The Days of the Golden Moons (The Two Moons of Rehnor, Book 5) (7 page)

Chapter 15

Jerry

I
saw on Galaxy Net Daily that Katie had met with the President of the Alliance
and the Governor of Rozari.  I was sitting in the coffee shop drinking an Iced
Green Tea Frappe sweetened with stevia and eating an 18 grain raisin roll for
breakfast.  The news service had a short vid clip of Katie standing with the
other guys and Lord Taner, the guy I once gave a bypass to, hovered right
behind her. 

Actually,
Taner didn’t look too well in the clip.  I did a mental calculation and
wondered if he needed a follow up procedure.  Katie looked awesome though.  She
looked beautiful while she was here playing Ninja sandwich maker, but she
looked absolutely gorgeous dressed up like a queen.  The funny thing was as I
studied this clip, as I watched her face over and over on my tablet, I
realized, I didn’t need her anymore.  I was a whole person now without her. 
Sure, I still loved her in that brother-sister kind of way, and I would miss
her, but I didn’t want her anymore.

It
was right about then that someone sat down beside me and set down a venti cup
of something hot and filled with whipped cream.

“She
gave them the house,” that person said, and I glanced up from my tablet to see
Janet there.  “It was like the Taj Mahal, he built it for her, and she let them
have it.”

“She
did that for him,” I replied.  “So he could go there and do whatever he needed
to do in the Temple.”

Janet
nodded and sipped her drink.  “Do you think he’ll still invade?”

“Who
knows?” I shrugged.  “If he wants the planet he’ll take it.  He always gets
what he wants.  It’s the rest of us who have to learn to accept less.”

“Am
I less?” Janet said and her eyes filled with tears.

“Not
at all,” I replied and shut off my tablet, deleting Katie’s face from screen. 
“In fact, in some ways, you are a whole lot more.”

She
smiled.  “Are you going eat that roll?  I didn’t have breakfast.”

“Here.” 
I broke it in two. 

“It
could use some butter,” Janet said, her mouth full of roll.

“I’ll
get you some spread made with plant sterols and stanols unless you’d rather
have olive oil.  It opens up your arteries rather than closing them like animal
fats.”

Janet
nodded and swallowed.  “I was thinking,” she said.  “About acupuncture.”

“Are
you hurting somewhere?”

“No. 
I was thinking I could learn acupuncture.  Maybe the Holistic Health Center
could use a Nurse-Acupuncturist?”

I
pretended to consider it.  “It could.  It really could.”

We
sat there in silence for a few moments while Janet nervously twirled our
engagement ring around her finger.

“You
know,” I said, finishing my tea.  “If I take on an acupuncturist, my office
space will be too small.  I’ll have to convert my living space into a treatment
room.”

“Is
that a problem?”

“Actually,
no.  Come on.”  I took her hand and led her out of the shop and headed across
the farmer’s market and down toward the beach.  “I was thinking about getting a
new place to live anyway.  I heard there’s a little cottage that suddenly
became vacant.  It’s right on the beach just south of town.  The lady who lived
there was really flaky.  She just took off in a spaceplane one day and never
even bothered to give notice.  It’s already got a couple of Adirondack chairs
out on the porch.”

“That’ll
work,” Janet nodded, “We only need two chairs.”

Chapter 16

Katie

“Hello
Mother,” I said, walking in through the front door.  I assumed this tiny little
gray-haired woman was my mother since I hadn’t seen her for nearly fifteen
years.

“Hello
Katie Anne,” she replied, looking up from the courtroom show projecting on the
vid.  “Are you staying for dinner?”

“Yes
Mom, I'm staying for a while.  Do you mind?”  I sat down on the sofa across
from her.

“No,
that would be very nice.  I am having spaghetti tonight.  Would you make it
please?”

“Now?”

“Yes
dear.  I always eat after Judge Julie.  A green salad would be nice too.  It's
all in the fridge.  Just put the spaghetti in the micro.  There should be
enough for you too.”

I
put my bags down in my childhood bedroom and noted the mobile command center was
now parked directly outside my window.  Reporters were already gathering on the
street.   My guards, Kisko and Looie were blocking the entrance to the driveway,
prohibiting them from getting any further. 

Returning
to the kitchen, I made spaghetti and salad.  Then, I set the table and the two
of us sit down and watched the 5pm news which was broadcasting live from
outside.

“That
looks like our house,” my mother commented, tucking a napkin into her collar.

“It
is our house,” I replied. 

“What
are they saying?  Turn it up louder, I can't quite hear.”

I
raised the volume, and we ate quietly while they flashed pictures of the mobile
command center, the house and the lake.  They gave a brief bio of me ending
with my official portrait.

“That's
a lovely dress,” my mother remarked.  “Is that you?”

“Yes,
that was me right before Dad died.  I tried to come you know.”

“Did
you?”

“My
spaceplane crashed.  Then I was taken into custody by the Alliance and hidden
in a mental hospital for eight years.” 

My
mother looked at me with blurry eyes.  She may have even had cataracts.  “Did
you need to be in a mental hospital?”

I
thought I needed to be in a mental hospital now.  Whatever possessed me to come
here?

“No
Mom.”  I kissed her soft, papery cheek.  “It was all politics.”

She
nodded, perfectly satisfied with the explanation. 

“That
fellow looks like that strange alien man you brought home that time,” she said
pointing back at the vid.

“Oh,
you mean the one I married?  The father of my son?  It is him,” I sighed.  It
was a file picture taken easily ten years ago.  How my heart still raced when I
saw him.   Now they were showing Rozari and the picture was taken from outside
the security dome.  All we could see were two tall men fully cloaked and
walking toward the Temple.

“Good,”
I mumbled.

“What's
good, dear?”

I
considered trying to explain but decided it wasn’t worth the effort.

“This
spaghetti,” I replied.

“It's
from ShopMart.  I like their lasagna too.  If you are staying tomorrow night,
perhaps we will have that.”

“I'll
be here for a while, Mom.  Maybe quite a while.”

We
finished eating and watching the vid in silence as it moved on to other local
news and the weather.  My father's absence was conspicuous.  His passing was
still fresh to me as I had slept through most of the time since.  I heard a
noise in the house, and I turned, expecting to see him.  My eyes started to
leak.

“What
are you doing, Katie Anne?”  My mother asked, her eyes now surprisingly clear.

“Cleaning
the dishes,” I choked, getting up from the table.

“Death
is part of life,” she said.  “If we all lived forever, this world would be too
crowded.”

“You're
right.”  I rinsed the plates and put them in the dishwasher.

“Why
are you wearing those dreadful bracelets?”  They banged against the dishes and
the counter tops as I tried to work.

“Because
I can't take them off.  I'm under house arrest.”

“Well
that's because you deserve to be, Katie Anne.”

“What?”
I gasped.

“You're
a bad daughter,” she said.

“What?”

“You're
a worse mother and terrible wife.”  She got up from the table and turned on the
dishwasher herself.

“How
can you say that?”

“You
put your career and your own satisfaction above everyone.”

“I
tried to come.  I did.  Don't you remember I had Zem contact you because I
couldn't!”

“Are
you trying to raise your son?”

“He's
an adult.”

“He's
sixteen.  Now is the time he really needs a mother to step on him.  And your
husband?  What about him?  Grabbing every planet in this galaxy making himself
wealthier and more and more powerful.  He doesn't listen to you so what do you
do?  Run away.  I thought I taught you better than that.”

I
was stunned.

“Mother,
he's the Emperor…”

“I
know who he is, and I don't give a whit about it.  I have never liked him.  You
would have been much better off marrying that nice Dr. Waldman.  But you went
ahead anyway, and now you are stuck in it.”

“Mother,
I am the Empress…”

“No,
you're not,” she replied, heading across the room to her bedroom.  “If you
were, you wouldn't be here.”

Just
then to my relief, the front door opened.  Telix came down the hall.

“Who
is the fellow?” Mother demanded.

“This
is Cmdr. Telix.  He’s chief of my security,” I replied haughtily.

“Well
tell him to keep his dirty boots off my carpet.”  Mother went into her
bedroom.  “Goodnight dear.  It’s lovely to see you again.”

“Are
you alright, Madame?” Telix asked.

I
shook my head.  “I can't believe this.  What did I do to deserve this?  Why did
I come here?”

Telix
smiled a little.  “A man who claims to be your brother is outside and wishes to
come in.  His name is Allen Golden.  Shall we let him?”

“Sure,”
I sighed and collapsed on the couch. 

“Katie?”
 Allen came running down the hall a moment later.  “What the hell is going on?”

“Hey,
Allen.  How's it going?  How are the kids?”

“Jesus
Katie, have you seen what's going on outside?”

“Ignore
them, Allen.  Gosh you look old.  What's with mom?  One minute she's in la la
land and the next she's sharper than a blade.”  I was flat out on the couch too
worn to sit up.

“You
don't belong here, Katie.  Not after twenty years.  You can stay for a few
nights, but I want you out of here by the weekend, you and all of your people.”

“Great,”
I sighed yet again.  “Where exactly am I supposed to go?  I just gave away my
house not that the Allied government would let me go back to it anyway.”

“I
don't care.  Don't you own like half the galaxy now?”

“Not
me.  The Evil Emperor, my estranged and strange husband.”

“Just
go away, Katie,” my brother replied, knocking on mom’s bedroom door.  “Do you
want me to change that broken light bulb now, Mom?”

The
door open and he disappeared inside.  I dragged myself upstairs to my room and
collapsed on my twin bed with the daisy covered comforter.  I shut the blinds and
turned on the pink flamingo bedside lamp.  Then I turned it off again.  There was
nothing to see.

Despite
my brother's threats, I was at my mother's house for nearly a week.  I couldn’t
go out.  The press was everywhere.  All the guys were working full time just to
keep them off the property.  My brother came daily and asked me when I am
leaving.

“She
can stay as long as she wants.”  My mother defended me.  We were both watching
back to back episodes of Judge Julie.  I wondered what life would be like if my
biggest worries were the noises coming from the flat above mine or the dent in
my speeder from the neighbor kid's bicycle. 

After
the show, when the local news came on, I got up and made chicken.  I set the
table for five.  Looie and Petre were eating with us tonight.  They spoke
English and my mother had taken a shine to them.  They called her Ma'am and bowed
to her.  Mom blushed furiously and covered her mouth with her hand when they did
this.  They also climbed up on the roof the other day and cleaned off leaves
and other branches from a recent storm.  Tomorrow they were going to clean up
her yard.

“Would
you like a piece of chicken, Ma'am?” Looie asked, standing behind her with the
platter.

“Yes,
please, Looie,” she said and batted her eyes at him as he served her like the
grandest of waiters.  Petre offered to pour some wine.  

Now,
when the guards came in the house, they put on their Dress Blacks.  At dinner,
they wore white gloves, as well.  My mother started to dress up too.  I only had
the few pairs of jeans I brought from Derius and the one suit I wore to my
meeting with the President of the Alliance, so I was the cook and the maid.

“This
is ridiculous,” Allen said, sitting down at the table.

“I
like it, Allen,” Mother snapped.  “You can go home and eat with your wife if
you prefer.”

A
few more days passed, and I had not left the house other than to visit the mobile
command center.  The press was still camped out at the end of our driveway. 
Groceries were purchased by Reggie and Lanaka who complained about how much
more expensive everything was here than in Mishnah or anywhere in the Empire. 

My
mother placed orders for the things she wanted.  She was enjoying herself with
truffles, expensive cheese, lobsters and caviar.  A chef was en route from
Mishnah as my mother's requests were now beyond my ability to prepare.  Some of
my clothes and jewelry were coming too.  Luci was bringing them.  She would
stay in my brother's old bedroom, and a chef would move into the command center.

It
was a week later.  Two limos from Mishnah adorned with the Imperial Crest
arrived with Luci and the chef and were now parked in the drive.  Mother saw
them and decided she must go to the mall.  Kisko was our driver.  Telix and Looie
came along in our car.  Petre and Reggie followed in the other.  My mother
dressed up to the nines and borrowed a necklace from my emerald collection.  I
dressed up too because the press would be all over us and Luci insisted.  My
mother bought whatever she wanted, and Luci paid for it with a pay card that
Taner had given her.  We had lunch in a café.  My mother adored Luci.  When we got
home, she hugged and kissed me.

“Oh
Katie dear, it is such fun having you home,” she said and then went to her room
to take a nap.

That
night for dinner, the chef prepared a meal comparable to anything we might have
had in Mishnah. 

“Do
you like it, Madame?” he asked.

“Excellent,
Master Chef,” I said.  “It was delicious.”

“It's
our honor to have you here,” Mother fluttered.

“You
do not realize how happy I am to have you enjoy my food.  I fear that HIM does
not like anything I prepare.”

“Oh,
Master Chef,” I laughed.  “HIM doesn't like anything, regardless of who
prepares it.  He would be perfectly happy eating only raw eggs or raw fish
every day forever.”

“Aye,
Madame,” the chef agreed.  “He was this way even as a child.  He would come to
my pantry and steal eggs at night.”

“Aye,
that he would,” Reggie added.  “The little street rat had a tough time at
first.  He kept eggs in his pockets in case he was kicked back out to the
street on a moment’s notice.”

“Who
are you talking about?” Mother asked.

 “HIM,”
Luci replied.

“Him
who?”

“Him
HIM,” Luci said.

“Who
him?”

“Oh
this is ridiculous!” I snapped.  “Ron, Mother.  They are referring to my
husband.”

“Oh,”
she cried, obviously disappointed.   “I don't like that alien man.”

I
felt a headache coming on.

“We
are all Rehnorian like HIM,” Luci told Mother gently.  “Didn't you know that?  That
would make us all alien."

“Oh
Luci dear, you're not alien,” Mom replied.  “You're a little fatty but you're
not an alien.”

“Mother!”

“It's
quite all right, Madame,” Luci said and patted Mom’s hand.  “It's only because
I get to eat delicious food like this every day in the Palace.”

“I
was born in Old Mishnah right by the streets where Senya lived,” Reggie announced
proudly.

“Well
tell him, I can't understand a word he says either,” Mother replied.  “You can
all go back there.  It doesn't matter to me.  Just leave me the chef and one of
those fancy limos.”