Page 9 of Loaned to the Leonid Knight

My son. Or daughter. A Queen in my bed?His head spun. All those things were out of reach, always had been.

“As far as everyone will know, it will be my child. Think, Gideon! Your cub, living with you, would have nothing. A servant of a disfigured servant.”

He bristled. He was not disfigured; he was not discolored! Farhet’s casual insults were borne of someone with too much money and power and not enough sense. “Not everyone shares such a limited view,” he seethed, voice still careful and controlled. Always careful. Always controlled. His shoulders and neck ached from years of tension.

“But as my child, a cub would have a future that includes every luxury, every comfort, every advantage! The finest schools, the best career offers, a house in the most prestigious district, and even a chance to rule it one day. Wealth, power, and privilege—and who is to say this new reproductive technology will work? I will pay you three years’ salary simply for trying to breed the human Queen, Gideon. If she becomes pregnant, I will release you from your contract, with an additional three years’ pay, and give you enough money to buy a house—no, an estate! —on Leonid-Three. You know it’s a much more liberal place, and it’s got a very diverse population. Why, I was there only two cycles ago on business, and I tell you that Bastet Point, the capital, must be fully non-Leonid. Tigerites, Servalis, Lynxians... I even glimpsed a few Pantherites, a Canid or two, and a whole delegation from the Avian Alliance. It was bizarre.”

Gideon closed his eyes. It wasn’t bizarre. It was beautiful. All the people of different realms, walking side by side, working together, making the city a glorious hive of activity... He could almost picture himself walking down those streets, back to his own home, into the arms of his loving Queen. For yes, there were some Queens coming of age, or some Queens quite a bit older than him, those who had been sterilized in the hopes of saving their lives. He wouldn’t need an heir. He would just need a chance at happiness. Freedom.

At what price?

“This is akin to prostitution,” Gideon said the dark thought in his mind. He didn’t add that he was a virgin, as were many males of his age. He had lusts, urges, and dreams, like any Knight. His unique appearance, coupled with the place where he was raised, had made it difficult—and then the Queen Fever had made it impossible.

“Oh, nonsense! Prostitution is paying for sexual activities. I don’t care how you fertilize the human Queen; I just needthe product at the end of it. It would be surrogacy. Surrogate sperm donor and surrogate mother. I’m paying for your help in rebuilding the species and saving the Imazi Pride! A Pride that has sheltered you, clothed you, and paid you for your labor for years.” Farhet’s tone alternated between wheedling and vaguely threatening.

For the first time in his life as Farhet’s assistant, secretary, and general right paw, Gideon argued. “Those were part of my contract. You received labor in return. Labor that existed at all hours, in all situations. But not this one.”

“I... I will give you 300,000 credits. You can set yourself up in a business, with a home, on any planet in any system. With that sort of money, you couldbuya quarter of a place like Servali-Six or Lynx-Seventeen! You could buy one of the Pantherite Provinces! You’d never need to work again—if you were fairly careful and frugal with your money.”

“300,000 credits, in addition to the salary advance you mentioned, if she becomes pregnant?”

“Yes! Pregnant by you, my chosen surrogate sperm supplier.”

Gideon felt greed and principles warring, but he pushed all thoughts away except for the one of him owning his own estate, his own business, his own little family somewhere far, far away from the snobs and social constructs of Leonid-One. “Send me the offer, sir, and I will agree to it. I’ll be on the next long-range shuttle after the contract has been filed.”

“Excellent. I knew you’d see sense. Now, before you board the shuttle, there are a few things you’ll have to do. I’ll put it in the contract and send you a list. You should still be able to board the shuttle tonight, and theComet Stalkeris still in the Leopardine System. If you put the shuttle in hyperjump—”

“With one person flying it? That’s dangerous.”

“The long-range shuttles have autonav. You’ll simply put in the coordinates, and it’ll be fine.”

Gideon had an idea that things were going to be far from fine. The urge to say no reasserted itself—and the image of his own little home, a Queen waiting for him, a wealthy, independent Leonid—blotted it out. “Very good, sir.”

Chapter Four

“You want to leave? Well... Sir, that’s up to you, of course, but your fees will not be refunded.”

“I don’t want them refunded. I still intend to use your program.”

Marcus had an unpleasant feeling stirring in his middle. Farhet looked like the sort of Leonid who valued his credits more than his friends, and he looked smug, as if he intended to get a great bargain—at someone else’s expense.

“I have made a donation to Bastet Mercy and the Queen Ward in order to use a ‘sperm surrogate.’ He’s young, healthy, and they’ll be running labs on him today. He’ll pass. He’ll be on a long-range shuttle tonight, use a hyperjump to the ship’s coordinates, and arrive while the human Queen is still in her fertile phase.”

“The ‘human Queen’ has a name! She has to approve this stand-in. She has to meet him. Get comfortable with him! She may reject this offer entirely.”

“She has no right! She’s part of the program!”

“She has every right! You’re changing the program’s guidelines, and if I didn’t know that the Queen Ward could always use money and that the hospital is always striving to add more staff and various improvements, and if I didn’t believe that this program wasvitalto the restoration of the Felid population, I would kick your pompous tail into the airlock!” Marcus roared. He was gratified to see Farhet flinch. “If they ever pull such a stunt again, I will pull the program and partner with another hospital, most likely in an entirely different system—the Lynxian System! I’ll be sure to tell them so. It’s probably too late toget Miss Cordovair and your stand-in to chat if he’s already headed for a long-range shuttle. The damned inter-system time difference... Well, you, sir, are no longer welcome on this vessel. If your stand-in isn’t accepted, he’ll be thrown off, the same as you. Pack your things. I’m going to go see Sasha and hope that she’s in a forgiving mood.”

“DO I HAVE TO WAIT UNTILthe next guy gets here? How many cycles will that be? Do I lose my contract? What about the payments?” Sasha was pacing around her quarters, hands balled into fists. She felt... Like a freak. By human standards, she was considered pretty, maybe even beautiful. Her looks certainly attracted all the wrong kinds of attention.

Marcus, who had opened with, “Farhet has decided not to continue with this endeavor,” jumped in front of her, paws out, a placating expression on his face. “No, no. You are not at fault, and your payments are guaranteed. You could wait until the next cycle and have a new Felid partner. There’s a long waiting list. You are in great demand, if you’ll pardon the expression.”

Sasha rolled her eyes. “Well, my ability to pop out a baby is.”

Marcus looked at her over the rims of his glasses. “For a dying civilization that watched millions of mothers, sisters, and daughters die—that is a treasured ability. And not everyone has it, even those with the physical parts. You have both the kindness of spirit and the physical health to attempt this, and worlds upon worlds are grateful. I don’t want to hear you disparage yourself or this work again, Miss Cordovair. It is precious to me, and my kind.”

She nodded, throat suddenly tight. “I’m sorry. It’s really... It’s really beautiful to be in a world where women and children are valued. We’ve lost that on Sapien-Three. Women and kids are more likely to be targets than treasures.”