She asked, her eyes wide as she looked at mine. “As a baby?”
“Yes. It's a tradition for Elite families to give up inferior young. I don't have the right markings.” I shrugged, gesturing to the spots on my neck. It was something I had come to terms with a long time ago.
“That's barbaric.” She looked at me, aghast. “So they could have looked after you, but they chose not to because of the way you look?” Her eyes raced over me as if trying to find the fault that my family had seen in me.
“Yes. There are two very separate classes of Gnaggarrian. There are the Elite, and then there are those who are not Elite. If you're an Elite you are ranked using your markings—” I gestured toward my face with the faint purple spots “—such as these, which determine your placement in your family.”
She looked stunned, and I smiled. “It won’t be for much longer.” I explained my desire to move to the outer planets and how I would soon begin my new life as a farmer.
“That sounds quite peaceful,” she said. I nodded. That was exactly what I was looking for, a life of peace and obscurity. Not a life ruled by rank and ritual and rules.
“Well, today you can experience Christmas with me.” She gestured for me to follow her and pushed up from the table, leaving the kitchen and heading toward the room I had not been into yet.
I ducked my head to entering the doorway and followed Kitty into the room.
She walked forward until she was standing in front of a small tree. An indoor tree. Then she turned to face me, wringing her hands together. “It's tradition that the tree is decorated, but usually well before Christmas day itself. Then presents are wrapped and placed under the tree, and then on Christmas morning the family gathers and exchanges gifts.” She tilted her head to one side. “Although not everyone exchanges gifts on Christmas morning, sometimes it’s the night before… anyway, the important part is the giving of gifts. Then we have food and drink and enjoy each other's company.”
I watched as Kitty bent to pick up a box that was at the base of the tree. Lifting the lid, she passed it toward me so I could look inside. I bent my head to see a variety of small baubles, all with strings attached, ready to be hung on the tree.
“Do you want to help me decorate the tree?” she asked.
“I would like nothing more.”
We had just started placing a string of electric lights around the tree when there was a knock from the door at thefront of the house. I froze as Kitty shot me a frightened glance, gestured for me to hide.
I didn't like that she was protecting me. It should be my role to protect her, but I did as she bade and slipped into the kitchen, standing out of sight. I peered through the gap between the door and its frame, wanting to make sure Kitty was safe. I didn’t like how nervous she had seemed.
She opened the door to reveal a human man, a small box in his hand. “Merry Christmas, Kitty,” he said, taking a step forward as if to embrace her.
I grunted in displeasure and was pleased to see Kitty take a step backwards, dodging away. Unfortunately, this meant that he could gain entry into her home. From where I was standing I could see both of them, Kitty sighing and shutting the front door before following him, limping on her injured ankle.
What kind of man was this to ignore a woman who was obviously hurting? Quietly, I slipped from the kitchen and moved closer to listen to their conversation. The urge to be by Kitty’s side, to protect her, was flooding through me, and I barely held myself back.
If she gave even the slightest sign of being in danger, I would be by her side in an instant and damn the consequences.
I peered around the doorway to see that the man had placed himself on the couch where I'd been sitting with Kitty earlier, his back to me as he sat side on, one leg propped over the other.
“What do you want, Sean?” Kitty asked, standing on the far side of the room with her weight on her uninjured foot, her hip cocked to one side and arms crossed in front of her.
The man either ignored or did not pick up the sharp tonein her voice or her defensive body language. He uncrossed his legs to lean forward in his seat, elbows resting on his knees. He was not an unattractive man, at least from what I assumed human standards were. He had brown hair, but unlike Kitty’s hair, his was dull, hanging limply against his skull. He wasn't as tall or as broad as me, but then few males were.
The man’s voice, when he spoke, was whiny and pleading. “Come on, Kitty. Why won't you come to the wedding?”
Kitty's breath left her in a whoosh. Her arms dropped from where they were folded in front of her, and she gestured wildly, her arms jerking as if barely controlling her anger. “Why on earth would I come to your wedding?”
The man stood, his face flushed red, and his eyebrows drawn together. “You have to be at the wedding.”
“No. I don’t,” she said, standing her ground as he took a step toward her.
I disliked where this conversation was going. I knew she wanted me to remain hidden, but if this man threatened her, threatened my mate, I would have to step in. And he was getting very close to being pounded into dust by my fists. “I can’t believe I need to explain this to you. You can’t be that dense!” She was shouting now, her voice unwavering steel as she leveled him with a glare. “One, you were my fiancé, Sean. Mine. It was meant to be our wedding. Two, she was my best friend. Three, she was meant to be my maid of honor at our wedding. And four, we all work together. I have to see both of you every day at work. That’s bad enough. But to see my ex-fiancé and my ex-best friend get married? On what planet would that be acceptable? No. I'm not going to your wedding. I will not make it seem like everything is fine.”
He smiled, taking a step towards Kitty and reaching out a hand as if to touch her. “I didn’t realize you missed?—”
The growl that came out of Kitty rivaled the most fierce of predators that roam the Gnaggarrian home planet. “Don’t flatter yourself! I want nothing to do with you. Either of you. Ever again!”
The man spluttered as if he was going to interject, but Kitty cut him off. “And turning up here on Christmas morning as if you’re doing me some kind of favor inviting me to your wedding? Do I have to spell it out for you? I don’t need you, not anymore. I can’t believe I ever liked you, let alone agreed to marry you.” She pointed to the door. “You need to leave.”
“You'll regret this, Kitty. My family owns this town. I’ll make sure you don't have a job.”
