Alien Prince: (Bride of Qetesh) An Alien SciFi Romance (16 page)

“I think they are lovely,” she said, and the Europax smiled.

“Thank you,” the shopkeeper said. “We weave them by hand, my husband and I. May I make a suggestion for you, my lady?”

“By all means,” Lore agreed.

The shopkeeper disappeared at the back of the stall and returned a moment later with a set of folded items in her arms. She placed them on the display table and presented them to Lorelei one by one.

“This is one of my favorite sets,” she said, holding up a cap sleeved top in royal blue with tiny golden flowers, and matching drawstring pants. Then she held the decorative fabric up for Lore to admire, royal blue fading into a rich green with golden flowers embroidered along the edges. It was truly a work of art. “And I believe, my lady, it would quite compliment your coloring.”

“Oh, it’s perfect,” Lore said, rubbing the fabric gently between her thumb and index finger.

“We’ll take it,” I said, smiling. “How much?”

“Please,” she said, and pressed the garment into Lorelei’s arms. “Allow it to be a wedding gift, from my husband and myself to our king and his new queen.”

We returned to the Spire, having purchased not only the clothing, but a box of dried melon, a set of golden bangles, royal blue slippers, and saccharine sweet perfume that Lorelei seemed to enjoy for some reason, and we retreated to our private quarters to bathe, dress, and begin the day as leaders of this village.

It all seemed strangely normal, as though this were a day in a string of days that was our shared life together. We met with the treasurer to go over the costs of freeing the women, and how much Lorelei expected she could reasonably have returned. “Think about it like a loan,” she offered, altogether more optimistic than I thought she had a right to be, “and think about putting interest on it. Say, ten percent? That seems fair, does it not?”

The treasurer and I exchanged a set of dubious glances, but perhaps she had more sway with her Echelon cohorts than I was giving her credit for. Then we met with the market director to discuss real estate space, and finally with the director of the mating program, a Europax woman who lived and worked among us but had not, herself, taken a mate. She reported her findings — dismal, to say the very least — and indicated that she had recently sent her status report back to the Echelon and was awaiting further instruction.

“Is there a scenario,” I broached gently, “wherein the program is terminated?”

“We are a long ways away from that,” came her tepid reply, and it was not what I wanted to hear. “First, there will be medical intervention. There is a lot we still can do.”

When she left, Lorelei took my hand and gave it a squeeze. “It is not yet time to worry about the future of your people,” she said, and I nodded.

The day began to wane before Waelden indicated the Quarter Moon coterie had returned to the surface of the planet. I donned my crown before marching out of the Spire with Lorelei and a smattering of armed guards in tow. We came out of the main entrance and were greeted by a small collection of Keldeeri, including Garrick Thassian himself.

There were four women with him, all kneeling at his feet. They were naked, save for strings of delicate chain links they wore around their necks. They all held the same position: knees splayed wide as they sat back on their heels, fingers laced together and clasped behind their necks, with elbows winged out to the sides. And most importantly, with their gazes cast down to the packed dirt beneath them. I glanced at Lorelei, red with rage at the sight of them.

“Let them rise,” she shouted, “this instant! I will not have them so humiliated.”

“They are not humiliated, Highness,” Garrick asserted. “They are simply well-trained.”

“I want them on their feet. Calder, we must get them something to wear.”

Garrick grinned. “You heard your mistress. Rise.” And all four of them did.

“What are your names?” I asked, even as my Lorelei marched right up to them. She approached the first, a young Europax with flaxen hair to her waist, and slid a finger underneath her chin to get her to make eye contact.

“Tierney,” she said, and drew the girl into her arms. “This is Tierny Mafaren,” Lore said to me. Tierney said nothing, did not even raise her arms to embrace Lore back, but she did give a barely perceptible nod to indicate that, yes, that was her name.

Lore moved on to the next woman in line, whom she hugged, and who hugged her back. The woman was plump and pretty, with narrow eyes and dark hair. “Sara Yve,” Lore said. “This is Sara Yve.” Sara clung to her, not wanting to let go, and Lore let her hold on for a long stretch of silence. But when she approached the next girl, she furrowed her brow.

“I do not know this woman,” she said, before examining the last girl in the line, “or this one. Where are Teldara Kinesse and Ciara Zehr?” She had fire in her eyes as she stood mere inches away from Garrick. They were of a height, but the force of her personality dwarfed him where he stood.

“Unfortunately,” the little man hissed, “we were unable to procure Slaves Kinesse and Zehr. They were sold off at auction and have been sent to their new homes.”

“We had a deal,” I asserted, marching up to stand behind Lore. “We had a deal for four specific slaves, and you have broken your word.”

“Five slaves, actually,” Garrick said, and looked intently at Lore with his reptilian eyes before trailing a finger over her cheek. She jerked her head back. “Let us not forget that your little bride was to be breeding stock on Keldeer.”

“I want my friends back, Thassian.”

“Two out of four really isn’t all that bad, considering.”

“Bullshit! I want my friends back.”

He looked pointedly away from her and up at me. “Will you kindly explain to the little woman that business is business?”

“What can you do,” I asked, “to ascertain the whereabouts of the remaining women. What were their names?”

“Teldara Kinesse and Ciara Zehr,” she said, her hands balled into fists at her side.

“Very little, I’m afraid. But look at the two beauties I brought in their stead.” Garrick snapped his fingers and the other two women scurried to his side. One was Europax with short dark hair. The other was of an unrecognizable species, humanoid, with white hair cropped short and tiny pointed ears. She was no more than five feet tall, if that, a tiny wisp of a creature. “A Europax and a Pyrtan. Do you have any idea how expensive Pyrtan pussy is? I am doing you a favor.”

Lorelei glanced desperately between the two strangers before she turned a pair of pleading green eyes on me. She did not know what to do. Neither did I, for that matter. I certainly could not ask my people to spend even more of our limited resources for two extra women, nor did we have any leads to go on to find them.

“Unacceptable,” I finally said, not wanting to let the strange silence go on for any longer. “These women were not a part of our bargain.”

“Pity,” Garrick said, propping one hand up on his hip. “They are a package deal, my liege. It’s an all-or-nothing kind of day.” The scoundrel’s grin looked more like a grimace, impeded as it was by his pronounced mandibles.

“We will take them,” Lore interjected, glancing at me for permission for her sudden show of strength. I sighed and gave a slow shake of my head. If we took these two strangers, her friends were lost. “We will take them.”

“Excellent. I am so pleased that we were able to come to an accord.”

“Waelden is standing by in the Spire to transfer the credits.” I turned around to look at one of the Qeteshi warriors behind me, and I canted my chin to send him off to alert Waelden. Garrick pulled out a small screen and swiped his fingers across it.

“How does your civilization even use credits?” he asked, sneering as he looked around. “You are all so very…primitive.”

“Our home planet was destroyed,” I said flatly. “This is a settlement. We used to have all the same fancy gadgets that you do, and our credit reserve is an old stockpile from over two centuries ago.”

“Ah,” came his absent response. He didn’t much care about anything except for his money. The air was quiet and tense between us until Garrick dropped his hands to the side, and tilted his head back. “I am waiting!” he shouted to the heavens, and I clenched my jaw to keep myself from beating him to a bloody pulp.

The Qeteshi warrior returned to his spot in the formation, and gave a sharp nod of his head to indicate it was done. “The transfer is complete, Thassian,” I said. “Give us the girls.”

Garrick smiled, showing his sharply pointed teeth, and checked the screen on his arm. “Wonderful,” he said, turned the screen off, and administered a dismissive gesture with both hands. Without giving it a second thought, the girls darted forward until they were safely behind the line of warriors. “It has been such a pleasure doing business with you,” he said, a glint in his bulbous, yellow eyes. “Particularly you, my lady.” Lore stood as impassive and tall as her stature would allow. “You are quite extraordinary. From a slave to a queen to a savior in a matter of days.”

Garrick turned on his heel to head out of the village. “I should like to see what you might accomplish on the arm of someone with more power, or at the very least more technology.” He waggled his fingers in a wave, not turning around to look back. “Some other time, perhaps.” And with that, he and his men were gone.

In that instant, all of the pomp and air went out of Lorelei, and she darted toward the women, staring intently into the faces of the girls she knew. “Are you all right?” she asked. “Are you hurt?”

“We are all right,” Sara Yve said, gripping Tierney Mafaren’s hand.

“Come inside,” Lore said, gesturing to the strangers as well. “We will get you some clothes and something to eat. Come, come.”

My queen led her people into the Spire, a contingent of Qeteshi guards at their heels, and I was left to bring up the end of the train.

Teldara Kinesse.

Ciara Zehr.

Teldara Kinesse.

Ciara Zehr.

Their names were an obsession, running through my head like the lyrics of a song you don’t like but can’t push out of your mind. They were the pulse of my heartbeat, and a pain behind my eyes. I’d let them down. I’d let them down.

My Europax ladies in waiting collected some clothing for the girls to wear, and pressed cups of hot Larandi tea into their hands. We sat together, Calder, the girls, and me, in a sitting room lavish enough to be fit for royalty but small enough so as to make them feel safe. There were colorful handwoven rugs everywhere, and chaise lounges and plush divans to sit on. They clustered together as though they did not want to be too far away from one another. I could only guess at what they’d been through.

“I have sent a distress signal to the
Atria
,” I said, after the girls had had a moment to drink their tea. “They should be coming for us.”

“When?” Sara asked, her eyes wide with concern.

“Soon, I hope,” came my uneasy reply. “I haven’t had a response from them, but I know they will come. They were probably already looking for Tierney.” Tierney, who still had not said one word to me, stared into her mug of tea. “We are going to get you home, Calder and me.”

“Thank you,” Sara said, and Lore offered a warm smile and a squeeze of her hand before turning her attention to the other girls.

“What are your names?” I asked of the short-haired Europax and the tiny Pyrtan.

“Winnie Xershan,” said the Europax.

“Padva Shiris,” said the Pyrtan.

“And where can we take you?” I asked. “Where do you want to go?” Padva and Winnie exchanged glances, but said nothing. Like Tierney, they simply stared down into their tea.

“What is going on with you guys?” I asked, glancing around the lot of them.

“Maybe they just need some time to rest,” Calder gently suggested. He could not speak the language we used amongst ourselves, but he could tell enough by our tone and body language that things weren’t going smoothly, so to speak.

“I want to get them home, so that they can put all this behind them,” I said in Qeteshi to Calder before returning my attention to the girls. “Please, tell me who I can contact on your behalf. Tell me where you were abducted. Tell me what happened to you, so that I can help you.”

“We don’t want your help!” Tierney shouted, finally breaking her silence. “We don’t want your help and we don’t need it.”

“Speak for yourself, Mafaren,” Sara Yve interjected, rising to her feet and abandoning her tea on a small side table.

“I am,” Tierney went on, “I am speaking for myself. And for Winnie and Padva.” Tierney turned a pair of limpid blue eyes on me, and the intensity of her gaze made me sit back in my chair. “Listen to me, Lorelei Vauss,” she said, her voice low and full of purpose. “You took us away from—“ She paused. “You have no idea what we were all forced to leave behind when you asked for us.”

“What?” I asked, stunned. “Took you away? I thought I was rescuing you.”

“You did rescue us,” Sara said. “You rescued me.”

“We agreed,” I went on, reaching out to take Tierney’s hand, but Tierney jerked back where she sat. “We agreed, if any of us were to get away, that we would rescue the others. What do you think I’ve been doing since we were separated?”

“It seems like you married an alien King,” Tierney shot back. “It seems like you set things up pretty well for yourself. Well, guess what? What happened to me wasn’t a tragedy, just like it wasn’t for a lot of the girls.”

“I don’t understand—”

“The Quarter Moon is doing exactly what the Echelon is doing,” Tierney asserted, looking to the other girls for support. “They are doing exactly what the Echelon is doing. Trying to save species from extinction.”

“It isn’t the same!” I was slack-jawed with my shock. “They are abducting women out of their homes, off of transport vessels, and selling them to the highest bidder!”

“Everything is a transaction,” Tierney said, “and you’re foolish if you think otherwise. Look at you and your King. Why did you marry him? Why did he marry you?” She looked between Calder and myself, and I couldn’t turn to look at my husband. I knew his face was stony and cold. “A transaction. You traded something. I don’t know what it was, exactly, but if I had to guess? You traded your freedom for protection from the slavers. Did I get it right?”