Dawn by Eleanor Porter (best finance books of all time TXT) 📕

person accounts which seemed fantastic and unbelievable. Perhaps there was more truth to them than I assumed.”

“Are you sure there is nobody else that could do this?” he asked then felt the ship shudder.

“Not that I could discern.” Maddy said and started shutting down the engines. “But it’s too late anyway, we’re in their tractor beam.”

Jessie let go of the controls, leaned back in the seat, closed his eyes and ran worried fingers through his hair. He’d never encountered anything like this, had never felt so helpless and overpowered. Like Maddy, he hadn’t believed the wild stories about the Queen. He figured she was just another crime boss. There was no way he could battle his way out, they were at her mercy. How did you fight someone who owned planets, stole military warships and could move jump gates to where ever she wanted? Did it matter? What other option did he have? Forget Scarlet and carry on? This new universe he was in could be exciting and interesting but it was dull without her. Every new thing he saw he wanted to see with her. Every new taste he wanted to taste with her. If she were here, he could stay and explore and enjoy.

Without her, he was nothing.

There was a hollowness in him and the joys he felt at learning to fly, or going where no man had ever gone before, paled when compared to having a simple lunch with her at a roadside park. His very cells ached for her.

Maddy concentrated on making herself more human, brought her body temperature up to ninety-eight degrees and made sure her hands were soft and pliable. She was starting to understand some of the human phrases like my heart ached or I felt their pain. She didn’t have to emulate the emotions; she was beginning to actually feel them. She placed her hand on his cheek, a strong memory he had and he covered it with his.

“It’ll be alright.” She said. “The Queen didn’t build an empire by killing everyone who came calling. She will help us or she won’t but I think the pirates outside the jump gate are a bigger threat than her. She’s a businesswoman, even if the business is illegal.”

Jessie smiled his crooked smile. If he kept his eyes closed, he could almost believe it was her. She was right, of course. Scarlet always was, too. He kissed her palm, breathed in her scent and wondered for the thousandth time how she did it. How she was a near perfect replica. When he opened his eyes she was smiling. Not a big one, not grinning and showing her teeth, it was a small, shy smile that turned up a corner of her mouth.

Close, yes, but she’s not Scarlet.

“Right.” He said and sat up. “Let’s do this.”

Jessie set the blasters to 10 then let them find their place low on his hips as they walked down the gangway to the landing port. He was expecting heavily armed men pointing guns but here was no one to meet them. The walkway led to a squat building so they followed it and found a tall human kicked back behind a desk, his feet on top of a stack of papers.

“Come to see the Queen?” he asked.

“Uh, not sure. Maybe.” Jessie answered. “We need a data hacker for some rejuvenation bracelets. I don’t particularly need to see her if I don’t have to.”

“You’ll definitely have to, then.” the man said and waved a bored hand towards the hall. “That’s a Queen’s service. You’ll need one of her men and they won’t be cheap. But you’re in luck. I heard she’s in a good mood. You might not have to wait for weeks.”

A little puzzled at the low-key security, they wandered through the terminal and out onto the streets. It was like any other small city with roads and buildings and all manner of people going about their business. The architecture was a little strange with the odd shapes and when they asked, a short, blue woman pointed out her palace towering above everything else. It was a giant pyramid some twenty or thirty stories tall that dominated the town. It was stained black with age and looked ancient compared to everything else. It was out of place, an original artifact of this world that was thousands of years old. It sat at the edge of the ocean, the blue green waves crashing against the base. The path leading up to it was wide and well maintained with hanging gardens and blooming flowers on both sides. Strange birds flitted between the trees, the volcano planet glowed red in the distance and the sun burned bright yellow in the cloudless sky.

“Not at all what I expected.” Jessie said as they entered the cool interior of the pyramid. “This is kind of like Mad Ruby’s place. Everybody is afraid of it because of the rumors but it really isn’t that bad.”

They stood in the massive open interior, unsure what to do next, and admired the fountains, sweeping arches and exotic birds that flitted around. No one had challenged them and there was no one to direct them.

“Come to see the Queen?” a man in flowing robes asked as he hurried past them. “Take one of those and follow me.”

He indicated a box of rings sitting on a plinth. They grabbed a pair, slipped them on and rushed after him. He didn’t wait. He didn’t care if they followed or not. They wound up a long, gradual staircase that was wide enough to drive a truck. It hugged the edge of the pyramid and they climbed for a long time. When they finally reached the top and it leveled out, the man walked out onto nothing and continued hurrying hundreds of feet above the gardens and pools below. He disappeared through an arched doorway that seemed to be supported by thin air. Across the wide gap and the long fall, the floors