I call Controi and bring his face up on my wrist device.
“Tell me why you said you should have known it was him?” I demand.
“Something he said in the Council meeting. The way he defended the rebels. It just didn’t seem right.”
“Why didn’t you bring it to my attention?”
“Sire, I wasn’t sure. Accusing one of our own Council as a traitor to Mars. I couldn’t do it unless I had proof. I am sorry. Perhaps this could have been prevented if I had not hesitated.”
“No, Controi, I understand your decision. Good work today. You and Bishto should be commended. Send the fleet to the bridal house to meet Captain Noru and clean up the rest of the rebels there. I hope there will be a solution soon. Ossi’s science team has confirmed the behavior is a serum side effect. That means an antidote is possible and we can return to a unified society.”
“That is good news, sir.”
“Indeed. Carry on, Lieutenant.”
I flick off my screen and start heading down to the panic room to retrieve Madeline. I am glad she was safe in the basement, even though I didn’t spend the battle with her. It is better that I knew she was safe during the attack so that I was able to stay nimble and focused.
When I open the door, I find her talking to the room full of women in the basement of the bridal house. They seem to be calm and focused. And I can see that she’s been helping them.
I smile with satisfaction and pride in my mate. She truly is a worthy queen. Instead of sitting in fear, she found a way to be of service to the people of Mars.
I walk into the view of the girls and their eyes go wide. They all begin to speak at once. Madeline turns and stands, coming to me in an instant. She wraps her arms around my waist and asks me what is going on.
I address the women on the screen and my bride at once.
“We have defeated the rebels here at the palace. Traitors have been arrested. The full force of the Martian military will be at the bridal house in moments to put down the rebels there.”
A cheer erupts from the gathered group. But a few roll their eyes as if they could care less. I’m not sure there is anything that could be done to make that minority happy. But it doesn’t make me want to stop trying.
“We have had a scientific breakthrough in the last twenty-four hours. It was theorized that the irrational Martian behavior was a side effect of the matching serum we all took. That theory was confirmed today. An antidote can now be devised so we never have to live through this again.”
“What about us? Will we ever get to go home?” one of the girls asks. She’s young, with big brown eyes and long brown hair. She has a sweet round face. Her knees are gathered up to her chin, and I can tell she’s been crying. I wish I could tell her that we will return to Earth to save everyone there. But I can’t. I simply cannot ensure that. Not until there is scientific proof to back it up.
“We are trying,” is all I can say. “We have teams working on the calculations to return to Earth without causing a time paradox. But even if we can return safely, we lack the offensive power to defeat the Mantises. We will develop everything in due time. But unfortunately, we do not have those capabilities now.”
She sniffles and looks down at her knees. My heart breaks. I never imagined it would be like this when we brought them back here. I was naive. But never again. We will solve these issues and we will do it during my reign, if only to bring happiness back to these innocent girls. If only to make my sweet little queen proud.
“We will protect you. This I vow to each and every one of you. We will only match you with men if you want to be matched. We will not allow you to be swarmed by crazed Martians. We will do everything we can to make your lives comfortable and happy. If you like me or hate me, I will do no less for you. I swear it on my life, to each and every one of you.”
The room goes silent for a heart-stopping moment. Then there is a slow clap that starts with one person. I see it is Madeline’s friend Bethany. Then others join in. And still more until almost everyone in the room is clapping. They stand to their feet. The mood is solemn but there is joy in it, and hope. And that is the most important thing of all, because when you have hope, you have the chance of a future.
22
Damious
Madeline and I leave the panic room and take the elevator back up to our living quarters. The palace staff have all gathered to go over the damage done during the attack.
I listen to their reports with a heavy heart. We’ve taken serious damage and the repairs will be costly. The palace is still livable, but the repairs will be noisy and distracting.
“Madeline and I will be going to live in the penthouse in Cassini during the reconstruction. I will return upon completion,” I tell the staff.
They file out and Madeline and I are left in the living room. The large window is cracked, and she looks concerned.
“Do you want to stay here with construction going on?” I ask her.
“No. Not really. I don’t have anything against going into the city. I’m just worried about Sophia after the attack at the bridal house.”
“The bridal house didn’t take any damage. The confrontation was between the military and the rebels. They didn’t want to harm the women, fortunately. The building was spared.”
“Can we bring Sophia to live with us at the penthouse, at least until things calm down?”
“Yes. The women are being moved to a secret location today. So we should arrange for her to be brought to the penthouse instead.”
“Thank you, Damious.”
I kiss her forehead and hold her in my arms, feeling her soft, small body and her warmth against me. I live for this feeling. If anything had happened to her during the raid, I would have torn apart each and every man responsible.
There have been dozens of arrests. While half the planet seems to have joined in the rebel’s philosophy, only a small percentage are involved in the actual physical attacks.
Having arrested Connon Ingar, a member of my own Council, it makes it clear that this movement has infected men in the highest places.
He is being interrogated by Bishto himself. I expect to have answers from the man within the next few hours.
“We should pack,” I tell Madeline.
She agrees and climbs to her feet. After giving me a soft kiss, she leaves the room to pack her bags.
I go to my rooms to throw some things together and arrange for Madeline’s friend to be sent to our penthouse.
Once I know she is safely on her way, I get updates from the Council and from the security assigned to the Earthlings.
“The relocation is going well,” says Captain Noru through my wrist device. “We will have them in a secure location within the hour.”
“Very good.”
After the attack, the repair and reconstruction weigh heavily on my heart. It never should have happened. And we still don’t have a solution to the underlying problem. Winning a battle, or even two battles, is not winning the war.
And while there are multiple solutions on the table, none of them have worked out yet.
I have my staff take our bags up to my vehicle and meet Madeline in her room. She turns to me with that same worried look on her face.
“Sophia is on her way to the penthouse. She will be there before we arrive.”
She stands from her couch and comes to me in a rush, throwing her arms around me. I hug her tightly before we turn to go. We walk hand in hand up to the landing pad, and I help her into the car.
A moment later, we are lifting off and flying into the sky. The valley flies by below us and soon we are entering the massive capital city of Cassini.
I land on the tallest building in the city, on a private landing pad on the roof. This is my second home, where I stay when I am needed in the capital. It is only a short trip from the palace, but it is worlds apart from the mountaintop estate in the forest.
I help Madeline from the car, and we walk into a hallway that leads down an
escalator to a pair of doors. The AI scans my face and opens the double doors automatically.
My penthouse staff carry our bags behind us as we walk into the room. The entry hall is a wide circular room with a high domed ceiling made of glass. It lets the sunlight stream down onto the massive potted plants that surround a bubbling fountain at the center of the tiled room.
Madeline is in awe of the entry hall and I take her hand, leading her into the main house.
To one side is a large sitting room with comfortable couches, a fireplace, and several large screens filled with classic artwork. The other side extends into a larger atrium. I had these installed to bring nature into my home in the city.
We find Sophia sitting by the fire looking out the wall of windows. Beyond is a wide patio with a waist-high glass wall and an overhanging roof to keep out the rain.
When she hears us enter the room, she abruptly stands and hurries over to Madeline. The two women hug each other tightly. Both begin to cry.
“I was so worried about you,” Madeline says.
“I was worried about you,” Sophia replies.
“Everyone is safe now,” I tell them.
Sophia looks up and stares at me with an inquisitive expression on her face.
“Sophia, this is my match, Damious Girr, King of Mars.”
“Nice to meet you,” she says. “Am I supposed to bow or something?” She looks over at Madeline, pressing her index finger to her lower lip.
“That’s not necessary,” I tell her. “It’s nice to finally get to really meet you, Sophia. We only met briefly before. But you are an important part of Madeline’s life, and therefore an important part of mine.”
Sophia gives Madeline a searching look and a secret smile. “We’ll talk about it later,” Madeline mutters to Sophia.
“Why don’t you two settle in? I have some things to attend to.”
The staff take the ladies to their rooms and to give them a tour of the penthouse, which covers two floors of the building.
I turn down the hall to my office and bring up a call with Malico Ossi. His face comes up on the screen and there seems to be a shift in his demeanor since the last time I spoke with him.
“Tell me you are making progress,” I say.
“Yes. A great deal of progress. I think we’ve found the cause of the side effects. Now all we have to do is create an inoculation.”
“How long will that take?”
“It could be ready as early as a week from now.”
“Excellent.”
Two days later, I join the ladies on the patio for dinner. The cook has prepared a feast of steak and lobster with numerous delicacies to go along with the main course.
Madeline and Sophia chat about their lives back on Earth, and I enjoy getting to see this side of my mate. She seems more relaxed with her friend around. But then the conversation turns to Madeline’s sister Abigail.
The two of them go silent, looking off into the distance.
“We are working on the timegate equation,” I tell them, breaking the silence. “I will then send a mission to Earth for Abigail.”
“When will that be?” Sophia asks.
“It’s unclear. The current estimate is perhaps five to ten years. But I hope it will be sooner. Currently, there are more pressing matters for our scientists to be focusing on.”
“Such as?” Sophia asks. Her tone is irate, and I don’t like being spoken to like this. It takes all of my patience and rationality not to dismiss her and send her back to her room. But I can’t do that to my match’s best friend, no matter how obnoxious and disrespectful she may be.
“I have everyone working on a solution to the serum side effects causing the dangerous rebellion. My highest priority is the safety of Mars. And the safety of the Earth women. I’m afraid everything else must wait.”
After the attacks several days ago, only the most stubborn, irrational person would think otherwise.
“It’s good of you to be willing to try,” Sophia finally says.
I had assumed the Earthlings would have a higher level of gratitude from the start. We’d predicted there would be a psychological reaction to the abduction, but I had naively expected they would see us as their saviors. Despite how wrong I’d been on that account, it is good to finally get some recognition, however small.
“My mate’s happiness is of great importance to me,” I tell her.
I reach over to take Madeline’s hand and she looks lovingly into my eyes. I must admit, I enjoy this togetherness. I enjoy her friend getting to see us together. To observe the genuine love between us. And that our relationship isn’t based on some obscene master/slave dynamic, as some of the women have suggested.
After dinner, we spend time in the game room playing billiards and darts, two popular ancient Earth games that have remained popular on Mars. Madeline is an incredibly good shot with darts, even without being genetically enhanced, and beats us both handily.
With the responsibility of being king, novelty is a rarity in my life, so I am not the most practiced at these games. But it does my heart good to see my bride’s skill. It fills me with pride and makes me think that our future children will be highly capable people.
When we say our good nights to Sophia and head back to the room together, I get a call on my wrist device from Malico Ossi.
“I need to take this,” I tell her at the door to our chambers.
“Aren’t you coming to bed?” she asks.
“I’ll be as quick as I can. But don’t stay up. This could take a while.”
She slips through the door to our chamber, and I hurry down the hall to my office.
I flick the call up onto the big screen and Malico’s face looms large before me.
“Why do you call so late?” I ask him, pouring myself a glass of scotch.
“I wanted you to be the first to know. Before the rest of the science team. Before the media. Before the Council.”
“What is it Malico? My bride is waiting.”
“Sire. We’ve found the solution. Production will begin in the morning. It can be distributed through aerosol. Which means, we can spray it across Mars without needing to give injections.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying I’ve found a way to reverse the serum side effects. We can end the rebellion. The war is over.”
I have to sit down when I hear his words. They buzz in my brain, bouncing around like an errant electron. I drain the rest of my scotch and shake my head.
“Thank the God of War we will return to peace!” I raise my empty glass, realize it’s empty and stand to go fill it again.
“Indeed,” says Ossi with a gigantic smile on his face.
“You’re getting a massive bonus this year, Ossi!” I say, filling my glass again and throwing it back. “Get yourself a drink to celebrate.”
“Yes sir,” he says, pouring himself a tumbler of whiskey.
We share our celebratory drinks together for a few minutes before I remember my bride waiting for me in bed. I want to tell her the good news more than anything.
“We will speak again in the morning to arrange distribution.”
“Very good,” Malico says.
I lift my glass to him as I turn off the screen. The last thing I see is his beaming smile. We’ve done it, we’ve really done it. We have found a way to bring peace back to Mars.
I finish my drink and set the glass on the table. There is someone I need to share my success with more than anyone else. I need to tell my bride what we’ve accomplished.
23
Madeline
I climb into bed, wishing that Damious had come with me. Being in another new bed is unsettling, even after the nice day we all had together.
The assault on our home is something that will stay with me for the rest of my life. But I’m glad we were able to bring Sophia here to the penthouse to be with us. I feel better having her near me. It makes things easier.
I lie under the blankets
in the darkness with the lights of the city twinkling outside my window. I like being in the city after spending time in the country. It’s an interesting change of pace. I hope that when everything is settled, we can see a lot more of the town and of the rest of Mars.
I turn over on my side and stare out the window. It’s started to rain and raindrops spatter on the glass and slide down in little rivulets of silver and blue.
I sigh, thinking about Damious. The battles were a trial for all of us. And from what Sophia has told me, the time I spent with the Earth women during the battle helped a lot of them. Some of them were close to a total breakdown before I got on the call. After it was all over, and Damious came to speak to them, the emotional tone was in a much better place.
I’m glad. And it makes me feel like together Damious and I can do anything. We really can be the king and queen of Mars. We really can see this planet into a better future.
The door slides open and Damious steps inside. I turn over and sit up in bed, happy to see him. He crosses the room. A huge smile brightens his face in the low light.
“What is it?” I ask. I smell the scent of scotch in the air. “Were you having a party in the office without me?” I giggle, walking on my knees to the edge of the bed.
“I have wonderful news, my love,” he tells me, running his knuckles over my cheek.
I take his hand in mine and kiss the back of his fingers. “What is it?” I ask.
“Malico Ossi has found an antidote to the serum side effects. It can be sprayed in the air. Production starts in the morning.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful news!” I tell him, throwing my arms around his waist.
I am so happy for him, for all of us. Peace returning to Mars is good news for everyone’s sake. Deep down, I wish it were other news. But it is still good. And I am so happy and proud of him.
Alien King's Match: Alien Abduction Breeder Romance (Timegate Mars Book 2) Page 13