Malachi

by Ashley West

  Nothing else could happen to Johnny. He was all she had.

  I looked down into his sweet blue eyes, tucking a wad of bills in his blanket for Miralee to find later. Nothing would happen to him. He would have what he needed. I would make sure of it.

  ________________________________________

  "Have we made the drop, Vess?" I said into my comm unit.

  "We did it, sir. We offloaded the supplies."

  "Good. Get out, then, Vess. Freya will take over from there. We're waiting for you at the rendezvous."

  "Yes, sir. We'll be there, sir."

  I signed off and waited, pacing back and forth on the deck of the Dream. The schooner had been in my family for two generations now, and I was the third Lachlan to command her. I had helped my grandfather restore it and I had done much of the work on it myself. I still helped with the repairs when we took it out of the water for three weeks every year.

  There was something soothing about working with the wood and the tools. I liked it because it reminded me of my Grandpa.

  The sun was down, and two of the moons were up, chasing each other across the sky. Soon the third would rise, and the others would be back. We would get away free and clear, and then we would go back and do it again, but the waiting always made me nervous.

  An hour later, we were racing across the sea. I stood near the bow with the wind in my face, feeling free as a bird. When I was on my ship cruising out on the open water, I felt alive.

  I sensed Vess come up behind me.

  "How did it go?" I said.

  "Smoothly. When you have a plan, it always does, Nat. You think of everything before it happens."

  I nodded, still looking ahead to where the third moon had climbed into the dusky sky. I was good at planning and organizing - that's why I had wanted to be a scientist since I was young. I liked categorizing, organizing, and being precise.

  It tore at my heart that I couldn't do that any longer, but you know what they say about desperate times. Everyone was doing their best to survive these days.

  I was no different.

  "Thanks. Once we're out of the restricted zone, we should head for Myim. The crew needs some well deserved time off. And you too," I said.

  Vess nodded.

  "Sounds good, sir. You're an excellent boss."

  I shook my head.

  "You are a good man, and a good friend, too. Thanks for your advice about Veralia. I did ask her out, and she agreed. I..." he hesitated, his massive hands fiddling with his T-shirt. "I like her."

  I turned to face him and smiled for the first time in a long time.

  "That's great, Vess. I'm happy for you."

  He turned red.

  "She's great. I'm glad you told me to ask her out. I wouldn't have had the guts if you had not suggested it."

  "I'm glad it all worked out," I said, turning back towards the horizon.

  I tilted my head and focused on the small dot. What was that? There shouldn't be any other ships out here. There shouldn't be anything out here.

  We were in a restricted zone, which meant that only government vessels were allowed. There wasn't a government ship due to be passing through here for another week. I knew because that ship was on our list of targets.

  The strange ship shouldn't be here. The problem was that we shouldn't be here either.

  I pulled out my telescope and gazed at the ship.

  "What is it, boss?" Vess said, coming next to me to see.

  "Trouble, Vess," I said.

  He looked at me questioningly.

  "It's the police."

  ________________________________________

  "All hands on deck," Vess yelled, running down the length of the ship to the wheel. "Hard turn to port."

  The crew that was on duty went to work. The crew that was off-duty popped out of the hold, coming up and preparing themselves. It would be hard to outrun the foreign vessel, but I knew we could. The Dream was a damn good sailing ship.

  We caught the sharp breeze that was blowing, and the sails billowed out tight and full. The ship leaped forward, and my confidence increased. They wouldn't catch me. Not tonight.

  After an hour, the ship behind us fell away, and I couldn't see it anymore.

  "Keep heading straight out of the restricted zone, Vess," I said. "Since we seem to be out of danger, there's a pile of paperwork that needs my attention. Let me know if the ship appears."

  I knew that it wouldn't. The government ships were all slow and ponderous. They could never catch a light schooner like the Dream.

  It was time to get back to real life. I knew several bills needed paying. I had been avoiding them because I didn't want to think about the life I had left behind. Paying bills was boring. Being a pirate was fun.

  Slowly, I trudged down to the Captain's quarters. I logged into my account and began reading — the first one was a bank account statement. I glanced to make sure it looked correct, hardly seeing the millions of credits there anymore. It seemed like the right number — several billion plus change — so I put it in my banking folder.

  There were two bills that I left to pay later. As I was about to turn and do something else, an ad popped up on my screen. I hated those ads. I should eventually upgrade my account so I wouldn't have to look at the ads anymore, but I was too lazy. I had never gotten used to being affluent.

  The ad was for an arranged marriage service called TerraMates. I looked at it and started laughing. Who would want a human wife? I thought. Everyone knows that humans are not exactly the cream of the crop. Against my better judgment, I started scrolling through several pictures of beautiful women. They did nothing for me, and I shook my head.

  What kind of guy used a service like that?

  I didn't want to get married. But if I ever did, I guess I would be picking the woman myself, not letting anyone else do it.

  You had to be desperate to use a company like TerraMates, and I had everything in my life under control.

  ________________________________________

  The ship caught up to us when the wind dropped. They arrested me and took me to their vessel, throwing me in the brig.

  Ten minutes later, a man in a green police uniform walked into my cell.

  "Nathaniel Lachlan, well, well, well," he said. "My name is Inspector Callaghan. We've been looking for you for some time."

  I didn't say anything.

  "You're the one who's been stealing from the supply ships." He made a tsking sound. "So disappointing. To go from a national hero to a scoundrel in such a short time."

  "I am innocent," I said.

  The police officer laughed at me.

  "You have no evidence, and I demand that you let me go," I said, standing up.

  He didn't say anything. Maybe they didn't have proof that I had been in the restricted zone.

  The angry scientist who had escaped from us stepped out from behind the Inspector.

  "What were you doing in the restricted zone?" he said. His jovial mood was gone. "I have a witness here that says you were in charge of the boat that attacked his supply ship and stole all the supplies. You weren't in the restricted zone because you were taking supplies, were you? Piracy is a felony, Mr. Lachlan."

  The man who had jumped ship grinned at me in victory, with disgust in his eyes. He thought I was the lowest of the low. Little did he know he was depriving the people who needed those supplies from getting them.

  I looked at him, trying to stay calm. What should I say? Because I'm a pirate, dumbass. No, that wouldn't help the situation.

  I thought of Johnny and Miralee and felt my resolve strengthening. I couldn't get caught. What would they do if the supply ships were diverted from their camp again? What if Johnny got sick or even died? It was wrong to lie. But to lie for a greater good was justifiable.

  What was a good reason to be in a restricted zone? Taking a short cut?

  Technically it wasn't illegal to be in a restricted zone unless you were participating in an illegal activi
ty. He couldn't hold me for being in the zone. And he only had the scientist's word against mine, which would not hold up in court.

  He was trying to intimidate me. All I needed was a plausible reason for being in the restricted zone, and he would have to let me go.

  I could not go to jail. The refugees depended on me.

  "I was going to the spaceport in Dass Vasser," I said slowly.

  "Through the restricted zone?" he said, skeptically. "Would a good upstanding citizen like you take a shortcut like that?"

  "Yes, I would," I said, ignoring the sarcasm. "I was in quite a hurry."

  "Why?" he said, clearing not buying any of it.

  I'm not great at thinking on my feet. I'm more of a planner. I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind.

  "I'm picking up my fiancee."

  The police officer looked shocked. I pressed my advantage.

  "I'm going to be late. It takes five days to get to Dass Vasser, even when you take the shortcut through the restricted zone. Her shuttle gets in six days from now."

  "Let me get this straight. You're getting married, and you were going through the restricted zone to get to the spaceport on time to pick up your fiancee?"

  "Yes, that's it exactly. So, if you'll just let me go? I have a shuttle to catch."

  "Okay," he said, nodding his head. "I can't prove that it was your ship in the restricted zone because one of my crew screwed up. So, I'll let you go."

  "Great, thanks," I said, taking a step towards the door. The man put a hand on my chest to stop me.

  "I'll let you go, provided that you return to the Dass Vasser police station in a week, with your new wife. And your marriage certificate."

  I stared at him.

  "If you're lying, and you don't show, I will freeze your bank accounts and hunt you down. I will find you, I will prove all the allegations against you, and you will go to jail for a very, very long time. Do you understand me, Mr. Lachlan?" he said, getting in my face.

  I nodded.

  "No problem. I'm telling the truth. And I'll certainly have no problem doing what you ask," I said, trying to believe it.

  "Good," the man said. "One moment."

  He pressed a circle of plasteel into the back of my left hand. It disappeared.

  "That's a tracking device. It can't be removed and will enable us to retrieve you if you are lying Mr. Lachlan."

  I stared at my hand. Uh oh.

  He smiled maliciously and opened the door.

  I walked out woodenly.

  "You have one week," he said to my back as I walked down the hall.

  "That's perfect," I said, looking back over my shoulder but not stopping. "Yep. I'll see you at the police station in Dass Vasser in a week with my bride, no problem."

  "If you're not there, Lachlan," he called after me. "You'll be sorry."

  Yes, I would be. Wouldn't I?

  ________________________________________

  "What did you tell him?" Vess shouted, looking at me incredulously.

  "I had been checking my messages and there was an ad for TerraMates and I'd been thinking about those guys getting married and how they must be such losers to use an agency for something like that and it was the first thing that came out of my mouth. I know it was stupid, Vess." I was babbling, but I couldn't help it.

  "You have to show up with a woman at the police station in Dass Vasser in a week?"

  "Not just some woman, Vess. My wife. They want to see her and the marriage certificate."

  "So we get you a woman to play your wife, and we forge a marriage certificate. No problem."

  I stared at him.

  "It's impossible to forge any documents like that anymore. Trust me, I know. I've been trying to get a fake ID for the past two years. It would have made everything we do so much easier. But it's impossible because of DNA scans. You can't fake your DNA. No one else has your exact DNA."

  "What are we going to do?" he said, his eyes troubled.

  "I have to find someone to marry me," I said.

  He started to laugh, totally busting a gut until he looked up and saw that I was serious.

  "Who would marry you?" he said. "You're not exactly husband material, are you?"

  I frowned.

  "I'm husband material."

  He started laughing again.

  "Okay, I'm not. But there must be someone," I said.

  "You don't want to marry a girl who's that desperate, Nat."

  I thought furiously. There had to be an answer. I had got myself into this mess. I had to get myself out. Then I remembered what I had been looking at on the computer earlier.

  "That's it, Vess. The marriage agency. I can just order up a bride — express post since I'm in a hurry. Problem solved," I said, dusting my hands together.

  "You're going to get a mail order bride?" he said. "You're crazy. What kind of a woman does that sort of thing? Not the kind you want to marry, Nat."

  "I'm sure they check them out," I said, pushing aside his worries. "And I'll just divorce her right after. It's perfect."

  "You're nuts," he said.

  "What else is there to do, Vess? If I don't, they'll never get off my back. And all of this will disappear. I can't let that happen."

  His face got serious thinking about all the people depending on us.

  "Okay, you're right."

  I smiled.

  "All I have to do is pick the perfect woman."

  Chapter Five

  ASHLYN

  "Miss O'Connor, you're interested in applying to be an interplanetary bride?" said Mrs. Lynch. The person across the table from me was the woman who ran TerraMates. She looked at me over her glasses that perched on the end of her nose. Her hair was short, gray, and flawlessly styled.

  "Yes? I think so? Could you explain what's involved?"

  "You don't seem too sure, dear." She glared at me, tapping her pen on the desk. "Arranged marriages aren't for everyone. You need to be committed. You need to be flexible. You need to be ready."

  Uh oh. I didn't want her to reject me before I had a chance to reject her first.

  "I understand, ma'am," I said, making my voice sound determined. "I'm sure. I'm just a little nervous. I want to be sure I'm making the right decision. Could you tell me more about it?"

  I smiled at her in what I hoped was a sweet and charming way. She grunted, giving me a dirty look.

  "It's very straightforward. You fill out the application, and we do a background check on you. If you pass, we show you portfolios of desirable grooms. We try to match you up with someone with whom we think you will be compatible."

  I nodded, keeping my eyes on her face. I couldn't believe I was here. When I had woken up the next morning with no better ideas and the realization I only had twelve days left, I knew I was beaten. There was no better way to get the money.

  I loved my brother and my family. I had already sacrificed so much for them. What was a year of my life? It's not like they could go to TerraMates. There was nothing I wouldn't do to save them — including selling myself to a man for a year. So I found myself in Mrs. Lynch's office, listening to her tell me how the transaction would go down.

  "You choose several and rank them from your first choice on down. We perform some sophisticated technical algorithms to see which of your choices are a good fit. We inform your mate and buy you a ticket. When you arrive on your groom's planet, wedding arrangements are taken care of, and you marry immediately."

  "Without talking to each other?"

  "Fewer people get cold feet this way," she said, looking at me like she was sure I would back out in a heartbeat.

  "The money is deposited into your bank account. You are required to remain married for one year. If, at the end of that year, you find yourself unhappy with the arrangement, then we will help you get a divorce."

  "Right. What percentage of women get divorced?" I said, wondering.

  "Zero. We're excellent at what we do," she said.

  "Oh," I said, surpris
ed. Get ready to meet the one percent. "You mean the women are happy in their arranged marriages?"

  "Not everyone is looking for Prince Charming to swoop in and save them from their lives, Miss O'Connor. Most of our clients are rational women who are looking for someone compatible. They want security, not passion. And they find it. We only allow good men at TerraMates. We monitor the marriages to ensure that both parties are safe."

  "Of course," I said, feeling more and more out of my depth.

  "You understand that your husband will not be human? It's important that you not have any prejudice against the 'alien' races." She put air quotes around the word alien.

  I sat still for a moment. I hadn't realized that my husband wouln't be human. I knew that I was in way over my head.

  "Miss O'Connor?" she said, looking at me severely. "If you have a problem with aliens, then you had better leave now."

  "Of course not," I said, bringing myself back under control. I had to pass this interview. Marlin and my brothers were counting on me. "I have no problem with aliens. I consider myself open-minded."

  "Good. You're going to need that mindset on another planet. Would you like the application form?"

  "There's just one other question I had," I said, feeling the color rising in my cheeks.

  "Yes," she said, waiting expectantly.

  "Well," I looked at the ceiling. "It's just… well, I was wondering…"

  "If you have to have sex with him?" she said, a bored look on her face. I suppose every woman that came in here wondered that. "We are not pimps, here, Miss O'Connor. The agreement is for you to be married. That includes living together and any other typical areas of marriage — it's all spelled out in the contract. Though sex is usual in a regular marriage, this is not an ordinary marriage and not part of the agreement. If you both decide you would like to indulge, feel free, but you don't have to do anything that you don't want to. Do you understand, Miss O'Connor?"

  Thank God.

  "I understand perfectly, Mrs. Lynch. Give me the form." I looked at her with determination in my eyes. "I've made my decision."

  ________________________________________

  "What?" Jeremy said, his fork poised halfway from his plate to his mouth, his bite forgotten in mid-air.