Athen_Warlord Brides Read online

  It was good plan. Too bad his men didn’t see the sense in it. They had also not been to his home on Etlon, where his parents lived with his last remaining brother. And his five older brothers’ mates, now widowed and miserable. Only two of them had managed to conceive before being killed on the battlefield. That, at least, was the one concession his father had had - his two strong grandsons.

  Chapter Four

  Odette

  “Darling.” It was the same condescending voice Odette had heard Cleveland use. But this was worse. This was her mother. “You are overreacting.”

  “He cheated on me, Mother.” Odette slapped the faux leather seat of the autocab that was carrying her back to her apartment.

  “I’m sure you’re misinterpreting the situation.”

  “There wasn’t much to misinterpret. I caught him with her legs around him. She was holding on for dear life as he pounded away.” Cleveland had never shown that kind of enthusiasm with her. Odette had never been dissatisfied with Cleveland. In fact, he seemed to go out of his way to please her. That being said, it was never spectacular or mind blowing. Those things only really happened in vids anyway.

  “Don’t be vulgar, dear.”

  “He has seven children.” There was silence on the other end of the line. Her mom was calculating. That Gloria Seaborne had called Odette meant that she and Cleveland were already talking behind her back. “I am following your advice, Mother. Dump the cheater. Because once a cheater, always a cheater.”

  “Fine. But do it the day after next.”

  After her birthday, when she’d be safe from the lottery for another year. Women with children or who were engaged to be married were exempt. It was one of the reasons why Odette had accepted Cleveland’s proposal so soon after they started dating. Get engaged early and stay engaged for five years. That was the legal maximum. If you didn’t get married after five, you lost your status. It kept a handle on the engagements of convenience. There were plenty of those, and even a black market of men who rented out the service of their name, happy to play the part of devoted lover when the Bureau of Alien Affairs came to call. That put a dark thought into Odette’s head.

  “No, Mother, it’s already done. We are caput. Over. There’s no way he’s going to lie for me and risk a huge fine now that we’re no longer together.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he’ll cooperate for another day. If he knows what’s good for him.”

  “How much?” Odette asked.

  “How much what, Darling?”

  “How much extra is it going to cost you? On top of what you’ve already been paying him?”

  “Sweetheart.”

  There was that word again. Patronizing, condescending, as if she were the dumb little girl who had cried for three weeks straight when her father had died.

  “How. Much?”

  “Nothing. He’s obviously violated his exclusivity clause, and if he wants a severance check-”

  Odette hung up the phone. She stared at it for a few seconds and sure enough, it rang again. She sure as hell wasn’t going to answer it. Screw Cleveland and screw her mother. They were both in it together.

  The cab stopped in front of her apartment, an ancient remodeled Victorian in the heart of University Old Town - the part of the city that was all the more valuable because the Suhlik had completely missed it in the bombing campaigns that had flattened everything to the east. They were still rebuilding, popping up houses with all the latest technologies. A replicator in every home!

  She climbed up the steps and pulled out her keys. The fact that her place still had keys marked her as one of two groups: the “I’m old and grumpy and refuse to change with the times”, or the “I’m so hip that old is new and cool”. She fit into neither group.

  Her mother, on the other hand, was always trying out the newest gadget and had the money to do so. It was old money as well, rich when the Suhlik arrived, richer afterward, taking advantage of the new construction boom.

  Odette let herself in and dropped her bag beside the door, before sinking into the couch.

  “My whole life is a lie.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. Would you like me to play you some music?” Sid’s voice came ringing out loud and clear. Despite the old bones of the apartment, her mom had outfitted it with the latest AI.

  “No, Sid.”

  “I didn’t know you’d be home so early, so I didn’t make you any dinner. Would you like me to fix you something now?”

  “Not hungry.” She wasn’t much of anything at all. The numbness had yet to wear off. Her mother had bought her a boyfriend. Had been paying him for four years and had been feeding him information the whole time. That’s why he always bought her the perfect present and liked all the same music and all the same food.

  It was a spiral, really. She began connecting all the dots of her life. That job in the biology department, the same one where her dad used to work. There were at least five candidates more qualified than she, but somehow, they chose her. Gloria had probably greased their palms as well.

  “Megan is calling, Shall I connect you?”

  Oh. God. She’d completely forgotten about Megan.

  “Yes. Sid.”

  Odette gave herself a shake and put on a reassuring smile as the vid lit up the wall.

  “So. The options for today,” Megan said with a strained smile on her face. “I’m told blue is a very flattering color in space.”

  Megan and Odette had met a few years earlier, when they had been young and free of relationships and the experience of the draft was new and mysterious. They shared the same birthday. The odds of being chosen the first year of the draft seemed so unlikely, and when they had escaped, it seemed as harmless and pointless as showing up for jury duty. It was always someone else that was matched.

  As the years progressed and more and more of Megan’s female family members were chosen, the reality of being teleported away to an alien husband grew less and less remote. Having a fiance meant that Odette would still have to go to the testing center, but after filling out the paperwork, would get an exemption and be free for another year.

  Megan, on the other hand, didn’t have a meddling mom who was rich enough to buy her a fiance. Tomorrow could be the last time the two saw each other.

  Or they would escape for another year and get their raging drunk on. The local bars in town always gave free drinks to ladies on their birthdays. You never made plans to drink or meet anyone. That was bad luck.

  Megan held up a neon blue turtleneck. “It’s kind of bulky, but I heard that it’s really cold in space.”

  “Cold. Yes.”

  “Won’t be needing this.” She waved a bikini in the air. “Thermal tights, man.”

  “Megan.”

  “Why you so serious?” Megan took a swig of white wine from a nearby glass. Not surprisingly, she’d been drinking.

  “Drunk packing again?”

  “I’m not drunk. Yet. Wanna come over and help?” She shook an empty glass at Odette.

  “Actually, I got to pack my own bag.”

  “Whaa- Cleveland.”

  “No longer in the picture.” Odette didn’t even have the energy to plaster a fake smile on her face.

  “That bastard! He broke up with you the day before your birthday?”

  “No, I broke up with him. I caught him in the middle of fucking another woman.”

  “Well, damn girl! You should have had the sense to wait and give him back his ring tomorrow night!”

  Odette looked down at her finger. She hadn’t given back the ring. Probably didn’t have to considering her mother had probably financed it.

  “Shit, you better call that asshole back and threaten to sic your mother on him if he doesn’t say all the right things tomorrow. In fact, I’m gonna hang up on you now so you can call his ass. See you tomorrow. And you better not have a suitcase.”

  The vid kicked off. Oh, she was going to have a suitcase all right. It would show her mother that she couldn’t con
trol every minute detail of her daughter’s life. It would also mean shipping off to some strange planet or spaceship and marrying a complete stranger. But would that be any worse than staring at the faces of her colleagues on Monday? Having them know that she finally realized that she had been coddled, promoted above her ability over other more qualified candidates?

  Odette went into her bedroom and opened her closet. She pulled the suitcase out of the bottom of it and laid it open on her bed. Then she began to sort. There were only so many items one could fit but only a few she couldn’t do without.

  The first thing that went in were her father’s journals. Sure, she had a fully digital version of most of his research, but his hand written journal was a concrete and well-worn connection to him. She wanted desperately to open it, and run her fingers over his soothing inked formulas, but if she did, the tears would fall until she was a sopping wet mess on the floor. She didn’t have time for that. Odette had a suitcase to pack. She knew it in her soul. She was going to be matched tomorrow, and both her mother and Cleveland could go to hell.

  *****

  The Lottery was a well oiled machine. Bureau of Alien Affairs did their research and they enforced the law to the maximum percent possible. None of the funny business that went on in other states was tolerated. Any eligible ladies were picked up from their house between eight and ten in the morning. They were allowed one suitcase. They were to go along willingly, with no fuss or muss. Diverging from the plan was immediate detention that resulted in a permanent daily slot in the lottery, twenty years, or their fortieth birthday, whichever came first.

  Odette met the van at the curb. Her suitcase was heavier than normal. This time she had packed for real, instead of in a highly drunken state. Megan was already aboard, her sunglasses hiding most of her face. The way she flinched at every bump told Odette that she was hungover to the max.

  It took Megan a good two minutes to speak.

  “You have a suitcase.”

  “Yeah, about that...”

  The guard gave Odette a look, but then turned his attention elsewhere. They tagged the troublemakers, the reluctant ones that were prone to panic. So far, Megan and Odette had always managed to hold it together.

  “I have a plan.” Odette slid her engagement ring off her finger and onto Megan’s.

  “Why love, I’m flattered, but you’re not exactly my type.”

  “Cleveland is yours. He’s been bought and paid for. He might as well be used,” Odette said.

  “But what about you?”

  “Meh. After the stunt my mother pulled, you couldn’t pay me enough to leave.”

  “What?”

  “I want to go. I’m going to be matched and start fresh, without my mother interfering.”

  “But seriously,” Megan said.

  “I am serious. You know enough about Cleveland to pass muster, and he knows well enough to keep his trap shut until tomorrow. It’ll be over and done with before my mom knows to cut him off.”

  Megan stared at the ring on her finger. Odette could see her processing the situation, weighing the odds. Self preservation would win out, she was sure.

  Another woman got on the bus, weeping and sniveling with snot running down her nose.

  “Tissue!” Megan shouted, and suddenly the two of them were encompassing the new occupant with idle and amusing chit chat.

  Through the burble, they managed to hear the word sister.

  “What about your sister, love?” Megan said in a soothing voice.

  “She was matched last month!” Another round of sobs ensued.

  “Well then, one of two things will probably happen. The most likely thing is that you won’t get matched. After all, I’ve been doing this thing for years and they’ve never found my DNA adequate for their alien baby making. Second, think about it, if you get matched, it’s probably to someone close to your sister. After all, you’ve got the same blood running through your veins. You’ll be with your sister. Won’t that be nice?”

  It was a nice fantasy. Odette had no idea if it were true. Not that it would matter in her case. She had no other family. In any case, it stopped the woman sniveling and after taking aboard one more passenger who proudly flashed an engagement ring of her own, the bus arrived at the testing center. With only four women, two of which were exempt, the whole process would only take about an hour, probably less.

  The clerk wore a white nurse’s uniform. It was all a show, though. She probably had little to no medical training. The point was to keep the women calm and under submission and with all the drama of the DMV.

  “Thank you for doing your duty and keeping Earth safe from the despised invaders that the Mahdfel so generously protect us from. I will see each woman in turn for her individual mandated interviews. Please wait patiently as we process your paperwork.

  “Seriously, I can't help but think this whole thing is a sham,” Megan said. That ring had put such a sense of confidence in her step.

  "I know!" Odette replied, shuffling the other woman forward through the doorway. “It's a little ridiculous how they take it so seriously. And imagine, if we do get picked, then we're doing our part for the war effort."

  Since the post-invasion deal with the Mahdfel, the propaganda machines had gone into full force. You couldn't see a vid screen without a positive message urging you to buy war bonds, or do your duty and produce!

  "Best to let that one go first," Megan said as she pointed at the fourth woman, still proudly flashing her ring to anyone she could see. It would be a quick five minute interview where the woman would fill out her exemption. They'd send her back to the waiting room and call her fiance and ask for a few pertinent details. Most centers just took it for a matter of course that half the engagements were shams, but they didn't spend too much time vetting them, considering it wasn't their skin on the line if the fiance turned out like Cleveland, a money grubbing son of a bitch.

  "Would you like to go next?" Odette asked the shaky woman. "We'll be here waiting for you."

  "Okay." She took a deep breath and then boldly marched into the little cubby office.

  “Last chance to take this puppy back.” Megan told Odette, twisting the ring around on her finger.

  “No. I mean it. That little bit of rock and metal just, ugh, I can’t even.” About ten minutes later, the woman returned. Megan turned to Odette and said, "You should go next. The blood test will take more time. It'll be fine."

  Odette headed with confidence into the office. A box of tissues sat on the corner within easy reach. She would have no need of those today. She handed over the file that she had already completed.

  "Give me the test." Odette held out her finger. "I'm ready." Not to be rushed, the clerk stared at the screen. She squinted at it for a moment and then looked at Odette.

  "I see here that you've had exemption status for the past four years?"

  Odette folded her hands in her lap, covering the still visible band mark on her left hand.

  "Yeah, my asshole of a fiance cheated on me."

  "And so you're no longer together?"

  "I'm free and single."

  "And he won't vouch for you?"

  "Just do it."

  The woman shrugged as if she'd been trying to do Odette a favor. Probably was praying that Odette would cave, beg or offer a bribe. Who knew how much she took home filling in the wrong box by “accident”.

  The clerk pricked her finger and let her blood drip onto the slide which she slipped into the computer. No longer interested, the clerk waved her back to the waiting room.

  Megan passed her with a wink. Five minutes later, she emerged and now the waiting game would commence. With just four, it would only take a half hour.

  It was the longest half hour of some of the women's lives. The nurse came out, and with a practiced look of a public servant, made the announcement.

  "Thank you, ladies. All of you have either received an exemption or have not been matched with anyone this year. Congratulations, you hav
e completed your obligation for the year. Have a good one, and see you next year."

  The sobber broke down into tears of joy. Megan helped her to her feet.

  "But I wanted to be matched," Odette complained.

  "Let's get drunk."

  "But-"

  "Hey, be happy! You're still single, and you're free of Cleveland!" Megan hooted and threw her arms up in the air. She must have noticed the glint of her finger because she pulled the ring off like it burned. "Here. You can have this back now. Next year, I'm going to be engaged for real."

  That's what she'd said last year and the year before that.

  The pair got in the van and rather than drive them home, it dropped them in the center of University Row, a street well known for having a bar on every corner. It was a popular destination for women on their birthdays who returned triumphant.

  "We'll drop your cases off," the attendant even offered. Megan handed him a twenty and he winked at her. It was hard to believe that he carried a machine gun with orders to shoot runners, if need be. Not that Odette had ever run.

  "Shit. I was supposed to be matched." She had been trying to run. As far away from her mother as possible.

  Well, there were plenty of places on this planet that she could run. She heard New Paris was nice. But then she'd have to learn French.

  No, that wouldn't do. Staying in the States would probably be for the best. Megan didn't let her ponder for long, dragging Odette into the nearest bar and flashing their IDs.

  "Check it, Bitches! We're still Earthlings for another year!" The entire bar let up a hoot and in one go, shoved them toward a bartender with shockingly pink hair who poured them a shockingly pink drink. Megan pounded it down like a pro, her hangover from the night before evidently forgotten.

  "You realize, it's only like noon." Why the bar was full at noon was also a mystery, but then, this was a university town.