Every Last Mother's Child Page 6

  Chapter 4: The Thonian

  A few hours later, Deputy Chief of Trenaport Royal Mounted Patrol, Mylea Atomi sat in her office at the Transport Mounted Police Headquarters going over the reports and such that crossed her desk every evening. She was the third watch commander. She had the 24 to 8 shift not because she was junior, but simply because she liked the peace and quiet it offered her. The day watch, and the mid watch were okay and she didn’t really mind the hectic pace those shifts offered; the 8 to 16 were for lifemated officers with families, and the 16 to 24 was for single cops, not widows like her. Not widows in mourning as she had been for the last two and a half earth years and would be for several more months. She had been told that as her time of mourning came to an end her body would be changing, men would start being an item of interest again. Already she could feel some of the changes. She had begun to be interested in men again. Not since before she had lifemated Garth, her late spouse, had she thought about other men. Now as her period of mourning neared its end she could feel the old emotions stirring her soul. She had been lifemated for nearly 7 crimens. A short period by her peoples standards. Garth had died in a shooting, killing him instantly. One moment he was there with her, bright and clear in her mind as he had been since she had been 6 when they mated the next she felt a clear ripping pain that rendered her unconscious. She woke up in an Interstellar Rescue Service Hospital; Garth was there but not there. She owed a lot to two earth human females. Admiral Klond, an earth woman, who understood her people’s physiology better than her own people’s medics and a biowoman who had become a good friend. Mylea was one of the lucky ones; normally death killed both lifemates. It wasn’t something unheard of for lifemates to survive the death of a lifemate, but it was extremely rare. Due to the hormonal changes a lifemating changed in both spouses, the crimen of mourning wasn’t a custom, or tradition; but a necessary period that allowed a thonian adult to recover from the death of their lifemate. Seldom though did they lifemate again. It was said that the intimacy of the first lifemating was too intense for the survivor to forget, and that the fear of not rebuilding the intimacy with another lifemate was too frightening for the widow to want to try.

  Now as she sat in her office pondering the future between bits and pieces of the normal paper work she dealt with daily, she was put in a position of mixed loyalties. For now the biowoman’s lifemate were an item of interest by the crown.

  “Now what am I going to do?” Mylea asked herself.

  She had known her friend’s lifemate longer than she had known her. Mylea remembered when she had first met the man who would come to be a mentor of mentors. She had been newly promoted to squad leader in the MP unit. Her ruler, a young woman herself, had sent her to Gregory’s World. A small world involved in a very vicious civil war. A peace negotiated by the Earth Empire, and Thonian Realm required the presence of neutral troops from the Earth Empire, and The Thonian Realm. Mylea was to be the officer in charge of the unit, and an earthling was to be her first sergeant of the unit. The young sergeant was on his way to becoming his Empire’s top Military Police officer, The Realm had specifically requested that he be the command NCO of the operation. The sergeant, still not 30, had been given the assignment, his legend already beginning. Mylea on her first unit command; was on her way to becoming a top officer of the Realm. Little did either ruler know what their leaders had started when Mylea and Michael Wilson got together! They ran the toughest, fairest, and most professional police force that Gregory had ever seen, some said the universe.

  Mylea had learned police work from Wilson, and learned that it was people dummy. Whether it was arresting a drunk, or helping a not so bright enlisted man do better or making an aristocratic officer understand she didn’t have the monopoly on ideas. That without people it didn’t matter what she did. She learned that without people there was absolutely no reason for the military to exist, that without people there was no reason for the military to protect, and defend the constitution, or the people who were protected by it. She had learned a lot from this young man who was still hurting from the death of his spouse.

  Years later she had found him on Trena having taking her disability retirement at 13 and emigrated to Trena. The military retired any thonian lifemate who had survived a trauma such as she had. In the past they had found that such survivors couldn’t function without their lifemate and were a danger to them self. The Space Force wasn’t heartless just practical in the dangerous profession of combat arms. They needed people who were completely on top of their game. They couldn’t afford to wait a crimen or three earth years for her to be better. So she took her retirement and emigrated to Trena to start over. Finding an old friend almost immediately when she started through the Trena Royal Mounted Patrol’s Academy.

  Trena had never been backward or slow in accepting immigrants into their civil services, or anywhere for that matter. She had, had many job offers when her retirement had been announced. Trena was the one she took. She literally stepped from the landing shuttle into a waiting cop car that had taken her to the academy.

  Now looking at the crown warrant she was torn between telling him to get going or; finding out what the crown wanted her two best friends for. His lifemate, Lisa, had helped her as much as Doctor Klond had in helping her through the first difficult year of her mourning. She re read the warrant and decided to see what it was all about. She called a friend of hers, getting him out of bed. She had heard that he was working for the crown the last few weeks.

  “Hi Qoum,” Mylea spoke into the phone.

  “Mylea?” the startled general asked, “What’s going on?”

  “Do you know anything about this crown warrant for Lord Wilson?” She asked.

  “Yes the Queen wants to offer him a job,” The man replied, “why? You know something?”

  “I am going to be flat out honest with you La’Kent; I wouldn’t be here without Mike and his lifemate.” She said into the phone, “I won’t give him up to the company if that’s what’s going on.”

  “Hell no Mylea,” The man retorted. He had known Mylea when she had been assigned diplomatic duty at the Thonian Embassy a few years back. She played a mean hand of poker. “The Queen has a very special job for him that only he can do. I understand his err, special circumstances, and if he’s here and doesn’t want the task I’ll personally give him a fast ship to get out of here!”

  As she was pondering what to do the general said, “Call her! Talk to her. Here’s the number by her bed.”

  “She’s really going to talk to me?” the Thonian commented, “Me a little ole police officer.”

  “On this one she will.” La’Kent said, “Now can I go back to sleep. I won’t be getting much in the next few weeks.”

  “I guess so La’Kent.” Mylea said. She cut the connection and pondered some more on what she was going to do. Finally she pulled on her jacket, leaving her driver behind, praying she wouldn’t be needed for anything, went to the palace.

  As she arrived she called the Queen’s private number and was surprised when it was the Queen that answered. A few terse sentences later, and the Queen was sitting next to her in the squad car. The Queen had pulled on an old jersey that seen better days, a pair of worn; but serviceable trousers. She appeared to be any young girl who was being helped out by the police.

  “Chief,” The young woman said, “I appreciate your loyalty to your friend. It impresses me that you would protect him this way.”

  “Your majesty,” Mylea said driving to Michael’s home, “Mike hasn’t had a lot of happiness in his life. He finally found the...refound, the only woman who has ever understood him. His mother died of an over dose when he was a boy. His father was killed by a company containment team. He deserves some peace and quiet.”

  “I’ve read his history.” The Queen replied, “I know how special he is. Let me tell you why I want him.”

  With that the Queen told the woman beside her what was about to befall Trena. Mylea realizi
ng that this young girl, who was not much older than her daughter, Lamile, was dead serious. She looked over to the young monarch and said, “He’ll take it. I think.”

  “Can we protect him from the company? I almost didn’t issue the crown warrant. He is after all one of my subjects; I wouldn’t want to see him harmed.” The Queen replied, “I met his step mother. She represented Terra at Dad’s funeral ten years ago. She’s an impressive lady.”

  “That she is,” Mylea said pulling onto the street Wilson lived on. “She’s on Mars raising Jill, Mike’s daughter. Mike wants her with him; but they’re watching her. The company for all its stupidity will not mess with the admiral. Not with her EmpQuar connections. Maxwell only wants an excuse to take over the company.”

  “He lives frugally,” The Queen said, “I’d expect that with his money he would live in little better neighborhood!”

  “He doesn’t use any of his fortune on Trena.” The Thonian said, “Only his salary from the PD. It’s modest and it doesn’t draw attention to him.” She parked the car and got out.

  “Oh,” The name on the house was Aaron Wilson, “we weren’t searching for Aaron Wilson, but Michael Aaron Wilson. That’s subtle. I’ll remember that. I wonder why the DNA identity check didn’t flag.”

  The older woman didn’t have the heart to tell it did, but that because he was a police officer in the Mounted Patrol, the pickup had to be authorized by the Duty Chief on duty, before it could be executed. The Red Wall, as the Mounties called it, had started to form around one of their own.