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Biting into a savory morsel reminding me of my mom’s pot roast caused homesickness to sweep over me. Giselle did enjoy the best of both worlds—she had a man and a job she loved. Millie and Holly had met the aliens of their dreams, and since neither of them had family on New Terra, they had no ambivalence about remaining on Araset. As much as I cared for Lomax, I’d miss my family terribly if I could never go home.
“Fill me in on the gossip. I imagine the tension around the palace has subsided since the king reinstated Aeon as crown prince?” Giselle said.
“With respect to Aeon, it’s all good,” Holly answered. “He has resumed his royal duties.” She paused, glancing at me. “However…”
“Prince Lomax is in trouble,” I supplied, before anyone could jump in with a less-than-compassionate spin.
“What kind of trouble?” Giselle asked.
“He’s a lieutenant with the Galactic Justice Warriors,” Millie said.
Giselle gasped. “Oh, no! That can’t be true.”
“It isn’t true.” I glowered at Millie. “That’s only an accusation.”
“It is true. I was there,” she insisted.
“He was forced,” I defended him.
“Be that as it may, he would have executed Nadir and me.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Yes, I do.”
“You never heard him say that.”
“Nadir did.”
“But he didn’t do it, did he?” I countered.
“Well, obviously he didn’t, or I wouldn’t be here talking about it. We escaped before he could follow through.”
“Hey, hey, come on, you two. Don’t fight,” Jessie said. “Besides, they’re going to deprogram Prince Lomax, right?”
“They started this morning,” I said, taking a gulp of my wine.
“They did? That’s great!” Holly said. “Ahead of schedule!”
“Well, that’s a relief. The GJW has the potential to be more dangerous than the Copan-Cerulean Cartel,” Giselle said.
“Have you encountered them in your work?” Jessie asked.
“Not that we know of. The LOP sent out an advisory to all agents in the field.”
Millie frowned. “But after the Aurelian government destroyed the township the GJW had burrowed into, I thought they were on the verge of being eliminated.”
“The LOP is making great headway on that front,” Giselle said. “But enough of them are left to pose a serious threat to law and order, especially to efforts to prevent and combat alien species trafficking. Criminal activity is interlinked. The GJW is trying to overthrow the LOP. The league is the only agency with any hope or means of combating alien species trafficking. You think trafficking is bad now? If the League of Planets falls, nothing will stop the cartels—or any other organized criminal element. The entire galaxy will devolve into chaos, and crime will run rampant.
“Unfortunately, sympathizers and supporters provide cover for the GJW, so they’re hard to rout out.”
“I don’t understand that,” Holly said. “Why would anyone aid and abet an insurgent?”
“Maybe they were threatened or brainwashed,” I said.
“It doesn’t even require overt brainwashing when the propaganda is convincing,” Giselle added.
Jessie nodded. “Galactic Justice Warriors sounds like a good organization.”
