Laura Jo Phillips (3 page)

Talinka’s large green eyes grew serious.  “I have been the overseer for Bride House for many years now,” she began.  “The main reason I am overseer is because I am an Alverian Empath.  As such, I am able to detect those women who are not truly wanting to marry a Clan Jasani male-set to have a family, but who have...,”  Talinka paused for a moment, searching for the right word.  “Those who have a different agenda,” she finished delicately.  

Hope set her cup down and picked up a slice of toast.  “Yes, I know,” she said.  “But Talinka, I assure you, I did not come here for a quick way to get rich and leave.”

Talinka’s eyes widened in surprise, then her white skin blushed a faint peach color.  “Forgive me, Hope Strigida,” she said quickly.  “I did not mean to imply such of you.  I am well aware of your sincerity.”

 “I’m glad,” Hope said.  “The truth is, I never really thought much about getting married.  I’ve always been content with my life.  Then one day I just got it into my head that it was really important that I come here.  That I was
supposed
to come here.  I thought I was meant to find a male-set.  But it didn’t happen.”

“Yes, I have sensed your feelings most clearly, Hope.  Your strong excitement and anticipation when you first arrived, and your earnest belief that the right men would come at any moment.  Right up until last night, when you realized your time was up and the doors were closing to visitors for the day.  Even now, you are not only disappointed, you are also confused.”

“You’re right, Talinka,” Hope admitted.  “I am confused.  I was so certain this was the right thing for me to do, even though a part of me has been against it from the start.

“Against it?” Talinka asked curiously.

“I was raised by my mother, and then my Aunt,” Hope explained.  “They both had some fairly strict rules when it came to the subjects of sex, love and marriage.  Let’s just say that living with three men at once is not something they would approve of.”

“Yes, many women who come here struggle with that issue,” Talinka said.  “I admit that for myself, personally, I would have difficulty with it as well.  But it helps to know that, for the Jasani, this is not a sexual preference.  It is a physiological difference in the way they are made.  They look very human, so it is quite easy to forget that.”

“I understand that, which is why I followed my feelings and came here,” Hope said.  “I was so certain it was the right thing to do.  Perhaps it is just as well that I was wrong.”

“Hope, please tell me, were you certain that coming to Bride House was the right thing to do?” Talinka asked.  “Or, were you certain that coming to Jasan was the right thing to do?”

Hope took a bite of her toast as she considered that question carefully.  “I don’t think it was either,” she said slowly.  “I was sitting on the bus one day and there were two women in the seat behind me talking about an ad in the newsreader for contract brides on Jasan.  I don’t think I’d ever even heard of Jasan before that moment, or if I had I don’t remember it.  But that day, when one of those ladies said
Jasan
, the thought that popped into my head was that my future lay on Jasan.

“The moment I got home I went straight to my vid terminal to look for the newsreader ad for contract brides.  When I looked into the options, I knew that I couldn’t go the contract bride route, agreeing to marry men I’d never met.  Bride House was the only other option, so I made a reservation that very same day.  Which, to be honest, is not like me at all.  I am usually very logical and deliberate about things.  I rarely do anything on the spur of the moment, but I just
had
to do it.”

Talinka frowned as she listened to Hope’s story.  It was too much like other stories she had been hearing of late. 

“What’s up, Talinka?” Hope asked curiously. 

“I am not sure,” Talinka replied.  “Over the past eighteen months I have seen a few other women come through Bride House with much the same feelings, expectations and disappointments as you.  Those women also told me of a sudden need to come to Jasan, or a sudden belief that Jasan was where they belonged.  And, like you, those women left here disappointed and confused when they did not find what they were looking for.” 

“Interesting,” Hope said slowly.  “What are you thinking?”

“I do not know,” Talinka replied.  “I wish to discuss this matter with some other people.  If you would not mind giving me your vid code, I will contact you on Earth, should I learn anything.”

“All right,” Hope agreed.  She gave Talinka her vid code, though she wasn’t really sure whether she wanted to hear anything from the Alverian or not.  Maybe it would be best to leave all of this behind her and just get on with her life. 

“I would ask you a question,” Talinka said, her face blushing a faint peach color again.  “However, before I do, I must tell you that I ask out of curiosity only.  Please do not feel as though you must answer.”

“I will answer your question if you will answer one for me,” Hope said with a smile.

“That is fair,” Talinka replied, relieved that Hope was not offended.  “You may go first.”

“My question is, why do you seem embarrassed about asking a question?” Hope wondered.

“As an Empath, I sense people’s emotional state, and their emotional responses to questions or situations.  It is not something I can prevent, or turn off.  Because of that, in my culture it is deemed rude to ask personal questions of people when I already know so much without asking.”

“That makes sense,” Hope replied.  “But I don’t think it’s rude, so ask what you please.  If I don’t want to answer you, then I’ll say so.”

“Again, that is fair,” Talinka replied.  “As might seem obvious, we Alverians have an affinity to feathered creatures, and I could not help noticing those on your wrist.  They are quite beautiful, but I have never seen such, and admit to curiosity about them.”

Hope lifted her right hand and gazed at the tattoo of four stylized owls connected with Greek script that encircled her wrist.  The owls themselves were patterned after the ones used on ancient Athenian coins.  A side view of an owl’s body with the head facing forward, and overly large round eyes.  Each owl was done in metallic silver with fine gold lines outlining each feather.  The script was also in gold, making the tattoo appear more like a bracelet than a tattoo until you looked closely at it.

“The birds are called
owls
,” Hope said.  “On my world there is an ancient culture called
Greek
.  In that culture, there is a legend of a woman named Athena who transformed into this bird at will.  I don’t know if that’s true, but it’s an ancient Greek symbol that was important to both my mother and my Aunt Olivia. 

“This tattoo is representative of my family.  One owl each for myself, my mother, my aunt and my cousin, with our names in Greek lettering connecting them together.  It is a reminder to myself that even though my mother and aunt are no longer physically with us, we are still connected in spirit and heart.”

“I see that each owl has a different eye color,” Talinka said.  “As one has the unique turquoise of your own eyes, I assume that the others are the same as your family members, is that correct?”.

“Yes, that’s right,” Hope replied.

“It is very beautiful,” Talinka said as she bowed her head solemnly.  “I thank you for sharing such a personal story with me.”

“You’re welcome,” Hope said.

“Are shape-shifters common on your world?” Talinka asked.

“Only in legends and stories,” Hope replied. 

“What is the difference between a legend and a story?” Talinka asked.  “I thought they were the same thing.”

“A legend is something that is perceived to be true by the teller and, usually, by the listener,” Hope replied.  “Even if it contains elements that seem extraordinary, such as shape-shifters, it is told as though it were truth.  A story may be either truth or fiction.”

“I see,” Talinka said thoughtfully.  “May I ask, do you believe the legend of Athena transforming into a bird?”

“I don’t know,” Hope replied slowly.  “I suppose the truest answer is that it has a ring of truth for me.”

Chapter
4

Earth, Texas, Redoubt of the Brethren

Stalnek Winicke was worried, and he did not like to be worried.  He paced his office, glaring at the vid terminal every time he passed the desk.  He had sent two messages to his son, William, on Li-Hach-Cor over the past week and so far William had not responded to either of them.  At first he had just thought that William was off tormenting the Aki as he sometimes did.  Stalnek had no problem with that, so long as William was careful not to draw the attention of the Li-Hach.  After all, it was a boring planet.  The boy had to have something to do for fun now and then.

But William had never gone a week without checking in with his father, no matter what he was doing or how busy he might be.  He had never failed to respond to messages from his father either. 

Stalnek had ordered a new message sent to the compound with a bounce tracer, and had been waiting impatiently for days to get a response on it.  Finally the time had come when they could reasonably expect that response.  He was ready to chew nails, he was so impatient for it. 

A soft knock at the door caused Stalnek to flinch slightly, his nerves were so frayed from the waiting.  Aside from the fact that William was his son, he was extremely important to the Brethren.  He was currently the most advanced member of their race.  There had been several others up until a few hundred years earlier when an entire compound was destroyed during the Bolkin Wars.

The Brethren hadn’t fought in the wars.  They remained apart from humans.  In fact, humans were not even aware of their existence.  But the Brethren’s main compound had been near the former city Phoenix, and they had all been killed when the Bolkins glassed that city without warning.

Even though the Brethren had since been careful to build their compounds far from any human habitation, Stalnek still worried about the safety of his son.  Aside from his importance to the Brethren, William was also Stalnek’s pride and joy.  Which was why William was on Li-Hach-Cor.  It was a planet with a small population of farmers under the protection of the fierce Li-Hach.  And William’s presence there was largely unknown.  It had been the safest place Stalnek had been able to find for his precious son. 

“Enter,” Stalnek barked after he took a moment to calm himself.  It would not be wise to show weakness of any sort, not even to his cousin and right-hand man, Kevlin.

The door opened and Kevlin entered, closing the door carefully behind himself.  Stalnek studied Kevlin’s expression and the way he moved, and mentally braced himself for bad news.

“The message bounced, didn’t it?” Stalnek guessed, unwilling to wait for Kevlin to work up the nerve to say it himself.

“I am sorry, but yes,” Kevlin replied.  “The message was not received at all.  It was a clean bounce.”

“Damn,” Stalnek said softly, turning to look out the windows behind his desk in an effort to conceal the worry he couldn’t hide.  He struggled to set aside his personal feelings for William, and think of the situation in terms of what was best for the Brethren.  After all, William was the undisputed Chosen of the Brethren, the one who would follow in Stalnek’s footsteps.

Kevlin waited patiently.  He was very worried about William himself, though not for personal reasons.  He totally despised William.  He was self-centered, pushy, rude, and cruel, all traits he had learned at his father’s scaly knee. 

Kevlin would never repeat that estimation of course.  He valued his life too much.  But he also knew that, like it or not, William was the culmination of many centuries of effort for the Brethren, and their Chosen.  They could not afford to lose him.  They could not afford to lose any members of their dwindling race. 

“Prepare my yacht,” Stalnek said as he swung around to face Kevlin.  “I am going to Li-Hach-Cor myself, and I want to leave as soon as possible.”

“Yes, Sir,” Kevlin replied.  “I have already contacted the hangar and they have assured me that the
Chameleon
can be ready to leave in twelve hours.”

“Very good,” Stalnek replied, pleased that Kevlin had come to the same conclusion.  “Will you accompany me?”

Kevlin bowed.  “If that is your wish, I would be pleased to do so.”

“Select a crew,” Stalnek ordered.  “Tell them to report at the hangar immediately.  And get my brother in here.  Jarlek will need to oversee the Redoubt while I’m gone, so I will need a few hours with him.  ”

“Yes, Sir,” Kevlin replied.  “What of the
berezi
pull?”

“How many are on the list?” Stalnek asked.

“At this time, just one,” Kevlin replied.  “There are three potentials expected within the next few weeks though.”

That there would be four potentials in a few short weeks was a huge number.  And that was a problem.  A very big problem.

Stalnek had secretly wondered if his failure to find new
berezi
over recent years was due to a decrease in the numbers of
berezi
, or a decrease in his ability to scent them.  All he had to do was scent Berta to know the truth, but he refused to do that.  Whenever he went to the old compound to scent potentials, he deliberately avoided the woman.