If she performs well in these roles, excellent. If she fails... it will be more evidence to confirm what many people already believe about humans, that they are not fit to be our galactic equals.
Once I’m completely alone, I open a private channel. “Lira,” I say, once I see my star receptionist answer from her desk at the Celestial Spire, “you’ll be assigned to the new human liaison. Treat her as a friend, not staff. She’ll need someone she believes she can trust.”
“How much may I tell her?”
“Everything that keeps her steady. Denise, Yasmin, even the rumors about Lorian—your role isn’t to protect her from secrets. It’s to make sure she doesn’t feel alone.”
“Understood, Sovereign.”
As soon as I end my communication with Lira, a discreet tone signals an incoming message from my brother. I don't need to read it to know he's somewhere stirring up trouble.
Found something interesting. I won’t be home for a few days.Might bring back souvenirs.
Translation: He is pursuing a personal escapade, most likely illegal, and will return with contraband, company, or both.
I massage the bridge of my nose, already preparing for the inevitable fallout. Still, I could never envision running this company without him.
Try not to spark an interstellar incident. The human arrives in six days.
His reply comes instantly:
Only one?
Yes, but the important one. Eve Eden.
Still planning to use her as bait?
The operation will proceed as planned.
Do you think she's appealing enough to tempt our old friend, Gael?
I study Eve's rotating image. A few months of clean living at the Celestial Spire will enhance her natural beauty. The exhaustion thatshadows her features now from poverty and pollution will be replaced by a healthy glow. Then I think she will be irresistible to Gael's protective instincts to “save” her.
More than adequate for our purposes.
Good. I look forward to meeting her.
The implications in that statement make me frown.
She is an operational asset, Lorian. Not a plaything.
Of course. Strictly business.
I lower my IC, exhaling slowly. Eve Eden's arrival will require delicate management, especially if my twin decides to take a personal interest. She is coming to the Spire expecting a simple receptionist position. What she will find is a world of alien aristocrats, interplanetary criminals, and political machinations that make Earth's petty dramas seem quaint.
Before I close her file, I notice that the algorithm has flagged her for standard human compliance conditioning at Falcon Station that will take an entire day. I pause. Her psychological profile isn’t the same as most humans. She’s too clever and too aware to have to suffer through standard compliance conditioning. She’s no human pet, she’s my employee. I override the IGC flag and reroute her clearance manually. My only justification to Falcon Station is my rank.
Then, I hesitate before closing her file. My finger hovers over the button, but instead of closing it, I decide to dive deeper. I find the Imperial ship she’s traveling on and access her medical exam.
I stare at the line:
Orgasm threshold reached at 2.8 minutes.
I read it again.
I feel angry in a way that is primal. Not chivalrous or born out of concern, but from possession.
That Imperial doctor touched what belongs to me. Eve Eden signedmycontract. She acceptedmyuniform. And I don't allow strangers to calibratemyemployees; what I intend to control. I will make it clear from the moment she arrives that the next time she needs regulation, she will come to me and I will give it to her.
