Gunn, tablet in hand, had been pouring over Intel reports the Knights had been compiling from their system-wide informants. It had been a week since Blayne had turned the throne over to his cousin. Once the ceremony was complete, he did his best to stay out of the public eye and let Douglas begin the arduous task of establishing his own dynasty. Since then, the two of them had been using their newly found freedom to track down his Aunt Wynda. If the four-fingered pirate had been right, and Wynda had been the one to purchase Cadee off the black market, then she was their primary target. Blayne didn’t know if Wynda had rescued Cadee, or captured her. As a traitor to the entire planet of Dunadd, Blayne doubted his Aunt Wynda had any honorable intentions with his sister, the last surviving full heir to the throne.
“Knock, knock,” a voice said from behind them. Startled, they jerked around in surprise by the appearance of King Douglas.
“How… how did you know we would be up here?” stammered Gunn trying to get his heartbeat back under control.
“Oh, please. I knew you two hid up here for years. And whenever you were gone, I would use it to escape my mother.” Nodding at the tablet, he asked, “Any luck yet?”
Gunn exhaled in frustration, “Not really. That bitch… I’m sorry, I mean your mother, did a very good job of hiding her trail. The Knights have not found a trace of her anywhere.”
“Hmm hmmm… sounds like my mother. She was always very good at covering things up. And I don’t know that I can ever apologize enough for what she has put you through, Blayne.”
“It’s all right, the past is the past. Right now I need to focus on the future.” He held up a finger, “But even before that, I need to ask; How is it going, being King?”
The King scratched his thigh through his kilt. “I think I know the real reason you gave up the throne. One of my first rulings is to make these kilts out of something softer!” He gave them both a lopsided grin before continuing with a shrug, “It’s a little tough in places, I will admit. Despite my mother’s overly ambitious goals for me, I was not truly trained to be a King. There are some parts of the government structure and procedures I am still not familiar with. Such as organizing an impartial tribunal for Kessen’s trial.” The King rolled his eyes, “That man had his hands in almost every Kingdom in the TriadVerse! And since his arrest, I’m afraid the chaos of a corporate power struggle on Aratan is the perfect cover for Tyrell to insert his own man into power.” He walked to the balcony railing and looked out over the city, “And if that wasn’t enough, the agricultural aspect of Dunadd is even more complicated than I could have imagined.”
The King turned to look at Blayne, “You’re sure you can’t stay awhile longer? You would make a much-valued adviser.”
Blayne held up his hands and shook his head no, “This planet, these people need a clean break from the old regime. And speaking of which, there is one thing I would like to ask you to consider.”
Douglas bowed his head slightly, “Anything.”
“This whole monarchy set up, with the Lords, serfs, peasants, and servants. You have to admit, it’s archaic. If I have learned anything from the past few weeks is that we should not hold down our fellow Dunadds in servitude, but to lift them up to freedom. The human race has colonized three entire solar systems, yet here we are with a large percentage of the population living in poverty, laboring in the fields breaking their backs. And yet we have the technology for giant harvesters to float above their heads. There must be something we can do, to continue our obligation to grow crops and feed people throughout the TriadVerse, but not force our people into a life of squalor.”
Gunn started clapping with a grin, “Here, here!”
Douglas rubbed his chin in thought, “You have several valid points. Is this why you abdicated the throne? So someone else could tackle restructuring a planetary government that has served for hundreds of years? To be honest, I’m not sure if I blame you.”
Blayne hung his head, “Ever since Morgan told me the King was not my father, my viewpoint has changed. For the first time, it feels like I am outside the Palace looking in.” He looked down at the city spread out below them, the crowds of people in the marketplaces, the streams of traffic coursing through the city. “I am understanding how they feel. All my life I was told I would be King. But now, I don’t know what I am.” Blayne stood up straighter and said with a puzzled look on his face, “And oddly, it doesn’t feel bad. I know I have to find Cadee, and right now that is all I need.” He waved at the grand, delicate spires of the Palace below them, “I now understand, I don’t need this. It is not me and never has been.”
Douglas crossed the balcony to place a reassuring hand on his cousin's shoulder, “King Lamond may not have been your father, but Queen Rania was still your mother. You are still considered of royal blood here in this Palace, and will always be welcomed.”
Blayne bowed his head, “Thank you.”
Gunn frowned, “Aren’t you going to try to find out who your real father is?”
Blayne shrugged, “Maybe, I don’t know where to even start on that. But first thing is first, we need to find Cadee. And to do that, we need to find Aunt Wynda.”
The tablet in Gunn’s hand beeped. “Wait a minute!” Gunn interrupted, holding up his hand, “We may have something here. A report from two weeks ago lists an unmarked ship that left the moon without clearance. They dispatched two patrol ships to intercept, but they had to break off when the suspect ship entered orbit around Galvey.
“Galvey?” Blayne asked, confused. “They never allow landing privileges.” Although they were sister planets in the same solar system, Dunadd had little contact with the residences of Mori.
“Well, they allowed this one, it looks like.”
“That has to be her,” snapped Douglas. “I will send a formal envoy to contact the Mori.”
Blayne held up a finger, “No, no. Wait a minute. If she managed to land, then they knew she was coming. And Queen Eloine did send us men to help, so I doubt the government is involved. Even if they were, I bet they will not admit she is there, not after the news of what she did here got out.”
Douglas rubbed his chin, “You may be right. But what can we do?”
Blayne looked at Gunn, who nodded in silent agreement. Giving one last loving pat to Skye before he stood up, “We will get her ourselves.”
The End
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About the Author
Freedom By Fire is the first book in The TriadVerse Chronicles, a sci-fi adventure of secrets, mysteries, and plenty of danger for Blayne Maxwell.
Also by C.P. MacDonald
The Atlantean Conflict Series:
Lunar Escape
Conflict On Mars
Moon Strike
The Atlantean Conflict Box Set
C.P. Macdonald works as a graphic designer and illustrator, and to relax he is a landscape oil painter. As a creative person writing books, especially science fiction, has became another outlet of creativity.
Chris lives in Tennessee with his wife and two kids. He has a Bachelor Degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin in University Studies, focus on Engineering Management.
You can connect with Chris on Facebook, Twitter, and his Website
If you loved the book and have a moment to spare, I would really appreciate a short review on the page where you bought the book. Your help in spreading the word is gratefully appreciated and reviews make a huge difference to helping new readers find the series.
A special thanks to my editor, Kelly Ro
bertson, and my Beta Reader team.
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