I wish I could say the same about myself.
I step further into the enormous bedroom, and see another doorway leading off. As I swing it open, I see a walk-in closet larger than my room at The Stag.
“He’s got a huge wardrobe!”
“Only the finest for those three,” Sarah smiles, stepping into the closet.
I can’t believe what I see as I follow her.
Row upon row of elegantly tailored suits hang across built-in storage space. Another section is filled with togas, each of the softest cotton. Silk, cotton and tailored dress shirts hang on the opposite wall, alongside fitted pants and a seemingly endless collection of neckties.
My heart stops.
Sitting on a drawer – in plain sight, along with a fortune in rings, jewelry, diamond cufflinks, tie pins, and more – are a row of gleaming wristwatches. Some are sleek and elegant, others gaudy and gleaming.
Among the collection are all three of the watches I was sent to steal. I recognize them instantly – their images burned into my memory during my preparation with Darr.
A Rolex Oyster Perpetual Submariner – one of Old-Earth’s first wristwatches designed to go underwater.
A Breitling Superocean Heritage II – elegant and distinctive with its chain-link strap.
Then, the rarest and most valuable of the three – a Patek Philippe Grand Complications Perpetual Calendar Chronograph.
Even during the period in which these watches were made – literally millennia ago, when humanity was barely dipping its toe into the era of space travel; long before first contact with Aurelians or Toads – these three watches were beyond valuable. I’d learned from Darr that the third watch in the collection cost as much as a four-bedroomed house back in those days.
And now? All these countless millennia later? Those watches are worth a fucking fortune…
…and yet, they’re just part of Gallus’s daily wardrobe. He wears them as casually as the clean jockey shorts folded in the drawer beneath those watches.
I’m left reeling. The wealth of these three aliens is utterly incomprehensible.
Darr told me a buyer was flying in from three Orb-Jumps away just to pick up these watches once I’d stolen them. There are men who live, build huge businesses, and die without ever touching something as precious as these hand-made, ancient Earth artifacts – and yet they are nothing more than a daily timepiece for these aliens.
“I know what you’re thinking,” says Sarah, and I look over at her with shock.
Oh, shit… She knows!
She grins. “You’re jealous, aren’t you?”
I breath out a huge sigh of relief. Thank the Gods! She couldn’t be further from the truth.
But Sarah misinterprets my response as confirmation – and I let her.
“Don’t worry,” she reassures me, placing a gentle hand on my arm. “I’m going to get you out of those disgusting clothes and into something nice, I promise. When Gallus, Cyrus and Varian get back, they’re not even going to believe how beautiful you look – not when I’m done with you.”
I gasp. I know she means it kindly, but Sarah’s words hurt – because she’s basically calling out the fact that I’m so drab and dreary compared to the gorgeous beauties of the harem.
“It’s okay,” I raise my hand. “All I need are clean clothes. I know I’ll never be as beautiful as those women – or you.”
Sarah smiles, squeezing my arm.
“They chose you for a reason, Mia. Nothing happens by accident.”
I don’t know if she’s being serious or not. I can tell she cares for the Aurelians – truly, and deeply. Yet, at the same time, she’s happy to beautify me – even though I feel like she considers me competition for those alien’s attention.
Gods know that isn’t true!
But in her mind, it is true – and I don’t understand why she doesn’t feel more possessive about those three gorgeous, towering aliens.
I know I have to be careful. I can’t let myself do, or feel, or be anything for this triad of Aurelians; no matter how strong the temptation gets.
I might be able to win an Aurelian’s body for an hour – but never their heart.
I could let any them take my virginity – that prize Darr was so protective of – but I know it would buy me nothing. I would be a novelty for them – a distraction, until the next woman comes along. They already have twenty women in their harem, or more – and those are just the ones they’ve decided to keep around.
How many more came first? And how many more will be in their future?
No – you can’t be tempted, Mia.
More to convince myself than Sarah, I insist: “It’s not like that. They just wanted to set me free.”
Sarah laughs, shaking her head. “No, they didn’t. They would have just given you some money and sent you on your way if they had. They wanted to bring you here. They brought you here for a reason.” She leans in closer. “Trust me, Mia, I know.”
What do you know? I wish I could ask her.
Regardless, one of my goals has been accomplished, and much earlier than I’d expected. I am ahead of schedule.I can’t quite believe how easy it was to find my prize – those three priceless, antique watches.
Even better, only Cyrus is still in the manor right now. In theory, I could distract Sarah, grab those watches, and suddenly tell him that I’d changed my mind about joining their staff. They gave me the choice, after all. It’s not like they’d keep me here – not against my will.
Well, they could – but I know, deep down, they wouldn’t…
It all seems easy. Too easy. It’s like the universe is throwing me a challenge; and I have to decide if what I want – if what has all come together more conveniently than I could possibly have imagined – is truly what I want.
I could be out of here within the hour. Darr could be holding the stolen watches in his calloused hands by midnight…
…but out of here means
