She struggled to bring in air, but the mere attempt made her cough blood out in a fine spray as her vision began to falter, grabbing at her throat. Fa...l away from them,she thought, believing that, if someone tried to catch her they might leave themselves open. Using me as a shield works, too.She pushed herself backwards and rolled off of Stenna, where she waited and expected to die even as she gasped and struggled for breath. Deres howled in rage as she fell. ‘Neral!’ The blinding heat of that. I made it into the middle of her living room before I heard a soft noise that sounded like it was coming from her bedroom. It was so soft I couldn't identify it. I suppose she might've left the TV on after she went to bed. I weighed my odds and decided to keep going.A small lamp cast a dim glow from beside the dark leather couch. It put out just enough light for me to avoid tripping over the walnut coffee table. I spotted my purse sitting on the couch. Mission accomplished!I'd just grabbed it. ‘Wait a minute, dear!’ She stood back up, reached up under the skirt and pulled down and removed her pantyhose and panties. She started to lie back on the desk with her skirt pulled up, but stopped, saying, ‘No, damn it, I want to go all the way. We should be safe!’ With that, she reached for the waistband of her skirt, unfastened it and let the skirt fall to the floor. Now completely naked in the office, she reclined back of the desk, raised and spread her legs and waited to be taken. That. "You will come home to me," she said simply. It was not a question, not a request, not even an order. It was a statement, as if she were commenting that the color of the sky was blue.He nodded insistently and was dismayed that a single tear had escaped her left eye and run down her cheek. He stroked her cheek, wiping the tear away and pressed his lips firmly to hers.After a kiss that seemed to last minutes, she pressed on him, pushing him away. "Go," she said. "Go protect us. Go take care of.