by M. K. Eidem
Veron glanced at Ull before addressing King Grim. If he revealed how Trisha had initially come to be on the Searcher, Wray would recall Ull for disobeying the Queen's direct order. That wasn't in the best interest of the Empire, especially as Ull spoke truth. He and Trisha had been able to resolve that.
"Captain!" Grim snapped, impatient for his answer.
"It is, Sire. Queen Lisa chose exceptionally well. Representative Burke is an extraordinary female who has succeeded in working not only with us but with Minister Ruskin."
"My Queen will be pleased to know that Trisha hasn't been harmed."
"She was fine when we left Earth, Sire. We haven't been in contact since we left."
"Why?" Wray asked.
"Sire, I inferred from your transmission the need for direct communication, that we were to maintain comm silence."
"That was a mistake on my part for not being clearer. I was in a rush. Destiny was fussy, and I wanted to get back to her."
"Is the princess alright?" Veron demanded immediately concerned. The little princess had captured the heart of every warrior in the Palace.
"She is fine, Veron," Wray quickly reassured him. "Just teething. Kim says I need to stop overreacting."
"There is no such thing as overreacting when it comes to the princess, Sire."
Ull barely stopped himself from growling at Veron's reaction. If the Emperor hadn't been so distracted, Ull could have at least sent a comm to Trisha, and heard her voice.
"My Empress would disagree, but that is for another time." Wray's gaze switched to Ull. "I have carefully considered what you included in your last comm. The Earthian leaders’ concerns about the females under King Grim's protection if they never choose a Tornian male. I have discussed it with the Empress, as well as King Grim and Queen Lisa, and have reached a decision. Once matches have begun between Earth females and our males, if any females remain on Luda, who haven't chosen a male, they will be allowed to return to Earth if that is their wish."
"The females on Luda know this?" Veron asked.
"No. I will not interfere with a male's chance to keep his bloodline from ending until he has another option available," Wray told him.
"Earth's leaders are also requesting more educators so they will be able to communicate directly with us and eventually with you," Ull told the Emperor.
Wray looked over his shoulder at Grim. "We have a sufficient number on Luda to send, Majesty. I will make sure they are properly programmed and have them sent to the Protector."
"Will that suffice?" Wray looked back to Ull.
"Yes, Majesty."
"Then we'll see you in two days. Captain Veron, load the navigation to Earth onto a secure chip. Warrior Ull, upon arrival in orbit, you will immediately transfer to the Protector, upload the information into that ship’s navigation, and proceed back to Earth at maximum speed."
"Yes, Sire."
"Captain Veron, you will make sure the Searcher is properly cleaned and restocked for the Empress and Princess."
"Understood, Majesty."
The Emperor looked away from the comm and nodded slightly. "Now I need to go. A Joining Ceremony is commencing soon in Luanda's garden."
"One of the females has chosen a warrior?" Veron's eye's widened in surprise.
"Two," Wray smiled. "One from House Jamison and one from House Nizar."
"Lord Callen now has a Lady?" Veron asked.
"No, it was one of his warriors. Lord Callen feels he needs to concentrate on repairing the damage Reeve caused before he can give his Lady the time she deserves."
"The other is a warrior from House Jamison?" Ull asked.
"Yes, Warrior Korin was chosen."
"Korin?!" Ull didn't try to hide his disbelief. "Truth? After everything he did?"
"The female is aware, and it's her choice."
"Every time I think I'm beginning to understand these females, they go and do something like this," Veron muttered.
"They are unique and complicated creatures," Wray replied. "I doubt any male, Earthian or Tornian, ever completely understands one."
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
The coolness soothed the heat and clamminess of Trisha's forehead as she rested it on the rim of the toilet. She'd barely made it there before her stomach ejected the meal she'd just shared with Jakob. At first, her stomach had been able to tolerate the new meds Dr. Monroe had given her, but now, two weeks later, it was getting more and more difficult.
Carefully lifting her head, she swallowed hard several times to keep from vomiting again. God, she hated this. She'd hated it when her mamá had been sick, and she hated it now, especially when there was still so much for her to do.
Jakob had heard from his Emperor, and Liron was more than willing to include energy crystals and the technology to use them in the agreement and was preparing a ship to bring them to Earth. Jakob was now negotiating with individual leaders for what they could supply. They were traveling to and from their own countries to prevent questions about their absence.
All returnees were reunited with some, if not all, of their family but remained confined to the base. The majority were handling it well, content to have their loved one back, but a few were beginning to get restless, and she couldn't blame them. They just wanted to get on with their lives.
Her tío had an encrypted computer brought to her quarters so she could begin working on the criteria for matching Tornians with Earth females. She'd been browsing dating websites to see the different types of questions they asked. She'd also been in touch with someone she trusted to help her start designing theirs.
There also hadn't been any reports of attacks with large groups of women going missing. Which meant the Ganglians hadn't returned. At least that's what everyone hoped.
Overall, they had accomplished a lot. The only dark spot was that she hadn't had any comms from Ull. Not that she really expected Ull to contact her, not after the way he'd left, but he hadn't reached out to Jakob or even her tío.
Had something happened?
Was something wrong?
Rising, she rinsed out her mouth, and without looking in the mirror, because she already knew how pale she was, she went into the bedroom and put on her sleepwear. Climbing into bed, she ordered. "Lights off."
As the room plunged into darkness, the ringing of a comm filled the room. Sighing, Trisha began to sit up then realized it was the comm Ull had given her. "Lights on!" Seeing the comm on the nightstand, she lunged for it.
"Trisha?" The faintness of his voice told Trisha just how far away from her Ull was.
"I'm here, Ull," she quickly replied, then frowned when he continued to speak as if he hadn't heard her.
"This is Ull. I wanted to contact you to let you know we are on our way back with three ships to protect the Earth. I will, of course, be contacting the President to let him know this, but I wanted to let you know first. Also, I found something you forgot on the Searcher and will return it to you once we arrive, which should be in approximately two weeks. Ull out."
Trisha fell back on to the bed. In the excitement of hearing Ull's voice, she'd forgotten that they couldn't communicate directly. At least now she knew he was alright and would be returning. Two weeks. God, that seemed like a lifetime. Three ships of Tornians looking for females? She had a lot to do before they arrived. Getting up, she went into the outer room and fired up her computer.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Ull stared out the viewport watching Earth growing larger and larger. Goddess, he wanted to get there, wanted to get to Trisha. Something was tugging at him, telling him he needed to get to her.
They'd been exchanging comms as he traveled back, and while he knew the distance could distort a voice, Trisha's seemed to be getting weaker instead of stronger the closer he got to Earth. Fingering the bottle in his hand, he wondered if it had something to do with it.
"We're two hours out," Taup said from the control panel. "I can't believe this planet has been here all this time, and the Great In
fection never touched it."
"They weren't part of what caused it,” Ull told him, sliding the bottle into his vest before turning to face Taup.
"Truth, but neither were the Zaludians or Jerboaians, and they have both been affected in one way or another."
"Maybe the Goddess took pity on them."
"Do they even worship the Goddess?"
Ull frowned at that. It was something he'd never thought to ask. Every species in the Known Universes knew about and worshipped the Goddess. "I don't know. I never asked."
"How could you not?"
"I was involved with more important things like securing a treaty for the survival of our race." That stopped Taup's questions. "I'll be in the communications room, contacting Earth that we will be arriving soon. Contact the other ships and make sure they have their shielding up. Earth leaders aren't ready to reveal our existence to them."
"Yes, Warrior Ull."
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
"So, you'll be arriving shortly?" Aaron waved his niece to a chair as he responded to Ull.
"Yes, Mr. President. Once we have established an orbit, I will shuttle down."
"Will any other Tornians be accompanying you?"
"I had planned on coming alone, but if you wish to meet other Tornians, I can arrange it."
The President was silent for a moment. "No, I think we should wait until all the world leaders are available."
"Do you know when that will be?"
"Now that you are back, I will get it arranged. It will take a few days."
"I will make Warriors available. I'll contact you again when I'm on my way down. Ull out."
"How are you, Trisha?" Aaron asked, running a critical eye over her. He'd been at the White House for the last few days, taking care of the routine business of running the country while taking the first steps to prepare for announcing the arrival of the Tornians and Kaliszians. "You look pale."
"I've just been spending all my time inside working on the application site and app," she deflected. Her tío had given her complete authority to design the project as she saw fit. After spending hours browsing websites where photos and physical descriptions seemed to be the most important thing, she'd decided on a different approach.
The website would give the history of the Tornian Empire, what had brought them to Earth, and the Ganglian threat. It then explained what would be expected of them if they agreed to Join with a Tornian. If, after reading all that, they still wished to apply, they needed to fill out an in-depth application; with no photo. Applications would not be offered to Tornian males or Earth females for consideration until carefully screened. She wasn't going to allow harm to any woman in this. She was under no illusions about the fallout when the leaders made the announcements. It would cause significant controversy. Life on Earth would be forever changed, and not everyone was going to like that. If something happened to even one of the women, especially in the beginning, everything would collapse.
"It's going well. Hopefully, I can show it to you and the rest of the Council next week and get your input."
"You've gotten that far already?" Aaron sat back in his chair. He'd always known his niece was smart and driven but to get so much done so quickly.
Trisha had known that would distract her tío. "It's just the first draft and doesn't have any graphics yet. Hopefully, Ull can help remedy that."
"Ull?"
"Yes, I would think they have to have some photos of their planets in the databases on their ships. One of the Emperor with Kim and Destiny would go a long way."
"I agree, but that wasn't what I was asking about."
"I hadn't realized you'd asked a question."
"You referred to Warrior Ull as Ull."
"That is his name."
"I know, I just hadn't realized you had gotten that close to him, personally."
"He is the representative sent by the Tornian Empire. Shouldn't I have gotten to know him personally?"
"You know what I'm saying, Trisha," Aaron growled, doing an impressive imitation of a Tornian.
"I do, and I'm saying this with all due respect to my tío and my President. My personal life is none of your business. I've done everything asked of me. By Lisa and by you. Did Ull and I get close? Yes. Do we both know it can't go anywhere? Yes. We'll both do our duty to our people, that's all you need concern yourself with."
"Trisha…" He hadn't meant to upset his niece like this. He loved her deeply. He only wanted the best for her, and Ull wasn't it. He needed to explain that, but before he could, his Tornian comm rang again. "What?!"
"I am en route," Ull's voice filled the room. "Fifteen minutes."
Aaron didn't get the chance to respond as Ull ended the comm. "That Tornian needs to learn his place."
"He knows his place," Trisha snapped back, rising from her chair. "He's the first male of Lord Oryon of Betelgeuse. One day he will rule the planet. Maybe it’s you who needs to learn your place." Leaving her tío stunned, she spun on her heel and went to greet Ull.
Chapter Eighteen
Ull wasn't sure why the President had been so short with him, but he shouldn't have reacted the way he had. His Empire needed the cooperation of this male, and irritating him wouldn't help them get it.
Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm. Soon he'd be back on Earth, and he'd be able to see Trisha again. And hopefully, he'd be able to touch her again. Just touch. Not Join, because he knew if he Joined with her again, he'd never let her go.
Maneuvering over the base, he lowered the shuttle's shielding and descended onto the landing area. The shuttle had barely settled before he was up and moving toward the hatch. He'd just caught a glimpse of Trisha before the dust stirred up from the landing obscured his view.
As the ramp lowered, Ull walked down it coming to an abrupt halt as he took in his Trisha's appearance.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Trisha was having a hard time catching her breath as she hurried down the corridor that led to the landing pad, ashamed of herself. She shouldn't have talked to her tío like that. Not because he was the President of the United States but because she knew he was only trying to protect her like he'd done her entire life.
But she didn't need to be protected from Ull. He'd never hurt her, and if her heart was breaking at the thought of his Joining with someone else, of him making her his Lady, that was her problem.
She was dying. She'd finally come to terms with that over the last few weeks, especially with the way her symptoms were progressing even after Dr. Monroe was able to supply her with her original prescription.
She knew the signs, having watched her mamá suffer through them, and knew there wasn't going to be much more her oncologist would be able to do. He'd given her a prescription to begin to slow the cancer down, but he'd warned her the cancer was advanced, that she'd need immediate surgery to extend her life any significant length. It's what had had her so distracted the night Lisa and the girls were taken. She'd been trying to figure out how to tell her tío.
Now it didn't matter.
Sweating, she reached the landing pad just as Ull dropped the shuttle's shielding and began to land, kicking up a curtain of swirling dust as it did. Coughing, she turned away until it cleared enough for her to move toward the lowering ramp. She just wanted to see him again but the instant he saw her he stopped.
Should she not have come?
Did he not want to see her?
"What, in the name of the Goddess, is wrong with you?!" he growled, taking in how drastically her appearance had changed since he'd last seen her. Her skin, usually so much darker than his, now had a pallor to it that sharply contrasted with the bruising under her eyes, while her beautiful multicolored hair appeared lifeless and dull. Her lush, full lips had a pinched look to them, and her cheekbones stood out sharper than a Tornian blade.
The angry allegation had Trisha stumbling back. Her heart, already rapidly beating from the rush to get to him, seemed to stop before resuming at a breathless
pace.
God, she shouldn't have come. She should have let him decide if he wanted to see her. She'd just thought after all the transmissions they'd exchanged that he'd want to see her.
"I…" Suddenly her whole body began to tremble, and everything went black.
"Trisha!" Ull reached her before she hit the ground, sweeping her up in his arms. "Trisha!"
"What the hell did you do to her?" the President demanded, entering the landing area.
"Nothing!" Ull growled, carrying Trisha passed him. "She just collapsed. I'm taking her to your medical area."
Everyone moved out of the way of the growling Tornian as he charged through the corridors toward medical, the President of the United States close behind. The door to medical banged against the wall as Ull shouldered his way through growling, "Where's the Healer?!!"
"Monroe!" The President shouted in English, knowing that while the doctor had used the educator, the rest of his staff hadn't, and they would have no clue what Ull was saying.
"What's wrong?" Monroe demanded, rushing out of his office. Taking one look at Trisha in Ull's arms, he swore and gestured toward a bed. "Shit! Lay her down over here. What happened?"
"She collapsed at the landing pad," Ull growled, not even noticing that the Earth Healer was speaking Tornian. "Heal her!"
"I warned her she couldn't keep pushing like this," Monroe muttered as he hooked her up to several machines and began taking her vitals.
"What are you talking about?" Aaron demanded coming up to stand beside the doctor. "Why would you need to warn her?"
Monroe glanced at the President. "She hasn't told you yet?"
"Told me what?!"
Monroe finished checking Trisha then wrote down the results before answering. Technically he wasn't allowed to discuss this without his patient’s permission, but the President was her next of kin, and Trisha’s condition was worsening.
"Mr. President, your niece has stage four cancer that has metastasized throughout her body."
"No!" Aaron denied and would have gone down if Monroe hadn't gripped his arm.