Chapter 15
1041 Words
15
Lu worked on his communicator, trying to reach anyone who had information on what was ahead of them. It didn’t look good. He’d already received two reports. There were a couple of illegal requests for hired men from the Wilds. Hunters and trackers for the tenth princess, as she’d been seen in the area.
He didn’t like the sound of that. Men from the Wilds were lawless, if you trusted the reports. Assuming the pay was high enough, they’d be ambushed again by morning. He got up and grabbed his communicator. Rasha would be down at the bar by now, sipping her juice. Jak might be down there too since he didn’t seem like the tuck-in-with-a-good-book kind of guy. He’d have the room to himself tonight, if Jak’s reputation proved true.
A soft knock at the door changed his plans. He opened it and the beauty before him made him forget everything else. Lu’s heart leaped into his throat every time he saw her, making it hard to speak. His face broke out in a smile. When the silence between them became uncomfortable, an idea formed in his mind. He imagined she’d be sleeping the night away, and he said so.
“I thought you’d be asleep by now.”
“I tried but I can’t seem to settle. May I come in?” she asked.
He held the door wide enough to allow her to pass.
“Sorry it’s so messy, I wasn’t expecting company.” Lu pushed his things off of the chair where he wanted her to sit, and sat on the bed across from her.
Chiza had changed into another one of her dresses. This one a simple pink, no doubt for sleeping. But the lace on the edges drew his eye, and he had to work not to wonder what was underneath all the sheer layers. What was wrong with him? Lu shook his head to clear it.
“I’m so sorry to intrude,” Chiza said as she surveyed the room.
“No, I like company. I miss having people around. My family is close and we talk about everything,” Lu replied as he picked at his boot buckle.
“Mine too.” Chiza cast her eyes to down to the floor. She seemed sad.
“Are you worried about them?” he asked.
“Yes, their worry is contagious. It doesn’t make any sense, I’m sure they’re fine.” Chiza said.
“But they’re anxious and it concerns you. I have the same problem at home.”
“Really? But what you do isn’t always this dangerous,” she said.
Lu remembered his last job and hanging from the ceiling on a hook waiting for Rash. What if things hadn’t gone according to plan?
“Well, it’s not as safe as they would like. My parents would prefer that I stay in the Twinlands and settle down and have a family.”
“Don’t you want that?” Chiza asked.
“Yes, I do. In the future, I mean, I’m still young. There are some things left to do while I can. I want adventure before I go back to ordinary life. The problem is my little sister. Like me, she wants adventure, something extraordinary. Unlike me, she often puts herself in danger. Which is another reason I have to do what I do. I enjoy being available to help out when I can.”
“I’ve always wished for a sister. With no siblings, all of my parent’s hopes for our kingdom rested on me.” Chiza dropped her gaze.
“Are you sure you want to go through with it?” Lu asked. The question tumbled out before his brain registered what he was asking. He made a quick recovery. “I mean, are you having doubts?” He realized too late that the second question wasn’t any better than the first, but Chiza answered it.
“To be honest, no. I know my duty and I’m thrilled with it. I’ve been studying the other princesses and the prince for rotations. I’m the ideal wife and partner for him. But will he see it too?”
“If he doesn’t, he’s a fool,” he blurted.
“Be careful of how you speak of our prince,” Chiza said with a flash of anger.
Lu held up his hand then chose his words with care. “I only meant if he can’t see what a treasure you are, then he might not be using all of his mental capacity.”
“That’s not any better,” Chiza retorted.
They both laughed.
“I know, and I am sorry for it.” Lu’s laughter died down and he asked her a serious question. “What do you want?”
Chiza pondered that for a moment. She understood there were many things wrapped up in that one question. “I guess I want the dream, the fairytale. No matter what happens, I want a family. I’d like to live a peaceful life and should prince Bashir choose me I’d like to improve on the kingdom as its queen and not make it worse.”
“How? I mean in what ways?” Lu leaned forward. She had his full attention now. What did she want to improve?
“Well, for one, it’s a shame that more people don’t learn the native languages of the nations within our realm. The Twinlands where you are from are proficient, it’s your culture, but the rest of us need to do more work. We have our common language but we lose a deeper understanding.”
“I’m intrigued. What else would you do?”
“I’d want to regulate our intergalactic trade. We need more tradesmen off world and more off world relations. We should explore alien cultures in more depth. There’s more we can do to help each other thrive.
“You speak like someone born to the Twinlands. My people also speak of the future this way. We want those things and more.”
“What’s one thing you would change, if you had the power to do so?”
“I wish for the prince or princess the freedom to marry whomever he or she chose. A union not based on bloodlines, but common interest and affection.” Lu swallowed hard. His mouth had gone dry and he wasn’t sure he hadn’t overstepped his bounds. She’d already said she desired to fulfill her promise and marry the prince if he chose her. So why did he have to keep sowing seeds of doubt?
At that moment, Temi decided he wasn’t getting enough attention, and he plopped over and put his large front paws on Chiza’s lap. When had he gotten big enough to do that? Lu wondered. Chiza giggled and stroked his belly the way he liked and Temi purred with happiness. She spoke to him in her language the way you would to a baby. Temi loved it. Lu admitted to himself he enjoyed it too. He watched them with a twinge of longing. He wanted to be the object of her affection. Something she was incapable of giving him without breaking her vow to the prince.
- Writer
