Stephan sighed and leaned into Zen wrapping his arms around her waist. They were in their room with a sleeping Edline once more on the bed. Zen smiled and leaned back bringing her hand up to his hair burying it in those copper curls. “She said you were as exciting as metal in bed?”

Stephan sighed his breath tickling her neck. “Yep. She was trying to get Paulo to sleep with her since he had a great standing with the women of the tribe. Paulo refused and told me everything. I lied when I said I heard her with Paulo but everything else was true.”

“What a snake! You were just recovering from one woman’s betrayal and you land smack dab in another’s web of lies.”

He kissed her neck. “Mmhmm.”

She pulled away to gaze into his entrancing eyes, slowly becoming lost to them. Then she remembered the kiss and pulled away. She knew it wasn’t exactly his fault but she still felt sad about it all.

Stephan grasped her hand and pulled her towards him. “Are you gonna let Mira get in the way of us, Zen? It’s what she wanted. Are we going to let her win?”

Zen shook her head. “Was the kiss truly nothing to you?”

“Yes! She jumped me! I was surprised for a minute which you saw, but I tossed her off like yesterday’s bad news. I don’t want her, I want you. How many times do I have to say it?”

Zen smirked and threw her arms around him. “As long as I say so, which will be a long time,” she whispered.

“In that case, you’ll never get tired of hearing it. I want you.”

She stared into his eyes sweeping a lock of copper hair to the side and over his ear caressing it. “You are too pretty for your own good Stephan,” she muttered. He grinned and undid her ponytail letting her hair cascade to her shoulders. “You’re the pretty one,” he said leaning in. They were like two magnets drawn to each other by unknown forces. This time there was nothing to stop them and their lips met softly. Zen’s eyes closed when their lips brushed against each other’s. Just a taste then coming back harder, hungrier. She felt as if she was flying and she never wanted to come back down. Stephan’s hand moved to run through her hair while the other squeezed her waist. Her own hands moved to grasp his shoulders pulling herself closer to him.

His mirror-like eyes seared deeply into her mahogany ones. Zen felt her world ripped away to spin off its axis. She was left with no solid ground on which to tread. She floated in a well of sensations she hadn’t noticed before now like the tingling in her lips or the burning fire in her belly. His smell was enticing her, urging her. More.

She moaned pressing herself closer to him. He grunted biting her lip gently. Then soothing it over with his lips. Going further each time but they kept it innocent Zen not really knowing what to do exactly, yet not wanting to experience the end. Sadly, both had to breathe and parted from the other trying to catch their breaths.

Zen had never felt anything so right in her life. It was as if all this time dancing around one another had never happened and now they could be comfortable with one another in a way they couldn’t have before. It was a tremendous gift to share this moment with him.

She leaned in to kiss him again, but a little giggle stopped her and she turned to face sparkling citrine eyes.

“Guess our time is up then,” She muttered smiling. Stephan tucked a lock of hair behind her ears and leaned back. “Guess it is. She isn’t going to let us continue.”

Edline looked up at them. “Are you two going to marry?”

Zen and Stephan blushed.

Edline kept on her tirade. “Cause you seem really happy together and happy people marry!”

“U-um it’s a little too early for that Edline,” Zen said walking over to the excited little girl. She was sparking slightly still and Zen sat on the bed and took her in her arms rubbing her back while Ishevara took in the excess energy.

“I-is the metal gone?”

Zen nodded. “That nasty woman won’t bother you again Edline.”

“I tried to get out but I couldn’t! I was trapped and…!”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Zen rubbed her back calming the shaking girl. “It’s alright Ed. I would have been scared too.”

Edline turned to gaze at her with those piercing eyes of hers. “No, you wouldn’t. You would have acted instead of panicked. I wish I could be strong like you Zen,” she cried burying her face into Zen’s arms. Zen shifted and brought Edline into her lap. Stephan walked over and sat on their other side and rubbed his little sister’s head.

“No one starts strong Edline. They work for it. You can be strong too and were plenty strong yesterday.”

Edline popped her head from Zen’s arms and looked at Stephan with teary eyes. “I was?”

Zen nodded. “You were a real trooper. You let Isaias hold you and you didn’t shock him too badly.”

“I-I didn’t?”

Stephan shook his head. “No, you didn’t. You controlled yourself.”

“Although,” whispered Zen, “I would have barbequed that witch for trying to make me into a metal sculpture.” She kissed Edline’s head.

Stephan laughed. “She might have barbequed everyone else. Then Kiera would really hate you Amargaritas. She’s just getting over one short circuit. I don’t think she’d like another so soon.”

“Zen nodded. “You’re right about that. There must be some way we can…”

“Hey guys, we’re just about to go over our plan for the poison,” Isaias called from the door. Zen stood with Edline cradled in her arms and nodded to Stephan, who opened the door and faced a disgruntled Isaias.

“Do you need to close the door?”

“Do you?” Stephan asked.

Isaias grumbled as he led them to the common room where everyone was sitting. He took his seat beside Marco and put his arm around him drawing him closer. Marco rolled his eyes but grinned and leaned closer to him. Beside him was Val and standing in front of Val was Kiera. He was helping her with her jammed arm the old-fashioned way. Marek stood to her left holding her steady as Val fine-tuned her arm.

On the other couch, Senka watched Kiera with rapt attention. He’d never seen an android that acted so human before. The GAA had battle droids and he could remember server droids but he’d never run into such a human-acting droid. He wondered if it was a malfunction or something deeper. Val pulled on a connection and Kiera hissed, raising her other arm to hit Val over the head.

“B-be gentle i-idiot!”

“Kiera stop moving or I’ll pull on the wrong cable network again,” muttered Val and Kiera went still above him. Marek yawned and held her other arm in a vice grip. “I’ve got her honey.” Val hmmed and continued to work. A few minutes later he unlodged a piece of metal the size of a pebble and Kiera sighed in relief able to move her arm again.

“Thanks, Val.”

“No problem K,” Val said as he popped the lid back on her arm and it melded back seamlessly. There was no telling sign there was ever a hole in her arm exposing cables and wires. She looked like any human. She sat down beside Senka and Marek took a seat on Val. Zen sat beside Kiera with Edline on her lap and Stephan stood leaning against the wall.

“Well we’re all here to talk about something,” He said nodding to Isaias who pulled away from Marco and sat up.

“Yeah, mainly what are we going to do now that we know Luis double-crossed his daddy?”

Zen thought. “Well, we can’t just walk up to Uncle Bernado without real solid proof, right? So that should be our next step.”

“It should but with the Dons after us, how are we going to get to Puerto Nuevo without being seen?”

Zen played with Edline’s frizzy hair then grinned. “I have an idea but you’re not going to like it.”

“What’s the idea Zen?”

“Well, with the Dons after me, it’s apparent that we need a big player on our side and mom has a Don wrapped around her fingers right now.”

“You’re right I don’t like where this is going,” muttered Isaias.

“We need a Don on our side. One who isn’t afraid of others and Don Rodriguez is it. He wasn’t affected by Ishevara before and like I said Mom has him wrapped around her fingers. He wouldn’t dare hurt me for fear of losing her. He is our way back to Puerto Nuevo.”

“And if he turns like the other?” Stephan asked.

Zen grinned. “I leave Mama to handle him.”

Isaias grinned. “That I got to see!”

“Right and if that succeeds what then?” Marco asked.

Isaias winked. “You leave that up to me. I can steal into the Hormiguero’s base and get Luis’s stash of Guerrero’s blood with his fingerprints on the vile. It’ll be likely that I’ll have to plant them seeing as the bastard is careful with his poisons and uses latex gloves to handle them.”

“Isaias you are not doing this alone! I’m coming with you in case we must reset the time or something. The Hormigueros is a vicious gang and even you can’t fight them all off.”

Marco leaned into Isaias. “Your sister has a point. I can come too as a backup if needed but please don’t do this yourself, Isaias.”

Isaias sighed. “I will need backup. Fine, you can come but Zen, you can't go.”

“And why not!”

The shout startled Edline and she began to spark in Zen’s arms. Zen rubs the little girl’s back and Edline calms down shifting in her lap to glance at her.

“No danger?”

“No Ed. Just a discussion between siblings,” Stephan said walking over and scooping her up from Zen’s lap. He smoothed over her hair and started rocking her gently.

“Nothing is going to happen to you alright Little Spark?”

Edline laid her head on his shoulder and sighed nodding. He turned back to the group, about to say his thoughts on the plan when several guards marched in.