by K Bledsoe
“All we really know is that she wears gloves,” said Lenore, voice slightly above a murmur, deep in thought. “We really can’t tell if she has her tattoos or not.” Lenore was scrolling through the pictures, scrutinizing each and noting the different ways the program noted the flaws.
“Why else would she wear the gloves?” asked Allison.
“Maybe the removal scarred her, and she wants to cover up,” she replied absently, still flicking through screens. “And she has gloves on both arms when we know that the tattoos are only on the right hand.”
“I hadn’t thought of that,” said Allison.
Lenore looked up as Diarmin cleared his throat loudly. His lips were compressed in a thin line and he indicated Allison with a slight tip of his head. Guilt racked Lenore as she looked at her daughter now slumped down in her chair, a look of despondence on her face.
“But this is an incredibly amazing program, Allison. I am truly impressed.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely. I knew you were smart but this,” she waved her hand at the screen, “this shows true genius.”
“Wow, thanks, Mom.” The smile was back, and Lenore was about to go on but a slight pinch on the back of her arm from Diarmin was warning enough not to overdo. Damn, she still couldn’t get the hang of these emotions.
“We need to discuss if we want to patent this or not,” she said, going for the change in subject. “Like the upgraded shield that we talked about but never decided on.”
“Why wouldn’t we?” asked Diarmin. “They both could bring in a substantial fee.”
“Several reasons,” Lenore straightened, and both looked at her eagerly. “A patent is an easy way to track us, not a good thing. Also, to make money, we would have to divert significant time and resources. And,” She smiled at her daughter. “Once a patent is accepted, the knowledge that such a program exists will be out there, and I would like us to be the only people who know about it.”
Both smiled back, but it was Allison who responded.
“Yeah, money is nice, but I kinda like it being our own secret. Both ideas. Besides, we are due a payment for the success of this mission anyway.”
“Well, about that,” said Diarmin. “They may not want to pay since Raahi was there the whole time and technically Jonah did pay us to find her.”
“Yes, I considered that, but now,” Lenore looked him directly in the eyes. “thanks to your tests, we know something they don’t. And have proof in the hold.” Diarmin nodded.
“Something incredibly vital.”
“And there is this.” Lenore held up the data stick that had been given to them on the planet. “This is worth even more.”
Chapter Fifty-four
Jonah couldn’t stop pacing. He wasn’t sure if his frazzled nerves were because he hadn’t heard from Raahi or from the events of the past days. After he had spoken to the Baroness, he had called Raahi but only got a message service. He stumbled through an apology, but the message recorder cut off midsentence, and now the contact number was no longer active.
The next two days had been a blur between Jonah frantically searching videos of the city to find her, discussions with himself about what could possibly be going through her mind and dealing with events in the palace.
The prince had tested the scrambler, first in the conference rooms during a regular discussion of various committees. Jonah sent someone to inform him that the monitors had failed and needed to be replaced. The next day, it happened again in a public corridor, but the static cleared soon thereafter so the scrambler had failed. The conversation had been quite innocuous, only a discussion about the upcoming birthday and affirmation of the prince.
Having given this situation much thought, Jonah was prepared. He went directly to the council shortly after with all the members in attendance, including the prince and king.
He bowed low after being presented. “Your Majesty. I need to inform you that several monitors in the palace appear to have some kind of glitch. I cannot find the flaw, but I suspect that an electronic virus is sweeping through the system, affecting individual systems then moving on. There will most likely be the occasional failures until I can track down the problem.”
The king nodded absently and thanked Jonah for his vigilance. A quick glance around as he bowed his way out let Jonah note the satisfied smirk of the prince, complete surprise on Lavan’s face, and greatly varied levels of interest throughout the council members.
The trap had been set.
Which, unfortunately, left him too much time to obsess over Raahi.
If the Baroness was correct, Raahi was either the princess or her Companion Lara. But if that were the case, why hadn’t she come forward? If she was the princess, it was a simple matter of presenting herself to the palace staff and her father. Maybe she thought because the tattoos were removed she wouldn’t be accepted. That didn’t make sense. She was young when she left but old enough to know that DNA could be checked. Unless she was afraid of the slave organization finding out her true identity. But she would have been protected in the palace.
Was she angry because the new prince replaced her as child and heir? Maybe, but he didn’t think that would stop the rightful heir from stepping back in. He had never met the princess, but he felt like he knew her well. He had seen videos going back from the time she was a baby and she was a sweet child, always accepting of her duty as the future queen.
No. If Raahi were the princess, she would have come forward. She must be the companion. But why did she stay hidden? She came all the way back to Sulous but wouldn’t tell Nirav about his daughter. Was she afraid of how it would affect the king? Afraid of the slavers? Jonah shook his head. Raahi wasn’t afraid of anything. She never showed the slightest fear of anything. In fact, the only emotion he’d ever seen was sadness when she told him about the death of her sister.
That memory wrenched at his gut. Of course. She didn’t want the constant reminder of what she lost because he had no doubt that they were as close as sisters. To go through what they did would make anyone closer. They even looked identical. A stray thought niggled at the back of his brain again, but it wouldn’t form into anything coherent.
Too many questions rolled around in his head. He needed to talk to Raahi, but it had been three days and nothing. Jonah brought his fists down on the console in frustration.
“Hey, boss. Take it easy.” Ginette patted Jonah’s shoulder. “You’ll find something.”
For a long moment he simply stared at her, wondering how she knew of his dilemmas.
Ginette leaned back against the wall and crossed her arms, squinting at Jonah.
“In fact, I think it’s you that has the virus, not the system. You look awful. Have you eaten today?”
Jonah relaxed. She was talking about the supposed system glitch. “Well, I am a bit hungry. Maybe I’ll get some lunch.”
“Um, hello in there.” Ginette rapped gently on Jonah’s head. “It’s past dinner. It’s why I am here. I’m glad I came in early. You need to go home and get some rest. Food, then sleep.”
He shook his head. “No, I have to find something. Soon.”
“What in the world are you talking about, Boss?”
His eyes widened. Perhaps he’d better get home. Fatigue was making him sloppy. He tried to backtrack. “Oh, um, I just meant that if I don’t find the problem in a day or two, I need to scrap the whole system and start again.”
“Well, you are not doing any good in this condition. Tell you what. Let’s download all the feeds, and then you can take it home to look at.” She sat at her own terminal and began to do just that. “And tomorrow is your day off so that will give you another day to recover.”
“But…” he began. She tilted her head and gave a crooked grin.
“I won’t tell anyone you took it. You can trust me. And…” she hit a few buttons and entered a code. “I have put the feed directly to your place, so you can watch from home.” She put a finger on her lips. “Don’t
tell anyone.”
“Why would you do that?” whispered Jonah.
“Because you won’t get rest if you are here, and you won’t leave unless you keep working. Besides,” she grinned again. “It means I don’t have to work. I can be lazy, and I like that, Boss.” She gathered the data sticks and shoved them in his bag. She stood and hauled Jonah to his feet as well, draping his bag on his shoulder. Turning to the door, she gave him a shove toward it. “Now, leave.”
Despite his weariness, he laughed.
“Yes, doctor.”
“And eat something!” she yelled after him as he left.
***
The first thing Jonah did was turn on his console and activate the feed. He wanted to make a program to intercept only video of the prince but as a wave of dizziness swept him, he knew food was the more important item.
He stood and headed for the kitchen when there came a soft knock on the door. All thoughts of food left his head as he ran to see Raahi. The incredibly intense feeling of joy as his eyes fell on her face surprised him.
“You are home early tonight,” she said with a smile.
He could only stand there like an idiot with a dopey smile, thoughts and questions racing around but forming no coherent pattern.
“You called. Said you wanted to apologize.” She looked down slightly. “I agree that we need to talk.” She raised her eyes back to him, and he unfroze long enough to invite her in.
“How did you…never mind.” Somehow the fact that she had been watching his apartment didn’t bother him at all. In fact, the feeling of warmth from the knowledge relaxed him as he hadn’t been for days.
“I was going to make some food. Are you hungry?”
She turned and scrutinized his face. “You look awful,” she said. “Here.” She pushed him to the couch. “You rest. I will bring you something.” Without waiting for a response, she disappeared into the kitchen. He smiled at this second display of caring. He must really look terrible to have two separate individuals order him to rest.
He was glad for Raahi’s diversion to the kitchen so that he could put his thoughts in order. He leaned back and closed his eyes, but his mind wouldn’t quiet. How could he ask questions when he didn’t know what to ask?
But he couldn’t sit on the couch either. Maybe working would help him focus. If he got lucky, he would find the prince in a compromising situation and that would give him an opening for a conversation with Raahi.
He flipped through the feeds until he found the prince, then input his security code so that all the feeds of the prince would come straight to this console and not routed through the palace as Ginette had set up. Right now, the council sessions were wrapping up, so Jonah figured he could get a quick bite before it was over.
“He looks so old,” came a soft voice at his ear, startling him out of his musings. At first, he thought Raahi was talking about the prince, but a quick glance at her face showed that her eyes were on the king sitting next to him. Jonah took control of the camera and zoomed in on the king. Yes, he did look old, worn down, but he was listening intently to the councilman who was currently speaking. Jonah risked a glance again to see Raahi’s reaction, but she became aware of his inspection and straightened up, brandishing the tray she was holding.
“Protein and plenty of carbohydrates. Exactly what you need, I think.” She turned away and headed for the couch, placing the tray on the table in front of her and filling a plate. Jonah readjusted the camera and went to sit beside her. She thrust the full plate into his hands and started on another, presumably for herself.
“Thank you,” he said, and the smell of the food kept him from any other comments. He ate ravenously and soon reduced the huge tray to the inedible parts. Raahi had only sampled the food, and when he realized just how much he had eaten, he reluctantly admitted that he was pushing himself too hard. He smiled at Raahi.
“I really needed that, and I appreciate it.”
She smiled back. “It feels nice to take care of somebody again.” They locked eyes and Jonah felt the pull between them. But there was also a barrier that needed to be broached.
“I’m sorry I lied about working in the palace,” said Jonah, not sure why exactly he started there, but it seemed to break the ice.
“It’s okay. I understand why you did,” she replied.
“No, I don’t think you do.” Without realizing quite what he was doing and why, he continued. “I don’t want to scare you but…” he pulled back his shirt to show his bonding tattoo. “My true name is Sundeep Barad.”
She looked away with a blush, and he knew she recognized it.
“I am sorry I kept that from you too, but very few know. It wouldn’t do to advertise who I was with a new heir around.” He gave a laugh and surprised himself with how bitter he sounded. This situation was affecting him in many more ways than he realized.
“I suspected that’s who you were. When you talked about scrambling tech and touched the implant,” her own hand tapped her collar bone in a similar fashion. “I figured it out.”
“Then why didn’t you…why aren’t…who…” He struggled with exactly what he wanted to ask but different words came out. “Why did you leave?”
She looked straight into his eyes, and Jonah again felt a connection, a pull. His heart began to have hope that their bond was reacting to each other’s presence. She had to be the princess. But her next words dashed his hopes.
“I left because I am not who you want me to be. I am not the princess. Maya is dead.”
Chapter Fifty-five
The tenuous connection Jonah felt with Raahi wasn’t quite broken, but it did lessen with her statement.
“But you are the companion.”
Raahi’s eyes flickered briefly with some emotion he couldn’t read, but she nodded. “How did you know?”
“Well, it began with a feeling, then I noticed videos were distorted with every camera except the ones that went through the palace. I figured that to be the same tech that I had, but the final proof…” Here he paused, but only briefly. “Again, something I didn’t tell you, but I am promising that there will be no more deception.” He took a deep breath. “That woman who found you, she and her crew have been investigating your disappearance. They confirmed my suspicions that you were one of the missing girls but didn’t know which one.” He smiled at her, grateful it was out in the open, but her reaction was not what he expected.
“I see.” Then she looked away and began to gather the dishes, body stiff, the vague feelings between them gone.
“Wait,” Jonah followed her into the kitchen and watched her toss the dishes into the sink. “I didn’t mean to upset—”
“Thank you for telling me the truth,” she said in a formal tone. “And now you know that the prize you sought is never to be found. You are left with the unneeded remnants. Sorry to disappoint you. You may inform those searching that they can stop.” She pushed past him, but he put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.
“That’s not it, I mean, you’re not... I’m not…” He didn’t know what to say. Was he disappointed? Yes, he felt that, but there was more. He couldn’t focus. So much had happened. Now she was looking at his hand on her shoulder like she wanted to forcibly remove it.
He dropped his hand and said the first thing that came into his head.
“Please, don’t go.” Though she continued to stare, she didn’t make a move to leave and he could swear her eyes softened. He tried another tactic.
“Raahi, or should I call you Lara?”
Her eyes widened, and she looked away but didn’t move.
“Raahi, please, Lara died when Maya did.”
Jonah closed his eyes briefly at the pain in her voice. He wanted to reach out again but didn’t dare. “At least come to the palace, tell Nirav what happened to his daughter.”
Raahi’s head whipped around and now her eyes, snapping with anger, bored into him.
“What good would that do? Tell the king how we were taken, alt
ered, abused, trained, and sold. How I couldn’t protect her from the horrible things done to us by our various owners. How when we finally escaped we couldn’t send a message because we knew the slavers would be waiting for that and immediately find us. How we traveled to several planets, selling ourselves to make our way home. How, when we finally managed to scrape enough together to buy new identities and tickets home, a strange, untreatable fungal infection in her lungs caused her to gasp out her last breaths only two days before our flight. And how,” her voice caught as Jonah stood transfixed, her face inches from his. “How I had to sell her ticket to bury her, not even able to afford the cost to bring her home.” One tear from each eye slid down her cheek, but she ignored them as she crossed her arms, took a step back and lifted her chin again.
“So, tell me, Bethrothed. How would that help at all? It’s better that Nirav believes his daughter to be alive somewhere, perhaps having an adventure, too busy to come home.” Her voice and eyes became distant again.
Jonah stood there, aching to take her into his arms and tell her everything would be all right, but he knew she wouldn’t accept the comfort. Because it wasn’t all right. What could he say?
“Please,” he said, voice rough with the attempt to suppress emotions. “I am truly sorry. I don’t…I just…I’m sorry.”
She softened again, but only slightly. “Thank you.” She looked at him a moment longer, then turned toward the door again.
“Raahi, wait.”
She paused back still to him.
“Stay. Please. We need to talk.”
She turned back to face him but still said nothing. He felt the tension rise and he hurried to get words out before she changed her mind.
“Ok, well, then I will talk. Bear with me as I am sure I am going to be unclear or say something wrong or…” He cut himself off as she crossed her arms again.
“Ugh! I know I am not making sense.” He briefly put his fingertips to his temples, then riveted his gaze on the wall instead of Raahi.
