Read Online Twin Stars 1: Ascension by Robyn Paterson - Free Book Online Page B

“Let me take this,” she said and tried to grab it, but as she closed her fingers around the handle and tried to lift it, the bag slipped from her fingers and stayed in place.
    Crinkling her nose in determination, Hariet again tried to take hold of the bag, and again it slipped from her fingers.
    “Ahhh!” She growled in frustration, and was going to try again before Tysen put a hand to her shoulder and stopped her.
    “You’d better let me take it, sis. I’ve got all my metals in there, and it’s pretty heavy.” He said, smiling conceitedly.
    “You would! Show off!” She said in mock anger, stepping back. “Fine, I’ll get you some tea. Maybe I’ll put salt in it, maybe sugar. We’ll see!”
    Then she turned and ran off, back into the house- toward the kitchen.
    Tysen and his mother watched her go, then she looked at him. “She tries, but sometimes it’s too much for her. She can’t even ride her horse anymore.”
    “And the procedure you mentioned last time we spoke?”
    Elizabeth shrugged. “The doctors have gone on strike again- they haven’t worked for months. No one can get proper medical care right now. Doctor Elson only comes to check because he’s a family friend, but can’t do the procedure.”
    “I’ll speak with my ship’s surgeon.” Tysen offered. “If he can’t do it, perhaps he knows someone who can. Why didn’t you tell me of this earlier? I could have helped.”
    “Albert,” she said in a motherly tone. “You were busy, and I didn’t want to bother you. We can take care of ourselves, you know?”
    But Tysen cut her off. “No mother, taking care of this family isn’t a bother, it’s my duty. You should have informed me about this earlier.”
    “Oh? Am I one of your soldiers now?”
    Tysen started to feel his ears burn and made himself breath- his mother had always known how to get the best of him, and he wasn’t here to argue. “You still should have told me.”
    “You have enough to worry about,” she said as though nothing had happened. “Have you been around to see the lawyer, yet?”
    “Yes,” Tysen leaned down to unlace his well-shined boots. “I just came from there. Lieutenant Clews thinks we have a good case and that I’ll be cleared by the time it’s done. I’ll be meeting her tonight near East Park for dinner to discuss the case.”
    “Is she any good? This lawyer?”
    Tysen shrugged and grabbed a pair of slippers from the shoe alcove- he was surprised to see they were still his old ones, worn but otherwise unchanged. “Her file says she’s won more cases than lost, and she’s the one the Judge Advocate General assigned me.”
    “Will she be expensive?”
    He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “She’s paid by the state.”
    “That’s why I asked.”
    Tysen nodded in understanding. “I guess I’ll find out tonight.”
    * * *
    It was just past the 40 hour mark when Tysen was shown into the riverside restaurant where he was to meet his lawyer. All in white, with floating candles on the table to set a romantic mood, it was an outdoor cafe in the old style. There was a trellis with hanging purple and blue vines above, and gray geese swimming in the river nearby- keeping a distance but always staying close enough to rush to any table scraps that might find their way to the water.
    At a secluded table in the corner, a woman in a blue Guard dress uniform rose to meet him. She had a pale round face that looked like it rarely saw the sun, and when she smiled it was a smile that looked more tired than friendly. Still, she did her best to shake his hand and greet him warmly, offering him a seat across from her.
    Tysen always felt a bit sorry for standard humans, as they needed to spend so much of their lives sleeping. Nobles needed only perhaps eight hours out of seventy-two, and even that could be easily pushed with stimulants to a single night’s sleep in a standard week.
    “You’ll have to forgive the meeting place, Lieutenant Tysen.” She told