Page 6

London pulled away. “No. I don’t accept it. If you won’t look for her I will.”

“And how will you go about doing that? You’ve never been past Zenobia, let alone another galaxy,” he pointed out.

“Papa, you were the one who taught me to pilot the heliocraft. I can get to the Milky Way and set my coordinates to Earth. It can’t be that big of a planet. Isn’t it mostly water?”

Her mother shook her head. “Sweetheart, Earth is three times the size of Thibius with at least a couple billion people. Even if your sister is still alive, she could be anywhere.”

“Calliope, don’t give her false hope when there is none.” He then turned back to London. “Besides, I absolutely forbid you to take a heliocraft out of this galaxy. They’re not sturdy enough to enter Earth’s atmosphere without falling apart.”

London had come here with the intention of apologizing, but her father’s autocratic command made her see red. She looked up at him with narrowed eyes. “You forbid me?”

“London…” her mother said in a warning tone.

The King’s lips tightened as he glared back. “Will you disobey me in this? I can easily arrange for your room to be guarded until your nuptials.”

“If you do that, I’d hate you for it,” London promised.

A brief glimmer of something that looked a lot like sadness flashed in his green eyes before it was concealed. “Then so be it. Hate me if you must, but I intend to keep you safe. It is my duty as your Emperor and foremost, your father. I don’t take that responsibility lightly.”

It was on the tip of her tongue to tell her father exactly what he could do with his duty, but she stopped.

You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

Maybe her mother was right. Arguing with her father was futile, so why not try a different tactic?

Throwing her arms around him, she gave him a huge hug. “Papa, I’m sorry for my insolence and for running out of the dinner like that. I didn’t mean to disappoint you. I was scared and acted irrationally. I know you only want the best for me, so I will try to do what you want me to.”

His arms squeezed her tightly against his broad chest, reminding her of when she was younger: a time when she thought her father was the greatest man in the entire Universe. She loved him with all her heart, and she wasn’t lying when she said she was sorry for her behavior, but still London couldn’t see eye to eye with him on these issues. Not about Zahn and especially not about her sister.

Stroking London’s hair, her father bent down to kiss the top of her head. “You have no idea how much you mean to me, my precious little girl. You may not be mine by nature, but you are in my heart. I don’t think I can love my sons any more than I love you, so please understand that when I ask something of you, it’s not to ruin your life. I do it because I care.”

A sob caught in her throat. “Oh, Papa. It means a lot to me that you said that.” And it broke her heart at the same time, because tonight when the Palace was quiet, London was going on a mission to Earth.

Chapter

Three

Matt adjusted his telescope again for the fifth time. Something wasn’t right. There was nothing in his calculations about a new comet appearing. The next one expected was Halley’s Comet and that wouldn’t be for another few decades. It didn’t appear to be a meteor either based on the trajectory and its appearance.

But if that was the case, what was that streaking across the sky, and why did it look like it was getting closer? As an avid star gazer since he was child and someone who’s career was dedicated to solar, this worried him. He or one of his colleagues would have noticed any asteroids hurtling toward Earth long before now. But whatever it was, he needed to get the hell out of here and fast. Packing his equipment up as quickly as he could, Matt gazed up once again. The thing was getting closer.

Shit.

Running to his truck, he threw everything in the back, and hopped in the cab. When he tried to start it, his vehicle chose that moment stall.

“Just fucking great. I just took this damn thing in for maintenance,” Matt muttered under his breath.

He took a deep breath and tried to start the truck again. To his relief it cranked up this time with no problem. “Good.”

He stole a glance into the rearview mirror and realized that the precious seconds lost had cost him because whatever it was hurtling from the sky was coming right at him. Pressing down on the gas, the truck sped out. He hoped he hadn’t damaged his stuff in the back as he’d bundled it up so hurriedly, but right now self-preservation took over.

Matt had only driven a couple miles when he heard a loud crash. It was a good thing this was a desert where not much damage could be done. Instinct told him to keep driving and not look back, but curiosity took hold and wouldn’t let go. He had to know what had crashed. If it was a space rock then it would definitely be something to share at his next lunar club meeting.

Making a U-turn, he headed back to the crash. “I feel like one of those morons in a horror movie,” he muttered, but this opportunity was too great to pass up. What he was expecting and what he saw were two completely different things.

This was no asteroid, it looked like a mini rocket of some sort and it was glowing. Did he dare get out of his truck and investigate further? He’d seen enough alien invasion movies to know that it usually didn’t end up favorably for the curious human. If he walked away now, he’d forever curse himself for being such a chicken shit. Besides, hadn’t he always believed that Earth wasn’t the only planet with intelligent life forms? This could be the discovery of a lifetime.

On the other hand, his only defense out here in the Californian desert was a hunting knife and a black belt in Tae Kwan Do. Who knew what kind of funky technology the aliens would have. They could have incinerating guns or maybe they’d have sharp teeth and claws.