Chapter 43

Lorelai

I figured I'd feel at loose ends, drifting about my new mansion, while waiting to hear from Ellax.

That wasn't what happened.

Instead, he'd barely left when chimes sounded, announcing one of the mechas at the door.

I was still wearing only Ellax's shirt, but waved the robot in anyway.

"Lady Lorelai," Fertis intoned. "Lady Sirena is here to see you."

"Lady Sirena?" I echoed. Of all the folks I'd have expected to show up, she was the last. Weren't her machinations enough for her? I couldn't believe she wasn't glorying over Ellax from a safe distance. This made no sense.

"Did she say why she's here?" I asked, my mind spinning in a million different directions.

"She did not."

"Okaaaayyy…" I drew the word out doubtfully. "Tell her I'll be right down," I said, already moving towards the box of clothing the mechas had brought up at some point yesterday. Where they'd come by the clothes, I didn't know. I'd wondered if they'd belonged to Druea, Ellax's first wife. Or if Ellax had sent out for them. Whatever the case, I pawed through the box, bypassing luscious gowns and pretty dresses, seeking something blunt and practical. That's how I felt now, facing Sirena. I wasn't going to put on the act of a nobleman's wife. I was Lorelai, I was pissed about what she was trying to do to my planet and my species, and there wasn't going to be any pretense about it.

Plain black slacks, sandals, and a cream blouse later, I felt prepared. I'd also brushed my hair and drawn it back into a ponytail, not bothering with anything pretty or elaborate. Now wasn't the time.

My clothing felt like armor as I marched down the hallway, only taking one wrong turn, before I located the same sitting room where I'd met with Sirena yesterday.

Progress.

The Asterion female had also forgone an elegant gown, wearing a tight, jet-black pantsuit that brought out the silver of her skin and the gold of her eyes. She looked very powerful, actually, I was forced to admit. And she'd somehow shown me up—again—without even trying. Nevertheless, I was determined not to let her see my weakness as I marched into the room, arms swinging, head held high.

"Lady Sirena," I said cooly. "I wasn't expecting to see you here."

She lifted her chin, smiling coldly. "I expect you were not. Ellax is gone, I take it?"

"I'm sure you know he is, or else you wouldn't be in our home."

"True," she agreed, not even bothering to dissent. "I've had his home observed since he returned."

This stopped me in my tracks. "You've been spying on us?"

"Watching you," she corrected. She stepped towards another vase, brimming with flowers. "You see, when I enact a plan, I like to ensure everything goes as planned."

I couldn't bear watching her destroy any more flowers. Couldn't stand her fake act anymore. Furious, I marched over to the vase, plucking it up and sweeping it away from her grasp.

"Cut to the chase, Sirena," I snapped. "Why are you here? If it's to tease or torment me, that's not going to fly. Say what you have to say, and get out of here. I'm waiting to hear from Ellax. And I'd rather not wait with you, no offense."

Sirena's mouth twitched. She'd chosen a pale pink lipstick today, which stood out sharply against her skin, her black bodysuit. I couldn't tell if her lips twitching indicated anger or humor. Whatever expression she was trying to hide, it fell away into stark hatred.

"I am not here to pass words with you, Lorelai," she said. Her voice was as hard as glass. "I'm here to fetch you."

"Fetch me?" I shifted the vase to my other side, balancing it on my hip. "What's that supposed to mean?"

I should've been watching her hands, I guess. Paying attention to the bag slung across her chest and hanging by her thigh. I hadn't expected any danger in my own home. Being an Elder's wife, I'd simply assumed I was safe.

Sirena shattered my assumptions by reaching into the bag and pulling out a stagger . I heard my sharp intake of breath as she raised the weapon, aiming it directly at my chest.

"It's unfortunate for you, Lorelai, that you and Ellax made that drunken mistake. That you made that foolish pact. That you had your mecha witness it."

"H—how did you know about that?" I demanded, dismayed. We hadn't told anyone about the pact.

"One of my lovers is quite adept at hacking mecha internal systems," she smirked. "I've been privy to Ellax's secrets for quite some time, thanks to monitoring his mechanical servants. Which means," she added, "don't bother calling Ellax's mechas for help. They're under my control. And his secretary? Vreld? He's gone too. I sent him on an errand, upon my arrival. We're quite alone, you and I."

I pressed my lips together to prevent my jaw from falling slack.

"Yes, my dear," she chuckled. "Thanks to the mechas, I know all about your business and the pact. If only you'd never crossed paths with Ellax. If only you'd never agreed to bear his child. If only you had no other children of your own, proving your fertility," she practically spat. "I could have allowed a simple, stupid marriage, especially with him agreeing to let you go in the end. But a child ruins everything."

"How does a child…"

" I want to bear his child!" she snarled. "I want him, I want his power united with mine on the Asterion Council, and I want our child to one day sit on the Interstellar Coalition. You have ruined all of those things for me!"

"Sirena." Deliberately, I kept my voice calm, even though I was terrified. I'd never met anyone so unhinged.

"I didn't mean to ruin anything for you. I didn't even know you. You can't—"

"Don't tell me what I can't," she sneered. The stagger twitched in her hand. I jumped involuntarily. She laughed, gleefully.

"People told me I would never sit with the Elders. I have done that. They told me I could never influence the course of worlds. I have done that. They told me I could never be rid of the foul humans." She nodded in self-appreciation. "Soon, I'll have done that. Some of them, anyway."

"Look, Sirena, I'm sorry anyone ever doubted you. Clearly, you're hardworking and talented and ambitious. I'm sorry people didn't recognize your worth. Still, that doesn't make it right to take it out on me, does it?"

The vase was trembling against my hip. I hoped she couldn't see it. If I was going to die, I wanted to be brave. I wouldn't give her the satisfaction of seeing my fear.

"I am not taking anything out on you, fool," she spat. "I am using you to ensure that my plans succeed."

"You're what?"

"Put the vase down, Lorelai. Turn, walk from the room. Remember that I am behind you with a weapon. And it will not hurt my conscience to use it on you."

She meant what she said. I could tell that. What I couldn't tell was why she was doing this.

"You're kidnapping me?"

"Let us call it exchanging one thing of value for another," she sneered. "I have you. Ellax's precious human wife. The potential carrier of his seed. If I have you, he will be forced to retract his opposition to the Coalition's decree. Drelor is not nearly as stubborn as Ellax. He will concede. And the wild humans will be blasted from existence."

"And…" I'd set the vase down and was walking, heading for the doorway, acutely aware of the crazed Asterion female at my back.

"And?"

"And then what? You just let me go? You're not afraid of punishments? Reprisals? You're kidnapping the wife of an Elder, a Lead Advisor."

"Oh," she chuckled, her tone so cold, so careless that it sent an arrow of fear straight through my heart. "I have my means of escape. Never fear, Lorelai. This has been meticulously planned."

She's going to kill me.

The realization fell onto my shoulders like the weight of a backpack filled with lead.

She doesn't have a choice. She'll have to kill me and pin the blame on someone or something else. That's her way out.

What do I do? I wondered next.

We were in the main corridor now, which would lead to the foyer, then the front door. To my shock, I saw dark figures approaching, backlit by the sunlight streaming in through the open door.

"Here they are," Sirena announced. "Reinforcements. In case you decide to do something foolish."

I'd been considering it. My fingertips had brushed a marble-topped end table as I stepped into the corridor. On it was another vase. Tall. Glass. Heavy. Sirena was behind me with her stagger . Two strangers were walking toward me. Were they armed too?

I couldn't let myself stop to think, or I'd never have the courage to act. In one swift movement, I snatched the vase, whirled, and brought it down with all my might on Sirena's forearm. She screamed, her weapon clattering to the floor. I sidestepped her, slipping in the water and fallen flowers from the vase, but catching myself with a hand to the end table before taking off running down the hall.

"Get her!" Sirena shrieked, clutching her arm. "Your lives are forfeit if you let her escape."

Escape? I didn't even know where to go! I figured somewhere opposite the front door had to be a back door, and I charged that direction. Unfortunately, I didn't make it far before I heard heavy, pounding footsteps. I wasn't a sprinter and these guys were fast. I barely made a dozen paces before I felt strong hands seizing my arm, spinning me about. Iron fingers squeezed the back of my neck so hard that my knees buckled and I cried out in pain. A stagger was pressed to my temple.

"Get up," the unknown alien snarled. "Walk. No more tricks."

Damn it.

My escape attempt had been futile, but at least I'd tried. I hadn't gone down without a fight, just like I knew Ellax wouldn't go down without a fight, facing the Coalition off planet. I tried to draw comfort from that as the pair of brutes marched me past a furious Sirena. Kicking shards of broken vase out of the way, she tramped after us, muttering vile names and imprecations against me and my species. My sense of dread grew as we passed Fertis who stood on the front porch, gazing at us blankly, doing nothing to help me. The mecha had indeed been hacked.

Nobody's coming to save me. I've got to get myself out of here. If I don't…

The words choked in my throat as I was forced into Sirena's waiting transport and seated between her goons. She hoisted herself in after me, the stagger aimed directly at my heart. Once again, she was smiling. She had me in her power, and knew it.

If I don't, I die. That's it. You've got to do something, Lorelai.

I did. I surely did. Unfortunately, I had no idea what to do.