The Princess and her Alien Rogue: Alien Romance (14 page)

“Can’t you tell?” she asked the two men who were using earpieces to listen and small microphones to talk to the space ports.

“No. The Emissars put their own men in here; we have no idea who might have landed on the planet or taken off.”

“Although we don’t think there is any danger of that,” Helker added quickly. “The Emissars wanted to keep their race and our planet pure, we believe they had plans to close the star ports and ban all travel to and from the planet.”

“That sounds plausible,” Tallia said.

“Yet it gives us no answers.” Helker frowned and then stood silently next to her as they waited for news.

“We have a clear sighting,” one of the seated men said. “They are trying to hail the fleet.”

A longer silence, and Tallia longed to grab the earpiece and listen into the conversation herself. Instead she bit her lip to stop herself from asking if the hail had been answered. When they knew, she would be told.

“Are you sure?” the man asked. He waited for a reply. “I will relay your news.”

“What is it?” Tallia asked. “Do they know?”

“Yes. Queen Tallia, we should prepare for battle.”

“Who is it?” she asked. “The Garundi?”

“No, the threat comes from a new source, a species we have not had much contact with except for a few trade vessels.”

“Who?” she asked.

“They are Limerian.”

Her legs nearly gave out from under her. “Are you sure?” she asked, her hand gripping the back of one of the chairs.

“Repeat,” he asked into the microphone. Then he turned to Tallia. “Yes. We are certain.”

Helker looked at her. “What are your orders, Queen Tallia?”

Helker had no battle experience and Tallia had precious little herself. But were the Limerian ships here to fight? Had news got out that something bad had happened to Johar, and they had come to mount a rescue mission. If that was so, this was going to be awkward, she would have to tell them she had no idea where he was, or even if he was alive.

The alternative was that Johar was aboard one of those ships cruising towards Carinia. And if he was, did he intend peace … or war?

Chapter Twenty-Six – Johar

“They know we are coming,” Krigan said to Johar as the planet came into view.

“Did they hail us?” Johar asked.

“Yes. They asked who we were and what we intended.”

“And the answer given?”

“We told them we wished to speak to Tallia, Princess of Carinia.”

“And?” Johar asked.

“They said they would relay the message.”

“Relay the message.” He came forward to the control deck, and sat down next to Krigan. “I will speak next time. I will know if they are playing games. It would be just like the Emissars to try to trick us into thinking all is well.

He picked up the radio and spoke to the lead ship, the one that carried his father. His brother had stayed behind on Limera. Despite Tahar’s protests, their father had told him it was too risky for them all to leave their home planet and travel together in a fleet. If an enemy knew it was so, they would send every force possible to wipe them out. The clan had not remained in their family for so long by taking unnecessary risks. Although Tahar had argued strenuously against being left behind.

“Father.” Johar spoke into the comms unit.

“Johar. If they give the radio to your princess, you must determine if anything she says is real and if she is being coerced.”

“I will, Father.” Johar was hoping that Tallia was safe, and he would soon hear her voice. The alternative was too painful, and if the Emissars had killed his woman, there would be nowhere for them to hide on this planet or any other.

“We have contact,” Krigan said, passing the comms headphone over to Johar. He took it, and put it to his ear, the mouthpiece in his other hand.

“Limerian Fleet, this is Carinia. Please state your business,” an unknown voice said.

“Our business is with Princess Tallia,” Johar replied.

“Johar. Is that really you?” Her voice over the comms unit caught him by surprise. “Tallia?”

“Yes. Where did you go?” she asked, her voice breathy and excited.

“Home. I have returned to free you.”

“A little too late,” she said, and he could hear by the tone in her voice that all was well. He turned to call Rian forward. “Here, I’m sure Tallia will want to know you are safe.”

Rian took the comms from him, and he was glad of the time to collect his thoughts. He had gone home to his father, been usurped by his brother, of which he didn’t mind one bit. As long as she still wanted him.

Johar had planned to come back to rescue his princess like a hero from the tales of old. Yet she had taken care of it herself. Would she still want him if the threat to her life was gone? He could not even present himself as a prince anymore. He was no one, the second son of a ruling clan chief, who had no special title or powers, save for the ability to glow in the dark.

“Yes. We are both well,” Rian was saying, her smile wide as she talked to her princess.

“Ask if we have permission to land,” Krigan said.

“May the fleet land, My Princess?” Rian asked. “I am sorry, habit. My Queen.”

She was a queen now, of course. That made him feel even worse, if that was possible. He didn’t want to land, he wanted to turn around and fly away, go back to trading with Krigan, and the simple life he had led before he met her. However, when he saw the way Krigan looked at Rian, it was obvious there was no going back. The carefree life they led was over for good. Women and babies beckoned.

“She says of course you may land. She will meet us at the main Carinian star port.” Rian placed the comms unit down, and then turned to look at Johar. “She asks if you are well.”

“Did she?” he asked, feeling nervous.

“You are afraid.” Rian approached him. “She will still want you. I saw the way she looked at you.”

“The same way my second in command looks at you.”

Rian blushed. “I still belong to My Prin … Queen.”

“She will set you free. She wants everyone to be free.”

Rian smiled shyly. “I am scared too. She gave me sanctuary; being her slave made me feel safe. Even when the Emissars were threatening. What if I make the wrong decisions on my own?”

“Then you will learn from them and make some more.” He lowered his voice. “Krigan is a good, honest man.”

“That is not what I saw the first time I met you two.”

“Oh, it’s me who leads him astray,” Johar said. “But those days are gone.”

He guided her to a seat, and sat down next to her. They fastened their seatbelts, and he closed his eyes, imagining Tallia’s face, a face that smiled and looked happy to see him.

Rian reached across and placed her hand on his. “She deserves to be happy. She deserves you.”

“I hope she sees it that way,” he said.

“She will, Johar.”

As they began to descend through the upper atmosphere, the cruiser bumped around; if their seatbelts had not been on, they would have been catapulted from their seats. Johar only hoped his life with Tallia would be a smoother journey. If she would have him.

Chapter Twenty-Seven – Tallia

Tallia was nervous. Usually Rian would help calm her, but her slave wasn’t here. She had sounded different when they had spoken over the comms, and Tallia wondered what had happened in the days she had been missing. At least she was safe.

By worrying about Rian, she was preoccupying herself. It blocked out what she really wanted to think of. Johar. What would he say now she was queen? She didn’t need him, didn’t need to pay him to pretend to be her husband. That did not mean she didn’t want him.

The thought of ruling alone was scary, and yet she could not ask him to stay and be her king, not when it was the very thing he had run away from when he had left his own planet. She could understand why. Watching her mother and father as she grew up, she witnessed the pressures placed on them, the expectations. Those same expectations belonged to her now.

“Queen Tallia.” Helker pointed up to the sky, and there, streaming towards the ground like blazing meteorites, was the fleet from Limera.

Her stomach turned over in anticipation. She was about to be reunited with her husband, and meet his father. What would the King of Limera think of the outsider his son had taken as a wife? What worried her more, was whether the king would let his son stay with her, or if they would be separated by duty. Tallia on Carinia, Johar on Limera.

As the fleet circled and landed, she tried not to let this dampen her excitement. He was here. For however long, she did not know, but she would take every moment and treasure it.

An endless wait while her guards went down to check the Limerians for weapons. It was usual to allow hand weapons, but no big lasers, to be brought into the town. The alien visitors did not put up any objections.

She waited impatiently as they approached. She could see Rian clearly, she walked at the front, looking tiny compared to the Limerians who were all well over six foot, with at least five of them seven feet tall. One of whom was Johar. She could see him now: he glowed, as did another of the aliens, and she guessed this had to be his father. As they drew closer, she could see the older man had similar tattoos over his body, but he did not glow as Johar did.

As they got nearer, she saw Johar looking for her, and then his eyes fixed on her and she could see the glow of his tattoos grow brighter. His father glanced at him, and then looked straight at her, and she felt as if his eyes were boring into her soul. The magic surrounding him seemed stronger, as if he could penetrate the barriers she had constructed so carefully. Then he looked away, and spoke to Johar.

The two of them stopped, and the other Limerians did too, gathering around their ruler. After a minute of discussion, Johar proceeded forward with his father, Krigan and Rian. The other aliens waited, watching their king walk away.

Nervously, she stood her ground, the smile on Johar’s face putting her at ease, but his father’s face was set firm. Forcing a smile onto her face, she went out to meet them, needing this first meeting to be over with. Attacking the Garundi had been much easier than facing her father-in-law.

“Queen Tallia,” the older man said, holding out his hand to her. She took his hand and then tensed in shock when he pulled her forward and bowed his head to touch her forehead. He was so tall, he had to bend a long way down to reach her, giving her time to recover herself.

“Greetings. King…”

“King Kahar,” Johar told her, his smile wide and his eyes fixed on her. It might have felt as though his father had penetrated her soul. Johar, on the other hand, was simply undressing her. His desire was openly displayed on his face.

“King Kahar. Welcome.”

“It is good to meet the woman who has tamed my son,” King Kahar said.

“I didn’t know I had tamed him,” she said.

“Well, I don’t know what you did. But I am grateful all the same. It is not good when your child disappears and you do not know if they are alive or dead, or been sold in some slavers’ market.”

“You make me sound as if I were twelve,” Johar protested. “I can take care of myself.”

“But to take care of your woman you had to come running home.” He grinned at Tallia. “And I have you to thank for his return.”

“Not really,” she said. “I could just as easily have got him killed.”

“But you didn’t. Maybe fate was on your side.” King Kahar grinned, obviously happy with the way things had turned out, and a look from Johar told her it was better to allow Johar’s father to believe that. Tallia wondered if he had told him about Misha’Ha too, but she would wait to ask him in private.

“Maybe it was,” Tallia murmured in agreement. Then she turned to Rian, who had been standing back from the two men, almost hidden behind them. “Rian. Thank you.”

She moved forward, embracing her friend. “It is good to see you, My Queen.”

“I have missed you.” Tallia managed to swallow her tears.

“I missed you too.” Rian pulled back and smiled. “This is Krigan.”

“I remember him from the market,” Tallia said, glancing at Rian and instantly seeing that there was a connection between her and Krigan. She took Rian’s hand and squeezed it, letting her know she approved, not that it was up to Tallia anymore. “I would like you to continue working for me, Rian. We can discuss your wage tomorrow.”

“You still own me, My Queen,” Rian said.

“No. I don’t. We have already passed a new law to banish slavery from Carinia. The slavers will soon learn they are not welcome. So you see, you have to be free, or I will be breaking my own law.”

“Thank you,” Rian said, although she looked unsure. “Will I still be able to stay in the palace?”

“Of course, I thought you might like one of the guest bedrooms as your own. Which reminds me, we should walk to the palace, and get you all settled before dinner.”

Tallia turned to walk away, but Johar caught her hand and pulled her back to him. “If everyone will excuse us, I wish to kiss my wife. Rian, can I ask you to show my father and Krigan to their rooms?”

“Of course,” Rian said happily.

His father laughed, slapped his arm hard, and said, “Take your time. I’m sure you two have a lot of catching up to do.” He followed Rian towards the palace. “What about my men?” he asked, turning back to look at his men who were waiting where he had left them.

“Helker will sort them out, there is a spare barracks they may use, if that is suitable,” Tallia said, trying to keep her thoughts on the King rather than on his son, who was making her feel all kinds of wonderful sensations as his thumb brushed the sensitive skin on the inside of her wrist.

“Yes. But I would rather they were settled in first before I am shown my room. If you don’t mind,” King Kahar said. “It means they won’t get themselves into trouble, if I’m around.”

“Let me get them settled in, father,” Johar offered.

“No, son. You go and spend some time with your wife.” He hesitated and then added, “You made a good choice.”

They watched him walk off, and then Tallia said, “He does not know about Misha’Ha?”