AMNESIA

by Canada Jackson

  * * *

  Shihlo groaned when he landed at the same time as Wrexel, who looked at him, Inndra, and Whyle and broke into a run. He caught up with Wrexel at the door of his bedroom where they both saw Amber and Staede asleep.

  Shihlo grasped his brother, pointed at the row of pillows between them, and said in a whisper, “Relax.”

  Wrexel saw the cushions, which stopped him from ripping Staede to shreds. It was the intertwined fingers as they held hands in slumber that pained him more.

  The idea of Staede coveting Amber was bad enough; the thought of him falling in love with her was far, far worse. Staede had been in love once, and nothing had barred him from taking her as his own. Not his underage status, nor the fact that she was the precious daughter of a man highly rumored to be a free sorcerer.

  The jagged scar upon his chest was evidence of the father’s high-level ability for restricted magic. After three days, Staede had risen from a coma and appeared to be unchanged, never to reveal the full details of the curse until much later, when it became apparent he was significantly changed.

  In a bid to remain unaffected, he started racking up lovers by the dozens, all of whom left his room dizzy with pleasure and high with praise.

  Wrexel had confronted him once, asked him if he regretted what he had done. He simply admitted that he hadn’t cared. He told the shocked Wrexel that when he truly wanted a woman, nothing and nobody would stand in his way.

  He was prepared to die for what he wanted.

  If Staede had stared down a sorcerer and taken the blast of a magical curse to keep his lover, what would he do to have Amber? If she were falling in love with him, how could he stop them?

  * * *

  Shihlo dragged Wrexel away from the sleeping couple and forced him to endure a meeting in the lounge. “Take your mind off what you just saw, brother. It is evident they are friends and nothing more. Look at this instead.”

  Shihlo projected intel he had received from a contact on Illohi. “These were the Rak soldiers in the Monarch’s pit.”

  Wrexel frowned. Their faces meant nothing, nor did their names.

  “What’s interesting is that they were last heard from just before the Rak coup attempt. I asked Revan, and he claimed there was talk of an uprising around the time these three went missing. They were known to be against the current Rak government when they were alive,” said Shihlo.

  “It does not make sense.” Wrexel could understand that the Rak had their own political complications, and that their ruler obviously had his own share of internal issues. Yet why would those who were reporting dissention end up dead on Throm?

  “They must have been colluding with our Monarch. Think it through, Wrexel; the attack they did not prevent centered on Lee during one of your biggest military exhibitions. The lives lost were mostly Green and Blue. Just days before, the Monarch had withdrawn his personal guard from the maneuver, citing a difference with your tactics. The loss was… ours.”

  Shihlo had to stop to collect himself. The loss of Cyla had been immeasurable.

  “You always say he has hidden building grounds. I think the reason we can’t find them is that they are on Rak. Perhaps the Monarch aligned with them to take us down.”

  “That would be suicide,” said Wrexel. “The Raks have no allegiance to Throm. Destroying our ability to protect ourselves would open the field for the Raks to take over completely. Why would the Raks help him build an army that could one day turn around and attack them? No, Shihlo, it makes no sense.”

  “Wrexel, think about it. If Halge is losing support like our Monarch, wouldn’t he consider creating an alliance to remove a common enemy? Level the playing field until only two remain and then they could face one another until the best one wins.”

  “If we proved this, Throm would demand the Monarch be publicly executed.”

  Shihlo’s bitterness rose to the fore. “If we prove this, I will know that Gilroth killed Cyla and will personally cut his throat irrespective of the curse.”

  Wrexel lay back on the couch and sighed. “To find the truth, we will have to wait until the embargo is lifted. There is no way we can get under the Source shield the Yimmyrd have in place. And there are only a few Rak governors on Thee Isle; the Yimmyrd strictly monitor them.”

  Shihlo glowered at his words. “More have been released to govern lately… including their highest military commander Khul, who has made it known that he intends to do worse. He harassed my child-minder recently and I’ve had to put out additional guards to protect her and my sons.”

  “Child minder?” Wrexel raised a brow; there were rumors that she was a little more.

  “Yes,” Shihlo said firmly. “My underage human child-minder!”

  * * *

  As the strategy to discover more about the Monarch’s involvement with the Raks slowly unfolded, another task was necessary to ensure the short-term recapture of the brothers’ dwindling polls.

  Before setting the plan in motion, they waited for Staede to depart on his flight maneuver. When Staede finally announced he was accompanying his top flying squad on a one-week reconnaissance, they decided to move forward with their plot.

  The Monarch sat upon his throne, surrounded by his most loyal supporters, when Wrexel walked into the House of Decisions with Amber at his side.

  A ripple of murmurs spread as he approached the king.

  Wrexel had not been seen in the house since his marriage and he was pleased to see the tabloid reporters in attendance. Their hints had paid off.

  When Amber entered, the Sanbara went crazy, so much so that the Monarch had them cruelly yanked back and sent into the cage behind his throne. Amber was afraid that something would happen to reveal her bond with them, but they settled down to stare at her instead.

  “What brings you here, my undeserving heir?” asked Gilroth when the chaos died down.

  Wrexel held out his hand and moved Amber to his side. “A request for a change in the marriage contract,” he declared.

  The Monarch looked as if he had been slapped but he quickly recovered.

  “So, the boredom I predicted has come.” He laughed.

  A few others joined in.

  The Monarch’s eyes narrowed when he noticed that Amber did not look distressed. Then he frowned when Whyle stepped down from his position beside him.

  “Where are you going?” he demanded,

  “It is only right that I join Wrexel as he makes our union known.”

  Wrexel observed a look of horror on the king’s face as he took Amber’s hand and placed it symbolically in Whyle’s.

  “I declare my marriage of monogamy null and share her today with my cousin and brother. Amber of Throm is now the center of our universe, the core of our tri-marriage, beloved by us both.”

  Comments of this kind were traditional, but they infuriated the king.

  “I have declared the union of a Thromian and another race unlawful,” he roared.

  “With one exception,” Wrexel reminded him. “Amber. The law does not affect any of her choices.” Shihlo had made sure of that.

  “Do you choose to take another Thromian mate?” Gilroth demanded of Amber.

  “I find myself in love with Whyle, too,” she stated as instructed.

  The Monarch leaned forward, his words low enough for only the trio to hear.

  “Little whore,” he cursed her. “Corrupting my blood. I will not rest until you are dead, you lascivious little bitch.”

  Amber paled, and the Sanbara roared. Wrexel squeezed her hand reminding her the king wanted a display, a reaction, to claim the cousins had lost their minds.

  The Monarch spluttered as he lifted his scepter. “So be it.”

  He left his raised platform and Whyle and Wrexel smiled, stopping to accept congratulations from a few who had not followed the Monarch’s walk out of the room.

  Amber returned to her home with Wrexel to collect her bag. Tradition dictated that she spend a lone honeymoon with Whyle, to ensure appe
arances were kept up. Arrangements were in place for a week upon one of the islands on Havelo. Wrexel had arranged for an entire fleet to guard the seaside dwelling where Amber would stay. Dionys and Freya would both be on hand as well, for protecting Inndra was now half their problem.

  The Monarch would want Amber dead more than ever.

  * * *

  Wrexel watched Amber as she prepared to leave. He struggled with the inner turmoil that had plagued him for days. He trusted Whyle and accepted that Amber loved him as a brother and yet the idea of her kissing him, even in an arranged manner, tore at him.

  He always relied on Amber’s attraction to him, the fact that she wanted him as much as he wanted her, but now this was challenged in a way he could not change.

  He could not forget the packed pillows the night Amber had been alone with Staede. His beautiful wife, despite her claims of hatred, would not cheat on him… for now. But what if she fell in love with one of his brethren?

  She adored Whyle… she doted on Staede. He watched them together, the knowing smiles, the shared jokes he didn’t understand, each like a stab wound to his stomach.

  She finally stood before him, ready to go, and his heart wrenched. She looked beautiful.

  She wore a sundress that molded to her curves, flaring around her knees in feminine perfection. He wanted to peel the dress from her and devour her, remind her one last time that she was his, and defy her to feel anything but regret when Whyle kissed her.

  “Amber…” He struggled to find the words. “With Whyle…”

  “Don’t, Wrexel. We must do this for Throm. We must help Shihlo win back what he has lost; Whyle is a brother to us both, and a trusted friend.”

  “You care about Throm?” He tugged her to him.

  “I care for this family I have inherited.”

  “Even me?”

  Her eyes flickered, but she did not reply.

  “Touch me before you leave, Amber.” He lifted her hand and put it against his cheek. She sucked in her breath at his anguished gaze, the colors in his eyes unlike any she had seen before. Her fingers stirred at his cheek as she fought the urge to give him what he wanted most. She curled her fingers as her eyes clouded over in regret but he clasped her hand against his face, covering her hand with his own.

  “My lord, Whyle is here.”

  “Thank you, Leyahanna.” His voice was rough as he broke away from her and left the room.

  35

  Tri-Marriage

  Amber had been gone for a while when Shihlo came to Wrexel’s quarters with a look of warning.

  Staede was not as far away as they first thought.

  Wrexel’s doors flew open and his second sibling approached him with a roar. “You have shared her with Whyle, you fucking bastard.”

  They collided and fell to the floor with punches flying. Blood sprayed all over the carpet and Banjo barked and then ran whimpering to their bedroom.

  Finally, Shihlo managed to grasp hold of his angry brother and pull him from Wrexel.

  “You would stoop to this to keep her from me?” Staede looked anguished. “Giving her to our cousin? I loathe the idea of your hands on her; now she has his on her, too?”

  “It’s in name only, idiot… think!” Shihlo thundered.

  Staede blinked and then sat back.

  This had occurred to him when he had flown back in anger, but a small, scared part of him wondered whether Wrexel had done this to keep him from Amber. Dodging one husband was bad enough; two would be difficult, especially if Amber had agreed to the marriage because she had feelings for Whyle.

  Staede remembered her affection for Whyle, the way she always comforted him. Had this happened in front of his nose? Did she stop his advances that night because of Wrexel, or because of growing feelings for Whyle?

  He hated seeing Wrexel touch Amber but reminded himself that she was merely responding physically to him; she showed no affection toward his brother.

  But Whyle.

  She adored Whyle.

  Staede’s eyes narrowed when Wrexel looked smug.

  “If you thought for one moment this would deter me from my goal to have her, you are mistaken,” Staede warned. “Line up half of Throm to enter into name-only marriages with her, I don't care. She will be mine.”

  He stalked off to find a drink, leaving Shihlo to stare at Wrexel’s pained expression. “Someday this will come to a head, and only one of us will live,” he told Shihlo with sad resignation. “On days like this, I believe Staede may actually be in love with her.”

  Staede was not teasing; he was not remaining steadfast in his will to avoid calling her sister because he wanted to annoy Wrexel. Something much deeper was behind it.

  Wrexel flicked on the monitor and they watched Whyle and Amber depart. As discussed, he lifted her into his arms and carried her to the transporter. When they approached the steps, she wound her arms around his neck and he kissed her passionately.

  Wrexel turned his face away.

  It was exactly as they had planned and yet he wanted to smash his fists into the screen.

  “Great plan,” Staede cursed him as he walked back into the room with his wine and saw the frozen image. “She desires you, but she loves him. You better pray it doesn’t grow into something more.”

  Wrexel watched Staede throw himself on the couch and down his beverage.

  His brother didn’t realize that he was a far greater threat than Whyle would ever be.

  After he received the summons to meet with Shihlo, Travis clicked off the monitors that had caused him anguish all day. The footage of Amber leaving for her honeymoon with Whyle had him reeling in horror for hours.

  It had to be staged!

  Unless she had fallen in love with Whyle?

  No, his two meetings with Whyle during the evacuation had been chilling. He looked like Wrexel but had ice-blue eyes that never showed emotion. He sported a permanent glare, never smiled, and was the architect of Earth’s destruction, cold and calculating. Exacting orders to destroy like he were ordering a drink.

  Amber could never fall for a man like him.

  Perhaps Wrexel had become bored?

  He entered the lavish section of Thee Isle City and then headed straight for Shihlo’s opulent villa. He placed his hand over the monitor.

  “Travis of Rheese,” he said when the portal opened for him to speak.

  The door slid open and Travis slowly walked into the home where his sister resided with her “boss,” Shihlo of Throm.

  He hoped the meeting would give him an opportunity to broach the subject of his ex-fiancée. He had to know if Amber was a hysterical prisoner of two brutish men. No matter why Shihlo had called him, he would find a way to beg for answers.

  The room was dim and a few seconds passed before Travis’s eyes adjusted and centered on Shihlo’s usual look of animosity. How Samantha was able to work for him and claim to enjoy it was beyond him.

  Travis felt trepidation when he thought of Shihlo’s friendship with his sister. She was too young for the Thromian and there would be harsh penalties if he touched her, but Travis wondered what would happen when she turned twenty in a few months. Shihlo was a well-known purist, but Travis did not trust the Thromian.

  “I called you here to discuss something about Amber.”

  Travis was elated. “Is she…” he began, but Shihlo held up his hand. “I’m the one who will be asking questions and getting answers.”

  Travis frowned but obeyed. He had no choice but to listen when it came to the bastards who had raped Earth. But not for much longer if he had his way.

  “Amber told me that when she left Earth, she learned that her father hid the fact that her mother was alive, that she hadn’t died during childbirth. This upsets her greatly and she wants answers. I tried approaching James, but he refused to answer me and walked away. Whilst I was tolerant of his behavior because he is her father, I will not accept dismissal from you. If you know nothing about it, then leave, but be sure to tell him t
hat I have promised her answers. If necessary, I will resort to making him talk and that won’t be pleasant.”

  “If I may,” Travis glared at him, “I will answer you, but I have a few questions of my own.”

  Shihlo’s slow smile unnerved him. “Then let’s be cordial. Please have a drink.” Shihlo poured Travis a glass of Thromian wine. “I insist.”

  Travis’s desperation for answers made him sip it slowly as Shihlo watched him carefully over the rim of his own goblet.

  “Did you know her mother was alive?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “Why was it kept from her?”

  Travis was about to answer when a wave of dizziness overcame him. Setting the glass on Shihlo’s desk, he groaned in dismay. “You’ve drugged me.”

  “I want real answers.” Shihlo’s smile was pure evil as he set down his drink, untouched.

  “Screw you.” Travis tried to stand, but quickly slumped back.