Page 95 of I Married Kayog
“It is, but we cannot be perceived as interfering or influencing the locals for our own purposes.”
“And we’re not,” I quipped in a singsong voice. “Like I said, I’m merely adding a different seed to the rest of the lot. What Susan does with it is entirely up to her and her people. All rules are respected.”
“Fine!” Tedrick grumbled. “I’ll figure out a way to get them off my back about it. But please try not to make my life unnecessarily difficult.”
“Where would be the fun in that?!”
He muttered something under his breath, which had me bursting out laughing.
Susan not only understood the hinted assignment, but the clever woman took it to another level I couldn’t have dreamt of. In the end, she helped her new people thwart the nefarious plans of the greedy conglomerate that sought to crush them, provided that primitive species with the means to achieve financial independence, and even offered other third daughters of Meterion new prospects and opportunities for a better life.
It was Susan’s idea that gave birth to the Daughters of Meterion program, which my Linsea heavily helped set in motion.
Being able to use my matchmaking ability to literally save the lives of amazing women in dire situations, especially due to unfair accusations, were some of the other highlights of my career. Serena and her Ordosian mate Szaro certainly came to mind. Granted, she had broken the rules by trespassing on their sacred lands, but it had been for a good cause—saving a mother and her child from being devoured by bloodthirsty monsters. That successful union enabled us to strengthen the fragile bonds with this Naga-like species normally extremely reluctant to open up to foreigners.
And how could I forget about the mischievous Rihanna? The petite smuggler had been framed by her former business partner to take the fall for a crime she hadn’t committed. If not for my intervention, she would have been sent to Molvi, the deadliest prison planet in the galaxy. Her most unlikely pairing with the Yurus Great Chieftain Zatruk—an Orc-Minotaur like species—completely changed the fates of the three main species sharing that planet. It brought hope, prosperity, and peace to the Yurus who had previously been on the verge of self-destruction.
But from a selfish point of view—and more broadly for the benefit of the Enforcers and the UPO—I couldn’t have been moregrateful for having a hand in matching Kaida and Cedros. In truth, they found each other on their own during a mission, but I just helped convince Kaida to give it a shot. As a top agent of the Enforcers, Kaida wasn’t unknown to me. That day, she’d gone inside a research center as part of Tedrick’s team to investigate a mysterious portal that had opened inside their power core, and from whence a giant shadow dragon had emerged to battle fiendish shadowy creatures.
That dragon turned out to be Cedros, the sweetest Shadow Lord who desperately needed the hugs of his Ejaya—the only female in the universe that could stop him from succumbing to the madness that otherwise plagued beings like him. And that Ejaya had been none other than Kaida.
Who would have thought that this pairing would give us a steady supply of shadow stones? They allowed us to open portals to any preassigned destination, anywhere across the galaxy. This meant no more week-long space travels to various worlds. Within seconds, I could be in and out, and back to my mate. Obviously, we couldn’t abuse such a great tool, not only because shadow stones were rare, but also because, should they fall in the wrong hands, untold damage could ensue, especially if used to launch a surprise attack on an unsuspecting world.
However, never in a million years would I have thought that a pairing I performed could lead to a great wave of injustice. When I received an urgent message from Torgal regarding a young woman named Malaya about to be sent to Molvi, a wave of anger surged within me. I had no qualms with true criminals being sent there. Torgal—the Temern lawyer representing her case—stated unequivocally that she was innocent, and that the judge overseeing her case was in fact corrupt.
It should have been an impossibility as his people, the Obosians, were known to be rabidly obsessed about enforcing the law and abiding by the rules. There was a reason theyoperated Molvi. As per Malaya’s request, the lawyer hoped I could arrange a marriage for her like I did with Rihanna. Sadly, the rules had changed in retaliation to my saving Rihanna through a pairing. That same corrupt Judge Wuras had presided over her case and felt personally slighted that I would have spared the young woman from the horrible abuse and death that would have awaited her on Molvi.
Therefore, he helped pass new laws that prevented convicts from dodging their sentences by being matched. Should I find their soulmate, that person would have to join the inmate on the prison planet for the duration of their sentence, or live separately until they were freed.
The only hope to save Malaya was to find a Hell Lord, guard, or employee on Molvi that I could match her with. It was a relatively weak workaround, but it would meet the core requirement that the condemned serve their time on Molvi. It didn’t actually spell out that they had to be in one of the detention quadrants. But for this, I needed to meet her to get an idea of her song before scouting the planet for a potential partner.
Therefore, Linsea and I went to the holding cells where she was being held while waiting for her transfer to the prison planet. Normally, my mate didn’t get involved directly with the initial interview for a pairing. But this situation was different. We were dealing with a rogue Obosian judge. The Enforcers and the UPO wanted to get involved to put an end to this. But the political and legal fallout could have catastrophic repercussions. This entire mess needed to be handled very carefully. Linsea would manage the diplomatic and legal aspects while I attempted to work my magic.
As much as I hated the prospect of breaking my perfect streak of only matching true soulmates, saving the life of an innocent young woman was far more important for me. Had shebeen my daughter, I would have wanted someone in a position of power to intervene on her behalf.
Two Obosian guards led us through the long corridor where countless cells lined the sidewalls. Every single person in there was definitely guilty. Some of them oozed with pure malice that sent a cold shiver down my spine. If not for my blessed ability to block others, I would be writhing on the floor right now in sheer agony. At the end of the hallway, we went down to the bowels of the detention center, which housed the solitary confinement cells.
My anger cranked up another notch. Based on Torgal’s feedback about the young woman, and my own examination of her file, nothing warranted such isolation. For a split second, I wondered if they had moved her here, away from prying eyes, so that they could eliminate her. However, considering the large number of security cameras covering this area, it would be nearly impossible to get away with murder.
But all those wandering thoughts flew right out of my mind as we approached the cell where Malaya was detained. A wave of fear slammed into me, which was to be expected under the current circumstances. But it was something else that nearly had my knees buckling.
“Impossible,” I breathed out, completely shocked.
Chapter 23
Linsea
The powerful emotion that blasted through my bond with Kayog nearly made me lose my footing. I cast a confused look at him, wondering what could have prompted such a strong reaction from him. It went beyond mere shock. He had perceived something devastating. To my dismay, moments after he whispered his disbelief, my mate slammed down his psychic walls, shutting me out. That further stunned me. I couldn’t remember the last time he had done that.
Kayog normally only ever closed himself off to me out of his need to protect me. But what could I possibly need to be protected against? If not for the two incredibly stuck up Obosian guards escorting us to Malaya’s cell, I would have questioned him. But now wasn’t the time. Although still visibly shaken, my mate grabbed my hand and gave it a gentle reassuring squeeze. As disturbed as I still felt, this soothed me. At the appropriate time, he would tell me everything.
I could feel the fear emanating from a nearby room. My protective instincts immediately flared with the need to appeasethem. There was something about that aura that felt familiar. I couldn’t quite explain it as I knew for a fact that I had never met the young woman.
The obnoxious guard opened the door to a narrow, rectangular space that had to be no more than three meters wide by five meters long. Malaya was sitting on the flat surface with a thin cushion that they dared to label as a bed. A toilet and tiny sink completed the dreary space the poor woman had been locked in for the past few days while awaiting transfer.
Malaya emitted a choked sound upon seeing us. The hope and joy that immediately stirred within her upon recognizing us struck me with incredible violence. It left me confused and dizzy. Once more, the burning sense that I knew her gnawed at me.
I stole a glance at my husband. His face completely hid whatever emotions swirled within him. To anyone else, he would appear to be his usual relaxed, warm, and friendly self. But the way he held his wings betrayed an insane amount of tension. If not for being married to him for the past thirty-seven years, I might have been fooled.
