Diana met the Pontifex and Cassius in the cargo bay of the ship. It was a solemn occasion — the bodies of four Tatrynians lay under sheets. Barriers had been put up to hide the Rican bodies from view — there were twelve of those.
Media had accompanied the Pontifex and her heir, and Diana hated that it would be broadcast around the world that she accepted a kiss on the cheek, first from the Pontifex and then from Cassius.
The ceremony to remove the Tatryn bodies was very poignant and Diana wiped tears from her cheek. When all four bodies had been drummed out of the cargo hold, Diana hoped that the Pontifex and Cassius would also leave.
Instead, they turned to her.
‘Diana, my darling.’ Cassius squeezed her hand, his eyes shining. He looked her up and down and naked lust grew on his face. Oh, he was definitely happy with the deal his aunt had struck for him.
Diana looked at him and couldn’t forget that he was the reason 165 people now lay dead and 165 families had been changed forever. Gareth had to find a way to get to him and take him down. He had to.
She forced herself to look like she was paying attention to Cassius and unfortunately, that meant his words penetrated her mind.
‘I have been so worried about you, but now you are here, you can stay and we will look after you. Whoever is planning these horrific attacks is clearly targeting Angonia. You’ll be very safe here.’
No, I won’t be. ‘I cannot stay, Cassius. There are Rican dead that must be returned to Rica.’
‘The crew of the ship can do that.’
‘No,’ Diana said. ‘I am a member of the Rican royal family. I cannot abandon them.’
‘She is quite right,’ the Pontifex put in. ‘Your sense of duty does you honour, Diana.’
‘Thank you, Your Excellency.’
Cassius pouted. ‘But I want us to continue our courtship.’ His eyes moved over Diana’s body again. ‘We are to be married in just two weeks. We need to get to know each other better.’
A chill ran over Diana’s skin. Two weeks? ‘The Prince of Rica said he wanted the threat to Angonia dealt with before he would believe Tatryn safe enough for me to live in.’
‘The threat has been dealt with, dear,’ the Pontifex said. ‘Those responsible for this atrocity have been arrested. And I will convince the Prince that you’re now safe. I don’t want you and Cassius to wait a moment longer than necessary to begin your lives together. I want to see my great-niece or nephew soon.’
Diana swallowed down some bile. ‘You sound very certain of that.’
‘I am. Now, I know that you must go to Rica, to escort your poor countrymen home. But then you will come back to us, and we will prepare for the greatest wedding Jorda has ever seen.’
Diana was so shaken by the idea the horrid wedding could happen so quickly that she didn’t react quickly enough when Cassius moved closer and put his hands on her face. She realised what he was doing a split second before his lips hit hers, but that wasn’t enough time for her to avoid it.
He pushed his slug-like tongue into her mouth and Diana forced herself not to retch.
‘We will be wonderful together,’ he whispered, then they left, the media following.
Oh Peace, that would be all over the news.
She watched the cargo door close, then the captain touched her arm. ‘We’ll take off in five minutes, Miss Wiltmore. You’d best find yourself a seat.’
‘There’s something else I need to do first,’ Diana whispered, then bolted for the toilet.
She tried to rest during the ten-hour trip to Rica, but she couldn’t. Her mind raced for a way to convince the Prince of Rica that she couldn’t, shouldn’t marry Cassius.
Worst of all was the realisation that if she’d had less pride and had stayed with Gareth for as long as he wanted her, then Cassius would probably no longer want her himself.
When she arrived in Rica, she could barely force each foot to move. It took all her strength to hold herself upright. The cargo doors opened and she almost cried at the sight of her sister.
Cassandra was in the full regalia of the Prince of Rica. In honour of the mine, the colour scheme was black and the grey-silver of balcite. The collar and front of the robe was decorated in Ortran. She was followed by a retinue of Rican security. No media.
She stood on the other side of the bodies to Diana and bowed her head. ‘Miss Wiltmore. The Prince of Rica thanks and honours you for the care you have taken in returning our beloved souls to Rica. Your service to our land will be spoken of for years.’
Maybe, Diana thought, I can use this to get him to agree.
Diana curtseyed. It felt so wrong, to be curtseying to Cassandra. ‘Your Highness, I simply did what needed to be done. I need no thanks.’
‘Nevertheless, you have it.’ Cassandra nodded at the security forces. They came in and in pairs, marched to a body. They stood, one at the head, one at the foot. In unison, they bent and all the Rican dead were lifted. Then they were carried, one by one, off the craft.
In the distance, Diana could hear wailing start.
When the entire hold was empty, Cassandra stepped forward and held out her arms. Diana walked into her sister’s embrace and started to cry.
‘Oh Di.’ Cassandra hugged her tight. ‘You did so well, darling. I’m so proud of you.’
‘I’m so tired,’ Diana whispered. ‘So tired, so sick of it all. I just want to sleep.’
‘Sleep you will,’ Cassandra said, and she took Diana home.
***
‘We can’t do that! That’s infringing on people’s rights.’
‘What about the rights of good, innocent Angonians to live?’
Gareth lifted a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. His eyes were dry and ached from the long hours awake, and his head felt like it weighed a ton and didn’t want to stay upright.
He was letting his advisers have their say on the future of Angonia. Allowing them to verbalise their fears and put forward their arguments. Even though he’d already decided what his answer would be.
At least this way, he could honestly tell them they’d had their say before he stomped all over them.
At the end of the day, in order to protect as many Angonians as possible, some people were going to have to make sacrifices. He wished it weren’t so, but there was no other way around it.
‘Enough,’ he said, cutting into the conversation which had been going round in circles for hours. ‘I am decided.’
The room settled and they all waited.
‘I have listened, I have considered. I thank you for your honest thoughts. Now, I have devised the plan of action that I believe best protects Angonia against future attack. I hope these measures will not prove permanent, as they will be unpopular with some.’
Several people shifted in their seats and a few looked annoyed. Well, let them, Gareth thought. At the end of the day, the entire thing was his responsibility.
‘First — as of this moment, apart from security operations approved by me, all transport between Tatryn and Angonia is suspended. There will be no more tourists, no more business visits, no more goods transported. Angonian traders adversely affected by this policy can apply to me for compensation.
‘All goods currently in Angonia that have been imported from Tatryn are to be withdrawn from sale and checked for bombs before further sales will be permitted. Any goods from Tatryn purchased by Angonians in the past month can be returned to the place of purchase for a full refund, or to have them checked. Traders can apply for compensation for any costs involved in this.
‘Anyone with connections to Tatryn, be they by birth or business or pleasure, will undergo a mindscan. If they refuse, they will be arrested and quarantined.
‘For the next two days, there will be no arrivals of any kind into Angonia from anywhere on Jorda. During this time, every resident of Angonia is to diligently check their property for bombs that may have been placed there. Businesses as well, if they own them. Security will check all public places.
‘Once we’re re-open to carriage, stringent security checks will begin for anyone coming to Angonia, regardless of where they come from.’
By the time he’d finished, his advisors were staring at him with open mouths. Even the most aggressive of them seemed surprised with his decision.
‘Your Majesty, that all seems too extreme.’
‘As I was the one there looking at the bodies pulled out of the rubble of the flightport and not you, I think I’ll be the judge of what is an acceptable response and what is not,’ Gareth said. ‘I want this applied immediately. See that it is done.’
When they were gone, Gareth turned on the news channel to see what was being reported.
The first thing he saw was Diana being thoroughly kissed Cassius, the new heir of Tatryn. He noted the stiffness in Diana’s spine and remembered how she would loosen and slide against him when he kissed her.
He turned the broadcast off. He didn’t need to be reminded of what he personally had lost. His focus needed to be on his people.
Kernan came in and saluted. ‘Your Majesty. I’d like to send some of the squad into Tatryn, to find Hactrim.’
‘Do it,’ Gareth said. ‘I want him stopped. Dead, even. I don’t care, Kernan.’
Kernan nodded and marched away. Melina was the next one in.
‘Sire, the schedule of funerals is beginning. How do you want to handle it? You can’t attend every one.’
‘No, but I can go every family,’ he said. ‘I won’t go to any of the funerals. That should be their private time to grieve. But I will send a note to each, and then when the funeral is done, go see them to offer my condolences.’
‘Yes, Your Majesty. Also, we need to consider who should be your next head of security.’
‘Have a list of six possible on my desk by tomorrow morning.’
‘Yes, Sire.’ She bowed and left.
Gareth stood and walked over to the window. The view of Angonia City would be forever palled by what he’d seen. He closed his eyes and his body swayed.
Sleep. Sleep, and then you can deal with the rest.
***
For the next few days, Diana’s existence bounced between sleeping and attending funerals. She went to every one of the eight remembrance ceremonies — two involved multiple deaths, one a mother and father with two children, the other a couple.
When the last was done, she fell into bed and slept for fourteen hours. When she awoke, five days had passed since she’d arrived back on Rica. Five days gone from the two weeks before she would marry Cassius.
Diana got up and had a hearty lunch, showered and dressed in her most conservative apparel — a black suit with white collared shirt. Then she went to see the Prince of Rica.
His chamber was reached via the headquarters of the RBMC. She took the elevator to the top floor. She stepped out into a mirrored corridor with wood flooring. It was short, and narrow, but the mirrors made it look wide and long. At the wooden door at the far end, Diana pressed her palm against the centre of the door. ‘Diana Wiltmore.’
The door swung open and Diana took three steps forward until she stood in front of another door. This door she leant her forehead against, so it could read her iris. Then she spoke again. ‘Diana Wiltmore.’
A pause, then it swung open and she moved through to yet another door. At this door, she knelt and bent forward to place the top of her head against the wood. This allowed a machine to read her brain waves. Again, she said her name. Then she stood.
She mentally counted to twenty before the door swung open and she stepped into an opulent room. There were wooden floors and ceilings as in the corridor, but now the walls were hung with swathes of soft cloth in balcite grey and black. All the furnishings were covered with gold and the cushions with the same soft cloth.
At the far end, a curtain of black fell to the floor, a large symbol showing the old mine shaft emblazoned on the centre of it in silver. Diana prostrated herself on the floor. She listened to the metallic whisper of the curtain moving and then the Prince spoke.
‘Diana. I am so pleased you are home, safe.’
Diana knelt up and tried to smile at the sight before her. The Prince of Rica sat on a balcite throne, heavily carved and decorated with ortran. Bands around his waist and his upper arms held him upright, while a cradle for his head ensured it didn’t slouch.
Tubes ran all over his body, feeding him the life-giving chemicals that extended his life beyond the norm. They gurgled from time to time, a horrible soundtrack to any interview with him.
There was nothing in him to suggest that living past your normal lifespan was worth doing at all.
‘Thank you, Your Highness,’ Diana said. ‘I’m absolutely delighted to be home, although it’s under such sad circumstances.’
‘The Heir has told me of your efforts in Angonia. You are to be commended, Diana. I am most impressed with your dedication.’
‘I will always be willing to serve Rica.’
‘I am glad to hear it. I always wondered about you, but you have proven that you are indeed a Wiltmore.’
Diana smiled. ‘Your praise humbles me, Your Highness.’
‘The people of Rica are in your debt.’
Now was the time. ‘Your Highness, I’d like to talk to you about your plans for my future.’
‘Yes. The fact you now embrace that you are of royal blood is very pleasing, and makes you even more a perfect partner for the future Pontifex of Tatryn.’
Diana decided on the tack to take. ‘I’m surprised you are willing to go ahead with that marriage, knowing what he has done.’
A pause. ‘What do you mean, Diana?’
She heard the frustration in his voice. The Prince hated not knowing everything. ‘Why, that it was he who bankrolled the attacks on Angonia, Sire. Doesn’t that change your opinion of him as a husband for me?’
Another pause. ‘Until it is ascertained that he knew what it was he was financing, and thus shares guilt in the attacks, we cannot judge him, Diana.’
She sighed. ‘No. And now that he is heir, we can’t mindscan him as we were planning to do. Not without planetarium support and there’s not evidence enough for that.’
‘I think, Diana, that we should invite your fiancé here.’
Diana fell back onto her ankles, shocked at the suggestion. ‘Why?’ she squeaked.
‘So you can find out exactly how involved he was.’
This was not how she’d envisaged the conversation going. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘You should read his mind. Like the Heir did to the former Great Youson of Flactor.’
Diana put a hand behind her to hold herself up. ‘Cassandra was stripped of the title of heir for doing that.’
‘She was stripped for doing something without my knowledge, and she learnt the lesson,’ the Prince said. ‘It was still a clever thing to do and she secured the information that eventually brought about the former Great Youson’s downfall, and saved the company.’
And she was bashed for it, Diana thought and shuddered. ‘Your Highness, are you sure this is wise?’
‘I know your mental acuity scores are good, Diana. Almost as good as the Heir. And the Tatrynians don’t go in for mental communication much, so Cassius will undoubtedly be weaker than you. And I believe that you have some thoughts on how to ensure a man is open to you.’
Oh, Peace, Diana thought. She recalled telling Cassandra that she should sleep with Grendon, that after sex men relaxed and it was quite easy to slide into their minds.
There was no way she could sleep with Cassius. Not even for this. Except…if it meant she got the information to save lives…
‘When shall he come?’ Diana said dully.
‘In two days. Will that be enough time for you to prepare?’
‘Yes, Your Highness.’
‘Good. Rica, and all Jorda is counting on you, Diana.’
Great, she thought as she bowed and left his presence. Here’s hoping she could achieve what she needed without having to let an old, fat man slobber over her body.
At the bottom of the lift, Cassandra was waiting.
‘Well?’ she said.
‘He wants me to pull a Grendon.’
‘A what?’
Diana pulled Cassandra into her office, which was balcite-lined, so a mental conversation couldn’t be overheard. She then connected with her sister. ‘The Prince wants me to sneak into Cassius’s mind and find out exactly what he does and doesn’t know.’
Cassandra shook her head. ‘That’s dangerous, Di.’
‘Six months has changed your tune.’
‘When I first sang this song, I hadn’t felt Grendon’s fists slam into my body.’ Cassandra started to pace up and down the room.
‘I think the Prince wants me to sleep with Cassius.’
Cassandra stopped and swung around. ‘That won’t happen.’ Then her face lightened and she clapped her hands and bounced.
‘Trouble,’ Diana said with a smile. When they’d been young, Cassandra had been the one to come up with the most outrageous ideas for games and they’d always been prefaced with that look.
‘Mentatnet.’
‘The parrot we used as kids to practice mental communication?’
‘Yes, but more importantly, the all important pre-marital ceremony I invented.’
It all came back to Diana. ‘You were going to use Grendon’s attraction to you to find his weakness and get inside him that way.’
‘Yes. Unfortunately, I got clobbered before I could put it into action, but you can use it. I saw the footage from Tatryn and there’s no doubt Cassius wants you.’
Diana rolled her eyes. ‘Awful slug of a tongue.’
Cassandra grabbed Diana’s hand and pulled her over to sit on one of the lounges. ‘When will you next see Cassius?’
‘In two days. The Prince is inviting him to Rica.’
Cassandra clapped again. ‘Perfect! Now, let me explain to you how this is going to work.’