No, he wouldn’t. Perhaps he’d discovered an untoward fascination for Maryam, but Pana wouldn’t act on such an infatuation. Briel was his clanmate, and he would move the entire galaxy to make their relationship work.
He took her hand in his and kissed the back of it, smiling at his Matara.
Pana kept his attention centered on Briel as Maryam returned with prettily wrapped gifts. He watched his Matara with determined delight as she tore into the packages with excitement. That she was enthusiastic about gifts meant for the coming baby brought Pana joy.
Kels was right. When the child came, Briel would settle down. She and Pana would appreciate each other more. He’d love her as he should.
Briel emitted more of her girlish squeals as she showed him the ronka-themed blanket, pillow, and stuffed animal. Pana couldn’t help but share her glee as he examined the beautifully constructed items.
“These are exquisite. The amount of work you put into it…astonishing,” he complimented Maryam.
The Earther waved off his appreciation. “I created templates so I can turn out pieces fairly quickly. The biggest issue I had was figuring out how to incorporate a ronka into my designs. Such shaggy creatures. I’m glad the gifts are a hit.”
“They’re perfect. Thank you, Maryam.” Briel thrust the presents onto Pana’s lap. She jumped to her feet to hug and kiss her friend.
Pana admired the intricate work, wishing he could do something as kind in return for all the attention Maryam had bestowed on Briel. That reminded him of the invitation Kels had extended, and he checked the time in a panic. Fortunately, he’d remembered before it was too late.
“Matara Maryam, I nearly forgot. My Dramok—well, all of us—wish to treat you to a meal to thank you for being Briel’s friend.”
“For keeping me from my worst instincts, in other words.” Briel giggled.
“Would you join us?” Pana asked.
He saw the struggle in the Earther’s expression. She wanted to say yes, when the answer was clearly no. “There aren’t any other Earthers on the station that I’m aware of, but they do show up here regularly. If word got out that I’d been in the company of Kalquorian men—”
“I understand. We’ll have to find another way to show our appreciation for your kindnesses.” He smiled, ignoring the disappointment that sat heavily in his gut.
“Truly, it was my pleasure. Briel’s company has been wonderful.” Sincerity rang as she wistfully gazed at Briel. “I’ll miss you when you leave.”
Briel blinked hard, swallowing as her exuberance dimmed. She reached for Maryam’s hand and pressed it to her cheek. They smiled at each other, their eyes shining. Pana stayed quiet, feeling like an intruder on their odd but compelling friendship.
* * * *
“What’s going on?” Dergan asked his Dramok.
They’d arrived at the elegant restaurant early, where meals could cost as much as a small planet-bound shuttle. Not exactly the most comfortable place for a Nobek who oversaw the military’s tactical forces, but he’d grown used to grand surroundings since Kels’s elevation as Sebist’s advisor. The soft music from a quartet of Plasians, doting waitstaff in formal wear, and richly upholstered semi-circular benches clustered around polished marble tabletops were too opulent for Dergan’s tastes, but the aroma of the food promised he’d enjoy his meal. Besides, the bar had topnotch bohut of an impeccable vintage.
Pana, Briel, and perhaps Matara Maryam weren’t due to join them for several minutes. Dergan appraised Kels with a perceptive eye. After sixty years of clanship, he recognized Kels’s pensive mood. His Dramok had been quiet all morning. Twitchy too, pacing the suite and finding an excuse to duck out when Dergan attempted to find out what was bothering him.
Convincing Kels to arrive early for lunch, under the pretext of having a few drinks beforehand, assured Dergan of pinning his clanmate down.
“Obvious in my old age, aren’t I?” Kels said with a sigh.
“You’re not old. Just well-seasoned.” They snickered at the joke. Dergan was glad to see Kels relax.
“I heard from Sebist last night.” Kels drew circles in the condensation his drink left on the gleaming table.
“Okay.”
“Earthers are compatible for breeding with our people.”
Dergan froze for an instant, all thought stilling. His well-honed mind bullied past the shock, quickly cataloguing all the stunning statement could mean.
First, clarification. “Their females can bear our children?”
“The miracle we’ve waited for.”
Right away, Dergan surmised the main problem, no doubt why his Dramok wasn’t shouting with joy. “Their government won’t allow them to come to the empire.”
“No. Worse still, we have less than three hundred years until extinction.”
Another shock to absorb. Two full seconds passed before he recovered. “I knew the situation was critical, but I hadn’t realized we were so up against it. Will Kalquor bankrupt the treasury to coax Earth into letting us court their women?”
“More on the order of bankrupting our souls. We’re to bring Maryam home with us.” Kels lifted his gaze from the wet patterns he drew on the table’s surface. He stared at Dergan, letting the bald statement sit between them.
The Nobek sat back in his richly upholstered seat, refusing to let emotion color his reasoning as he considered the situation. At last he said, “It’s an extreme step. Some would say repugnant.”
“I hold out hope she’ll come willingly.” Kels gulped his top-shelf bohut.
Matara Maryam shoved into Dergan’s thoughts. She wore a type of weary experience on her pretty face, the kind Nobeks wore who’d fought in tough but meaningful campaigns. Dergan had been impressed with her on sight, and not merely because of her strange but compelling beauty. The females of her world were supposedly subjugated to a horrifying degree, but she’d displayed none of those characteristics. In those few minutes he’d been in her presence, she’d given Dergan the impression of hard-won assurance.
Would she wish to be “rescued” from Earth? Could Dergan do so if it were against her will?
It took effort, but Dergan kept his tone even. “Given what we know of her world, I suppose it’s possible she’d agree to go to Kalquor. However, it’s as likely she won’t. How am I to reconcile the situation with myself if she requires more forceful convincing?”
“She’ll join Sebist’s clan.”
“Any Kalquorian Matara would count herself lucky to have that opportunity.”
Kels pre-empted his next statement. “But she’s not Kalquorian.”
“Not even close.”
“The order came from high up. Maybe the Imperial Clan itself, though Sebist couldn’t say for sure.”
Dergan skewered Kels with a glare. “This could start a war with Earth. Have you considered that? Our technology is far ahead of theirs, but their numbers—we’ll have far less than three hundred years of survival left if outright hostilities break out.”
“If we lose. Don’t give me that look, Dergan. I’m aware of the odds against winning a war against Earth.”
“Then why are we discussing this?”
“Because we’re faced with an early possible end or a certain delayed end of our people. If you’re aware of another opt
ion, I’d love to hear it.”
Dergan downed his bohut in a single gulp and signaled the nearby Darotkin waiter for another. “I hate these moral conundrums. The older I get, the more of them I have to deal with.”
“It was easier when we were young, wasn’t it?” Kels agreed.
They sat in silence for several minutes, Kels letting Dergan work the issue out for himself.
What is there to work out? My people are dying. My son will be among the last of his kind. I’ve been given an order. I have to do what I’m told to save Kalquor.
Dergan searched to find something worthwhile in the miserable state of affairs. “At least if I go along with this, I can make up for letting Briel slip through my fingers.”
Her successful week-long escape rankled. What kind of Nobek of his age and experience let a twenty-year-old outwit him? Dergan scowled at his drink.
“I’m kicking myself over that too.” Kels shook his head with a rueful chuckle. “She’s clever, my Nobek. We’re all guilty of letting her youth lull us into a false sense of security.”
“She’d be far less interesting if she weren’t a challenge.” Find the good, you fool. And never let this disgraceful experience happen again.
Shoving aside his humiliation, Dergan returned to the question of Maryam. “I hope she’ll concede to our desperate need.”
“As do I. If not?” Kels gave him that piercing stare again.
Dergan struggled longer than he should have. In the end, he gave the answer he had to. “I’ll do it for my empire. Not for honor, because there is none in kidnapping a defenseless woman.”
On the heels of his grudging acceptance, he noted Pana and Briel entering the restaurant. With relief, he stood and motioned them to the table. “Enticing the Earther won’t happen today, I’m afraid.”
Kels stood too. They bowed to Briel as she and Pana joined them. Their Imdiko’s arms were full of packages. The promised presents, no doubt. Briel hadn’t been able to speak of anything else until she and Pana had left to visit Maryam.
Remembering how tempted he’d been to follow them, to keep Briel in sight for fear she’d run off again, brought another wave of embarrassment to Dergan. He forced his expression to remain pleasant. Briel gave him a saucy grin as she sat.
What was that smirk for? Reminding him of his indignity?
If so, Briel didn’t maintain the silent mortification. Her thoughts were elsewhere, so perhaps Dergan had only imagined she sneered at his lapses. “Maryam couldn’t join us.”
The men sat. Pana explained, “She’s worried word would get back to her people if anyone sees her with us. Her government is every bit as strict as you told us, my Dramok.”
Briel ordered leshella from the waiter before adding, “You don’t know the half of it. If you’d heard the stories she’s told me, you’d punch every Earther man on sight. I can’t imagine existing under such conditions. It’s no wonder she chose to live here instead.”
Dergan didn’t miss the gleam in Kels’s eyes. The Dramok noted, “Matara Maryam is still close enough to Earth to be somewhat under her government’s thumb. I wonder how she stands it.”
“It’s not so bad on the station. The Earther ships don’t stay long, from what I understand.” Briel sighed, the picture of sadness. “I’m going to miss her so much. She’s become what I’d imagine an older sister would be.”
Kels darted a glance at Dergan before saying in a contemplative tone, “Why should you have to give her up?”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s come to my attention that Earther women would find welcome on Kalquor. Perhaps Maryam would like to return to the empire with us?”
Dergan couldn’t help but admire the smooth fashion Kels launched into bringing Briel into the plot. Hanging around his statesman friend Sebist must have been rubbing off on him.
The Nobek admitted to himself a twinge of uneasiness when it came to using their Matara to persuade the Earther to come with them. Truth be told, however, it was preferable to outright forcing Maryam. Maybe he wouldn’t be driven to perform the horrid task after all.
Chapter Four
Minutes after she’d opened for the day, Maryam wasn’t surprised when an Earther man in uniform entered the shop she worked in. She’d seen members of a fleet crew wandering the shopping level, and her boss had sent a message that an assault-class fighter had docked at Pelk. Though she’d been disappointed to turn down lunch with Briel’s clan the day before, she was relieved about her decision that morning.
The serviceman wore a captain’s uniform, giving her more reason to thank her common sense. His demeanor was casual, and his expression was friendly. His gaze lit on her standing at the counter at the back of the shop almost immediately, and he headed her way, his boots softly thudding as he came. His leisurely progress gave Maryam time to appreciate his authoritative but calm bearing. In the store’s well-lit environs, he appeared to be in his forties, with the first specks of silver dotting his dark hair. He was attractive in an unremarkable, stoic fashion. His chin was perhaps too small for his face, his nose a tad sharp on the tip, and his jaw not as square as it should have been. He seemed somehow small for a man of his rank too, though he filled his dark blue uniform nicely.
With a start, Maryam realized she was comparing the officer to the men of Briel’s clan. No wonder he looked insignificant to her.
Drawing a breath and forcing the uber-masculine Kalquorians from her mind, Maryam adopted a pleasant smile and waited for the ship captain to reach her.
He paid little attention to her as he crossed the white-tiled floor, though she had the idea he was quite aware of her. He perused the items on the racks and shelves as he neared, smiling a little to himself, as if recalling something enjoyable. That smile grew wider as he reached out and snagged a container of ginger snaps. Snack in hand, he reached her counter and set his purchase on its surface. His friendly expression intensified as his gaze met hers.
“My greatest weakness. It’s been three months since I had these.”
Maryam met his broad grin with her own. “It’s always a joy to have a taste from home.”
“Absolutely. Your store?” He seemed impressed.
“It’s owned by an Adraf. Half the stores on this level are, each catering to the different species who visit Pelk regularly. He’s a smart businessman.”
The officer’s glance lit on the children’s section. “Baby items. Surely you don’t get many Earther kids on this station?”
“No, but their fathers and grandfathers in the military are thrilled to have presents to take home to them.”
The amiable captain chuckled. “Add uncles to the list. My sister had her first baby last month. What do you recommend for a newborn girl?”
Maryam ushered him to the stock of newborn gifts. She helped the man, who introduced himself as Captain Robert Miller, select an adorable bunny-motif blanket for his niece.
After they returned to the counter, Captain Miller asked in an offhand tone, “Have you seen any Kalquorians? One of their destroyers is docked here.”
Maryam mirrored his nonchalance. “Usually, they don’t come in here. I suppose we don’t have anything they wish to buy.”
“Usually?” His manner remained friendly, but his gaze on her face was sharp.
“A Kalquorian woman came in last week. She saw some of the children’s items on the promo wi
ndow outside the shop. Being pregnant, she came in to browse.”
“A female Kalquorian, huh? Rare to see those.”
“So I’ve heard. She was nice. We had lunch a couple of times.” Maryam volunteered the information because she was sure he would investigate. It would look best if she admitted to her public interactions with Briel.
“Uh huh. Were those lunches with or without her clan?”
“She came without them. They showed up a couple days ago to take her home. I believe she said they’re leaving tomorrow.”
His eyes narrowed. “You haven’t been around them? The men, I mean.”
“I have the sense not to go anywhere near the males of that race.” The lie rolled off her tongue easily, as relaxed as the innocent expression she wore for Miller’s scrutiny. Most Earther females learned to lie to religious and governmental authorities early in their lives. Maryam had the added advantage of knowing how to bluff. Her late brother and his friends had taught her during weekly poker games.
A twinge of sadness accompanied that memory. She had few pleasant remembrances of her family. Her brother had died in a shuttle accident, and she’d never been close to her father or stepmother. She refused to think of her deceased mother at all.
She kept all that at the back of her mind, maintaining steady attention on the congenial but problematic Captain Miller.
He continued to watch her as she totaled his purchases and accepted his payment. “I’m glad the Kalquorians haven’t been a problem for you.”
“None at all.”
He hesitated, concern replacing the slightly suspicious cast of his mood. “Keep an eye out. It may be nothing, but I’ve heard a few reports that some of our women have disappeared in the past twelve hours. Women like you, on space stations and alien colonies.”
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