Chapter 15: A Request

The streets were busy, the city bustling, everything had returned to normal after the King and Queen had come out of hiding. The whole country had thought them dead and Minara had suspected the Halcyons would insist she and Arron took the crown. Once it became known they had survived there was rejoicing throughout the kingdom. The fact that she had hidden the royal family from the Usurpers, as Varna and her crew were being called, made her a heroine as far as the people were concerned.

As she had bonded with their General Arron they were a golden couple second only to the Royal family. Everyone knew her and acknowledged her, crowds parted for her as she walked, she was a celebrity and it made her uncomfortable.

Before crashing on this planet she had been a Bounty Hunter, Smuggler and Mercenary, just like Varna and her crew. She had become the Queen's bodyguard and lady-in-waiting out of necessity. If she had found this planet and still had her ship with its advanced weapons she knew in her heart she would have been sorely tempted to take over one of the many small kingdoms on this backward planet.

She knew Varna was telling the truth about Sisanna, they had discovered the small bomb attached to the cryochamber as soon as Varna and her crew had surrendered. Minara could also understand the pressure Varna had been under, believing she had bonded with a human and being left alone. She had gone through almost the same situation discovering Arron was human and believing he had been killed. She had been alone for over a year, but at least she had her son to live for during that difficult time. Varna had not had anyone and had run from all she knew, ashamed of what had happened to her.

Would she have condemned Varna if she had found out at the time she had bonded with a human? Minara shuddered; yes she would have. She remembered the disgust and contempt with which she held humans at the time. It would not have been long before she sensed Varna had bonded with someone and there was no such thing as an unbonded Grojan male. She would have pressed her and Varna would not lie to her.

Minara looked up. While she had been thinking she had walked to the palace and not home as she had intended. She sighed and decided to pay her respects to the King and Queen. The Queen, as ever, was happy to see her and showed her all the work she had been doing to restore the palace to its former glory after the damage caused by the Usurpers and the criminals they had employed as palace guards. After an hour Minara managed to make an excuse and leave after the Queen had made her promise to return the next day for afternoon tea and bring Arron Jr.

She walked down to the palace garden and across the lawns to the parked ship. She took a deep breath and walked up the ramp. Mark was sitting at the main console by the core staring at a blank screen.

"Minara!"

"How's it going, Mark?"

He frowned and shook his head. "This ship has had many upgrades over the years and this core is more advanced than any Grojan computer I have ever worked on, and quite frankly, Minara, I'm at a loss as to why it won't boot up. Arron dropped by on the way to the barracks and it is way beyond anything he has seen. Do you know anything about an advanced system like this?"

With a laugh Minara shook her head. "No Mark, I was never that good at computer cores in the first place, but I am going to have a discussion with Arron and there may be a solution to the problem?"

"Oh?" Mark swung round in the chair to give her his full attention, his curiosity piqued. "What?"

"Ah, I need to discuss it with Arron first." Mark nodded and turned back to the console. Minara pinched the bridge of her nose and paused for a moment. "Um ... Mark? You know you told me you sensed the female Grojan you had bonded with?

He spun back round to face her, eyebrows knitted together. "Yes?"

"Well I know who she is."

"You do?"

"Yes, it's Varna, the captain of this ship." Minara noticed his frown deepen at her words.

"The murdering pirate who usurped the crown and is now locked in the city jail?"

"Yes, the very same." Minara had hoped for a more positive response to her revelation, she fisted her hands. "She's not as bad as she seems you know, more a victim of circumstance."

"Victim of circumstance? Minara, you should hear what the people are saying about her and her crew. Shit! This Grojan bonding thing is bollocks!" He looked up at Minara as a sheepish expression crossed his face. "Sorry."

It was Minara's turn to frown. "So what are you going to do about it Mark?" She regretted her sharp tone as soon as she said it and hoped that as it was not his first language he would not notice.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" Minara took a step back. "You can't leave a partly bonded female like that! Don't forget it has been years for her, not just the couple of weeks it seems to you. And she has seen you, even though you were not fully aware it was her who released you ... Mark, that's cruel!"

He tilted his head to one side slightly and looked her in the eye. "Minara, why would I want to be bonded to a murderer? She would certainly not be my choice for a lifetime partner. I will find someone else one day I'm certain of it. Anyway, now is not the time to be involved with anyone."