Destined (2 page)

“Thank you again, miss.” The young woman carefully rolled up the sketch and came around to hug Rhoda. It was sweet.

“You are welcome.”

Rhoda wiped her hands clean for the ninth time that evening and looked around her with relief. It seemed that the worst of the crowd was involved in other kiosks and she had a moment to herself.

A server came by with a goblet of water and a wink. “Lady Jemyalli said you were to be watered whenever you had a break.”

“Thank you, and despite her annoying habits, thank her. I am so thirsty.” She gulped down the water and placed the goblet back on the tray.

The servant nodded. “I will get you another.”

“Thank you again.”

Rhoda stretched and a giggle came from behind her. She mentally winced and turned around.
Oh hell.
One of the Genaran nobles was standing there with his arms around two women who looked like their clothing was made of nothing but jewels and tissue.

“Are you the sketch artist?” The male spoke in a tone so low, it made her want to lean in closer to hear more. It was a voice that you could feel more than hear.

“I am. May I do a sketch for you or your companions?” She was polite and subservient.

The woman on the left was a Selna, and she rubbed herself against him. “I know who my destiny is tonight.”

Rhoda inclined her head. The other woman with wild gold hair smiled and stroked the man. “What do you think, Your Highness? Should I get a sketch done?”

“Oh, I think I would love to watch this woman work.” His voice rumbled, and he stared at Rhoda out of the most disturbing eyes. The whites were black and the irises were crimson. Tattoos of strange script started on his forehead and continued downward until they were just above his jawline. His smoke-grey skin and black hair added to his demon-like appearance. Of course, Rhoda had met Dhemons, and they didn’t look anything like him.

The woman with the standard dark gold skin of the Nyal perched on the stool, and Rhoda sighed as the server with her second glass of water turned away.
Damn it
.

A fresh piece of paper and a sharpened pencil later, Rhoda stared at the young woman until the world fell away. Her hand rose up and light took over her vision.

When she was finished, her hand dropped to her side and her vision cleared. She looked at the image and blinked in surprise. It was a surprisingly sweet image of the young woman resting her head on the shoulder of a young man with a serious expression.

Rhoda tore the image from the pad and handed it to the young woman. “Here you are. Destiny can be fought and avoided, but if everything in your life remains as it is, this is the man you would be with.”

The young woman smiled at the image and looked as if she wanted to hug it. “Can I keep it?”

“Of course you can keep it. It is yours.” She wiped her hands again and winced at the soreness. A few more hours of this and she would be home in a hot bath.

The male took the seat that the young woman vacated. “I would like a sketch of my destiny.”

Rhoda almost groaned, but she held it back. She massaged her fingers and said, “May I have a moment?”

He inclined his head while the Selna pouted.

The other young woman disappeared with her sketch carefully rolled in her arms.

“You have cost me a companion, artist.” The man didn’t seem too upset.

Rhoda beckoned the server over, and he came to her with the goblet. “Water?”

“Yes, miss.” He smiled nervously. Something about her current sitter was unsettling him.

Rhoda belted the water back and sighed. She felt a cool trickle of it run down her neck, but she ignored it in favour of prepping the surface of her drawing pad once again.

When she was ready, she looked to the male in the chair, and his gaze was fixed on her neck. She blushed and wiped the last of the water trail from her skin.

“I will begin now.”

He nodded, his lips pressed tightly together.

His sketch was peculiar. She drew him, but her instinct was to draw him in profile. After she had him offset to one side of the sketch, her talent kicked in, but the moment she came out of the trance, she gasped at the image.

Her fist came out and struck the picture, smearing the image of the female and the other pertinent image. “I am sorry. My hand cramped and I ruined it.”

He smiled slightly. “Did you now? I would like it anyway.”

She tore the sketch from the pad and handed it to him. His fingers twitched but he only nodded and thanked her before leaving with his companion plastered to his side once again.

Jemyalli ran up to her and whispered. “Do you know who that is?”

Rhoda shook her head. “No clue.” She absently wiped her hands while she tried to get the image of the sketch out of her mind. It was the first time in her life she had seen her own face looking back at her.

* * * *

Prince Drehl Yaghin of the planet Yacaro parted from his companion and walked out onto the balcony with the sketch carefully held in his hand. When he had some privacy, he whispered the words to restore the image and watched as the graphite and charcoal blend reformed into a striking image.

Drehl recognized his face in the sketch. He also recognized the Guardian armour he wore on duty. He didn’t know her name, but the woman in the image between the prince and the hero was the sketch artist. She had looked shocked at her appearance in his destiny, but he was no fool. Being the Guardian—Charm--had given him insight into what was and was not possible in the world.

If she were his destiny, it behoved him to put himself in her path.

He smiled and rolled the sketch tightly, using his skill to reduce it until it fit inside the inner pocket of his belt.

There was the auction yet to come, and as Prince Drehl, he was expected to spend some money on a good cause. He wondered what the sketch artist had put up as her donation to the gala.

He would pay good money to watch a droplet of water snake down her neck and continue on until it highlighted her nipple once again. He wondered how much she would charge and would he survive the asking?

Chapter Three

“What do you mean I have to go up for auction?”

Jemyalli looked at her innocently. “Didn’t I mention that all the kiosks are offering one of their objects for bid? Because your stuff is only done for commission, you will have to go up there as a representation.”

Rhoda groaned and grabbed for a glass of water, gulping it down before she realized that it wasn’t water. “Damn.”

“Wasn’t water, huh?” Jem looked sympathetic and then brightened. “Hey, it will help your nerves.”

“Zip it, Jem. When do I have to do this?”

The lights in the kiosks flickered on and off.

“Why…right now? Come on. Let’s fix your hair, get that smudge off your face and it will be over before you know it. Come on, just one portrait.”

Tipsy from the slug of alcohol on an empty stomach, she tottered along and let Jem fix her to her satisfaction.

The crowd was gathering in the ballroom, so Jemyalli quickly ushered her into the back, whispering to the announcer. He nodded and gave Rhoda an encouraging smile.

Rhoda stood, her hands clenched together and her head spinning. She listened to the introduction of the auction as the announcer fired the purchasers up. He leaned over and beckoned to her.

“And now, at a special request from the centre, I have the artist who will sketch your destiny. She is offering one portrait painted in the privacy of your home or her studio. Though she is lovely, you are only purchasing her skills as an artist. May I start the bidding at two hundred credits?”

Rhoda stood and looked blindly out into the crowd and watched hands lift in the air as the purchase price for her time climbed. When a low and familiar voice said, “Twenty thousand credits.” The room erupted into applause.

“I do not think we can accept any more bids. Twenty thousand credits to Prince Drehl of Sawko. Please enjoy the rest of the auction.”

Prince Drehl stepped forward and extended his hand. Rhoda took it, and he helped her down the steps of the stage.

She inclined her head. “Thank you for your generosity, Prince Drehl.”

“Thank you for your discretion.” He pressed a kiss to her hand. “So, do you prefer to paint in your home or shall you come to my domicile?”

She smiled. “My home has the lighting set for optimum results. I only need you there for the initial sketch. Have you decided on a topic?”

He blinked. “You don’t simply draw the true loves of those sitting?”

They were out of the crowd and in the hall, heading to the clerk that would take his payment.

“No. I draw what they want to see. It is not my idea to draw their mates. That is just what most single beings are fixated on. A couple might want to see if they were going to have children and boys or girls. That I could do as well. Or occupations. The only thing I won’t draw is death.”

“You can draw death?”

“Yes, but it takes part of me with it as I draw. It is painful.” She grimaced. “What time would you prefer?”

He cocked his head. “It is fairly fluid. My schedule is unpredictable, as you probably saw.”

She swallowed. She had indeed seen. She had smudged his alter ego as much for his sake as she had rubbed out her image for her own sake. “I think you have certain calls on your time. Well, in my schedule, tomorrow, I am taking a tour to the caverns to show folks how to draw crystals. Any time after noon is fine. I spend most days at home. I am sure that the society can get you my number.”

He smiled and his low voice asked, “I can find your number, but what is your name?”

She blushed scarlet. “I am sorry, Your Highness. I am Rhoda Evergreen of the Alliance Protectorate of Terra.”

“Rhoda. Interesting name.”

She chuckled. “It is when you say it.” The words came out without her willing them to, and she blushed.

He smiled. “A pity that the sketch was smudged. I would have enjoyed seeing my destiny.”

She shrugged. “It can probably be recovered in the portrait unless you had another subject in mind.”

“Oh, I think the woman I will spend the rest of my life with is the perfect subject matter.” Prince Drehl smiled.

“Well, you have my name. Call me when you are ready for your portrait, Your Highness.”

He raised one of her hands to his lips. “I will, Rhoda.”

She slowly removed her hand from his and curtseyed briefly before she left. She recovered her wrap from the coat check and waited for the valet to flag down a transport for her.

She shivered as she waited in the cool night air and wished with all her might that she were somewhere else.

The transport finally pulled up, and she took her seat, double-checking that she had her pay chip with her. She stopped the driver before he took off. “I am sorry. I can’t find my pay chip.”

He gave her a look in the mirror and smiled, a low, slow smile. “We can work something out.”

Rhoda got out of the transport and waited until he left before she started walking. It would take her over an hour to get home and her feet would never forgive her, but wherever her payment chip was, it was not in her clutch.

* * * *

Drehl was watching Rhoda walk away from the centre, and he frowned as he realized she must live in the city.

Ura, the Selna, cuddled against his side. “Stupid woman. Doesn’t even guard her purse. She deserves to walk.”

Idly, Drehl stroked her arm, “What?”

“While she was sketching you, I looked around in her purse, and all she had to offer was this tiny, little pay chip.” Ura fished it out of her cleavage and waved it at him.

His face pulled into a frown. “You stole from her?”

“This tiny amount is hardly stealing. Have you seen this crowd? This isn’t even a tip for the groomers for them.” Ura tucked the chip back into her cleavage.

Drehl watched Rhoda walk up the hill, shivering and wrapped in a light, gauzy piece of fabric. “I believe, Ura, that you should get out of my sight and never bother to darken my door again.”

He turned and reached into her cleavage, pulling the chip out. “This, I will return to her, and I do not ever wish to see you again. Are we clear?”

Ura whined. “But it was just some fun…”

“You are a parasite, looking for someone to attach to and destroying anything in your path. Consider yourself discarded by your host.” He walked away from her and headed to the front entrance. His car met him at the door, and he stepped inside, directing it up the hill in the direction that Rhoda had been trudging.

When he saw her again, he sighed in relief. He pulled up ahead of her and got out. “Miss Evergreen, please allow me to offer you a ride. My companion found herself in possession of your pay chip, and I have it now to return to you.”