Barsork closed his eyes preparing himself for what he was about to do. Everything had been laid out and all he had left to do now was walk out into the limelight and accept his fate.

He would do so with his head held high, because he was doing it to save the woman he loved. If Betty had done her part, which he knew she had then this was his last few moments of freedom. From this moment forward there would be only two options for him. Live or die.

With a slow steady breath he whispered his final words, “I will come back to you, my Betty. In life or in death I will find you.”

With that, Barsork stepped from inside the barrier of the women’s secret hideaway. He had searched all night to find it, but at last managed to get in. Now he stepped out into the blazing morning sun and straight into the waiting arms of Rigor and his group of hunters. Rigor’s face revealed a gruesome smile.

“Looks like the wench was right after all. There is a Xicret scum hiding here.”

Barsork laughed. “Rigor, I was just coming to find you. I’ve been staking this place out for weeks for my brother. Do you know that more than a dozen girls escaped from his auction house and have been hiding out here?”

Rigor crossed his burly arms. “Last I heard, you were the one who was wanted, by Carzon no less.”

Barsork shrugged. “That was all a ruse so that I could get into the girls’ good graces and find their hiding spot, and now I have.”

“What luck,” Rigor answered sarcastically.

Barsork grunted. “Look, if there are not a dozen girls hiding out in here then you can take me to my brother and I will explain my failure to him directly, but if there are a dozen girls imagine your reward.”

There was no doubt in Barsork’s mind that Rigor would take the bait. He was devious, but at his heart he cared only about the money. This was the only way to put enough doubt in Rigor’s mind to take Barsork directly to Xicret rather than kill him on the spot, and that would give him the only opportunity he really needed.

Of course, the raid that morning on the secret hideout went exactly as planned. The girls were nowhere to be found and all evidence that they even existed had been erased.

Barsork was arrested on the spot and put on the first ship headed toward Xicret. Rigor regretfully concluded that the girls were not in fact hiding on the sanctuary planet and called off the search moving on to other more prosperous chases.

Two days after Barsork’s departure, Betty came face to face with Ven just as she had expected. “Any news?” she asked immediately.

Ven looked at her sadly. “I’m afraid not. I received word that he made it to Xicret, but after that I have heard nothing. He did a daring thing to save you, and to save these girls. You all owe him your lives. Those hunters were becoming a bigger problem than we were able to handle.”

Betty nodded slowly. “I owe him much more than my life,” she said sadly.

“The ship is waiting, Miss Betty. Whenever you are ready we will depart for Earth.”

Betty turned to Elena and Kristin. “Are you sure you won’t come with me back to Earth?”

Elena shook her head. “No. Maybe someday, but for now we will continue to do what we can for the other girls, and try to find a way to bring down the auction house.”

Betty smiled. “If Barsork is successful, you may have some more help with that.”

Betty had told the whole story from start to finish the second Barsork was safely away and although somewhat skeptical, the girls at least accepted that he had bought them their freedom.

“Safe journey home,” Kristin whispered as she hugged Betty tightly. “Thank you for everything.”

Elena too hugged her tightly. “When all is said and done, Betty. I hope you find happiness. Barsork would not want you to linger in sadness.”

Betty gave a half smile and wiped tears away. She looked between the two women and put on a serious expression. “You two be good to each other. I expect you to love each other every day for the rest of your lives.”

Elena smiled and wrapped her arm around Kristin. “We will. Bye, Betty.”

Betty let Ven lead her on board the ship and before she knew it she was setting her feet back on Earth. Somehow home didn’t feel quite the same as it had when she left. So much had happened in such a short amount of time, and she had been changed by it.

She was, of course, glad to see her family and friends, and even her crazy roommate who had since gone through three boyfriends. She went back to class and with much convincing was finally allowed to retake her exams.

Betty studied hard, but found that even with the joy of being home, without Barsork there was something in her life that simply didn’t fit correctly. It was as if everything had less color, than when he was around.

When Betty wasn’t studying, she was doing everything in her power to stop the abductions from taking place. At first she gained very little ground, but then suddenly, several weeks later the abductions simply stopped.

Betty had yet to decide if that was a good thing or a bad. She wondered if the abductors had simply changed locations and she was spending every waking moment looking for them.

For the third morning in a row, Betty rolled out of bed feeling like she had a severe case of the flu. Just what she needed on top of everything else.

She had just taken her last exam of the year and was looking forward to a few days of rest before jumping back into the swing of things. She tried to stay as busy as possible so that she didn’t have time to think about Barsork, or what had happened to him. The thought of never seeing him again ate at her soul.

Betty heard a knock at the door, but was too busy heading for the medicine cabinet. “Jenny, please get that.” Betty pulled the ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet and knocked over the small plastic circle of birth control pills she had gotten from the clinic before this whole crazy thing had happened.

She had never even opened the box. Betty stared at the box for several moments before a small tingling sensation began in her stomach. She placed her hands on her belly and turned so quickly she fell from dizziness. She felt strong arms grab her before she hit the floor.

“Hey, easy does it.”

Betty looked up into those blue eyes and knew that despite his outward human appearance again, she was looking at Barsork.