Page 109 of Stars on Fire

Selene plastered a smile on her face. ‘I’ll be fine. I always am.’

Despite the deep disappointment, Selene continued with the evening. She had no choice. Her role as Prime meant she had to sacrifice her personal need for the good of her people.

After the dessert course, the glittering crowd decamped back to the ballroom for more cocktails and dancing, a fitting end to one of the most glamorous celebrations in Dunia’s history.

Selene tried to enjoy herself. But between the harrowing awards ceremony and the ache in her heart, she found her energy and resolve flagging.

‘I need to leave,’ she whispered to Rina during President Cora Yuzeria’s opinionated monologue on the economic outlook and growth projections for the Pegasi System.

‘About time,’ her friend whispered back.

Using the excuse of needing to secure her father’s medal in a safe place, Selene bade her guests goodnight. Leaving them in the capable hands of Paloma, her Foreign Minister, who was twisting and shaking her hips to the sound of Polaris Nebuli, one of the most popular and enduring bands in all of Pegasi.

Selene fled up the grand staircase, out of the large soaring doors to Parliament House and into her flyer, its door held open by her official driver. Rina scrambled in after her.

‘Home?’ Rina asked.

‘Home.’

They flew smoothly past the still-heaving streets full of victory-drunk citizens towards the East of New Malindi, where the Prime’s residence sat by a private bay.

Rina darted a few concerned looks at her friend’s stony face, but she wisely bit her tongue.

The flyer slipped past the electronic gates where two soldiers stood guard and whispered its way to the courtyard of the sprawling residence.

The pair exited the flyer, and Rina walked Selene to the front door.

‘Do you need me to stay?’ Rina said quietly.

Selene shook her head woodenly. ‘No, I just need to be alone for a while.’

‘Call me please,’ Rina pleaded, watching her friend walk wearily through the black onyx entrance.

The door closed behind Selene with a soft thud.

She immediately kicked off her shoes and slid her bag on the floor. She’d cradled both medals she’d received in her hands since leaving the ballroom, and she headed with them into the study that was once her father’s and now was her own.

Walking behind the beautiful ebony wood desk, she knelt before a panel in the wall and waved her wrist comm in front of it. A small door swung open with a click to reveal a secure safe inside.

She slid open a shelf and placed both boxes on it. She then locked the safe and rose to her feet. Her head throbbed at the movement, and she groaned.

Suddenly she felt constricted and in desperate need of fresh air.

Her skirts swished behind her as she hurried through the house. Towards the lounge that overlooked the large garden outside. Her arms swept open the sliding doors, and she stepped out, sucking in the fresh, sea salt-tinged air.

She welcomed the sight of the residential garden sloping off towards a generous beachhead where the water lapped against the sand. It reflected the city’s lights beyond the bay across where the house stood.

The Prime’s residence belonged to the people of Dunia and had been constructed hundreds of years ago to house the first Prime, Silas Munene.

The parcel of land is sat on, and the beach beyond was generous to ensure the utmost privacy. She’d often taken walks on the sands with her father as they hammered out strategies and discussed policy.

She now looked out to the beach forlornly, feeling the intense loneliness of the moment.

Who would she share the anecdotes from an evening such as this one? With whom would she discuss the future of government? Who would she debate the pros and cons of taxing the uber-wealthy to help eradicate poverty in a changing system? Who would listen to her views on migration, sustainability and mining? Who would indulge her, challenge her, cherish her?

She looked up at the skies above where Eden II hung like a silver bauble in an inky black sky. She imagined Kainan flying back to the moonscape without her, having forgotten her.

A pang of agony ripped through her, and she turned, wanting to run inside, to her bed, where she could dive under the covers and remain lost for days in her grief and loss.

---