“Lord Stuart, do you know this young man?”
“As a matter of fact, I do, sir. We are cousins. He is my late Uncle Marston’s son.”
“Really. Speak frankly, is he a good man? Will he trifle with my daughter? He seems a little old not to be attached. Has he good prospects? How is his career? I want a good man for her, a good husband.” Butler’s questions tumbled out.
Johann paused, wondering what he should say. The truth would be best, but what was the truth? Would Stephen make a good husband? He’d made captain before Johann did and was highly regarded at HQ, without really struggling to stand out. Everything seemed to come easily to him, reputation, rank, and women, many women. However, at thirty-four, no woman had captured him. Stephen watched as one by one his friends married and settled down.
“I have known Stephen his entire life, sir. We were boys together, then in the academy and later, in the same regiment. If he is truly in love, I don’t think your daughter would find a better man. He is thirty-four and has never been formally attached to any woman. He’s sort of a perpetual bachelor.” He tried to word it as delicately as possible. “He has some…experience, sir.”
Butler looked sideways at Stuart and caught his meaning. “I guess at thirty-four, if he wasn’t experienced, I would really be worried about him.”
“Just so, sir.” Stuart tried to keep his side of the conversation to a minimum, in order not to say the wrong thing and ruin his cousin’s chances. Knowing Lady Diana, Stephen would need all the help he could get.
“You said his father is dead?” The ambassador frowned.
“Yes. He was a commander of the ground forces in the battle to defend New Commonwealth from the Ottomans. He was killed holding the Bristol shuttle port. He and all fifty of his men.”
“Did they take the port?” Butler stiffened.
The young lord and officer straightened and jutted out his chin.
“No sir. They held until our space forces stopped them. Not one ship landed.” Johann cleared his throat. “Stephen will be Duke Brandon one day, after his grandfather dies.”
“So, he is from a good family?”
“Duke Brandon is a war hero also, not unlike yourself. He was weapons master at HQ before his retirement. They still use him for consultations. Stephen’s mother is the queen’s aunt and personal secretary. It was she who received the gifts tonight.”
“The very attractive woman with the long blonde hair?” The ambassador’s eyebrows rose.
“Yes. You noticed her?”
“Well…” He paused. “I did, actually.” He cleared his throat and took a sip of his drink.
Butler thought back to the woman at the queen’s side. She looked younger than him, and she struck him as very attractive, deep blue eyes, full breasts, and a narrow waist. It surprised him. It’d been a long time since he’d noticed any woman, and certainly never during his marriage.
Well, Lord Brandon’s mother was certainly well-placed. He’d have to check this young officer out, however, on his own. The man’s reputation bothered him.
“Thank you, Lord Stuart, for your information and your honesty. I will just have to wait to see how this plays out.”
Johann bowed slightly and moved off. To Butler’s chagrin, Ambassador Koenig from Alpha V cornered him. The smirk on his face made Butler itch to knock it off. With his fist. Koenig was always the last person he wanted to talk to. Ever.
“Butler, am I right in hearing your daughter pulled a gun on the Regent, was knocked to the floor, and you were both arrested?” His eyes gleamed as he told the rumor.
“Koenig, where do you get your intelligence from?” Butler kept his teeth showing in a tight smile. Koenig’s smirk flickered as he pondered Butler’s words and meaning.
Butler gave a bare nod toward Brett. She caught his eye and the quiet motion of his head. He needed her by his side. Now.
Brett arrived, with her young man in tow, just as the windbag Koenig opened his mouth to spout off. Instead, he turned to her. “I was just asking about your little,” he paused searching for the right word to say, “spectacle, Miss Butler.”
“Oh, yes, I was so embarrassed.” Brett laughed and batted her eyes at him. Butler took a sip to hide his smile, and Stephen stared at her.
“Being stunned by a guard in an attempt to kill the King of New Commonwealth was merely embarrassing?” Koenig’s eyebrows shot up.
“Is that what you heard?” She laughed. “You must check your sources of information.” Lord Brandon laughed right on cue, shaking his head, as if disbelieving.
“Well, what did happen?” Koenig narrowed his eyes as he raised his drink to his mouth and sipped.
“I was foolish, of course. I was so nervous about presenting the gifts I just couldn’t eat a thing today. Well, I got all the way up to the front and did fine with the gift for the queen, but when I turned to present the gift to the king, the room started to spin, and the next thing I knew I was lying on the floor right in front of him!” She managed a shrug and a rueful smile.
“Oh.” Koenig sounded so disappointed, Butler was almost sorry for him, but not quite.
“Lord Brandon helped me to my feet.” She placed her hand on Stephen’s arm as he nodded. “Apologies were said all round and accepted. I’m sure we will all laugh about it later.” She caught Koenig in her steady gaze.
“Indeed.” His efforts defeated, Koenig turned and headed off after some new quarry.
Butler winked at Brett. “Well done, Brett.”
His opinion of Stephen ratcheted up a notch. The boy was a good sport, at least, for not ratting them out. “You too, Brandon.”
“My pleasure, Ambassador.”
“Brett, it’s time to go, before we have to answer any more questions.” Butler looked at the two young people, unsure if he was eager to leave because he feared having to defend himself and Brett, or because he wanted them separated until he knew more about Brandon.
“May I escort you to your car, Miss Butler?” Lord Brandon asked.
“Thank you.” She smiled at her father’s raised eyebrows.
He led her to the main doors where James waited for the vehicles to be brought around. Ambassador Butler followed them, watching Lord Brandon closely.
“Ambassador Butler, good night. Miss Butler, until tomorrow.” Lord Stephen Brandon bowed to the ambassador and handed Brett over to Butler. He turned and went back inside the palace.
The cars pulled up, and James opened the door. Butler turned to Brett and caught her hand.
“A very interesting young man.” He searched her face. He wasn’t sure if he was hoping for a yes or a no.
“Very. He’s coming for tea tomorrow.” She got in the car and sat down. Butler leaned into the door and bit his lip.
“Tea, eh? For what it’s worth, he seems a good man.”
“We’ll see, General.” She smiled at him and sat back against the velvet cushions of the car. James closed the door and got in beside the driver.
The car pulled off.
“Have my car brought around.” A woman’s soft alto voice spoke behind him. Butler stepped back to see who'd spoken.
Lady Diana Brandon stood under the portico as she waited for her car. The soft moss green taffeta gown she wore complemented her eyes and blonde hair. She turned her deep blue gaze on him. He smiled. She didn’t.
“Lady Brandon.” He gave her a short bow.
“Ambassador Butler,” she responded coolly.
Her car arrived, and she swept down the steps and into the waiting cab of the car. Butler watched as she gave him a quick glance and then sat back against the seat. The windows of the car were mirrored. His view of her face and her body disappeared. All he could see was the hem of her gown and her feet.
He was struck by the odd notion-- he wanted to see her again.
First Brett and Stephen. Now…must be something in the air.
His car pulled up, and the footman opened the door for him. Butler gave the driver the order t
o clear the windows and took his seat. The door closed, and they pulled away from the curb.
Butler pressed a button on the armrest, and a door slid open. He reached in and removed the weapon hidden there. After checking the charge, he laid the stunner across his lap, his finger on the trigger.
Chapter Seven
Jonathan sat across from Lord Brandon, balancing the plate of tiny tea sandwiches on his knee and sipping his tea. Brett was fifteen minutes late coming back from the stables, and Jonathan exhausted his small talk about two minutes previous. They'd covered the weather, both on Old Earth and New Commonwealth, how he found his new residence, and whether he followed any sports.
There were a lot of questions Jonathan wanted to ask, but he didn’t think this was the right time. He wanted Brandon all to himself, without Brett, for the conversation, armed with a lot more information about the young man. He took a breath and went with something safe.
“Can I call you Stephen, or should I use Lord Brandon or Captain Brandon?”
“Stephen, please.” The young man looked hopefully at him.
“Well, Stephen, what are your duties?”
“I am attached to the Military Headquarters in the analyst division. We are currently intercepting coded transmissions from space.” He sipped his tea again.
“Surveillance work, eh? Great job, if you’re suited to it. Are you suited to it?” Jonathan sat back and watched Stephen carefully. He was a good judge of men, and young Brandon looked like some of the better men he’d seen under his own command. Sharp, intense, but self-deprecating about their own value.
“Yes, sir, I think so. Some days the stuff I wade through is dead boring, but then, you stumble across something and it makes it all worthwhile.” His eyes lit up. “Then you know you’re not wasting time, but earning your keep.”
“I understand. I never cared for knocking my head against the wall, either. But when you do get a break, and you can run with it, it’s great stuff.”
Stephen nodded in agreement. They’d started to relax a little, and conversation became easier for both of them.
A commotion sounded in the foyer, and Brett breathlessly burst into the room, still dressed for the stables in a pair of jeans and an old shirt, mud-splattered riding boots, and her hair pulled back in a long braid.
“I’m so sorry for being late, Lord Brandon, Father. I took public transport to the stables, and there was a major accident on the thruway. Please give me a few minutes to change, and I’ll be right down.”
The men stood at her entrance, and a smile erupted on Stephen’s face at seeing her. Jonathan couldn’t find fault in it.
“Of course, Miss Butler.” He bowed to her, and she stood there smiling back at him, her plan to change temporarily forgotten, it seemed.
“Brett…” Jonathan motioned with a slight jerk of his head to the stairs and she came awake. She turned and fled up the stairs to her rooms, leaving the men once again in an uncomfortable silence.
“Sir, does this mean she will return shortly, or like most Commonwealth ladies, in an hour or two?” Stephen asked sincerely.
“Oh, Brett can dress faster than any woman I’ve ever seen. She learned it at her mother’s knee. That woman could be ready in an instant, an invaluable trait in a general’s wife.” He smiled back at Brandon. “Or in any wife, for any matter,” he added softly.
“Brilliant! Oh, not that I don’t want to continue our conversation, sir, I just wanted to see her…” Stephen fumbled over his words. Jonathan remembered the first time he’d met Elaine’s father, and his inability to speak in coherent sentences.
Stephen tried again to fill the empty air. “Sir, I've read many books on the strategies you used in the defense of Old Earth. They are required reading now at the academy, I understand. I hope it sounds sincere, but it is a great honor to meet you.”
“History will make heroes of all of us in the end, whether we were heroes or fools. At the time, we just did what needed to be done to win.” Butler waved his hand to dismiss the praise.
“But not all of us will have such an opportunity to shine, sir. I can only hope to do half as well, under similar circumstances.”
“Well, Stephen, some are born to greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.” He laughed. “I assure you being ‘thrust’ isn’t such a wonderful thing.” He rubbed his shoulder.
Stephen remembered Butler had been badly wounded during the final battle, yet still managed to lead his ships to a rout of the enemy, but at such a terrible cost of men.
“I have wanted ship duty for my entire career, sir, but so far, headquarters feels they need me more here. Out there”—Stephen motioned to beyond the ceiling—“that’s where the real action is.”
“I can tell you are young, to hunger after action. Take it from me, if you are lucky, you’ll never see what my generation saw firsthand.” He paused, and his voice dropped. “You, better than most, should understand the price paid in those times. Don’t be too eager to pay such price yourself, son.”
Stephen took in his words and slowly nodded. It seemed his entire family had paid the price. Too much cost, it seemed, for one body’s blood.
“Perhaps you are right. A long life serving here would have just as much honor as a short one in space, especially if there is much to live for here.”
Brett entered the room after what Stephen judged was only twenty minutes, a record for any Commonwealth debutante. She looked beautiful in a soft brown mid-calf length skirt, brown boots, and soft camel belted jacket, her once braided hair, now loose and flowing, and pride in her shot through him.
“Lord Brandon, forgive me for keeping you waiting.” They stood gazing at each other until Jonathan cleared his throat.
Brett took the seat next to Stephen on the small couch across from him. Stephen stared at her with open admiration. Time for her father to leave them alone, but would he get the message? Ambassador Butler stood.
“I have business to attend to. Pleased to have met you, Lord Brandon. I’m sure we’ll meet again soon.” He shook Stephen’s hand and left.
“Have you been waiting long?” Brett asked.
“No. I didn’t mind waiting at all. Your father was very kind to me. We spoke briefly about his service.”
“He didn’t give you too hard a time, with questions, did he?” She touched his hand in concern. Such soft fingertips. He wanted to sigh, but it wasn’t manly, was it?
“No, he was very cordial. I have read about his achievements in the war. He is quite a strategist, and it was an honor to meet him.” Stephen spoke sincerely. It was an honor to meet such a hero of their time.
“Yes, it’s easy to get him started talking about his military days. The hard part is stopping him.” She laughed. Stephen held her hand in his, rubbing it softly with his fingers.
“Last night, I heard him refer to you as Major. Is that a real title or a pet name?” He knew many planets, Old Earth included, where women served not just in the ranks, as his did, but all the way up into the officers corps.
“Real. I served six years in the military on Old Earth, following in his footsteps.” She jerked her head to the door to indicate her father. “However when my mother died, I left the service to take her place as his social secretary.”
Now it was something different. The women he knew served nothing but tea and dinner, much less in the military. Brett was certainly a breath of fresh air, and he found her fascinating.
“Did you like the military? Major in six years is very fast. I only made captain after eight.” Stephen was impressed rather than intimidated by her service.
She stiffened. “If you are implying my advancement was due to family and not my service, you are mistaken.”
He held out his hands in a calming gesture. “What? No, not at all, it’s not what I meant. It didn’t even cross my mind, Miss Butler.” He hoped he’d not to lost any ground he’d made with her.
Brett exhaled. “Sorry, it’s just I’ve fought the misconceptio
n ever since I enlisted.” She paused and then continued, lowering her voice and whispering loudly, “I’ll tell you a secret. I did well, don’t get me wrong, I did my duty, but the military wasn’t for me.”
“What did you want to do, if not serve?” He was sure whatever she said would surprise him. She would probably always surprise him, something no Commonwealth woman had done.
“I wanted to run the ranch. Manage its affairs, work with the cattle, ride the range. But I’ve understood ever since childhood it was expected I would enter the military, same as my father. Now it’s ten years later, and I’m an ambassador’s daughter, following him around the known universe.” She shrugged her shoulders. “If I know anything, it’s my duty.”
Stephen regarded her for a moment. Beautiful, yes, and smart, oh yes. She was driven by duty, and her sense of honor, he could see it easily. But why did she see no life of her own? This was a woman who could be whatever she put her mind to, and yet she was adrift.
“Do you want to be an ambassador’s social secretary? Or is this another position you will be in until the next duty reveals itself?” He raised an eyebrow in question.
“You’ve got me pegged, Lord Brandon. I guess I’ve spent my whole life living up to his expectations, and in a way to my mother’s. She was no slouch to duty and service, either. The only time I feel like I am really me, really just Brett, is when I’m riding Black.” She smiled at him sideways from lowered thick black lashes. “I’m twenty-eight and still don’t know what I want to do when I grow up. Is that terrible?”
Stephen sat back and regarded her. “I am amazed you are even asking those questions. The women around here are merely satisfied to be married.It is their highest goal. Most of the female aristocracy don’t work at all, but manage their husbands’ social, political, and military lives. Many less women serve in the military here, and they are mostly corpsmen.”
“Oh, are there no female officers in your military? I knew there are females in the lower ranks.” Brett leaned forward.
“Females in lower ranks, but so far, command has eluded them.” He shook his head. “It’s the ultimate ‘old boys’ school,’ I guess.”
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