To Mai Surprise
Disclaimer: I do not own The Nine Lives of Chloe King, nor do I profit from any of my stories.
Warning: This story is rated M and is intended for mature audiences only. Reader discretion is advised.
Chapter 19
"So, you're Zane, right?" Brian looked across the table at the other Mai.
Nodding, Z said, "That's my alias here in the US. 'Zivoniy' is unusual, and I don't want to draw any unnecessary attention to myself."
Alek and I met up with the other Mai at the penthouse to plan out protection detail. For now, I weren't supposed to be alone, ever. Brian and Kai would take turns watching over Alek. Jasmine and Mimi would watch over Alek when they were at school. I would stay at Aunt Valentina's store with Brian or with Lana when I was working.
On Wednesday, after I finished with work, I got a call from Paige.
Paige and I both decided that we both need to get maternity clothes. At 11 weeks along, I wasn't completely fat, but I was starting to get funny looks from people. Most of my old dresses and pants didn't fit me. We decided to go after the doctor showed up because Rajiv and Amy wanted to come with, and their fashion advice was much appreciated. After lounging around for a few hours, an elderly woman showed up at the door. She gave Jasmine and Aunt Valentina hugs, and pinched Z on the cheek.
"Babushka, please…" Z glared at his grandmother.
"Zinoviy, sweetheart, leave us. The ladies need to be looked at." As Z left, she got out a portable ultrasound from the cart she brought with her.
Paige went first, lying down on Jasmine's bed. "Mrs. R-"
"'Babushka' is fine my child. Most of you youngsters call me that." She bent down to retrieve a tube of jelly from her bag. "This is going to feel a bit cold."
Paige only nodded, looking up at the screen on the table. A white blob appeared on the screen, moving around a little bit.
"See that right there? It's the heartbeat. Everything looks good." The doctor looked down at Paige. "Do you want to know the gender?"
Paige nodded.
"See that right there? That is his genitalia. Congratulations, it's a boy." She smiled warmly, saying, "I'll print out some pictures and make a video of the ultrasound. Chloe, dear, it's your turn.
Paige got up, cradling her belly in her hands. "What should I name him?"
I shrugged, and then took her place on the bed. After I lifted up my shirt, Babushka squirted the jelly on my stomach.
A slightly smaller blob appeared on the computer screen. It flickered to the beat of my baby's heart. If I strained my ears, I could hear it beating. It is about a month too early to tell the gender. I honestly didn't know if I wanted a boy, or a girl. Alek wants a son; he won't say it, but I can tell by the way he always calls the baby 'him' instead of 'it.'"
After removing the jelly from my stomach and saying good-bye to Babushka, Paige drove us to pick up Rajiv and Amy. We headed to Union Square and hit up all the best maternity stores. Paige bitched about having to buy pants with an elastic waistband. Amy and Rajiv ran around collecting clothing and making outfits; a half-human version of Stacy and Clinton.
"Miss Chloe, Miss Catherine, we have set your clothes in the fitting room, arranged into outfits."
We both sent him grateful smiles, meeting Amy in the changing room. She helped us with unreasonably placed zippers and strange waist fastenings.
"Oh my God Chloe! This dress is so cute! It shows off your cute little baby bump! And, you can button it up to let out the tummy area as you get fatter!"
Paige turned to Amy, eyes watering as she glared at the younger girl. "Don't you dare call us fat! We're not fat! I can't get this zipped!"
Amy helped pull the zipper up, and then shoved Paige in front of the mirror. The little black dress synched under her boobs, flaring out over her tummy to meet her thighs.
"This is so cute! I'm going to have to shave my legs more often!" She laughed, giving the mirror a twirl. "Who says I can't be a sexy mom?"
"If you're going for 'sexy' then try this on." Amy handed her another dress, throwing a pair of pants in my direction.
"I like this! Do you think it's too much?" Paige looked at herself in the mirror, eyeing the revealing cleavage.
"Have Rajiv take a look. He's more qualified than I am, at least when it comes to modesty." After making sure that I was decent, Amy threw open the door, trading Paige for another armful of clothes.
"It's sexy, but still sophisticated. This shade of green really brings out the color in your eyes." Rajiv gave the dress one last glance. "Yes, my brother will love this." He ignored Paige's blush and shoved her back into the fitting room.
Amy started singing, "Arun and Paige-y, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N- ow!"
Rajiv's voice rang out from the other side of the door. "Miss Catherine, no hitting… I'm going to go pick out some blouses. I think you have enough dresses and pants"
His phone started to buzz as he walked away. "Namastē… Yes... And it said? Oh dear…. We will…... Thank you."
"Raj, who was that?" Amy started gathering up the approved clothing while Paige and I changed back into our original outfits.
"That was Arun. We need to get back to the base. Whitney Rezza has joined Interpol as an undercover informant."
"He did what exactly?" Brian was livid. He sat on the couch, but would have jumped to his feet if Mimi hadn't been holding his arms down. Aunt Valentina insisted on calling up the Las Vegas Pride, to see if they had any clue what was going on. While she was on the phone, Brian dialed his father's cell phone. The Mai, with our advanced hearing abilities, could hear both sides of the conversation, while the rest could only hear Brian.
"Son, have you finally come to your senses?"
"What have you done?" Brian's usually expressive voice was completely emotionless.
"You are either with me, of against me. Choose, my son."
"Never! You are a monster!"
"Then you're dead." Mr. Rezza hung up.
"Rajiv, did you get all that?" Mimi said, turning to look at the Taurus behind a wall of screens and computers.
"I am running a trace on the call right now. It should be finished in-" The computer flashed red and made a slight 'ping' sound. "That was quick. Oh dear. The signal bounced off a cell tower down at the Golden Gate Bridge. I can see if I can get a live feed from the traffic cameras in the area."
Images flickered across the screens, scrolling through different camera's views of the streets.
"There! That's him!" Brian pointed to the screen on the bottom left. "I'm sure of it. That's his watch and ring on his hand. See there, he favors his left leg."
Mimi gasped, pointing on the right-hand screen. "That's my father! Who are those other guys with him?"
Mr. Vacinni and three other Mai walked down the street, reappearing on the screen with Mr. Rezza.
The street was dark, they must have know that our allies didn't all have Mai night-vision so the cut the power to the street lights. It was only ten o'clock at night, but there wasn't a single cyclist on Bike Rout 95. Lana, Paige, and I stayed back while Alek, Jasmine, Z, Kai, Mimi, Brian, Rajiv, Arun, and Mitchell made their way towards Mr. Rezza, Mr. Vacinni, and their cronies. Amy and Paul stayed safe in the cars, acting as out default get-away drivers.
Brian and Mimi took a preemptive strike against two of the attackers. After dodging an oncoming blow, Brian slashed his opponent's spine before snapping his neck. Mimi, struggling, managed to break her attacker's arm, only to receive a fist smashing her face. More damage would have been done, if Brian hadn't stepped in.
In the chaos, one of the nameless Mai ran towards Paige, singling her out as the weakest of the group. She tried to dodge him knife, but it got caught in her hair. Paige shrieked, kicking her opponent in the groin. When that wasn't enough, she braced herself for the impending blow. Suddenly, she was shoved behind Arun, his eyes glowing red. His body was bulky, more than usual. He charged ahead, taking down whoever came at him, in a fit of rage. Arun held off three of the attackers, two of whom looked more like Order members than Mai.
Jasmine and Kai each take down one of the two men who were in Mr. Rezza and Mr. Vacinni's cars waiting to drive them away.
Roberto Vacinni made his way towards me, his claws out and his cat's eyes glaring. Lana tried to pull me back, but my fight-or-flight instinct chose to stand its ground. As Mr. Vacinni approached, I got into a fighting stance, my own claws out. We faced off; frozen, waiting to see who would make the first move. I move first, taking a step back to throw him off. It doesn't work, and he grabs my arm. I am about to fight back when I feel myself falling. With a scream, I fall over their railing, towards the Bay.
Somewhere in the background, Rajiv and Mitch are circling a member of the Order. Rajiv's firm muscles bulk up, though his eyes stay their usual dark brown color. He attacks the man head-on, distracting him from Mitchell's movement. In a flash, Mitchell lands six punches on the attacker's stomach. Then, he poked a pressure point, giving Rajiv enough time to snap their opponent's neck.
Once I hit the water, I scrambled towards the surface. My clothes were weighing me down and I struggled for oxygen. A tan arm reached out to grab my own. The fingers had thin, light blue webbing between them. Lana swam towards the surface, her neck shining with crystal-like scales. I could see small slits on the sides of her throat, as if she had the gills of a fish.
We surfaced, Mimi and Jasmine helping us back up to the road. Mr. Vacinni was dead, his throat slit by Brian, judging by the blood all over his hands.
There was only enemy left, Whitney Rezza. Alek and Z charge at him, Alek distracting the man so that Z can get behind him. Mr. Rezza pulls a gum out of the waistband of his pants and aims at Z. Alek shoves him out of the way, taking a bullet to his left shoulder. I screamed, but Alek didn't hesitate. Z tore out the ligaments in Mr. Rezza's limbs with his claws, leaving the older man paralyzed. Alek snagged the gun away from him, clutching his bleeding shoulder. He puts his foot on Mr. Rezza's neck.
"Who have you told?" he demands, putting pressure on Mr. Rezz's neck.
"The Order knows. I told them everything, where you are living, who your friends are, everything."
"Who did you tell about Chloe's baby?" Alek took his foot off the man's neck, baring his claws in Mr. Rezza's face.
"She's pregnant? I didn't know, I swear." Mr. Rezza seemed to be telling the truth.
Alek helped the man up, still holding a clawed hand to his neck.
"There is one thing." Mr. Rezza turned and looked me in the eye. "You, my dear, are going to be their next target." He made a run for it, only to have his throat ripped out by Alek.
"Chloe, are you okay?" Alek rushed to my side, worrying over my dripping clothes. When I nodded, he said, "good" then passed out in my arms.
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