Royal Hearts by Ruth Ann Nordin

his
handheld device. He put it up to his ear, waited for a few seconds,
and then made up some excuse about calling the wrong number.
Afterwards, he put the device in his pocket. “There. Now we know
he’s home.”
    Hathor didn’t know how he figured that out
but decided it wasn’t worth asking. He wasn’t going to be on this
planet long enough to worry about the strange devices they
used.
    By the time Kent pulled up to William’s
house, Hathor had rehearsed what he was going to say for the
hundredth time. Surely William would understand Ann’s place was on
Raz, that she had a destiny larger than a high school
infatuation.
    “Do you want me to go in with you?” Kent
asked.
    He shook his head. “I’d better do this
alone.”
    “Okay. I’ll wait for you.”
    “Thank you, Kent.”
    Hathor got out of the car and walked up to
the front door. He knocked a couple times then cleared his throat
and straightened his back. As soon as William opened the door, his
mind went blank.
    “Can I help you?” William asked.
    “Yes. I need to talk to you,” he finally
replied. “It’s of the utmost importance.”
    Eyebrows furrowed, William looked him up and
down. “Do I know you?”
    “No. I’m Hathor, and I come from another
planet.”
    Understanding lit up his eyes. “Oh! Come on
in. My parents aren’t home, so it’s safe to talk here.”
    Hathor followed him into his house, and
William shut the door.
    “How much do you know about Raz?” Hathor
asked as they entered the living room.
    “Before I answer you, I want to know who you
are. I’m familiar with Raz, but I haven’t heard of you.”
    “I was born and raised on Raz. Do you know
that Ann Kerwin is supposed to be the queen there?”
    “Are you the one who contacted me through my
computer six years from now?” William sat down in a chair and
motioned for Hathor to sit on the couch.
    Hathor accepted despite his discomfort. So
William had gone back in time six years like he and Ann had. Now
the question was how and why. “I didn’t contact you. I was
wondering if you know who did, but it doesn’t sound like you
do.”
    He shrugged. “No, I don’t.”
    “Is there anything you remember before you
went back to this time? Any symbols or strange looking objects or
words?”
    “Oh…I think there was something about a
Pale.”
    “Someone from Pale? Planet Pale?” Hathor
asked.
    After a moment, he nodded. “Yes. Something
about a planet like that.”
    Omin’s clone must have somehow found William
and used him to get back to this time. For some reason, he had
needed William in order to engage in time travel himself. So that
meant the clone was lurking out there somewhere, biding his time
until he could kill Ann.
    “I know Ann talked about a place called
Pale,” William said, surprising Hathor. “She doesn’t remember
anything though. I’m the only one who remembers the future six
years.”
    “The Paler who sent you back to this time has
used you to get Ann back to this time. I don’t understand how he
did it, but I know his motives are to harm her.”
    William stared at him for a moment then
laughed.
    “This isn’t funny. I remember the future six
years like you do,” Hathor said. “There’s something you should know
about Ann and her role on Raz. She’s the queen. That makes her the
most important person in the world, and it’s only because of her
everyone is safe. Right now she needs protection.”
    “I take it that you mean she needs your
protection?”
    “Yes. As the king, it’s my duty to protect
her. My role on Raz is to do everything I can to keep her
safe.”
    “Hmm…I would gladly relieve you of that duty.
Between you and me, I look like I’m physically more able to win a
fight.”
    It took Hathor a moment to understand what
William was getting at. Just because William was taller and broader
in the shoulder than him, it didn’t mean he was better suited to
protect Ann. Half the battle was in strategy, after all. “You’d