by Alice Cooper
“No, besides the legend talk I’ve heard from some people in the past.” Cassius had stated cautiously.
“I have no idea, I’m from Earth.” Melody had looked at him and played dumb.
“Okay, we’ll you have heard of gladiators before right Melody.” Jureal had looked at her.
“Yes, the Romans on Earth used to have fights to the death.” Melody had shook her head.
“Well the Goma is the same thing, but in our Galaxy. The men who battle are often slaves, they’ve either been sold as slaves, or their families were slaves. The deal is that if any warrior can win 200 fights they will be set free. It isn’t a task that is easy to do. There have only been two in all of the history of the Goma. Mazart back around 100 years ago was the first fighter to complete all the fights. Recently, Cassius completed this same number of fights. This is where it gets interesting though. The night of the fights someone killed Demetri, and the signs all pointed to Cassius. I on the other hand had other theories about the guilty party. I thought that it would either be one of Lars’s relatives, he’s the man that Cassius obliterated in about 10 minutes time. Or perhaps an angry fan who felt they were cheated on a bet. I just happen to have the right connections and let it be known of my theories. It seems that the authorities hadn’t looked at the cameras in the building yet. When they pulled up the footage from that night, you know who could be seen clearly walking out of the building?” Jureal had stopped and studied them both closely.
Melody squirmed under his study, but sat tight lipped. Cassius had not said a word either.
“Well it was Cassius and his prize for the fight. About two minutes after walking into Demetri’s office was a hooded man. The kicker was when they pulled the office film though. The man who had come in was Lars’s younger brother, Marteen. Clearly on the film you can see Marteen as he slayed Demetri.”
“Oh really, that’s great news!” Melody had said.
Cassius had looked at Jureal, “So how long have you known I was the warrior?”
Jureal had laughed, “Since the first time I met you son. But I’m telling you I have a sense about anyone I meet. I can tell if they are a good person or a bad one. You my friend are indeed a good man. That was why I pulled my strings and made sure that the truth was discovered. You my man are truly a free man. If you want you can go back home.”
Cassius and Melody had been stunned further to find out that Jureal had once been an inspector for the authorities. If he had thought Cassius was really guilty, he would have called them in the day he first met them. But he had gone with his gut instinct and now Cassius could do anything he wanted.
They had decided they loved Zevon and would stay there most of the year. But had planned to visit his home planet once the baby was born, he wanted his parents to meet their new grandchild.
“What are you thinking about Melody?” Cassius interrupted her thoughts.
“Oh just thinking about how scared I was when I was first kidnapped. I never imagined that I would find love out in space.” She answered as she rubbed her belly.
“You know I was so upset when I first found out you were the prize. Boy was I a stupid man at that point.” Cassius laughed.
“But you’re not anymore!”
He grabbed her and kissed her deeply, “No my love I’m not, and I have the most amazing wife a man could ever ask for. I love you Melody.”
“I love you too Cassius.”
THE END
DAMAGED HEART
CLEAN ROMANCE
Night had fallen and darkness filled the small house. The only light illuminated off of the small candle Annie carried around the room. She grabbed for only what she considered to be the necessities and stuffed them into a bag. A small photograph of her late father, spare undergarments, hair rollers, some bread, and a notebook. Annie scanned the room trying to take it all in. This may be the last time she stood in this house let alone her bedroom. She had spent the last twenty years wallowing away in this room. Her small bed with a hand sewn quilt draped over it looked extremely inviting right about now. The past week she spent laying on her bed crying into that quilt in mourning over her father’s sudden death.
This place was no longer a home for her without him. Her mother would always scoff at her and her brother’s rendered her useless. Only her father truly cherished her and adored her. He would come home from the farm and sneak her bottles of sweet milk from the cow. He would wink at her and make her swear not to tell her brothers. Of course she wouldn’t tell them, that would only mean she had to share!
Her father was a hardworking man. All of his life he spent working in the fields. He earned an honest living for his wife and three children. Annie couldn’t say they really ever had much rather just enough. There was always enough food at the table that her mother would cook. When Annie or her brother’s needed new shoes, there was always just enough money saved up to buy some. When the mule had broken his leg they had just enough put away for the vet to come and mend it. However, when father unexpectedly fell ill, they no longer had enough. Money fell short for the doctor and with every passing day their love fell even shorter than their money. Annie’s love for her father grew stronger but her mother and brothers became estranged. This is why she could no longer stay at home. She had to go.
Annie hiked her leg up over the window sill and bustled her skirt up around her waist before swinging her second leg over as well. She sat on the edge of the sill with her feet dangling over the edge for a moment. Looking back over her shoulder she searched the room, waiting for her mother to come rushing through the door begging her not to go. Annie knew that would never happen. With that, she dropped herself out of the window and slid the glass pane closed behind her. She had about five hours before anyone would realize she had gone.
Even though the sun was nowhere in sight, the air was still warm on Annie’s face. She trudged her way through the darkness with no plan of what she would do next. After an hour of walking Annie’s feet became swollen and sore. She was going to have a long journey ahead of her if she didn’t figure out some sort of transportation soon.
As if to answer her prayers, Annie could see a horse and cart appearing in the distance. She was walking alone in the desert in the middle of the night with no civilization around her. What was this horse doing in the middle of the dessert with no one around to attend to it?
“Hello? Is there anyone there?” Annie called out in her rich Southern drawl. “Hello, my name is Annie Buckner. Does anyone out there own this horse? Hello?” Her calls rang empty and there was no one in sight. It appeared as though the horse had been abandoned.
“Well hello there, angel.” Annie stroked the horse’s face and kissed him on the top of the head. “Did my Daddy send for you?” She giggled to herself, happy to have the company. “He’s always looking out for his baby girl, even from heaven.” Annie tilted her head back and looked up into the sky. The stars appeared to shine brighter than any night before this one. “Do you have a name?” Annie waited and nodded toward the horse. “I will call you Puppet.” She continued to stroke the horse’s nose. “Now, Puppet. Do you have a family? I don’t see anyone else around. You poor soul, out here all by your lonesome. I don’t have a family either. Well, I suppose I do but they won’t exactly miss me.” Annie looked around again in search of this horse’s owner. There was nothing but desert for miles. “Say, why don’t you come with me? I don’t exactly know where I am headed to yet but I sure am excited to find out. I certainly could use your company.”
The horse whinnied as though to answer Annie’s question. She squealed and threw herself onto his back. A few hours later as the sun began to reveal its face, a small town appeared in the distance.
“Oh, Puppet! This might be our new home.” They approached the town just as the townsfolk began stirring in the streets. It was still quite early but people were making their way out to work and the children poured into the streets on their way to school. Annie always loved children. Her mama always
said it was because she was still a child herself. Annie didn’t like it when she said that.
“Well hello. Good morning. Pleasure to see you. Hello. Good day!” Annie greeted everyone she passed in the street. Most politely smiled back at her. The rest looked at her with puzzled expressions. Who was this chatty stranger?
Annie lead Puppet to the nearest tavern. A large wooden sign hung over the door that read Wilty’s Tavern and Inn. “Well doesn’t this look like the perfect place to rest?” She stroked the length of Puppet’s neck. When she dismounted Puppet, she tied his lead tightly around the fence next door. She ensured her belongings were safe in the cart and pulled a blanket over them to hide them from wandering eyes. Not that she had brought much with her but it was everything she had left.
The tavern door creaked open and Annie skipped her way inside. Other than a few drunken locals who had clearly been there since last night, the tavern was entirely vacant. Annie marched her way up to the bar and threw herself onto a stool beside a burly looking man. He was hunkered over the counter with a half empty pint in his hand. His eyes were narrow likely due to the alcohol. He couldn’t keep them open. His face was scruffy and hair a mess. His clothes appeared as though they hadn’t been washed in months.
“Well hello there!” Annie piped. “My name is Annie.” She enthusiastically jolted her arm in his direction with her hand outstretched. He didn’t budge. “You know, Annie as in Oakley!”
“You’re Annie Oakley?” He grunted in a harsh raspy voice.
Annie Oakley had to be at least fifty at this point. Annie felt quite offended. “Well no sir. Of course I am not. I am just telling you that my name is Annie, just like Annie Oakley.” She jabbered on. The man didn’t appear to be too impressed. “What is your name?”
“Rick.” He belched. “You must be lost.”
“No sir. I am exactly where I had planned to be. Right here in—” she paused, searching the room for a clue as to where she was. “I’m sorry Rick, where exactly am I?”
Finally, his expression changed. He began to laugh deeply from his gut. “You’re in Wiltshire, ma’am. Specifically, you’re at Wilty’s Tavern.”
“Then Wiltshire is exactly where I planned to be! Rick are you married?” She quizzed.
“Yes ma’am. Why do you think I am here?” He laughed. As did the rest of the men who lay half conscious on the counter. “Got myself a dozen offspring too. Are you married Miss Annie?”
“Well not yet. But I reckon I should probably get married soon seeing as I left my family and all. What are you drinking?” She peered over the counter at his pint.
Rick chuckled again. “Hey, Jimmy. Get the lady a pint of house brew!” He called out.
Annie scanned the room but there was no bartender in sight. From the back, a tall man appeared. He had his dark hair brushed the the side off his face. He was clean shaven and had rich emerald eyes. His stature was quite thin however muscular. Annie’s jaw dropped.
“Rick, I think it’s time you head home.” The man placed a mug full of black coffee in front of Rick.
“I will do so when I please. Now, get this lady a drink!” Rick cheered.
The bartender laughed and did as he was told. A moment later he slapped down a pint in front of Annie and then disappeared into the back again.
In amazement, Annie turned to her new friend Rick. “Is HE married?” She jabbed her finger in the direction the man had been standing in.
“You don’t want to catch that fish. No, no, no.” Rick sucked back his coffee.
“And why not?” Annie shouted. “He is so handsome! I could certainly stand a husband like that. Easy to look at. Imagine what our children would look like!”
Rick cocked his head to the side, taking a good look at Annie. “Do you ever stop talking?”
Annie blushed at such a harsh question but then thought to herself. “Well,” she placed her palms down on the counter “I suppose not.”
Rick began to laugh uncontrollably. “Miss Annie, you are a fine woman. A catch even. Find yourself a half deaf husband and I swear you will live happily every after.” Rick finished his coffee and slammed it down on the counter. “It has been a pleasure my dear, until next time.” Rick kissed the top of Annie’s hand and put his hat on his head. Annie watched as he stumbled out the door.
The tavern was dimly lit. Most of the chairs were turned upside down on top of the tables that were scattered across the room. For the first time since she left her home Annie felt truly alone. She reached forward and cupped her pint in both of her hands, put it to her lips and tilted her head back. In one go, she emptied the glass. When she placed the pint on the counter and looked forward, the bartender was standing right in front of her with a smirk wiped across his face.
“Thirsty?” He asked and poured her another.
“Not exactly. But from what I have heard the more of these I drink the duller my sorrows will become. Is that right?” Annie brought the second pint to her lips and began tucking it back.
“Something like that.” He laughed. “Maybe you should slow down though.” He rested his hand on hers coaxing her to bring the glass away from her mouth.
Annie burped and licked her lips. The glass was foamy and half consumed. “I’m Annie.” She stuck her hand out toward the man.
He gently shook it and smiled at her. “Annie as in Oakley. I know, I could hear from the back room.”
Annie blushed, recalling her conversation with Rick. Had he really heard everything?
“I’m James. These guys call me Jimmy.” He nodded in the direction of the drunk men on the other side of the bar.
“James. I rather admire that name.” Annie took another swig and wiped the foam off of her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Tell me your story.” She pressed on.
“I’m afraid you would find it quite boring.” James began drying out the pint glasses behind the bar, looking down and away from Annie.
“I can’t say that I bore easily, James. I certainly would like to hear it!” Annie gushed.
“You first.” He played back.
“Well as you know, my name is Annie. Annie Buckner. I am twenty-one-years old and I am from Borden. I grew up on a farm with two brothers, my mother and father. Father died only a week ago suddenly from a disease. He was quite rather my favourite person in the entire world. I feel quite lost without him. I am not overly fond of my mother or my brothers so I decided to leave. Last night I packed a few items into a bag and climbed out of the window. Now I am here!” She raised her glass in the air and downed the remainder of its contents.
James waited for a moment to see if she was about to add anything further. When he was sure she was finished, he responded “How did you get here from Borden? That has to be at least a day away by foot.”
“Oh, I actually found a horse in the middle of the desert. Can you believe that? It was almost as though it was there waiting for me. His name is Puppet. He is just outside there now.”
James walked over to the window on the far side of the room. “He was alone in the middle of the desert? You rode a wild horse to Wiltshire? You can’t just leave him unattended like that. There are outlaws and thieves in this town that would take him away on a whim.”
“Hmm.” Annie thought to herself. “I hadn’t quite thought of that.” She scratched her head trying to come up with something. “I haven’t any place to put him though.”
“You can use my stable. It is just around back. I will meet you there.”
“Great idea!” Annie leapt off of the stool and almost fell to the floor as the pints finally hit her. She toppled herself to the door and stepped out into the bright sun. Puppet was exactly where she had left him. “Hello my friend.” Annie began to fumble with the knot around the fence. She leaned against him to steady herself as she led him toward the stable. James was there with the door open.
“Where did you get that cart?” James questioned.
“Oh, it came with the horse.” Annie whis
pered and started to giggle.
“Annie you cannot be serious. That horse obviously belongs to someone!” James scolded taking over the lead.
“No, I made sure of it. There was no one in sight, just desert. I even called out for someone to come back for him. No one answered. I think he was forgotten.” She twisted his mane in her fingers. “My poor Puppet.” She mumbled.
“The less I know the better.” James shook his head. “Let’s just get him inside.” He led Puppet into the back of the stable. “I assume you have no place to stay?” He quizzed.
“No, I suppose not. I hadn’t quite thought that far ahead.” Annie pondered.
“Well let’s go inside and get you a bed.” James motioned toward the door at the rear of the tavern. Annie hesitated momentarily. “Is there something the matter Annie?” James looked confused.
“Sir, we hardly know each other. I hardly think it would be appropriate to share a bed with you this early on. I am a modest woman.” She stomped her foot down as though to stand her ground.
James laughed to himself. “I was hardly insisting that. I own the inn above the tavern and I thought that you would like to have a room to stay in while you are in Wiltshire.”
“I am so embarrassed.” Annie took her hands to her cheeks and tucked her chin down. “Silly me.” For once Annie didn’t know what to say.
James showed Annie to the door at the back of the building. As they turned the corner James could hear unfamiliar voices coming from the behind the bar. They weren’t exactly welcoming voices. At the sound of glasses being shattered, James whispered to Annie, “Stay right there and be quiet.” Dramatically Annie threw her hands up to cover her mouth. Her eyes wide as a deer’s.
Slowly, James made his way around the corner with his ear pressed up against the wall trying to place the voices. They were male voices and they sounded very stern.
