Page 41 of Xel: Broken Bond
“Perhaps Aiden would know someone who could help,” I suggested to my master. It was a sideways way of telling him that I really thought this was too big for us to handle on our own, without saying as much out loud. Rohinavon would have no idea who Aiden was, and I knew enough about Vangravian politics to realise how much of a mess this was. The Eumadians made no secret of the fact that all the dimari were sold to them willingly by their mothers, and that the Vangravian homeworld was astaunchly matriarchal society. A woman attempting to steal her son away from their very ingrained system would be denounced as a felon of the most horrendous sort.
“Who’s Aiden?” Rohinavon asked, suspicion thick in her voice.
My master glanced at me. “He’s a friend. He has his own dimari and he’s been teaching me how to look after Xel.” I felt relief flood through me as my master avoided telling Rohinavon anything about Aiden that she didn’t need to know. “I’m going to go and call Aiden,” my master said. “Stay here,” he said sternly to Rohinavon. “I’ll be back within about half an hour, and this is your best option for finding real help. Xel, can you stay and watch her for me?”
“Yes, sir,” I said. I wasn’t entirely sure what I was supposed to do if she tried to leave. The best I could hope for was that she would see reason and wait for my master to return.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
COLE
Ihurried away from the barn, wanting to make sure there was enough distance between me and Rohinavon that there was no possible way she could overhear me. Finding a Vangravian woman in my spare barn had shocked the hell out of me, but Xel’s suggestion that we call Aiden in had only made my fears worse. Xel knew perfectly well that Aiden was in the military, and that he answered to the Alliance Parliament – despite Rohinavon’s insistence that she didn’t want to go through official channels – so if he honestly thought that was the best solution, there was a very high likelihood that we were officially up shit creek. The entire situation hadinterstellar diplomatic incidentwritten all over it, and the last thing in the world I wanted to be responsible for was accidentally starting a war.
But at the same time, condemning an innocent child to slavery, if this went wrong, was a horrifying thought. But surely Aiden would never let it come to that? Or maybe I was just overestimating how much influence he really had over any of this.
I called his comm when I got to the new barn, ducking inside to one of the stalls just to be extra careful. The call timed out without him answering. Yeah, okay, so he was busy saving the lives of eight new dimari. But however much work he had to do right now, I couldn’t help reaching the conclusion that my current problem was bigger.
I called him again, and then a third time when the second call timed out.
Finally, the holographic screen sprang to life, and Aiden’s face popped up in front of me. He looked absolutely livid, so I didn’t even bother saying hello, just blurted out my news. “There’s a Vangravian female hiding in my barn who wants to apply for political asylum for herself and her infant son,” I said, making the news as succinct as possible. The details weren’t entirely accurate – she’d already said she didn’t want to go through the Parliament – but I figured the statement would be enough to buy me the time to explain the rest of it without Aiden biting my head off.
Sure enough, Aiden froze, his mouth open, whatever he’d been about to say cut off as his eyes widened and his face paled. “I’m sorry, say that again?” he said, so I repeated myself, giving him a moment for the news to sink in.
“Holy shit,” he murmured. “Afemale?”
Taking that as my cue, I filled him in on everything else I knew, including Rohinavon’s request that her presence remain a secret.
I expected a quick denial from Aiden on that front, but instead, he just continued listening, his mouth tight, his head nodding slowly.
“So… what do we do?” I asked finally, after I’d told him everything I could think of.
“Fuck me,” he muttered, rubbing his face tiredly. “It seems to be the week for dealing with problems I’ve never seen before.Bloody hell.” He shook his head. “I think I’m going to have to come and talk to her. I’ve got about a thousand questions, and if I take this to the higher ups they’re going to want to know I’ve seen her with my own eyes. This is… big,” he said in conclusion, a fearful look in his eyes. “I’ll come straight over. You’ll be there all afternoon?”
“Yes. But maybe don’t wear your military uniform?” I advised him. “She’s cagey as all hell and knowing you’re from the military might tip her over the edge. And also… are you planning on bringing Kade?”
That made Aiden pause. “I was going to. Why?”
“She’s taking a real dislike to Xel. As far as I can work out, it’s nothing personal, just purely because he’s a dimari. But seeing Kade might just piss her off more.”
Aiden grimaced. “I take your point. But at the same time, Kade tends to be incredibly insightful when it comes to understanding either other dimari or things about Vangravian culture. I honestly think I’m going to need his advice on this one.”
I nodded. “I’m not saying don’t bring him. But maybe warn him that she’s going to be rude about it.”
Aiden nodded. “Thanks for the heads up. If we come in a chopper, will we be able to land in the back paddock?”
Achopper? God, he really did think this was urgent. “Yeah, that’ll be fine. I’ll see you soon.”
◊◊◊
I sprinted all the way back to the barn, desperately concerned that Rohinavon would have decided to cut and run before I got back. But as I skidded around the corner, I saw that she and Xel were still standing there, a couple of metres apart, both of them with their arms folded and scowls on their faces.
“Aiden’s on his way here to talk to you,” I told Rohinavon. “He knows a lot about the dimari and all the politics that goes with that, so he’s definitely your best bet in terms of getting a positive outcome to all of this. In the meantime, how about you come over to my house? I’m guessing you’re hungry, right?”
Her scowl deepened, but she didn’t contradict me.
“Do you have any injuries? Do you need any medication?”
“No, I’m fine,” she said stiffly. “But… I would be grateful for some food.”