Kidnapping Keela (17 page)

Footsteps moved away, then the voice again: “And have me called when she wakes up.”

“As Your Highness wishes.”

Chapter 12

Y-Quadrant, Karrx7

Royal Castle of the Arr’Verkuzzi

8
^th
day of the month of Lumino in the year 7067

Federation Time

Keela woke up feeling that something was not right, only she could not tell what it was. She felt as if the bed was empty next to her. Marruk was not there. Then she remembered that he had of course set out on a skirmish with his brother, his father and some men. But still something was not right. Had something happened to him? She threw open her eyes and sat up in bed. Where was she? This was not her room in Marruk’s castle. It was just as big and similarly furnished but it was a room that she did not know. She could not be in the palace either because all of the walls there were white-washed and hung with tapestries. These walls were made of pure stone like the walls in Marruk’s castle.
 

“Good morning, My Lady,” sounded a female voice from somewhere. “Did you sleep well?”

Keela looked around but could not see anyone.
 

“Who are you? Where are you?”

“I’m Maara, the central computer of the castle.”

“Whose castle?”

“The castle of King Abziarr Arr’Verkuzzi,” answered the computer.
 

Keela’s heart began to beat hard. All at once she remembered everything again: the letter, the night-time abduction and the cave with the stone circle. Then she had apparently lost consciousness.
 

“How long have I been asleep?” she asked.

“Five hours, sixteen minutes and twelve seconds,” replied Maara.
 

“Thank you for the precise answer,” said Keela, amused.

“No problem, My Lady.”

“Do you know what King Abziarr intends to do with me?”

“I’m sorry, this is level one information. Only level six information is available to you.”

“May I at least know where the toilet is? Or is that also level one to five information?”

“The toilet is behind the door to your left,” answered Maara.
 

Had she imagined it or had the computer actually sounded irritated? No matter! She had a need that demanded her attention. Sighing, she slid down off the high bed and swayed to the door indicated. She still felt weak-kneed.

When she returned from the toilet a young girl was standing next to her bed.

“My Lady? I’ve brought you a little something to strengthen you. His Highness wishes to speak with you in an hour. I’ll fetch you later. His Highness wishes you to be a little stronger first. He is very concerned about your well-being. You were unconscious for a long time. Are you feeling better now?”

“I’m fine, thank you,” Keela lied. She did not want to display any weakness in front of her enemy.

“Then I’ll leave you alone now. Unless you have any other wish?”

“No. My only wish would be for my husband to be released, as well as his father and all of his men and for us to be permitted to return home immediately, but that’s not up for discussion, I presume?”

“I’m sorry, My Lady. I know nothing about that. But you can of course discuss it with His Highness when I take you to him later.”

Keela snarled sullenly, but said nothing. The servant nodded to her and disappeared.

Keela had no appetite but she took a cup of the wine and sat down in an armchair to wait. It seemed like ages before the servant finally returned to fetch her. Keela’s heart raced as she followed the servant through the castle. Her thoughts revolved around Marruk and the other men. Where were they being held captive? Were they OK? Would she ever hold Marruk in her arms again? She wondered what sort of a man Abziarr was. According to what she knew about him he must be a cruel barbarian, but she could not say that she had been handled badly here. If one overlooked the abduction, she had been well cared for, like a valued guest, not like a prisoner.
 

The castle was more elegant than Marruk’s castle but not as luxurious as King Mortociar’s palace. All the doors opened and closed automatically. There was electric light and sort of air conditioning.
 

“We’re here, My Lady,” the servant pulled Keela from her thoughts.

They were standing at a door with a coat of arms on it. The coat of arms showed of a tiger, a shield and a sword, as well as lettering which said: ‘
Manikatu Gajoiji Duka
’, that she was able translate thanks to Solima’s lessons, and it meant: ‘Truth, Honour, Courage’.

She now became very curious about her mysterious host. If he really valued these attributes then she may be able to speak with him.

The door opened and the servant indicated that she should enter the room. Keela walked through the doorway and jumped in fright when the door immediately closed behind her.
 

“My Lady Keela,” came the sound of a pleasant voice and she turned her head to the right, the direction from which the voice had come.

King Abziarr was anything but the old, bearded barbarian that she had imagined. He was young, probably Marruk’s age, and very attractive, with shoulder-length black hair and brown eyes. Like all men on this planet he was enormous and very muscular. He was dressed in black, leather trousers and a richly decorated, dark green tunic. He was standing next to a group of comfortable looking armchairs. He had clearly been sitting down there and had stood up when she entered.

“Your Highness,”she responded with a nod.

He laughed - a pleasant, warm laugh that made his brown eyes gleam.

“My Lady. You do not need to be so formal. Please simply call me Abziarr. But would you not like to come and sit down with me? Please!”

He made an inviting hand gesture and she accepted his invitation. Once she had sat down in one of the armchairs he sat down opposite her.

“Where … where is my mate?” she asked, encouraged to be direct because of the king’s calm manner.

“At the moment he is on the border and is trying to break through the barrier that my magician has set up. I have sent a messenger with a letter to him.”

“Then you lied to me. You don’t have him and the other men in your power at all!”

Abziarr laughed.

“That is true. I beg your forgiveness, but it had to be. There was no other way in which I would have been able to bring you here without force. I really do not wish to harm you.”

Keela laughed dryly.

“And now you’re expecting me to be grateful to you for your
consideration
, are you?”
 

He shook his head.

“Of course not. I’m completely aware that it is not in your interest, but I am still concerned to at least harm you as little as possible.”

“So why am I here, then?”

“As a decoy, of course. I permitted myself to cut off a little of your silver hair and sent it with the message. Marruk is to come alone and unarmed.”

“Whilst we’re on that subject, who’s hair was it that you sent me?”

“Oh, that belongs to one of my servants. Your lock of hair needed to be genuine, of course. After all, you’re the only woman with such unusual hair colour anywhere near here.”

“What do you intend to do when Marruk gets here? Are you going to kill him? You’re hardly going to invite him to dinner, are you?” Keela became agitated.

“I will oppose him personally in a fair fight. May the best man win.”

“Why? Why all these fights between you and the Carthians? I don’t understand why you can’t make peace. I mean, you seem to me to at least be less barbaric than I had expected and …”

Abziarr laughed loudly.

Keela glared at him angrily.

“I don’t find the situation at all funny,” she hissed at him.

“Please excuse my conduct. I was just very relieved to hear that you don’t consider me to be so very barbaric.”

“You haven’t answered my question. Why?”

“Well, let’s say, your mate and I have an old debt to settle. He took something that belonged to me.”

Abziarr’s voice had changed whilst he was speaking. The mirth had disappeared and made way for underlying anger. But it was not only anger that she saw in his eyes. She also saw pain and that made her curious.

“What is it that he took from you?”

“My mate!”

“Morika? She was your mate?”

“She was supposed to be. We were meant for one another – we were true mates. However, her parents were of another opinion. For them the King of the Verkuzzi was not good enough. No, it had to be a son of the House of Arr’Carthian. The fact that she did not love him, would never love him, was beside the point. It was enough for them to be joining two royal houses together. I was of course only the son of Kargorr the Awful. The fact that I was not responsible for my father’s cruel acts did not count. They hate us - the Carthians, the Mesuthoms and even the Moliws. It did not matter that I had kept peace since my father’s death. No! No one could give his daughter’s hand to a Verkuzzi.”

“I’m … I’m sorry,” said Keela quietly.

Abziarr looked into her eyes and for a while they were silent. She really was sorry about what had happened to him. She could see the pain in his eyes and she felt for him. She didn’t have the impression that King Abziarr was evil. He seemed much more like a man who had been deeply hurt and who had been hardened by sadness and anger. Perhaps she would be able to speak with him.

“How did you meet Morika? Surely you weren’t introduced to her if you were so hated.”

“I met her by chance one day in the forest, somewhere near the border. We knew from the first moment that we were meant for one another. For a while we met in secret, but I wanted to make it official. I asked her father for her hand in marriage. The fact that he did not kill me on the spot was only thanks to his mate, Morika’s mother.
 

They forced Morika to marry Marruk. I know that she was unhappy. But I could do nothing. If I had stolen her, she would have had to live in constant fear and in shame. I could not do that to her – to her and the child that she was carrying beneath her heart.”

“You mean Solima? Marruk’s daughter?”

“She is not Marruk’s daughter. She is my daughter.”

“But … her eyes. She has Marruk’s eye colour.”

Abziarr shook his head.

“No, she has her grandmother’s eyes - Lady Violynn’s, Morika’s mother’s. This unusual eye colour always misses a generation. Marruk cannot pass it on. He has his eyes from his grandfather.”

“But Marruk is not to blame for this. He only did what he was told to do, like Morika. Their parents decided upon the union and they both obeyed. I know that Marruk gave of his best to be a good mate for Morika. He loved her - not as deeply as it is with true mates, but he still suffered so much at her loss that he never wanted another mate.”

“That changes nothing!” snarled Abziarr.

“Did Marruk know that Solima was not his?”

“He will have realised it. She was already three months pregnant when the union was made.”

“Then you must recognise that Marruk cares very much for Solima. He loves her like his own flesh and blood and he is a wonderful father.”

“I credit him with that. It is because of that, and because I hold you in high regard, that I will give him a fair fight. He could absolutely win and kill me. Do you have so little confidence in your mate?”

Keela looked at Abziarr and all at once she saw everything very clearly. Her heart nearly stopped beating.

“You want him to kill you, don’t you?” she whispered, full of consternation. “You don’t want to live any more. You want to leave this life honourably, as you men would call it, in battle.”

Abziarr smiled, but he said nothing. However, he also did not contradict what she had said.
 

“How long before Marruk gets here?”

“He’ll arrive tomorrow. Make yourself at home in the meantime. If you get lost in the castle, ask Maara and she’ll show you the way back to your room. If you need anything, ask a servant or Maara if no one else is available. I only ask you not to try to leave the castle. Maara would not let you leave anyway.”

Keela got up, trembling inside with anger, despair and concern.

“I correct my impression from earlier. You, Your Highness, are a barbarian! If you really go through with this matter, then you are insane. Think of your daughter. She will either lose her father or the man that she thinks of as her father. So the poor child can only lose. Instead you should try to wipe the slate clean with my mate and come to a peaceful union. Then you could even get to know your daughter and become part of her life. What you are planning to do is not honourable, it is cowardly!”

With these words she turned away and stormed out of the room.

King Abziarr watched her leave, deep in thought. He was impressed by this little person. She was very clever. How had she managed to recognise his true motivation behind this whole matter? But her final words were still ringing in his ears. Yes. He was a coward. He was tired: tired from mourning his lover; tired of being at war; tired of reigning. Everything made so little sense. If he were to die, his younger brother Alic would become king. His people would be taken care of. He was not needed. It was only a pity that he would learn nothing more about this fascinating woman. He was interested in where she came from and whether all of the women on her planet were like her. She really was unusual in every way.
 

***

Y-Quadrant, Karrx7

On the border of the Verkuzzi Region

8
^th
day of the month of Lumino in the year 7067

Federation Time

“Someone’s coming. A boy. He looks like a messenger,” the warrior, Jeffe, reported.

Marruk turned round, and his father did the same. Indeed, a lad of about twelve years old was coming through the forest towards them and the invisible barrier. Once he had reached the barrier he held an amulet up high then stepped, unharmed, through the magic energy field.

“A message from King Abziarr, My Lord.”

Marruk tore the note from the boy’s hand and hastily unfolded it.