Norvir (The Mating Games Book 9) (5 page)

“From what I’ve heard, he works for the company that is after you. He has been keeping you away from the people that would get your message out. They told him if he can shut you up, he can keep you and the money they are paying him. Killing you was not their preferred plan. He convinced them it would make a martyr out of you.”

“That makes sense. He always had a friend with money willing to help out or a buddy with information that saved us. It makes me heartsick that he is behind all this. I looked at him as a brother.”

“You might have, but his feelings for you are anything but brotherly.”

“I thought we’d worked that out. He said he understood I didn’t have those kinds of feelings for him.”

“Oh, he understands alright. The man just doesn’t care. His plans have always been to force you into a relationship so you’ll stay with him.”

“How can you possibly know that?”

“He’s been ranting and raving since we’ve been on the ship. Dumont told Heloise she was a stupid bitch and he should have killed her as soon as he saw his master plan being derailed. She’s a bad influence, according to him. In his mind, he almost had you where he wanted you until she convinced you to go with us.”

“There might be some truth in that. I’ve never been the type to take chances. He’s always steered me in the direction he wanted me to go. I thought he cared and was looking out for me. It never entered my mind that he was using me, making money off my situation. Oh, God. James knows hundreds of my supporters.”

“I’m sure that’s true, but his focus is on you. He thinks he’s in love with you. The man plans to change you to suit his needs.”

“He thinks he’s in love with me? Why do you think he isn’t?”

“If he truly loved you, he wouldn’t be planning on changing you. It would be his honor to help you further your plans, not betray you to your enemies. Love isn’t about what works for you, it’s about unconditional acceptance for the one you love. No one can control it, not when it’s true love.”

“That’s beautiful.”

“It’s what my people believe, what I know to be true. Stopping him, may mean the end of him.”

“You’d kill him?”

“Only if he attacks us, but that wasn’t what I meant. If he fails in his purpose, those he works for won’t hesitate to destroy him. That man, can’t be allowed around you or on our planet. He will continue to attempt to fulfill his mission. There is no way to redeem him.”

“And therefore he will have no protection.”

“I don’t think he will hurt anyone. I sense his threats are just an attempt to call you out.”

“Please don’t kill him. Leave him to his fate, but don’t kill him if you can avoid it.”

“I will do as you wish.”

Several of his men joined him and they had guns. Nat recognized the tranquilizer guns since she had sedated animals before, when she was tagging them so they could track them for studies. They intended to knock him out. It was a good plan to avoid killing him.

“I want to go with you.”

“It’s not safe.”

“You know he won’t hurt me.”

“He’s not who I’m worried about. Have you already forgotten someone hid a bomb near you? They didn’t care who they killed as long as they got you.”

Nat blushed. She hadn’t forgotten as much as she had failed to take it onto consideration. “I’m sorry. I just feel so helpless. I’ve known James all my life and it’s hard to reconcile this man that is holding two people hostage with the friend I’ve known for years.”

“We will safeguard him as much as we can, but Heloise and Morelan come first. Dumont may regret the generosity we show in sparing him, when his bosses come for him.”

“Is there no place you can hide him? Nothing that can be done for him?”

“You can only help someone who wants to be helped. Are you sure he does?”

No, she didn’t know this man who had recently been revealed to her, she just couldn’t forget the person he used to be. “No, but what if he does?”

“I would help him, for you.” Norvir said simply. “You are a good friend, but you are too trusting.”

James had always cautioned her on that too. “Too trusting, my Natty.” He’d told her that a hundred times and then he’d taken advantage of the fact. She didn’t like the man being revealed to her, but she would always love the boy she’d been raised with.

“How will I know that everything is okay? I’ll be worried.”

“Here, let me set the vid screen for you and you can watch what those on the command deck see.”

As he turned on the screen, the area where James held his captives showed. Seconds later she could hear him denigrating them. “They must not care about you as much as I hoped they did. No one has come or contacted me. Maybe they don’t care if you die?”

Nat couldn’t believe this was the James she had always known and loved like a brother. He was cold, there was no sign of kindness in the man. Had she always been blind to his faults or had he changed and she’d not noticed? The person haranguing his hostages with hateful fear inducing words was not the man she’d known all her life.

She watched the screen noticing the second Novel appeared. The fear she felt for his safety made her breath freeze in her chest. James was instantly aware of Novel stepping into the room. “You!” He accused pointing the gun at Novel and glaring at him.

“Here I am. You have to know Nat will not be coming here.”

“You will be my ticket to everything I want. A prince of Oison, in my custody. I can ransom you back to your family or sell you to the Earth companies who are angry at Oison. So many choices, all of them good.”

“How do you know who I am?”

“Your enemies have a dossier on each member of your family. A picture is, after all, worth a thousand words. I recognized you immediately.”

“Oison will not deal with criminals.”

“Oison, maybe not, but what father will allow his son to die?”

“Mine will not deal with a criminal.”

“And yet here you stand. You speak to me because I demanded it and you wish to save your friends.” James said with a smirk. He frowned and his hand reached to his back then he turned. She could see the dart sticking in him. “Shit!” He dropped to the ground limp like a rag doll.

“I knew you would come.” Morelan said.

“I didn’t and he scared the fuck out of me.” Heloise admitted. “I knew he was a prick whenever Nat wasn’t around, but I didn’t know he was a psychopath.”

“What will we do with him?” Morelan wondered.

“Nat wants to offer him refuge. I will offer him a job and a place on one of our colonies.” Norvir suggested. They had begun reclaiming the colonies that had survived the destruction of Mazlan recently. Leadership was needed and most colonies had been drained of resources by their selfish emperor.

“Thank the gods you aren’t dragging him on the ship with us.” Morelan offered.

“No, he is dangerous, to us and to Nat.” Two of the crew stepped up and he had Dumont taken to his room. They were able to get in by scanning his thumb. A hotel employee came by, but they told them he was drunk. They didn’t seem surprised.

Norvir had an offer printed up for Dumont with tickets to a location he was unlikely to be found at. It was a take it or leave it kind of thing. He felt he had honored his commitment to look out for Dumont. It was time to leave. When he got on the ship, he went to the observation room Nat had been in. She launched into his arms kissing on the cheek.

“Thank you. That was so scary to watch. I think he must have had a breakdown. It’s all I can think of that would have affected him that way.”

“I don’t know since I didn’t know him before. I left him an employment package and he’ll take it or he won’t.”

“You’ve done all you could and I appreciate it.”

A bell rang. “We’re about to take off. Let’s all get in our seats and strap in.” Norvir directed.

He would be glad to see the last of this place. They slowly pulled away picking up speed as they left the area near the station. Once they hit open space, the ship hit light speed. Norvir let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. The closer to Oison they got, the safer they would be. In this new ship, it was unlikely anyone could run them down, but someone might be waiting ahead for them at any of the stops they planned to make if they anticipated their actions.

The first stop wasn’t far from Tellur III so it would be unexpected. The stop at Rundell I would be brief. The station was the home of a company that made baby products. They shipped to their customers, or pickup could be made at the station. There was a discount for bulk orders and another for picking up your order. With the baby boom in Oison, this stop was on the route from Tellur III, so it was added to the list of stops.

The ship slowed down a few hours later as it eased up to the station and docked. The station was the old circular type, but it was kept maintained. It was huge since it held the factory as well as the distribution center for many items expectant parents wanted. The employees lived on the station, so there were quarters, restaurants, and stores that supplied basic needs. There was even a bar and some entertainment facilities such as a movie theater and gaming room.

Nat had thought about going to the station to shop until she discovered all they had was baby items. She had no need of those and no intention to need them any time soon. Heloise was such a free spirit, she would probably never settle down and have kids. Maybe the next station would have something worth heading off the ship for. They loaded up in record time and left the station right away.

At Jasin, a small remote station just off the trade routes, they stopped and picked up a dozen would be mates. This station looked so rough, only essential personnel left the ship. They returned with the passengers quickly and continued on their way.

Chapter 5

Homeward Bound

Norvir spent every second he could with Nat. it was enough to know what he had only suspected before-she was his. The question he asked himself, was what would he do about it? Tonight, they had what would be called a date on Earth. The best meal available had been set up in his room. Roses, candles, and champagne because nothing was too good for his female. He didn’t know how she felt about him, but he had hopes she might feel the same. Maybe tonight would give him a better idea of where things were headed.

She knocked on his door. Judging by the time it better be her. Opening the door he was relieved to see it was his Nat. Gorgeous, she was simply gorgeous and stepped back to let her in. Her eyes fell on the table set so perfectly with romance in mind.

“That’s lovely, Norvir. You didn’t need to go to so much trouble.”

He wondered what that meant. “It was no trouble, but I would do anything to please you.”

Helping her sit, he then moved across the table to the seat. It was nice to sit where he could look at her. “I’ve been looking at that packet you sent me. Oison is amazing.”

“Does that mean you are considering the position?” He was pursuing her on two fronts and sometimes it seemed hard to keep them separate.

“It would be nice to have a job that I’m allowed to do. I also need to drop off the radar or I’ll be killed. That fact has finally set in. This might be my only chance to hide and lick my wounds. Heloise is in danger too because she supported me. That makes me feel bad.”

“We can protect and hide you. All you have to do is agree to our terms.” If she didn’t have the interest in him now, maybe he could continue to woo her while she worked on Oison. If she left, that might be the end of everything.

“It should be an easy decision, shouldn’t it? Live or die, but I want more than that. Life has to mean more than that.”

Norvir nodded. She was rejecting him, them. Nat would rather die than be stuck with him on Oison. “I understand.” He’d allowed himself to hope and now that hope had been ripped from him.

“I’m not saying no. I want more than just to run a program. Teaching is another of my passions. You have a college? I want to run the program through it.”

He had kind of misled her about the college, but they did plan to establish one. Nat could be one of the founders. Some might consider that an honor, right? “I can offer you a position at our college, but you know everything on our planet is just starting out.”

“I don’t mind helping to work out the kinks in you education system. I would be proud to work with your educators to make the best possible system for your students.”

Norvir smiled. “If you don’t mind hard work, you have a deal.” Guilt tried to hit him, but he pushed it away. A male did what he had to do.

They continued to make stops since this was also a trading mission. Morelan was happy with some deals he had made. He had bought a ship’s whole cargo from a trading vessel that was broken down. The captain had been thrilled to sell his load, even with only a small profit, so he could pay for repairs. Morelan hoped to do more of that type of trading. Maybe his cousin had found his niche. He certainly seemed to have found his interest where Heloise was concerned. Norvir hoped Morelan could seal that deal when the time came, but Nat had told him Heloise was a shark when it came to men. That didn’t sound like a good thing. He’d been afraid to ask for details.

The four of them sat in the private dining room used by the captain and his guests. The larger dining room was for general use, the crew and passengers. Nat was regaling them with a tale about her mother who had snuck into a factory that was polluting a river. It had caused birth defects among the local population. The company had denied they were dumping chemicals into the water. They said it must have been residual from years of other companies dumping before the laws had been enacted. She recorded the proof and sent it to a reporter not afraid to publish it. Nat’s mother died not long after that in an accident. Few people believed it was really an accident, but they couldn’t prove otherwise.

“Your mother sounds like an exceptional woman.” Norvir praised. He couldn’t imagine how Nat had dealt with the loss at such a young age. His mother meant everything to him and her loss would tear him up. That she lost her father too, also made him sympathetic.