War for Orion: Ghosts from the Past (9 page)

Adira's trust ran so deep with him, she had
entrusted him to something that she would entrust to no other race
in Orion- hiding her only daughter. She had conceived the child
before she took the Throne, and Abdul had encouraged her to hide
the child from anyone that may want to harm it, though she hadn't
had any known enemies at the time. It had hurt her to let her baby
girl go, but she knew Abdul was wise from his numerous years
serving the King. She had told Armino to take her baby somewhere
safe to grow up and to tell no one, not even her, where her child
was until the time was right for her to come out of hiding.

"What do you know right now?" Adira broke her
train of thought.

A brown Themin spoke. "From the police
reports, it seems to them that it was a planned out murder. By
whom? They don't know for sure, but they've made some links and
know that Armino was in the GSOU. They assume it was work
related."

A blue-green Filibian interrupted. "They know
the races of the individuals that murdered Armino and his family
from the surviving son. That's all that he knows, or so he
says
. The District police believe he may know more, like a
planet they may have come from, but nothing has been confirmed as
of yet."

Abdul touched Adira's sleeve. "The boy's
apparent dishonesty doesn't matter to us. One of the races he
described matched someone that we are all familiar with -
Donnchadh."

"Donnchadh would never," she gasped.

"The boy described an individual matching his
description perfectly, but didn't give a name. After hearing the
descriptions of the races and what they did, I have no doubt in my
mind that this was the doing of Donnchadh and the Deimos
Brotherhood. I assure you that this in no coincidence either. The
Deimos Brotherhood doesn't operate that way."

"I have a feeling you all called this meeting
for more than just telling me what happened?" She held back
tears.

The all shook their heads. "I, or the
Council, believe that the Deimos Brotherhood took out Armino as a
strategic move," Abdul started. "It is no secret to anybody here,
and even our enemies, that Armino was your best man."

Adira raised her hands. "A strategic move?
What does killing a single man along with his family possibly get
them?"

"You," said a frail, female Quierleon. "It
gets them you."

"Me?" she repeated. "There are still other
members in the GSOU to protect me. Surely they don't believe that
I'm vulnerable now."

"With Armino out of the picture, it will be
easier for them to get to you, whether you want to believe it or
not. I'm sure there are others who could take his place, no doubt,
but none will ever be as good as Armino, therefore, they can get to
you easier." Aldrick said.

Adira waived her hands. "This is ridiculous.
That could've been anybody in his house! And even if it was
Donnchadh, which I'm not saying it wasn't, I am in no more danger
than I was before. I have a whole squad of men in the GSOU, plus
guards posted throughout the entire Palace to protect me."

"You underestimate the Deimos Brotherhood,"
Hildereth looked the Queen in her eyes. "You have to believe us
when we tell you that you may be next on their list. I assure you,
we weren't meant to know who was behind the massacre of Armino's
family. There weren't meant to be
any
survivors, and that
fact that there was one with information like this, means they made
a huge mistake that could possibly save your life. We can't just
look over this as if it's irrelevant."

Adira masked the pain she was feeling inside
from her face. "I
will not
be
next. That I can guarantee all of you."

"You have no way to guarantee that Adira,"
Abdul whispered, barely audible to the rest of the Council. "You
must tread carefully."

Adira pretended not to hear Abdul. "So what
if killing Armino was a strategic move? What am I supposed to do
now?"

"Find your daughter, your majesty," Alura, a
Filibian, suggested.

"How do you know about my daughter?" She
looked over at Abdul. "Does everybody here know about my
daughter?"

"Sadly, there are many more races than just
the ones in this room who know about your daughter," Abdul nodded.
"It has been some time since they found out."

"How dare you tell them! I trusted you Abdul
Hakim!" she raged. "You swore secrecy to me!"

Abdul looked away. "It was not I who told
Queen Adira."

"Are you suggesting that Armino told?" she
fumed. "Armino would never tell anybody!"

Abdul raised his hands a couple of inches.
"All I know is that it was not I who told. I kept my mouth closed,
and only recently, found out others knew about your daughter too.
Not all of those who know are your friends either Adira, and I'm
afraid they may tell the Deimos Brotherhood, who will surely find
her unless you act swiftly."

"So individuals
know
she survived, but
not
where
Armino took her?"

"Yes. That's correct, your majesty," Abdul
said.

"Do any of you have any guesses where Armino
took her?" All of the Council members shook their heads. "Well,
neither do I. He took her someplace that she would be safe and that
is good enough for me."

"I don't think that's good enough your
majesty," Aldrick said.

"No? If I don't know where she is, and the
only person that does is
dead
, how is my enemy going to
find her?" She looked around the room. "Anybody want to answer that
question for me?"

"This is the Deimos Brotherhood, your
majesty. They make it their job to find people who are supposed to
be safe or hidden," Alura said.

"There are no records of her! She never had
an identity! How is a
nyone
going to find her when her own
mother can't find her? As far as any race is concerned, she is
non-existent."

The Quierleon spoke up. "If information was
leaked regarding her survival, how do you know information
regarding where she's hidden wasn't released too? I'm not saying
that anybody does know, but
what if?
Do you want to take the
risk that whoever leaked this may have also leaked a location?"

Adira ignored the shot questioning Armino's
loyalty to her. "I will think long and hard about this. You all
bring up excellent points and I need to think over all of this more
clearly, without any clouded judgment from myself or distractions
from others," She stood up. "I will let you know my decision by the
end of the week, if not sooner. You are all dismissed."

"What's happening Abdul?" Adira let out a
long drawn breath.

He put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm not
sure Adira, but I think the rest of the Council is right to fear
for your life and your daughter's safety. The Deimos Brotherhood
has proven to be a potent enemy, we can't take them lightly any
longer."

"Why now after all of this time? Surely
they've had plenty of other opportunities to take me out."

"Maybe they've been planning for years, but
were only just now able to start. Without talking to them we can
only guess what they are planning."

Adira walked towards the doors. "I need time
to think about everything that has happened. Once I have decided, I
will call you to my personal chambers to discuss what our next
moves will be."

Abdul smiled. "I know whatever you choose
will be right Adira."

"I haven't even made a decision, yet you
think it'll be the correct one?"

"I don't think you've made a wrong decision
yet in your reign as Queen."

"If you say so Abdul. Just don't be
disappointed if I make my first wrong decision," She turned and
left him alone in the Council Chamber.

Adira went straight to her personal chambers
and pulled all of the curtains closed so she could be absorbed in
the darkness. She plopped down on her oversized bed and stared at
the ceiling.

At the start of the day she had planned to
meet with the Prime Minister of Ares, look over some proposed laws
from politicians on other planets, and relax in the spa before
going to a formal dinner. All of those were now cancelled because
the Deimos Brotherhood was poised to make a move on her life. Adira
still couldn't convince herself that Armino was the one that
slipped up about the existence of her daughter after entrusting him
with all of her secrets. If he told someone about the most
important secret, what about all of the others she had revealed
him? And if he
had
told someone, why was everyone just now
saying something after he was dead?

There were too many questions that she
couldn't answer and it made her want to pull her hair out. Adira
let out a deep breath and tried to clear her mind of everything so
she could start deciding what her next moves were going to be; the
first of those regarding her daughter. She truly wanted to bring
her here, but didn't know if it was the right decision if she was
able to find her.

She still had yet another to decision make
that no one else brought up during the meeting - what about Anlon?
She was very close with Armino and Marguerite, but hadn't got to
know any of his kids personally. She couldn't bring him here just
to drill him with more endless questions like he had surely already
endured countless times at the District prison. But then again,
there were doubts about his honesty in the police reports.

Bringing him here was much more than about
questioning though, she felt like she had to keep her promise to
Armino and bring Anlon here to protect him. Armino hadn't died on a
mission, but it appeared he died because of one, leaving her to
feel responsible for the events that had unfolded.

"Abdul, you can come to my office," She
called on her comlink. "I've thought long enough. Anymore thinking
and I'll begin doubting myself."

She hung up waited at her desk for Abdul to
come in. They had become close since she had become Queen and she
trusted him more than any other of the Council members. Maybe it
was because he was older and wiser, or that he showed true
compassion for the well being of Orion. Whatever it was, she felt a
strong bond with him and would rather reveal what she was doing
with him before letting the rest of the Council know.

"What is your decision?" Abdul walked into
the office.
Adira folded her hands. "We're bringing my daughter here. I'm just
not sure exactly how to find her yet."

"Excellent!" he beamed. "And I may be able to
help you find her."

"What do you mean you may be able to help?
You know where she is?"
Abdul shook his head. "No I don't, but Armino told me he left a
clue for you if he were to ever die."

"Of course he left a clue. He was a very
intelligent man. That is why he was never killed on a mission. His
decision making is why I chose him above all others to protect
me."

"It has to be an obvious clue that only you
would think of," Abdul thought aloud.
"So he didn't tell you what this clue would be or where I could
find it?" she sighed.

"No. He just said there would be clues you'd
see all the time. Letters perhaps?"
Adira realized that he was right. Armino always left her letters
and now that she thought of it, each one contained the exact same
thing. "Yes he did leave me letters, though I burned them every
time he came back safe, so I don't have any left to look over."

Abdul let out a breath. "I'm sure he left
other clues for you as extra precautions. It may take a little
longer, but I'm positive that we'll find her."

The Queen nodded. "I know we will too. There
is one more decision I made on my own that the Council neglected to
bring up."
"Another decision?"
"Yes. Armino's son, Anlon, survived and I want to talk to
him."
"The authorities there got nothing useful out of him," He opened
the palm of his hands. "What are you going to get out of him that
they didn't?"

"I'm the Queen, Abdul. Do you really think
that he'd lie to me?"

"I don't know. Maybe," he shrugged. "Lying to
the police is no small offense."

Adira raised her eyebrows. "I don't think
that he will. I'm more than just an authoritative figure, I was
Armino's friend and want the same thing I know Anlon wants. I'll
make sure to tell him that so he'll have every reason to believe
me."

"So you expect he'll come here and
immediately believe you will bring him justice for the death of his
family?"

"No. Not immediately," She shook her head. "I
will have to earn his trust, but this is about more than just
questioning Anlon. He doesn't have to answer my questions if he
doesn't want to. My promise to Armino is just as important to me as
finding the races responsible for his death."

"Just don't get too hopeful he'll help you.
You've never met him and I'm sure Armino never talked about his
work with his family," Abdul warned.