Malcolm (Book 1, The Redemption Series) (6 page)

“Ladies and gentleman,” Auggie says before turning to look at his mother. “And Empress Catherine, my dearest mother. I regret to inform you that we have a traitor within our midst!”

A murmur of excitement weaves through the crowd.

Auggie begins to walk around me as he glowers, causing me to panic slightly as I become the center of attention.

“I'm afraid my dear betrothed here has been conspiring against the crown with a known rebel named Gladson Gray,” Auggie accuses.

As I look around at the other guests, I can see them whispering to each other with shock in their eyes at the accusation.

“Are you sure, Augustus?” I hear Empress Catherine say behind me, sounding a little too thrilled by the news.

Auggie stops in front of me and looks me straight in the eyes.

“I'm afraid so, Mother. It seems that our beloved Lady Annalisse has been receiving messages from him for over a year now. It saddens me to have to report this, but since our marriage is only a few days away, I feel relieved to have be given this knowledge now rather than later. Who knows what kind of havoc she might have instigated if she were crowned empress?”

“What evidence do you have?” My papa demands of Auggie, coming to stand out from the crowd of onlookers to challenge Auggie's accusations.

Auggie turns to face my father.

“The only proof that I need,” Auggie tells him, lifting his hand again towards the stairs.

My gaze drifts up the staircase, and I see Vivian standing there holding a box I had hidden under my bed which contains the messages Gladson sent to Auggie through me.

“Your servant came to me and told me of your traitorous ways,” Auggie says, turning to me again, smiling devilishly. “It's all the proof I need.”

“Guards!” Empress Catherine calls out. “Seize Lady Annalisse and take her to a holding cell!”

I look to my papa and see the helpless panic on his face. Jered comes to stand beside him and whispers something in his ear.

I look back to Auggie but don't recognize the sneering man standing in front of me.

As two guards grab both my arms, I close my eyes and pray that I'll soon awaken from the nightmare my life has suddenly become.

CHAPTER four

As I pace back and forth in my prison cell, I begin to understand why so many people who are held captive for years on end lose their sanity. The four walls surrounding me are white. The floor is white. The ceiling is white. There is nothing to sit on except for the floor which is kept at such a cold temperature standing is preferable for the most part.

I have no way to judge time except for counting the meals which are teleported inside my cell. If I assume they are feeding me three times a day, then I've been trapped inside these walls for at least two days.

As I make what has to be the thousandth lap around the perimeter of my prison, my mind races with thoughts about what might be happening on the outside. I have no doubt my father is trying to arrange my release, but I know he will fail. My Auggie isn't my Auggie anymore. I don't know what's wrong with him, but I do know the man who accused me of treason isn't the boy I grew up with. He is not my best and most trusted friend any longer.

I'd heard rumors that a technology existed which allowed you to change yourself into whatever human form you wanted. However, that type of science was outlawed because...well... no one wanted someone else to have the ability to look exactly like them. It didn't mean someone couldn't gain access to the technology though. There were always black marketers who could procure whatever you wanted as long as you had the money to pay for their services.

With no warning, my father suddenly appears in the middle of the room. I go to him, but know it isn't really the flesh and blood him, just a holographic projection.

“Anna, don't say anything,” my father warns me not only with his voice but his eyes. “They're only allowing me to speak to you for a few moments to explain things.”

I see my papa's eyes dart around him, and I know he isn't alone in whatever room he’s in. He's being watched, and his words will be chosen carefully.

“I'm sorry you were accused for a crime that I myself committed.”

“Papa...” I say about to ask him why he's confessing to something he didn't even know about. No one knew about the messages I received from Gladson for Auggie except the three of us.

My father holds up a hand to signal me to not say anything more.

“I should have told you about my dealings with the rebels, but I knew how loyal you were to Empress Catherine and Emperor Augustus,” he continues to say.

I stand there speechless but let him continue to spin his false confession.

“The emperor and empress have accepted my declaration of guilt and have agreed to release you, my little cherub. They have also agreed to keep to the marriage contract even in the face of my betrayal.”

“What will happen to you?” I ask, needing to know this above all else.

“The emperor knows how close you and I are,” my father says. “He has agreed to not execute me since he knows how much it would upset you. I guess you can consider his compromise a wedding gift to you. Instead, I will be sent to our furthest settlement off-world. It will take me half of my remaining lifetime to get there. So, even if I tried to come back, I would die before I ever reached Earth again. I’m so sorry that this has to happen, Anna, but I want you to know that I will always love you and carry you in my heart until the day I die.”

My eyes well with tears, and I feel the sting of my heartache leach the last bit of hope I have left for a happy life. Even though my father will remain alive on a distant planet, which I'm grateful for, he might as well be dead to me. Our life together has come to an end, and I'm not sure where to go from here. I will have no one left to lean on. I'll be all alone.

“I won't be allowed to contact you again until I've reached my destination,” he tells me, his voice breaking over our loss of one another. “I hope you will trust in your instincts since I will no longer be around to help guide you, my little girl. The best advice I can give you is to seek out your true friends and always remember to be mindful of things around you. Take nothing for granted, Anna. I love you, my little cherub, and I wish you the happiest of lives.”

I reach out a hand to my father, but his hologram disappears, taking him away from me forever.

I bury my face in my hands and begin to cry uncontrollably. I drop to my knees on the cold prison floor, bereft of hope. It takes me a few minutes to pull myself together, but one thought creeps into my consciousness sustaining my sanity.

I need to find out where
my
Auggie is. If I can do that, maybe I can piece back together the shattered remains of what was once a happy life.

As I wipe my tears of self-pity away, filled with a new determination and purpose to save not only my father but my best friend, two guards teleport into my cell. They are the same two guards who have always escorted me to my lessons with the empress.

“We’ve been ordered to take you home, Lady Annalisse,” Christopher says as he and Clark walk up to me.

I stand to my feet as they both touch my shoulders and transport me to the front entrance of my home. Without another word, they teleport away leaving me completely alone. I open the front door and walk in.

“Millie!” I call out, closing the door behind me and walking towards the living room to search for her. “Millie!” I call again, even more desperately, but still receive no answer.

“Anna! Anna!”

Vala comes barreling down the stairs from the second floor and launches herself into my arms.

“Vala, where is Millie?”

“Some of the palace guards came and took her, Vivian, and Eliza away two days ago,” she tells me. “I've been here alone ever since. What's happening Anna? What's wrong?”

I tell Vala what transpired at the ball and whisper to her the sacrifice my papa made to secure my freedom.

Vala whines. “Lord Andre is gone? Forever?”

“Not if I have anything to say about it,” I whisper in her ear.

Vala's little brow furrows and her eyes look troubled.

“What's wrong?” I ask her.

“Nothing, I just miss Lord Andre. Do you think we could go to his study?”

I don't voice my suspicion that Vala is up to something. I simply nod and walk up the staircase to seek out my father's sanctuary.

Once I close the door to his study, Vala leaps out of my arms and scampers over to the wood desk in the room. I walk over to watch as she pulls out one of the bottom drawers. Inside the drawer is a device I've only heard about but knew to be outlawed because it essentially blocked out any surveillance the royal family had in place.

Vala jumps into the drawer and presses one tiny paw on the single red button at the top of the device.

“Now we can talk without anyone listening,” Vala says, jumping out of the drawer and sitting on the floor in front of me. “Lord Andre told me that if anything ever happened to him, I should tell you to tear his desk apart.”

“Why?” I ask, knowing how much my father treasured his link to the past.

“He didn't say,” Vala tells me. “But, I think you should do it, Anna.”

I lean down and take the blocking device out of the drawer and set it on the glass table behind the desk. Vala runs over to the middle of the room to get out of my way. As I glide a hand across the surface of one of my father's prized possessions, I grab the lip of the top and yank the thick, heavy wood off easily, setting it aside behind me.

When I look back at the desk, I notice something wrapped in a silver reflective bag laying within the empty void at the front of it. I walk around to the front of the desk and grab the bag, immediately feeling the weight of something heavy inside.

I lay the bag on the floor and kneel down beside it. Vala walks over to me and sits down.

“Open it,” she urges.

The seam is sealed with a magnetic closure which is the way most garments are sealed. I was told things known as zippers and buttons were used at one time.

I pull the seam apart and stare at the contents of the bag.

There is a broadsword and a small black box. I pick up the box and open it. Lying within its interior is a translucent neural memo. I grab it and immediately place it behind my right ear. A hologram of my father materializes in front of me and a fount of tears immediately clouds my vision.

“Anna,” my papa says, “if you are watching this message it means something has happened to me, and Vala has told you to seek out the items in my desk. There is so much I need to tell you, my little cherub, but what you need to know should be told to you in person not through a simple holographic message. Plus, I have no way of knowing if this message will be found by you or someone else and the information you need is far too important to be discovered by a third party. I have no doubt that once my best friend learns of what has happened to me he will come here and take care of you. He is not someone you have met before, and I must warn you that he is a stubborn man. No matter what he says or how he acts towards you, know that he will protect you with his life. We have been the guardians of your family for a very long time. He will not forsake you just because of his personal feelings. I love you, my dearest Anna. No matter what has befallen me, I want you to always remember that I treasure the time I've been able to spend with you. I knew from the moment I held you in my arms after you were born that you were meant for greatness. You are going to change the world, my little cherub. I have complete faith that you will live up to your birthright. I am so proud to be known as your father and so thankful to have been given the opportunity to watch you grow and mature into the beautiful, self-confident woman you are today. Keep safe, my love. And always remember that your papa is proud of you and loves you more than anything or anyone else in this world.”

I sit motionless on the floor as tears trail down my face. I play the message again and again because it's the only link I have left to my father.

Finally, I look back inside the bag and pull out the sword.

It's not a hologram. It's real. I'm not sure how my papa was able to smuggle a weapon into Cirrus but somehow he did. And, he thought it important enough to leave for me to find.

As I heft the hilt in my hand, the silver blade suddenly ignites with red-orange flames, mesmerizing me with their flickering brightness.

“Whoa,” Vala says, her dark, little hazel colored eyes shining from the flames as she stares at the sword in my hand. “What kind of sword is that, Anna?”

I shake my head. “I have no idea, Vala. No idea at all.”