“Where’s Ella?” she blurted out.
“In our private quarters. She doesn’t know you are here, and she won’t know until after you answer my questions.” It was said perfectly pleasantly but quite implacably, and she couldn’t stop herself from frowning at him as he moved to his desk and took a seat.
“Doesn’t she get a choice?”
“Only if I’m assured that she will not be harmed in any way. I suspect that you are a very dangerous woman, Dr. Whittaker.”
“I would never hurt Ella,” she cried. “I’ve spent the last eight years worrying about her.”
His rigid formality relaxed a little, and he inclined his head. “I am inclined to believe you; however, I will not take any chances with her safety. Are you the one who destroyed the lab and killed the remaining personnel?”
She winced and said miserably, “Yes.” Athtar had been standing silently next to her, but now he put his arm around her and pulled her against his side. The emperor’s eyes followed the movement, but he only continued his questions.
“Why?”
“I was kidnapped to work on a scientific project. I was told it was part of a badly needed terraforming effort. You have to believe that I didn’t know what they were doing with my research. Once I found out, I had no choice. I destroyed the weapon and all the records so that it could not be used by anyone else for such a terrible purpose.”
“Did it occur to you that perhaps it would be better for the knowledge to be placed in our hands as a deterrent?”
“No,” she said bluntly. “I mean, no, your majesty.”
“I’m not concerned with formalities. I want to know why you feel that way.”
“Because once the knowledge is out there, it can be used. And no matter how well-intentioned, it would be wrong.”
He regarded her thoughtfully. “And the personnel who died?”
“They knew,” she whispered, and a tear trickled down her cheek. “They knew what had happened the first time and they knew it would be used again. I offered them a choice. I told them they could give it up and leave but they wouldn’t.”
“None of them chose to leave?”
“Four,” Athtar said. “Only four of them were willing to give up the fucking project.”
“Where are they?”
“On Elgin. My mother has assured me that they will be allowed only limited access to other scholars and any research projects they undertake will be fucking monitored this time.”
“Ah, yes. Dr. Lelani. A most impressive woman.”
She felt Athtar sigh. “Why am I not fucking surprised,” he said, not bothering to lower his voice.
Emperor Karthajin’s lips twitched again but he redirected his attention to her.
“Could those four recreate the weapon?”
“I don’t think so. We all worked on very specific pieces. Even the data records were segregated, and a portion was kept off the network entirely. Dr. Skevyk and perhaps two others were the only ones with access to all of the information. They all chose to stay.”
“Hm.” Emperor Karthajin studied her face, then asked softly. “Could you recreate it?”
The air went very still. She felt Athtar tense, but she wasn't going to lie to this man. “Probably. Given enough time and access to the right materials. But I would never do that. Never.”
“Once again, I am inclined to believe you,” he said thoughtfully, but before she could sag in relief, he continued. “The question is whether or not I should trust my instincts enough to take the chance on something like this happening again.” Every muscle in Athtar’s body tensed and she clung to his hand while the emperor studied her face. “Assuming I permit you to leave, what are your plans?”
“Athtar’s mother is working on hybrid plants designed to live in inhospitable climates. She thinks that my research could be applied to modifying the soil to improve their viability.”
“From destroying planets to growing vegetables?” He shook his head, then laughed and relaxed, transforming before her eyes from an imposing ruler to a charming young man. “I find that acceptable; however, I will be monitoring your activities.”
“Yes, sir. I mean, your majesty. But we’ll be aboard Athtar’s ship much of the time.”
He waved a careless hand. “That’s of no consequence. And you might as well call me Karthajin. I suspect Ella will insist.”
“Can I see her now?”
“Yes.” He pressed a panel and asked someone named Saban to send Ella to his office. A few minutes later, the door opened, and a beautiful young girl danced in.
“Did you miss me already?” she asked in a sweet lilting voice.
This was Ella? Athtar had said she couldn’t talk. She saw him frown out of the corner of her eye, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of the girl whose only focus seemed to be the emperor.
“You have a visitor, kitten,” he said gently.
“Who is it?” She turned and locked eyes with Faith, and Faith no longer had any doubts. Those eyes were unmistakable.
For a long moment they stared at each other. Despite her certainty, Faith could hardly believe that this enchanting young woman was the little girl she used to babysit.
“Your hair is shorter.” Ella said finally.
“So’s yours.”
They stared at each other a moment longer, then Ella flew across the room and buried her face in Faith’s shoulder. “Oh, Faith. Faith, I missed you so much.” Tears flooded the big blue eyes that Faith remembered so well, and her own eyes filled.
“I was so worried about you, Ella. The man who took you promised me that you were being taken to a nice family, but they lied about so many things.”
“He didn’t lie about that. They were very nice and I loved them very much. I… I forgot a lot of what happened. I didn’t even remember you until recently. I’m sorry.” She sniffed and hugged Faith again.
“I don’t care. As long as you were happy.” She looked over and saw Karthajin watching Ella carefully. “But I don’t understand. How did you end up here?” She lowered her voice. “Are you okay?”
“I’m very happy.” Ella said quickly. “We love each other. But I’m even happier now that you’re here.” She turned to the emperor, her eyes sparkling. “Karthajin, can we find a room for Faith next to our quarters, so we can be neighbors again?”
“Fuck, no.” Athtar spoke up for the first time, stepping forward and putting a possessive arm around Faith’s waist. “She’s coming with me.”
Ella’s eyes traveled slowly from Athtar’s firm grip to Faith’s face and Faith knew she was blushing, but she managed to nod. Ella laughed and clapped her hands in delight. “You’re in love, too. That’s wonderful. But surely you don’t have to leave right away?”
She directed those big blue eyes at Athtar and Faith wasn’t surprised when he sighed and shook his head. “I reckon we can stay a little longer. Can I fuc—, communicate with my crew now?”
“Of course.” Karthajin said. “Why don’t you go and speak to them in person? I suspect Ella and Faith will wish to talk.”
“They can all join us for dinner,” Ella said gaily. “And don’t forget to bring your adorable puppy.”
“You met Precious?” Faith asked.
“The last time Athtar was here.” She giggled. “Did he tell you that my kitten and Precious had a fight under his coat?”
Faith choked back a laugh and looked up at Athtar. He looked a little shamefaced but he shrugged and grinned. “I didn’t want to leave her alone.”
“Yes, I remember you saying you had something precious on your ship when you returned,” Karthajin said dryly. “I suspect you were referring to more than just your war beast.”
Athtar’s arm tightened around Faith’s waist. “I was.”
The sound of her name must have woken Precious because she tumbled out from behind the couch.
“There she is. Do you remember me, sweet girl?” Ella knelt down, heedless of the fine dress she was wearing, and Fa
ith remembered how much the little girl had always loved animals. A lump formed in her throat. Athtar’s other arm came around her and he hugged her close.
“Don’t cry, baby. She’s happy and you’re happy and the rest is in the fucking past.”
“You’re right.” She looked up at him and managed a smile.
“And don’t you fucking forget it, woman,” he said.
“Everyone’s right occasionally,” she teased. His eyes heated and he bent his head and kissed her until her sorrow was completely forgotten.
It wasn’t until Ella laughed that Faith remembered where they were.
“You two are as bad as we are,” Ella said. She was still sitting on the floor, Precious in her lap, but now Karthajin was seated beside her with his arm around her. “Now go on, Athtar. I want Faith all to myself for at least an hour.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Before Athtar could protest, Ella had jumped up and taken his woman and his pup away. He frowned after them, then turned to find Karthajin smiling.
“I think you will find that our women invariably get what they want.”
He snorted. “As if I didn’t fucking know that. Sire,” he added hastily.
Karthajin waved a hand. “Forget the formalities. I suspect we will be seeing quite a lot of each other in future. Is my cousin Rast aware that you have fallen for a human?”
“No.” He couldn’t help grinning. “He’s going to give me so much shit about it.”
“Perhaps sooner than you think. He’s still here on Kaisar. I will ask him to join us for dinner as well.”
“You really want me and my crew here? They’re not exactly the fancy type.”
“Of course.” Karthajin raised an eyebrow. “My consort invited you. And I believe I owe you a debt of gratitude.”
“You do?”
“Yes, for destroying the weapon.”
“I thought you wanted to study it.”
“No. I am in agreement with your mate. The technology is better lost.”
“Faith said that once something is done, it is more likely to happen again,” he admitted reluctantly.
“And she is correct. But for now, the threat has passed. I will trust her to keep her word.” The slightest hint of warning under laid his words but Athtar forced himself not to bristle. He hated the idea of Faith being under fucking Imperial surveillance, but the emperor had agreed to let the matter drop and he supposed it was a small price to pay. Instead, he turned his attention to something else the man had said.
“When you said Faith was my mate…”
“Isn’t she?”
“Of course she fucking is. But we haven’t had a ceremony. I think she would like it if we had it here and Ella could come. If I arrange for a ceremony on the ship, will you let her attend?”
“I seriously doubt I could stop her,” Karthajin said dryly, but Athtar didn’t believe for one minute that he would ever allow his mate to put herself into what he perceived as a dangerous situation. Of course, he felt the same way about Faith and he hadn’t managed to stop her yet.
“I have a better idea,” the emperor continued. “What if we have the ceremony here tonight? I assume you don’t want anything elaborate?”
“Fuck no.”
“Would Faith?”
“No.” He was quite sure about that.
“Then we will have the ceremony here in the garden tonight.”
He scowled, annoyed that Karthajin had taken over so quickly, but then he shrugged. All that really mattered was that he and Faith would be formally joined. A sudden grin split his face at the thought of his crew dining with the emperor. “It’s going to be an interesting night.”
Karthajin’s communication panel chimed and he raised an eyebrow as he looked at the message. “It’s going to be an interesting afternoon. Tanaca is on his way.”
The advisor showed up moments later, looking appalled at the sight of Athtar, sprawled causally in the chair in front of the emperor’s desk.
“How did you get here?” he demanded. “How did you get out of the holding room?”
“Tanaca.” Karthajin’s voice was quiet, but Tanaca immediately turned to him and bowed.
“Your Imperial Majesty.”
Karthajin regarded him thoughtfully. “Did you have Captain Athtar brought here?”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”
“Without my leave?”
“I apologize, Your Imperial Majesty. I didn’t realize you wished to be informed. You did task me with investigating the matter of the weapon.”
“I was under the impression that the matter was closed when the true culprit was discovered.” Karthajin’s voice was still soft, but Athtar felt a chill go down his spine. “If I were a suspicious man, it might occur to me to wonder why my Elginar advisor was so compelled to investigate a weapon created by other Elginar scholars. Were you seeking to recreate the experiment?”
Tanaca looked so shocked that Athtar almost felt sorry for the bastard. Almost.
“No, Your Imperial Majesty. Of course not. It was because Elginar created it that I felt it was my duty to make sure that it was destroyed.”
“You did not trust Admiral Gernagan’s report?”
Tanaca hesitated. “I suspect that the skill it took to wreak the kind of destruction he found at the lab is the same level of skill it would take to recreate the weapon.”
“I’m only going to say this once, Tanaca. The matter has been resolved to my satisfaction. If I have even the slightest suspicion that you are still pursuing the matter, I will consider it an act of treason. Is that clear?”
The man’s skin had faded to sickly pale blue, but he gave a deep, formal bow. “Yes, Your Imperial Majesty. I can only say that I am completely devoted both to you and to the Empire. Everything I have done has been on your behalf.”
“I believe you, Tanaca, which is why I feel quite sure that this subject will never again arise between us. Be assured that I value your many years of service.” His voice lost its formal cadence. “And leave Captain Athtar alone. He is about to become… related to me via mate bond.”
“Sire?” The man looked a little dizzy at the abrupt change of subject.
“Athtar’s mate is Ella’s missing Faith.”
“Indeed?” Tanaca regained his composure enough to cast Athtar a look of acute dislike. “It’s a shame that the First Consort didn’t find her in time to introduce her to a more suitable candidate.”
Faith laughed as Precious tried once again to get Ella’s “kitten” to play with her. The animal was most definitely not any type of cat that she was familiar with, but then again neither did Precious bear any real resemblance to a puppy. Precious bowed her front legs and whined encouragingly, but Chika only yawned and ignored her.
“Do you miss Earth?” Faith asked. Ella had told her the story of her adventures and Faith was both relieved and impressed that Ella had managed to adapt so well. Her own story had made Ella’s eyes fill with tears, despite Faith’s reassurances. Perhaps it was just as well that they had been separated. Although she knew her friend had a tough core of inner strength, the sterile environment of the lab would have been especially difficult for her.
“No.” Ella sighed. “I really don’t miss it. Perhaps because I was so young. Perhaps because I didn’t remember it for such a long time. Even now, it feels more like a distant dream than a place I actually lived. What about you?”
“Not really. A few things. I miss pizza, even the cold leftover pizza I used to eat late at night while I was studying.”
“Deb misses it, or perhaps it’s just that she misses her family,” Ella said softly. “I feel bad that I can’t really reminisce with her about it.”
“I can’t wait to meet her. Athtar has mentioned her and Rast several times. And their baby.” She shook her head. “Cross species breeding is usually quite difficult.”
“Apparently not for humans.” Ella cast a quick look at Faith’s stomach. “You’re not, um…”
“No. Athtar has an implant and I developed a birth control formula as soon as I had access to chemicals. I didn't know if I was going to be raped and I definitely didn’t want to end up pregnant.”
Ella’s eyes filled with tears again, and Faith hastily changed the subject.
Despite Ella’s earlier words to Athtar, she kept Faith with her for most of the day. Karthajin sent her a message which made her eyes sparkle, while Athtar sent a message to Faith stating that he was taking care of some things on the ship and wouldn’t return until late afternoon. Ella had taken advantage of the extra time and sent for an extremely elegant Kaisarian who turned out to be her tailor.
“I don’t need any clothes,” she protested.
“Please, Faith. Don’t you at least want a nice dress for dinner tonight? Doesn’t Athtar like it when you get dressed up?”
He had seemed to appreciate the green silk, although he’d removed it with his usual haste. “I suppose.”
“Kolga is an absolute genius. I’m sure he can make you something that both you and Athtar will love.”
“It’s quite true,” the man said seriously. “I am a genius.”
Faith laughed. “Oh, very well, do your worst.”
After a whispered consultation with Ella and a few quick questions for Faith, he had taken her measurements, and disappeared. His visit had been followed by a round of bathing and pampering beyond anything Faith had ever experienced. On the whole she had enjoyed it, but she was ready to get back to Athtar and her normal life. They were sitting in Ella’s sitting room, wearing silk robes and drinking something a lot like champagne when Kolga reappeared.
“Do you wish me to dress you?” he asked, handing her a long white garment bag,
“I do not.”
“Then go and put it on.”
The dress was slim column of shimmering gold, shot through with emerald threads which picked up the green of Faith’s eyes. The halter neckline gave new prominence to her rather meager cleavage while the long straight skirt with a slit high on one leg emphasized the length of her legs. She’d never worn anything remotely like it and she felt ridiculously uncomfortable. But when she walked back into the sitting room, Kolga nodded approvingly and Ella clapped her hands in excitement.
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