Beyond Orion

by Laura D. Bastian

  Marcus smiled at me. “You know exactly what is on my schedule. You planned it.”

  “I didn’t plan everything. You have hours of free time.” I opened the door and the guards surrounded us as we moved toward the Grand Council room.

  Marcus shook his head, but I could see the crinkle of a smile in the corner of his eye. “Hours, huh.” He started to tick off his appointments to the minute. The more he spoke, the more I realized I had assigned him a lot. I stopped walking, throwing the guards into a state of minor panic. They scanned the area, looking for what could have possibly startled me enough to stop.

  I tried to ignore them as I turned to face Marcus. I’m sorry, Marcus. I have no right to do this for you. First I gave him too little, now I’d given him too much. Where was the balance?

  He blinked. I’m not upset about it. I don’t mind having you instruct me on the intricacies of ruling Rommader. In fact, if I were to do this on my own, I would no doubt have made too many mistakes for the people to continue supporting me. And although the council promised they would walk me through everything, I much prefer to have you as my teacher. They never agree enough to come to any consensus.

  I smiled at Marcus, feeling comfort at his words. He appreciated what I was doing, but I vowed to give him more authority. I knew he was capable. I wanted him to feel the pleasure of knowing he was doing it on his own. The more I watched him, the more I realized he deferred to me. He allowed my opinions to hold sway over his. He never contradicted me and always brought the attention of the people to what a fine job I was doing. So much different than what I had expected when I first learned he was the new king.

  If he wasn’t careful, the people would start to wonder why they voted him in. I wanted my throne. I wanted them to accept me and truly see me as their queen, but not at the expense of having Marcus be thought of as a pawn to the queen. He needed to step up and be seen as the true leader he was.

  Marcus raised his eyebrow at me and I realized we hadn’t moved. The guards still watched, waiting for my command. I turned to walk and they all followed. As soon as our meeting with the Grand Council was over, I’d take Marcus back to the office and we would rearrange his schedule. I just had to make sure I did it in a way that wouldn’t make him think I was dumping too much on him, or taking too much away. Being responsible for a person was almost more stressful than being responsible for a nation.

  Chapter Seventeen

  A Picnic

  Marcus returned from the latest project on his revised schedule and sat back on his couch, closing his eyes with a sigh of relief.

  “I’m beat. Let’s not work anymore today.” He looked out the window to the evening shadows spreading across the city below. After the banquet last night, the visiting dignitaries were all taking a day off from their politics, so we didn’t even have dinner planned with any of them. I had been planning to work till bedtime, but the idea of quitting for the day was appealing.

  I tucked my pen in the file and closed the folder. “Wouldn’t that be lovely.”

  “I’m serious. We should take a break. Do something that isn’t on the schedule.” He sat up and leaned forward.

  The hope in his eyes made me want to give in. To throw off the role of queen and just be me. Whether he saw my moment of weakness, or he just really wanted to take a break, I didn’t know, but he joined me by the desk and offered me his hand.

  “Come with me?”

  I hesitated just a moment before placing my hand in his. The smile he gave me as my fingers touched his palm was reward enough.

  “I know just the place.”

  Marcus kept hold of my hand as we left the office. The guards surrounded us as usual, but Marcus didn’t seem to notice them anymore. He led me to the kitchen and helped me sit in a chair.

  “Hang on a moment.” He winked at me and turned to the kitchen staff. “I know my way around here pretty good. Any issues with me gathering some stuff?”

  The head cook shook her head and smiled indulgently. I wondered how many times he’d been to the kitchen. The smells in the room reminded me I hadn’t eaten since lunch, and my stomach rumbled in protest at being ignored for so long.

  Marcus looked at me with one eyebrow raised then turned to the cupboards. He gathered a variety of items: bread, crackers, drinks, cold meats, cheeses, fruits, and some dessert. He tucked them neatly into a wicker basket he pulled from a shelf and hooked the handle on the crook of his elbow. He offered me the other arm and I joined him eagerly.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “Just come with me.”

  “The guards won’t allow us out of the palace grounds,” I said, eyeing the soldiers around us. None of them commented or refuted me.

  “We aren’t leaving the palace.” Marcus led me out of the kitchen and down a side hallway. We reached an elevator and Marcus placed his hand against the panel. The elevator door opened revealing a spacious box with enough room for us and our four guards.

  The four soldiers placed themselves at the door as it closed, and Marcus reached around them to press the button labeled RG.

  When the elevator slowed, the guards stood ready as the door opened. One stepped out, weapon drawn and apparently finding all well, allowed the rest of us out.

  I gasped in surprise at the garden before me. “What is this?”

  “The Rooftop Garden,” Marcus said. “Haven’t you been here before?”

  I shook my head. “No, my garden was on the grounds on the west side. It had been my mother’s, and Father never came to it with me after she died. I haven’t had much time to go work in it since returning.”

  Marcus took my hand as he led me to a small bench with a little glass topped table to the side. “This is where they grow many of the flowers used to decorate the palace. I’m surprised you haven’t been here before.”

  “I wish I would have come. It’s beautiful.”

  Marcus nodded. “That it is.” He placed the basket on the table as I sat down on the bench under a shady tree. He spoke softly to the guards, and they nodded at whatever he told them. They backed up a little and gave us some privacy. Marcus opened the basket and pulled out the items, one by one, offering me a fruit as he prepared some sandwiches.

  I took a bite of the juicy nectarine, and had to catch the liquid running down my chin with my hand. Marcus offered me his handkerchief without a word and I smiled in thanks. He quietly set out our meal and joined me on the bench, leaning back and taking in the view.

  “I don’t know how you do it,” Marcus said. “Every day without a break. I would go mad.”

  “I might have done. This is a wonderful diversion. Thank you.”

  Marcus smiled and handed me a cracker he’d smeared with cheese. I let the creaminess of it melt on my tongue for a moment. “This is my favorite spread.”

  “Mine too,” Marcus said. We ate in silence until most of the food was gone. My stomach ached with fullness, but I regretted nothing. I loved food and it was hard to be reasonable in how much I ate. I was fortunate to be blessed with an active metabolism. As the breeze shifted, the smell of moist air, full of the scents of the greenery around me, reminded me of Holly’s parents’ nursery on Earth.

  Memories of all the fun food there made me sigh. Marcus chuckled and I turned to him.

  “What?”

  “You are one of a kind, Amira.”

  “As are you, Marcus,” I said. “Thank you. I appreciate all you’ve done for Rommader.”

  He nodded as if it was only natural.

  “I’m sorry my absence from here has caused you so much change. Not many men would have come to Rommader’s aid like you’ve done.”

  “I think most people would have done what they could to ensure Rommader’s success.”

  “True, but none of them would have been as capable as you.” I squeezed his hand then placed my hands on my lap, not wanting him to know how much I wanted him to take it back in his and hold it again.

  I turned my eyes to the dar
kening sky. A few of the brighter stars had begun to sparkle through the atmosphere. I searched for the quadrant of sky that would indicate where Earth was. When I recognized a few of the star patterns, I followed the line that would lead me to Earth. I couldn’t feel its location like I had with Rommader while I was on Earth. I wondered if Jai could still feel the pull. Would it plague him his entire life there?

  “Did you enjoy your visit to Earth?” Marcus asked.

  I tore my eyes away from the stars that hid Earth’s galaxy. “I did. It was a wonderful experience, one I wouldn’t trade for anything.” I looked at the stars again. “Did you know they had stories about the patterns in the stars? About heroes saving princesses, shepherds herding the stars through the sky, queens sacrificing themselves for the good of their people, water bearers who brought rain, messengers from mythical gods, and rams that saved children from wicked stepmothers.” I remembered the many nights Holly had spent telling us of all the constellations and the stories behind them.

  “Really?” Marcus said. “What an odd thing to do. Stories about the stars, huh.”

  “I thought it was rather fascinating.” I pointed to a group of stars that had always reminded me of a flower. “See, that one there could be a flower, and this young girl who loved her garden so much, when she died, she became a flower to look down on the garden she’d cared for her entire life.” My voice trailed off and my face flushed. I’d revealed more of my longing for my mother than I’d meant to.

  Marcus took my hand in his and squeezed. “That would be a fun story to think of every time you see that pattern. How about that one a hand’s width away? The one that looks like a boot? It could be about a man who went on a long journey, miles and miles and miles until his boots wore out and he left them there and continued on foot.”

  We took turns pointing out different patterns in the sky, making up the stories that would go with them until late into the night. As a falling star shot across the heavens, I made a wish. Against rational thought, I wished to be able to go back in time and be more reasonable when I first learned I was wed to the man next to me.

  Chapter Eighteen

  A Fire

  After a few days, we had finally gotten our schedules to a place where I felt the distribution of responsibilities was fair and reasonable. My mood had lightened considerably now that I wasn’t overwhelmed with everything. I wondered how my father had managed to rule so effectively on his own without my mother to assist. Of course, he did have aides and assistants.

  Shander had been immensely helpful to my father at first, but eventually turned against him. So far, Marcus had done nothing to indicate I had to worry about him, but I hadn’t known him long enough to be sure. I would have to be aware of everything, but I prayed he would prove loyal to me and Rommader.

  We’d been so busy with the visiting dignitaries, most of Marcus’s and my time was spent building relations between our planets. I’d had second thoughts about taking Marcus to meet with the scientists to discuss the new Traveling formula and had sent Delilah to contact them. She knew more about the niamon and whether the ore in the mountains would be pure enough to use. Until she and the scientists could discover if it was even a true possibility, I’d wait to meet with them to discuss the formula.

  I looked at Marcus’s empty couch, wondering if he was having luck with the Oshan party. Lord Mercan hadn’t been talkative at the banquet, but in his formal meetings with Marcus, he went on and on with very little prompting. I was relieved Marcus had volunteered to work with Oshan.

  Marcus burst through the door of the office with two guards close behind him. He rushed to me, grabbed me by the arm and dragged me out of the room and down the hall. “Where are we going?” I demanded, not understanding this behavior at all.

  “We’ve got to hide you. Get to the safe house.”

  “Why?”

  Marcus glanced at me as if wondering how much to say. We were joined by three more guards who flanked us and started issuing commands to each other.

  Marcus, what is happening? Answer me!

  Marcus shook his head and I pulled on his arm. I wanted to know what was going on.

  Tell me this instant!

  Marcus sighed but didn’t slow at all. Someone sent a tip to Ryad that you were in danger. That you should be removed from the palace immediately.

  Who? What kind of danger?

  Marcus shook his head. I don’t know yet. I was sent to take you somewhere safe. We will remain hidden.

  “I can’t hide!” I shouted, and realized at once it hadn’t been telepathically.

  “You will hide. There will be no argument about it now.” Marcus spit out between clenched teeth. Any threat against the royal family must be taken seriously. Both of us are being moved to a safe location.

  I yanked on his arm, forcing him to stop. The guards seemed ill at ease and scanned the area. Was I in immediate danger? I did a quick look around as well, knowing we were in one of the safest areas of the palace. I had to have a few minutes at least.

  I took a slow breath, trying to calm myself so I could plead my case to Marcus. The last time I ran and hid, everything went wrong. I will not leave this planet. And I will not stay hidden long. I will only go with you now if you promise it won’t be for long. And that I will be kept up to date on everything happening.

  He threw his head back in frustration. I cannot promise you any such thing. Don’t be stubborn, let’s get you safe.

  No, I insisted. I will not be bullied or manipulated into anything again. I want to know everything about this. I followed someone else’s instruction before. It turned out worse than if I’d stayed. Instead of being able to find a way to solve my problems, I was made to run from them. And now that I’m back, I find myself in the same type of arranged marriage I was running from.

  Marcus flinched as if I’d hit him. I realized what I’d said and knew I couldn't take it back. Though he was nothing like Shander would have been, it was still not my choice to marry him. I hate being a pawn in the maneuvering of others. I will not stand for it.

  Marcus’s lips turned down into a frown and he looked at my face, not meeting my eyes. The tone of his voice in my head proved he was upset. Your Majesty, I swear on my oath bond you will be involved in every major decision. You will not be hidden or sent anywhere against your will.

  I felt the power of those words seep into my soul, proving the oath bond was fully active.

  However, Highness, if you don’t get your stubborn butt into the safe house, you’ll be dead and no one will have to deal with your tantrums.

  My mouth dropped open in shock at his callous words, but I clamped it shut and allowed him to drag me to wherever they thought would be the safe place for me. Marcus didn’t say another word and I didn’t speak either. I had torn a big rift in our relationship and though I wanted to apologize, I knew I couldn’t. At least not yet. I would not be bullied.

  The three guards stationed themselves in various locations around us. Marcus placed his hand against the pane of glass protecting a picture near the end of a hallway. I blinked in surprise when a pale blue light scanned his handprint and the wall opened up.

  Why did I not know this was in my palace?

  You aren’t the only ruler here. And you’ve been gone. Marcus snapped. There are a lot of things you are too busy to notice.

  I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at Marcus, but he ignored me and looked at the guards.

  The guard to Marcus’s right slipped in first and then, apparently finding all well, motioned us to follow. Inside, the passageway walls were lit by thin strips of lights, spaced a few feet apart. The cold metal walls felt intimidating and I wondered when this had been built. I didn’t know anything of this. Had my father made it? Was this something Ryad and Marcus had done? Where did it lead?

  I followed the guards as they led the way through the narrow hallway. At the far end, Marcus touched his hand to a glass screen and the same blue light scanned his hand. An elevator
opened up and I stepped inside. We descended for a few moments, then the door opened into a large room.

  I stepped through when the guard motioned me forward. The room was almost as large as my apartments. There was a gleaming kitchen with a refrigerator, stove and oven, sink and dishwasher, cupboards and cabinets. To the right of that was a table with room for six. An open door showed a glimpse of a bedroom, and another door proved to be the bathroom.

  I turned to Marcus and raised my eyebrow. He shrugged but didn’t speak.

  “How long am I to remain here?”

  Marcus pulled out a tablet and studied it for a moment. “At least for today. There is a computer in the office right off your room. You can continue to work on anything from there. We just need to be sure no one can find your person.”

  I pressed my communicator on my wrist. “Ryad. I must speak with you.” I waited for his response and was surprised to see the connection die. “You did not just block me.” I pressed the button again only to affirm my suspicions. I whirled around. “Where is Ryad?” I demanded.

  “I cannot say.” Marcus didn’t meet my eyes.

  I pressed my lips together, not willing to get into another argument with him. I would not throw a tantrum. I would remain in control, even though I wanted to rip his tablet out of his hands and send a scathing message to Ryad.

  “I expect to be briefed on the progress every hour. Now if you will excuse me, I will get back to work.” I glided into my room and found the side office to be similar to my father’s. I couldn’t tell for sure, but given the place we entered the hidden hallway, I guessed my location in the palace to be under the west wing, most likely underground at least three stories. There were no windows in any of the rooms I had seen. Paintings depicted scenes of nature and wide open spaces, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I was in something like a dungeon.