by T. J. Quinn
But waiting when all you want is to make things happen, wasn’t that easy. By the time his friends arrived, he was ready to climb the walls of the cave.
“We brought you food. Are you hungry?” Krad announced as they entered the cave carrying a few bags.
“I’m starving. Do you have news from my dear uncle?” he asked, opening a paper bag from the bakery next to his house, pulling out a roast beef sandwich.
“Yes, in fact, we do. He’s getting close, and we know he has received enraging news from the blue planet,” Muirk informed him with a smirk.
“Who the hell is your spy? How can you know so much about Jharb’s moves?” Zorban asked, astonished.
Krad gave him a self-deprecating smile. “His daughter and personal assistant. He doesn’t go anywhere without her,” he explained.
“And how did you manage to convince her to betray her father?” He wasn’t very fond of his cousins, but some of them had been wise enough to put distance from their father and his ambitions. He had never thought one of them would dare to spy on him.
“We met last sun rotation. She’s Jharb’s youngest daughter, and she was starting to realize all she had heard about her father was true,” Krad explained. “When we realized we were soul mates, she asked me for some time before we announce our bond. She was sure her father was going to hate it, and she was afraid of what he could do.”
“How did she go from that to becoming a spy?” Zorban asked, still in shock.
“She started digging on her father’s activities and realized she could do a lot more for our people staying with her father than showing her contempt for his actions,” Krad replied. “I have to admit I wasn’t thrilled with the idea. I don’t trust Jharb, and in fact, I believe he would kill Iannis if he knew what she is doing.”
“We have to put an end to this,” Zorban roared. “My uncle’s delusions have gone too far.”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
They spent the rest of the day exploring the area, making sure Jharb and his men couldn’t get there unnoticed and surprise them. After that, they just sat and waited.
But after three days, Zorban was about to lose his temper. “Where are they? Why haven’t they come after me? I thought you said that was the reason Jharb was here,” he ranted, unable to contain his impatience.
“What else could he be here for?” Krad asked.
“Then why hasn’t he come?”
“I’m trying to contact Iannis to find out, but she hasn’t replied to any of my messages.” Krad’s tone revealed his concern.
“Perhaps, we should go after them.”
“We have no idea where they are,” Muirk pointed out.
“Then, we’ll hunt them down. Thalian pods might be untraceable for the people on this planet, but not for us,” Zorban said, looking at Kort. “Get back to the ship and start tracking them. I want to know where Jharb is and what he is doing here.”
But before he could move, a buzz announced the arrival of a message. It was Iannis. “On the way, but he’s not alone.”
“What do you think she’s talking about?” Zorban asked Krad, with a deep frown.
“I have no idea.” He texted her back, but they got no reply.
“Get to your positions and let’s get this show on the road,” Zorban said, with a somber tone.
Zorban waited at the cave’s entrance for his uncle. He had no intention of hiding from him, not anymore. Here, on this planet, he would finally have the freedom to confront him and end this once and for all.
It didn’t take them long for Jharb to get to Zorban’s location. He saw Jharb’s vessel landed in the middle of the clearing and watched his uncle come out of the ship, followed by four of his men.
Zorban was sure more men were hiding inside, but he wasn’t worried about them. Jharb’s daughter wasn’t anywhere to be seen.
With a cold smirk, he walked halfway to meet his uncle and waited for him to come closer.
“Zorban… what a surprise. I was sure I would have to force you out from one of these caves. As we all know, courage has never been one of your strengths,” Jharb mocked him, as soon as he was at ear’s distance.
“So, you say, Jharb. What do I owe the pleasure of your visit?” he asked, in a cold tone, controlling his urge to punch the other man until no breath came from him.
“I decided it was time we finished this… little war going on between us,” Jharb said, with a cruel grin.
Zorban raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest. “And how exactly do you propose to do that?”
“Well, this can only end in two ways: you either sign over your rights to the throne to me, or I kill you, the way I should have done when you were a baby,” Jharb announced, with such impudence that even the men with him flinched.
Most of them believed his claim to the throne, convinced Jharb would be a better king, especially since Zorban had been unable to find his soul mate. But, apparently, they weren’t so sure about the idea of killing the crown prince.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Jharb? How do you think people would receive you in Thalia if word gets out that you killed me?” he asked, pointing out the flaws of his uncle’s plan.
“That’s the beauty of this plan,” he let out a creepy laugh. “No one will ever know. This is one of the reasons I wanted you off of Thalia. Killing you there would have been a huge mistake, but here, on a small planet no one has ever heard of, thousands of light years away from Thalia, no one will know anything,” he assured him. “In fact, they won’t even know I was here.”
“Do you trust your men that much, Jharb? You should know that when you become a traitor, honor is killed in the process,” Zorban said in a mocking tone. “How are you going to make sure they don’t betray you?”
His uncle’s face was a poem. The man was furious, but behind that fury, Zorban was able to see a cold determination that made him sure he would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. …Even if it meant annihilating the crew that was traveling with him, to make sure his deeds went unpunished.
“My men are loyal to me,” he snarled in a cold tone.
“Of course, they are,” Zorban mocked him. “I believe we’ve finished talking. I will never sign over my rights to the throne to you.”
His uncle let out a loud laugh. “I knew you would be fool enough to try and stop me. That’s why I came prepared,” he said, with a cruel satisfaction as he signaled one of his men. “I brought someone that I’m sure will be able to make you change your mind.”
With a frown, Zorban watched one of his uncle’s men come out of his vessel dragging someone behind him.
His heart stopped for a second when he recognized Leah. Why was she here? How the hell had he found out about his feelings for her? What made him think he would be willing to betray his people to save a woman he barely knew?
Doing his best to remain still, and reveal nothing to his uncle, he waited to see where Jharb was going.
The guard dragged Leah to where Jharb was standing. She was tied up and gagged he could tell she didn’t understand what was going on. She was scared, but her natural courage was making her remain calm. Zorban’s heart ached, and he wasn’t sure how he was going to react if Jharb threatened to harm Leah.
“Care to explain, Jharb? What is this woman doing here?” he asked in a calm tone, unwilling to show his concern.
“Well, I decided to pick this young lady up on our way here. I thought she could be of help.”
Leah struggled with her shackles trying to understand what the hell was going on around her. She had tried to freeze the cuffs she had on, but for some reason, the material they were made of wouldn’t freeze, and she had been unable to free herself.
When she first had seen the men in front of her house, she had thought they were some kind of government officers but their strange clothes and the way they acted, rapidly led her to consider something else. Their look also puzzled her. All the men had white hair, though they all looked youn
g, probably in their mid-thirties.
“Are you the female that goes by the name of Leah?” the older man asked coolly.
“Yes, I am. What can I do for you?” she asked, with a frown, finding his way of expressing himself weird.
“My nephew misses you, and he has asked me to take you to him,” he explained, with a clear mocking tone.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Her frown became even deeper. Something was wrong, really wrong, but she had no idea what that was. “And why isn’t your nephew here himself, whoever he is?” she asked, taking a cautious step back.
“Is it possible you have forgotten him so soon? Zorban will be very disappointed,” the man said, with a sardonic grin that sent shivers down her spine.
She didn’t like this man. If he was really Zorban’s uncle, why was he here and not Zorban? Could it be possible Zorban was hurt or in danger?
“Where’s Zorban? Why has he sent you here?” she asked, sure she shouldn’t trust this man.
“Let’s say… he’s a bit busy… but still, he would love to see you again,” the man assured her.
“Well, you can tell him I’ll still be here when he’s not… that busy. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do,” she replied in a cold tone, turning around and heading back to her barn.
Her heart was drumming so fast, and so loud she was sure the men could hear it. For a moment, she believed they would allow her to leave, but only seconds later, her hopes were all killed.
Two of the men rushed to meet her and grabbed her by the arms, forcing her to face their leader. “I’m afraid you don’t have a say in this,” the man asserted. “Cuff her and gag her,” he ordered his men.
It was then when Leah decided it was time to fight for her life. She had never used her abilities to hurt anyone, but she decided this situation required desperate measures. She froze the hands holding her, sure that would make them release her, but it didn’t.
As a matter of fact, the men laughed as they pulled her hands behind her back and cuffed them. When she tried to freeze the cuffs to break them, she couldn’t, and it was then when she started to get really scared. Who the hell were these people and what did they want from her?
Before she could ask anything, they gagged her and dragged her to what looked a lot like a damn spaceship. She struggled against her captors, but they were a lot stronger than she was and she wasn’t able to free herself.
She was thrown into a cell, and they had left her house immediately. Sometime later, they landed, and a few minutes later, a man came and dragged her out. When she saw Zorban, chills of dread ran down her spine, and she prayed things would end well.
“What kind of help?” Zorban asked calmly, not even looking at her.
The older man pulled out a gun and pressed it against her temple. “I thought it might persuade you to do the right thing,” he replied, with a scornful grin.
“You’ll have to be clearer than that, uncle, since I don’t follow you,” Zorban said evenly, not falling into his uncle’s game.
“Oh, come on, Zorban, you can’t fool me. I know how much you want this woman. Are you really willing to risk her life just for a throne you’ve already abandoned?” he asked, pressing the gun harder.
Zorban had a lot of trouble controlling his rage. But he had to if he wanted to get out of this situation victorious. “What makes you think I want her? My brief relationship with her ended a few days ago. She was nothing but a flirt.”
Zorban’s words were a punch straight to Leah’s stomach. Of course, she had known she didn’t mean a thing to him, but hearing him say it out loud, had been a lot more painful than she had expected.
For a moment, Jharb was too astonished to talk. As if, Zorban’s words had surprised him beyond belief.
“You don’t know who she is,” he muttered, still astounded. “You really don’t know it…” he repeated, this time laughing. “You’ve failed even at recognizing her,” he said distastefully.
Sure, he was just ridiculing him once more, he paid him no attention. “You’re talking nonsense, uncle,” Zorban said coldly. “I’ll never sign anything and bringing this woman here only shows me how low you’re capable of going to get what you want. But this time, it won’t work.”
Enraged, Jharb hit Leah in her head and threw her to the ground, while turning his gun to point at Zorban. “I could waste my time explaining just what a big fool you are, but I’m tired of this,” he said, his anger barely in check.
.
Zorban almost lost his self-control when he saw Jharb hit Leah, but he couldn’t ruin things now. He had to stick to the plan.
“Will you sign it, yes or no?” Jharb asked.
“Of course, I won’t sign a thing,” Zorban assured him, striving to sound indifferent.
Jharb smiled and fired his gun. Though he had been expecting it, the impudence of the act amazed Zorban. Jharb was really trying to kill him.
He moved just in time to evade the shot and pulled out his gun. His men came out of their hiding places and quickly subdued Jharb’s men. Further infuriated, Jharb started shooting at Zorban nonstop, desperate to kill the one person that still stood in his way.
But Jharb wasn’t a warrior and killing Zorban wasn’t as easy as he thought, especially when his men weren’t there to back him. Zorban did his best not to shoot him back, but at some point, he was forced to do so, hitting him in his shoulder.
That seemed to make him even madder, and dropping his gun to the ground, Jharb charged against Zorban, carrying a dagger in his hand, determined to end the life of his nephew.
“This ends here. You’re not going to take what’s rightfully mine,” he yelled, lunging at Zorban and trying to kill him.
Zorban grabbed the hand holding the dagger and looked at his uncle. “You should have let me be, uncle. This time, I won’t let you win,” he assured him. “You got away with my mother’s accident, and you got away with Leena’s disappearance, but you won’t get away this time.”
“You won’t stop me… I won’t let you. I should have been the king, not your father, a weak man, with no personality,” Jharb snarled.
“Yes, my father has been weak, especially when it came to you because, despite all your misdeeds, he still treats you like family. Give up, because I will not hesitate to kill you,” he assured him, struggling to take the dagger from his uncle’s hand.
“Never!” he yelled.
It took some more wrestling but Zorban finally managed to take the weapon, and with a final blow to the old man’s jaw with the dagger handle, he stunned Jharb and pushed him off so he could get up.
His men had subdued Jharb’s men and cuffed them all. Krad had even helped Leah to a sitting position, releasing her from her ties and gag, but she was still unconscious.
“You should kill him,” Krad said, with scorn looking at Jharb.
“He’s not worth the trouble. With today’s events, I can show my father and the councils exactly the kind of man Jharb is and has always been,” Zorban said confidently.
But the moment he finished saying those words, an unexpected movement caught his eye, and he turned around to look at his uncle. The man was up and pointing his gun at him. Reacting on instinct, Zorban threw the dagger he was still holding and hit his uncle straight in the heart.
The man fired his gun before falling to the ground, hitting Zorban in his shoulder. Grabbing the dagger, with sheer disbelief in Jharb’s eyes, life slid away from him.
“Damn man!” Zorban cursed.
“He got what he deserved,” Krad said, still holding the gun he had pulled out when he saw Jharb ready to attack. Zorban had been faster.
Zorban nodded with a somber expression and strode to where Leah was lying, kneeling next to her and picking up her hand in his. “Leah… can you hear me?” he asked her, with a deep frown.
She was paler than usual, and there was some blood coming out of her wound.
“That’s a nasty bump. Why don’t you take her to Jharb
’s vessel? Iannis can help her there,” Krad suggested.
“She’s in the vessel?” Zorban asked, surprised.
“Yes, her father brought her here with them. He was certain of his victory,” Krad explained.
“Have you cleared the whole place? The last thing I need is a nasty surprise.”
“All of Jharb’s men are imprisoned. Muirk is already taking them to one of the vessel cells,” his man replied.
Zorban picked Leah up in his arms. “Please, take care of my uncle’s body. His family will demand to see it,” Zorban ordered, scowling.
Krad nodded and went to do as ordered while Zorban headed to the vessel.
Once inside, Iannis welcomed him, with a faint smile. Zorban could see she had been crying.
From all his cousins, Iannis had been the closest to him. She loved to visit Queen Mayala, and not even her father’s threats had stopped her from visiting her, so she had always been a constant presence in Zorban’s life.
“Iannis…” he started saying, not sure what he could actually say to ease her pain. Despite his flaws, Jharb had been her father, and nothing could really erase that bond.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“No, Zorban, don’t say anything. I saw everything, and I know you tried to spare his life when you didn’t have to,” Iannis interrupted him. “We both know this had to end this way. It was the only way to bring peace to our planet.”
Zorban nodded, pulling Leah closer to him. “Thank you for understanding.”
She sighed. “Your friend is hurt, let’s take her to the infirmary,” she said, changing the topic.
She guided him down the hallway and a few moments later, he was laying Leah on an examination table, standing right next to her.
Iannis pulled out a scanner and checked her head, making sure the wound wasn’t as severe as it looked. Fortunately, it was just a scratch, and she quickly cleaned the wound. “She will be fine.”
“Thank you.”
“All done, Zorban,” Krad announced entering the room and wrapping his arms around Iannis’ waist. With her father gone, they were free to declare their mating.
