Page 26 of Volunteer 4711

“It’s important to tell me exactly what happened as you remember it. Every detail.”

I tell the Commander everything, and then he asks, “And were you wearing a purple veil the entire time?”

“No.”

“It was removed at the auction?”

“Yes.”

He smiles in the Silver way. “Good.”

“How’s that good? It was terrifying. I didn’t know what was going to happen.”

Then he strokes my long hair to comfort me, which surprises me. When he sees my expression, he removes his hand. I want to tell him not to, but I don’t.

“Not good for you, of course not. Good for our case. That male who messaged me says that he brokered the deal for your volunteering. He is trying to blackmail me to give you back to the farmers, well, actually the doctor. He technically brokered your volunteering.”

“Why would a male in the government care about me returning to that farm?”

“Many reasons,” the Commander says. “The important thing is that now I need to find witnesses that will talk.”

“I’m sure the farmer who bought me would talk if you gave him enough money,” I say. “Or the doctor in dead bodies.”

“Unfortunately, he’s making a fuss because someone has already given him money, among other things. But,” he says, seeing my worried face, “do not worry. I will not give you back.”

“I understand.”

“You might have been legally brokered from the Water planet, but once you reached the Home Planet, it was no longer legal. Your purple veil should have only been removed at the farm if that was your true destination.”

I touch my left cheek. “Then what’s this mark mean besides ‘Volunteer’? What were the AI scanning?”

“That male who is trying to blackmail me is his volunteer mark for the same region you were in, but you were not supposed to be at the farm or with the doctor. But since he sold you to the doctor before he even saw you, he himself cannot come forward to claim you. And I do not think the doctor or any of the farmers truly want to cause trouble with me, but other, more important people are pushing them. But I will not let him, have you. I promise.”

I get up and go to the wardrobe to get the Commander’s pajamas. I feel awkward having this conversation while he is naked now. I return and help him into his pajamas.

I want to go. This conversation has left me feeling sad and missing Earth. “Good night, Commander.”

“Dismissed.”

CHAPTER14

COMMANDER

I watch Volunteer 4711 go,and I know she is upset. However, I do not want to indulge too much. Not because I do not care for her emotional well-being but because I am selfish. I do not want to hear about her life on the Water planet before she came to this side of the galaxy. Or even her life on the farm before I arrived. I only want to think of her life as starting with me.

I get into bed and turn out the lights, but I lie awake thinking about what Volunteer 4711 told me. It is good news. He did not claim her on arrival, but no doubt took a percentage of what she was sold for. And the fact that she is a Water person and urinated on the auction block means that it will be easy to find people who remember the day she was sold to the farm. I will put some officers on the case tomorrow.

I know that this is only coming to light now because of my plans to absorb the other fleet into my own. It is a good sign that what I am about to do will give me great power on the Home Planet.

I close my eyes and tell myself all will be well. I tell myself that Volunteer 4711 will comfort herself and come to realize that her life here is the only one worth living. I try to sleep, but it evades me. After an hour, I think about buzzing her. I resist. In the end, I get out of bed and do some work, I set in motion a plan to prove she was illegally sold. Afterward, I am content, tired, and fall asleep.

* * *

The next morning my valet arrives, and her beautiful brown eyes are red. I am sorry for her. I know that comforting her now will only seem false since I did not do it yesterday. So, I do not make an issue of it.

We quietly go through the morning routine, and once I am dressed, I tell her to ignore all messages from the government. I let her know that I am taking care of them and of her case. “Last night, I made a formal statement on your behalf from what you told me of how you were illegally sold.”

“I understand.”

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