“Do you know how important our friendship is to me?” she asked.
Doc thought about that for a few moments, considering all the possible meanings of the question, and the ramifications of each response he might give.
“I expect it’s at least as important to you as it is to me,” he said. “I know it’s a risk. We could both lose something we hold dear. But Darlene, I been mourning for two hundred years. I expect I’d mourn another two hundred if you hadn’t come into my life. It’s taken me a long while to take this step, and I know I’m risking our friendship right now, wanting something more. I decided it was a risk worth taking.”
Darlene took a deep, shuddering breath, her hands wrapped tightly around the nearly empty wine glass, dinner forgotten. “You know I still have charges hanging over my head,” she reminded him. “Kidnapping Lariah and Saige, Riata’s death, those aren’t small things. I could end up spending the rest of my life in prison once we’re finished with the Xanti.”
“If you think Lariah will let her Dracons punish you after all you’ve done for Jasan these last couple of years, you don’t know her at all,” Doc said.
Darlene smiled. “Doc, nothing I do can justify what I did that day. Strange as it sounds, I won’t feel right within myself until those charges are formally dealt with.
“Actually, it doesn’t sound strange to me at all,” Doc said with a smile. “But I’m telling you now, if the worst happens, I’ll wait.”
“I could be a very old woman when I get out,” Darlene pointed out.
“Not if you let me cure your aging,” Doc countered.
Darlene nodded slowly, accepting that. “Why do you want to be with me?”
“Because I love you,” Doc said matter-of-factly.
Darlene controlled her reaction to that statement by thinking back on her life, trying to remember if anyone had ever said that to her before. Aside from her parents when she was very young, no one had. “Do you mind if I think about this?” she asked uncertainly.
“Nope, not at all,” Doc replied. “I took a year, its only fair you have some time to think on it too.”
“Thanks,” Darlene said. “I won’t take a year. Just a few days.”
“Fair enough,” Doc said. “I’d like to ask you one thing though, if you don’t mind. You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”
“Of course,” Darlene replied.
“Do you love me, Darlene?” he asked.
“Yes,” Darlene replied, once again staring directly into his pale blue eyes. “Never doubt that, Doc. Never doubt that for a moment.”
Chapter Seventeen
Xaqana-Ti was surprised by the unscheduled transmission from Xi-Kung. He was under strict orders to maintain signal silence while in Jasani space, so unless the contents of the message was very important, she’d be forced to terminate him. She had no sentimental feelings toward Xi-Kung. However, if she were to lose a Leg Leader, she wanted it to be by her own design.
When she opened the message and saw that it was sent from Terien space rather than Jasani, using their very secret high speed secure channels, her temper eased. Somewhat. Then she read the missive, and her anger was forgotten.
On the surface Xi-Kung’s message, couched in the form of a status report, was clear and simple. He wrote that his ship had malfunctioned, forcing them to exit Jasani space via portal and stand by in Terien space to await a service ship. His ship was now certified to be in working order. Xi-Kung then learned that his Chief Navigation Officer had failed to close the Jasani portal behind them, and had tossed the defective Xanti out an air lock. Without a full compliment of officers, he’d been forced, according to Xaqana-Ti’s specific orders, to request that the service ship’s escort, which just happened to be one of Queen Narliq-Li’s battle cruisers, step in and watch over Jasani space until he was able to retrieve another officer. He expected it would take him about a week to get back to his post in the Jasani territory. That was all.
Xaqana-Ti knew that to all eyes but her own there would be nothing suspicious in the rather tiresome, routine status message. She gave a silent nod to Xi-Kung for his cleverness, then lowered all of her legs and settled down to think.
Firstly, she had never given orders stating that a ship required a full compliment of officers to be in Jasani space, as Xi-Kung was certainly aware.
Secondly, he had not indicated what the malfunction on his ship had been, or even that a malfunction was found. He’d said only that it was certified to be in working order. Had it been in working order to begin with? She thought that to be very likely.
Thirdly, since portals could be used only by Xanti ships, there was no rule as to whether they were left open, or closed. In fact, since portal codes could not be transmitted outside of their own galaxy, they were often left open for use by ships who didn’t possess the codes. So why throw an otherwise perfectly good navigation officer out the airlock for leaving one open?
And fourthly, she’d just received a verbal status report from Xi-Kung a few days earlier. Yet this document was clearly labeled Bi-Annual Status Report.
Xi-Kung was warning her, carefully but clearly, that something was wrong. Very wrong. He was giving her a chance to cover herself before whatever it was came to light.
The big question was, how did she cover herself when she had no idea what was coming? A soft beeping noise alerted her to an incoming call from the Supreme Queen. She immediately set Xi-Kung’s problem aside and stood up straight before tapping the appropriate button on her portable control board. An image of her mother, Qarnia, appeared on the small screen of the board.
“Greetings, Supreme Queen and Honored Mother,” Xaqana-Ti said, using her sweetest, purest, and most pleasing tones.
“Greetings, Youngest Daughter,” Qarnia replied. “I have received your request concerning Onddo, and have reviewed all of the reports and missives you sent. Tell me, is this a full accounting?”
“Yes, Honored Mother,” Xaqana Ti replied, relieved that she had not left anything out, though she had been tempted. One could not lie to Mother. Ever.
“Very good then,” Qarnia said. “Your sisters are understandably cautious. Your decision to send the information to me was wise, otherwise neither of them would agree to take over the territory in spite of its prestige. However, I can now certify that it is as it appears, so long as you will certify to me, now, that you are not holding back further information.”
“I so certify, Honored Mother,” Xaqana Ti said at once.
“Excellent. Now I must only worry about which of them will get it, and the certain fighting between them over it. I assume this was your intent?”
“No, Honored Mother,” Xaqana Ti replied. “It was not. I see, now that you mention it, that it will be a problem though.”
“I am surprised, Daughter,” Qarnia said.
Xaqana Ti shifted one leg a fraction, an obvious, and deliberate, sign of distress. “Honored Mother,” she said. “If I offer another territory so that Narliq-Li and Zarnia-Ne will each have one, would that prevent bickering?”
The Supreme Queen considered that for a long moment, studying her youngest daughter carefully as she thought. “It must be a territory that I will designate myself.”
“Agreed,” Xaqana Ti said, already knowing what her mother would choose.
“Daughter, are you truly overwhelmed with your duties now that you have the East Quad to manage as well?”
“It is more than that, Honored Mother,” Xaqana Ti said, choosing her words carefully. “Even though we have many spies on Jasan, and the secret portals, the Jasani are wily, and have strong magic. We can take nothing for granted. I feel that we must unite all of our resources to deal with the threat they pose to us.”
“You know of an impending threat from them?”
“No, Honored Mother,” Xaqana Ti replied. “I do not. But I expect that there will be one, and we must be fully prepared for it when it comes. I will not pretend to you, or anyone, that the great game for
the ultimate prize is not important to me. I fully intend to become Supreme Queen after you, Honored Mother. However, at this time, I truly believe that we must prepare ourselves to face any threat to our home world, as well as our empire, and not allow ourselves to become divided by infighting.”
“If I tell you to hand over the Jasani territory to one of your sisters, what will be your response?”
Xaqana Ti felt relief, but was careful not to show her feelings by so much as a twitch of a mandible. “I will hand it over at once, and offer any assistance to whichever sister receives it. We must work together, Honored Mother, for the future of the Xanti.”
“Very well,” Qarnia said. “I can see that you are sincere, Daughter. Your warning is heard, and will certainly be heeded.”
“Thank you, Honored Mother,” Xaqana-Ti said, allowing her relief to show. “I will send all reports and missives on Jasan to you at once.”
“That will not be necessary, Daughter,” the Supreme Queen said with a wave of one foreleg. “Which sister do you recommend for Jasan?”
“I just received a status report from my Jasani Leg Leader,” Xaqana Ti said. “His ship malfunctioned and he is short on crew. He requested that one of Narliq-Li’s battle cruisers stand guard until his return. Since one of her ships is already in place, it might be simplest for her to take Jasan. I can forward the message to you for your review if you like.”
“Please,” Qarnia said. “I will review it, and then let you know my final decision.”
“I thank you, Honored Mother,” Xaqana Ti replied, bowing her head slightly. “Please tell my sisters that I’m happy to leave some of my ships in place to help with their transition.”
“That is very generous of you, Daughter,” Qarnia said. “I will tell them, though I do not think they will accept the offer.”
“I know,” Xaqana Ti replied, allowing herself to sigh softly. “Nevertheless, the offer is sincere.”
After promising to get back to her soon, Qarnia ended the transmission. Xaqana Ti watched as the tiny screen on her control board went dark, then waited another full minute before lowering herself slowly, hardly able to believe what had just happened. She was handing over the two most important territories she had, but she was not losing any prestige. In fact, she’d gained prestige. A great deal of it. It could not have gone better if she’d planned it.
Chapter Eighteen
Faith dressed in a new pair of jeans and a light blue sweater, happy to have new clothes. Traveling with only one bag had made her journey easier, but she’d been wearing the same handful of items for so long that she was tempted to toss them in the trash. Since there was nothing wrong with them, she resisted the impulse.
She put her hair in a pony tail out of consideration for Bubbles. According to the booklet, most raktsasa liked having something like long hair to hide beneath, but Bubbles was curious about her new surroundings. If she began to get nervous or shy, she’d let it down.
She’d just finished getting dressed when she heard a knock on her door. She opened it, smiling in appreciation at the three men standing in the corridor. They all wore black jeans and long sleeved shirts that matched their brightly colored eyes. The little thrill she felt in response to their focused attention surprised her.
“You look very nice, if I may say so,” Tristan said.
“You also seem very relaxed, and happy,” Gray added.
“Thanks,” she said. “I am happy. Happier than I’ve been in...well, a long time. And its thanks to the three of you.”
“And Bubbles,” Jon said, smiling at the bright red strip of fur draped over Faith’s shoulder. Bubbles looked at him with her large red eyes and made her little popping sounds, causing them all to laugh.
“We thought you’d enjoy eating on the Observation Deck,” Tristan said as they escorted her up the hall to the elevator. “If not, we can eat in the cafeteria.”
“The Observation Deck would be nice,” Faith said. “Will it be just the four of us?”
“Yes,” Tristan replied. The elevator doors opened and they all stepped inside. “We have something we’d like to speak with you about, and would prefer privacy.”
Faith smiled, wondering why she didn’t feel the usual tension and fear that had been her constant companions for so long. Maybe Bubbles had something to do with it, but she thought that spending the day out with the Falcorans was the biggest reason.
A few minutes later they entered the Observation Deck, the same room where Faith had first met the Falcorans. She’d either forgotten how beautiful the view was, or simply hadn’t cared. Most likely the latter, she thought as she stood in front of the viewport and gazed out at all of the stars in wonder. It was so beautiful.
Bubbles seemed to like the view as well. She raised her front half up so that her eyes were level with Faith’s jaw, and made soft popping noises as she gazed out the window. Faith and the Falcorans all smiled indulgently at her.
“Our dinner will be served in just a few minutes,” Tristan said. “Joseph has prepared something that meets your dietary requirements, and that we can eat as well.”
“That reminds me,” Faith said, “I was going to ask Joseph to send a bit of raw meat with my meals for Bubbles and I forgot.”
“We did not forget,” Gray said. “Joseph has been informed of Bubble’s presence, and will include something appropriate for her with your meals.”
“I really need to think of some way to repay him,” Faith said.
“Yes, you mentioned that before,” Tristan said. “Toward that end, we did a bit of investigating and learned that Joseph has a family on Pilorat. A wife, and two small sons. He’s been trying to set aside enough money to pay the fines required before they will be allowed to move to Jasan. It is a very large sum of money.”
“Fines?” Faith asked. “Fines for what?”
“For wanting to leave Pilorat,” Gray said with a grimace of distaste. “Now that Pilorat is a member of the Intersystem Commerce Union, the government can no longer force their people to remain on Pilorat if they don’t want to. However, they do require hefty fines be paid in order to off-set the costs of changing the status of the citizen in question.”
“That makes no sense,” Faith said, frowning.
“No, it doesn’t, but it’s a loop hole and they exploit it,” Jon said. “There is nothing that can be done about it until the terms of their membership are revisited in another ten years or so.”
“That’s too bad,” Faith said. “How much are the fines?”
Tristan mentioned a number that shocked her. “That’s outrageous,” she said. Then she sighed. “I wish I could help him with that, but I don’t have near that much money even with the settlement. Maybe I could pay for one of them though. How much is it for just one of the children?”
“Faith, that number was for just one of them,” Gray said, wondering, as his brothers were, what settlement she was referring to. “But don’t worry. On your behalf, we have already arranged to have the fines paid, tickets purchased, and a home in Badia prepared for them. We’ve also sent people to Pilorat to aid his family in any way needed, and be sure that they are comfortably ensconced on Jasan as soon as possible.”
“Wow,” Faith said, stunned. “I know that I should protest. But I can’t bring myself to do it since this is for Joseph’s benefit, not mine. So instead I’ll just say thank you. Thank you very much.”
“You are welcome, Faith,” Tristan said. “But, it would be less than honest if we didn’t tell you we did it for ourselves, too. Joseph is an excellent addition to the Eyrie, and we would like him to remain with us. Making sure that his family is safe on Jasan ensures that he will be more likely to remain with us.”
“I owe you guys an apology,” Faith said, “I didn’t think you were very nice when I first met you. I’m sorry for that. I was obviously wrong.”
“No, Faith,” Tristan said. “You were not wrong. Jon is nice, and Gray is usually nice, but I was not, and I know it full well sinc
e it was deliberate on my part.”
“Deliberate?” Faith asked, confused. “Why?”
“I felt that it was necessary to keep people at arm’s length,” Tristan said. “It worked too. Quite well in fact.”
Faith thought about that for a few moments. This was the opening she needed, but she hesitated. What if she ruined their new friendship with her questions?
“Please, don’t hesitate to ask us what you will,” Jon said, interrupting her thoughts. “We will not become angry.”
“I know you won’t get angry, but I don’t want to ruin anything,” Faith said.
“We will allow nothing to ruin the budding friendship between us,” Tristan promised. “It’s important to us, too.”
Faith smiled at him, relieved that they understood. “Well, I was wondering if you would mind explaining a few things to me about Arimas.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth she felt the Falcorans stiffen. “I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “Forget I asked.”
“No, you are misinterpreting us,” Gray said. “We’re surprised, that is all.”
Faith looked at him doubtfully, catching a glimpse of Bubbles as she turned. The raktsasa was stiff, her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at Gray, reacting to Faith’s tension and seeing Gray as the source of it.
“It’s all right, Bubbles,” Faith said, reaching up to pet her soothingly. “You can relax.” Bubbles looked into her eyes for a long moment, then popped a few times before settling down.
“May I ask, why do you want to know?” Tristan asked, keeping his voice gentle.
“I can feel your emotions,” Faith said. “I know you can feel mine. I assume it’s because I’m supposed to be your Arima, but I’m not sure. I don’t know anything at all about Arimas, and I just wanted to know if I’m right, and if there are other...symptoms...I should be aware of.”
“We apologize for not explaining these things to you sooner, Faith,” Tristan said after a moment. “We should have anticipated your confusion.”
The Falcoran’s Faith Page 15
