CHAPTER SIX
“What do you mean, you don’t know where she is!?” a man's angry bellow came from the casino’s wedding chapel when they approached.
Two guards in front and three at their back, the others easily melting into the background to provide additional back-up if needed.
The shrill voice of Ashlyn’s stepmother was equally as loud.
“Darling, how should I know where your daughter is? We invited her to all the events, tried so hard to include her, but she just went off with some strange man We’re here for Lillian’s wedding, not hers. I’m sure she’s out somewhere and she is fine.”
How easily lies fell from the woman’s lips.
K’marr wondered at the man’s judgment in marrying such a vicious, underhanded, and loose woman as her. Beside him, his wife tensed. He gripped her hand and smiled down at her in support. She relaxed, smiling sweetly back. Her gaze fell to the doors and she squared her shoulders, drawing in a deep breath, no doubt gathering her resolve for the storm she brought to the party.
The King nodded to his men and the guards flung open the doors, marching in, and making way for them.
All eyes turned to stare at them when they entered.
“Ashlyn!” The five-foot-eight man's hair was peppered with gray, his eyes the same hazel color eyes as his daughter's. He rushed forward, but the guards held him back before he reached her.
Ashlyn’s stepmother sneered in disgust, at seeing her alive and well. She was, no doubt, fuming over the payment she squandered on someone who did not keep the deal.
Ash's father glanced from the Spiri males to her, and then directly at K’marr, who still held her hand.
“It’s okay, let my father through.”
V’star nodded, falling back.
“Ash, honey, what’s going on, who is this?” Her father came forward with cautious steps.
“Daddy.” Ashlyn smiled with clear love for her father.
K’marr let her go, and she flung her arms around her father. “I’m glad you arrived safely; I have so much to tell you.”
He wrapped his arms around his daughter, but his gaze was on K’marr while he stood watching them. She pulled back, turning to smile at K’marr.
“Daddy, I’d like you to meet K’marr—my husband.”
“Husband?” More than one person gasped.
“An honor, sir.” K’marr gave a bow of respect, and then held out his hand for the other man to shake as Earth custom dictated. He and Ash agreed to keep the alien issue out of the conversation until other matters were resolved.
“See?" Jillian ranted. "I told you she had run off with some strange, mafia boss. Your daughter is nothing, but a slut looking for trouble.”
The stepmother tried to barge forward, but V’star grabbed her arms, pushing her back.
Ben Sawyer was plainly a good man worried for his daughter. “Ash, are you out of your mind? Who are these other men?”
“They are a part of my security team, sir,” K’marr explained. “I am of royal blood and they take their duties seriously. I met your daughter the other night, and she blessed me in agreeing to be my wife.”
“Royal? Wife?” Ash's father continued to gape in disbelief.
“Daddy, please don’t freak out, yet. There are some more important matters to talk about.”
He glanced from K’marr to his daughter.
“Daddy, I need to tell you Jillian has been unfaithful and, thanks to K’marr’s security team, I found out the money I allowed her for the wedding preparations all went to a hit man she hired to try and kill me.”
“That’s a lie!” Jillian screamed. “You, bitch! You're only trying to ruin Lillian’s wedding, you ungrateful whore!”
“V’star, shut her up,” K’marr growled.
The head guard grinned, relishing his task. He pulled out what K’marr knew to be a vocal inhibitor. He yanked the woman down, and slapped the device over her throat. Her eyes widened with shock and her mouth flapped, but nothing came out. All the while, V’star kept his hand on her shoulder, pinning her to the seat.
“Mommy’s right. She’s jealous because it’s my wedding, not hers,” Lillian added, her words worthless.
“Oh? Is this why Frank is fucking your mother and strippers, as well as you?” Ash directed her glare at the stepsister who resembled a withered tree covered in human skin with artificial, blond hair. An ugly sneer tugged her lip. How anyone found her attractive was beyond him.
“You can’t prove that!” Frank stormed forward.
Another of K’marr’s guards moved into his path, glaring down at the smaller human, daring him to try something.
“Oh, no?" Ash glared at the woman. "V’star, would you be so kind as to display the recording on the screen above the altar?”
“Of course, your Highness.”
“Your highness?” her father parroted, staring at his daughter in confusion.
V'star pulled a comdeck from his jacket and fiddled with it. A moment later, the screen came to life.
“We’ll explain later, Dad, please watch this.”
Ash held her father’s hand as everyone watched the footage of Jillian and Frank fucking in Jillian’s hotel room. Ben’s hand tightened on his daughter's while the couple talked. Jillian pulled out the pre-loaded credit card Ash gave her, showing it to Frank.
“The perfect wedding present, don’t you think? Ashlyn dead and all her inheritance coming to me. Then, all we need to do is arrange a little accident for my husband. After that all I have to do is dream up ways of spending the millions of dollars coming our way.”
“You bastard!” cried Lillian, and she slapped Frank so hard across the face everyone in the room winced.
A new scene came up showing Jillian telling Lillian of her and Frank’s plan to murder Ashlyn, and then her father. Lillian smiled, agreeing it was the best thing she heard of since her mother hooked a wealthy, stupid man.
The recording moved to Jillian, this time in a seedy looking bar, talking to a sinister-looking man with tattoos all over his neck and arms.
“Six thousand down payment and make it look like an accident. Oh, and I’ll double this if you get it done before she leaves Vegas on Monday.”
Jillian pushed a wrapped-up bundle towards the man.
“Easy money, sugar. Don’t you worry. It’ll be done.”
Of course, the hired assassin was already apprehended by K'marr's guards and disposed of, but his wife didn’t have to know this. The scene faded to find Frank again fucking a female stripper from his bachelor party.
This time, Lillian kneed him in the balls. Frank howled in pain, cursing and ranting what a fucking bitch Lillian was.
“I agreed to have her killed, not you fucking every fucking piece of tail you found!” shouted Lillian, putting her foot directly into her own mouth.
K’marr wondered if all criminals on Earth were this stupid. He shook his head.
More images played, this time of Lillian on her hands and knees fucked by one of the male strippers from the show while she sucked the cock of another.
“You’ve been spying on us!” Lillian screamed, running full tilt in her too-high heels at Ashlyn. K’marr hid his grin when his guard easily tripped the enraged female, sending her sprawling to the floor. The guard picked her up, placed her next to her mother, and quickly slapped a second, vocal inhibitor on her throat to shut her up.
“It seemed he was only into you for the money as well,” Ash told Lillian.
There was no glee, or perverse pleasure in her tone, as the ugly truth of who these humans really were came to light. K'marr felt the weight of his wife’s sadness.
She glanced at her father, who stood stock still, unmoving as screen faded to black.
“Daddy, are you okay?”
“I…I think I need to sit down, honey.”
K’marr nodded to his guards. “Escort Mr. Sawyer and his daughter to our casino suite. Once there, we can talk. If you please, sir.”
“Yes, yes, thank you. I think that would be wise.” Her father nodded.
“Come on, daddy.”
His wife smiled sweetly at K’marr while she helped guide her father from the room.
“The rest of you go now!” K’marr ordered the stunned wedding guests.
They scrambled out, but when Lillian, Jillian and Frank tried to move, the guards stopped them.
K’marr folded his arms, glaring down at the stupid humans. “Have the three conspirators put in holding until we decide what to with them. From what I’ve seen of human law, I do not trust their justice system.”
“Yes, your Highness, it will be a pleasure.”
V’star issued further orders and K’marr left his men to clean up the dirt.
Right now, he needed to be with his wife and her father.
* * * *
Sitting in the same luxury suite she first woke in after her ‘less than ideal wedding,’ Ash pressed the whiskey over ice tumbler into her father’s shaking hands. Her heart broke seeing the utter look of devastation on his face.
“Daddy? Are you okay?”
She knelt down as he raised the drink and swallowed the whole thing in one gulp.
He shuddered and lifted his gaze to meet hers. “I don’t know, honey. Are you alright? I mean, things seem so out of control right now.”
She smiled kindly, knowing the feeling well. “I’m fine, Dad. I’m sorry we needed to reveal all the…the stuff downstairs.”
“No, you and your, uh, man did the right thing. I need to thank him for saving us from, well, that nasty bitch. I should have seen it, first. I never should have married her.”
“She and her daughter are good at acting; you and I weren't to know. If it wasn’t for my husband and his efficient, security team, they would have got away with it.”
He blinked. “Did you really get married?”
“Yes, Dad, but it’s okay, K’marr is a good man.”
Ash's chest ached as it sank in—she would soon be taken away from her father. Who would he have to look after him?
“I kind of suspected Jillian was having an affair…but I never realized she would stoop so low as to try and kill you or me.” His hand gripped hers.
“I would never let anyone harm your daughter, sir.”
Ash turned to see K’marr standing behind her.
Her father stared up at the man.
“What kind of royalty are you? Why would you marry my Ashlyn?”
“I am a king, sir. How could I not fall in love with someone as sweet and caring as your daughter?”
Ben Sawyer's jaw dropped for a moment before his gaze narrowed in suspicion. “A king? Of what? It better not be one of those Middle Eastern countries where women have no rights.”
“I assure you, sir, I am not from any of these, as you say, Middle Eastern countries. Your daughter is now Queen of Spirimya. She has the ability to wield great power in her lovely, small hands.”
Ash blinked with her husband’s revelation. “I do?”
K’marr grinned. “More than you know, my love.”
She tilted her head thinking about it for a moment. “Cool.”
K’marr chuckled. “I see, I will now have to be on my guard, sweetheart.”
“But Ash, do you love him?" asked her father. "Is this what you really want, to be royalty? I’ve never heard of Spirimya.”
“I don’t honestly know about the queen stuff, but I am open to learning. K’marr’s a bit bossy, but I kind of like that. As for love…”
Ash searched her heart, turning to look at her husband. Her breath hitched at the utter vulnerability, and love he held for her in his eyes. It wasn’t only lust or sex, she held the power to devastate his heart, or crush his soul. There was no way she could ever do it, for it would crush her own.
Her heart thrummed in her chest, her own hands shook and she confessed, “Yes, I love him. He’s proven to me, more than once, the nature of his good intentions, even if they did start out a bit rocky.”
“For which I’m sure you will make me pay penance,” K'marr griped good naturedly.
“Oh, I can think of a few things,” she teased.
“Well, then.” Her father rose to his feet. Ash moved back watching the two men she loved in her life. “If you’ve been lucky enough to win my daughter's love, she deserves to be happy, and if you can make it so, all I have left to say is welcome to the family, son.”
A lump formed in her throat and tears threatened when her father offered his hand. K’marr simply pulled her dad into a hug.
“I vow to make it my life’s mission to make sure she is happy.”
“Good, good.” He patted K’marr’s back and pulled away. “Seems it’s the day for losses. My wife, which I’m not that cut up about, now I think about it; Losing my daughter though is harder than…”
Ash saw tears in her father’s eyes. “Oh, Daddy.” She moved in and hugged him.
“Sir, may I suggest something?” Ash and her father looked at K’marr. “There is no need for you to lose anyone. I see how much you love your daughter, and I want her to be happy. Would you object to journeying with us to my home? I can offer you your own place in the palace. My kingdom is at your disposal, sir.”
Ash grinned, falling more in love with her King, moment by moment.
“I have no objections," her father nodded. "My work and my life are nothing without someone to work for. I would give it up for her in a heartbeat.”
“It is settled, you will come with us. Now, the question remains what do we do with those currently in my holding prison? She is under human law still, your wife.”
“No, I don’t consider that woman my wife anymore. Those three have dug their own holes; I say we bury them and never look back.”
K’marr raised an eyebrow and grinned. Ash followed his gaze to where two guards stood by the door, trying and failing to hide their smirks. “I am sure this can be arranged.”
He moved off to talk to the two by the door in hushed tones. They nodded and left the room.
K'marr returned with a knowing smile on which Ash would quiz her husband later.
“We shall depart for the ship now, my men will take care of everything.”
Her father glanced at him. “You have some strange words, son. Where is Spirimya? And what do you mean by ‘ship?’”
Ash grinned.
“Brace yourself Daddy, you’re in for another few surprises.”