by Nicole Field
One of the clerks at a shop they had stopped at commented on it. "Do not worry about them. They are just jealous they are not being courted."
"Courted?" Jacob asked, starting to get nervous. How much was he allowed to share? And with who?
"Yes. Is it not obvious? No one else has ever drawn the attention of the king and consort like you have."
"I wasn't aware everyone knew what they were doing." Jacob felt embarrassed, wondering how long everyone had known he was being courted by their king and consort.
*~*~*
Later, when they had returned to the palace for the night—an upgrade from the hotel they had used—Jacob decided to confront them about it.
"Were you aware everyone knows you two are courting me?"
He had caught the two of them off-guard. Thaxl was busy in the kitchen cooking dinner, while Yaro was setting the table and pouring the drinks. They had explained they were used to doing most everything themselves, not comfortable with being waited on hand and foot, even though that was how they both had grown up.
"What makes you ask that?" Yaro asked, handing him a glass of wine they had imported.
"Someone mentioned it," Jacob said. "I almost freaked out when they brought it up. I didn't know if you were keeping it a secret."
"We would never want to keep it a secret. We would yell it from the top of the palace if it would make you feel better.""
"No, please, don't do that." Jacob laughed.
He thought about their dynamic a little more.. It was too soon to say exactly how he felt about them. He certainly wasn't in love with them, but he could admit it could easily happen.
Thaxl announced that dinner was ready. While they ate, Jacob mostly stayed in his thoughts, and they were content to leave him alone.
Jacob could stay here. There was nothing for him back home. He didn't even know if he was welcome there anymore. He'd stopped being happy back home a long time ago, but here he was smiling and laughing more than he had in a long time.
The choice was easy.
After dinner, Jacob helped clear off the table, wash the dishes and put the food away. Then, before Yaro or Thaxl could say or do anything, he grabbed their hands and led them to the bedroom.
*~*~*
Later, when Thaxl and Yaro were asleep, Jacob snuck out to the living area. He had trouble sleeping, his mind always in a whirl about everything. He should be used to this, fighting for others. But he'd never had so much invested in the outcome before.
It was terrifying.
He didn't know how long he was out there for when he heard footsteps coming from the bedroom. He turned his head to see Thaxl give him a smile, before heading into the kitchen. A minute later they returned with a glass of water. They sat down beside Jacob, taking a sip of water and placing the glass on the table.
"Is something the matter?"
"Can't sleep," Jacob said. He leaned over and put his head in Thaxl's lap, who instantly started running their fingers through Jacob's hair. "I'm just twitchy, with the negotiations taking so long. I don't trust the Federation." He wasn't lying.
"Sadly, I do not trust them either. I worry for my people, for my planet. If we do not come to an agreement, it might mean more fighting." They paused in their petting. "If it came to that, would you leave?"
Jacob's breath caught. "Would you want me to go?"
"No." Thaxl pulled Jacob back into a sitting position, pulling him into their arms. "I do not want you in danger, but I cannot stand the idea of you leaving."
"Neither can I." Yaro walked up beside the two of them, sitting down when Jacob reached out to pull them down. "However, you have to decide what is best for you."
"I'm not going anywhere," Jacob said with conviction.
No matter the outcome, Jacob was staying here with them.
Six
It was the talk of the base: a shuttle had flown over several times before landing on the other side in an area that was off-limits to all civilians. Jacob found out that, when Malcolm tried to enter, even he was denied. The order had come down from his superiors.
Jacob didn't know what to think. He wanted to know more about what had happened, but nobody seemed to have that information.
In the end, he had to wait until Malcolm got home to hear the full story directly. When his father did come back to their room, he was lit up with anger. Jacob sat calmly on the couch while his father paced in front of him. He would patiently wait, knowing he would get the full story soon.
"That wasn't a supply shuttle. That was a fully armed, military transport. They've brought in more troops."
"Why would they do that? Surely they know how that would look to the Juek." Jacob knew why, though. They were setting their plan into motion. First they needed to increase the number of soldiers, to ensure compliance.
"I don't know. Cramley and his croonies keep me out of their talks more than I care for," Malcolm said, still pacing.
Jacob had never seen his father worked up like that before. It gave him hope that he might be a better man than he'd thought before.
"Have you reported to anyone? Your superiors?"
"There are only a couple I would trust, and I've shared my concerns with them. Unfortunately they do not have same the pull that Cramley does, so it would take them more time than we have."
"At least that's something," Jacob said.
"It's better than something. These people deserve to get their fair share and to have their planet respected." He finally came to a standstill. "There would be more peace in the universe if humans would just stop and think."
Jacob was surprised at that. He had thought that same thing on several occasions. Guess he shared more with his father than he'd ever known.
"I don't trust them," Malcolm said. "There is no reason to deny me access unless they had something to hide."
"I agree."
Malcolm paused at that, a slow smile appearing on his face. "I had a feeling you would."
An awkward silence followed. Jacob had never been alone with his father before and not felt discontent. It was even stranger that he didn't feel the need to run away.
"You know," Malcolm started, drawing Jacob's attention back to him. "When the judge told me to take you off planet, I was excited."
Jacob shot him an incredulous look.
Malcolm held his hand up. "Hear me out. We never had a great relationship, and I know that was my fault. I was gone too much. When your mother and I were together, we struggled. Jobs were scarce or weren't enough. When I joined the military, I saw it as an opportunity to provide a better life for you."
"And you did," Jacob said quietly. He never went hungry growing up.
Malcolm inclined his head, then went on. "I saw this as a chance for us to… I don't know, talk. I know we can never have the father-son relationship that I always wanted, but I wanted to explain why I left, why I wasn't around as much as I should have been. It doesn't excuse it, but I thought I was doing the right thing."
Jacob sat there for a moment, not saying anything, looking down at his hands. He could feel Malcolm's gaze on him. Screwing up his courage, before he could talk himself out of it, he stood up and walked over to his father. Not giving Malcolm enough time to understand what was going on, Jacob wrapped his arms around his father for the first time since he was a kid. When he felt those arms wrap around him in return, he felt relief.
*~*~*
That night, when it was late and everyone was in bed, Jacob went to find out what was on that shuttle. All was quiet as he crept closer, red signs up along the walls stating only cleared personnel were allowed beyond this point. The lights were off and there were plenty of spots that had shadows, which made for great hiding places when patrols walked by.
The door had a scanner and he needed a keycard to get in. He stood in the shadows of an open closet and watched the door as people came in and out. The room beyond was big and cavernous, with crates stacked up along one side near the door. If he could sneak in behind some
one, he could make for those crates and stay hidden. It didn't look as if that area got much traffic. He had to time it just right, so that no one came in behind him.
A group of soldiers came up to the door, swiping to be let in. Glancing quickly down both sides of the hallway, Jacob followed them inside before the door closed. He barely missed running into the back of the closest soldier, crouching down so as not to draw attention before slinking behind a crate.
Following the crates straight ahead, Jacob came across a lit up area where a shuttle sat. The end of the crates he hid behind was where the light started shining, cutting off his access to the rest of the room. To his left was a door, with another right across it on the other side of the room. A big hangar door sat ahead from the door he first entered.
Turning back to the shuttle, he assumed it was the shuttle he was looking for. He saw even more crates being pulled out, but these were instantly opened, revealing weapons. Jacob tried to angle himself so the camera he was wearing could get a clear view of everything.
The soldiers, who had been chatting amongst themselves while unloading the crates, became quiet when a door screeched open across from Jacob's left. He briefly worried he had been in plain sight, but no one raised the alarm. The newcomers walked right past him, heading straight for the crates and inspected the weapons. Moving around to where he was watching between the cracks in the crate he hid behind, Jacob saw that these people were both familiar and unfamiliar. He shook his head at the sight of Cramley and the others. Of course they would be here. It would seem those rumors he heard in the bathroom were true.
Conversation started up again, but Jacob was unable to hear what was said from where he hunkered down. He looked around him for a spot he could sneak to that was closer, seeing a forklift that was three meters away but closer to them. Waiting for a moment when everyone was turned away, he crossed the space and ducked down behind the lift. Unfortunately it placed him directly under a light, so he was no longer in the shadows. But now his microphone would pick up everything Cramley and his goonies were saying.
"Will this be enough firepower? Do we have the manpower? Nothing can go wrong," one of the ambassadors was saying.
The unknown leader waved her off. "You don't need to worry about that. You just worry about being out of the way when we take the consort captive."
Jacob's jaw dropped. They were going to kidnap Yaro! That was their plan? He couldn't let that happen!
Scrambling back to the shadows at the first opportunity, he left fast as he could while still staying out of sight, heading back to the door he came in through. He had to warn Thaxl and Yaro.
Before he could reach the door, though, he was hit from behind, knocked out before he even reached the floor.
*~*~*
Cold water splashed on his face, jerking him awake. While blinking the water out of his eyes, Jacob tried moving his arms, only to find they were tied behind his back. Finally able to see, he noticed he was in a concrete room. There were no windows, but a bright bulb hung from the ceiling, almost blinding him. After the spots faded from his eyes, he noticed the soldier who was standing slightly to the right of him holding a bucket.
"Let me go," Jacob demanded.
The soldier started walking away.
"You can't do this!"
Still nothing. He was left alone.
As his feet were also tied together, Jacob was forced to stay where he was. He looked down at his chest to see that his jacket was missing, either by coincidence or they found the camera and microphone that he had placed there earlier.
He hoped someone would realize he was missing. He knew how these scenarios played out; he didn't think he was leaving here alive.
Seven
The door opened again and Jacob couldn't stop the whimper that came out. These men had come for him last night, lifting and strapping him into a chair. Then came the questions. What did he know? What had he told the 'fish-men'? Who was he working for?
He answered their questions as best as they could. When they didn't get the answers they wanted, they resorted to torture. Splints under his nails, beatings, knives. His answers never changed and eventually they accepted that he really didn't know anything.
Cramley now walked in with two others. He tried yelling at them through the gag, but his words weren't discernable.
"We tried to be nice, we really did. We tried explaining to you how this needed to go, for the good of everyone. But you had to be stubborn. Just as stubborn as your father. He couldn't be persuaded by money or power. Of course I hinted at it. I couldn't give him anything substantial to use against me. I won't even try with you."
They stood in a half circle around him.
"Commander Jones believes you truly don't know anything and we're content to trust his judgement. Unfortunately, we can't let you go. We know you would share what you found out, if not with Malcolm then with your new lovers." At Jacob's look, he laughed. "Oh yes, we know all about that. How close you've gotten with them. Maybe they'll stay alive long enough for you to see them again."
Jacob had no sense of time. His captors kept the light on, making it hard for him to sleep. After Cramley and the others left, they had untied him from the chair, undoing all of his bonds. He was instructed he could sleep, walk in circles, do anything, but the moment he started causing problems, they would tie him back up. He wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, so he behaved. Better to be uncomfortable on the bed than in the chair.
He wondered if anyone realized he was missing yet. He was supposed to have met Thaxl and Yaro earlier. Surely, if he didn't show up, they would be concerned enough to go looking for him. Perhaps his father would come looking for him, after their heart-to-heart.
If he got out of this, he was going to make it up to Malcolm. He was going to unfreeze. He hadn't wanted to admit it before, but his father was actually a good guy. He was fair, he was nice, he was proud of his work. And he did what he thought was best for his family. That had been explained to him long ago, but he hadn't cared. He wanted to stay angry.
Then Yaro and Thaxl took up his thoughts. If he never saw them again, he would cherish the moments he had with them. If he made it out of here, he was going to throw himself into any relationship he could have with them. No more taking anything for granted.
The door slammed open, causing Jacob to jump up out of the bed. Two soldiers came up with handcuffs and chains, snapping them on him before dragging him out the door.
"Where are we going?" he asked, not expecting an answer.
"Shut up." No surprise there.
They dragged him through a bunch of corridors before ending up in the one where he got caught. The same unknown leader, a commander now that he was close enough to see, stood in the middle again with the same entourage. There were even more soldiers this time, armed with the new weapons that had been delivered.
That was when a new figure caught his attention. Yaro knelt in the midst of them, their hands tied behind their back.
"No!" Jacob shouted, trying to break free to run over to them.
"Jacob, calm down," Yaro said calmly.
How were they so calm?
Jacob opened his mouth, but was slapped before he could say anything. The force of it would have knocked him over if they hadn't been holding him. As it was, his ears were ringing. He heard shouting, other voices talking, but couldn't understand it. Jacob was forced to walk before his senses straighten themselves out. Yaro was forced to walk ahead of him.
The docks were their destination. Jacob could see his father, Thaxl and the biggest group of Juek he had ever seen. Jacob felt a mixture of dread and relief.
They were stopped roughly five meters away, both of them being forced to their knees. Jacob could see Thaxl's mouth tighten at the move, but otherwise he made no sign of his displeasure.
"Cramley, stop this." Malcolm's voice took on a cajoling quality. "This goes against everything we're working for, what the Federation stands for. We don't kidnap people to get our way
."
"If he," Cramley pointed at Thaxl, probably not knowing or caring that he misgendered them, "had just given us what we asked for, it wouldn't have come to this. There are many people waiting for this deal to go through. We have orders to fill."
"You already sold the Iodaluriam?" McKinty asked. Jacob hadn't noticed that he was there as well, thankfully on their side.
"Of course we did. We have plans in place, we had to start making sales right away," one of Cramley's lackeys explained.
"Enough!" the unknown commander yelled. "Let's get this over with. We need to get off base quickly."
"Why?" Cramley asked, glancing around as if something would indicate the need.
"Yes, why?" Malcolm asked.
Jacob had never seen his father so smug before. Did they have a plan?
The unknown commander pulled out a weapon from a holster, walked over to Yaro and shoved the nozzle of the weapon against his temple. "Sign over the rights of your throne to us or I shoot him in the head."
A subordinate stepped forward, flipping through pages on a clipboard. He dug in his pocket for a moment before pulling out a pen, then looked expectantly at Thaxl.
"What will you do after I do that?" Thaxl asked, not moving an inch. They kept their eyes on the gun pressed against their consort's head. "If I give that to you, what's next? More bases? More soldiers? You'll pollute our planet."
"You should be worried about what we'll do if you don't give it to us," the commander said, cocking the gun.
"Don't do it, Thaxl," Yaro said. Not passionately, just like it was a fact.
Jacob couldn't understand how calm they were.
"Quiet." The gun pressed against his head harder.
He couldn't understand why Thaxl was so calm either. If it had been them, he would have been freaking out. As it was, Jacob felt like he was fighting off a panic attack. It was hard enough to see anyone in this kind of situation, let alone someone he actually knew and cared for.