Too Close to the Sun (The Sun 1)

by Popp, Robin T.

  "Colonel Romanof," the High Counsel was saying, his voice rising above the noise of the crowd. "Is this your weapon?"

  Did you kill Herrod? That's what the High Counsel was really asking him. Did you kill Herrod and then toss your weapon aside in an effort to hide your actions? The accusation that he would commit cold-blooded murder (for there were no marks on him to suggest it was self-defense - nor were there marks on Angel, from what Nicoli could see) and then follow the heinous deed with the cowardly act of throwing away his weapon in hopes of escaping blame was offensive. Any other time, he would defend his honor. Now, honor demanded he defend someone else.

  "Yes, it's mine."

  Chapter 23

  Amid the murmurs of the crowd, Nicoli heard Angel’s gasp. “No.”

  “Colonel Romanof,” the High Counsel began. “Was this a case of self-defense?”

  Immediately Advisor Pualson stepped from the crowd. “Colonel Romanof seems remarkably unharmed.” He looked pointedly at Herrod’s battered and beaten body. “I submit that it could not have been self-defense.” He leveled a hostile glare at Nicoli. “I submit that we are dealing with murder.”

  Others in the crowd quickly took up the argument. The High Counsel studied Nicoli’s face, perhaps waiting to see if Nicoli would refute the accusation. He remained quiet.

  “He must be punished,” someone from the crowd yelled.

  “He is no longer worthy to be Counsel-elect,” cried another.

  Victor spoke then, a smug expression on his face. “His marriage to the Consort-elect, granddaughter to the High Counsel, must be annulled.”

  Nicoli watched the High Counsel weighing Victor’s words. Then a new voice spoke from the crowd. A woman’s voice.

  “Herrod attacked my daughter.” Katrina, supported by Yanur, stepped forward. “Earlier tonight, he sprang on her, intent on raping her. She fought to defend herself and escaped, with Herrod alive. She came to me and has been with me since. Our laws dictate that should a protected woman be attacked, the attack is also against the man who protects her. My daughter is under the protection of two men. When Herrod attacked my daughter, he also attacked her husband, the Counsel-elect. And he attacked the High Counsel himself. The penalty for such an attack is death.”

  A low murmur settled over the crowd.

  "Is this true, An'jel?" the High Counsel asked.

  "Yes," Angel said, moving to stand beside Nicoli. "Herrod attacked me and I fought back, but he was alive when I left him."

  "Then justice has been served and it doesn't matter who dealt it," the High Counsel announced. Nicoli, who'd been studying Angel, turned to the High Counsel in surprise and almost missed the smile he quickly hid. “This matter is thus resolved. Dispose of the body before it stinks up my palace.”

  He waved a hand and two guards swiftly moved to comply.

  After they carried away the body, the High Counsel turned to address the remaining members of the crowd. “Colonel Romanof and his friend Mr. Snellen will be accorded the full hospitality of my people. We owe them a debt of gratitude for returning my granddaughter to her home and for restoring my daughter’s health. I would be gravely upset should any further “unfortunate incidences” occur with regard to either of them.”

  With that, the High Counsel moved to his daughter’s side and took her hand in his. “I am much relieved to see you feeling better,” he said with a small smile.

  “Thank you, Father.”

  He gave her hand a final squeeze, released her and then walked from the scene. The rest of the crowd exchanged brief glances, and then dispersed.

  Alone with Angel, Yanur and Katrina, Nicoli moved to take Katrina’s hand.

  “Lady Katrina ToRrenc, I am Colonel Nicoli Alexandres Romanof of the United System of Planet’s Security Forces, husband to your daughter. It is an honor to make your acquaintance. I am most grateful for your timely recovery.”

  “Colonel Romanof, Nicoli. It is I who thanks you. I thought my daughter was dead. I am overjoyed that she is not."

  “As long as I am alive, I will protect your daughter.”

  Katrina gave him a peculiar look, then smiled. “I believe you mean that.”

  “Let me walk you back to your room, Katrina.” Yanur suggested. “You are recovering very quickly, but I don’t want to risk tiring you too soon.”

  Katrina nodded.

  “I’ll come visit after you’ve rested,” Angel promised, giving her mother a quick hug and kiss before she left.

  Nicoli offered his arm to Angel when she turned toward him. He led them in the direction of their quarters. He wanted to make certain she was all right, and they needed to talk privately. He didn’t care if she didn’t like what he was going to tell her, it was for her own good. Until he could get her away from this planet, he planned to keep her with him at all times. It was the only way he knew to ensure her safety.

  * * * * *

  Brother Joh’nan paced the confines of his bedroom waiting for the knock he expected. When it came, he silently opened the door and stood back, allowing Brother Damon to enter. He closed the door as his visitor moved behind the bar at the far side of the room and began fixing a drink.

  He shook his head to refuse the proffered glass of Wallachie tree ale, not wanting to dull his already dying senses with the powerful liquor. Brother Damon shrugged, then downed the contents himself. He refilled the glass to the top before corking the bottle and setting it aside.

  “Well, that didn’t go as planned.” Brother Damon’s tone dripped with derision.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “The incident with that off-worlder and Herrod.”

  “You had something to do with that? I thought when I saw you in the group of onlookers that you’d been drawn there by the noise as I was.”

  “No, I was there last night when that idiot Herrod attacked An’jel. I waited to see if Herrod could kill her for us, but she got away. When I saw she’d left her laser behind, it occurred to me that I could rid us of two problems at once.”

  “But Colonel Romanof spoiled your plan by taking the blame. Well, it doesn’t matter. You should have known the High Counsel would never allow his granddaughter to be put to death.” Brother Joh’nan moved away from the door, feeling every nerve in his body twitch as he walked to the bar. Even his hands shook as he placed them on the counter and leaned forward.

  “Actually, that part of the plan worked fine. I counted on Romanof taking the blame, to protect her. With Herrod dead and Romanof executed for his murder, they’d both be out of our way.”

  “We will deal with them but we must make sure our method is sound before we act. Which reminds me, you saw Katrina? She’s looking remarkably healthy for a dying woman, wouldn’t you say?”

  Brother Damon glared across the bar at him. “With what we’ve given her, she should have died days ago. Romanof’s friend, Yanur Snellen, must be doing something. He spends a lot of time with her. He’s even preparing her meals. It’s getting more difficult to administer the poison.”

  “Need I remind you that as long as she lives, she’s a threat to our plans?”

  Brother Damon took another drink from the glass, then set it purposefully down on the counter. “I’ll take care of it.”

  Brother Joh’nan sighed and pushed away from the bar to go sit on the edge of his bed. He dropped his head into the palms of his hands, feeling like the sudden pressure and weight of it was more than his neck could support. He was so weary. The last report on the construction of the new transfer plant suggested everything was on schedule, but right now the completion date seemed interminably far away. It would be ironic if, after surviving over a hundred years, searching for the means to immortality, he died before the dream could be realized.

  He didn’t lift his head when Brother Damon spoke. “I’ll take care of it, Joh’nan.” This time, the words were not spoken defensively, but with a wealth of promise.

  Brother Joh’nan raised his head to give his friend a smile.
He knew Damon would do anything for him, as he would for Damon. For a few minutes, neither spoke.

  Then Brother Damon walked over to the bed and sat down beside him. “I spoke to Brother Semuth today.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. It seems that the High Counsel at the House of Danmoora has fallen ill. Brother Semuth feels it won’t be long before he’s able to step in and assume the position.”

  “Excellent.”

  Brother Damon put a hand on Brother Joh’nan’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Everything is coming together as you planned. These few problems,” he waved his other hand generally in the air. “Minor obstacles, nothing more.”

  Brother Joh’nan leaned into his friend, letting his head fall to the other man’s shoulder. “Damon?” He spoke wistfully. “Do you think we can keep Romanof’s body alive until the transfer unit is complete? He seems healthy and you have to admit, he’s reasonably attractive, in a dark sort of way.”

  Damon’s arm moved about his shoulders and held him close. “If that’s what you want.”

  Joh’nan took a deep breath, letting himself enjoy the moment.

  “Do you want me to stay with you tonight?” Damon asked.

  Joh’nan reluctantly raised his head and took a deep bracing breath. “No. I must use the rest of the night to study the old laws. There must be some way to eliminate Romanof without drawing a lot of attention to us.” He raised his hand to place the side of his fingers under Damon’s chin, then slowly drew the man’s face close to his own. Their lips met in a familiar kiss and lingered there for just a moment. Then Joh’nan drew back and gave his lover a sad smile. “You have other things you must do. I will see you later in the day.”

  He stood and walked to his desk. Gazing out the window, he didn’t bother to turn around as Damon opened the door and left.

  * * * * *

  Nicoli held Angel beside him in bed. Though his body ached to join with hers, after such a long, restless night, they both needed their rest. So instead, he held her wrapped in his arms, her head nestled against his chest, feeling that as long as they could lie together like this, she would be safe.

  He listened for the steady rhythm of her breathing that would tell him she slept, but heard nothing. “Are you all right?”

  He felt her nod, but she didn’t say anything.

  “What’s the matter?”

  Then her voice came softly, almost as if she were afraid to speak. “Did you kill Herrod?”

  It wasn’t what he expected. “No.”

  “Then why did you say you did?”

  “They found your laser and I wanted to protect you.”

  She pushed against his chest until he loosened his arms and raised herself until she could look down into his face. “Nicoli. I was telling the truth back there. I didn’t kill Herrod.”

  For a moment, he could only stare at her. Then he realized what worried her. “If I didn’t kill him, and you didn’t kill him…”

  She nodded. “Then who did?”

  It was a long time before either of them spoke again.

  Nicoli pressed his lips to her head. “I wish we could stay like this all day, but I promised your grandfather that we would go check out a few more villages today.”

  “Oh.” She couldn’t keep the disappointment from her voice. She didn’t want to be left behind again.

  “So you better get dressed. We don’t have much time.”

  Angel looked at him, afraid she had misunderstood. “I should get dressed?”

  “Yes. You don’t think I’m going to leave you here, do you?”

  It was all the encouragement she needed.

  * * * * *

  Ten hours later, Angel wasn’t feeling nearly as excited. She steered the shuttle across the planet’s surface, pulling up at the last minute to clear the tops of the first group of small mountain ranges that lay between the small colony they’d just left and the next one on their list. She knew she was cutting her maneuvers a little close and more than once, Nicoli frowned at her from the co-pilot’s seat. No doubt in an attempt to get her to slow their speed, but after a long, frustrating day of sitting on the ship while Nicoli and her grandfather wandered around the various villages, her grandfather’s white knuckled grip on the arms of his chair was her only source of entertainment. No way was she going to change how she was flying. This was too good an opportunity to let pass.

  As if guessing the nature of her thoughts, Nicoli leaned close to whisper in her ear. “If you don’t slow down, I won’t bring you along on our next expedition.”

  “That’s fine with me. All you’ve done so far is leave me on board. At least when I stayed at the palace, I had Victor to keep me company.”

  Nicoli’s eyes grew dark, but he didn’t say anything more. They both knew he wouldn’t leave her behind.

  They had spent the entire day investigating the remote villages that lay on the eastern perimeter of the Scyphor region. Angel had flown the Icarus to five different villages, and five times she had been sequestered to the ship while Nicoli and her grandfather had all the fun of looking for Harvesters. Now, at the end of the day, she was tired of the inactivity and feeling more than a tad contrary.

  She pulled back more abruptly than necessary and sent the aircraft into a sharp climb over the mountains. Then as soon as they cleared the top, she executed a steep dive. She shot Nicoli a look that dared him to say anything, but he wisely kept his mouth shut.

  It had been a long, unproductive day. The two suns were beginning to set and they should have been heading back to the palace, but they’d picked up a possible lead in the last village. During one of the interviews, they’d learn that several members of the village had disappeared. In most cases, they were never seen again. One young man, however, claimed he spotted one of the missing villagers during a rare visit to the Colony of Queneth. He’d tried to talk to the man, but the man had grown agitated and run away.

  The young man had followed him and eventually caught him. When questioned more forcefully, the man claimed he wasn’t who the young man thought he was and insisted on being left alone. The young man departed and made no further attempts to contact the man.

  To Angel and Nicoli, the incident sounded suspicious, so instead of returning to the palace, they were flying to the Colony of Queneth.

  Angel checked the navigrid and slowed the shuttle.

  “It’s going to be dark soon,” she commented. “If we stay low, we can take the ship close to the outskirts without attracting too much attention.”

  Her grandfather stretched forward, trying to get a better view of the village out the viewport. “Don’t expect too much. The last time I was here, the village was practically deserted. Nothing grows out here. Look around. Nothing but rock.”

  “Still, I think it’s worth checking out,” Nicoli said.

  Angel landed the ship and after securing the controls, followed Nicoli and her grandfather to hatch. “I want to go with you.”

  “No.” Nicoli and her grandfather spoke at once. They gave each other a look that Angel interpreted as two males judging each other’s right to issue such commands. She almost expected them to square off and started beating their chests.

  At the hatch door, Nicoli paused before releasing the lock. “Angel, for once, please do what I tell you. Stay here where I know you’ll be safe.”

  “But what if you run into trouble? I'm not so bad in a fight.”

  “No one would dare harm the High Counsel,” her grandfather proclaimed.

  Angel snorted. “If these villagers are Harvesters, I don’t think they’ll be impressed.”

  Her grandfather looked stunned, then shook his head almost sadly. “You have no respect for authority. I should never have left you out there on your own for so long.”

  Ignoring him, Angel turned to Nicoli. “Take me with you. You need me.”

  Nicoli took the few steps that separated them to stand in front of her. He lightly gripped her upper arms with his hands so he c
ould hold her still. He bent his head close and when he whispered, his breath sent tingles down her spine.

  “I do need you. And that’s why you must stay here. If we run into trouble, I want to know you’re safe.” He lightly kissed the sensitive spot just below her ear. “Stay here. If we don’t come back in an hour, go back to the palace and get help. I may need you to rescue me. Again.”

  She looked deep into his eyes, willing him to see in her gaze how much she cared for him. “Be safe.”

  He nodded and released her. He started to turn, but stopped like he’d forgotten to tell her something. She waited expectantly but not for long because he suddenly pulled her into his arms, crushing her to him. This time his kiss wasn’t light and quick. His lips took hers in a long, heated, hungry kiss that made time and circumstances disappear. All her senses focused on the feel of his lips pressed firmly against hers.

  Then she was alone. Nicoli and her grandfather had left the ship and disappeared into the growing darkness.

  Chapter 24

  “Clever ruse.” The High Counsel sounded grudgingly impressed.

  “What’s that?”

  “How you handled An’jel. I must remember that tactic in my future dealings with women.”

  Nicoli remained silent, pretending to study the landscape. He wasn’t about to admit to the High Counsel that his kissing Angel had not been a conscious manipulation. When she’d followed them to the hatch, he’d seen her lips set in that defiant way he’d come to know so well. At that moment, he’d wanted nothing more than to make love to her until every part of her yielded willingly, eagerly to him. He'd wanted her to know how much she'd come to mean to him and how he'd do anything to keep her safe. So he'd kissed her, trying to convey all of his unspoken thoughts into those kisses - and then he'd really kissed her, just in case he never saw her again.

  “This village looks smaller than the others,” Nicoli said, changing the topic. “It shouldn’t take us long to walk the entire length and back.”

  As they had flown by, Nicoli had noticed that this village was similar to the others in that a small public square was situated in the very center with the rest of the village built around it. The buildings were built predominantly from wood and rock and there would be just enough technology to make living conditions tolerable.