The Anialwch Connection
Chapter 12
When Donica received the message from Donte, she was immediately concerned. Why would he leave Rianne in Libertad with Quade? Her first thought was that they were quarreling. Was their union starting to fall apart already? If it was, Rianne was doing a good job of keeping it secret.
Chait was rarely home anymore, so she was usually stuck in Lochfowk with their son. Tavin kept her busy most of the time. He was a beautiful little boy with blue eyes and red hair. Chait had not been home when he took his first steps. In fact, Chait had been campaigning most of the time in the last few months. It had never occurred to her that campaigning would require so much time, or that he wouldn’t bring his mate along. It would be difficult traveling with a baby, though. Surely it would be better after the elections. She could wait for a few more weeks. She had already decided that if things didn’t change after the election, she would do some traveling - if she had to do it alone.
She had been looking forward to a visit from her best friend and brother. Donte and Rianne had a second child that she had never seen. She hadn’t seen Petra since she was about a year old. How long would it be now that he had changed his plans? It would be nice to see Donte. She would have to make some changes to her plans. It was strange that Donte chose to ride for two days instead of taking the Tram for a day.
Donica sent a message to Chait about the change of plan. It might work into his schedule so he could be there. It was unlikely, though. Chait didn’t like changes. He had his schedule planned weeks ahead and it was so tight that any change could affect all the rest.
The worst thing about not traveling was not being able to see Pieter and Saskia. They wanted to see her and their great grandson. Saskia could travel, but Pieter’s health was getting worse. Quade, Akira and Kenyon had visited her on several occasions, but Donte didn’t want Rianne to travel while he was away. He had been in the service for three years and then Rianne was expecting. Their lives were so full…and then this; whatever it was.
Celyn had been staying with Donte and Rianne. Hopefully that hadn’t caused a rift between them. What was Donte thinking? Rianne said it was her idea, but she wouldn’t have considered it if Donte hadn’t said something to make her think it was necessary. Donte had thrown Celyn’s vision and The Prophesy together until he couldn’t tell them apart. What made him think that Celyn’s vision about their exchanging vows had anything to do with The Prophesy? It was like Chait said. The Prophesy might not happen for another thirty years or so – if at all.
Donte had an inflated sense of honor and duty. Both Sima and Chait agreed on that subject. They didn’t agree on The Prophesy, though. Sima believed in it, but Chait now thought it was nothing more than folklore, as Pieter did. According to Chait, Donte and Pieter were having some disagreements so bad that Pieter considered banning him from Bergen. Ness had told Chait that Donte was trying to recruit colonists to fight the Mascots. Even Chait thought that was absurd. Donte had some strange ideas in regard to The Prophesy, but he would never condone, much less organize, contention between colonists and Mascots. Anyone who knew Donte at all would know better than that. But Ness didn’t know anything about Donte. From what Donica had seen, he wanted to know even less. He didn’t like the idea that Chait had taken someone from another colony as his mate. He thought that mixing colonists was a sin and he despised Donte because he had encouraged the relationship between her and Chait. Donte had nothing to do with it. He simply accepted her choice. Ness wasn’t concerned with truth, though – not if it didn’t fit the way he believed. She didn’t like Ness, but Chait said he was well respected and would increase his chances of winning the election. It made no sense to her. If he didn’t like the man now, how would he like working with him after the elections? She had been so looking forward to a visit from Donte. He would bring some sort of sanity to all this.
***
Celyn and Donte took turns sleeping on the way back to Cuna. He had resisted at first, but finally gave in when she reasoned that they would both be able to function better with some sleep.
When the tram stopped in Cuna, Kenyon met them. He had everything ready for the trip, including three equines. How he knew her father would consent was a mystery, but she was glad her father wasn’t the only one who recognized she was old enough to make decisions. Donte still saw her as a child. Of course, Donte was the ultimate in chivalry. That was one thing she had become aware of in the year she had spent with Donte and Rianne. Another was the fact that she didn’t love Donte. Maybe she could if it weren’t for Rianne, but not now. Once she had thought that Rianne was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen, but that was only the half of it. Rianne was as beautiful inside as she was outside. This trip was a good example of Rianne's willingness to sacrifice for Donte. She didn’t say anything, but Celyn knew she was frightened for Donte. She wanted to be with him and didn’t want to lose him, but for Donte’s sake, she accepted what he was doing. She knew Donte would be safer away from the tram and crowds, and she knew he couldn’t run from the danger. It was like Donte to turn and face the danger and she accepted that – she respected and admired that quality in him. Rianne’s love for Donte had opened Celyn’s eyes to the obligations and expectations of a union. She wasn’t sure she wanted to submit to any man the way Rianne did to Donte. Sometimes it seemed that she had hopes and dreams that Rianne didn’t have. And yet, Rianne had served on a spaceship, the same as Donte. Rianne was still the representative for Bosvrouwen. It wasn’t as if she was meek. Even Pieter was careful how he spoke to her. Everyone respected her, and for good reason. Rianne expected and demanded it. In her eyes, everyone was entitled to their opinion, so long as they stated it respectfully. If they didn’t, she could quietly and eloquently put them in their place. Rianne and Donte complimented each other, and they did so mostly because they made a concentrated effort to do so. Celyn wasn’t sure she wanted to go to that much effort every day for the rest of her life.
Donte didn’t believe her vision, but Rianne did. Rianne said she was going to make the best of the years she had with him and not ruin that time with worry. Celyn didn’t want to believe her own vision. As Donte had questioned her about the purpose of the vows, so had she. In her vision, it had been clear that the vows were being exchanged in a union between man and woman. She was certain it was a vision, and not a dream…or nightmare. In the vision, she was nineteen and he much older. When she closed her eyes, she could still resurrect the vision. Donte was standing there, lean and tall; his dark hair glistening in the sunlight as they exchanged vows. There was no doubt in her mind who it was or what they were doing. At first it had annoyed her that Donte kept trying to tell her what she saw was something else. After spending a year with them, she wished she would see something else in the vision.
As they rode, Kenyon kept watching Donte, probably wondering if he sensed anyone following. She had been riding with Donte often enough to know he always sensed something. There were always animals around them. If he sensed anything he thought was important, he would transfer it to her. Occasionally she connected with aves that flew over them and transferred it to Donte. Kenyon had no idea all that was going on. It gave her a sense of independence to know Kenyon was unaware of everything they were doing.
Kenyon was attentive. He was a good brother and it was obvious that he was concerned about Donte. It would be nice to have such a sibling.
They rode all day, stopping at intervals to rest the equines. Celyn never saw anything but forest and lakes. Donte never indicated anything unexpected. That evening, they stopped to cook their meal, ate and moved to a place in the trees further on. Donte didn’t explain why he did that and she didn’t ask. Kenyon appeared to understand. Donte was distant, probably focused on the forest. He took the first watch because he could see at night and he said if no one showed up before midnight, they probably wouldn’t until morning. Celyn could do Donte no good at night, so she crawled into her blankets and fell asleep.
She woke during the night to a hand over her mouth. Her heart was pounding when a strong hand gently squeezed hers. It was Donte, trying to make sure she made no noise when she woke. She had no doubt that he had sensed someone in the forest. He whispered something to Kenyon and moved off into the night. If he could move quietly, Donte had an advantage over the person out there…unless they had the feline gene as well. Could Donte sense that?
When Donte didn’t return after a while Celyn began to worry. What if whoever was out there had killed him? What if they were next? She quietly moved closer to Kenyon; chill bumps coming up on her arms. “I’m cold,” she whispered.
Kenyon put an arm around her shoulders and whispered softly in her ear. “He’ll be fine.”
She snuggled close to him, peering into the darkness. Where was Donte?
Finally, they heard someone coming toward them. “Coming in,” Donte called. “Beier is with me.”
Kenyon stood and handed something to Donte. He offered a hand to Beier. “What were you doing out there?”
Beier’s teeth flashed white in the lunar light. “I was in Lochfowk when I got Pieter’s message. I’ve been traveling all day and half the night, hoping I didn’t miss you on a different trail. He looked at Donte. “Don’t you know this is one of the most traveled trails? If someone is after you, this would be where they would look.”
Kenyon laughed without humor. “I think that was his intent.”
Beier looked at Kenyon and back at Donte. “That was a fool thing to do with Celyn along.”
Donte put his hand in his pocket. “Celyn isn’t the target. I am.”
“She could get hurt or killed in the process.”
“Ahem!” Celyn interrupted. “I can speak for myself. I insisted on coming along and my father gave me permission.”
Kenyon took Celyn by the arm. “Why don’t we all get some sleep? We can discuss this in the morning when we have nothing better to do.” He led her to her blanket. “We need you rested for tomorrow. That’s when we’re most likely to have a problem.”
“Why does everyone treat me like a child?”
“Because you are a child. Now get some sleep.”
She sank to her blankets. She would soon be sixteen and people still treated her like a child. Her cheeks warmed as she remembered the way she cowered against Kenyon. No wonder he thought she was a child.
After a while, Beier rolled out a blanket on the other side of her. Feeling secure between the two capable men, she did what she didn’t think was possible under the circumstances. She fell asleep.
***
Donte woke early the next morning and fixed the morning meal. He’d had only a few hours sleep, but he felt refreshed. Hopefully, whoever was after him would make an attempt in the forest. In the colony there would be so many people that it would be difficult to discern anyone with ill intent. In any group of people, there always seemed to be at least one hostile person. It would be impossible to know whether the hostility was directed toward him or someone else. Many people in Bergen knew of his special skill, but they might not in Lochfowk. If the assassin knew, he might not come after him. If it was going to happen, he wanted it to happen now, while he was prepared.
After the morning meal, they all mounted their equines and headed for Lochfowk. Kenyon rode beside Celyn and Beier rode beside Donte. It was near mid-day when Donte sensed someone near them. He was transferring the presence to Celyn when he had a sudden intense feeling of malevolence.
He pulled his equine to a stop and yelled. “Get down!”
A musket boomed and the ball passed so close that he heard it.
Everyone dismounted and plunged into the trees, dragging their equines with them. Donte tied his equine and looked at Beier. “I want to catch him alive. He wants me, not any of you.”
He turned to Celyn. “I’m going to circle around and come up on him. Can you give me an aerial view of where he is?”
She nodded and focused on some trees. Within seconds he was viewing the area from above. He spotted the man behind some rocks.
Beier and Kenyon looked at each other in surprise. Beier shook his head in amazement. “Donte, I’ll circle around this way, exposing myself occasionally so he will be watching me.”
Donte shook his head. “I don’t want anyone hurt.”
Beier gave him a sour look. “I’m not too fond of that idea either, but Pieter told me to help you. I knew it would be dangerous. Now, you just concentrate on taking care of yourself.” Without waiting for Donte’s approval, Beier darted across an open area, drawing another musket ball that missed him by a wide margin.
Donte took the laser weapon from his pocket and handed it to Kenyon. “Keep an eye on her.” Without waiting for a response, he dropped to the ground and crawled in the opposite direction, working his way toward the rocks. Beier kept the musket fire going. Donte paused as he received an update from Celyn. Making a minor adjustment, he circled around and came upon the man from the rocks above him.
The man squatted behind a rock, taking aim on an area when Donte leaped. He landed on the ground immediately behind the man and threw an arm around his neck. He grabbed the musket with the other hand and it fired into the air. He brought the man’s arm down hard across a rock and heard a bone snap. The man screamed in pain and the musket clattered on the rocks.
Donte continued his assault. This was not a time for mercy. He shoved the man against the rocks and grabbed his hair, twisting his head to the side. “Who sent you?” He spoke in the Lochfowk language.
The man screamed again. “He’ll kill me if I tell.”
Donte pulled a little more on the man’s head and spoke in a calm voice. “What do you think I’m going to do if you don’t tell me?”
“No! I don’t have anything against you. I’m only doing what I was ordered to do.”
Donte put more pressure on the man’s neck. “By whom?”
The man cried out in pain. “Ness, Chait’s vice-president.”
A quick gasp brought Donte’s attention to Celyn. Her eyes were wide, her face pale. She turned and ran.
Donte released the man. “Where’s your equine?”
Beier joined them, leading an equine. He looked at the man and then at Donte, lifting his brows. “I’m glad I’m on your side.”
Donte helped the man on his equine. He wasn’t proud of what he had done, but the man had made his choice when he came after him. There was no room for emotion. “Take care of him,” Donte said to Beier, and strode away to find Celyn.
Kenyon had already found her, though, and was holding her sobbing body in his arms when Donte arrived. Kenyon was speaking to her in a gentle voice.
“It’s all over now.”
Her face buried in Kenyon’s chest; she spoke in a tearful voice. “I panicked. I’m so ashamed.”
Kenyon patted her shoulder. “I think you did an admirable job, considering this was your first time in action.”
She drew her head back and looked up at his face, wiping tears from her cheek with one hand. “Do you really think so?”
He gently set her feet on the ground and stroked her hair. “Of course I do. I was scared too.”
When Beier arrived, he frowned. “What happened to her? Is she hurt?”
Celyn shook her head. “I was frightened. I’m not hurt at all.”
Beier frowned at Donte. “You shouldn’t have brought her here with you. It was dangerous and irresponsible.”
Kenyon turned on Beier. “Back up there. Donte didn’t want her to come.”
Kenyon wouldn’t know why Beier was so upset and Donte wasn’t going to tell him. He turned to help the man from the equine. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have let her come along. Now that we have that out of the air, let’s take care of this man’s arm.”
Beier said no more as he helped the man down from his equine. Kenyon set the man’s arm and made a make-shift brace for it of a spare shirt and some sticks. No one said anything as he worked.
Donte helped the man on his equine and mounted his own. The others mounted and followed him. He had one more thing to do – find Ness. The man, if that term could be used to describe Ness, had put Donte’s family and friends at risk over something that hadn’t even happened. He intended to confront him in front of those who might have elected him. If Chait was involved, he’d get his share.
Beier looked at Donte, his expression chagrinned. “I had no right to talk to you that way, Monomi.”
Donte met his gaze. “I completely understand. There is no need to explain.” He looked at Kenyon. “I keep thinking about how you found me on the tram – a child rack - and that it could have been an assassin instead of you. It boils my blood to think Rianne or the children could have been hurt by the cowardly and needless actions of those men.”
Kenyon and Beier were reflective for a few moments. When Kenyon spoke, it was in a controlled voice. “I didn’t think about that, but today I was thinking that if either you or Celyn were killed, the rest of us would have suffered for the needless actions of those men.”
Celyn’s voice was timid. “I heard someone scream and I thought it was Donte. I couldn’t connect with him. I panicked and ran to help him.”
Kenyon nodded. “You weren’t the only one who wondered if it was Donte screaming. I still feel a little sick to my stomach. You took off and I ran after you.” He shook his head. “The last thing Donte said to me was to keep an eye on you.” He reached in his pocket. “That reminds me. This is the second time you handed me this thing and told me to take care of her.” He tossed the laser weapon to Donte and he caught it.
Beier rolled his eyes. “Pieter would have a fit. I thought you had it with you.” He glanced at Celyn. “What is this thing between you two? Are you reading each other’s minds?”
Donte explained to Kenyon and Beier the way he and Celyn were working together. “I don’t know what to call it or how it works. It took almost a year to be able to do it on command. We have to be receptive, and obviously I wasn’t while I was…uh, interrogating…the assassin.”
Beier gave Donte a wry smile. “Oh, is that what you were doing to him?”
Donte shrugged. “Maybe there was a better way, but I didn’t see it at the time.”
They continued their ride in silence.
They rode into the colony of Lochfowk amid gawking onlookers. Donte set his course to the government complex and didn’t deviate. A crowd had gathered outside the complex. Obviously, they were campaigning on the steps. Good. What he was going to do needed to be public. He dismounted and asked the nearest bystander which one was Ness. Someone pointed out the man standing beside Chait. Donte made his way through the crowd. Several times he heard someone speak his name, but he didn’t stop.
As he broke through the crowd, Ness spotted him. His eyes widened and he glanced at Chait. Chait wound down from his speech and finally stopped as Donte stepped up on the platform. Ness was a good head shorter than Donte and slighter of build.
Donte turned to the crowd. “Ness sent a man to assassinate me. He said I was organizing colonists to fight the Mascots. That isn’t true. If he was the man I believe you would want in your government, he would have faced me with the accusation instead of sending someone to terminate me.”
Donte turned to Chait. “If you have any objections to this, I suggest you state them now.”
Chait clearly didn’t know what to think. He looked pale. “I didn’t have any idea…” He swallowed hard and fought for control of his voice. “I will see that he is punished.”
He was saving face the best way he could. This would likely ruin Chait’s chance of being elected unless he took action against Ness.
Donte turned and walked down the steps without a backward glance or another word. He mounted his equine and looked at the man with the broken arm. “You’d better get to the hospital and have that arm looked at.”
The man turned and rode away. Donte turned to Kenyon. “If you’ll take Celyn to Donica’s place, I’ll send messages to Pieter and Dad, and then I’ll meet you there.”
Kenyon nodded. "Sure, but be careful. Ness might not have been acting on his own.”
“I’ll go with him,” Beier said.
At the station, Donte sent a long message to Pieter, explaining all that had taken place. He sent a message to Quade, letting him know that the situation had been resolved and he would start back in the morning. Rianne wouldn’t get to see Donica right now, but that couldn’t be helped. He still didn’t feel comfortable about bringing Rianne and the children into Lochfowk.
When he arrived at Donica's home, he found her crying. She hugged him. “I’m so sorry about this. I had no idea that Ness was reading the messages I sent to Chait.”
Donte held her close and spoke to her as gently as he knew how. “None of this is your fault, Donica. There is no reason to feel you should have suspected him.”
She burst into a new bout of tears. “Oh Donte. If they had killed you, I don’t know what I would have done.”
“But they didn’t kill me.”
Donica was an emotional person, but her reaction was still stronger than he anticipated. He looked down at her.
“Why don’t you come back with us to visit for a while?”
She dabbed at her eyes with a kerchief and stepped away from him. “I’ll be all right. Chait wouldn’t want me to go.”
“I’ll talk to him. You need to get away and Rianne would like to see you.”
She looked uncertain. “Chait will be angry.”
Donte frowned. “He would be angry because you left?”
She shook her head. “He will be angry that you disrupted his schedule. He has worked hard to be president.”
In spite of what had happened, Donte had to appeal to Sima before he was able to schedule a time to see Chait. By the time they met, Donte was working on a good rage. Chait met Donte in Sima’s office, and when he arrived, he was obviously annoyed. He waited impatiently for Donte to come to the point, ignoring the usual pleasantries. Donte didn’t want to waste his time.
“I hope you are able to find a new vice president candidate and get back on schedule.”
Chait grimaced. “After your display today, I may not need a new candidate. You should have gone through the proper channels. You should know that. You’re taking advantage of the fact that I’m united with your sister.”
Donte stared at him. It was bad enough that Chait felt no responsibility for the attack, but Chait was actually trying to blame Donte for the problem. Donte’s voice became acidic.
“Well, since I messed up an assassination attempt in the process of disrupting your campaign, I’ll try not to give you any more problems.”
“I didn’t have anything to do with that.”
Donte closed his eyes and counted. Had Chait gone back to rejecting blame for everything, or had he ever actually stopped? Donte opened his eyes. “I certainly hope you had nothing to do with it. I never thought you did. What I expected was some kind of concern on your part.” He shook his head. “What I wanted to talk to you about was Donica. We would like to take her back with us for a visit.”
“Listen Donte. I don’t like what Ness did, but I think it was out of line for you to interrupt my speech and make me look bad. Do you have any idea how far you have set me back in my campaign with that stunt?”
Donte never wanted to plant a fist in someone’s mouth so badly in his life. It must have shown on his face, because Chait took a step back and looked wary. “If my mate wants to go visit with someone in a critical time during my campaign, I won’t prevent her from doing so. I don’t know why she felt she needed to send you to ask me, anyway.” A wry smile twisted his lips. “Perhaps it was our close relationship.”
“Donica didn’t send me to do anything.” There was no point in discussing the matter with him. “I’m sorry I caused problems for you.”
He turned to leave the room, but Sima stopped him.
“Donte, wait a minute.” She looked at Chait. “Chait, you are a fool many times over. First, you are a fool if you think that Donte hurt your campaign. If you cannot use this to improve yourself, then you don’t deserve to be president. Second, you are the one who is destroying your relationship with Donica – with your absence and your attitude. I could go on, but I see no point. If what I have said so far means nothing, then there is nothing more I can say.”
She turned to Donte. “I am the current president and I personally apologize for what happened. Of course, I knew nothing of it either, but I am ashamed, all the same.”
She looked at Chait. “You are so focused on your campaign that you have failed to observe the obvious. Donte’s greatest concern is not his life. When his life is being threatened, it is a threat to his family as well.”
Sima stepped around her desk. “Donte, I think it would be an excellent idea to take Donica back with you. All of this campaigning has left her with no one to talk to. The attempt on your life by a member of Chait’s campaign must have been a blow to her. She needs some time with people who love her unconditionally.”
“One last thing,” she said to Chait. “Ness will either be executed or put in a penal camp. You decide which it will be.”
Chait glared at Sima.
It crossed Donte’s mind that Chait would never make a good leader. He had too much pride and too little compassion. He turned back to the door. “I need to get back to Rianne.”
He left the room without further comment. Nothing he could say or do would make a difference at this point. Whether Donica stayed or left was up to her, not Chait. If she went with them, she would do so with the consent of the current president. It was difficult to say whether Donica might be in danger if she stayed in Lochfowk. At this point, he wasn’t sure what Chait or his party would do, but he obviously wasn’t depending on Donica for any support. He would surely get it if he did, but Donica was merely an irrelevant part of his campaign at this point.
Soft Science Fiction
