Page 1 of Enforced Love

Chapter One

I’m neither good nor bad. I just am. When the law is broken, I’m the one who executes punishment. I’m not the only one of my kind. But I’m the only woman active in the field at my command post. I work alone, by choice, and I saw no reason to change that.

Which was why, at that moment, my temper was flaring and I was ready to kill. Someone was trying to change that. My boss. My dad.

“I work alone,” I stated through clenched teeth for the millionth time.

“Not on this one,” my father and top agent, Dassan Certze, interjected, his voice hard and firm.

“I always work alone,” I reminded him.

This time, he sighed, and for the first time, I noticed how old he’d gotten. He was still strong, still solid, but I saw the way his once black hair was turning white. I noticed the wrinkles and fatigue. We had a hard job as Enforcers, and the life took its toll on the best of us. My dad now showed it.

“Emma, don’t fight me on this, or I’ll bench you altogether,” Dad said.

“What!” I exploded. “You can’t bench me. I’ve done nothing to merit that.”

“Ignoring a direct order. Showing disrespect to a superior officer. Refusing to follow protocol.” He looked over at me, and one eyebrow winged up over his eye. “I can continue if you need me to.”

Now, it was my turn to sigh. So I wasn’t exactly the perfect soldier. That was almost entirely his fault. I was his daughter, after all.

I stood to attention, feet together, shoulders back, head forward and arms straight at my sides. “I apologize, sir. It will not happen again.”

“At ease, Emma,” he said and finally walked to sit behind his desk. “I’ve covered for you when I could. I blame myself for your behavior, and I’ve let you get away with far too much since your mother died.”

I dropped form and hurried to him. “Daddy, what is it? What’s wrong?”

“You’ve gained the attention of the Liege Commander,” he said. “You’re being reassigned. To Quadrant Five.” He added the last with a catch in his speech.

The fifth quadrant. Holy shit. That was the hotbed of criminal activity. Enforcers strived to be thought good enough, tough enough to be sent there. Yet at the same time, they prayed it wouldn’t happen. Mortality rate there for Enforcers was high. Once you went to the fifth quadrant, you usually came back in a body bag. If there was a body to be found.

“The Liege Commander thinks I’m fit for the fifth quadrant?” I asked, and I couldn’t help the awe that filled my voice. This was what I had longed for. If I could prove myself there, among the best of the best, I could open the way for even more frontline female Enforcers. I could show that we were more than just brains. We could be brawn as well.

“Yes, Emma,” Dad whispered. “I can’t stop the order. You’ll leave on the morning shuttle. You have free time until then to say goodbye to your friends and family. You’re to report to the shuttle at 0600.” He wrapped his arms around me. He held me close, and I was sure I felt him shaking. My tears welled up as I realized how hard this was on him. “I will miss you, my daughter. May the gods watch over you and bring you home safe at the end of your six-week service.”

Six weeks on quadrant five. I could do it. I would do it and survive. “I’ll be careful, Dad,” I promised. “Do you know who’s going with me?”

“No,” he told me, squeezing me tighter. “I know two agents from another unit are being sent with you. But I have no information on them.”

That wasn’t unusual here. Protocol allowed for only the direct lieutenant of each unit to have information on their people but not on other units. Only the Liege Commander had information on every squad. So I was being sent with two others. I was scared yet so excited I could barely control myself.

My dad finally stepped away from me. “Go with the gods’ blessings, Emma Certze. And return to me as whole I send you.”

“I’ll come see you before I leave,” I began, but my dad shook his head and cut me off.

“It’s best that we say our goodbyes right here, right now. You have planning to do, and I know you want to go let the girls know about this.” He smiled at me and brushed his fingers over my cheek. “Besides, I have work to do that will keep me here until late in the night. I have to find a replacement for one of my best agents.”

I smiled at him. He had a lieutenant’s pride and a father’s fear. “I love you, Daddy,” I told him.

“I love you, too.” He spoke softly, and I thought I saw a tear slip from his eye before he turned and bent over his desk, rustling paperwork. “Now go. You’d best not be late for that shuttle.”

“I won’t,” I said with a grin, hurrying from the office and back to the quarters I shared with Mandy and Soph. I couldn’t wait to tell them the news. They would understand my excitement and want to celebrate with me.

I burst into our quarters at a run. As soon as I entered, I gave a wild whoop and jumped. Mandy and Soph both burst out of their respective rooms and came to a stop before me.

“What?” Soph demanded, which was just like her. She was a petite dynamo. She was a junior Enforcer and stuck at a desk. She wasn’t happy about it, but she did it and hoped that someday my dad would see she was capable of more.

“I’ve been reassigned,” I stated, and my grin said it all.

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