Juliet
The last thing I remembered was being in the kitchen. I was in my bed again. I didn't want to be there. My mom's hand was holding mine. I could see the book she held from the corner of my eye. I relaxed a bit … Trying to focus on the room. Too tired to even lift my head.
"Julie? You awake?"
"Mommy?" I groaned, trying to roll on my back. The pain was too much. I gasped into the cushion. Nothing had hurt that much. It was constant pain, but you would think that my leathery skin would help.
"Stay on your stomach, Julie."
"Mmmh. Did it all really happen?"
She laughed lightly. "Yes. Marcus was a badass. The guy is still on the pole."
"Good! Creep!"
"Urgh!" My mom shuddered at the thought.
"Who else is here?"
"Just your Dad and me. How much do you remember."
"Not much."
She laughed again. "Well, then you're in for a surprise."
The room door opened, and my mom got up. Louis fell on the bed next to me.
"Baby? You okay?" He kissed me on my neck, running his hand through my hair. Glad that all I had to do was think when he was here. He lay flat next to me, our foreheads pressed against each other. "Marcus made me the leader of the compound." That made me wake up and sit up all in one instant. My dad and mom laughed.
"You're joking…? Where is Marcus?"
"Marcus went to En-gannim." My shoulders slumped. "He's not gonna come back… Is he?"
A man came knocking at the door. "Yeah, Jessy, come in." The new face stared at me and at my back and frowned. "I got to go, baby. Marcus's half-brothers need to be sorted out before news travels."
"How many are there," Dad asked. We all looked at Jessy.
"A lot… I think ten that matter."
"Go. I'm fine." He held out his hand to Jessy, who threw him a packet of cigarettes and gave it to me. I groaned. "I think I love you."
"Tsk, for cigarettes."
I shooed him away. He didn't kiss me. "Thanks for the cigarettes." His head stayed on mine for a moment. He smiled. Louis was happy… really happy. That made me happy. "I want you home by five."
He jumped up, saluted me, and ran out. Jessy shook his head. My dad came to sit on the bed across from me. "We have to tend to your wounds.
"Urgh!" I fell facedown. "What is it with men beating a girl with a belt?"
"You could have lost that hand."
I shuddered at the thought.
***
Louis
I sauntered up the stairs of Qadir's house. Jessy was with me. It was only the two of us. We had walked down the lane from Marcus's home to his father's. The doors were open. We stood at the threshold and rang the bell. All the women had on veils. They all looked the same. You didn't know who the wife was or who was just a servant. A tall, slender, figured woman came up to us. I was reading everyone and all the time. My mind was focused. Her thoughts darted to what she saw Marcus doing, seeing the gate behind me. Marcus looked at her. Everything she still had to do today ticked down like a list in her thoughts. She was trying to stay focused but struggling. She was scared that Qadir could come back. The proper etiquette for a woman to receive a man at the door was to bow their heads and wait until they were spoken to. She did all that.
"Agatha." I ventured to see if it really was Marcus's mute mother.
Agatha [ Yes, that is me, but it's not like I can answer. Where are the servants? ]
"Please stand up straight and look at me." Her mind went quiet, and her gaze slowly came up to mine. Our eyes met. She frowned but didn't recognize me. My hand nervously rubbed through my hair. It had been unruly since the night before, all over the place. I needed a hair tie.
"My name is… Louis du Pont."
Her eyes widened. Her hand went to her mouth… As if she was scared, she would say something.
Agatha [ Marcus and Juliet's husband ]
I was so surprised by what she thought that I smiled and chuckled. I nodded.
She frowned again.
"Agatha… I have the ability to… read minds."
A sob and gasp escaped her lips when it sunk in. She stared at me, unable to move or think. I grabbed her arm and yelled at Jessy to take the other. We helped her to a chair.
Agatha [ Is Juliet okay? ]
My brow furrowed, shaking my head from side to side. I couldn't say anything for a moment. Not only because of Juliet. But that Marcus mother… After everything… Thought to ask about Juliet first. She watched me closely.
Agatha [ I'm so proud of Marcus… Louis. I'm so proud of Juliet. And… you. I listen and know everything going on. I might not be able to read or write, but I still have my ears ]
"You're not angry at her for taking another husband."
It sounded like she was laughing. She shook her head from side to side. We smiled, sharing the moment.
Agatha [ When Qadir came back… I heard him talking to one of his men. That Marcus had branded Juliet. He was defeated… But the time with you and her at the cages. You crushed him… It was a good day ]
I put her hand on my shoulder. She desperately wanted to touch me to show me how proud she was. She didn't shy away and patted me, gripping my upper arm. She didn't really know what to do to show affection. She was so happy that she could talk to someone. Tears were pooling in her eyes. I felt like crying. Jessy stared in disbelief. He didn't know about my ability. But I had kept it from him and the men, trying to figure out who was for us. Not one of them had one thought against Marcus or what he was doing. They were loyal to a fault.
"We will spend many hours together. From now on… You're allowed to read and write and take off the veil if you want."
Two grown men came walking down the stairs. "Who said that she was allowed to do that?"
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" The other spat out.
I breathe in a heavy breath. They walked up to us. "Go do your chores, woman! How can you touch another man? You need a beating?"
Agatha [ Qadir's oldest child… next wife after me ]
My fist clenched. "Say, please."
"No, who the f- do you think you are!" Their voices start rising.
"Jessy… What were Marcus's orders?"
He bowed down, and I groaned. "Your orders are all that matter."
My hand was rubbing my forehead. "I'm not used to this, Jessy. If we start arresting people, it's not going to work." He didn't get up or say anything.
"Fine… Get me, four guards." Jessy disappeared and came back.
"Put these two on the floor. Don't let them move. Sit them down like children.
"Is there a way of gathering everyone in the house together?"
Jessy didn't say anything. Agatha didn't move, but she thought it.
Agatha [ There is a gong at the bottom of the stairs. But women aren't allowed to touch it ]
"What if I order you to do it?"
She smiled and cautiously walked over. She hit the bell three times.
The whole floor was filled with people in a matter of a minute. I pushed through, taking Agatha's hand and ushering her to the staircase so we were raised a few steps above everyone else.
"Does anyone here know about the planets or our origins?" I asked softly.
She shook her head. How would I convince them of anything or everything?
"We need a TV." The guards quickly brought one in and propped it up on a table. I looked for every broadcast with Marcus from the first until the previous day. I streamed it through my phone. It was easy. The world made it a lot easier. They watch for about half an hour listening. The young ones sat in the front so the older people could see in the back. The oldest in the room stood forward and asked what was going on.
I took out the talisman hanging on the inside of my shirt and put it on the outside. The whole floor gasped and fell to the floor. It was like they obeyed the little trinket more than the person. "Marcus gave it to me. He won't be coming back. Qadir is in prison. Things are going to change around here. When you go outside, the guy on the pole hurt a woman… If anyone touches a woman, maims her, beats her, or points a finger at her. I smile at Agatha. That will happen to you, and even if we have a whole compound full of maimed men sitting on the grass, that will be your future."
I stared at the two men in front of me. "Try touching a woman… Try throwing your weight around. From now on, men aren't above women anymore. Not on Earth."
"There will be daily information sessions in the great hall. It is every hour. The whole day. Women are allowed to go and listen… Other than that, I don't really have any answers for you right now. Everything goes on as usual… If women want, they can forsake their veils so we can see who the hell we are talking to."
There was a murmur under the men. The women stood quietly on the outskirts of the room.
The oldest son, lower than Marcus, stood up to refute what I said.
"Did you not see your brother? Or what he did last night?"
"My brother is weak and let a woman rule him. We will never go down that path. There needs to be order and hierarchy. Or else everything will fall apart. We have rules for a reason. It isn't just because we feel like it… Louis."
"The thing is that you are on a human planet. Your home planet is far from here. And if you want, you can go home right now. Your Father… Qadir was supposed to give you the option, but he never did. Why do you think that is? He killed eight of his brothers and got banished here to earth. He can only work his way back to En-gannim by letting Marcus kill the king. Your king. Not Qadir, not your father, your king."
"What are the rules for the people on that planet."
"It's almost the same."
There was a loud roar and murmurings.
"Then why the hell should we listen to you."
I groaned. "The thing is that the army Marcus leads is following me because they know Marcus will inherit En-gannim. The king is old and desperate for Marcus to take over. That's why he won't be coming back. And if Marcus takes over, that's the way it will be. Here on the compound or on En-gannim… Jessy has orders to fight if the king does invade."
There was such an uproar. Movement under the men. They huddled and talked among each other. Jessy was faithfully at my side. In one cry, they came at us. Jessy slowly lifted his hand and shot the first guy in the middle of his eyes. It was the oldest son. He dropped. The rest halted. The room flooded with soldiers beating the men down. The women were still frozen against the walls.
"Permission to speak my league…."
"Was that a joke, Jessy?"
He chuckled. "The soldiers will kill anyone that attacks Louis du Pont. For everyone who does not conform, there is only death. We are not allowed to leave the compound. For the time being, the negotiations with the Earth are still ongoing. That is why there is no food. No more eating… Earthlings…."
Jessy said with a loud voice.
"We are waiting on further orders from Marcus. Louis is his eyes and ears on Earth, and proper respect will be shown. Even if you disagree with how he runs things. We serve one master. Marcus is the next king. Qadir is in custody because the humans have turned against him. His father will not be coming to help him.
Marcus will change the whole planet. Because we are sick of the way we are treated, not because of how women are treated. Your parents came here for precisely the same reason. The humans do not know this, but all the parents that came were prisoners sent here with Qadir. Banished…
There will be transport for whoever wants to go back to En-gannim. We need numbers, and we need decisions. So make yours quickly."
I stared at Jessy dumbfounded. "You could've done that in the first place."
Two guards carried out the body. The mother didn't even flinch. The thoughts of her son slapping her and spitting on her ran through her mind. She only had one arm. There was only relief when he died in the room. Even for some of the children.
"Okay, Jessy, I think we are done here. I need to talk to Bertram. Let's go."
I stopped and turned back to Agatha. Then to Jessy. "Who has… control over the house? Is there a talisman for that?" He ran down a corridor and came back with a box and keys.
I handed them to Agatha. "Pen and paper."
I wrote a simple yes and no on two pieces of paper. "Give her a phone." Jessy handed her everything else she would need.
"Agatha is in charge of the house." There will be four guards here at all times around her. "I dare one of you to lay a finger on Marcus's mother."
The room went deadly quiet. There was the knowledge that his filial duty went both ways, first to his mother and then only to Qadir.
"Can you show me in five pictures? I really need to go."
She showed me… When Marcus fights for her at five, her tongue gets cut out. After that, how he beat one of his brothers for slapping her. The boy never touched her again. She showed me every time he got put down by Qadir in the dungeons for standing up for her. The last time, Qadir stood over her, lifting his fist into the air. She couldn't even remember what for. It had been after Juliet left, and Marcus had gone a little… crazy. He had pulled a knife and stuck it underneath his ribs, stopping inches away from his heart. That was the last time Qadir touched her. The one thing Qadir needed was Marcus. And Marcus was never truly his.