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“I am worried. The Wrathelders have been gaining power steadily, courting influence, gaining allies and enemies who cannot refuse them. We have been playing intergalactic pet shop while they build an empire.” Kahn looks at me reproachfully.
His silent judgement, given without word or thought, reaches me regardless. I am not the politician our father was. I’m also not dead like he is either. There are prices to be paid for seeking political power, and death is one of them. We may appear to be a peaceful, civilized species, but behind the facade of telepathic propriety, we are as treacherous and dangerous as any animal in any wild place in the universe.
“Do not worry. They have never prevailed, and they will never prevail. Even when they killed father, they did not gain anything from it.”
“They took Zain’s freedom.”
“Zain took Zain’s freedom. We told him not to seek vengeance.”
“We should visit him again. He’s due another care package.”
Our youngest brother is serving a life sentence in prison for the attempted murder of Phenix Wrathelder. In the wake of our father’s death, he decided to take justice into his own hands. It did not go well. To this day, there is no evidence that Phenix Wrathelder was truly responsible for our father’s assassination, but Zain remains convinced of Phenix’s guilt. Privately, so are we all.
“We should,” I agree.
It has been nearly three years since Zain was put behind bars. We have exhausted legal means to extract him, in large part because he is no help to himself. Every report from the prison commissar’s desk details fighting and other minor crimes that would extend his sentence if his sentence was not already for life.
Holding a family of brothers together is no easy task. I prefer wrangling humans. Even the worst behaved among them is relatively easy to handle compared to my strong-willed siblings.
Kahn drains his drink. “I’m going to bed,” he says. “If I encounter that human of yours again, I’m going to whip her until she cries. She’s absolutely undisciplined, and a complete liability.”
I give him a steady look. I want him to very much internalize the meaning of my next words.
“She’s mine.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
He knows what it means, but I elaborate so there is absolutely no confusion going forward.
“I mean she’smine. I understand why you punished her when you first met her. You didn’t know who she was, or why she was here. You were punishing a thief. But she is mine to train.”
“Then keep her out of my way.”
I narrow my eyes slightly and consider what I am going to do with Kahn. He is so sensitive to disrespect from those he considers to be lesser beings, but he doesn’t seem to notice his own ample amounts of disrespect which he doles out without any concern.
I know he believes he is the most responsible and functional of us all in spite of being second born. He takes on responsibilities in a near compulsive way, imagining that if he can only have control of things, they will never go wrong. Our father’s passing only made that innate tendency worse. But I am the head of this family, and though I rarely insist upon his submission to my will, when it comes to my pet, I will not tolerate him touching her again.
“I mean…” Kahn clears his throat when he sees my expression. “I mean…”
A single look can get someone to change their tune when they know what potentially lurks behind that expression.
“You should get some rest,” I say cooly.
“I should,” he agrees. “Goodnight.”
“Night.”
I let Kahn make his escape from my presence without further pushing the issue of respect. He knows what is good for him, and the ice in my verbal and mental tone alone should have told him to stay well clear of my pet from now on.
Kahn leaves for bed, but I stay in the drinking room for a short while. I am too alert to sleep now, or perhaps simply too concerned. Speaking with Kahn reminds me of the many complexities of this world, of the ties I was born into, the innumerable responsibilities that fall on my shoulders. I think about Zain, and how long it has been since I saw him. At first I refused to visit. I was so angry at him for the failed attempt that only saw him put behind bars. Perhaps something has softened inside me. I feel the need to go and see him.
It has been too long, and I have been avoiding him. In the wake of my father’s passing, all of us have found our own ways to avoid the pain. Zain is in prison, Rake is in the wilderness, Kahn has become a bureaucratic warrior, and I have thrown myself into all things human.
If the Wrathelders are on the rise, it is time to regather. We have spent years grieving. Now we need to find our strength to save humans and the future of Euphoria itself.
It’s all very inspiring. I’m not entirely sure I’d be so cheerful at the prospect of facing our oldest familial enemies if it wasn’t for the fact that my time with my pet has put me in a very, very good mood. Having mated with her even once, I feel as though I could face any obstacle. As weak as my human mate is in the physical sense, she makes me strong. She makes me determined to ensure that the future of her kind is bright.
I’m sure Kahn wouldn’t approve if he knew what else I’d done with my human pet. I have never mated a human before. We do not sell our pets with the understanding they will be used for base fornication, though of course, from time to time, there are rumors of mating, and even infidelities in which some Euphorian males have chosen human mates over their own bonded mates. Quite scandalous, and usually looked upon with great derision — especially by the female mates concerned.
