by Mara Jaye
“What?” I ignore the flutter in my stomach over seeing Eldan again. “How do you know all this when I can’t even get him to pick up his phone?”
“I’m not supposed to tell you but I can always talk with Dad or G’nar when I want to. Unless they’re busy working. Then, they give me a signal and I know they’ll make time for me later.”
“That’s really odd.”
“Yeah, and I’m not supposed to tell anyone, either.” He put on his backpack. “You’re an exception because you’ve bonded with my dad.”
“Oh.” I’m going to ignore the subject because a six year old is too young to hear about adult playtime from me. His father can have that particular job.
The door bursts open, banging against the wall. Eldan runs in and scoops up his son. Holding him close, he asks, “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. We’re just hanging out.”
He’s pulling Dan out from behind the counter. “Come on. We need to leave.”
The boy leans back and I say, “Wait, you need to check out before going.” I swivel the computer around for him to begin the process. After a burst of light, the front door’s glass cracks into a starburst pattern. “What the hell?” Just as I finish my sentence, another flash blinds me and the computer monitor bounces, falling backwards.
“Active shooter,” Daneul and I yell at the same time. The boy pulls his father toward the inner classroom while I holler after them, “You know the drill, get ready to block the door.” I begin tumbling over whatever could be tipped, bumping into Eldan as I back up. He’s hard bodied but soft enough to let me know it’s not a surprise wall. I pivot, “Get in the safe room now! Move it!”
I yelled loud enough for him to go, finally. The gunman is standing at the door so I dive for the safe room as well. Awesome kid that Daneul is, he has a stack of desks pulled into a fort. Eldan is throwing chairs on top and in front as fortification. I begin dragging the heavy bookshelf placed next to the door for just this purpose. “Get behind the desks. This will buy us some time until the police get here.”
“No, no police.”
Funny how Eldan thinks he has a choice over me calling the cops. I grab hold of the shelves and pull them in front of the door. Eldan comes up to me, helping me push the shelves into place. “No, I can do this. Go back and be ready to bust out a window to save Dan.”
“What about you?”
Fine time for him to care about me, I want to say but focus on getting another heavy shelf in front of the first one. “I’m doing my job by delaying the shooter long enough to save Dan. Now get back and be ready to run.”
“If we go, we’re bringing you with us.”
I pause to look at him. His eyes are dark with worry and his mouth is set in a grim line. “Thanks, but Dan’s the priority. Get him to safety. The kids have practiced climbing out of the windows. He can show you how.”
“I’m not—”
Chapter Eight
Eldan
I can’t hear anything but the pulse in my head. Worse, I can’t see.
Dad?
The fear in my son’s voice kills me at the same time it gives me strength. I’m here. It’s all right. Where are you? I ask before realizing I can tell where he’s transmitting from, letting me know where to crawl to.
I’m with Miss Paxton.
I don’t want to know any more. The sob in his tone scares me, but before I can muster up the nerve to ask about her, I barely hear footsteps on debris. Though still blinded, I’m ready to kill whomever I need to with my bare hands.
Sir, Daneul? Gunnar’s voice calms me until he adds, Oh, pless. No. There’s a grinding I feel in the floor as he walks closer to where we are. Paxton? Hon? Answer me. After a pause, he tells me, Sir, she’s hurt.
“No,” I groan aloud and blink several times to clear my eyes. “She can’t be.” I have to get to her, to see for myself.
“Miss Paxton?” Daneul says.
I follow my son’s voice. My vision clears enough to see Pax’s face. Dan and G’nar flank her as I crawl to her. “Status?” I ask G’nar because I don’t trust my internal display.
“Unconscious. Needs medical attention beyond what Earth provides. She has at most fifteen Earth minutes before her systems begin to die.”
Dan gave a wail before clinging to Pax. I can’t allow my mind to dwell on her death. “No, you’re wrong. She’ll be fine.”
“I’ll call the authorities,” G’nar continues, standing and moving the bookshelf off of Paxton. “We’ll exit through the back and go around.”
I brush the hair from her forehead. Her eyes are closed. “Good. Thank you.” I take her hand, wincing at her cold skin. She has a slight pulse. “I’ll carry her to the car.”
“You can’t. Not unless you want to dump her off at Fleeg and no, you don’t. Not if you care at all about her.” G’nar retrieves his cell phone. “She’s better off dead.”
“I refuse to leave my bondmate behind.”
He pauses his tapping on the phone. “You’ve been bonded for a few days. With all due respect, she’s not the Empress.” He pauses before hitting the final number. “Look, I like her, too. Leaving her behind will be tough but it’s necessary.”
You are a cold fleegan, Officer MacKrell.
Yes sir, I am. G’nar gives me a dirty look as he says, “Yes, there’s been an incident at the Sunny Days day care. Someone is hurt and the assailant is gone.”
Gone? His statement alarms me. You didn’t kill him?
No, but winged him critically enough for him to wish for death. “Yes, the address is correct. I can’t stay here for too much longer. My boss’s son is hurt and I’d like to run him to the hospital.”
I frown at the lie but understand. Paxton moans, getting my attention. Her eyelashes flutter and I say, “Sweetheart, be still. Help is on its way.” I want to pull her into my arms but am afraid of hurting her further. Coming out of my shock a little, I use my enhanced vision to first scan Daneul for injuries, then her. As I suspected, my son is good. Shaken, a little scratched, but perfect otherwise.
Paxton isn’t. G’nar was right. She has massive internal injuries. Blood trickles into her lungs and her intestines are perforated. I pull her closer, getting ready to carry her to the car since moving her won’t kill her any faster.
Dad?
Yes?
I don’t want her to die.
Tears spring to my eyes. I don’t want her to, either, I reply as G’nar argues with the 911 operator about waiting for authorities.
You’re the emperor. Fix her.
I give a sharp glance at him. We’ve kept my status in the galaxy hidden from him. Ineffectively, it seems. I can’t break my own policy on sixth worlds.
“Not even to save a life?” Daneul asks, his small face’s expression pleading.
“If I save her, she’ll have to go with us to Ghar. She’s not like us. Pax has never been anywhere but Earth. We’re expecting her to leave the only home she’s ever known.”
“Hey,” she says in a whisper. “Dan, it’ll be all right.” She takes his hand. “Losing me won’t be as tough as losing your mom, I promise.” Daneul sniffs, wiping his eyes, and she turns to me. “I’m so sorry we didn’t have a chance. Have you,” she stops to cough.
“You don’t need to say anything. Just rest.”
“No, I think I’ll be permanently asleep soon enough.” She put a hand on her stomach. “This really hurts, but I need to say sorry and ask you to call the police. Make the bastard pay for what he’s done to you and Dan.” She sighs before adding, “Promise me?”
I nod, my eyes stinging at losing another mate. She goes limp and Daneul sobs, burying his face in my arm.”
“Please, Dad. Save Miss Paxton.”
“It’s our first law to not interfere with Earth’s people,” I whisper. “I can’t save her no matter how much I want to.”
Undeterred, Daneul asks, “I’m from Earth, now. If I were hurt, would you’d let me die? Didn’t you d
o everything you could to save my mother? Why let Miss Paxton die?”
He’s right. My policy needs more flexibility to allow for lifesaving measures. It’s selfish to help this one person out of all the Earthers suffering, true, but, I need her. I glace at my son and his concern erodes my resolve. I must save her life. Keep G’nar occupied while I help her, all right? I tell him via innercoms. He can’t know about our plan until it’s too late to leave her here.
Daneul jumps over to me, giving me a crushing hug before running over to my officer. “G’nar, I need my lessons and backpack.”
“All right, if you can gather them quickly,” he says and Daneul rushes off to another room. Sir, he addresses me. I’ll need to modify the security here to remove the Vahdmoshi evidence. I’ll also put the body in our trunk for disposal. I, um, will alter the footage to show the break in happened while she was alone. They’ll find her and the evidence while we leave the planet.
Are those your orders from Nial?
They’re your orders, too, he replies and I don’t respond. After a second, G’nar adds, I’ll get started and give you some time to say goodbye.
Thank you. He leaves to attend to the incident, debris crunching under his feet. Once alone, I refocus on Pax, who’s barely breathing. My stomach heaves from the certainty of losing her and of my desire to throw aside intergalactic laws. She moans in pain, her breathing raspy and labored.
To pless with giving her nanos. I can’t lose her. Summoning my bionans, I reprogram them for her organic physiology. There’s no time to consider every contingency in my instructions to the tiny machines I’ll send into her body. I also have bio transfer protocols to override as I send the freshly altered bionans to my mouth. A deep empathy hammers at my heart for what Officer KirKrell went through with almost losing his bondmate, Lin. No wonder he threw everything aside to save her life.
I can hear a little of what Daneul is telling G’nar about his belongings from the day care. Judging by the sharp tone in my officer’s voice, I don’t have a lot of time. I pull Pax closer to me, kissing her lips. Time for the transfer, so I trace her teeth with my tongue. She whimpers and I know I’m hurting her. Please, I plead silently, please work fast enough to save her life. Satisfied the transfer went as planned, I relax a little, watching her face for signs of the progress.
G’nar comes up beside me and kneels to quietly say. “Sir? We need to go now or we’ll be questioned by authorities. We can not let them investigate us.”
He’s right. We could escape anything here. Nothing’s a challenge, yet, doing so would cause a galaxy wide incident. The Vahdmoshi are already a serious problem. If we open Earth to interstellar contact, they’ll tear through the population in months. I pick up Pax, standing on wobbly legs. “I agree. Let’s go.”
He also gets to his feet, saying, “It would be better if her body were here for them to find.” After a glance at me, understanding crosses his face. “You didn’t.” He glares at me. “You broke your own law.”
I’m filled with guilt but shake off the feeling, lifting my chin to look down at him. “I had to, officer. I couldn’t let her die.”
Pax moans, stirring in my arms, “Who are you people? Why is my mind racing a thousand miles an hour?”
“Come on,” G’nar barks. “No more arguing. There’s more than one Vahmoshi here and they know where we are. You should have left Pax here to die, sir. If you could bury the Empress, I’m sure you could have dealt with losing an Earther, too.”
Die? I hear in my head. I’m going to die?
G’nar opened the car’s back door. Pless it all, this is exactly like Lin. Exactly. Neither you or Turkh can program worth a shit.
Watch yourself, I warn. Maintain a respectful tone with me.
He hops in the car, Daneul riding in the front passenger seat. “With all due respect, sir, I figured you had far more integrity than KirKrell.”
“You’ve never bonded with someone or you’d understand.”
“Maybe. What I do know is you’ll need to exile her to a third world planet or break your own laws. Either way doesn’t matter if I can’t get us to our transport before the assassins get there.”
His clipped tone with me needs to be dealt with but later. I scan Pax again, dismayed to see the lack of progress in her healing. The bionans were supposed to work on her torso, not construct internal communications with the rest of us. I’m both delighted and dismayed at the prioritization. Paxton, how are you feeling?
I hurt all over. What happened?
An intruder destroyed the door. I don’t know how much more I can tell her but then, she’ll learn about everything in the galaxy soon enough. They’re intent on harming Daneul and me.
What about G’nar?
He’s our guard and protector. Important but not a leader.
Not surprising. I wondered about the way you and Daneul ordered him around sometimes.
“Everyone,” G’nar interjects. “We’re being followed. Secure yourself.”
Chapter Nine
Pax
I come to, a little puzzled because my bed feels weird. My body aches like I’ve been mountain climbing too hard. Good morning, Paxton Francis. Would you like a status update?
My eyes pop open because holy shit. What was that? Before I can imagine an answer, the voice begins again. Welcome to the Intergalactic Agency’s data links. Since this is your first time accessing our records, we have this helpful tutorial. You can quit at any time but you’ll gain more by completing the course.
I sit up, flinging the thin sheet from me. I’m wearing loose pants and a soft shirt. Very pajama-like. Can I pause the lessons if necessary?
Yes. You may resume at any time as well.
Where am I?
A display fills my mind. It’s full of stars and a line runs from Earth to some place called Ghar. There’s an X that’s only missing a “You are here,” sign attached. I blink as if seeing the display outside of my brain. The symbols for everything aren’t in English, yet I can easily read them. You’re on board the Imperial yacht, bound for Ghar with the Emperor, the Prince, and the royal crew.
I can’t help but snort because that doesn’t sound intimidating at all. How many are in the crew?
One, Enforcer MacKrell G’nar.
I stand up, ready to find the others. Where are Eldan and Daneul?
The Emperor is approaching. His son is in his quarters, resting.
Eldan’s on his way to see me? Butterflies in my stomach start a rave party and I gulp. Where am I on the ship?
You are in the guest quarters.
I look around at the sparse room. No wonder their apartment was so bare. All of the action is in their heads. Earth people, my system supplies the word Earthers for me, collect things. Ghars? No, Gharians, collect thoughts and memories. There’s so much to learn, but first, I want to know why I’m here and not back on Earth. I also need to schedule some freak the fuck out because I’m leaving the solar system time. System? Am I leaving the galaxy?
No, you are staying in the Alliance section of your galaxy.
The door wooshed open like I’m in a sci-fi show. Which, I guess I am, and Eldan walks in. He’s beautiful. So much that I can’t look away from him. He’s darker, bronze, with his skin having that glistening texture I’d noticed back home. He looks far more metallic than I’d ever noticed before. His clothes are white, a little bit like something a leader from India would wear, and with gold piping. His hair is still light and groomed. Every part of me feels better with him in the room. I stand from my bed and say, “Hello, your eminence.” My system shows me how to bow my head and put my hand on my heart. I do and smile when he chuckles.
He lifts my chin with a finger. “I’m Eldan to you, dearest.”
I let him kiss me, giving a little moan when he stops. “Eldan the Emperor?”
“Something like that.” He kisses me again, pausing as his eyes grow cloudy. “Daneul wants to know if you’re better.”
“I am, thank yo
u.” I put my arms around him.
Eldan pulls me up against his body, nuzzling my neck. “He’s on his way.” After a kiss, he lets go. “Act natural.”
Before I can respond, the door opens. Daneul runs in and flings his arms around me. “Pax! You’re alive!”
“I am!” His joy is infectious, his smaller uniform, identical to his father’s, is adorable. “Looks like you’re going to have me reading your naptime stories for a while longer.” He nestles into me as if afraid I’ll disappear. Given the loss of his mother, I can see why. The past several hours have been stressful. I look over at Eldan. What happens now? I ask.
We need to talk about several options available to you.
Not us? Sounds ominous and I nod. All right. Before I can ask anything else, a chime sounds. I glance at Eldan, puzzled.
He nods, “Enter.”
G’nar walks in. He’s handsome, too, despite the frown he’s wearing. His clothes are similar to Eldan and Daneul’s but more form fitting, and gray with the same gold piping. If the girls from the day care could see him now, they’d all swoon. “Welcome to your new life, Paxton. I hope you’re not prone to homesickness.”
His abrasive attitude puzzles me. Where is the nice guy who went gaga for guac a few days ago? “A little, yes. Isn’t everyone?”
“Search for sixth world policies,” G’nar says. “You’ll learn a lot about how much you shouldn’t be here.”
I do, and the flood of information hurts my head with the intensity. Sixth worlds are strictly forbidden for starfaring races to contact in any way. Anyone who initiates communication will be punished to the fullest extent allowed. Citizens of sixth worlds abducted from their home worlds will be relocated to a planet as close in technology as their origins. Exceptions for relocation may only be made for bondmates who have completed their unions. No sixth world citizen may ever return to their original world.
System, stop. I think, What is the punishment for non-sixth world bondmates who have united with sixth world citizens?