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“I assume the portal technology—” Evangeline nearly choked on the term “—didn’t come from Earth.”
“No, it did not. But neither did it originate on Ahn’hudin. We think the Urib invented it, but they won’t admit to it. Sivuul claims ownership of it, but then so do the Ogranox. Luckily for us, the Urib recently beat the Ogranox into retreat, so we’ve only to worry about the Sivuul in this galaxy right now.”
Evangeline blinked, not really able to comprehend what the woman was saying. The woman rose and patted her hand. “You look like you’ve been rode hard and put up wet. We’ll keep you here a few more hours to allow your body to catch up and recover from wormhole travel. Unfortunately, we can’t afford to give you any additional time to recuperate. Then we’ll get you all gussied up and ready for the bride games.”
“Bride games?” Evangeline repeated faintly.
The woman frowned and sighed. “I suppose Mr. Argosie didn’t explain that either?”
“No.”
She harrumphed, then said, “Well, you’ll find out soon enough. I’ve got personnel taking care of your cat, as I suppose the nasty little beast is dear to you.”
“His name is Poppet.”
“Ah.” The woman shrugged, not caring. “I’m Ambassador Faye Conquillen and, until after the games, your boss.” She patted Evangeline’s arm. “Rest up. I’ll see you this evening at the first session of the games.”
“What if I don’t want to participate?” Evangeline asked.
The woman chuckled. “Oh, my dear, you have no choice. I suggest making the best of it.”
Evangeline’s mouth opened and closed like a fish, no sounds coming forth. She slid back down, exhausted already, and wondered how she’d get herself and Poppet out of this fix. She closed her eyes and ground her molars.
“I know that expression,” a new voice commented as a warm hand lifted hers.
Evangeline’s eyes flew open. “Who are you?”
“I’m Danny, your nurse.” He gestured past Evangeline with his free hand while his index finger found her pulse. “And hers, too.”
Evangeline struggled to roll over to see another woman to whom Danny referred. She caught a glimpse of dark tangled curls and dark brown skin. Looking back at the nurse, she asked, “Is she here for the same reason I am?”
“That’s Susan. She arrived three days ago. Not good. You’ve been here about two days.” Danny clucked his tongue and shook his head. He wrapped a blood pressure cuff around her upper arm and pumped it tight. “The bride games? Oh, yeah. The United States is obligated to provide two hundred women annually to Ahn'hudin, another two hundred to Uribern, and another two hundred to Kaan.”
“Why is the U.S. government trafficking women?” Evangeline demanded.
“It’s not just the U.S. of A.,” he replied. “Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, India, Russia, Afghanistan, Egypt, Japan, South Korea, Australia … pretty much every country in the United Nations is under treaty to send healthy, live, unmarried women of childbearing age to our interplanetary allies.” He glanced at Susan who was alive but not healthy. “All in all, about a thousand or so per year finish the games.”
“That doesn’t answer my question,” she pointed out. Her mind skittered away from the telling descriptor of “live” and the numbers transported. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that not all of the women arrived in good condition or even alive.
Danny shrugged, released her hand, and took her temperature with a temporal scanner. “The Sivuul and the Ogranox are responsible for a dearth of reproductively viable females among several alien species of which three are biologically compatible with humans. We Earthlings are helping them rebuild their populations, and they protect Earth from annihilation and all human beings from enslavement. It’s a fair trade.”
“Not without our consent, and I didn’t consent,” she muttered. In a louder tone she asked, “And why aren’t citizens informed?”
Danny chuckled as he removed the blood pressure cuff. “One hundred eleven over seventy-five: within normal range.” He set the device aside. “Actually, you did consent when you signed the contract for employment. And do you really think the common run of humanity is ready to acknowledge the existence of aliens?”
Thinking of the contract she’d signed agreeing to nondisclosure and relocation, Evangeline’s expression soured. “If we’re on their planet, then we’re the aliens.”
“True.” The nurse shrugged. “Now, are you comfortable? Need another pillow?”
“Does what I want matter?”
Danny gave her a small smile. “To a certain extent, yes, it does. I know that you and the other women didn’t exactly expect to become brides—”
Evangeline interrupted, her tone bitter, “Don’t you mean broodmares?”
“—brides,” he repeated. “But the women who are successfully matched seem happy. Their husbands are very aware that it’s humans who are saving them from extinction, so they’re generally quite doting and protective of their human wives and any hybrid children they might have.”
“What if I don’t want to have any children?”
