Prohibit by Viola Grace Page A

having seen the video of your journey, I am amazed you made it in one piece. I will drive until you have a chance to take proper instruction.”
    “Fine, but the instruction had better come soon. Flying these things is fun.”
    He sighed, and it was nearly enough to part her hair. With a few easy movements, he got them up in the air, and they were soon gliding across the city to a larger building that had much more security than the med centre.
    Cleo cocked her head. “Is there one of my people in that building?”
    “There is. Elder Lynni is taking up the protection and management of the Brides and working on the status of women on Lrrko in general.”
    “Okay. Good.” She had read the Bride contract, but she hadn’t signed it.
    Helbri was carrying the tablet, and they had agreed that she would need witnesses when she did finally sign it, so it would be in front of the Elders.
    They landed on the roof under the watchful gazes of four guards who collected their retinal scans. When they were authorized, they entered the building and headed down to the council chambers.
    Outside the chamber, Helbri handed her the tablet, and she brought up the contract.
    When it was ready, they walked into the council chamber, and the guards closed the door after them.
    The sole woman at the council had to be Terran, but Cleo had never seen a Terran like that. The colouration on one side of her body was hot pink and the other side was a pearly white.
    Shaking herself free of the distraction, Cleo signed the Bride contract before anyone said anything.
    She nodded to Helbri, and he took the tablet back, sending the document to the Lrrko archives.
    Elder Lynni smiled and leaned forward. “It has been delayed, but may I say, welcome to Lrrko, Cleo.”
    “Thank you, Elder Lynni. It has been an odd journey.”
    The other Elders looked irritated, but Lynni was amused.
    “I have been asked to tell you that the Elder Council wants you up on charges for disregarding your safety and endangering a generation of your offspring.”
    Cleo cocked her head. “What would that entail?”
    “House arrest for six months.”
    “No. That won’t be possible. I want to go exploring.” She smiled brightly.
    One of the Elders slid a tablet over to Lynni. She glanced at it and started reading the charges.
    Helbri cleared his throat and asked, “May I address the council?”
    The men looked to each other, and Lynni waved her hand. “Go for it.”
    “The list of infractions is indeed grave, if Cleo was a Lrrko citizen and registered Bride when she committed them. However, she was not a volunteer; she was kidnapped. Nothing that has been done to her was by her will, and no one in this room will fault a prisoner for trying to escape.”
    One of the male Elders blinked. “In that case, we shall charge her as an escaped slave.”
    Helbri inclined his head. “That would be possible, but she is now a citizen of Lrrko. She signed the Bride contract when she entered this room and nothing that happened before is admissible in disciplinary hearings.”
    Lynni was chuckling. She clapped her hands slowly. “Well played.”
    Helbri shifted close to Cleo and put his hand on her spine. The worst was over.
    Helbri proved her wrong. “Cleo will not be able to be separated from me, so there must be an alteration in our particular contract. If I am sent on assignment, she will go with me.”
    The council erupted into an uproar. Cleo and Helbri watched the others argue while Lynni looked at them closely.
    Finally, Lynni clapped her hands together. “As you fall under my purview, I will state that if you produce fifty healthy eggs, you are free to travel with Helbri on assignment. If you are not with him during the initial period, you will be fostered to another Bride and Familiar for safety.”
    The Elders stared at Lynni. The man nearest her muttered, “You overstep your bounds.”
    A monitor flared to life, and another male Lrrko was featured there. “I have to agree