The Seducer (Men of the North Book 4)

by Elin Peer

  “Not tonight,” I said. “But tomorrow, I have to go and help Khan.”

  “With what?” Athena asked.

  “I’m one of his advisers and there’s a war brewing.”

  Her eyes grew to double size, and she swallowed hard. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Hang on.” Kya placed a hand on my arm, before she clapped her hands. “Time for bed,” she called to the children. “Boys, Tristan will sleep with you tonight.”

  “Where? We don’t have an extra bed in our room,” Sultan, one of the youngest children, pointed out.”

  “Then be resourceful,” Marco, who was one of the two assisting teachers, said with a smile.

  “I’m not sharing my bunk bed,” someone complained.

  “Then I guess you’ll have to consult the Oracle,” Marco teased and turned to the other assistant teacher, Shelly, who was only fifteen but a genius. “What do you say, oh wise one? Do you have a solution for the boys?”

  Shelly was obviously used to being mocked because she didn’t even hesitate. “I’m on night duty, so I’m sleeping here. You can take the mattress from my cabin.”

  “Didn’t I tell you?” Marco teased when Tristan, Storm, and Solo got up. “You can always count on the Oracle to come up with a genius solution.”

  Shelly shot him an annoyed glance. “I wish you would stop pointing out that I’m a genius. How would you like it if I pointed out constantly that you’re not?”

  While talking, Marco and Shelly were performing the nightly rituals, helping the children clean up the dining room.

  “You know, Shelly,” Marco said with a grin. “I'd like to see things from your point of view but I can't seem to get my head that far up my ass.”

  I was just about to ask him to be nice to Shelly, but she gave her comeback before I got a chance to open my mouth. “That’s nice, Marco, keep talking, and maybe someday you'll say something intelligent!”

  When the door closed behind them, only Archer, Kya, Athena, and I were left.

  “Okay, now we can talk,” Kya said. “So explain yourself, Finn – what did you mean when you said a war is brewing?”

  Archer and I exchanged a look. He knew what I was talking about, and the fact that the women hadn’t figured it out by themselves spoke volumes about their pacifistic mindset.

  “Khan is going to be under a lot of pressure,” I started out. “Our nation has been waiting for something like this to happen and now that the border has partly collapsed, it’s our chance to knock it down and take back the power that has been denied men for centuries.”

  Athena and Kya were speechless, but the shoulders and eyebrows of both sagged downward.

  “The only thing stopping us from invasion at this point is Pearl.”

  “Pearl?” Athena said. “Because Khan listens to her?”

  Archer nodded. “Khan knows that going to war against the Motherlands will cost him his marriage, and that’s why he’s hesitating.”

  Kya’s voice was shaking when she spoke. “Well, you can tell him that all we Motlander women stand behind Pearl. If you invade the Motherlands, we’ll never forgive you. And we won’t be able to stay here.”

  Archer jerked back. “That’s not fair. I can’t decide what Khan does, so why would you leave me because of a decision he makes?”

  “Not just me; Christina, Raven, and all the children too. We’ll all leave the Northlands!” Kya had tears in her eyes when she raised her hand and pointed at me. “Finn, I know Khan listens to you and Boulder, so you two had better convince him to stay out of the Motherlands.”

  “I don’t think you understand. Khan is either going to war for or against the Motherlands.”

  “What?” Kya shook her head. “But he’s the ruler; whatever the Northlands does is up to him.”

  “Tens if not hundreds of thousands of Nmen are going to see that differently. If he sits back, and lets the Motherlands rebuild the wall, he’ll be lynched in a week.”

  “But, but…” Kya was unable to form a coherent sentence.

  “The only option is negotiations,” Athena said. “A compromise must be made.”

  “Exactly! That is why Khan wants his advisers around him. A few hours ago, he and Pearl sent out a message to everyone in the country, pleading for them to stay calm.”

  “Can we see it?” Kya asked.

  I played the video for them, my wristband projecting the clip with Khan and Pearl standing side-by-side with stern expressions.

  “Today a devastating earthquake occurred,” Khan said. “We are lucky that no one was killed on our side of the border. The Motherlands however are suffering. Thousands are now homeless and precious lives have been lost.” Khan lowered his brows. “I’m aware that parts of the border between our nations have collapsed, and for those of you planning to cross the border, I want to say this. The Motherlands are not defenseless and the men who crossed the border today have all been captured.”

  Khan squared his shoulders. “As you all know, a slow progress of integration between the Motherlands and the Northlands has already begun. Many have suggested to me that this earthquake is the perfect opportunity for the Northlands to occupy the Motherlands, but do we really want to take something by force that we might be able to get willingly, if we show patience?”

  Pearl’s clear blue eyes looked straight at the camera when she spoke. “This is not a time to stab a wounded neighbor, but a time to show humanity, civility, and grace.” She paused and added. “I have battled in the Motherlands Council, and challenged all the rumors that flourish in the Motherlands about Nmen being brutal monsters. I have argued that you are good and proud men with a high level of integrity and honor. What you do in this time of crisis for the Motherlands will determine whether I was right.”

  Khan took his turn. “We are now in a position to make demands that will speed up the integration process, and I’m urging you to stay calm and do nothing while I do what is best for our nation.”

  The video ended, and silence filled the dining room.

  “Do you think your people will listen?” Athena asked me.

  “I’m hoping so, but many are desperate and they want a piece of the pie right now.” I sighed. “Magni and his troops are going to be busy patrolling the borders and guarding the Gray Mansion. All we can hope for is that the negotiations with the Council of the Motherlands go well and that Khan will have enough promises to calm down the rebels.”

  “He’s going to need a lot more than promises,” Archer said. “He has to show them women, and lots of them.”

  “What about all the women who want to marry an Nman?” Athena asked. “We saw them on the news.”

  I squirmed in my seat. “Yeah, well, unfortunately the Council is refusing to let them come here. They insist on screening the women, and I think that means talking them out of it.”

  “I’m not sure that’s a bad thing,” Athena said and lowered her brow. “Some of those women seemed a little unstable.”

  Archer snorted. “The Council is afraid that we’ll grow in numbers if we get too many women who can give us children.”

  “True,” Athena nodded. “As long as you represent a danger to the Motherlands they would be careless to let you grow in numbers.”

  I leaned back and crossed my arms. “The wall’s collapsing changes everything, though. I spoke to Magni, and with all the Nmen who crossed the border today, we now know exactly what kind of defense system the Motherlands have. It’s effective, but Magni says it’s got some weaknesses that we could explore, and that the Council must be aware of it by now. That should have them nervous, don’t you think?”

  Athena and Kya exchanged a worrisome glance.

  “Let me put it this way,” I said. “Nobody wants a war, but that wall is coming down sooner or later, and since it’s already collapsed in places sooner seems to be the case.”

  “But Finn, the Motherlands aren’t ready for that. You don’t understand the mass hysteria it would cause among our people,�
�� Kya said with her eyes wide open. “I’m all for the integration of our nations, but if it happens too fast it’ll fail and cause nothing but pain and misery.”

  “I don’t know about that. I’ve just spent ten days in the Motherlands and your people loved me,” I argued.

  “Some loved you,” Athena corrected. “Many are quietly observing with suspicion and fear. There’s a big difference between welcoming five Nmen and thousands.”

  Archer rubbed his face. “I’m happy I’m not Khan at the moment. He’s got a lot of pressure on his shoulders, that’s for sure.”

  CHAPTER 31

  Negotiations

  Finn

  Athena refused to be left behind at the school when I went to the Gray Mansion early in the morning. “I want to help,” she insisted. Even though I wasn’t really sure what she could do, it suited me fine since I didn’t feel comfortable leaving her out of my sight.

  “Thank Mother Nature that you’re here,” Pearl exclaimed when I introduced Athena to her. “This room is packed with wolves, and your wisdom and peacemaking skills are a welcome reinforcement to this group.”

  “I’m so pleased to meet you again,” Athena said and bowed her head to Pearl. “When we passed each other at the border I was burdened over you taking my place as a hostage.”

  Pearl took Athena’s hands and gave her a warm smile. “It worked out well in the end.” Her eyes drifted to me and back to Athena. “I see that you and Finn made friends despite his role in the whole affair.”

  Athena’s smile was soft. “Forgive your enemy and all that.”

  “Yes, I know what you mean,” Pearl said and shot a glance in Khan’s direction.

  The two women’s bubble of budding friendship was rudely broken when Magni pointed to Athena. “She can’t be in here.” Magni swung his head to give me a blame-filled glance. “It’s enough that Pearl gets a say. Why did you have to bring her?”

  “I’m only here to help,” Athena angled her head. “Whatever is decided in this room will have consequences for the rest of the world.”

  “But you’re on their side,” Magni accused her. “It’s like inviting a spy to sit at our table.”

  “I’m not a spy, and the only side I am on is the side of humanity.”

  “Yeah, yeah, spare me your pacifistic bullshit,” he retorted. “You can’t be in here, end of story.”

  “Don’t talk to her that way,” I said and stepped in front of Magni with a hard stare. “Athena is under my protection and you will be nice to her.”

  It was a rare occasion when I reprimanded Magni, and he had never been good at receiving criticism. Turning to Khan he sputtered, “Aren’t you going to say anything? Since when do we invite women to have an opinion on anything? They don’t understand the ways of our culture.”

  Khan stood at the end of the table with a stern and thoughtful expression on his face. “True, but they understand the culture of the Motherlands, which gives us inside information that can be useful.”

  “What the hell is this?” Magni threw his hands in the air and snorted. “Bring your wife to work day?”

  Instead of getting offended, Pearl tilted her head and smiled at him. “I like how you think.” In a quick movement, she got up and left the room.

  “Where the fuck is she going?” Magni rubbed his face with frustration and muttered low. “She’d better not be doing what I think she’s doing.”

  His deep groan when Pearl returned with Laura confirmed that Pearl had done exactly what he didn’t want her to do.

  “Is it true?” Laura was looking at Magni with skepticism. “Pearl said that you wanted me here.”

  His chest rose in the deep intake of air before he exhaled, and opened his mouth to speak. “Actually…”

  “Let’s get the meeting started,” Khan interrupted. “And just so we’re clear, I make all final decisions. You’re all here as advisers, nothing more and nothing less.”

  We all sat down. Pearl was on Khan’s right side, Magni on his left, followed by Alexander Boulder, Athena, me, and Laura, who sat between me and Pearl.

  “The Council of the Motherlands has officially requested our help in keeping people away from the border. They estimate they can have the border repaired within four to six weeks. I have made them aware that I’ll need a long list of reasons why we should help them instead of taking what has been denied us for centuries.

  “Pearl has advised them to take our demands seriously, and not underestimate the desperation of our men.”

  Magni leaned in, his eyes burning. “And I have advised you to take the fucking chance and go for it. We’ve been waiting for something like this to happen. Our father would’ve already been gathering our forces, and going for the kill.”

  “True.” Khan was surprisingly calm, “but our father hadn’t begun the integration process like we have. There’s a reason I’m a better chess player than you are, brother. You think with your emotions, and you let yourself be blinded by your pride and desire for immediate results.”

  “Because I’m fucking good at getting immediate results,” Magni grunted.

  “Yes, well, the difference between us at this point is that I am willing to lure the Motherlands to me with patience, by taming them and earning their trust, while you are ready to rape them into submission.”

  Magni banged his fist down on the table, his neck and cheeks red with fury. “I’ve never raped a woman in my life.” He was stabbing his finger at Khan. “There’s nothing wrong with women being submissive, and maybe it’s time you remember that real men take what they want. They don’t fucking ask for permission.”

  “Calm down, will you?” Boulder said. “Nobody wants to go to war, and you know damn well that while you might not be a rapist, we’ve got about one million men out there who are desperate to be with a woman. You really want to set them loose on the Motherlands?”

  “They are desperate because we’ve been forced to live like this by the she-devils who run the world,” Magni hissed.

  Athena sat pale and shocked.

  “You are right.” Khan was looking straight at Magni while leaning back and crossing his arms. “And you speak for our people. I have no doubt that if I asked random Nmen, they would tell me the same thing. But don’t forget that until yesterday, Laura was in the Motherlands too. Let’s pretend, for one second, that Laura was still in the Motherlands and you didn’t know where. If I gave the order to invade, would you still trust your fellow countrymen not to hurt her?” Magni’s fist tightened and his jaw hardened.

  “Hmm,” Khan said. “And let’s not forget all the little Milas who would be tempting to the sickos. I wonder if a girl her size would even survive being raped by a large Nman.”

  Magni stiffened like a gargoyle, and with his eyes narrowed he gave Khan a low warning growl.

  “Yes,” Khan said and raised his eyebrows while drawing in a deep breath. “It changes everything when it’s not some faceless she-devils that will be hurt, but someone you love, doesn’t it?”

  “Should we focus on the list?” Pearl suggested in a soft tone. With a slight nod from Magni, we went to work.

  Almost an hour we discussed it back and forth, and the list kept growing.

  “Be reasonable,” Pearl said at some point. “Even if they accept putting men on the Council, it will take at least eight years before one can be appointed.”

  “One?” Boulder scowled. “We said fifty. We want half of the seats in that Council.”

  “What Pearl is trying to explain to you,” Athena said gently, “is that Council members are selected as children. What you can ask for is that boys be selected too, and then eventually some of those boys will be chosen for the Council when they reach maturity.”

  “Okay, but we want the same amount of boys as girls,” Boulder demanded.

  Pearl leaned toward Khan and lowered her voice. “You want to go high to low on this one.”

  He nodded.

  This wasn’t the first time the two of them s
eemed to have their own secret language, and I was curious. “What are you two talking about when you whisper about high to low and low to high, or what was it you said before?” I tried to remember. “Something about reciprocation.”

  “It’s nothing, we’re just discussing what strategy to use in the negotiations.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “And?”

  “Well, in this case I’m recommending that Khan starts out with an unrealistic high demand, which the Council of course will refuse.”

  Khan nodded. “I’ll tell them that I want seventy-five percent males in the Council by the end of this year to balance out all the years that men have been denied power, and I’ll shock them by insisting that half of those men have to be Northlanders.”

  “The Council is going to explain to Khan how the democratic system works and how his demands are unrealistic. It’s going to look like Khan is compromising when he agrees to the men being only Motlander men that will be chosen as children. And he’ll settle for twenty-five percent males within the next ten years,” Pearl added.

  Khan scratched his cheek and looked at me. “Which is a pretty good start, wouldn’t you say?”

  “Yeah, for sure, but what about low to high?” I asked.

  “We’re going to use that tactic when it comes to Nmen being allowed to live in the Motherlands. We’re asking for a modest number to begin with, simply because the thought of giving permanent residency to Nmen is going to freak out the Council members. We’ll start out by saying that this year ten men should be allowed to move to the Motherlands.”

  I smiled, because that suggestion had been mine. Athena had made it clear to me that she couldn’t leave the Motherlands so my only chance of being with her was to move there. “Don’t forget that those men should be allowed to consume alcohol and meat,” I said.

  Khan nodded. “Once they accept that idea, the door is opened for men to live there, and we can increase the numbers over the next years. I’m thinking ten the first year, ninety the second year. Two hundred the third year, three hundred the fourth, and four hundred the fifth year.”

  Pearl nodded. “At least this way we can do a background check and pick out the men who qualify to live among the women,” she said. “And the reciprocation part is just playing with psychology. We’ll give them something they want badly, just before we ask for what we want. It’ll make it harder for them to refuse since we have already been generous.”