Annara holds some responsibility for your poor choices. She didn't give you all the facts up front. Olivia sensed Hernando held a grudge against their fellow Resistance fighter. Annara's earnestness to protect BloodDark is admirable, but perhaps she doesn't think things all the way through or consider the consequences of each event before taking action.
Olivia sighed and yawned. Well, she did talk me into bleaching and straightening my hair. You gotta admit—I make a gorgeous blond like Beyoncé.
You make a gorgeous you. Now, go to sleep my beloved. Sweet dreams, as you say on Earth.
Olivia smiled and closed her eyes. Hernando had called her my beloved. He had forgiven her. Sweet dreams, indeed.
*****
The next day brought a blur of activity. Olivia slept in, so by the time she'd donned her jeans and t-shirt and slipped into the dining hall, it was toward the end of the first meal period. She noticed Kate hurrying about with a clipboard in hand, chatting with various members of the household and making marks on a checklist. Was Kate taking down names and lunch orders?
Olivia accepted a hot cup of herbal tea and then settled down to break her fast with the typical BloodDark first meal of bloodfruit segments and muffins made from some sort of corn-like grain. The muffins would have been perfect if they had had any decent Earth honey to slather on them. The BloodDark version of honey looked more greenish than gold and wasn't quite as sweet as clover honey. She learned Earth pollinators such as bees didn't fare well on the sunlit side of the planet or in the penumbra zone, and so a hybrid wasp-bee-spider creature had been developed which performed the same task.
Mahvet had given them a brief lecture on BloodDark agriculture and the great strides their scientists had made in creating a life-sustaining ecosystem over the centuries, but the planet's conditions were difficult even in the best of times. Maintaining the soil's fertility and keeping the water supply pure became almost a religious calling to their farmers, a sacred and worthy task. She wondered if they'd be willing to share some of their vast knowledge with human agricultural scientists before it became too late for Earth's ecology to recover.
Olivia ate her muffin and fruit and surveyed the scene. An air of excitement was evident in the smiles and animated discussions going on around the dining hall. For a household which had suffered the setback of seeing its leaders jailed and questioned for traitorous activities, they had rebounded quite well. Some special event must be planned for today. How else could she explain the sudden reversal of attitude?
"I'm glad you're awake at last." Kate took a seat beside Olivia for a momentary respite from her duties. "Are you planning on going on the outing to the Mosaic Desert?"
Olivia almost choked on her sip of tea. The last time she had traveled through the searing hot region on the starlit side of the planet, she had been escaping from her Pure Blood captors. She must have misheard Kate. Why would anyone want to go there?
Kate patted her back. "Food go down the wrong way?"
Olivia nodded and coughed. "Uh, yeah. Did you say an outing to the Mosaic Desert?"
"Yes, it's on tomorrow's agenda." The English librarian grinned and held up her clipboard. "Everyone in Clan Alpha is excited to travel to the desert and see BloodDark's protective device. It's an excellent example of the Ancestors' technology most have never seen or understood. I've been doing quite a bit of research on the topic of the Ancestors... Did you know they have huge vaults under the city containing their remains?"
Olivia shivered at the thought of the mausoleum-like labyrinth the Resistance fighters had encountered. "Yes, I did know about the vaults." She bit her lip. How could she let her friend down without hurting Kate's feelings?
"Going to the Mosaic Desert isn't like going on a trip to Disneyworld, Kate. The desert is a very rugged and unforgiving place. If Hernando and I hadn't found the Shadows Spires Cave and Caveman Charlie and his people, we would have died of dehydration."
"It's why we're bringing plenty of water and supplies. It's only for a couple of days. Since the clan leaders want to show the ruling council and others what they've been working on, they've arranged a transport engine and cars to take us out to the Penumbra City hub. There's more than enough room for everyone to come along. From there, we'll be traveling by..." Kate grinned. "No, I won't spoil the fun. You'll see when we get there."
"You'll be traveling with us, right?"
Kate nodded. "I wouldn't miss it for anything. Mahvet is over the moon he's so excited—or should I say, 'He's over the captured BloodDark asteroids of Primus and Secundus' since there isn’t just the one moon?" She chuckled. "It's been a while since he's taken a trip out of the capital."
"You two are getting along well, huh?" Olivia smiled at Kate's rosy blush. "I'm so happy for you."
"I'm happy, too."
Olivia couldn't contain her own happiness either. "I'm feeling wonderful today because Hernando has forgiven me for spying on Clan Alpha and spilling the beans on their illegal transactions with some not-so-nice folks on Earth."
"Illegal transactions?" Kate frowned, puzzling over Olivia's frank admission. "So the security officers who came yesterday were working on a criminal case?"
Didn't everyone know what had happened by now? Valori knew what had happened since she'd been a part of it, but she hadn’t thought to inform Kate or the others? Everyone in the clan house appeared to have heard about the secret protective device, though. Olivia supposed they'd blab and carry on about anything to make Clan Alpha appear superior to the rest of the Pure Bloods and, by extension, the rest of the planet's inhabitants.
"I'm sorry. I thought you knew," Olivia muttered and shrugged. "All's well that ends well, it seems. This outing indicates the ruling council is on a
