I sit myself down beside him. My head is spinning.
I know my father’s been through pain, but I feel like he’s slapped me in the face by going to the Aurelian Law Enforcement agency. Even my own triad didn’t trust them to make a clean grab for me.
“You made a business decision with my life. Instead of waiting for a ransom, you went straight to the Aurelian Law Enforcement. It was all so you could keep your bloody mine.”
My father looks at me with sad eyes.
“It’s not like that, Natali! You saw those bastards. They were amateurs – you could have gotten hurt! I knew I couldn’t rescue you on my own, so I had to get help.”
“That’s not true! You could have waited. You could have heard their demands, and negotiated with them. You said yourself that their initial offer wasn’t even unfair.”
I take a ragged breath.
“Brennan only let me go because he didn’t trust Aurelian Law Enforcement not to hurt me in a rescue attempt! He was worried that they’d come in guns blazing, and I might get hit. Those three kidnappers cared more about my safety than you did!”
I know I might regret these words, but I can’t hold back. I jump up from the bed, not wanting to even be close to my father right at this second.
He raises his hands, pleading with me:
“Natali! There’s not a person in this universe that cares more about you than I do!”
The anger overwhelms me.
“Liar! You promised me that the second we could get away from this planet, you’d take me somewhere safe. You said you’d do it. Well, you could have taken the deal those Aurelians had offered! We could be safe and rich at the center of the Human Alliance right now – but you didn’t take their offer, and now this is what has happened.”
My father sighs deeply. Then, his face flickers – like he’s considering the wisdom of what he’s going to say next.
“Natali. I didn’t want to burden you with this knowledge, but I’ve been following the politics of the Aurelian Empire. There’s something bubbling up inside of their society – a rot they can’t cure. It’s going to get ugly. I don’t know when it’s going to happen – maybe in my lifetime, or maybe in yours.”
My lifetime – which now extends thousands of years.
“Maybe it would occur during your children’s lifetime, or that of your grandchildren. I don’t know – but I do know that there’ll be nowhere safe inside the Human Alliance when it happens. The only people who will be safe when the universe turns to war are those in control of the Orbs.”
He’s bringing me to the inside of his thoughts. Now, I see so clearly the stress that has been weighing down on him for all these years; brought into focus by the discovery of his priceless Orb-Deposits.
Now, I understand why he didn’t take the deal.
He sees the same things that Brennan and Lazar predicted. A storm, coming to the universe…
The universe, plunged into another great war.
I feel deflated.
“You… You need to help save them.”
My father is clearly confused. Fear clouds his face.
“What did they do to you, Natali?”
I can see in his eyes that he knows. Somehow, he knows.
I draw on the strength of the three auras of my triad. I won’t back down. I won’t let him chose my future.
“I’m Bonded to them, father. I’m Bonded to Brennan, Otho, and Lazar. I am their Fated Mate.”
I’m not ashamed. I’m proud of it. I say the words with conviction.
My father is stunned by the words, and he fiddles with his watch, pressing a button. Then, his smile turns to wonder.
“Don’t you understand, Natali? This changes everything!”
I was expecting anger. I was expecting his rage to grow to fiery proportions, directed against my triad. In retrospect, it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say if I’d wanted his help in convincing the Aurelian Law Enforcement to drop the charges against my triad.
Now, though, I see pure wonder in my father’s eyes.
“What are you talking about?”
“The Bond, Natali! The Bond! It extends human life. I’ve been setting in motion a plan to keep you and our descendants safe in the coming war. Now, you can be the one to put my plans into action.”
His eyes flash wildly.
“It all starts with one, massive Orb-Mine. From that, you can build an empire to face the coming storm – an empire of your own!”
He leaps up from the bed.
“Gods, if only I‘d had the time, I’d have done it myself – but our human lives are so short, and useless.”
He takes a step forward.
“Natali – I’ll start training you to take over the business immediately. You’re not going to be stuck behind walls any longer. You’re going to be a leader.”
It’s too much to process at once. I blink, slowly trying to understand.
Taking over the family business? He wants to groom me to replace him as the head of everything?
My father has barely spoken to me about business before.
I thought he’d appoint some dreary, off-world CEO when he was ready to retire. Now that I have more time than any man, though, he finally deigns me worthy of that honor.
“I… I don’t know what to say…”
There’s a sudden shadow at the door. It’s Gerard.
That must have been who my father alerted with his smartwatch. He’s holding something in his outstretched hand.
A ring.
Not just any ring. A ring forged of steel, with a shard of blue-black Orb in the center. That tiny shard seems to suck the very light from the room.
“What is that?”
Even as I ask the question, I feel the ominous coldness seeping from that tiny Orb.
My father licks his lips in anticipation. “I prepared for this eventuality, Natali. It’s a Bond-Disrupter. If you put this on, you won’t feel those three anymore. You’ll banish them from
