Garnets or Bust (6 page)

cerulean star garnets here, they’d find the Danubians and use them as an excuse to

come in and take over. They’d lose their home all over again.”

Tessa felt humbled. Suddenly her problems—even her mother’s situation—seemed

very small.

“What about your family? What do they think about what you’re doing?”

“They don’t have any idea what’s really going on,” he said. “They think I’m playing

at starting a colony, they don’t know it’s connected to Danube. Eccentric, but harmless.

Fortunately, the Empire has a long history of eccentric nobility.”

Tessa mulled his tale over in her head, but something didn’t click. She understood

why he was so determined to protect his people. But his story just didn’t feel right. She

knew, with a certainty that defied reason, that he still hadn’t told her the whole truth.

“What’s the rest of it?”

Daaron shook his head.

“That’s all.”

“Bullshit, there’s more going on here,” she said. “This is a fledgling colony, yet

we’re sitting in a well-built prison in what you admit is a compound. I didn’t see

anything like that when I arrived at the spaceport. Your people followed me halfway

across the planet—why not just kill me when I arrived? You’re hiding something

bigger.”

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“It’s infinitely safer for you not to know.”

“It would have been infinitely safer for me to stay in the Warrens and get married,”

she snapped. “Instead my mother sold herself into slavery to buy me an education and

a better life. Tell me the truth, once and for all, or I promise you I’ll make your life a

living hell.”

“If I tell you this, you’ll never be able to leave.”

“More bullshit, I’d never be able to leave anyway. I already know too much.”

He nodded his head, acknowledging the point.

“We’re not just building a settlement of people who were off-planet when Danube

was interdicted. We’ve formed an organization, part military, part espionage and for

the past year, we’ve been blockade running. We bring out refugees a few hundred at a

time and settle them here.

“Our headquarters are most unfortunately located under the garnet deposits. We

discovered them while we were building but didn’t think much of it. They weren’t

worth anything back then.”

Tessa took a deep, hissing breath.

No wonder they’d planned to kill her. This was big, bigger than anything she could

have imagined. Suddenly she wished she’d listened to him instead of demanding the

truth.

“So you’re actively engaged in treason against the Emperor.”

“Yes. That’s why it’s very convenient that you can’t testify against me.”

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Tessa spent several long seconds calming herself.

“I hate to say it, but killing me makes a hell of a lot more sense than marrying me.”

“I suppose so,” Daaron replied, reaching out to touch her cheek gently. “But I

couldn’t do that to you, Tessa. You were the only person at university who didn’t fall all

over themselves to kiss my ass. You were the only one who told me the truth, who

stood up to me. You were the one who taught me that everyone—even someone born in

the Warrens—has as much right to freedom and prosperity as a noble.”

“Wow.”

“Not to mention the fact that I still hadn’t gotten into your pants,” he added, a sly

little smirk stealing across his face. It broke the tension that hung so heavily in the

room. Tessa snatched a pillow and hit him over the head with it, hard. He grabbed her

and wrestled her down, kissing her roughly even as he reached around to tickle her.

She kicked at him, pulling away from his kiss and screeching. He clapped one hand

over her mouth.

“Be careful,” he said. “Remember our listeners in the hallway. We’ve already given

them enough of a show.”

She nodded her head and he released her. Goddess be-damned, touching him made

her want him again. All those years of celibacy must be coming back to haunt her,

because all she could think of was sex, sex, sex.

“So where do we go from here?” she asked finally. “I understand why you can’t let

me have the garnets. I don’t think I want them anymore, not if it means hurting so

many people. And I certainly don’t have any love for Imperials. I grew up in the

Warrens, remember? Their own personal hunting grounds? Where I live, a person who

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works for the Emperor is likely to get gutted if he strays too far without armed guards.

I’m not going to rat you out, Daaron.”

He nodded his head.

“I believe you,” he replied. “But only marriage is enough to convince my people of

that. They’re different than most living within the Empire, very religious. When their

priestesses declare a marriage valid, they don’t just see it as a social contract. It’s a

lifemating. And something strange happens between them, I’ve seen it. I don’t think

those couples could separate even if they wanted to. Our marriage will keep you safe.”

“I have an obligation to my mother,” she said, feeling tired. “I was going to use the

money from the garnets to buy her freedom. I can’t just let her rot away. Will you help

me?”

“Yes,” he replied. “Easy enough to buy out one woman’s indenture. I’m sorry for

that—I know you wanted to do it yourself.”

“My pride isn’t worth destroying lives,” she said firmly, pulling away from him.

“This isn’t how I would have planned things, but I can accept reality. We should make

the best of it, Daaron. I don’t want to fight with you if I don’t have to.”

“Then I guess we’re stuck with each other,” he replied. He reached up and tousled

her newly shortened hair. She sighed, rolling her head into his touch. It felt good,

comforting. For the first time in her life, she felt safe. Pretty pathetic, considering she’d

just entered into a conspiracy against the Emperor.

“I suppose so,” she replied. “At least, let’s give it a try. I never considered marriage

to you, Daaron. It’s going to take some getting used to. But when I was a little girl,

getting out of the Warrens and going to university seemed like an impossible dream. I

made it there. Maybe I can make it here.”

Daaron gave a sigh of relief. He hadn’t realized just how nervous he was until she’d

said yes. He thought about when he’d cut off her braids, marking her as his in the way

men of the Warrens had for centuries. His noble peers had always laughed at the lower-

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class practice, mocking the masses of Tyre for their barbaric traditions. He hadn’t

understood until now just how satisfying those traditions could be.

“Come here,” he said, reaching for her.

“Why?” she asked, her tone suspicious. “I’m not up for more ‘boinking’ as you so

eloquently put it. I need a shower first.”

He laughed and shook his head.

“Because you’ve done me a great honor and I want to thank you,” he replied,

willing her to believe and understand him. “I know this isn’t what you planned, but I

promise you I’ll care for you, Tessa. And your mother. I still have enough contacts on

Tyre to find her.”

“Thank you,” she said. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”

Daaron smiled at her, feeling strange, almost light. Happy.

“I had no idea how much
you
could mean to me,” he said. “Never dreamed it, but I

can’t imagine anything better.”

* * * * *

Tessa tried not to get too lost as Daaron guided her through the training center. The

place was a maze, but she’d always been good with directions. Who would have

imagined a conspiracy of this scope against the Emperor could exist, let alone that she’d

become part of it? Although the politics really didn’t really matter to her. All that

counted was her mother’s freedom and their new life. Daaron’s compassion for the

Danubians, his willingness to risk his own life, had taken her completely off guard.

Who could have imagined the mighty Lord Von Saur’rel could have a soul?

It certainly made up for the loss of her garnets.

After leading her in what seemed like endless circles, Daaron finally brought her

into a large dining hall. Round tables surrounded by bench seating were bolted into the

floor. At some silent signal, people filtered in through the doors, more men than

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Joanna Wylde

women. They eyed her closely, some looking friendly but most seeming suspicious,

even hostile.

She supposed she would feel the same way about a potentially threatening stranger

if she found herself in their shoes. Daaron took her hand, guiding her up and over a

bench onto one of the tables.

“This is my wife Tessa,” he said, voice firm and in command—the voice of a man

whose authority had never been questioned in his entire life, she thought. “You will

treat her with the same respect you treat me. Do you have any questions?”

“I do.”

The woman who spoke was young and lovely, but her face held a brittle tension

that spoke volumes about the life she’d led. No one could ever mistake her for someone

who had been granted anything. Tessa knew instinctively that if anyone could

successfully challenge her presence, this woman would be the one.

“Why should we believe you won’t betray us?” she asked, her voice ringing in the

barren, metal-walled room. “Daaron says you’ll obey him, that you’re his true lifemate.

Will you obey?”

Good question, Tessa thought. She knew she should say yes, but she’d never been

good at lying. Warrens culture might tell her to obey her husband, but somehow that

didn’t seem to apply to a woman who had been to university and now found herself

married to a noble-born rebel. And she wasn’t even sure she knew what a lifemate was,

let alone whether Daaron was hers. He looked at her expectantly, nodding his head as if

to give her permission to speak. Needing a man’s permission just because he’d cut off

her braids rankled. Time to lay her cards on the table. She figured it might not be smart,

but Tessa didn’t care. She should be honest if she hoped to make a new life among these

people.

“No, I won’t just do what he says,” she replied, holding the woman’s gaze with her

own. She needed to get this just right. “Just because I’m from the Warrens doesn’t mean

I’m a puppet. I’m a thinking, feeling human being.

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“My mother sold herself into slavery to give me a better life, so I understand what it

means to hold a debt to those who sacrificed for your freedom. I hear you lost your

homes and families to the Emperor. I’ll never betray your secret. You dream of a galaxy

where nobody dies because a seating chart gets fucked up. I dream of a place where

nobody’s parents become slaves to provide their children with an education. Sounds to

me like we’re on the same side. But I’m not just going to obey him blindly.”

Tessa snapped her mouth shut, shooting Daaron a defiant look before turning to

meet the woman’s gaze. She expected to see hostility there, perhaps even a threat.

Instead she caught a smile.

“Good,” she replied. “He deserves to be put in his place. He might threaten you if

you don’t obey, but I’ll kill you if you do. There aren’t many women on this planet and

we have to stick together. Otherwise the men will get the idea that they own us, and we

can’t afford that. They already hold most of the power. The priestesses will agree with

me.”

Daaron glared at her, but she laughed, walking up to Tessa and offering her hand in

friendship.

“I’m Leezal,” she said, helping her step down. “Don’t worry about Daaron, he

made it clear to us from the moment he saw you that you were special. I think he’s the

only one who didn’t realize just how he felt about you. Your people seem to be awfully

stupid about lifemating. And I’m sorry we shot you with the flechettes. It was the only

way we could think of to keep you from getting hurt.”

“I’m just happy that I didn’t hurt Daaron,” Tessa replied, wondering if Leezal could

be a friend. How strange things had become! “When I thought I’d killed him, I wanted

to die myself.”

“And you would have too,” Leezal replied, her face suddenly serious. “We owe

him everything, Tessa. You can’t imagine.”

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Joanna Wylde

“I’m beginning to,” she replied, meaning every word. “I’m starting to realize just

how much I want to learn more about him. I’ve never been so wrong about anyone in

my life.”

“I know the feeling. I’d just lost my home and family when he found me. I thought

he’d come to kill me for the Emperor. Instead he gave me a new life and purpose. Come

with me, I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

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Garnets or Bust

Tessa leaned forward, kissing her husband’s neck and hugging him so tight it

almost hurt.

“A message arrived today,” she said. “My mother will be here in about a week.

She’s very excited to meet my new husband.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” Daaron said, reaching down with one hand to rub her

slightly swollen belly. The Danubians were thrilled about the pregnancy—they took it

as a sign that the Goddess looked upon their lifemating with favor. He wasn’t sure he