Between HeVan and Hell (30 page)

“What, are you worried she’ll escape
the bedroom? What’s going on here?” she asked.

Before the tall, blonde guard could
answer, the door opened. Addie stood in the doorway with a sleepy
look on her face.

“Gracie, you’re here. Come in, don’t
worry about him. They all think I need protection 24/7. It’s
ridiculous, but Arjun says they’re mainly ceremonial and when we
get to HeVan, it’s expected. So he wants me to get used to it,” she
said.

Addie went over to the
sitting area over by a window that overlooked the back gardens and
the fields beyond. Someone had let the dogs out and they were
playing chase. Both Addie’s and Grace’s
Ankida
walked out into the yard and
began throwing balls and sticks for the dogs. While Grace poured
her heart out to her sister, her
Ankida
spoke to Addie’s.

“
Grace does not wish to be
tied to HeVan just yet. She has wished all her life to be a police
officer and she is very good at her job. Also, the case that she’s
been working on will involve a long trial. Both she and Jett will
need to testify in order to ensure a conviction,” Jalen explained
to Arjun.

“We formerly ask to be reassigned as
Ambassadors to Earth so that we might stay here indefinitely,” said
Jalen, and his brothers nodded their heads in unison.

Arjun used the excuse of throwing the
ball to think about their request. Addie liked the new guards; she
was friendly with everyone. Still, he had noticed that she was not
as relaxed in their presence as she was with Jalen and his
brothers. He wished they would return to HeVan for Addie’s sake;
her burdens would be great and she would need her family. Then he
considered all of what Jalen had said. They weren’t giving up, only
asking for time—time for Grace to come to terms with who she was
now, and realize there was an even greater need for her skills on
HeVan than here on Earth. He turned back to the three
men.

“As
Nam-Nin
, Addie will have to approve
the appointment. Any Ambassadors have to be appointed by the ruling
Supreme Queen, as you know. However, since this is for the benefit
of her own sister, I think she’ll approve the request. You will be
missed. We don’t know what mischief the Princess Regent has gotten
into in our absence. We are expecting the worst, as Malpha is a
devious and grasping woman,” said Arjun.

“How much have you told Addie of the
situation back home?” asked Jalen.

“She has been learning of our history
through the nano-patches. Each night at dinner, we have a
historical discussion to cement the new knowledge in her mind and
help her make sense of all the data she’s received. She hasn’t yet
gotten to the former Queen’s disappearance,” replied
Arjun.

“I thought it best if she learned it
all in context. At the rate she is learning, we have plenty of time
before we leave for her to catch up.”

“And how are the plans for the wedding
ceremony coming along?” Jett asked Rune in another part of the
yard.

“When we first found out all that was
involved, we were not convinced of the necessity of dressing in
peculiar clothing and going through complicated rituals. Then Addie
told us about a tradition called the honeymoon and with that to
look forward to, we’re willing to suffer through all the rest,” he
answered.

“What is a honeymoon?” asked
Justyn.

“After completing the
marriage ceremony, the
Ankida
and their
Assat
are supposed to have a special time alone.
Traditionally, its two weeks alone in a distant location with no
requirements except for sex and food,” finished Rune.

“I think we should also complete this
marriage ceremony so we can have a honeymoon also,” said
Justyn.

“I agree,” said Jett, “We will speak
to Jalen about it later.”

They all looked up and saw the sisters
sitting near the window and waved; then they went back to playing
with the dogs. Jalen took particular care to check on Sugar, as he
knew she was carrying pups.

Up in the bedroom, the women gave a
little wave back and then continued their conversation.

“I totally understand where you’re
coming from, Grace. Kylan was actually the first to tell me he
loved me in words. I can tell you that they do love you; they
wouldn’t have married you if they didn’t. Their wings would not
have emerged. It’s not only chemical, their minds and hearts are
involved too,” said Addie, “but they absolutely should have said
something to you by now. You are definitely entitled to your anger.
I can’t believe you told them you were in love with them and they
didn’t respond. They are complete idiots.”

“Actually, I didn’t say anything; I
was too scared. And then with everything with the case and the fake
engagement, it just spiraled out of control. I really blew it,
didn’t I?” asked Grace.

Being a true sister, Addie knew
exactly what to say in response to that comment. “Maybe you
over-reacted, just a teeny, tiny bit. Still, they blew it first.
They should have talked to you more than they did. They were way
more wrong than you and they should pay for it. Make them sleep in
the guest room,” she suggested, and they both giggled over the
image of three men, each over seven feet tall, fitting on that
double bed.

“So you think you really can use a
Chicago police detective on HeVan?” asked Grace.

“Hey, I knew I’d have an uphill battle
getting you to want to move. I know all about your dream of being
the first female Superintendent of Police. Remember Crooked Cathy
and Terry the Thief? I was the robber to your cop all through grade
school,” said Addie. “You read me my Miranda Rights so many times
as kids, I still remember them. So I’ve absolutely given thoughts
as to how to lure you to HeVan. Because you have to want it; it’s
going to be a lot of work. Not the hearts and flowers paradise the
guys tend to describe.”

“Arjun doesn’t say much; I know he
doesn’t want to worry me. But I’ve been studying the current
political situation on HeVan and it’s bad. The Regent who was
placed in power when the last Queen disappeared? Well, it turns out
she was instrumental in the disappearance. She’s dead now, but her
granddaughter is now Princess Regent. She’s supposed to be a carbon
copy of her grandmother.

“I don’t think Arjun is aware of
everything Jett gave me and the access I have to get more. This
regent chick is really bad news, Grace. Her name is Malpha and
she’s actually trying to bring back slavery, if you can believe it.
It would really be great if I had someone who understood the law to
interpret it for me. That’s where you come in. Because right now,
though I haven’t come across one in their history, they are heading
fast towards a civil war if they don’t get some solid leadership in
there.”

“I’m not a lawyer, Addie, I’m a cop,”
said Grace.

“That’s right, a cop that really wants
to be appointed to Top Cop. We both know coming up through the
ranks isn’t enough. You went straight into the police academy from
High School. Don’t tell me you haven’t been attending law school at
night, because I know you. And Loyola is right there in Chicago,”
Addie said, starting to get a little worried at Grace’s
evasions.

“Alright, yes, I have been taking
night classes. But I haven’t graduated yet,” she said.

“Fine, and it looks like I’m not going
to complete my doctorate. I have more important things to do now
than write a dissertation. I need to develop policy and decide
which laws need to be revised or thrown out altogether. I need to
appoint a cabinet or some such thing. I haven’t decided whether I
should abolish the Monarchy and move to an elected government or
not. There is a level of power associated with being Queen, true
magical power that I can’t pass on to a group of people. I need
people that I can trust.

“So if I appoint you Attorney General
for the ENTIRE WORLD, then I expect you to step up and slap on some
nano-patches. Learn our laws, the laws of HeVan. Commit to this new
adventure. I really don’t think you’ll regret it. After all,
Gracie, when you get right down to it, which is more important,
your job or your family?”

She could see that Grace was clinging
to her original stance, even though she no longer wanted to. She’d
been like this all their lives; she took a position and stuck to it
practically to the death.

Addie remembered when they were kids
sharing a bedroom. Gracie had the top bunk and she the bottom one.
They had the most obnoxious buzzing alarm clock on the other side
of the room and Grace had always waited for Addie to turn it off.
Her argument was that since Addie slept on the bottom bunk, it was
easier for her.

One Saturday morning when they were
both children, Addie had woken up before the alarm went off. She’d
rushed downstairs to the den to watch the morning cartoons, (early
bird got control of the remote,) and after a while, Addie heard the
alarm go off and thought Grace would be coming down soon. Then she
forgot about it because of the action taking place on the TV
screen. An hour or so later, she realized that she was still
hearing the buzzing sound of the alarm when she went to get some
juice.

Walking into the bedroom, Addie saw
Grace lying stiff on the bed, eyes scrunched up, hands fisted at
her sides. Addie walked over and turned off the alarm; Gracie had
put up with that obnoxious sound for over an hour because she
thought Addie was still in the bottom bunk refusing to turn off the
alarm and suffering right alongside her. Remembering that story,
Addie knew just what to say to Grace.

“Still waiting for me to turn off the
alarm, Gracie?” she asked and Grace’s head shot up.

“I can’t believe you’re still bringing
that up,” said Grace.

“Oh, honey, I’m telling that one to
your grandchildren,” said Addie with a big grin. “In fact, I’m
telling the guys at dinner tonight. They need all the help they can
get. So are you gonna wait until there’s an assassination attempt
on me to show up or what?”

“Okay, if I have to keep saving your
butt, I might as well be there. You so owe me on this one, though.
Attorney General has a nice ring to it. Can you really do that?”
she asked.

“You learn all the laws and tell me,”
Addie retorted.

“Well, I guess we’d better go down and
give them the good news. Hey, this will put me one up. I’m bound to
get great mileage out of this going forward, don’t you think?”
asked Grace as they got up to leave.

“Oh, absolutely, giving it all up for
love, traveling to a distant planet and leaving everything behind.
They’ll have to let you win a bunch of arguments for that one,”
said Addie. “I’m looking forward to the whole ‘I gave up my career
to become your Queen and now I’m knocked up with your six babies
argument.’ Can you even imagine the stretch marks I’m going to
have?”

“Hey, Addie, what’s happening to your
freckles? And did you grow taller?” asked Grace.

Addie just laughed and said she’d
explain later. They continued talking on their way down the stairs,
the guard following behind at a respectful distance. He couldn’t
help but overhear some of the conversation and he blushed
red.

Down below in the garden, the men
noticed the women leaving their position by the window. They
whistled for the dogs and started walking to the door to meet them
inside. Just as they were entering the living room, they heard
Grace say something that sounded like “…frostbite on my ass…” when
they saw the men and went quiet.