“What? No one mentioned that as a possibility.” How was this happening? How were we going from the most amazing times of my life to worst? Well, not the worst in my life. That was when I saw Joseph’s dead body. But this was still terrifying.
“Run the statistics,” Rachel instructed Amsi.
“Are you asking Amsi to run statistics on whether they are more likely to try to run us over or board? Aren’t you the one who just said that since we are in a North Star vessel we have protection?”
“Statistics are still helpful.” Rachel knelt down beside the robot.
Amsi beeped. “50-50 odds.”
“What are you using to determine those odds?” I was no statistician, but you had to have a basis to work from.
Amsi beeped again. “We don’t have time for a breakdown.”
There was a large crashing sound, and I pulled Rachel to my side. No matter what we were about to face, we were facing it together.
Part 3
Caspian
5 Caspian
I’d never been one to own up to mistakes. There was always someone else to blame. Someone else to take the fall. But not this time. This time the fault was all mine. Sure my father was the one who told me the lies. He pushed my hand. Telton took Rachel from Earth. But I was responsible for her. I should have stepped in. And I would die protecting her if that’s what it took.
“You are such an idiot, brother.” Gardenia walked around me in a circle in the way an animal circled its prey. I’d been surprised when the leader of the ship had been revealed. I’d known I was surrendering to an Andrelexa vessel, but I’d never expected to come face-to-face with my sister. Generally, Gardenia stayed out of our father’s dealings.
“I am. I should never have allowed Rachel to have been treated so horrendously.” And I would never forgive myself. Once I accepted the blame, it was impossible to stop the spiral. I analyzed every word my father had uttered about Rachel. Every decision made.
“You should never have chased her down, and you most certainly shouldn’t have turned yourself over. The stuff about Rachel is beside the point.” Gardenia swatted at the air as if to brush away my concerns.
“She deserved better.” So much better. Rachel deserved everything.
“What does her deservingness have to do with anything? She’d be dead or close to the end of her life if she’d remained on Earth. Now she has a future.” Gardenia popped a small capsule onto her tongue. Another modifier. I hated those things even though I’d never needed to take them myself.
“And right now it looks like that future will be with someone else.” My anger knew no bounds. I didn’t get it. Sure she was mad, but how could she have possibly developed feelings for another so quickly?
“Maybe that’s a good thing.”
Rage surged through me. A good thing? Had my sister completely lost her mind? “That can never be a good thing.”
“So you think you should have let her go, yet you can’t let her go?” Gardenia laughed. “You are always so full of contradictions, brother.”
“As if you aren’t?”
“Tell me about the girl.” Gardenia leaned back against a console.
“What girl?”
“The girl.” She crossed her arms. “The one I’ve heard is with Kelby.”
“I think her name is Angie.” I’d been far more worried about other things when I’d met her. “I didn’t meet her for long.”
“You met another Earth girl, yet you barely paid attention?” Gardenia raised an eyebrow.
“Just because I love one Earthling does not mean I love them all.”
“What does she want with Kelby?” She ran a hand above the screen, moving a series of images. They were of planets I couldn’t identify unless I moved closer. I couldn’t move closer because I was bound to a metal anchor.
“Nothing that I know of. She wants to protect her brother from best I can tell.” There’d been nothing sinister in the way she presented herself. Only worry.
“I know that feeling,” Gardenia said in an offhanded way.
“Oh? You want to protect me?” I lifted the heavy chains. After a lifetime of freedom, I’d managed to get bound twice in one day.
“I don’t like to see you hurt. Or weak.”
“Then help me.” At the moment she was the only one holding me back.
“What is it that you think I’m doing?”
“Taking me back to Father.” I needed to face him, but I wanted to do it on my own terms. It’s why I’d surrendered in the first place.
“No.” Gardenia gasped. “For what? So he can kill me?”
“Father wouldn’t kill you.”
“Don’t pretend to understand things you’ll never understand.”
“Why wouldn’t you take me back?” I didn’t buy her excuse for a second.
“Because I have plans. Big plans. And they involve taking our father out of power.” Her hands balled into fists at her sides.
“Big plans?”
“Yes. Although you probably can’t imagine that. All you ever focus on is Rachel. You want the comfort she provides you. I get that. But that doesn’t mean you won’t have to put in work.”
“Put in work? I’d do anything to right things. To protect Rachel.”
She started to circle me again. “What if I can get Rachel back for you safe and sound? What would you do?”
“You know I’d do anything for her, and I’d do anything to truly get her back. Not forced.”
“Rachel doesn’t know what she wants. That’s why she left so recklessly in the first place.”
“Yet you know what you want?” I’d never seen Gardenia particularly devoted to anything. I had no clue what she had up her sleeves.
“I’ve always known what I wanted. That’s one thing we have in common.”
“So when are you going to unbind me? Fill me in.” There was something different about Gardenia. A strength, yet something else. Something that had me on edge.
“Unbind you?” She laughed. “As if my attempt to keep you chained would keep you in?”
“I need you to help me.” Sure I could break the chains, but not without fully exhausting myself. I hadn’t slept in days, and I was running on fumes.
“Father is ready to kill Kelby, you know. Kill him.”
“I’m not surprised. Kelby went behind his back.” Part of me still couldn’t believe Kelby had hidden his true motivations for so long.
“And he’d kill me too.”
“Yes. You already said that. He’d also kill me.”
She shook her head. “No. He can’t kill you. He needs you to take over.”
“Why? He can rule until his death.” And he would if given the choice. I understood that all his promises had been lies.
“Yes, but he won’t want to die without ensuring Andrelexa stays in our family’s hands.”
“Can’t you rule just as easy as me?”
She laughed. “Oh yes? Father? Changing the norms after how many eons? But that’s why we are here.”
“Oh?” Was I finally getting somewhere? “You have interest in the throne? Why haven’t you ever voiced it before?”
“Voiced it? Why? So Father would banish me or worse? You were always the heir. You know that. It has always been about you.”
“I couldn’t care less about the throne. I only want Rachel safe.”
“Yes. Yes. I know.” She rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to convince me. So I have a deal to strike with you.”
“What kind of deal?”
“I get you Rachel back safe and sound. I get you access to Father so we can get rid of him. And in return you make me the new Emperor.”
“Why do you need me to make you the Emperor?” I was too exhausted to play games.
“Because If the throne doesn’t go to you it goes to Kelby. Then it would move on to distant cousins. Women are never given the role. But you can change all that once you take over. You can change everything.”
“You w
ant me to take the position, abdicate, issue a proclamation, and make you the successor?”
“Exactly. I’m impressed you figured that out so quick.”
“You act as though I’m not of intelligence.”
“Oh. Not at all. You are very intelligent when you aren’t focused on your obsession.”
“Let’s say I agree to this, what’s the plan? You have to have a plan. Otherwise you wouldn’t be here.”
“First of all, we can’t let Father know I have you.”
“Why not?” I wasn’t following her logic.
“Because it’s better if his attention is directed elsewhere.”
“Why? We want his attention far away from Rachel. Why not on us?”
Gardenia groaned. “Could you think of anyone else but Rachel for one second?”
“Not really.” I was past the point of having the capacity to lie.
Gardenia laughed. “Wow. Honesty. Real honesty. But we have to keep all our cards close to our chest.”
“Where does he think you are?” He would have most certainly noticed her absence. There was no question about that.
She looked back at the screen, moving around three-dimensional images of a body of water and several moons. “You don’t want to know.”
“Tell me.”
She flicked her hands and the images flew away. “Are you really in any position to demand anything of me?”
“I’m in a position to know what you’re hiding. Otherwise there’s no deal.”
She sighed. “What makes you think I’m hiding anything?”
“You said it yourself. I don’t want to know.”
“See? You don’t want to know. End of story.” She grinned.
“Gardenia. What did you tell him?”
“It’s more what I let him think.” Her grin turned into a smirk. “As if I’d tell him I was leaving?”
“Gardenia…” We had no time to waste. We needed to stop Father before he found her.
“Fine.” She crossed her arms. “He believes I was kidnapped.”
“By who?”
“By someone you ordered to kidnap me. One of your men.”
“What?” I wasn’t expecting that answer. I’d have never pulled my sister into the mess if I’d been able to avoid it.
“I told you Father wouldn’t kill you. It’s what made the most sense.”
“And why would I have sent someone to kidnap you?”
“Because you can’t stand the thought of living without me.” She laughed. “Isn’t that so?”
“I care about your well-being. There’s no reason to laugh it off.”
“Just not as much as Rachel’s.”
“That’s not fair.” I tugged on the chains. Maybe it was worth losing the energy.
“Listen. I get it. If I loved someone I’d pick their life over yours. But lucky for you, you don’t have to choose. I already told you what I want. You give me that, and we’re good.”
“And you will do the right thing if given power?” It didn’t matter yet. Right now we had to protect Rachel, but ultimately I would never hand over the reins to someone who wouldn’t do right by the universe.
“Yes. How could you doubt me?”
I narrowed my eyes. “You have interesting views on different planet inhabitants.”
“Doesn’t mean I’d hurt them.”
“True. Okay. So what’s next? How are we getting in?” I wasn’t done asking questions about her true motivations, but for now I’d play along.
“We aren’t getting in yet. First, we need to take down the Andrelexa coms.”
“Oh? And you’re prepping for that now?”
“No.” She touched her watch, and the chains around my wrist opened. “You are going to do that.”
6 Caspian
“There’s one thing you still haven’t told me.” I flexed my wrists, relieved to be free of the chains. I’d have to think long and hard about surrendering myself again. I didn’t do well being restrained.
“Oh?” Gardenia played with the bright red bangle bracelets on her wrist. They made a low clanking sound.
“Why do you care about Angie?”
“The human with Kelby?” She continued to play with the metal jewelry.
“Yes.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” She paused. When I said nothing she continued. “I’m in love with him.” She grinned.
I wrinkled my nose. “He’s our cousin.”
“And I’m joking. Of course. Not everything is about sex. But I need to make sure she isn’t part of a secret plot.”
“A secret plot to do what?” Sometimes it was impossible to know if Gardenia was joking or not.
“To make him Emperor. That would throw a wrench in my plans.” She sighed. “Can’t let that happen.”
“You don’t think he’d merely abdicate to you?” I didn’t know all the ins and outs of her relationship with Kelby, but they were close. We all grew up in the palace together. Still, that didn’t mean he’d humor her thirst for power, or trust her.
“As much as I’d like to believe our cousin understands how I’m the superior candidate for the position, I must doubt everything until I know more.” She turned toward the monitors that lined half the room. She ran her hand above one of them.
“You can stop with the conspiracy theory. The girl is just an Earthling.” Worrying needlessly would distract Gardenia from the task at hand. Angie and Kelby weren’t the immediate problem. Our father was.
“Just as Rachel is just an Earthling?” Gardenia laughed dryly. “Right. I’m of the mind that there is no such things as just an Earthling.”
“Rachel thinks she belongs with one.” I could practically taste the bitterness in my voice.
“Oh, yes. The brother of Angie. What was his name?” Gardenia turned to face me. “I’m afraid my intel hasn’t been forthcoming with all the details.”
“Who’s your intel?”
“I can’t reveal all my secrets.” She returned to playing with her bracelets. I was getting close to ripping them from her wrists so she’d stop.
“Tell me.”
“It’s not a who. It’s a what. I borrowed one of Rachel’s little robot friends.”
“Where is it?” Rachel would be furious if she found out anyone manipulated her creations.
“Somewhere in the universe. Unfortunately, I lost it in all the commotion when we apprehended you.”
“Yes, was that really necessary? Couldn’t you have revealed yourself?”
“That would have ruined your heroics. Surrendering yourself for the love of your life.” She made a kissy face. “It’s poetic. But back to the task at hand. What is the boy’s name?”
“Noah.” I closed my eyes and tried to lose some of the anger.
Gardenia laughed. “I love this new side of you, brother. Jealousy looks good on you.”
“I’m not jealous.” I clenched my jaw.
“Of course you are.” Gardenia crossed her arms. “There’s no use pretending.”
“I’m not. He’s not the right one for her.” And he never would be.
“That doesn’t mean she won’t end up with him. Besides… there’s a chance he is the right one.” She wove her hand in the air. “Just because the universe hasn’t seen this sort of thing before doesn’t mean it can’t happen.”
“Why are you purposely trying to make me angry?” I rubbed the back of my head. A dull ache had returned to the spot where Kelby had cut out the tracker.
“Because it’s fun. I like watching your crazy emotions.”
“I’m glad my pain amuses you.” I needed to have a medic take a look at my wound, but I knew that wasn’t in the cards anytime soon. There were too many more important things to do first.
“It doesn’t amuse me. It reminds me of how much is at stake.”
“My heart is at stake.” I put a hand to my chest. “I’m not sure how much more I can take.”
“Oh, please.” She let out a loud breath. “For all you know
she isn’t even the one for you.”
“She is.” She’d always been the one. Our connection couldn’t be denied. “There is no one else. There can never be anyone else.”
“Yet she finds it so easy to replace you?” Gardenia inclined her head to the side.
“She hasn’t replaced me. She’s angry. That is all.”
“Wake up. She has replaced you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get her back.”
“So how am I supposed to work on disrupting the coms? Where am I starting from?”
“Isn’t that your job?” She sighed. “Really, Caspian. And Father thinks you should be the next Emperor?”
“Let’s be honest with one another. Father doesn’t want anyone to be the next Emperor. He wants to keep power himself.” I remembered having this conversation with Kelby what felt like weeks before. But it had barely been a few days. How quickly things changed.
“Yes, but he must have a future plan. Besides, we’re going to make sure he doesn’t stay in power for long.” Her eyes twinkled.
“Which is why we need to get to work on interfering with their coms.”
“Yes. Go ahead and do that.” She made a shooing motion with her hand.
“You make it sound easy.” It most definitely wasn’t going to be easy. The Andrelexa systems were some of the strongest and most impenetrable in all the galaxies.
“It should be easy. For you.”
“When would I have had experience breaking into the Andrelexa system? I’ve always had access.”
“But they gave you hacking training. I know Father spared nothing for your education.” There was malice in her voice. I hoped it was all directed at our father and not me.
“Can I break system codes? Yes. Some. But not the kind of systems Andrelexa has. They are the best.”
“Yet you know the weaknesses.” She pulled up a fresh screen on one of the consoles. “Here you go. Now take care of it.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“No. You’ll do it.” She pushed over a seat.
I sat down and started to mess around with some basic code. It had been a long time since I’d tried to work my way into a system.
“Do you have it yet?” Gardenia leaned over me.
Starless: Half Light Page 4
