Abducted Read online

  “The crown that is genetically keyed to the Rae of Eloim. Only the rightful ruler may wear it on his head and only he may remove it once it is on. If an imposter or one who is wrong for the throne attempts to put it on, the Star of Wisdom will fly from his brow and refuse his touch.” She sighed. “It is the same with the Star of Compassion—the crown of the Ria. When the pirates captured me, they forced me to take it off at blaster-point. I don’t know what happened to it. Perhaps they sold it.”

  “So…do these crowns have some kind of advanced computer programs in them or something?” I asked, mystified. “Because it sounds like something out of a fantasy show or something.”

  “It is no fantasy,” Sellah said seriously. “There is a being—a long-lived creature, wise beyond measure and old beyond years—that inhabits the stars. Half in the Star of Wisdom and half in the Star of Compassion. It knows always the rightful heirs to the throne of Eloim.”

  “And that’s always someone from your family—your genetic line?” I asked, fascinated.

  Sellah shook her head. “Only in recent generations. But if the Star of either crown finds the current ruler unfit, it will fly from his or her head and find the worthy one. There are tales of it doing just that during a coronation. Once the Star of Wisdom left the head of a blooded prince and found the head of a muck worker instead.”

  “A muck worker?” I stifled a laugh. “If that’s what I think it is, I bet that was quite a scene.”

  “The Stars of Wisdom and Compassion are never wrong,” Sellah said. “Which is why I can’t understand why The Star of Wisdom didn’t fly off Hurxx’s head the moment he put it on.”

  “Your cousin, right? The one who was supposed to rule with you but instead…”

  “Sold me into slavery. Yes.” Sellah sighed, her golden eyes sad. “He should have picked another Ria if he didn’t truly want me. But I think he thought the people wouldn’t support him without my lineage to back him up.”

  “You’ll get back to Eloim somehow,” I told her, trying to stay positive. “And when you do, you can expose that bastard Hurxx and tell everyone what he did.”

  “From your mouth to the Goddess of Mercy’s ear,” she said, sighing again. “Maybe we will both be bought by males of wisdom and compassion who will listen to our pleas.”

  I certainly hoped so but now, looking out from the backstage area of the auction to the crowds milling in front of the raised stage, I didn’t know. There were quite a lot of humanoid aliens—the ones who came from the twelve races seeded by the Ancient Ones, I guessed. But there were plenty of non-human looking creatures as well.

  I saw one in the front row that looked like a giant praying mantis. He was wearing a very respectable looking outfit kind of like a gray suit but he also had extremely sharp looking mandibles. I really hoped he didn’t buy me.

  There was another guy with a face like a bull with huge, long horns. All I could think of when I looked at him was all the videos I’d ever seen about the Running of the Bulls in Spain and how people get gored there every year. I didn’t want him to buy me either.

  In fact, looking over the crowd, I didn’t see anyone I would be happy to go home with. I didn’t even see anyone I would feel safe going home with. If these guys were on Tinder, I would have been swiping left so fast my fingers bled.

  Then I saw an older looking alien with smooth brown skin. He had the same golden cat eyes as Sellah and Sarden.

  “Hey.” I nudged her with one elbow. “Look at that—is that another Eloim?”

  “What? Where?” She scanned the crowd eagerly and her eyes lit up when she saw who I was talking about. “Goddess be praised! That’s Tellum Vas’kie. He was one of my father’s oldest friends and advisors.”

  “You think he’s here for you?” I asked.

  “I don’t know but I hope so. If anyone would see through Hurxx’s plans and come looking for me besides Sarden, it would be Uncle Tellum.” She looked at me, hope shining in her eyes. “If he wins me at auction, I’ll ask him to bid on you too, Zoe. Then we can go find Sarden and go back to Eloim to expose Hurxx together!”

  “Oh my God, that would be so good.” I felt weak in the knees with relief. “Do you think he can afford both of us?”

  “I hope so. It depends on how high the bidding goes,” Sellah said cautiously. “I heard the Master of the Auction talking and I’m afraid you’re expected to draw quite a price. Maybe the most they’ve ever seen at this auction.”

  I groaned. “Seriously?”

  “Yes.” She nodded. “Why? Is it surprising to you that you’re considered the most valuable female here?”

  I thought of how my life had gone up until this point. In high school I couldn’t make the freaking cheerleading squad because I wasn’t one of the popular girls. Also, I didn’t get into my first choice college because my grades weren’t quite up to par, didn’t get to date yummy Ken Forthright in my sociology class because he sat beside a blonde named Krissy who was gorgeous and had legs up to her ears—I couldn’t compete with that. Not to mention I didn’t get the job I wanted so badly at Marston and Hinks, the really nice law firm downtown where they don’t throw staplers at your head because my résumé wasn’t up to snuff.

  All my life I had been not quite good enough…second best…below par…just kind of average. And now I was suddenly the perfect 10 that everyone desired—exactly what I’d always wanted to be.

  Was this the worst time and place to have my dreams come true or what?

  “Zoe?” Sellah asked and I realized I had never answered her question.

  “Uh, yes,” I said. “Yes, it surprises me.”

  “Well—” Sellah started but the booming voice of Big Foot, the Master of the Auction interrupted her.

  “For our first bid of the evening, let’s begin with a beautiful and royal recent acquisition of Master Tazaxx. Rightful heir to the Eloim throne, Ria Sellah de’Lagorn!”

  “Looks like you’re up,” I whispered to Sellah. “Uh, good luck.”

  “To you too, Zoe. I promise, I’ll try to get Uncle Tellum to buy you if he buys me.”

  We had time for a brief hug and then she was pulled away to stand in the center of the metal stage and be gawked at by all the buyers.

  “As you can see, gentle-beings, she’s a very fine specimen,” Big Foot declared. “Let’s start the bidding at sixty thousand credits, shall we?”

  “Sixty,” a guy in the back who had a long, horse-like nose but human eyes said.

  “Sixxxxty-five,” hissed the praying mantis in the front row.

  And just like that, the bidding was off and running. It got as high as a hundred thousand credits before Sellah was won—thankfully by the older, portly Eloim she had called Uncle Tellum. I saw him press his hand to the pay pad so that it lit up green and then the guards led her out to stand by him in the crowd.

  They started talking at once and I saw her gesturing to the stage, where I was mostly hidden behind a curtain. My heart started beating faster, hope filling me. Maybe he really would buy me too! Maybe all this could be over and we could go home before we knew it.

  Only where was home? As much as I missed Charlotte and Leah, I didn’t think of Earth when I thought that word, “home” anymore. I thought of Sarden’s ship and Al and my floating silver beanbag bed and the food synthesizer making weird and inedible things. And most of all I thought of Sarden himself and how much I missed him. Would I ever see him again? Would I ever get to tell him how I was beginning to feel for him? And would he return my feelings…or just want to send me back to Earth?

  I had no answers for any of the questions and before I could think some up, it was my turn on the auction block. Or stage—the auction stage, I guess.

  The Master of the Auction pulled me from the backstage area to stand front and center before the crowd. I felt my cheeks get hot but I lifted my chin. Even if I was being sold, I wasn’t going to cry and whine about it—they might be able to buy my body