Muse Paisley

The royal twins jerked their heads and pointed at their attackers, and their sparkling yellow dragon eyes caught my attention. I wasn't positive if they were contacts. "Deb-Dagger, you shouldn't have come. Our mother is going to go after you."

It was a tad creepy when the twins spoke like that.

Glad no one could be assigned to them because who wants to read their creepy thoughts? I wish I could be Deb's Muse, but no one knew who she was, and I doubt she had a strong imagination.

The holographic Deb AI rushed at the twins.  "Your mother is ruining my business. I'll send you to my corporate orphanage."

Mason lifted his weapon and fired at Deb. "Did she say her anger with Kay is business related? Is she short stocking the electric company? Dina has been turning it around." He fired his weapon again.

Holbrook fired directly through Deb. Her laser fire went through the fake siren, and the hologram glitched.

Deb-Dagger laughed. "See, I'm not physically here, and they are controlled because they think I'm more powerful than their free will. Too bad I failed to capture Kay's children, but I'll devastate her business like I did Rob."

"I know." Holbrook shot the floating projector. She bagged the device, copied it, and played it back.

"I'm Deb-Dagger, and I control worlds."

"We'll see what information we can find on the programming used, but on close inspection, it's not a real voice," Holbrook said.

The twins' guards struggled to move. "Deb-Dagger is life. We betrayed our ruler by not stopping Kay." After they regained movement, their bodies grew limp in protest.

Four hidden agents and Frank carried them out.

"I didn't notice you there," Mason said.

"Bet you're glad, I did my job well?" Frank winked and took the bag containing the projector before leaving. "I'll send copies to everyone."

Mason and Holbrook guided the teens into their family spaceship, with new guards and the young king. He resembled his younger siblings. The nineteen-year-old king of entire planets trembled. His wool beehive-style hair looked ridiculous.

Kay stood beside him, the crown of the Queen Mother on her head. She dragged a large power sword with her prosthetic hand, or at least I thought it was her prosthetic. Fire shot out of the end towards a man raising a weapon at her teens.

He collapsed, and guards dragged him off.

Kay sat briefly on a park chair, and people stared at her and her smoldering sword.

A few guests clapped as if it had been an act by a park impersonator, but she was real.

A vulture flew to her and whispered something. He flew towards Mason. "It's me, Birdie. I have to get back before Rob realizes I am gone." Birdie transformed into a hawk with blue feathers and then into a golden bird. "I think I was wrong about Kay, but I'm more confused than ever. Don't tell anyone I left."

"You can trust me." Mason patted his brother's head before his brother rested on the young king's shoulder.

A golden feather fell to the ground.

"I'm the real queen," Kay said.

Creepy bravery washed away from the royal teens' faces, and they burst into tears. It's easy to forget that they were only fourteen and not monsters.

"Son, take care of them," Kay said.

"Yes, Mother." The new king hugged her.

If not for Mason and Holbrook, the twins could have died or been sent to a corporate orphanage, and that was the first step.

Their bird followed the king, but what if Kay hated them, or was it a trick?

"The king and Kay are the only ones with the codes for the shields to protect our planet," I said.

"How sweet," Mason said.

"You're right. The reunion is sort of touching." Holbrook's eyes darted around, and I realized she must be looking for a trap.

The twins' mother, Kay, disembarked from the ship. She was shorter and must have usually worn heels the last time I spoke to her. While she appeared in her early forties, she gave birth to her twins at the age of forty-seven. Being wealthy afforded her the luxury of beauty.

Half the planet adored the woman who saved us from invaders and mass extinction, but the other half believed the former Apollo's lies.

"Mom! Come back here. I didn't want this fake job, but you did," the king said.

"My job is security, which includes worker's rights and closing the for-profit orphanages." She brushed her hair out of her heart-shaped face. "Son, I'm cleaning up my father's messes."

"Be careful." The king's spaceship's hatch closed, and the metal disk flew into the sky.

Kay smiled at Mason and Holbrook. "I'm not sure if we are on the same side, and I disagree with every decision Agency-14 has made. If I told you that Jake is with my mother, would you believe me?"

"Who is Jake?" Mason asked.

"He's Zander's son. I think I told you about him. Zander is in a legal fight with a cult-run corporate orphanage," Holbrook said bluntly. "Kay, stop playing games. You were nowhere near Deb's ship when he was taken. You were giving a public speech."

"I lied, but Jake's mother traded him back for a box of chocolates, a hat, and the supplement pack Deb promised to her followers. She isn't a good negotiator." Kay's eyes narrowed, and I felt chilled to my bones.

Was she playing both sides? Did she rescue Zander's son only to use him?

Mason leaned in to speak. "I disagree with Agency-14 propping up scumbags like Rob Salamander and your father."

Kay's face stiffened like stone.

"Did I say something wrong about the former king?" Mason asked.

"No, I've said worse about him. What you said was perfect. I can't talk to you. There are spies everywhere, but I don't know Deb-Dagger's legal name. You must protect Zander from himself. Yes, I know he let Tolbert escape, but he had pressure on him for years to bring balance to the galaxy." Kay ran in the direction of the spacious lot.

"We have time to relax and gather information about the next attack." Holbrook squeezed his hand. She pulled out her phone. "Zander changed phones again." She texted her father and Mason's mother. "Kay is using Jake as a bargaining chip. Kay didn't show up at the last trade-off. She isn't exactly dependable."

"Why isn't another division handling this?" Mason asked.

Holbrook stood up, and her eyes softened. "The boy king doesn't have many people he trusts, and neither do I." She appeared distracted and covered her ears. "Deb-Dagger has a big purge coming."

"Are you okay?" Mason asked.

She seemed relieved. "Glad they are gone," she mumbled.

"What purge?" Mason asked.

Holbrook answered. "She plans to capture Kay once she has stolen her cloaking device. Deb plans a smuggling strike to feed her massive brainwashed army. She never uses her own money. If you're in debt or starving because of Rob's company's stores, wouldn't you join her cult?"

"Why don't we move about the park and see if we can gather evidence?" He asked.

Holbrook and Mason danced into the music class, paid a fee, borrowed guitars, and took a beginner's lesson, but Holbrook couldn't master Happy Birthday.

"How long have you been trying to learn guitar?" he asked.

"Since I was seven." She grinned.

They left, and a student dressed in a chicken suit followed them.

He tackled Mason, but Holbrook tossed the man and handed him off to security.

In less than two hours, Mason and Holbrook located all seven of Deb-Dagger's operatives. Half of them were delusional from the lack of sleep.

"Want to go on a date?" Mason asked as they finished.

Holbrook smirked. "Are you real?"

Mason touched his wrist. "Yes, what about lunch?"

"Rob canceled our reservations. Commander Nickel and Zander rebooked some of them for dinner. I'm not kidding when I say this rich and pompous moron is trying to control me."

Mason's tail wagged.

An agent rushed to them. She hugged Holbrook. "Darling, you're here. The criminals inside the lock-up claim you're engaged."

"I haven't bought a ring yet. I plan to purchase from my favorite gift shop," Holbrook said. "We decided to have a goblin-style proposal."

"I'll sneak you into The Midnight Garden Diner tomorrow night. If you have a baby, our children will play together." Her friend hugged her and left.

"I feel less terrible about fooling my friends since it's a proper date, but I better buy a ring because my favorite shop owner will give us information on the king's family guards. I'm sorry if everyone seems so giddy about us."

"If you aren't ready, I understand. A woman like you should be treated like a queen." Mason winked at her.

Her eyes narrowed, and her hand rested on her weapon.

"Why is she acting like this?" I asked Mason.

"Be easy on her," Mason whispered. "Holbrook, you're not obligated to like me, but I suspect something else about you."

"Do you suspect I'm a traitor?" Holbrook grabbed Mason's arm. "They're back, and I won't talk to you when they are around."

"Who is spying on you?" Mason asked.

"There are things you don't know about her," I whispered back.

Muse Silver-Green opened the door. "You need to go. He's probably going to confide in her about his curse."

My voice trembled more than I wanted. "While Mason occasionally reads my thoughts, I keep secrets only because I usually leave when I think about memories I don't want Mason to know."