Page 33 of Destinies of Diamond
“No, they’re not,” Brendan explained. “The presence of outsiders here is allowed only with permission and prior acknowledgment from the crown, under very specific circumstances.”
“I received approval from your uncle, but it’s not a sustainable state of affairs. We have to fix the generators as soon as possible and return the drones to working condition.”
“Is there anything we can do to help?” Selene asked.
“Actually, Acting Pilot Renard, would you mind going to the infirmary and keeping an eye on the women there? I think it would help them to have another woman present, someone who can protect them.”
Also, I’d feel much better if she was out of the way of possible damage. I didn’t trust Dr. Bell, but he valued his own skin too much to try to harm her. He wouldn’t be able to figure out what I had without doing a very specific test, and that wouldn’t be possible without her prior approval, which she wouldn’t give.
“I’d love to,” Selene replied. “But we were going to hand in our report with His Highness, first.”
“Don’t worry about that. Telling me is enough.” Also, the idea of her going to see Prince Archibald now made my skin crawl.
Thankfully, it wasn’t that unusual for me to take responsibility for things Prince Archibald was supposed to do. They all accepted my words without questioning them. The tension in Selene’s stance disappeared somewhat and her smile grew a little softer. “Thank you for this, Commander.”
“There’s no need. I’m only doing my job.”
“Maybe, but I’m still grateful.”
With a polite salute and a curt nod toward the others, Selene left, heading to the med bay. Once I ascertained that she was gone, I directed my attention to the others. “Right. Now you and I will have a conversation and I expect you to be completely honest with me.”
Directing them to the nearest empty room, I closed the door behind me and pressed my hand to the security panel, shutting down all surveillance.
“Her child will be part apsid, like you, Flight Lieutenant Cavallero,” I said. “That’s not something you can hide forever. You need to figure out what you want to do, because this isn’t a game. Selene’s life is at risk.”
So was mine and that of countless others, but I didn’t tell them that. There was only so much I could reveal without endangering our whole operation. Telling August the truth about his identity was already problematic.
Or so I thought. Within seconds, it became obvious that August and the others had been aware of his apsid parentage. “With respect, Sir, a lot of things are problematic,” he said, “including your sudden interest in Selene and the fact that you’re calling her by her first name. So if you’re so worried about her safety, why don’t you start? Why don’t you tell us the truth?”
Shit.
Barren Destruction
Selene
I spent the night in the med bay, keeping an eye on the poor women who’d been injured in Tartarus City. They weren’t shocked at seeing me, having heard about the female member of the Grand Chimera Unit. They weren’t particularly happy either, though, and more than one person turned away from me.
“Why does she get to be free and sleep with the prince, while we can be nothing but whores?” a young woman asked her older companion.
I couldn’t reply. Instead, I did my best to help those who allowed me. I was too unsettled to use Gaia’s Gift on them, so I stuck to medicine and assisted Dr. Bell whenever he needed an extra pair of hands.
At one point, I must have fallen asleep, because I woke up the next morning on a cramped cot, with a back ache and a full bladder. My stomach was roiling and I stumbled out of the room, into the adjoining toilet.
Fortunately, there was no one there to see me throw up. I doubted they’d have guessed I was pregnant, but the risk was there and I didn’t want to spread the knowledge around.
With the base running on low levels of energy, it was difficult to clean up, but I got by. The facility still provided the regular decontamination utilities and although they didn’t remove the sour taste in my mouth, they helped.
Once I was reasonably decent, I retrieved the herbal supplements my mother had given me. The capsules had been easy to sneak into the academy and it was just as easy to swallow them dry. I felt better just at knowing that I was doing something to keep myself from turning into a lust-crazed fiend. Even if my mother couldn’t fully suppress my symptoms, I still appreciated her help more than I could ever say.
A little more composed, I left the bathroom and returned to the med bay. The Terran women seemed to be sleeping peacefully and their injuries had been treated. No one had tried to assault them, as they were all too busy doing damage control over the incident with the generator.
It should have relieved me and to a certain extent, it did. But at the same time, as I watched the women on the beds, I couldn’t help but feel more tired than ever before. How had I thought that I could fix this? I’d left them at the mercy of those men in the city and had barely given them any thought as of late. My dream to free them had been a nebulous goal, something that was growing more and more distant every day.
Gaia help me, my head hurt.
A familiar voice startled me from my trance. “Selene? Are you okay?”
It was Commander Trevor. At one point when I hadn’t been paying attention, he’d shown up in the med bay. I appreciated his interest in my well-being, but I had no desire to tell him the truth about my condition. “I’m fine,” I lied. “I was simply wondering if I was supposed to stay here now, even if the patients have been treated.”
