makes no sense whatsoever, and now this asinine solution is going to leave us with severe long-term repercussions as a society.""Hah! Asinine. Pretty nice arses, easy nines." Rayne smiled at Tiberius' attempted levity. "Either way, we need you to do what you can to fill those holes in, and maybe make this thing better for everyone. If you can unlock the serum and remove the part where people are bonded together permanently, I know you'd probably win a fucking Nobel prize. If you can tell us more about DuoHalo and all that, like where it came from, you might still win that goddamned prize.""Wait, you don't know? I know your clearance is better than my own, so I'm safe in saying this, but CSL had a good idea of where DuoHalo actually came from months ago? I mean, Sydney International is confirmed to be Ground Zero, but Australia's not the origin. They were given a gag order at the time, though. I don't understand why.""Don't say any more, Ray. Even if I'm cleared for the knowledge, it's better not to talk about it openly. I'll let Baz know that you're aware of that and see if he or the other brass need the info. The gag order was probably to prevent it from seeming like we were just blaming others. Better to keep quiet and pretend we know nothing until there's a better way to let the information out. Ignorance is bliss."Rayne snorted. "Ty, ignorance is only bliss when you don't know you're ignorant. For everyone else it's just torture. Either way, I get what you're saying. For now, I'll keep it under wraps, but if someone starts openly blaming us, I'm not going to stand by and let the world condemn us.""Good man. Just give it some time. We've all got our work cut out for us as it is, so there's no need to go and add more. You got your stuff packed? I heard you're getting moved in the morning.""I've got a bit to sort out, but I'll do that before I go to sleep. Thanks, Ty.""What are mates for? Oh, one final thing. Your next two partners, after Miss Saegusa, are already confirmed. Those two will be acting as members of your security detail. Expect them either tomorrow night, or the day after, at the latest.""What? I have no need ..”"Rayne, you are now a national asset. Not just because you're one of the few surviving men, but because you're the project lead on what is probably this country's most important endeavor in decades. You need security, and they need to be in place before anyone figures out that you're important.""You can't. I'm already struggling to deal ..”"Just shut up about it for a minute, Ray. I know how you feel about it, but you have no say in this. It's a matter of security. You're just going to have to learn to live with it." Rayne could hear the frustration building in his friend's voice. "Keep one thing in mind about the whole situation, mate. The more you resist, the more you hurt your partner. You might have your reasons, but they do too. They're choosing you, and if you reject them out of some sense of propriety, given the state of the world now, you're doing everyone a disservice. Remember, silver bullets, mate. Anyway, I've gotta run. The ladies are getting impatient."Rayne let out a sigh. "Fine. I give up, Ty. And I'm not going to ask. See ya."Tossing his phone onto the sofa, Rayne threw back his drink in one gulp. Ty was probably right, as usual. The situation had already escalated beyond his personal wants, and Rayne realized he should just be rolling with the punches now. Two more partners, on top of Hasumi. That was going to take some getting used to. Even if he wasn't already going to feel physically inadequate when compared to some of the super-fit military women he'd met over the years, now he'd be their partner sexually too. It was enough to give a guy performance anxiety in a big way. But he realized, they were probably anxious too, for their own reasons, not to mention they were binding their lives to an unknown man's."Silver bullets. Fuck. Fucking fuck. Of course, he has to be right."Silver bullets. He debated pouring another drink but thought better of it. In his current mood, he wouldn't stop. He wasn't a big drinker at the best of times, but Rayne remembered what had happened when his parents died. He'd been so angry. Tiberius had found him at the bottom of a bottle, almost ready to do something very stupid. The big bear of a man had organized therapy for him. Driven him to and from it. Kept him in check and told the twins that they were grieving as two close friends. It had been a genuine accident, after all. The man involved hadn't been drunk or incapacitated. His brakes had simply failed and his parents' luck had run out. It took a long time to come to terms with it. To the best of Rayne's knowledge, Ty had never told his sisters the truth about the night. Rayne had done it himself, two days after Ty had given him a gift for overcoming his anger. He still remembered the stinging slaps he'd gotten from both his sisters after he'd told them, right before they pulled him into their arms and sobbed.Tiberius had one of the bullets from the gun he'd planned to use on the man that had caused the accident, emptied of powder and primer and plated in silver. It was encased in resin, almost like a trophy. Rayne had made sure to pack that away immediately. It was possibly his most valued possession and he vowed to meet the coming days with the phrase forefront in his mind. Silver bullets.The engraving on the resin said it all, A bullet shows no empathy, but you have. Never forget it.Chapter 4.Officer Housing, Victoria Barracks, Victoria, Australia, October 24, 2020, 6:15 AMIt was the sensation of fingers running through his hair that brought Tiberius out of his slumber. That alone would have been unusual, but there was also a warm body in his arms, most likely Talia, and somehow, it all felt right. The last two days had been a whirlwind of activity, and he'd woken up every day since he'd imprinted his three wonderful partners with a different one in his embrace."You awake, big guy?"Tiberius opened his eyes and looked up. Lettie smiled down at him as her fingers continued to brush his head."Morning, love. Care to join us? And where's Lots?""As much as I'd love to, you and Talia need to get up. Lottie's in the kitchen making some food. We have to vacate here soon.""Ah, the next Team's ready to be sequestered for a bit?""Pretty much. They said since it's been a couple of days, you should be good to go. We'll probably have time to head back to your house. The fridge is probably in a bit of a state by now.""Yeah, that state being 'empty'. I was cycling everything out since it was getting to its use by date. I was supposed to do a grocery run the day all hell broke loose."Ty felt a pinch on his side, and Talia spoke, her voice muffled since she still had her head buried in his chest. "Do not call the day we were finally joined as such, my love."The laugh rumbled in his chest and he pulled her arms away. "I'm sorry, my dear. Aside from that, the day had been one evoking some pretty extreme emotions, but you're right. It was definitely the day that we were brought together, so it should be something for us to celebrate."Stretching lightly, he rolled away from Talia, eliciting a displeased growl from the younger woman. Lettie watched his naked form as he moved, noting that all of his movements seemed to be smoother. There had been a bit of hesitation or discomfort in those movements over the last few days, but it wasn't present now."Are you finally back to full strength, Tiberius? Does anything feel off anymore?""Now that you mention it? Yeah, I think I'm good." He took a deep breath, feeling his chest inflate without the tightness he had experienced only a few days past. "Yeah, definitely. I think I'm over the hump. Whatever happened on the first night seemed to have taken care of most of it, and that phantom twinge I used to get in my leg when I woke up hasn't hit me for the last few days.""That's good news. I'll let Dr. Morgan know, so you and Tal get in the shower."Ty nodded and extended a hand to Talia, who finally, albeit reluctantly, began to move. "Remind me to buy the guy a drink sometime soon. Any word from Ray?""He says they'll be starting production today, barring any major holdups. The Americans provided everything they needed, so it's just a matter of setting everything up." Lettie shrugged. "He also says it's way too soon to expect any results regarding the serum itself though.""That makes sense. If it were that simple, the Americans wouldn't have missed it. Ok. We'll forward that to Sophie and move on then. We'll suss out the proper timeline once we get our heads around how many doses the labs can reasonably pump out a day. Given that, I suppose I'm on the hook to talk to the docs and nurses sometime today? All at once or State-by-state?""State. Starting with Victoria tonight. Lottie will send out meeting information while we head towards your place. The plan, for now at least, is to make a big circle of it. Start here, go up to New South Wales, and onward and around until we finish with Tasmania, so we'll inform the states in that order."As Ty and Talia stepped into the bathroom, Lettie continued to follow, occasionally checking something on her tablet. Tiberius found himself lost in thought for a moment as Talia turned the shower on. "Ok. So we're good on that front. Did Baz get the go ahead to have each state plan out its military rollout?"Shaking her head, Lettie turned her tablet so he could see the screen. "Lt. General Hoffmann told him he's leaving it in our hands and has ordered the other star ranks to stay out of it. You have priority authority on all deployments regarding the vaccine. Only the Lt. General himself can overrule you." On screen was a digital copy of the signed order and Ty gave a cursory nod and a sigh of relief as he read it. This would go a long way to cutting down red tape."It seems we still have to report as normal. Great. More work for us, but at least nobody's going to sideswipe us in the name of 'helping'." There was no mistaking the sarcasm in Ty's voice. "Actually, can you pass the prep work for the other states to Brett Whittaker or Danny Thomson? Split the remainder into three, so two apiece. That'll ease it up enough to make it less of a nuisance, I reckon.""I'll get Captain Whittaker on it today. Captain Thompson is scheduled to begin his team today, so he'll be indisposed.""Ah. That would mean that his Team is the one replacing us here. Fair enough. Back on the topic of the docs, I might need someone to help me figure out what needs said. I might be okay at saying it, but knowing how to say it so the docs get it is a different matter entirely."Talia spoke up now, seeming to have finally woken up properly under the rush of the shower. "I will assist you with the explanations to the various medical professionals, Tiberius. As well as anywhere else you feel that I could be put to use." She put a hand over her heart. "This may not be my homeland, but it is now my home. Let me do my part.""I appreciate it, Tal, but I did also mean an actual doc or nurse to bring in as an adviser. I'm pretty sure neither you nor I are familiar enough with the vernacular to be really talking shop with a doc. We'll worry about that in the arvo. I've got an idea for who to talk to, but it'll have to wait. Lettie, could you ask Lottie to prep a standard NDA for me? Digital signature will do. We'll need something we can mass drop for tonight, but I need one in advance. As for you, could you and Talia start prepping the info packet we'll send tonight? The one we got first had plenty of info they won't need, and the secondary one had a lot of info they will.""Sure thing, big guy. I'll let her know, so get your hairy behind in the shower." She laughed and slapped at his ass before pushing him into the now-vacated stall.Tiberius showered, knowing that there was still one topic he hadn't addressed, but he wanted to at least have a cup of coffee before he started down that particular road. For now, he pulled out his phone and opened his streaming app, wondering if that person would be active today. It had been some time, after all, and anything was better than dealing with that.Sure enough, he found the stream and was surprised to see that it was actually a collab stream, so he jumped in, immediately saying hello to chat and greeting his streamer friends.Marshall Law, Hey Princess, Hey Foxy. It's been some time. Sorry I've been out of touch. Got busy. You two doing okay?Purple Paw Princess, or Princess as he called her, was a US-based variety streamer named Shannon that he had run across in the days shortly after his accident. They'd connected while playing a game, and he'd watched her streams every so often. She was an excellent artist and generally fun person to talk to, so he'd easily made friends with her. It had even been at his recommendation that she'd gotten a VR set during lockdown. Shannon, for her part, greeted Ty warmly, happy to see him. She explained that she'd settled down after overcoming her medical issues and Ty congratulated her on that, glad to see that she was happier and healthy.Foxy; Doodle Fox on screen, was an artist based in the UK. He was less familiar with her, but her art was outstanding and they'd been chatting for some time on and off. Another fun, generally upbeat young woman, she seemed somewhat distracted, almost a little evasive in her replies, explaining that she had a very important meeting the following day and was rather nervous about it. Ty wondered if the UK had begun its own vaccine rollout but knew better than to ask that directly.When they asked about him, he couldn't help the response.Marshall Law, Yeah, the last few days have been a bit hectic. Learned a bunch of things that changed everything I thought I knew. Nearly Died. Got into a poly relationship I never dreamed of having. Yeah, just a bit busy.Their alarm as they processed his words was almost comical, but Ty channeled his inner Monty as he placated them.Marshall Law, I got better. XDWhen Lottie placed the plate in front of him, she paused to look over his shoulder at what he was watching."Ty, is that; a purple cat avatar? What are you watching?""Purple tiger, actually. And this is a friend's stream. Someone I ran into online last year and got to know, along with another artist streamer that I stumbled across. They're both fantastic artists and really lovely people, so I watch their streams every now and then when I get the opportunity. Time zones are a bitch, so those opportunities are few and far between.""I; see?""I also commissioned a bunch of art from her a while ago for one of my tabletop campaigns and we got to chatting. Shannon's good people, and I'm just checking in to see how she and Foxy are doing. Geek family sticks together.""Fair enough. I was wondering if you were planning on adding her to our little family."Ty was silent for a moment as several things fell into place in his head. "No, that's not going to happen. We get along, but I don't think it'd ever be like what any of us have right now. Also, looking back, I think she's already Teamed up, maybe as early as July, even. I just never put two and two together until now. Maybe I'll ask her next time we talk. I figure by then it'll be public knowledge, or near enough anyway."Ty continued watching as he ate, occasionally leaving comments, until Foxy had to leave, citing an early morning. Ty signed off too, reminding Shannon to stay in touch. It had been a nice diversion, but reality was still knocking at the back of his mind and he sighed."I wanted to put it off some more, but has Colonel Anderson managed to get anything out of Connors?"Lottie had already begun cleaning up as she replied. "The Colonel wants you to call him when you get a chance today. There have been a few developments and he's got to brief you before we bring things to the Americans.""Got it. I assume my presence will be a distraction so I'll ring him as we head out."Lettie had wandered out of the room at some point and now returned, placing some papers on the table next to Ty."Have a glance through those and sign off on them before we leave, big guy. They're just personnel assignment docs, but they include the orders for Lieutenant Barclay and 2nd Lieutenant Jennings. They've already linked up with Ray, so the documents are backdated.""They're Ray's security? No worries. I'll put my mark on it in a sec. Just let me clean up.""I've got it, Ty."Lottie gently brushed his hand away and went to take the plate from the table before he could even reach for it. Instead, he pulled her towards him and kissed her fiercely before giving her ass a not-so-gentle squeeze and growling into her ear. "We'll play again tonight, my sweet."Her expression was filled with anticipation as she straightened up and Tiberius felt a tingle run up his spine. He and Lottie had discussed their experience the day after she'd been imprinted, and Lottie had given it a lot of thought. She was very pleased with the encounter and impressed upon Ty that it had been everything she'd hoped and more. Tiberius had emphasized to her that he'd never degrade her in public, and she'd smiled at that. That wasn't what she was interested in anyway. She enjoyed surrendering control to him, but also wanted to take care of him. She'd read about it and told him that she guessed she was somewhere between a service submissive and a bedroom submissive, and Ty had suggested that they explore both slowly and get used to it together. The discussion had carried on until both Lettie and Talia wandered in, and Lottie confessed her inclinations to her sister and their new friend.Lettie had just grinned and shrugged it off, saying that she'd realized that ages ago. While she hadn't known that they'd visited a BDSM club, she'd seen the hints of her sister's inclinations growing up and had tried to keep an eye on Lottie's partners to make sure the relationship didn't devolve into abuse. Talia seemed curious and did some quick reading but concluded that the major aspects of submission didn't appeal. Ty had chuckled and said that made perfect sense; she appeared to like an aggressive partner, but that didn't necessarily translate to liking being dominated. There were plenty of methods in between, so he made it clear that she didn't need to worry.The four left the living quarters shortly afterwards, passing through the base only long enough to drop the paperwork off with the Brigadier. They had a lot to do, so Ty still felt odd to be taking what amounted to a half day just to sort out his house and living situation. Especially since he was going to be relocated closer to the city center. But Dr. Rai worked at the nearby hospital and she was certainly going to be easier to convince in person, so there was no loss in using the house as a base of operations.Lettie was driving, so Ty waited only until they were clear of the base to place the phone call to the Colonel. It was definitely going to be an unwelcome conversation, even if he hadn't been feeling increasingly bad about driving Connors into his own head. He knew it was bad form, and knew even more so that they needed info, but Ty had been angry. If it had just been insults and words thrown at him, or even the syringe filled with death, no problem. He could handle that. But the pressure of everything he'd learned and Lottie's tears had left him reeling and he'd lashed out."Hello, Colonel? You asked that I get in touch?"Colonel William Anderson's deep basso voice flooded out of the phone's speaker, measured and smooth. The man was a paragon of military efficiency, but everyone knew "Bloody" Bill Anderson was dangerous. His nickname, adopted from the US Civil War fighter of the same name, held true. Ty had served in his unit for a short time, and the man's tactics in guerrilla warfare were borderline insane, but his skill as an interrogator was without equal. "Lt. Colonel. Yes. We've managed to stabilize Major Connors and get a bit out of him. I will CC you in on the report, but I'll give you the gist of it. Connors wasn't working alone. A raid of his family home was conducted two days ago, where we found sufficient evidence to try him for a host of additional offences. Suffice it to say that Jaxson Connors has likely been working with as yet unidentified foreign powers. MP Wendy Connors was also clearly complicit in these acts, but she was discovered to have been deceased for at least a week at the time of the raid. Testing indicates that she was afflicted by a strain of DuoHalo very similar to the one that the Major used on you, so we are operating under the assumption that Major Connors was the responsible party. It is likely the guilt from the event, whether deliberate or accidental, played a part in Major Connors condition."Ty had tremendous respect for Bill Anderson, but he wasn't close to him like he was with Baz, so his tone remained formal. "That would indeed go a long way to explaining his instability, sir. Did we find links to any other local collaborators outside of those from the CSL labs that we have in custody?""Negative. We're looking into the extended family but as of now, there is no evidence that Miss Elizabeth Connors had any awareness of events or any complicity in them."Ty had no idea of the Connors' family structure outside of the relationship between Jaxson and Wendy. "Elizabeth Connors? Is she Jaxson's partner?""Sister. I understand that she is a university student and living away from home.""Hm. Well, if she's not germane to the investigation then I suppose there's no reason for us to bring her into it. I assume however that someone is assigned to keep an eye on her? She might start asking questions or turn up unexpectedly when she's unable to get in touch with her family.""We will be bringing her in for her own protection. If outside actors are involved, we do not need them complicating matters by abducting her. We will also be informing her of her mother's death and Major Connors' condition at that time. We need to try and keep Major Connors as cooperative as possible. And stable."Ty winced. "I do apologize for that, sir. I can offer no excuse for my behavior and will accept any reprimand."Anderson scoffed. "Never mind that. You were under tremendous stress and the circumstances were rather extreme, after all. I probably would have throttled the man, were it me. I will, however, stress that you are to avoid any interaction with him wherever possible.""Yes, sir. I understand completely. Going back to the foreign power you mentioned;”He cut Ty's question off. "We know next to nothing yet, except what Connors himself believes to be true. According to him, he was supposed to either abduct Dr. Marcos from the Americans or snatch this Dr. McCallister from the Russians and hand them off to an agent of these people. I'm not sure who the latter individual is.""McCallister. I've seen that name recently; Ah! He's the individual responsible for the bonding effects within the serum along with several other details. I believe he defected to the Russians. It was within one of the documents with the details about the serum itself.""Not my wheelhouse, Lt. Colonel. All I know is he didn't hold up his end of the bargain, and that is one of the reasons Miss Connors will be in protective custody. It was a tremendously foolish decision.""Yeah, the entire thing put my brother and his entire unit at risk. Not to mention nearly causing an international incident. Colonel, what are the odds we can get Damian's unit back into the country soon?""Nil. First, even if flights were going out of Europe, they wouldn't be heading our way without good reason, and second, from the reports that have come in, they're in safe hands at the moment. The French, specifically the DGSE, has them put up in several safe houses, but under guard. We should be okay to establish contact with them in the next few days."Ty almost dropped his phone at the mention of the French intelligence service. "France? They're in France? How the hell did they get all the way there from Russia, sir?""We don't have the report as of yet, Lt. Colonel. I suspect we'll find out when we're given the green light to establish contact." There was a pause and some muttered conversation that Ty couldn't quite make out. "Lt. Colonel, I've just received some information about Miss Connors. I will cut the conversation short here as this matter requires my attention, but I will have someone on my staff keep you informed."Ty wanted to ask, but the urgency in the Colonel's tone stopped him. "Thank you, sir."The line cut out and Ty took a breath. Lettie glanced over at him as she drove. "I can't tell if that went well or not.""Bit of both, love. At least we know for sure that Damo's crew is safe.""That was certainly unexpected. I mean, Zeke told me he was safe, but even the documents Tal had with her said nothing about France."Talia giggled from the back seat. "Well, I suppose at the time father collected that information, they may not have been in France. It was all preliminary reporting from immediately after their attempt, and if you were the one to give them their SERE training, it makes perfect sense that they would go undetected."Ty turned his head and glanced towards the back seat. Talia was smiling as she looked out the window, but Lottie seemed lost in thought. That wasn't unusual, but the expression on her face told him there was something more at play here. This happened with her occasionally; she'd quietly contemplate a subject before expressing a view that was completely out there."Lots? Have you sorted out whatever it is you've had on your mind?"She closed her eyes for a moment before turning her head towards Ty and giving him a gentle smile. "Mostly. I admit it's a bit of a tangent on what we have been speaking about. Obviously, you don't need any additional security personnel, you already have three. But I was thinking we do need a doctor or at least a nurse added to our ranks. It would help us as we go around the country for the rollout, and having one in the family would be a reassurance for when we start popping out kids. I was just wondering; no, I think I'll wait until we get to the hospital to voice that thought.""Well that certainly came out of left field. I suppose I'm somewhat reluctant to add too many new faces too fast, I do think you're right. As for kids, each of you can tell me when you're ready, if ever, and we'll make a go of it. You both know I adore kids and I'm sure Talia would figure that out soon enough. But let's cross that bridge when we get there."She smiled an enigmatic little smile that had Tiberius' heart in knots. "Aren't we getting "there" in a few hours, Ty?"Lost for words for a moment, Ty simply shrugged. "If you're expecting me to just ask a random doctor to join us, I don't think that's going to go how you envision it."The smile on her face grew, shooting right past smirk and straight into leer territory. "Don't be so sure."Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia, October 24, 2020, 7:30 AMZoe Evans was starving. Literally. Her stomach had long since ceased any audible protests, seemingly having decided that such things were a waste of energy. At least water wasn't in short supply. As for food; well the last time she had eaten something that wasn't at least half rotten; she couldn't even remember. It had to have been weeks ago. Her funds had run out around then, and she had felt the despair creeping in. For a 19-year-old girl, living up near her university in Sydney was all well and good when times were good, but during a pandemic? And having learned that your family died to it? Well, it became a burden. Zoe had heard that almost the entire neighborhood had succumbed, so going back hadn't been an option.Only now it was her only option.With her accounts empty and the universities shut down, there was no meaning in staying in Sydney, as food had become harder to come by. So, when she decided to come home, it was in the hope that someone in the neighborhood had survived and would be able to help her. It was slow going. She'd had to stop every few hours as her concentration waned and dizziness threatened to take her off the roads. But when she finally reached her family home on the 21st, almost the whole suburb was deserted. Houses empty; stripped of goods and foods. Bereft of life and now of warmth. Those that remained had little they were willing to spare a young girl, at least without taking something she wasn't willing to give in exchange. So Zoe was on her last legs now, no food, and water alone would only get her so far. She was now constantly dizzy. Her last possible resort had been the houses of her neighbors; but nobody answered the doors even though the houses didn't appear abandoned.Zoe was inside a neighbor’s house, having known where the spare key was kept for years. It wasn't something that she had learned by accident. The householder had actually told her parents where to find the key in case of an emergency, and eventually he had let her know too, along with the alarm code. She had hoped the owner, a man she treated like an uncle, would be there, but the house appeared to have been empty for several days at least. Well, empty of people at any rate. All the contents were still there. He had reached out to her after her family's passing, but she had been too wrapped up in her grief to let him in, and she'd let her contact with him lapse. Now her phone was dead and he wasn't here. Her eyes fell on a picture of a young man and a tiny child curled up on a recliner together and a memory flashed in her mind, vivid colors but muffled sounds. A young adult. Dark hair, steel-grey eyes. A small child on a bike, nearly pure white hair and purple irises standing out even with her pale skin. Everything else was blurry; irrelevant. She was drifting, but the memory of his voice anchored her; gentle, even if the words were unclear, and the hand that patted her head filled her young mind with confidence and a sense of security. An older brother figure. An uncle figure. But that was then.She knew she was in trouble. She was so tired. Her violet eyes filled with tears as she came to terms with the reality of her situation. The fridge was empty and the pantry had so little of use that it may as well have been too. Zoe could feel her vision closing in and her head was spinning. Her hunger was overwhelming her; gnawing at her sanity, stripping away hope and there was nothing left that she could do. She didn't have the energy to go anywhere else, and even if she did, the likelihood that there was anything to eat was beyond miniscule. Her legs finally gave way in her exhaustion and despair and she couldn't muster the energy to get up again. Curling up on the tile as the darkness was creeping in, Zoe knew it was over. No one would find her. No one would know she was here. She was alone. She was going to die, and not even of the damned plague.And then the darkness claimed her.After Lettie's cryptic comment, Ty had chosen to remain silent. Though he understood her point about adding in a medical professional, like Rayne, he was hesitant to add unknowns to their family. It had already grown beyond any scope he'd imagined, and he was expected to take on at least a dozen. Grace had let him know that a dozen was the recommended number, but she had also informed him that it was rarely where they stopped in the case of prominent or critical individuals. It was going to be quite the effort. Ty had already had more sex in the last three days than he'd usually have over a month. Physically, he was fine. His age, fitness and the serum were seeing to that. But mentally, handling the needs of that many women would be a challenge.He looked out the window with a feeling of melancholy. The neighborhood was bleak. Houses sitting empty, lawns unkempt and overgrown. They passed by the twins' family home; it had been sold shortly after their parents' passing. The twins had long since moved into a condo of their own, a little further away, but now, with everything happening, his house would be their base until they set up whatever condo or complex they had in mind for his family.That thought brought him pause. Family. They were supposed to consider themselves that, but when had he actually stopped having to consciously think about it? Was that him, or was it the serum, playing with his mind. He had to push that thought away. He knew the depths of his feelings for the girls. Their connection felt right. There was nothing forced in it. Nothing that felt artificial. He knew Talia would get along with the twins, even if she was several years their junior. Their bisexuality was really just going to smooth things along. Hopefully, even in the future -That thought was cut off as Lettie pulled onto his street, and the sight of another house brought with it a fresh wave of pain as he mourned its occupants. Toby and Matilda Evans. Two years his senior, they had married out of high school when Mattie had gotten pregnant with their first and only. For eighteen years they had raised a happy family together, fought through good and bad, and raised a wonderful little girl. They had been Ty's friends, but they had passed away in April, both to DuoHalo, with no opportunity for a funeral, just two more bodies on the pile. Though he said DuoHalo, Ty was still certain that Mattie had died of a broken heart when Toby had passed.He had a momentary vision of a young girl, her sparkling white-blonde head bobbing as she pedaled away on a bicycle, training wheels and all. He'd been in his 20s at the time, home for leave and Toby had been called into work on an emergency. Unable to get a sitter on such short notice, Ty had offered to watch over her since Mattie was also at work. Zoe had enjoyed spending some time with 'Uncle Ty', and quickly tired herself out. Ty fed her and let her take a nap on the sofa while he relaxed in his dad's recliner. He had no idea when he'd fallen asleep, but he woke to the sound of a camera and Mattie's giggling. To his surprise, Zoe was curled up in his arms with her blanket spread haphazardly over them both. He couldn't help the smile as he asked for a copy of the shot.He still had that photo, framed and mounted on a wall in his kitchen. He'd not been able to get in touch with Zoe much since her parents' passing, and now that the number had been disconnected the worry was constantly in the back of his mind. It would be a straight up abuse of power to use military resources to search for a single person unless they had some good reason to do so, so he'd refrained from asking. He'd have to use his personal assets. That was fine. It was for a good cause. If she was alive, he'd reach out again and take her in. Otherwise; it'd be closure, at least.They pulled up to the house, and at first glance, everything appeared to be fine. But it wasn't. The front door was unlocked. He reached for his Browning and the girls tensed. Signaling for the twins to head upstairs, they drew their own weapons and Ty silently opened the door. Naturally, he wouldn't shoot if he didn't have to, but if the intruder attacked, he might have no choice. Talia followed him, having drawn her own Glock. There was no noise from inside as they entered, but that meant nothing. The entry hall was empty, and Ty could clearly see into the living room as the twins silently ascended the stairs.Even further inside, nothing seemed to have been moved, but Ty spotted a bag on a dining table chair that certainly didn't belong to him. Passing through the arch and into the kitchen, Ty froze, immediately putting his weapon away as he took a deep breath and dashed forward. Talia could just barely see a head topped with silvery-white hair laying on the floor before the shout nearly deafened her."Lettie! Start the car! Now! Emergency evac! Hospital!" He slid the last few feet on his knees, his voice wavering as he sought a pulse. "Oh fuck! Please be alive. Zoe, sweetheart, hold on! Lettie!"He could hear the twins thundering down the stairs, and while Lottie came towards them, Ty could hear the security door bang open as Lettie bolted out of the house. His shaking fingers finally found the unconscious girl's pulse, weak as it was. Ty scooped her up and he could feel the icy fingers gripping his heart. She weighed nothing, almost literally. Her frame under the horribly baggy clothes was so emaciated it was a wonder she had enough muscle mass left to keep moving. Ty cursed himself silently, tears running down his face now. He should have done more to stay in touch. After her parents' death, she was alone. He was their friend so he should have done more. She had come to him for help, and he hadn't been there. All the thoughts crashed into him as he rose and he had to choke back a sob.Lottie let out a gasp when he turned around and bolted towards the door, pulling Talia with her. Zoe hadn't stirred at all, and Ty could hear how shallowly she was breathing. It took all of his willpower to not sprint for the door, but he had zero confidence that this poor girl's battered body could withstand it. He paused only long enough to grab her bag before leaving.To be continued in part 4. Based on a post by SilverRyden, in 15 parts, for Literotica.
