The Game Warden's Mate: An Alien Abduction Romance (The Hunt Book 1)
Page 29
“I assure you that my father was not suffering dementia associated with the pertinax virus when he organized this round. He didn’t have the virus long enough to progress to the end stages.”
“So Osazo acted recklessly then? He knew his time was ending soon and had decided to ignore one of the most sacred laws set forth by the Galactic Federation of Planets?”
“My father was consumed with our family business and made it his life’s mission to ensure its vitality for not only his lifetime and mine, but for generations beyond,” Xrez growled. “The Hunt meant everything to him, and he wouldn’t have done anything to jeopardize his standing with this assembly. He was well aware that The Hunt couldn’t go on without your blessing and cooperation.”
“How do you explain his actions? Humans are protected. There are laws against taking them from Earth. Surely you can understand our position,” Mirze said. “The punishment is more than any of us here are willing to pay.”
“All this is showing is that we’ve voiced our concerns to you,” Trokkid said. His face turned an unattractive color as he raised his voice.
“Skip ahead to the good part,” Xrez told Bradliix.
In this scene, Xrez looked distraught. It was a point in time that he never wanted to revisit again. He’d thought he’d lost his mate.
The hologram projecting from Bradliix’s tablet had everyone’s attention. Esme was in a fight for her life against an arrancar.
She was covered in blood, and her energy waned. Xrez couldn’t watch anymore. He looked away from the recording and brought his arm around Esme to pull her close. He needed the comfort of her against him. Esme laid on his chest and watched the recording in silence.
“Bradliix.” Xrez recognized the strain in his voice. “Next.”
“No, leave it here,” Sego said. “I want to see if she lives or not.”
There were sounds of fighting.
“Such a senseless death,” Mirze said.
“It would’ve been better if this prey had been caught in Level One. At least then you would’ve seen a profit from her.”
“I think we need to change the structure. Why should our credits be tied to how many prey are captured? It’s clear that if there weren’t dangerous beasts in the game more would get captured and you wouldn’t lose any to death. We should get a flat rate per game. Not per captured prey.”
“I second that motion.”
“And in case you’re wondering, we’re recording this meeting as well,” Bradliix said.
“This is a breach of trust,” Mirze said. She’d been silent throughout most of the meeting, but Mirze wasn’t like the rest of them. She spoke to offer counsel and wisdom without the need for theatrics.
“You can understand why we would need to protect ourselves. This isn’t the only evidence of collusion we have. Bradliix is meticulous in his record keeping. He has notes, files, recordings and transaction histories going back to his first days as my father’s assistant. Which I just realized I haven’t thanked him for.” Xrez grasped Bradliix shoulder. “Thank you.”
Bradliix gave him a nod. “You’re welcome, Sir. I’ve always done my best to maintain the integrity of The Hunt.”
It was because of Bradliix that they had the information needed to sever ties with the bureaucrats once and for all. He would be indebted to Bradliix not only for that but also for saving his mate. “Of course, you did.”
“So tell us more of your plan for Turolois,” Mirze said.
Sego bristled. “Why would we want to know that? He’s disrespected us most egregiously!”
“Because I’m curious.” Mirze gave Sego an annoyed look. Then she turned back to Xrez and raised an eyebrow waiting for him to respond.
“It turns out there are survival enthusiasts who will pay for the opportunity to be hunted. Of course, not all hunters get to keep their prey. But there are some prey who wish to prove themselves as worthy mates and security detail. For those participants we manage the compound as we have before. We’ve also opened some of the arenas to be used for retreats and team building activities. We have an arena dedicated to groups who come in for the sole purpose of learning survival techniques. Novices and experts alike can hone their skills.”
“I can’t believe you gave up a profitable business for this,” Thruzon huffed.
“The first month was slow, but with advertisements, we’ve since seen an increase in bookings. We’re now almost on the same revenue tract we had before the all-human hunts were announced.”
The look on their faces was well worth the headache of the visit.
“I do believe this concludes our business dealings. I’ll leave you all to finish your meeting.” Xrez made his way to the exit with Esme at his side and Bradliix leading the way.
“Xrez?” Mirze called out.
Xrez stopped and turned his head. “Yes?”
“You told us what you did, but you didn’t tell us why. Was it because we got greedy and wanted a partnership?”
“That was part of the reason.”
“And the other?”
Xrez glanced at Esme. “My mate didn’t want our children to inherit an illegal and unethical legacy.”
“For anyone who’s having a hard time following along,” Esme said. “He changed it for love.”
About A.M. Griffin
A. M. Griffin is a wife who rarely cooks, mother of three, dog owner (and sometimes dog owned), a daughter, sister, aunt and friend. She’s a hard worker whose two favorite outlets are reading and writing. She enjoys reading everything from mystery novels to historical romances and of course fantasy romance. She is a believer in the unbelievable, open to all possibilities from mermaids in our oceans and seas, angels in the skies and intelligent life forms in distant galaxies.
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