Chapter 69

James changed his appearance back to himself.

The men all blinked at him in shock; most gasped, and several used expletives to express their surprise.

“My name is James Carmichael. I am a wizard and a Police Detective from Australia. At present, I work for UNSEC as one of their Special Forces Space Military Police. I borrowed Hasid’s face to learn what was truly going on here.”

“My wife, Dusty, did kill the real Hasid Merat several years ago in self-defence when she was a police officer in Australia. I saw his body after she shot him, so I know that his death is real.”

He ignored the gasps and continued, “Fiaz and Ishmael Merat are also dead. I am sorry, Saji, but Ishmael died when the ship they were travelling on blew up while it was in the asteroid belt in the Uno System. Our Special Forces team had only planned to disable the ship.”

“We were unaware at the time that the drugs that were aboard the ship were highly explosive in the concentrations they had them. They had also stored the drugs near one of the ammunition stores.”

“Fiaz, Pathan and some of the crew were rescued after the initial attack and before the ship smashed into an asteroid. However, when we put them on the island that housed the pirates, some of the pirates took exception to Fiaz being there.”

“Due to the crimes Fiaz had perpetrated against many of the families of the men there, to force them to work for him, the magical cuff allowed their enforcer to execute Fiaz under the laws the men had agreed to live by.”

“Ironically, Pathan and the enforcer, Nuru, are now a couple. They can also change their gender, as they have become shapeshifters. This fact may take some getting used to when you meet them. The Pirates we imprisoned have all been infected with a virus that has turned them into Shifters.”

James turned to Saji and, in a serious voice, said, “Saji, Pathan has told Dusty that you are indeed the eldest child even though Fiaz never recognised you as such. He doesn’t want to rule the Merat Kingdom.”

“He has informed Dusty that the man who was Pathan can stay dead as far as he is concerned. Patty, as she prefers to be called, now believes that she was, in fact, Ishmael’s child.”

“Several years ago, she had gotten DNA tests done on her family. Apparently, Ishmael had a thing for Pathan’s mother, and Pathan had always wondered why he was so different from Hasid and his sisters.”

“It was at this time that Patty learned that you were Fiaz’s son, and she was not. You have a regressive gene that followed down Fiaz’s side of the family but not Ishmael’s. Patty decided to pay more attention to your career.”

“She said to tell you that she was sorry for sicking the Futsal Federation on to you, but she couldn’t see how else to help you,” James told Saji and the fascinated men with them.

“That little shit!” Saji ejected as he shook his head and then laughed.

“He saved my life, you know. The drugs Fiaz and Ishmael got me addicted to when I was injured were killing me not helping me. Neither cared about me, just what fame they could bask in from my efforts. They sent me here in disgrace after I was kicked out.”

James nodded. “Wait one moment,” he said and placed his arm with the vambrace on it, on the table.

“I heard that, my brother, Saji. I am so happy to hear that you are better,” Patty’s male voice said from the vambrace.

“Thank you, little brother. However, you have left me in a fine mess once again,” Saji told Patty with mirth in his voice.

Patty giggled, “I’m good at that, aren’t I? Brother, I really don’t want Fiaz’s Kingdom, I don’t deserve it, and it is far more than I would ever wish to look after. I have enough trouble looking after myself. You are the last Merat male of his line, and according to my father’s will, that makes it yours, and you are welcome to it.”

Saji rubbed his jaw as he looked at the other men at the table. They were all grinning.

Hagan said, “This gets better and better. You know we will follow your lead, Saji.”

Saji sighed and replied, “Fine, then as your Shah, Patty, I declare that you and your partner Nuru must accept Ishmael’s Kingdom as restitution for saving my life and freeing the people here from our fathers’ tyranny.”

“I will talk to this man, James and his wife, Dusty, about how you may claim it. I think you will like the place. It is much smaller and only has one major town, a couple of farms, a mine and a fishing village. Do you think you can handle that much, little brother?”

“Saji,” Dusty’s voice said from the vambrace. “I think I can convince Patty and Nuru to accept your wishes. Rupert is jumping up and down, going, ‘Yes, yes, yes’. Patty, however, is just a bit emotional right now. Just be aware that they will be mages under your rule.”

Saji frowned, and James chuckled.

“Yep, an Overlord likes to have a Lord Wizard in charge of nations or kingdoms on a continent, as in your case. I think Dusty will make it your job to find your fellow wizards. Don’t forget that you will also own Fiaz’s shipyards on Mars and his holdings on Earth.”

Saji blinked several times as he thought of what he knew of what Fiaz had owned.

“Bloody hell!” he exclaimed.

He then grinned in delight as a thought came to him.

“It’s just as well that Fatima looks after the shipyards when Fiaz isn’t there. I think I just might hand them over to her as her inheritance since she is his oldest daughter and has been running the place for many years.”

“Yeah, but isn’t she involved with the shipping of the slaves?” Hagan asked.

He had also been the minister of Roads and Land distribution and a long-time friend of Saji’s. He had been delighted when Saji had agreed to help him and the others at the table overthrow Fiaz.

Mica shook his head, “No, the shipyard business is strictly legitimate. Darleen Carpenter, the Prime Minister of Mars, enforces their strict regulations on Mars. I think you will find Fatima had to become a Mars citizen, and Fiaz had to put the business in her name so it could even operate.”

“You will not find Fiaz’s name on any bit of paper or in an email as to him being an owner. He could be a board member but not the director. Also, Fatima leases the ships to whoever wishes to pay for them. It was Fiaz and his cronies who leased some of the ships and who organised the ships to be filled with potential slaves.”