The Purlieu Experiment
Chapter 5
Copyright 2015 & 2021
Donica watched her grandfather as he read the message that had been delivered to him. She recognized the handwriting on the envelope. The note was from Donte and if Papaw's expression was any indication, the news was not good. It had been six years since they heard from her twin brother, other than occasional updates from Farasi that he was still waiting on an heir. Hopefully Donte would be home soon.
The message slid from Pieter's hand to his lap, forgotten as he stared at the wall. He was silent for a few minutes before he finally looked at Donica. "I must send a message to your father." His voice was cold and his eyes held a flame of anger. "They must be punished."
Donica frowned. "Who? Is that from Donte? What has happened?"
Pieter's mate appeared in the doorway of his office. "Is something wrong, dear?"
Pieter pushed his wheelchair around the desk and headed for the door. "I must talk to Quade."
Donica looked at her grandmother and lifted her hands in defeat. "I don't know. He got a message...I think from Donte."
Saskia scooped the message from his lap as he rolled by her. "What is it, Pieter? What is wrong?"
When Pieter continued without response, she began reading the letter. She frowned, staring at it. Her face washed of color and she sagged against the wall. "No! They promised!"
"What?" Donica asked, but Saskia didn't answer.
Donica retrieved the forgotten message from Saskia's hand and read it. Chill bumps formed on her arms as she read Donte's message. No, he couldn't be dead. She would have felt it. Everyone loved Donte. They wouldn't hurt him. Not Donte…and yet, look what they had already done to him.
Saskia began sliding down the wall and Donica grabbed her. "Why don't you come over here and sit down, Nana?" She led her to a chair and helped her sit. "It can't be true," Donica reassured her.
Saskia finally looked at her. "They promised his safe return. How could they do this to him?"
It was actually a relief when Saskia began to cry, though it was infectious. When Pieter returned, he found them both sobbing. He wheeled past them without comment and went to his office; shutting the door.
Pieter stayed in his office alone for a long time. Neither Saskia nor Donica wanted to disturb him. Donica was certain he was crying and would be embarrassed at being discovered in such a state. He had such high hopes of Donte taking his place as ruler of Bergen. Those hopes had been crushed.
With Donte gone, Pieter might turn to her. She didn’t want the position. What she wanted more than anything was to be a normal human. That wasn’t going to happen, but she didn’t want to be put in a position where everyone would be continually reminded that she was a Mascot. She didn’t want to be a ruler. Donte wanted that, maybe even her friend, Rianne, but Donica didn’t want it. All she wanted was to be a mother…but that wasn’t going to happen either. Human males couldn’t impregnate female Mascots. Donte was the last fertile male Mascot left in Libertad, Bergen and her sub-colonies. Donte had a son in Nyumbani now.
As news of the execution spread through the colony, the reaction was shock and disbelief at first; and then talk of retribution. Donte wouldn't want that. Any attack might put his children in danger. Some said that they should take the children and bring them to Bergen. Of all the suggestions, Donica found that the most comforting. Surely Donte would want them removed from such a savage environment.
Quade arrived on the early morning tram. He hugged Donica and they both shed more tears. One of the things she liked about both her father and Donte was the way they accepted their emotions. They kept their emotions under control, but they weren't concerned about what others might think if they cried. Both Donte and Quade were generally upbeat people who looked for the best in others. No doubt that was a good part of why everyone liked them so much. Quade loved Donte as much as any father could love his son. He was devastated, but he echoed Donte's sentiment. Any retribution would make it more difficult for the Nyumbani to form a peaceful government. In the end, they chose to honor Donte's request not to retaliate. As Quade said, it made sense not only from the standpoint of peace, but because Donte had been there six years and would have a better feel for what would be most effective. There was some speculation that he had been forced to write the letter, but no one believed that he could have been forced to do something he didn't agree with. Donte was honorable and brave - and now he was gone.
Donica looked up at Quade. "My intuition says he is still alive."
He put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. Kissing her forehead, he spoke softly. "It is what we wish to believe."
Donica nodded. "Of course I wish it, but..." She sighed. "He wrote the letter, so he was alive then. They could have decided not to…execute him."
He patted her shoulder. "Perhaps."
He didn't believe Donte was alive, but he didn't want to crush her hopes. Maybe he was right. Maybe it was simply her way of coping with it. In his usual straightforward way, Quade was accepting reality and dealing with it. He had a colony to consider. But then, Quade was also a doctor. In both positions he needed to accept reality.
Quade and Pieter sent messages and messengers to Bosvrouwen, Vlaktes and outlying colonies of Bergen and Libertad, advising of the situation and how Bergen and Libertad intended to respond. No action would be taken against Nyumbani unless they continued to raid - in which case, Donte's children would be forcefully removed from their colony. Within days they were receiving condolences from all four colonies. Quade sent a message to Nyumbani, requesting the return of Donte's body.
His request brought Donica's thoughts to how he had been executed. He didn't say how they would do it. Would they hang him, shoot him or what? There was no method that offered any comfort, though. Whether it was wishful thinking or not, her mind kept returning to the idea that he wasn't dead.
Soft Science Fiction
