She saw a flicker of unease at her question. He was getting that she wasn’t going to be the pushover he supposed she was.
“A few,” he carefully admitted.
“Then that’s more of a start than Earth currently has. I also remember watching a documentary where seeds were kept protected in case something did happen on Earth. I don’t know where it was, but we can find where they are and use them to start again.”
“There is too much damage. The toxic bombs damaged the soil.” Skars still wasn’t moving.
“You mean to tell me, with all of the aliens that have been coming to Earth, with all their spaceships, and none of you know of a way to fix the soil and the air?” Raine shook the paper she was holding at the stubborn males.
“For God’s sake, you’re farmers—prove it!” she snapped.
Skars tried another tactic. “There are too many invader—”
“Ulf bragged you’re the better fighters—prove it,” Raine cut him off.
“We’d lose too many men.”
“You’re losing men now because they have no hope. Earth is your only hope of finding more women.”
“What are you willing to promise in return?” Skars asked unemotionally.
Raine squeezed her eyes shut. Could she do this? She couldn’t ask them to take all the risks without willing to take her own.
Opening her eyes, she let them see the emotional turmoil she was in at what she was about to offer them. “I know who can fix your computers.”
She didn’t look back at Lucas when she heard him suck in a harsh breath.
“Don’t you dare!” Lucas shouted.
Thorsen waved his hand at someone behind her back. “Remove him.”
Raine wanted to break into tears at the shouts coming from Lucas as he was shuffled out of the room.
“If anything happens to Piper, it’s on you, Raine! This is all your fucking fault!”
When she couldn’t hear him anymore, Raine continued in a tear-filled voice, “Not only can they fix the computer, but there is a group of them hidden away in a think tank. There are over twenty people who were selected, who have the smartest minds on Earth. Their knowledge can be used to repair Earth. There are also several women in the group. I can’t guarantee one will be a tru-mate, but there could be a chance one is. They also have computers there. I don’t know if they still work. It will make your search for your ancestors much easier to locate. You also won’t have to trade Xio for Piper. You will be able to keep your oath to your clan.”
Their shaken countenance showed she had budged not one boulder but two. Looking over her shoulder, she saw the clansmen’s then Reva’s proud grin.
Turning back to Thorsen and Skars, she found no joy in her success.
“I also want written in our contract that you will convince King Jurzed to take Lucas so he can be reunited with his brother, and,” Raine stressed, “I want his promise that he will treat Lucas well.”
Raine didn’t think she needed King Jurzed’s promise. He had helped Skars save her life. He would see Piper and Lucas were taken care of … once Jurzed got over his anger about not being able to use Piper to get Xio. If King Jurzed wanted Xio so damn badly, he could find him himself.
Thorsen nodded toward the paper she was holding. “Write down what you want, and I will sign. I swear I will fulfill the contract.”
Finding a flat surface, she wrote down what she wanted and what she had promised. After signing her name at the bottom, she gave it to Thorsen to sign. Thorsen looked toward Skars for his reaction.
Her legs shaking, she moved to Skars to lay her head on his chest. “Please, I’m really afraid of heights,” she pleaded. “I want my child to be born on this planet.”
“Shh …” He rested his bearded jaw on her head. “I look forward to the challenge.”
Raine gave a shuddering sigh of relief when his arms closed around her.
“Which one?” she teased tearfully, guilt-stricken at what she had promised them. “Rebuilding Earth or having a child here?”
“Both.”
“Sign the paper, Chieftain. My wife is a better trader than me.”
Lifting her head, Raine watched Thorsen sign the contract.
“It is done. Who is this person?” he asked expectantly.
Raine felt a tear slip down her cheek when she told him, “My brother.”
Chapter 31
Skars
Skars trailed gentle fingers over the curve of Raine’s cheek. Soft grey eyes looked up from studying his chest. She had been trying to convince him the scarred area was changing. The lumpy skin seemed more shrunken, the color changing from light pink to grey and black. Above the area which she thought looked different than when they had made love before was a line he could clearly see. It was a small tree limb, and hanging from the limb was a bud, which Skars had seen when another clan member had proudly shown theirs off when they had realized they were having a child, the bud representing a child in the womb. On his chest, the bud was slightly farther down and under the thicker limb with Thorsen’s leaf. The lone leaf represented his only living immediate family member. Skars still couldn’t see any of the roots or the tree trunk on the scarred flesh while Raine believed she could.