by Lisa Lace
She inserted the swabs into the device and began entering data about the marriage. I could see the photo from the priest displayed on the screen as she waited for the machine to finish processing the information. I flipped my left forearm over, running my finger across the shiny silver band about a quarter-inch thick. Rainbows played across the metal whenever the light hit it.
“It looks good on you,” Khellen whispered. He sat with his left forearm lying on his lap, facing up. The band sparkled in the light. Of course, everything looked good on him. He was so handsome that he would make a paper bag look fantastic. I imagined that he would look good wearing nothing but the band, as well.
“Hold your arm up.” His mother spoke to me as if I weren’t her daughter-in-law, but an annoying citizen she wanted to get out of her office as quickly as possible. Khellen glared at her but didn’t say anything.
I held my forearm up, and she pressed the device against my arm. It felt warm for a moment and then I felt nothing. She pulled it away, moving to Khellen to tag him as well.
I examined my arm. When I turned it to the light, I could see data about the marriage was there as well as a photo of Khellen and me at the ceremony. At the bottom, I could see a DNA signature that made the certificates impossible to forge. Looking at the license and the band next to it, I felt a heavy weight in my heart. Marriage was supposed to be forever, and we were playing with it.
“Now for the most complicated part of this operation - covering it up,” his mother said, a disgruntled look on her face. “The compound is a little overwhelming and can obscure an imprint in the skin. That means it’s difficult to remove. When the time comes, you can go to a doctor, who will use a laser and anesthetic to get it off.”
“Are you sure that no one will be able to see the certificates or the bands?” I needed to be certain.
His mother pressed her lips together and looked furious, but she managed to answer politely. “No one will see anything. This stuff isn’t cheap, you know.”
“I can pay you back,” I said quickly.
“I didn’t tell you to get my credits. We can afford it. I want you to know it’s a quality product that you don’t need to worry about. Now hold out your arm again and don’t move.”
I held still while she painted over the band first, then the certificate. It dried instantly, and my arm looked like nothing had happened today. Even though this was what I wanted, I felt a sense of loss as the proof of our wedding vanished from existence. It was all a sham, anyway. I had no right to look like his wife with these markings. I noticed a corner of the concealing patch sticking up and scraped my nail across it. It appeared to be a piece of dried skin.
“Don’t pick at it,” Khellen’s mother said sharply. “It can loosen if you tug on it hard enough, and it’s painful for you if you try to pull it off. Remember - anesthetic.”
I shuddered, haunted by a mental picture of tearing the compound off. I wondered if my flesh would come off with it.
“Okay,” I said, tucking my arm against my side to stop myself from picking at it again.
I glanced over at Khellen, whose face was expressionless as his mother painted over his band and certificate, hiding our union from everyone. Only the three of us and the priest knew what had happened.
It was turning out to be quite a marriage.
KHELLEN
I had conflicted feelings about the wedding. It had been sweet torment as I swore to love Sophie till death do us part, all the while knowing that she was only going to be married to me for a year, and only because she was helping out a friend.
When the priest told me to kiss her and seal our vows, I had been planning to give her a peck on the lips. I didn’t intend to torture myself by kissing her the way I wanted. But once my lips were on hers, I lost control of myself, pulling her close and kissing her passionately, forgetting that we weren’t alone. When I let her go, she looked dazed. At least we were physically compatible, even if we were only friends with benefits to her.
As much as I wanted to make love to Sophie, I knew it would be a rash decision. It would be painful to possess her while knowing I would have to say goodbye to her forever in a year. I knew I would have to work to keep my hands off her, but it would be worth it. I didn’t want to touch her and have a haunting memory replayed in my mind forever as she went about her life on Earth, saving her people from themselves.
When my mother finished, I stared at my bare arm, grateful that Sophie had saved me, but wondering what might have been. If she had stayed across the galaxy, I would never have fallen in love with her and had my heart disturbed. But when I studied her across the room, observing her beauty and intelligence I had to admit I was lucky. Spending the next year with her was going to be bittersweet knowing she would leave me at the end. But I would have her for that time, and she would be mine.
When she returned to Earth, at least she wouldn’t be going back there for another man. I wondered if she would remember me, a galaxy away, as she sat in her office at Single for Life.
“We’re finished,” my mother said. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Aren’t you going to enter it into the system?” I asked. “You know, the whole reason why we’re getting married in the first place?”
She shook her head and pointed to the clock. “I can’t anymore. Look.” We watched the clock go past the hour. “We timed it almost perfectly, but now it’s after hours, and it would look strange in the logs. I’m a government worker. We don’t do anything extra. If there’s any work left when the day ends, it gets pushed to tomorrow.”
“Why didn’t you do it earlier?” I asked.
“I couldn’t. I needed the numbers from the certificates. And then they needed to be covered immediately.” She nodded in Sophie’s direction. I hoped she calmed down soon. Her anxiety was contagious. “Let’s get going and we’ll talk about our options at home,” she said, pulling on her coat. “We have about eleven hours before they come to arrest you, Khellen.”
Chapter Nine
KHELLEN
“Both of you have to go to the island.” My mother made her announcement when we were all settled in the living room, each holding a cup of tea. I could have done with something stronger, but my mother’s solution to stress was always tea.
“Why would we do that?” I didn’t understand what she was thinking.
Sophie looked back and forth between the two of us, trying to follow the conversation.
“Do you have another solution, Khellen?”
I racked my brain but came up with nothing.
“It’s remote. It has a place to sleep. They won’t be able to find you tomorrow when they come looking for you. The servants will tell them what I say. You’ll be on a two-day trip to Evador.”
“They’ll figure it out.”
“Eventually. But it will take time. While they’re delayed, I’ll enter the marriage into the system, and your name will disappear from their list. They’ll assume it was a mistake or a delay. That kind of thing happens all the time. They won’t think anything of it and move on to the next poor soul.”
“It sounds risky,” Sophie said.
“Everything we’re doing is risky,” Mom answered, giving Sophie a venomous glare. “But it’s Khellen’s choice, so I’m making it as safe as I can. What else would you like me to do?”
I rose and went over to my mother, crouching down beside her and putting my hand over hers. “We understand what you’re putting on the line, Mom, and we appreciate it. We’ll go to the island. It won’t be a problem.”
She pressed her lips together, somewhat mollified.
“You’ll message me when it’s safe to come back?”
“Of course.”
“Pack some things, Sophie, and let’s go. The sooner we’ve hidden away, the better. Thanks again, Mom,” I said, kissing her on the cheek.
She hugged me. Sophie stood up and headed for her room, taking her tea with her. As soon as she was gone, my mother tugged on my sleeve and
pulled me down to face her.
“Don’t do anything stupid with her, Khellen.”
“What do you mean?” I matched her unpleasant tone.
“You know what I mean. If this is only temporary because she wants to divorce you in a year and go back to her singles club, then don’t make things more complicated.”
“What sort of complication do you mean, Mother?”
“Don’t play dumb. Just don’t knock the girl up.”
I opened my mouth in outrage, but she wasn’t finished yet.
“Believe me. You’ll regret it later when she takes your child back to Earth, and we never see either one of them again.”
“This is not an appropriate conversation between a parent and her son.” I felt mortified.
“Use your head. That’s all I’m saying,” she warned.
“I don’t think you need to worry about anything. Sophie is doing me a favor.” I didn’t want to sound ungrateful, but I couldn’t seem to keep my cool. “She’s helping me out, but you don’t need to worry about anything else happening.”
My mother snorted and shook her head at me. “Don’t be an idiot. I saw that girl when she came back from your interlude on The Boat. And I’ve caught some of the glances you give each other that nearly set the house on fire.”
I glared at her. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
“Don’t tell me there’s nothing between the two of you. I may be old, but I’m not that old.” She folded her hands primly in her lap.
My mother had never talked to me like this before.
“Do you need me to spell it out for you? You say she’s marrying you to help you out and then divorcing you, but she looks like a lovesick girl who’s been tossed aside.” She patted my hand. “You’re a catch, especially for someone from Earth. I think she’s in love with you.”
“Of all the ridiculous things you’ve just said, Mother, that’s got to be the most outrageous.”
“You don’t have to believe me. But I can see you’ve fallen for her, too. I don’t know why you would get married, then pretend you don’t care about each other. But figure out what you want to do. My point is, don’t fuck that girl on the island without a plan for the future. I doubt you’ll take my advice, but I feel better having warned you.”
I shook my head. Who knew what the morning would bring? I hoped everything would go well. But if I disappeared, I didn’t want to have any regrets. “Thanks for the tip.”
Unsatisfied, I left the room to find my wife.
SOPHIE
The island was bigger than I had realized. When Khellen took me there so we could speak in private on the ledge, I didn’t realize I only saw a small portion of it. This time, we had swum across, pulling our gear behind us in waterproof floating bags. We didn’t want The Boat moored at the island as a signal that someone was there. Besides, Khellen loved swimming and jumped at any chance to hop in the water.
Instead of taking the right-hand path that led up to the ledge as we had done the first time, we went left at the fork and made our way down a large hill. At the bottom of the slope was a guest house sitting in a level clearing.
When Khellen opened the door, I frowned. The guest house consists of one room with a double bed in the corner. There were two doors at the back, which I assumed led to a bathroom and a closet.
“I only see one bed here,” I said, getting right to the point.
“I’ll sleep on the couch, Sophie. Don’t worry. I know this isn’t really our wedding night.”
The rancor in his voice matched what I felt in my heart. Did he care? Oh right, he was hoping to have sex with me. One of the perks of getting married. “It’s a marriage of convenience, Khellen. Sex wasn’t in the deal.”
“Of course not,” he said, going around and opening all the windows. “Whatever you want.”
“Right.” I’m not sleeping with you, buddy. You’re just using me to save yourself. I was a little shocked at the emotion in my thoughts. Did I believe that? I knew I was attracted to him, so why was he drawing such response from me?
Was he using me? I had to admit that part of me felt resentful and used. I was doing a favor for a friend far away across the galaxy. But I didn’t need to give him the cold shoulder. I watched him get out sheets and pillows from what was indeed a closet at the back of the room. He brought them to the couch and stopped when he saw me staring at him. “What?”
“I’m sorry we’re fighting,” I murmured, dropping my eyes. I stared at my arm where the marriage certificate ought to be. The bit of compound that still hadn’t adhered properly caught my attention, and I picked at it nervously. He was silent for a moment before he came over to me.
“It’s not fighting, exactly.” He was standing close to me but carefully avoided touching my body.
“We’re not getting along, either.” I looked up to meet his eyes. “Was it easier to interact with each other before I came here?”
He got a strange look on his face. “Do you wish you hadn’t come?”
“No,” I said more forcefully than I meant to. “Of course not. I only wish we could act naturally with each other.”
He thought about that for a minute. “Why can’t we?” he asked. His voice was rough.
“I don’t know.” I fidgeted with my hands, feeling helpless. I didn’t think I could make things go back to the way they were.
“What if, just for tonight, we pretend that everything’s the way it was before, Sophie? We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow. I don’t want to spend what might be our last night together, arguing over trivial things.”
I felt like crying. “It’s not going to be our final night,” I said, taking his hands and staring into his eyes.
“Maybe not. Can we stop arguing, at least?”
I smiled. “I guess so. We can certainly try.”
“And let’s be honest tonight. Nothing but honesty between us.” The sexual innuendo made me shiver in spite of myself.
“I can do that.”
“Good,” he said, letting go of my hands. “Let’s get this place set up and make something to eat.”
After a very late meal with great conversation and a feeling of camaraderie that felt like old times, Khellen and I went to bed. I was on the double bed in the corner, and he was on the couch. It was scorching hot. I’m sure it was never this hot on Earth — not where I came from. I felt like I was melting, and there was no way I could sleep. I could hear Khellen toss and turn until he finally got up. A moment later, I felt him looming over me in the darkness. “Come on, Sophie,” he said, offering me his hand.
I stared at it and then up at him. “Where are we going?”
“A place where we can cool down. We’re going to roast if we stay in here any longer.”
“Okay.” I took his hand. He pulled me up, and I threw the covers back on the bed.
“Change in the bathroom. I’ll meet you outside when you’re ready.”
I was intrigued. I knew he wouldn’t take me to the lake because someone might see us. I put on my bikini and braided my hair behind me, getting it out of the way. I went out into the main room, dropping my pajamas on the bed and slipping on my sandals.
“Ready?” Khellen’s voice came from the darkness of the trees.
“I think so. Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.” When I reached him, he was smiling at me with happiness in his eyes. I couldn’t help but smile back. “Tonight’s about you and me, Sophie. No regrets.”
My heart beat faster at his words. “I don’t want us to fight,” I whispered, trying not to think about what tomorrow might bring.
He held out his hand, so I took it and we walked forward into the night.
With Khellen’s hand in mine, I was on top of the world. He led me through the dense purple trees down a path he had used since he was a boy. When we emerged from the forest, I was stunned by the beauty. “Khellen, this is incredible.”
We stood at the edge of a deep natural pool. A wate
rfall was across from us. The clearing was surrounded by a cliff on the right and a forest all the way around on the left. The water was clear and sparkling. I had a feeling it would be unbelievably refreshing.
Khellen handed me the life band he brought for me. I wrapped it around my neck. Then, giving me a grin, he ran and launched himself into the water, pulling his legs up into a cannonball that he knew would drench me. I waited until he came to the surface, then jumped in beside him with a big splash to pay him back.
I popped up out of the water, laughing. “What a relief from the heat.”
“Want to go to the waterfall?”
“I don’t know.”
“You know you want to go to the waterfall, Sophie.” He shot me a grin that I was powerless to refuse.
All I could think was that I never wanted this moment to end.
The pool was deep, but my life band kept me afloat and I was able to make my way over to the waterfall. We went under together and emerged on the other side. I gasped when I opened my eyes. The water of the falls had concealed a cave. There was a luminescent plant on the walls giving off a dim light and lighting up the ceiling with a rainbow of colors that moved and danced. I had never seen anything like it. It felt romantic.
“Lie on your back and float,” he said. “That’s the best way to watch the show.”
I started floating, and the life band quickly lifted me. I still couldn’t believe I was in the water. Maybe someday I would learn to swim properly. Not on Earth, however. There was no chance of learning to swim on Earth. I pushed the thought of my home planet out of my head and focused on the fairy lights. Khellen took my hand so we were connected.
After a while, we left in silence and went back through the waterfall. Khellen showed me some step-like rocks on the side of the pool by the cliff. The three ledges were broad enough to lie on and still be in the water. I took the top step, and he took the middle one. My skin was starting to wrinkle, but that was a small price to pay for the comfort of the cold water.
