DangerouslyForever (21 page)

Alharad? Here?

Her knees weakened. The room swam. Her vision darkened.

Strong hands were on her arms, holding her up.

“Ally. Ally!” Kiehle called her name. His voice seemed so
far away.

Her stomach churned. Bile rose to the back of her throat.

“Ally, stay with me, hon,” Eva coaxed.

“I’m all right,” Ally said.

Is that my voice?

She sounded so…so…in shock. She let Kiehle ease her into a
chair. “I’m not going back there,” she said.

“You’re not,” both Eva and Kiehle said at the same time.

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind. Alharad was
here for one thing and one thing only.

Me.

“I hope you told him I’m not going anywhere with him.”

Kiehle and Eva exchanged glances while Jess and Rasha looked
at anything
other
than her. Mazel was the only one who would meet her
gaze, and when she did, she shook her head.

“You didn’t? That’s okay. I’ll tell him myself.”

Eva exhaled. “He doesn’t want you…”

“He wants the kids,” Kiehle said, finishing her sentence.

Ally erupted from her seat, knocking the chair over. “Fuck
that!”

Kiehle put a hand on her shoulder. “I know. Taio’s working
on it now.”

“What’s there to work on? He can’t have them! He was going
to make Yoshi work the brothel and God knows what he’ll do to Max when he gets
his hands on him. Tell Alharad no and send him on his fucking way.” She looked
around at everyone. “How the hell did he find us, anyway?”

“He put out a notice for your return and found out that Eva
had been looking for you too. That’s how he was able to track you here,” Taio
said.

“You won’t let him take the kids, will you?” she asked in
shock.

“We won’t,” Taio said.

Ally’s head began to swim. The walls seemed to close in
around her. “Then why doesn’t he just leave? Why is he still here?” she asked.

“It’s not that simple,” Taio said.

She crossed her arms. “It is to me.”

“He’s contacted the Galactic Council for mediation.”

“I don’t care who the fuck he’s contacted. It’s illegal for
him to keep children in the brothel. Even I know that.”

Taio shook his head. “He’s claiming that the children did
not work in the brothel. They were his personal slaves in his personal
quarters.”

“But Max lived in the brothel.”

“With you,” Taio said. “He said you took to Max and wanted
to care for him as your own. He says he was being nice to you and checked up on
Max often to ensure he wasn’t doing anything illegal.”

“But…” She looked around at all the worried faces. “Yoshi.
He was going to make her work the brothel.”

“When she came of age. Which is not illegal.”

She shook her head. “No. They can’t go back. I won’t let you
give them away.”

Kiehle pulled her to him. “We aren’t going to let that
happen. He’s got a case, is all Taio is saying. It doesn’t mean that we’ll
comply with anything the Galactic Council says.”

She nodded toward Taio. “You’re one of them. Whatever they
decide, you’ll do.”

“I am not giving children back to Alharad.”

“That’s one vote in my favor,” Ally muttered.

“No,” Taio said. “They have banned me from voting on this
issue since I am the one harboring them.”

Ally’s heart sank.

Kiehle cradled her chin in his hands, lifting it. “I’m not
going to let anything happen to you
or
them.”

She wanted to believe him more than anything.

* * * * *

The verdict from the Galactic Council came sooner than she’d
expected.

The children belonged to Alharad. He had the proper
documentation for them and because he had not broken any laws, they were to be
returned to him immediately. The council had investigated Ally’s claim and had
gone to the brothel looking for any evidence of any wrongdoing, but hadn’t
found any. They had no choice but to return Alharad’s “property” to him.

Ally lost it when the news came in. Why would they send
children back to a monster? What kind of council would allow that to happen?

Kiehle and Eva tried to explain how the council worked, but
she hadn’t wanted to listen. While returning children to a brothel owner was
wrong in her mind, it wasn’t wrong according to the rules and laws set forth by
the council. Alharad had bought them legally and as long as he obeyed the laws,
they couldn’t find a reason to side with Taio.

She wasn’t the only one who had disagreed with the council.
Thankfully, Taio and Eva had as well. Taio held true to his word and refused to
give up the children.

Ally was still reeling from the blow dealt by the Galactic
Council when Lo’Ren had told her that, because Taio wouldn’t send the children
back to Alharad, he would instead resign his position on the council. A
position that he’d held for over thirty years.

No. This wasn’t right.

This was a big mess and she had brought it all to her best
friend’s doorstep.

She ran to Eva’s residence and burst through the door. “I
can’t let him give up his seat.”

Eva had Lyia cradled in her arms. Exhaustion showed on her
face. “He doesn’t want to, but it looks like he won’t have a choice.”

“Can’t we just appeal? I mean, we should be able to do that,
right?”

“Taio’s going to keep working on them. And if it fails, he’s
going to give up his seat.”

She stopped pacing to look at Eva. “Then what will happen?”

Eva shrugged. Nothing much.

“Don’t lie to me. What will happen if he disobeys their
order?”

“I don’t want you to get worked up more than you already
are.”

“Eva…”

Eva took a deep breath and looked away. “They’ll impose
sanctions on Drazlan and Sonis. We’ll be considered outcasts, not open for free
trade or protection.”

Ally put her hands on her head, trying to stop the swimming.

This can’t be happening.

“Ally, don’t worry about us. Taio won’t let anything happen
to Drazlan or Sonis and our defense systems are some of the best in the galaxy.
We’ll be fine.”

“Can’t we just pay Alharad off? He’s a greedy fucker. He’ll
take anything you give him.”

“That was the first thing Taio and Kiehle tried to do. He refused.”

“That asshole. He doesn’t want them. He only wants to make
me suffer.”

Eva got up and laid Liya in her bassinet. “That’s probably
true.”

Ally dropped to the edge of Eva’s bed, hanging her head low.
This sucked major. “I’m sorry I got everyone involved in this mess.”

“Hey, look at me.”

Reluctantly, she looked up.

“We take care of our own. And you and the kids are ours
now.”

Ally believed her. But it still didn’t make her feel better.
“I better get going,” she said, rising. “Mazel will be bringing the kids back
from their lessons in a little bit.”

“Do you want me to stop by later?”

Ally shook her head. “No. It’s fine. I think I’ll just spend
a quiet night with them.”

“Okay. Call me if you need me. And I mean it, don’t worry.
We’ll get through this.”

“I know.” Ally leaned over Liya’s bed and gave her a kiss on
her forehead.

She left Eva’s room and descended the winding staircase that
led to the bottom floor. On her way to the front entrance, she passed what
appeared to be a small office, maybe somewhere Taio conducted business without
having to go to his larger office on the top floor of the palace. But the
room’s purpose hadn’t been the reason she’d stopped at the door.

It was the communications monitor that sat on the desk.

She looked around. Nobody here but her.

She entered and went straight to the monitor.

She turned it on, looking through the menu for options. She
chose Connect. Another set of options came up. She chose Log from the available
choices. She scanned through them until she found “Alharad Nijiaira”.

Bingo.

She selected his name to make the connection. Nothing seemed
to happen until she noticed a red blinking light in the corner.

What does that mean?

She waited.

Eva was busy with Liya and Taio wasn’t home, but that still
didn’t stop Ally’s heart from speeding up, scared that someone might catch her.

“Connected to Alharad Nijiaira,” a voice from the monitor
said.

She straightened.
Here it goes.

Alharad’s face projected onto the screen.

After a moment of surprised silence, he smiled. “What have
we here? I wasn’t expecting you to call. I must say, this is a pleasant
surprise.”

She bit the inside of her cheek. She didn’t need to say
anything that would piss him off. She took a few breaths before responding.
“You left me no choice.”

He put a hand over his chest. “Who? Me?”

“Let’s cut the shit. What do I have to do to keep the kids
here with me?”

“As I’ve told that giant King Taio, they’re not for sale. I
miss them tremendously and want them returned home immediately.”

She slammed her hand on the desk. The lying fuck. “You don’t
miss them. They don’t mean
anything
to you. Even if we return them, the
Galactic Council will be watching your every move, ensuring that you don’t send
them to work in the brothel. They’ll be just two more mouths to feed.”

He shrugged. “I’m just a loving owner separated from his
slaves.”

“You’re always talking about getting a return on your
investment. They’ll cost you money.”

“That may be true,” he said nonchalantly.

Then it hit her.

She leaned back in the chair. “Take me instead.” It was her
only option.

“You’ll be too much trouble. I could’ve asked the Galactic
Council to return you too, but King Taio and his queen would only bother me to
no end until they got you back.”

“You don’t want them. You want
me
.”

He watched her intently, neither confirming nor denying her
claim.

“The Galactic Council won’t feel the need to watch over
me—I’m an adult. I’ll leave willingly.”

He steeped his fingers together. “I want all three of you
back or no deal.”

“Don’t be greedy, Alharad. It’s me or nothing.”

“Why would you do this for those worthless children?”

“Because I love them. They have something here that I never
thought I’d be able to give them. I’ll go with you, but they get to stay.”

“Deal.”

Deal.

She disconnected the line after working out all the
particulars of when he’d withdraw his request from the council, when she would
leave and where he would pick her up. She felt a deep sense of dread as she
walked back to her apartment. There was no going back. This was a sacrifice
that she needed to make. The kids would stay here and be loved and taken care
of by Eva. Maybe once in a while, if she behaved, Alharad would allow her to
speak with them via communicator.

And Kiehle…would go on.

She walked into her home to the sound of giggles. She
followed them to a set of doors and onto a large balcony.

She stepped outside, where the suns shined bright in the
sky. She’d almost forgotten how sunny and warm it was here. The last couple of
days had felt dark. She looked around, enjoying the view. When she went back to
Yinnis, there would be no outside. No sun shining on her. No fresh air.

No giggles from Yoshi or Max.

Her breath hitched.

No Yoshi or Max.

“Ally! Ally!” Max called to her.

She smiled and looked down at the garden, where he was
sitting with Yoshi and Kiehle, and what appeared to be two furry bear cubs.

“What are those?” she asked.

“Kiehle brought them for us. They’re called
nekrans
.
They’re our pets!”

She reached the bottom of the stairs. “Pets?” she asked
Kiehle. Taio and Eva would already be burdened to take care of Yoshi and Max
when she left. How could she expect them to take on pets too?

He grabbed one of the fur balls and held it out to her. “Do
you want to hold him?”

“Really? You should’ve asked me first. Now is not the time
for pets.”

He chuckled. “It’s fine. We’ve all been anxious lately; the
pets will serve as a nice distraction.”

“That’s a lot of responsibility you’re putting on me.”
On
Eva.

He put the animal down and frowned. “The kids wanted pets. I
thought you wouldn’t mind.”

She looked at Yoshi and Max, who also wore frowns.

Her hands began to shake. “I-I just don’t think the pets are
a good idea. Take them back. I can’t take care of them.”

“Ally, relax. You’re getting worked up about animals.”

“You…you just don’t understand.” She turned and ran up the
stairs, ignoring his calls to stop.

She tried to slam the door behind her but Kiehle caught it,
coming in after her. “What’s the problem?”

She shook her head. “Nothing—everything. Kiehle…this,
us
…isn’t
long term.”

His back straightened. A shadow passed over his eyes,
darkening his irises. Something inside her cried out. A twinge of guilt pushed
its way to the surface. “What do you mean?”

“I have to do what’s right for Max and Yoshi. I can’t let
whatever is going on between us distract me from my real purpose.”

“Distract you?” He shook his head. “I want to be with you. I
thought—”

“Kiehle, I am who I am. I’ll do anything for those kids.”

“Of course you will. You love them and they love you.”

Her lips trembled. “I love them so much that my wants and
needs are trivial when it comes to their safety and well-being. Th-that’s why
we need to go our separate ways.”

“Separate ways? Why would I do such a thing? You’re who I
want. Only you.”

“But
I
don’t want
you
.” The words hurt as she said
them. “I have too much going on in my life right now. I just need to focus on
me and the kids.”