Page 20 of Bonded Ever After

He doesn’t miss a beat. “I’ll be there as fast as I can. Stall them.”

The call ends, and I sit down on the lid of the toilet, feeling sick. My sensitive stomach rolls painfully, and I have to fight the urge to vomit.What do I do? Will Callum make it in time?

Time ticks away. I jump when someone knocks at the door.

Councilman Vyn’s slimy voice comes through the door. “Are you finished?”

“I can’t pee,” I lie. Just speaking to him makes me feel even sicker.

His voice comes low and slow. “We have a stimulant gel out here. I could put it on you, if it would help.”

A picture of him putting a stimulant gel on me comes to my mind, and my stomach heaves for a second before I manage to keep it down. “No, I’m fine.”

“You’ve got five minutes, then we try the gel.”

It’s strange. I’m a Gold Keeper. The only heir of one of the two most powerful families. I should be treated with respect, but I’m not. This is the problem. The thing I never saw before my dad disappeared. The Council, our people, no one actually cares about us, other than our ability to give them goldarium. I don’t have any real power.

I pee in the cup, then seal it and set it on the counter, deciding to wait out the clock. Callum will be here. He’ll arrive soon, and then he’ll come up with some way to get me out of this. Some way to protect our child.

There’s a sharp knock at the door. “It’s time.”

I leap to my feet, grab my urine sample, and open the door. “I’m done.”

Councilman Vyn is standing with the gel in his hand with a grin that quickly vanishes. Everyone else has set up in my room, and they’re all looking uncomfortable. Clearly, they don’t like the idea of some old man touching me, but not enough to actually stop him.

Assholes.

Council Member Prisma yawns near my bed. “Do we really need to stay here? We made our point to Council Member Kela. We’re still on schedule. Do we need to do anything else?”

To my surprise, Council Member Vyn waves them away. “You may go.”

A scientist with a big bald head and big green eyes gestures to me. “Come sit on the bed. I’m going to take your blood sample.”

I don’t move as the council members file out. Everyone but Vyn. “I actually don’t see the point in taking my blood. I’m a Gold Keeper. You have my blood sample results from when I was a girl. You know there’s nothing genetically wrong with me, and we don’t get sick, so nothing would have changed.”

The bald guy looks at Council Member Vyn.

He draws himself up taller near me. “This is now standard protocol. All of you will be getting physicals on a regular basis, starting with you and Callum, then continuing this new procedure with your kids.”

“I just think it’s pointless,” I say, stalling for time.

“Why? You afraid of a little poke?” he asks, invading my space.

I take a step back. “I’m a Gold Keeper. I’m not afraid of anything. I just think this is dumb.”

“Dumb or not, your Council is ordering you to do this,” he says, his voice angry, like my refusal is a personal slight to him.

The scientist gives me a sympathetic look while another opens their silver case and places my urine sample into it. I see a spot beside it for my blood sample, and my mind starts working.

“Okay,” I finally manage, then I sit down gingerly on the edge of my bed.

They take my blood sample, then close it up and put it in the silver case before closing the thing. Next, they run through all the standard tests, testing my reflexes, checking my throat and my nose, having me touch my toes while they look at my spine.

I do everything slowly, taking my time. I chat with them, try to distract them, and all along try to keep an eye on the silver case. It looks exactly like the other three, so I have no interestin mixing it up. Still, they’re always opening one case or another as they run through the tests, and I find myself trying to subtly ensure that my case doesn’t get switched.

Suddenly, Callum comes crashing into my room, looking pissed. “What the hell?”

Everyone tenses.

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