Ecstasy Bound by Ruth D. Kerce Read Free Book Online

breeding, regardless of Xylon’s need for these women. She glanced at Alexa. A harsh punishment, but…
    “They hadn’t totally given up hope on the old program because some success has been achieved with different women. All this was kept strictly confidential, of course, from the general population. In fact, many of the Super-breeder experiments, in the beginning, had been done and continued on women without their knowledge or consent. It never should have been set up that way but secrecy gave the Council extra freedom.”
    Brianna’s stomach tightened. To do those experiments, any of them, without consent…
    “As you know, Braden, you also have the Super-breeder gene from your mother.
    Her instability gave the Council pause, though, and they hesitated to approve a joining when I suggested it. But I knew you and Alexa were the perfect DNA and emotional match.”
    Brianna felt Torque’s resentment when Laszlo mentioned their mother. And she saw a dangerous darkening in Braden’s eyes. Torque had never quite been the same after their mother’s passing. He’d turned rebellious and remained deeply scarred to this day.
    “What they didn’t know was that I kept a secret of my own.” Laszlo’s gaze switched to Alexa. “I could not initiate or mate with you, my dear, because I am your father. And Kam’s.”
    Their father? Brianna gripped the table. She heard the sharp intake of air from the others.
    “No.” Alexa immediately shook her head. “I knew my father. Kind of. Enough. He was around from time to time when I was younger. We have the same birthmark. He, Kam and I.” Her gaze swung to her brother. “Kam?”
    “It’s true. What Laszlo said. For too long, I was also fooled and thought our father was…” His voice hitched and he swallowed hard, not finishing the sentence.
    “The birthmark was a simple tattoo,” Laszlo explained. “A decoy. I have the true mark.”
    “None of this was indicated in my mother’s journal.” Alexa sounded confused and more than a little suspicious of his words.
    Brianna had her suspicions too.
    “We planted the decoy, for you, Alexa. To save your life. She never would have jeopardized you, even in a private journal. If you read back through the pages, now that you know the truth, you’ll see the real meaning behind the entries.”
    Brianna, uncertain of the truth of his words, felt too shocked to even speak, for if accurate, this explained a lot. But it also created many more questions. At least she better understood Kam’s loyalty to Laszlo now.
    “Only a few knew the secret. For your protection. Daegal would never allow a child of mine to live, especially a female, for reasons I will explain in a moment. As it was, he found out you were a Super-breeder and tried to sterilize you. He obviously knew even before you did, given what happened to you on Earth. If Daegal had known you were my daughter and a Super-breeder, no telling the lengths he would have gone to in order to destroy you.”
    “Like blowing up the planet?” Erik interjected with disgust. “Maybe he does know.”
    Alexa looked at Braden, a horrified expression on her face. “All this happened because of me.”
    “No,” he replied emphatically. He cupped her cheeks. “You are not responsible for any of this.”
    “Damn. I’m sorry I blurted that out,” Erik said quickly. “Never think that, Alexa.
    Daegal has been after us for years. He would have done the same thing whether you were on Xylon or not, most likely. He’s a madman and everyone knows it. He just finally went over the edge and did the unthinkable.”
    Brianna felt bad for Erik. She knew how much he cared for Alexa. He’d never intentionally hurt her and true regret showed on his face. She saw Kam move as if to say something too, but then his eyes shifted and he settled back in his seat.
    Braden and Erik were both right. Alexa was not to blame. One monster had made this decision. He would be the one to pay.
    Laszlo’s words