Lady Lure (38 page)

“They wanted you dead,” Halvo said, “and me
in the hands of the pirates so neither of us could tell our side of
the story and so Elyr could be free to marry Thori. My dear, I do
believe you have solved this mystery.”

“But why is Elyr now the Chief Hierarch?”
Perri asked.

“Isn’t it obvious? It’s yet another Regulan
intrigue, and from Elyr’s point of view, it must be simple common
sense. He knew too much. Elyr must have believed he would never be
safe so long as the old Chief Hierarch held power. Nor could the
Chief Hierarch feel secure with Elyr knowing about his illegal
agreement with the pirates. One of the two was bound to destroy the
other. Elyr got his blow in first. In the Service, we call it a
preemptive strike.”

“Then Elyr must have had the old Chief
Hierarch killed,” Perri said.

“No doubt.” Halvo did not look at all upset
by this conclusion. “I would guess that along with his title, Elyr
has inherited the old Chief Hierarch’s profitable connection with
the pirates. That is probably why he sent Vedyr out to abduct me
again, a role for which Vedyr was sadly miscast. The man doesn’t
have the nerve to play a pirate and be convincing about it. I am
amazed by what poor judges of character Elyr and the Chief Hierarch
have been. They used Vedyr beyond his capabilities and they
misjudged you, Perri. They thought they could manipulate you as
they pleased and, since you are a woman, you would do as they told
you.”

“Elyr is using Thori now.” Perri’s mind had
moved on to another area of speculation. “Poor Thori. I know her,
Halvo. She loves her father, and she places a high premium on the
importance of her family. Thori will not take kindly to what Elyr
has done. I do not think their marriage can be a happy one.” Perri
paused, thinking. “Shouldn’t we tell Captain Jyrit about this right
away? And your mother?”

“There will be time enough before we reach
Regula.” Halvo’s eyes were glowing with a silver heat as he
regarded Perri. “Do you have any idea just how stimulating I find
intelligence in a woman? When combined with a kind heart and a
passionate nature, brain power can be sexually devastating.”

He was grinning at her, and Perri immediately
saw why. Halvo was, as he had just claimed, highly stimulated by
her display of intuition and reasoning power.

“I am sorry I made you wait,” she
murmured.

“Don’t apologize. The delay was well
worthwhile.” Catching Perri in his arms, he bore her down onto the
mattress again. “May I assume that you are equally excited by what
we have deduced? Or perhaps, since it is my understanding that
women are sensitive about interruptions to passionate interludes, a
bit more stimulation would be in order?”

“You may stimulate me as much as you like,”
she replied, “but be warned, Halvo. I intend to give as much
stimulation as I get.”

“That’s what I was hoping,” he said.

* * * * *

“You have a Regulan ship in tow?” On the
viewscreen Elyr’s deliberately bland expression lapsed into fear,
which was quickly superseded by a display of controlled anger.
“Captain Jyrit, this is outrageous. By what law does a Jurisdiction
Service vessel apprehend a friendly ship?”

“By the law of self-preservation,” Jyrit
said. “Your so-called friendly ship threatened us and ordered us to
hand over hostages. Not that there was a chance they could do us
much harm if we did not comply with their demands. The ship was
insufficiently manned and armed, and its captain was completely
untrained for warfare. By the way, Elyr, he claims to be a
particular companion of yours.”

Perri, who with Halvo and Kalina was standing
off to one side of the bridge where Elyr could not see them, knew
Jyrit was enjoying their meeting. She could tell that Elyr was
not.

“You will address me as Chief Hierarch.” Elyr
attempted to regain the dignity he had lost over the last few
minutes. “As head of the Regulan government, I order you to turn
over to me any prisoners who may be Regulans. I also expect you to
return the ship.”

“You may have them, ship and men alike,”
Jyrit said. “We have examined every inch of that vessel and know it
to be Regulan made. As for the men, they have been thoroughly
interrogated. What they know, I know.”

At those words, Elyr went white.

“Would you care to provide me with your
personal explanation of recent events on Regula?” Jyrit asked. “I
will be happy to carry your words to Leader Almaric. He will be
curious to know how you have become Chief Hierarch at so young an
age.”

“When I discovered proof of the former Chief
Hierarch’s complicity in the abduction of Admiral Halvo Gibal,”
Elyr said, “I had no choice but to remove him from office.”

“Where is he now?” Jyrit asked.

“That need not concern you. Merely convey my
greetings to Leader Almaric and assure him the Regulan Hierarchy is
conducting planetary business as usual.”

“Jyrit,” Kalina said, “may I have a few words
with Elyr?” At Jyrit’s assent, she moved forward to face the
viewscreen.

“Lady Kalina.” Seeing her, Elyr began to look
nervous again.

“How is your mother faring after this
unexpected change in your fortunes?” Kalina asked. “When last I
spoke with Cynri, she was greatly worried about you.”

“She is well,” Elyr replied, “and no longer
worried.”

“Perhaps she ought to be more worried,”
Kalina said in a silky-smooth voice. “And Thori, your dear wife –
how is she?”

“Thori is also well.” Elyr frowned as if he
could not understand the purpose of Kalina’s questions.

“After my delightful and remarkably
enlightening visit to Regula not long ago, I regard both of those
ladies as dear personal friends,” Kalina said. “I would be deeply
distressed were any harm to come to either of them. Leader Almaric
would, of course, share in my distress.”

“I thank you for your kind thoughts,” Elyr
said. “I will inform Thori and my mother that you were asking about
them.”

“The welfare of Regula and of the Regulan
people is always a matter of concern to the Leader of the
Jurisdiction,” Kalina said. Deepening her voice she added, “Any
misfortune to befall the Regulan Hierarchy, and any accident or ill
health occurring to any Regulan, male or female, would call forth
immediate help from the Jurisdiction Service. You may depend upon
us, Elyr. Ah, forgive that slip of my tongue, Chief Hierarch. Your
title is still so new to me. I beg you not to forget what I have
said.” Kalina stepped aside, leaving the viewscreen to Jyrit.

“If you have no other messages for anyone at
Capital,” Jyrit said to Elyr, “then we will return your ship and
its crew to you, with the suggestion that you train those men
better before sending them out into space again. We intend to leave
the Regulan Sector in two hours.” Jyrit paused, but Elyr said
nothing more. At a nod from Jyrit, the communications officer
closed the video link with Regula.

“Mother, you were wonderful,” Halvo said,
laughing. “What a marvelous example of diplomatic double-talk. Elyr
won’t dare to harm Thori now.”

“Let us hope not.” Kalina looked at Perri.
“Thank you for suggesting that Thori will need protection from her
scheming husband, since he has achieved his goal and does not need
her anymore.”

“It was your idea to include Cynri in the
warning,” Perri said, adding, “though I do not seriously think Elyr
would harm his own mother.”

“You never can tell with Regulan men,” Kalina
said. “They cannot be trusted.”

“How well I know that. Lady Kalina, I hope
you believe my story now.”

“What I believe or do not believe does not
matter,” Kalina said. “The fact remains that you did, by your own
admission, deliberately and willfully abduct my son, and for that
crime you must face trial on Capital. What happens to you then will
be up to Leader Almaric.”

Perri had never seen a city as magnificent as
Capital, nor a house quite like the one where Kalina and Leader
Almaric lived. With the
Krontar
docked at the orbiting
spaceport high above the planet, Kalina, Halvo, Perri, Captain
Jyrit, Lieutenant Dysia, and a still deactivated Rolli had all
boarded a shuttlecraft, which Halvo then piloted to a landing spot
in a park that faced the Leader’s house.

“As soon as he became Leader of the
Jurisdiction, Almaric insisted on having a more convenient place to
land than the main city strip,” Kalina said. “This does save time,
and since we had these trees and bushes planted, the view remains
an agreeable one. As you see, we can walk to the house.”

The instant they stepped off the shuttlecraft
they were surrounded by Service guards. Two of them carried Rolli,
while two more walked on either side of Perri.

The house to which they went presented a pale
stone face, with stone steps leading up to the wide entrance. Once
inside they paused only briefly in the stone floored entry hall
before their group was ushered down a corridor to closed double
doors of black wood that had a swirling design carved into them. In
the design Perri recognized many of the symbols of the various
Member worlds of the Jurisdiction, including the Sign of Regula,
the familiar spiral. Two of the guards flung open the doors, and
Kalina led everyone into the room beyond.

It was an office, with dark, paneled walls
and shelves that held audio and video records. Even a few antique
books had their places on those shelves. There was a green-and-red
carpet on the red stone floor, a couch and several chairs grouped
for easy conversation, and a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that
opened onto a stone terrace and the garden at the back of the
house. A bowl of fruit, a thermal qahf jug, and a plate containing
pastries sat together on a table.

Perri glanced around quickly, taking in those
simple domestic objects before her eyes were drawn to the wide desk
at one end of the room. A man sat at the desk, his head bowed over
his work. Perri needed no introduction to recognize him. The Leader
of the Jurisdiction looked up as Kalina entered.

“My dearest! Welcome home. I am happy to see
that you are here at least an hour earlier than I expected.” The
man rose and came around the desk to Kalina. They went into each
other’s arms for a long, tender kiss.

“You are too thin, Almaric,” Kalina said.
“Every time I go away, you lose weight.”

“Now that you are with me once more I expect
to regain all of it.” Almaric’s attention moved from his wife to
his son. He opened his arms. “Halvo, my boy, I feared I would never
see you again.”

As the two men embraced, Perri noticed Kalina
brushing at her eyes.

“Captain Jyrit, welcome and thank you for all
of your help,” Almaric said, gripping Jyrit’s hand. “And you, too,
Lieutenant Dysia. It’s good to see you again.”

Then all the pleasant warmth left Almaric’s
face. The look he gave Perri was icy enough to freeze the blood in
her every vein. “I need not ask who you are.”

Perri regretted that icy look. Almaric so
closely resembled his younger son, Tarik, that Perri had at once
experienced a rush of friendly emotion toward him. Like Tarik,
Almaric was tall and slim, though the father’s once-dark hair was
almost completely silver, and his sharp-featured face was lined.
His eyes were a lighter shade of blue than Tarik’s and cold when
they looked at Perri. So very cold. With a chill in her heart,
Perri saw that Almaric might never forgive her for abducting the
beloved son of whom he was so proud.

It was Halvo who saved Perri from collapse in
the face of his father’s coldness. Halvo put an arm around her and
drew her against his side. With a question forming in his icy-blue
eyes, Almaric regarded his older son.

“This is Perri.” Halvo’s tone of voice made
it clear that she was important to him. “She and I have an amazing
story to tell you.”

“Indeed?” Almaric’s lips barely moved when he
spoke.

“Captain Jyrit, Lieutenant Dysia, and my own
mother are witnesses to much of the tale,” Halvo said. “We also
bring news from Regula.”

“Unless you have been in direct contact with
Regula during the last day or two, I expect the news I have of that
benighted planet is more recent than yours. I shall wait to reveal
what I know of Regula until after I have heard all you can tell me
of your adventures. After listening to your story, I am sure what
has happened on Regula will hold greater meaning for me, allowing
me to interpret events more accurately.” Almaric gestured toward
the grouping of couch and chairs. “Please be seated.”

All of them did as he ordered, except Perri,
who hung back. Going to where the guards had set Rolli down before
departing, she laid a hand on the robot’s shoulder.

“I want Rolli reactivated,” she said to
Halvo. “Rolli is a witness, too.”

“I will decide when that thing should speak,”
Almaric said.

“Father,” Halvo said in a voice that
suggested to Perri the beginning of a dispute.

“Actually, Almaric, my dear,” Kalina said,
breaking into the tension between father and son, “Perri is correct
in this instance. I also suggest that the robot be included in our
discussion.”

“I see.” Almaric let them wait for a minute
or two while he pondered his decision. “Very well, Kalina, I will
accede to your request. Let the robot be activated. No, Perri. Take
your hands away from it. Halvo will do it.”

“As you wish, Leader Almaric.” Perri sat down
in the chair Kalina indicated to her.

“Admiral,” Rolli said, blue eyelights
scanning the room, “where are we now?”

Halvo explained, introducing those members of
their company whom Rolli did not know.

“I ought to be the one to begin this story,”
Halvo said, taking the chair next to Perri. “As you know, Father, I
was returning to Capital from the hospital planet where I had been
recovering for a year. It is difficult for me to remember now just
how bored, how listless and weary of life I was after months of a
strict schedule of intensive therapy.”