The Space Merchants of Arachne

by Wendie Nordgren

  “My stomach looks weird. I don’t want it to show.”

  “How about this?” He held up a blue V-necked one-piece suit.

  “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  He bought several different one-pieces and sarongs to match. Hiroshi made deals and purchases. Neema got hungry. Phillip found quiet seating near a restroom and stood with his back to us. Two burly soldiers joined him creating an impenetrable wall of flesh between us and any curious male eyes. I relaxed and took my time with Neema. She was greedy today. I burped and changed her. “Thank you, gentlemen. We’re all done.” She fell asleep in her pram. Thunderdrop and Cass returned to me.

  Hiroshi completed his rounds. “What are your plans for tomorrow?” I asked him.

  “I am at your service. What would you like to do?”

  “We could float around the lake. You two could fish if you wanted.”

  Hiroshi grunted. “That sounds relaxing.”

  We had lunch at an average looking establishment, but the food was incredible. We had steaks, fish, and fries. Next, we visited a fabric warehouse. I held Neema, and the spiders rode in the pram. As we wandered around, I noticed one of their weavers in the back. “Did Simon see any of these?”

  “No,” Hiroshi said.

  “Princess, I am honored by your visit,” a middle-aged man with dark hair and eyes said with a bow.

  “Thank you, sir. You have lovely fabric.”

  “Please allow me to offer a gift to you of whatever you like.”

  “Thank you, but I would really love to see a demonstration of how you make your material.” He seemed surprised.

  “I would be happy to show you.” He loaded spools into compartments on each end and the back. We watched the weaver work through a plasti-glass shield. He allowed Hiroshi to record the entire process.

  “How would I go about purchasing one of these weavers?” I asked. Hiroshi took down the inventor’s name. I bought six bolts of the man’s fabric.

  Hiroshi drove us to the business office of the device’s creator. He was stunned by our visit. It amused me since I truly identified more as Tora’s domestic assistant than as an Imperial princess.

  “Hello, I’m Teagan Alaric Montgomery Lee. This is Captain Lee and Dr. Svenson. I just saw one of your weavers, and I am intrigued. Do you have any that I can look at?”

  He gasped at me. “Yes, yes, your highness.” He was very nervous. I smelled Neema’s neck. Calm filled me as if Yukihyo were with me. “I have newer models, your highness. May I demonstrate?”

  “Yes, sir. Please.” I watched him load the machine. His attendants stood at attention with their backs to the walls. “How do you think your machine would perform with silk threads?”

  Hiroshi said, “We can find out. Wait here with Phillip. I will go retrieve one of Simon’s crates and return.”

  “Is that okay?” I asked the inventor.

  “Yes, Princess. Please allow me to demonstrate the different settings.” Hiroshi left, and I watched with a great deal of interest.

  “How much would one of your machines cost me?”

  “I hope for one hundred thousand credits for this model.”

  “If it works with our silk, I would like to purchase three of them as gifts. Would that be possible?”

  “Yes, your highness.” Neema wailed to be fed. He showed me to his office where I sat in one of his chairs and fed her. I placed a blanket on his desk and changed her. I hoped he didn’t mind.

  Hiroshi returned, and after a few adjustments, our spools were loaded. “Can you set it for a soft light density?” I asked. The result was ethereal. He stopped the machine. “Can we proceed with making an entire bolt? Simon won’t mind. Wow. This is beautiful. When will the weavers be packaged and delivered to our ship?”

  “We can have them delivered in a few hours.”

  “May we see the other machines?” He had three just waiting to be sold. “Hiroshi, Ling might give you a kiss if you were to buy her one of these.”

  He grunted and asked, “Can we purchase all four?”

  The man’s eyes glittered his delight. “Yes, sir.”

  “Three are for me. I hope I have enough credits.” He scanned my chip. It went through. Hiroshi paid for his as well. An attendant brought us refreshments as we waited. Our machines were packaged in wood crates, wrapped, and loaded into a large transport. The delivery men followed us to Tora. “Neema and I are going up to our room while you get these loaded into the cargo bay.”

  Cass and Thunderdrop ate in the laundry room. Neema and I took a nap in our bed. Phillip woke me when it was time to go back to the Palace. “I finally found gifts worthy of Ethan, Sherman, and Simon.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. Ling will be pleased,” Hiroshi said.

  “I bet you and Ling would have adorable babies. When are you gonna get to work on that?” Phillip asked.

  “As soon as I gain her father’s approval. I fear I am following once again in my father’s footsteps. The Chan family has much in common with the Uchidas.”

  “Is there anything we can do to help?” I asked.

  “You are helping. If I can prove to Lord Chan that I can provide for his wealthy daughter on my own and have no interest in her credits, he may approve of me.”

  “Take some credits from Yukihyo and me.”

  Hiroshi smiled. “I must prove myself, but you are a true and loyal sister.”

  “Hiroshi, Lord Chan has Laconian blood. Can’t he tell your feelings are true?”

  “Yes, but I must also please his pragmatic side. No one is good enough for his daughter.”

  We made it back to my wing. We had a quiet dinner with Papa. That night Neema slept for four hours straight. It was lovely. The next day we lounged on my pleasure barge. Neema and I rested on the large circular couch. She practiced moving her hands and feet. Thunderdrop and Cass attached lines to the supports and swung in the breeze. I laughed in delight and enjoyed the pink and orange sky and the trees along the lake. Hiroshi and Phillip fished from the back. That evening we enjoyed another nice dinner with Papa, and I finally felt relaxed. Yukihyo, Simon, Nico, and Kane had arrived at the lodge on Naxa. I was so glad that I hadn’t gone. I knew Phillip was glad, too.

  I woke up in the middle of the night with a terrible stomachache and a baby who was hungry. I changed and fed her, but Neema didn’t want to go back to sleep or be put down. I had terrible cramps. I put her down long enough to get lady protection. It made her fussier. I picked her up and walked with her. I decided to wake Phillip up to help me. I quietly knocked.

  “Will you help me with her, please?”

  A mussed up half asleep Phillip said, “Sure. She won’t go back to sleep?”

  “No, and I have a terrible stomachache.”

  “Give her to me and go lie down.”

  I did. I curled up into a ball on my side. Phillip came back with Neema on his shoulder and a scanner.

  “I didn’t have anything with mushrooms, did I?”

  “No, why?”

  “The last time I felt like this, I had mushrooms.”

  Phillip scanned me. “I’ll be right back.” He came back with Hiroshi who held Neema. Phillip got onto the bed beside me and pulled me against his chest. He rubbed my back.

  “Aren’t you going to get me an antacid or a pain patch?”

  “No, Cupcake. You don’t have an upset stomach.”

  “Well, what’s wrong with me?”

  “Nothing. You have a fertilized egg attempting to embed itself in your uterus. Just try to relax. The cramping is normal.”

  “Wait a minute? Are you saying I’m pregnant? Already?”

  “No, not yet, but we’ll know by morning.”

  I dozed off. Hiroshi woke me to feed Neema, and I went back to sleep. I woke up drooling on the shirt of a snoring Phillip. Hiroshi slept across the end of the bed. Had my brothers not been sleeping in my bed, I could have thought it all a dream. I had just finished being pregnant. I was still nursing. How had this happen
ed already? Stupid Parvac hormones. “You awake?”

  “Yes.”

  Phillip ran his scanner over me. “Congratulations, Cupcake!” I groaned. “Not excited?”

  “It’s so soon.”

  Phillip rubbed my back. “Who were you with four days ago?”

  “Um, both of them. Can you tell who the father is?”

  “Not for a few weeks.”

  “Yukihyo will know.” Hiroshi listened. “Could we please keep this to ourselves until they get back?”

  Phillip kissed my forehead. “Sure thing.”

  “Everything will be alright. Yukihyo and Nico will be thrilled to add another child to our family. I will, too,” Hiroshi said.

  “Phillip, give me a break. Please let me eat what I want within reason. I just went through that horrible pain. It’s fresh in my mind. I should get to have all of the pancakes that I want.”

  “She is right. Simon and I caught a glimpse of that. It was disturbing.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  I stayed in my wing with Neema, Thunderdrop, and Cass. Phillip explained to Papa that Neema had not wanted to sleep which was true. Hiroshi and Phillip went out to make more purchases. While she slept I soaked in my huge bathtub. I dressed in one of the skirts and tops I had bought. Was this child Laconian or Parvac, a girl or a boy? Would Yukihyo know as soon as he saw me? He had known with Neema and with Auria and Mary. “You are deep in thought, daughter.”

  “Papa, yes. I suppose I am.”

  “May I help?”

  “Not yet. My thoughts are swirling around too much.”

  “I just came to check on you. I am in my office should you need me.”

  “I’ll be in these beautiful rooms if you want to visit.” Neema and I ate and slept throughout the day. The peace and quiet helped me calm my mind. The five of us had dinner together. Once we were alone in my wing, Phillip scanned me again and gave me a vitamin injection.

  The next morning, they made sure I was okay with them going out to explore. I assured them that I would be fine. I dressed in a white top, blue skirt, and my opals and sapphires. I looked at the little spiders on Grandmother’s bracelet. I carried Neema to find Papa. Thunderdrop and Cass trailed us. We learned he was in a meeting, so we wandered around the palace and looked at things. Papa found us. “My Princess was looking for me?” I nodded.

  “Do you have a moment?” He held his hands out for Neema, and I placed her in his arms. We went to his private sitting room. “I feel like talking about it now.” He waited. “I’m pregnant again, already.”

  Papa laughed in delight. “That’s wonderful news! Why aren’t you happy?”

  “I’ve only had my body to myself for two months. I thought I’d get to have some fun. I wanted to fly. I wanted to take a roller out and explore my land. You have no idea how overprotective and controlling Yukihyo was while I was carrying Neema. Nico seems just as bad. It’s frustrating.”

  “Do they know?”

  “No, not yet. I’ve only been pregnant for a day.”

  “Who is the father?”

  “I don’t know that either. Yukihyo will know.”

  Papa’s eyes held speculation. “You could be carrying the next emperor.” Neema had a firm grip of his finger.

  “Do you think Nico will allow me to return to Arachne? Ambassador Jiri is there now, and I could have additional security.”

  “Nico will want to keep you happy, and I want to take you to the infirmary.” He stood, and I followed him.

  Papa’s doctor confirmed my recent gestational development. It would be at least four weeks before his scans would be able to detect the baby’s parentage. The doctor began giving me a series of treatments to strength my immune system. Papa began spoiling me with daily massages from a therapist. The next day a man came to do my hair. I had him cut it even with my shoulder blades and then layer the ends.

  Papa and his doctor were keeping my news to themselves. However, Papa was eager for Yukihyo’s return. “Even if this is Nico’s baby, it could be a girl,” I said.

  “If you were to give Nico a son, you would alleviate a great deal of political tension in our empire much more quickly than I would have dreamed possible. However, regardless of who the father is, or the sex of the child, I am ecstatic about having another grandchild to love.” He kissed my forehead. “I am also eager to observe the reactions of my daughter’s husbands.”

  The hunting trip had ended, and they were due to arrive at the palace shortly. I wore the green and blue sundress that I had bought for myself along with a blue coral necklace. Papa held Neema who wore a frilly white dress. Kane, Simon, Yukihyo, and Nico had entered the palace laughing. They had enjoyed a successful hunting trip. Yukihyo made a straight line to Papa and his daughter. After he had her in his arms, he came to me and placed a kiss upon my lips. He heard the question in my mind. He smiled, but shook his head in a negative. Papa noticed.

  I waited until they had settled in, and then asked Nico to go for a walk with me in the gardens. “Your hair is lovely, Princess.”

  “Thank you.” I sat on a bench and pulled him down to sit beside me. “Nico, we need to talk.”

  At my serious tone, he stared at me with dark dangerous eyes. “Have I displeased you in some way?”

  “What? No, not at all.” Appearing relieved, he took my hand and waited. “Um, do you remember the night of the ball?” Nico grinned and gave me a passionate kiss as an answer. “Nico, I’m pregnant.” His face was shocked.

  “Pregnant?” He looked at my stomach.

  “Just by a few days. This is your baby. I think it’s too soon to tell your mother or anyone. We should wait a few weeks.” Nico’s face was a mask of shock. Then, he pulled me onto his lap and kissed me with more passion, tenderness, and feeling than he had ever shown. He kissed my eyelids, neck, hands, and wrapped me in his arms.

  Where with Neema everything I wanted to eat had been scrutinized, Nico reacted in the opposite manner. He indulged my every whim. He became verbally violent with anyone he thought displeased me, including Papa. Papa laughed at him. Nico seldom let me out of his sight. He even insisted that my bed had plenty of room for the three of us and that we needed help with Neema anyway. Nothing romantic occurred in our bed. Any sexual appetite I had had disappeared once I became pregnant. However, I was warm and safe between Yukihyo and Nico and got cuddled all I wanted.

  After two weeks of pampering, spoiling, and relaxation in my wing, we could all tell that Nico was bursting to tell his family on Apellan. Hiroshi prepared Tora, we all boarded, and got underway. Nico told Mrs. Cassian we would arrive at our home on Apellan in three days and that he hoped she would meet us there.

  “What are in the four large crates in the cargo bay?” Simon asked.

  I laid on the ice bear rug with Neema and watched as she practiced lifting her head off of the floor. Hiroshi, Phillip, and Yukihyo were on the bridge. “One of those is a gift for you from me, dear cousin.”

  “What is it?”

  “I bought you a weaver on Parvac.” Simon’s eyes lit up. “I thought you might have fun with it. We took some of your silk spools, so we could see how it would work. One of the resulting bolts is in the center of my storage unit for you. Go see what you think.” Simon found the fabric and was intrigued with the results.

  “What are you going to do with the others?”

  “I thought they would be gifts worthy of Sherman and Ethan. Hiroshi bought the only other available one for Ling.”

  “Thank you. I can’t wait to try it out.”

  “Hiroshi made a video of the demonstration for you.” Simon left for the bridge.

  When we drove up to the castle Nico had given to me in our marriage contract, Mrs. Cassian waited for us. Nico gave her a warm hug. I carried Neema to the living room where a warm fire blazed. Mrs. Cassian sat beside me on the couch, eager to hold Neema. Nico kneeled down in front of his mother enjoying the delight on her face as she tried to get Neema to smile. “You seem to enjoy hol
ding her,” he said.

  “Oh, I do. She is beautiful. She looks just like you, Yukihyo.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Cassian.”

  “In eight months you will have another baby to hold,” Nico said. She looked into her son’s eyes. His twinkled back at her. She looked at me. I shrugged. She looked back at Nico.

  “Oh, Nico. Are you giving me a grandchild?” He gave her a proud smile.

  We stayed at Nico’s house for two weeks. My mother-in-law took spoiling Neema and me to new heights. The nursery was adorable. Phillip’s scans continued to show that the baby and I were in perfect health. Nico spent several days inspecting his military base. The Emperor had granted Nico all of the leave he wanted. His mission was to create the next emperor of Parvac. All of the new dishes and textiles that I had bought for the house made me feel more at home in it. However, we all decided it would be fun to spend some time on Thalassa, so I could enjoy a little freedom while I was able. Mrs. Cassian, who demanded I call her mother, decided to come with us to help with Neema.

  The white three story house was just as beautiful as I remembered. Cass had fun crawling all over it and hunting lizards with Thunderdrop. I wore my blue bathing suit into the water with the boys. Nico stayed with me while Yukihyo, Simon, and Hiroshi raced through the waves. I put my arms around his neck. “There is much of the empire you have not seen. After we spend some time on Arachne, would you consider an extended stay during your pregnancy?”

  “I’ll consider it. How do you think Yukihyo would feel about it? I won’t be separated from him or Neema.”

  “I know. We can discuss it later. I like your new swim suit. It is a great improvement over your previous ones.” I smirked.

  Phillip convinced Hiroshi and Simon to walk a few miles down the beach to look at naked women. Mother Cassian brought Neema to the pavilion where we enjoyed a lunch of fish and fruit. Unlike her mother Neema enjoyed being clothing free. Yukihyo decided to carry her into the water. He was rewarded with genuine smiles. Hiroshi, Simon, and Phillip explored the markets with Fitz. They came back with a tiny swim dress and a matching sunhat. Gleefully, Yukihyo dressed her in them while laughing quietly. I went with them to the water. She rewarded us with smiles and giggles. She batted at the water with her fists.