CALLEY (RIBUS 7 Book 3) (19 page)

“Did you see their faces?”

“No, not till much later.”

William’s features contorted. “Did they hurt you? They didn’t—”

“No, wait, settle down. They didn’t hurt me, and they didn’t rape me. They took me to their… home, and there they… studied me.”

William was temporarily stupefied. “Studied you?” he repeated.

“Ah, yes. They took me to a ship to learn about me. I think that’s what they wanted to do originally.”

William’s eyebrows rose. “You think. You don’t know?”

“Well, not at the time. I mean, that was their intent, but then the Commander kind of took me over as his own pet project, and from there the research part of it sort of fell by the wayside.”

William’s mouth was open but no sound came out. Chelan pinked slightly. “He fell in love with me, and I with him,” she explained.

William finally closed his mouth. He cleared his throat. “And all that took ten years?”

Chelan laughed. “No silly, that took a very short time.”

All William’s training as a top lawyer was turning out to be useless at the moment, and he tried to shake himself free of his confoundedness. “You said ‘Commander.’ Was this the military?”

“Yes, sort of.”

“Was it a secret government operation? Was it
our
government?”

“No, no, nothing like that. They were… I mean they
are
from a long ways away from here.”

“They took you on a ship to another country?”

“No.” Chelan suddenly stood up and ran her fingers through her hair. Then she clasped her hands tightly in front of her and bit nervously into her knuckles. She looked down at him. “To space,” she uttered.

William burst out laughing and then stopped as he studied her. His sister had never lied to him before. “You’re serious, aren’t you!”

Chelan simply nodded, praying he would not label her a lunatic.

William glanced away and tried to comprehend what he had just heard. But he was stunned. Finally he looked back at her. “I don’t mean to be facetious, but let me guess: little green men from Mars?”

Chelan gave a nervous giggle. “Actually, the little green men are called the Telesians, and they’re not green, they’re gray. And they’re not from Mars, although they’ve been there.” She plunked herself back down beside him. “And as for the others, the ones in the shrouds, well, they’re not green—more bronze, I would venture—and little? Well, far from it, but men they are—oh, and women, too.” She looked at him expectantly.

William stood and stripped off his coat and jacket. Then he loosened his tie and sat back down. He stared at her as he struggled with the top button of his shirt. “This is going to take a while, I can tell.”

Chelan smiled. “I’ll try to recount the last ten years as fast as possible.”

William glanced at her as he reached for the unused portion of her water. “Uh-huh. Well, you take your time, Chelan. God knows I’m going to need it.”

Chelan took a deep breath. “Well, here goes.” And she started, right from the beginning.

*****

Day turned into night, and when they both were too tired to talk, they slept side by side in the huge bed, William unwilling to let his sister go, even in his sleep. In the early morning, they ordered breakfast, and Chelan continued with her story.

On their third day together, Chelan stepped from the shower and dressed in her jeans and T-shirt. As she wandered out of the bedroom, she found William reclining on the couch, newspaper in hand.

Chelan went to the fridge and grabbed an orange. She sat at the table and peeled it slowly as she stared at him. Finally, she spoke. “Do you believe me?”

William sat up and put the paper down. He looked deep into her eyes. “Of course I do. It would have taken you a decade to come up with that story in such detail if you had not lived it.”

Chelan peered down at the orange and then smiled. “I knew I could rely on you.”

William stood and moved to the table, sitting across from her. He took her hand. “You mentioned a man named Solis.”

Chelan took a bite of the orange and nodded.

“Can I see?”

Chelan hesitated and then pulled down on her T-shirt, exposing her neck and shoulder.

William winced. “And you’re okay?”

Chelan nodded again, turning her attention back to the orange.

William glanced down and carefully folded his hands on the table. Then he looked back at her, his voice full of concern. “And you had a child.”

Chelan stopped eating, but she did not speak.

“Oh god, Chelan. How have you survived?”

Chelan looked up at him. “Most of the times were good. Most of the time I was immersed in their love.”

William stood. “And now they’ve set you free?”

Chelan hesitated. “Well, not exactly.”

“What?”

“Korba, he’s away, and I asked to be brought here.” Chelan deliberately left out the fact that she was being hunted, to spare her brother the distress. “But Fremma will return for me,” she added quickly.

William’s eyes widened. “When?”

“I can’t tell you exactly.”

“Why?” he asked with agitation.

“Because, I don’t want any trouble!”

“Trouble? You want to return to their brutal world, and you talk to me about trouble!”

“They are not brutal to me!” she insisted.

“Look what Solis did to you!”

“And look at me! Would I look like this if I had lived on sorrow and brutality rather than thrived on love? I am part of them now, and I want to return.”

William moved over to the couch and slumped into it. Then he sought to defuse the whole conversation. “You’ve really blown me away, Chelan. It’s going to take a while to process all this.”

Chelan contained her temper. “Take your time,” she whispered. She watched as he reclined and folded his arms over his chest, his mind laboring. She looked back at all her peelings. Though she had told him about her time in the Dead Zone, she had deliberately not told him about what Ticees had done to her. Now she was glad she had omitted all those details, for two reasons. One, she did not want him to know the brutal truth, and two, even after all these years she still could not speak of it. She was holding so much back, but it was for the best.

Chelan glanced at him. “You can ask me anything.”

William stared up at the ceiling. “Don’t worry, I will. I just need some time.”

“Will, since the Empire fell over two and a half years ago, my life has been bliss. RIBUS 7 has remained at Iceanea while the Palace was rebuilt and the new Empire established. Yes, there has been stress with my work, but overall, I have been immersed in nothing but tranquility and love. A trip to Earth, to my family—this completes me. Please believe me: my life among them now is wondrous.”

William looked at her skeptically. “If you say so, sis.”

Chelan stood. “So far all the conversation has revolved around my life in space. Now it’s your turn. What all have I missed on our little blue planet?” She moved over to him and sat on the edge of the couch.

William peered deep into her radiant eyes. “What would you like to know?” he asked.

Chelan shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know. You’re still here, so I assume the Middle East hasn’t tried to blow us to oblivion yet.”

William shook his head in awe, still unable to switch topics. He sat up straight and then reached for her, holding her tight in his arms. “You’ve been through so much,” he whispered. “I’m almost afraid to touch you lest you break.”

Chelan smiled. “I’m fine, Will. I came home to be with you and the family. But after my stay, I have two of the most beautiful men in the galaxy to return to.”

William watched as her eyes lit each time she spoke of the ebony Warlord and Fremma, and he knew instantly how hard she loved them both. “I wish I could meet them.”

Chelan shook her head. “It would probably not be in your best interest. It will be hard enough for you to keep your mouth shut the rest of your life simply because of what I say, much less with what you may see.”

Will grinned. “Yes, but your excitement is contagious, and it would be a dream come true to live among the stars, immersed in all that technology.”

Chelan cocked her head and stared at him. Suddenly, she wondered about the possibility, but then quelled the thought. She would have to defer to Korba before she made any offers she could not keep, and that was simply not possible the way things were arranged now.

Will’s thoughts finally came down from the heavens. “Well, now I guess it
is
my turn. Earth, hey, let’s see. First of all, getting back to your original question, the Middle East is still a mess…”

Chelan lay against him and listened with rapt attention as she heard about the death of Bin Laden, the ousting of several dictators, Russia and the Ukraine, and of course the election of Obama, ISIS, and so much more.

The days passed, the two consenting captives sharing stories and emotions. Only rarely did they venture outside into the cooling air for brisk walks to refresh their minds and bodies. But now their time together was coming to an end, and Chelan had many hard choices to make… In fact, too many.

Chelan sipped her coffee and smiled as William finally extruded himself from the giant bed. “Sleepyhead,” she chided.

Will looked at her through bleary eyes. “Uh-huh… Well, I’ve noticed that you don’t seem to need much of it anymore.”

Chelan straightened and patted her flat abdomen. “Lots of exercise,” she told him.

William smirked. “If you say so. But I’m having a shower for exercise.”

Chelan chuckled and then returned to the kitchen. There she waited for his shower to end. Will reappeared and faced her in nothing more than his boxers. Wagging a toothbrush at her, he looked at her quizzically. “You’ve never come out and said this, but since you’re bonded to Korba, does that make you a Galactic Empress?”

Chelan choked on her coffee, the warm liquid spraying up her nose. She grabbed at her face and ran to the sink, coughing and spluttering. Once she controlled herself, she wiped her face with the hand towel and then turned to him. “Ah… Well, as absurd as it sounds, and as absurd as it seems, especially to one who knows me so well, yes.”

William nodded and then headed back into the bedroom. “Jesus, I thought I had heard it all in the courtroom.” He started to dress, talking louder so she could hear him. “You know, your professors always said you would rise to the top if you would only apply yourself a little more aggressively.” Will stepped out, tucking his dress shirt into his suit pants. “I wonder what they’d do or say if they ever knew just how far you had taken their advice.”

Chelan laughed and shook her head. “Believe me, my good brother, right now it is only a title. A ruler I am not—well, not yet, anyway. I guess my inherent gentleness is one of the things that attracts them to me. It certainly isn’t my aggressiveness.”

William looked at her from under his brows. “And what is it in their inherent brutality that attracts you to them?”

Chelan turned away. “Please don’t criticize them. There is no shortage of brutal people on this planet.”

“Oh, Chel, I’m trying not to criticize.” He turned her to face him. “But look at it from my point of view. They stole you from me and from your home. They’ve subjected you to war and strife.” He winced. “And one of them cut you. They’ve abandoned you.” His voice filled with loathing. “Christ, Chelan, one of them had the gall to impregnate you.”

Chelan felt her whole body fester at the vile tone in William’s voice. “Shan made
love
to me!” she insisted harshly. “He was gentle, he was beautiful, and he cared for me. He did not shackle or rape me. We loved one another… and he gave his life for me so that I could love again.” She whirled away from him, her eyes welling. “And our son was beautiful.”

Will wisely remained quiet for a time, realizing too late his mistake. “Oh, hell, Chelan. I’m sorry. It’s just that all of this is such a shock. I mean, after all I’ve heard, why should you want to leave the tranquility of home to return to Korba, or any of those men?”

Chelan exhaled sharply and turned to face him, her eyes hard. “Tranquility? Listen to what you have just told me over the past few days. Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, ethnic cleansing, the drug wars, Mexico, Africa, Russia, and the list goes on and on. The Warlords are warriors in the purest sense. They do their job cleanly and efficiently. They do not rape or torture or deceive. And most of all, they do not bring it home to me.”

Will approached her, a look of reconciliation on his face. “Oh, Chel—”

“No! Look at me. Really look at me. Do I look like I was misused or abused? Do I look torn or malnourished? Do you see any of the ravages of war on my body or in my eyes? Yes, it has been hard. But love is hard. And all my problems with them may have been accentuated by the shock of space and the loss of my family and my home. But I love being with them now!”

Will was staggered by her intensity. He stood stock-still, staring at his sister as if seeing her for the very first time.

Chelan tried to calm herself, but her emotions were still in flux. “And don’t you dare try to tell me about their brutality! As soon as I entered the outskirts of our beautiful resort town, I was descended upon by three salivating dogs with one thing on their filthy minds. And you can’t tell me that they were just there as a prim and proper welcoming committee. If I had gotten into their truck with them, do you think they would have respected me and kept their hands to themselves? Rape and violence are second nature to many of the men of this world, and the women of Earth live with the fear of it every day. Just in that aspect alone I am better off with the men of Iceanea. They respect me. They love me, and they protect me.” Chelan pounded at her chest with one fist. “They are everything to me! So don’t you ever criticize them, or my choices.”