Rion (35 page)

“You overstep. Leave us.” The king’s sharp gaze nailed Erik. His tone turned steely.

Face red with anger at his dismissal, Erik backed out of the room and shut the door.

“Do you love my son?” Shepherd asked Marisa.

Marisa wrapped her arm around Rion’s waist. “Yes, I love him.”

“You must follow your hearts.”

“And what of Erik’s objections?” Rion asked. “He is not the only person in Chivalri who hates everything alien right now.”

“A king must do what is best for his people. And if you are not with the woman you love, you cannot lead well.”

Was his father right? If Marisa left him, it would be like losing a part of himself. He couldn’t imagine an hour going by
when he wouldn’t think of her. When he wouldn’t wonder what she thought. What she was doing.

There was no one he trusted more. No one he loved more. She made him whole. And when their bodies and minds linked, the completion
was so total, they were one.

“Our people will enjoy a royal wedding. It will have them looking to the future.” The king’s gaze settled on Rion. “I have
made many mistakes, but marrying your mother was not one of them. However, perhaps my biggest was sending you away. I saved
your life… but the cost was so very great.” His tone was sad. “When I ordered you and Erik to switch places, I couldn’t foresee
the consequences.”

Rion frowned. “Sir, I don’t understand.”

“Because I didn’t want you to die, I changed history. And because I saved you, a traitor gained power and betrayed us.”

Rion had had flashes of a traitor but had never seen his face. “Who’s the traitor?” Rion asked.

“I don’t know. But the Unari didn’t come here by chance. They had inside help.” His father closed his eyes for the final time.
His chest stopped rising and falling.

Filled with crushing sorrow, Rion leaned over his father and kissed his forehead. He was gone.

“I’m sorry.” Tears brimmed in Marisa’s eyes. “He loved you very much. He put your life before the welfare of his country.”

Had he? Rion couldn’t seem to make sense of all that had happened. “Did my father just imply that saving my life caused the
Unari invasion?”

Marisa bit her lip. “I think so. And I believe he foresaw the consequences of saving you, but he could not bear to do otherwise.”

Rion looked down at his father. The man had loved him enough to send his only son away to be raised by his brother. His father
had loved him enough to save his life, to change the future. And his decision might or might not have cost this world dearly.

With a heavy heart, he kissed his father’s cheek for the last time. His people had loved him. Rion had loved him.

Mendle knocked on the door and entered. He held a sheaf of papers in his hand.

“This is not a good time,” Rion told him.

“You have to see this. Now.” Mendle had never spoken to him in such an insistent tone. His posture was urgent, his voice vibrating
with tension as he held out the papers.

“What is it?” Rion asked, his heart aching over the tremendous loss of his father.

“We have found documented evidence that proves the Unari intended to keep the Holy Grail in the structure they were constructing.”

“Is the Grail here?” Rion asked.

“We don’t believe so. But apparently there are beacons on the roof intended to guide those who have the Grail from a world
called Pentar to Honor—but the journey was not to be made until the structure was finished.”

When Rion didn’t say anything, Marisa spoke quietly. “Is there anything else, Mendle?”

“There are also documents with the entire plan to overrun Honor. It’s a history of the invasion, sire.”

Rion handed the papers to Marisa. “Make copies and take them to Earth. And send a set to Tor.”

Marisa scanned the documents. “This should help me convince Earth of the danger. I hope it’s enough.”

“We’re sharing intel with Tor?” Mendle frowned.

“Yes, Tor.” Rion pushed down his grief. Mourning his father would have to wait. “More specifically, send the documents to
an Enforcer named Drake. You can reach him at the space museum on the rim. I promised that if we found information that might
help Tor repel the Unari, we’d share. I want those bastards out of our solar system.”

“I will see to it personally, sire.”

“Thank you. Hopefully we can prevent what happened here from—”

“Excuse me, lady,” Mendle said, his face flushing red before he turned to Rion. “Sire,
you
need to read these papers. Erik’s name is in them.”

“And?” With a frown, Rion glanced at the papers. Erik’s name caught his eye, and he read more carefully before he looked up.
“These suggest that my cousin conspired with the Unari. This must be a mistake.”

But was it? His father had warned him of a traitor.

Mendle shook his head. “According to these records, the Unari had spies among the Enforcers on Tor. They knew you’d escaped
them on Tor, and they had tracked your ship to Honor. The Unari sent an Honorian informant to Winhaven to betray you.”

“They sent Erik?” Rion surmised.

Marisa’s eyes widened. “He didn’t escape?”

“The Unari freed him to spy,” Mendle said. “Normally our rebel group is more suspicious, but we were so happy to see one of
the royal bloodline had survived, we didn’t question his good fortune.”

Rion sighed. “Just because the Unari sent him doesn’t mean he followed their orders.”

Marisa’s troubled gaze went to Rion. “When we arrived in the floater, the Unari fired on us
before
the door opened.”

Rion dismissed Mendle. He had to face facts. Erik was different from the man he remembered. Harder. More bitter.

But a traitor? How could the man who’d saved Rion’s life have betrayed him? It didn’t make sense. He and Erik must talk. There
had to be some other explanation.

Right now he had so much to do.

He had a country to lead. A father to bury. The possibility of a cousin’s betrayal to deal with. And he would also have to
say good-bye to Marisa.

At the thought of losing her to Earth, he felt his bones turn to water. His soul cried to go with her. But he wasn’t free
to do as he wished. His birthright had already cost him a childhood with his real parents, and it might now cost him the woman
he loved. But he couldn’t compare his own sacrifices to those his people had made to survive.

The rebellion plan had worked. The Unari had been defeated. Woodenly, he embraced Marisa, dropped his head to her hair, and
breathed in her scent.

Whatever you decide, someone, somewhere, will think you are wrong.

—H
ONORIAN KING

M
arisa squeezed Rion so hard that if he hadn’t been a dragonshaper, she would have broken his ribs. Rion hadn’t had time to
mourn his father’s death, and now he had to deal with the possibility of his cousin’s betrayal. And her imminent return to
Earth.

She hated leaving Rion in such a mess.

With every atom in her body she wanted to stay. But the Unari had already left for Earth. Just as his people needed him to
rebuild and heal, Earth’s people needed her to warn them about the Unari intentions.

Rion tipped up her chin. “This is not good-bye.”

“But—”

“Shh. We belong together. My father was right. You’re meant to be Chivalri’s queen. My people will learn to accept you. And
come to love you like I do.”

Her throat tightened. Perhaps someday…

Rion tensed. She thought it due to her lack of a reply, but a guard pushed Erik into the room. “Sire, he resisted when I removed
his sidearm.”

“Of course I resisted. I’m the king’s cousin.” Erik straightened, his tone harsh.

“Sire, I found him burning papers. Unari papers.”

“I would rid this world of everything and everyone alien.” Erik’s eyes pierced Marisa’s with open hatred.

Rion raised his head, giving the man the benefit of the doubt and speaking as if he hadn’t heard the disrespect in Erik’s
voice. “Would you like time alone with the king?”

“With a dead body? I don’t think so.” Erik straightened, his back taut. His face was drawn, his eyes wild. “However, I would
have liked to have spoken to him one last time.”

“I’m sorry.” Rion held out his arm to draw Erik into an embrace.

Erik sneered and pulled out a weapon he had hidden up his sleeve, shot the guard, then aimed at Rion. “I could have told Shepherd
that all his scheming would do no good. His son will still die.”

So it was true. Erik was the traitor.

And even though she shook with fear that Erik might pull the trigger, she could feel the emotional pain rolling off Rion.

Rion might have been hurting, but at the sight of the weapon, he thrust Marisa behind him. “Grief is twisting your—”

“I’m glad he’s dead.” Erik shook with anger.

Rion made yet another excuse for Erik’s behavior and ignored the weapon. “You wanted his suffering to end?”

Erik spoke with bitterness. “Shepherd may have saved you from an assassin, but I’ve finally found yet another way to be rid
of you.”

Yet another way? Had Erik tried before? Marisa’s mouth went dry with fear. Just how long had Erik’s hatred been festering?

“What are you saying?” Rion took another step closer to Erik.

“You can’t believe a word he says,” Marisa hissed, unnerved by the way Erik’s finger tightened on the trigger. Perhaps if
she drew attention to herself, she could buy Rion a little more time.

Frantic, she glanced around the makeshift hospital room for a weapon. But there was nothing besides a bed with the kng’s lifeless
body, a tray at his side. On the tray was a glass of water.

Erik chuckled. “Ah, so she is intelligent. That makes her all the more dangerous. Maybe I’ll shoot her first, so you can watch
her die.” Erik’s laughter sounded forced, his words clearly meant to taunt Rion.

She snatched the glass. It wasn’t much of a weapon, but it was all she had.

“By blood right, the throne is mine.” Rion took another step closer to Erik.

“My blood is purer than yours. I’m one hundred percent Honorian. You are a half-breed. And now you seek to dilute the royal
blood with another alien woman?”

“An alliance with Earth will strengthen us,” Rion countered.

“Your mother couldn’t bear to lose you, so she convinced your father to alter the future. Another alien interfering in Honorian
affairs. If not for her, your father wouldn’t have taken a wife and the crown would have been mine.” Erik’s tone grew petulant.
“Now I’m restoring the rightful order.”

Erik wasn’t making sense. Even if Shepherd hadn’t married a Toran woman, he would have likely taken a wife. Erik still wouldn’t
have been king. But Marisa didn’t argue.

“Erik, you risked your life to save me. You aren’t thinking straight right now—”

“Fool. It might have been a mistake to invite the Unari here—”

“What?” Rion’s eyes burned into Erik.

Erik shrugged, but he kept the weapon firmly aimed. “The Unari promised they would rid Honor of all outsiders. That I would
finally rule. But they didn’t keep their word,” he muttered. “I was actually happy you didn’t die in your escape attempt,
that you returned to Chivalri to help rid us of the bastards. Things have worked out. Shepherd’s dead. You’ll kill yourself
in grief and guilt that you left Chivalri when we needed you most. We’ll have a triple funeral. First, I’ll kill the alien
woman—”

Rion lunged. Marisa threw the glass, dived to the floor, and rolled.

Erik ducked the glass and fired.

Instead of striking Erik’s head, the glass flew by his ear. But water splashed into his eyes and ruined his aim.

Erik’s shot spun Rion around, but momentum carried him forward. The two men grappled for the weapon, and Marisa scrambled
out of the way.

Rion released a grunt of pain, and she turned to look over her shoulder. Oh… God.

“Rion.” There was blood on Rion’s chest. So much blood she couldn’t see the injury itself. Blood matted his clothing and dripped
onto Erik as the two men wrestled across the floor, each trying to aim the weapon at the other.

Fear for Rion made her stomach knot. She had to do something. Help Rion.

“Guards!” she screamed and prayed Rion’s men would hear her.

Quick and cunning, Erik tried to knee Rion in the crotch.

Rion twisted his hips to one side and received only a glancing blow.

Even as the men grappled for the weapon, they jammed elbows and knees into each other. At a vicious chop to his ribs, Rion
groaned, and he countered with a knee to the kidney. Erik shrieked but kept hold of the weapon. With a jerk, he pulled it
free.

Marisa leaped onto Erik’s back, wound her arm around his throat, and choked him. Erik’s finger tightened on the trigger. She
yanked him backward, just as he fired.

With a rising thrust of his arm, Rion knocked Erik’s arm upward, and the shot went over his head. Erik bucked Marisa off his
back as if she weighed no more than a flea. Tumbling, she slammed into a wall, knocking her head hard.

For a moment, her vision narrowed. The room went black, and stars exploded before her eyes.