Genmate Mistaken (Genmate Dilemma Book 1) Read online

  Genmate Mistaken (Genmate Dilemma 1)

  Copyright © January 2022 by Cara Bristol

  All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this e-book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without prior written permission from the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  eISBN: 978-1-947203-36-5

  Editor: Kate Richards

  Copy Editor: Nanette Sipe

  Cover Artist: Croco Designs

  Formatting by Wizards in Publishing

  Published in the United States of America

  Cara Bristol Website: http://carabristol.com

  This e-book is a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Related Titles by Cara Bristol

  About Cara Bristol

  Acknowledgements

  Vengeance led him to love. But will it destroy him, too?

  Vengeance keeps ’Topian Edwin Mysk from surrendering to the pain of the destruction of his home world and the loss of the genmate he might have had. One day, the Xeno Consortium will know his wrath. Until then, he will pursue his self-imposed mission to locate and reunite the massacre survivors.

  When he lands on Laxiter 4, he finds the ’Topian settlement abandoned, except for a lone woman. Lala. Their immediate, intense bonding proves she’s his genmate, the one female his genetics have chosen for him—the one he’d believed lost forever. With Lala at his side, he resumes his search for the others.

  But Lala is not the ’Topian he thinks she is. She’s a shapeshifting Xeno, a disgraced former general in the consortium military wrongly convicted of helping ’Topian insurgents escape annihilation. Edwin Mysk offers her best chance to locate the escapees and receive a stay of execution—as long as he doesn’t discover her secret.

  Will the gulf between hatred and love, despair and desire, prove too wide for them to cross? Is their genmate bond a tragic mistake?

  Genmate Mistaken

  By

  Cara Bristol

  Chapter One

  “Why are we revisiting this? Execute her.” Councilman Pelouse dismissed the deliberation with a wave. “It should have been done already.”

  Councilwoman Xendra nodded. “She is a horam, a traitor. Her genetics have been perverted by treason.” Her facial scales deepened to an angry deep blue.

  His tail curled around the base of his throne, Commandant Chroma studied the six rulers of the High Council for signs of opposition, but if any entertained a notion of disregarding Xeno Consortium law and commuting Lala’s sentence, they covered it well. They appeared as unanimous as when they’d discovered her brother’s treachery.

  General Lala’s guilt had been so overwhelming, the council had dispensed with a trial and gone straight to the sentencing phase. The law permitted no leeway—the penalty for treason and dysgenics was death.

  “It is not as though she can be rehabilitated,” Councilman Kamris pointed out.

  Agreement murmured through the chamber. Over the millennia, the consortium had terraformed planets then seeded them with genetically engineered, laboratory-created life-forms. However, with tremendous successes had come some epic failures, ’Topia being the most recent and significant. Once heralded as the crowning example of Xeno ingenuity, the ’Topians had evolved to such an alarming degree, they threatened Xeno sovereignty. In self-defense, the High Council had taken decisive action and destroyed their creation.

  Lala’s dysgenics had to be dealt with in the same manner—quickly and permanently. Her service as a high-ranking, loyal general didn’t mitigate her guilt for the actions committed by her brother, a former member of the High Council. Chameleon and Lala were of the same genetic line; ergo, she was as guilty as he. It was an open-and-shut case.

  “To return to the esteemed councilman’s question, why hasn’t the traitor been executed?” Xendra asked.

  “I’d like the answer, too,” Kamris chimed in, and all six council members turned to Chroma for answers.

  “The instant we voted, the execution order was recorded and transmitted. There must have been a glitch in the system. The Ministry of Eugenics never received the order,” Chroma explained.

  “I’m rather surprised no one else has taken care of the matter,” another councilman spoke up.

  Chroma was, too. The entire consortium had heard of Lala’s crime—the council had made sure of it—but she had yet to pay for it. By now, the loyal citizens should have taken care of the matter.

  “Perhaps there are other sympathizers,” Kamris suggested. “Perhaps they protect her.”

  “They, too, must be rooted out and dealt with,” Xendra said. “And we must execute the horam immediately.” She had the royal-blue skin of a true elite, and anger deepened the color to such a vivid hue, Chroma surmised she might desire to perform the execution herself.

  Resting his elbows on the console, he steepled his fingers in reflection. “Or not—”

  “Or not? There is no or not!” Xendra interrupted.

  He shot her a warning glance. “Or…she might perform one last service before we execute her.”

  Xendra snapped her tail and knocked over an adjacent chair. “What service could she provide that would outweigh her crime? The damage to our reputation in the galaxy has been done. Betrayal is coded in her DNA; she cannot be trusted. The population discrepancies discovered in the unibase indicate thousands are unaccounted for. We know Chameleon attempted to help them escape justice. What if he succeeded? He vanished after the bombardment. What if he relocated ’Topians to other planets? What if they request asylum from the Galactic Alliance?”

  “If we don’t find and eliminate the escapees, the threat to our sovereignty will arise again,” a council member said. “They will breed like animals.” His lip curled with distaste.

  Only young, rebellious Xenos experimented with physical sexual contact. Upon maturity, they rejected such inappropriate, base behavior. Couples seeking to reproduce extracted DNA samples, sent their genetic material to a gestation lab, and produced an offspring in a sterile, civilized manner.

  Chroma stifled a satisfied smile. The council members were making his argument for him. “Which is why I propose we dispatch Lala to locate any surviving ’Topians so they can be neutralized.”

  “You are proposing we recommission her? You would trust her to lead a warship?” Kamris asked.

  “No and no. I propose we send her alone.”

  “One person—a convicted traitor—to find thousands? That’s the stupidest proposal I’ve ever heard!” Xendra snapped.

  Chroma pressed a button, and Xendra convulsed as her chair delivered a high-voltage stream of electricit
y. When the shock ceased, her head lolled forward and hit the console. Drool pooled on the glass surface.

  The other council members averted their eyes. Compassion wasn’t in their DNA, and if an inclination to render aid had crossed their minds, it would have been stifled for fear of appearing weak.

  Her color a sickly green, Xendra raised her head. “I apologize…if I spoke out of turn, Commandant.” She seemed to have difficulty speaking. It might have been residual effects of the shock—or because she hated to apologize. “My concern is that we have no idea…where the ’Topians are or how many. Furthermore, if we allow the…traitor to leave, what is to prevent her from fleeing justice?”

  Tenacity was an admirable trait, and Xendra persisted more than most. He should respect her, and yet, Chroma didn’t. Nor did he trust her despite her steadfast loyalty to the consortium. The commandant had no doubt if Xendra’s genetics had become tainted by her brother’s actions, she would have done the honorable thing and committed suicide.

  He disliked her; however, personal feelings were immaterial.

  “If she encounters the ’Topians, she will be outnumbered, and they might kill her,” a councilwoman said.

  “And the downside is?” Pelouse laughed. The others joined in the humor.

  Chroma himself chuckled and then added, “If she accomplishes her mission and returns, then we can execute her as planned.”

  A stony-faced Xendra swished her tail. “With all due respect, Commandant, what you propose runs contrary to our law. Our citizens must be reassured punishment is swift and exact. Already, due to a glitch, justice has been delayed. We have been able to hide that former Councilman Chameleon sided with ’Topia, but his perfidy remains a stain and a threat to this esteemed body. What if Lala speaks? If the populace learns one of our own went rogue, it could embolden others. They will see us as weak.”

  “That is all the more reason to send Lala to find the ’Topians,” he said.

  “That is why we must execute her immediately,” Xendra disagreed.

  “If they learn Chameleon opposed the bombardment, the populace might come to question it, too.” Pelouse colored to dark blue.

  A murmur of agreement ran through the council. “We must not betray a weakness. We must maintain a united front,” Kamris said.

  The sentiment had shifted, support for his proposal withering. As commandant he wielded enormous power, but he still only had one vote. Eying the shock button, he curled his claws into his palms. As satisfying as it would be, punishing Xendra for thwarting his proposal would not further his objective—it would be tantamount to conceding he’d lost ground.

  Others spoke up.

  “We cannot allow another traitor to escape punishment!”

  “The fact Lala has not done the honorable thing and committed suicide shows she cannot be trusted!”

  “Lala will not escape punishment. She will be executed upon her return,” Chroma reiterated.

  “But citizens of the consortium will not be informed of that,” Kamris pointed out.

  No, they wouldn’t. Releasing such information would alert Lala, perhaps spurring her to flee. Eventually she would be captured, but people would remember how she’d almost eluded justice. Facts were facts, but people acted on perception of the truth. The council would lose face and power.

  “What if she runs to the Galactic Alliance?” Pelouse asked. “They have been nosing around the ’Topian sector already.”

  “The alliance has no business meddling in our affairs. The life-forms we create, the planets we terraform are ours to do with as we wish,” Chroma said.

  “The alliance assumes they have the right. Its tribunal may prosecute us for crimes against sentient beings.”

  Chroma flicked his wrist, dismissing the concern. “What is the harm in a toothless bite? Let the tribunal charge us, convict us—it affects us not at all. However, your point speaks to the need to tie up loose ends and annihilate the survivors.”

  It had been politically expedient for Chroma to allow the populace and the High Council to believe the Galactic Alliance Tribunal posed no threat to Xeno supremacy. The consortium’s unibase contained a massive amount of data. Every consortium citizen, Xeno creation, galactic political rival, and sentient being of interest were in the unibase. Information equated to power. Through the unibase, they could find—and then eliminate—anyone.

  However, Chameleon had erased or corrupted exabytes of data, leaving swaths of vulnerability. And while no single nation planet outmatched the consortium’s formidable space force, the combined military services of the alliance was another matter. The consortium couldn’t battle the entire galaxy and win.

  “A consortium divided cannot stand. The worst threats come from within. Allowing Lala to leave will embolden other sympathizers. We must set an example by her. The execution must occur immediately, and I wish to witness it.” Xendra wouldn’t let this go. Belatedly, Chroma realized punishing her for disrespect had increased her fervor. “If I may recommend, Commandant, we should vote on the matter and settle it now,” she said.

  Expectancy settled over the chamber, and all eyes focused on Chroma. As long as Lala remained alive, she would remind the High Council of their humiliation, how former councilman Chameleon had thwarted their will.

  As commandant, only Chroma could call for a vote. He had the power to delay it. But the longer he stalled, the more likely his opponents would question his actions, and they might challenge his authority. If unseated, he could be charged with dysgenic treason, and he’d find himself in the same position as former General Lala.

  He eyed the esteemed members of the High Council. At the outset of the debate, he’d had votes of at least three members, but they appeared to have retracted their support under the onslaught of Xendra’s formidable arguments.

  Resigned, he allowed his fingers to fly over the command keypad. “The initiative is, shall former General Lala be executed immediately for dysgenic treason? A yes vote will carry out the execution. A vote of no means her sentence will be delayed until she returns from the assignment to find the fugitives.”

  “The execution should occur in chambers where we may all serve as witnesses. It should be broadcast on the network for all to see,” Xendra said.

  “As you wish.” Chroma schooled his features. “Vote now.” He punched the final key and sent the ballot to the council members’ consoles.

  Their faces gave nothing away as they voted. It took only seconds for the results to pop up on the individual screens.

  “A consensus has been reached,” Chroma announced. “Summon Lala to chambers.”

  Chapter Two

  “Traitor!”

  “Horam!”

  “Betrayer!”

  Lala strode across the glass floor, giving no sign the stinging insults had hit their mark. Through sheer force of will, she maintained an even-blue skin tone and expressionless façade. She focused straight ahead, glancing neither at the planet surface a mile below nor at her tormentors. The taunters wouldn’t physically assault her in the floating Capitol City—physical violence was forbidden—but they didn’t need to lay hands upon her to wound her. Words were weapon enough because they were true.

  She was all the things they shouted. The sins of her brother had proven it.

  Oh, Brother. How could you? How could you have betrayed your people? Sided with the ’Topians who planned to attack us? On patrol in another arm of the galaxy, she’d been unaware Xeno had taken military action until she’d returned from her tour of duty. Then she’d received the same communique as every other citizen—and like them, had been shocked that beings created by the Xeno Consortium had turned against their creators.

  What could have motivated Chameleon to side with the insurrectionists? She loved her brother, but she hated him for what he’d done—hated him as deeply as the consortium despised her. Three years had passed since the bombardment and his disappearance, but the ache and the guilt remained as strong as the day his perfidy had bee
n discovered.

  How could I not have seen it? How could I not have had any inkling he was assisting the rebels?

  She doubted the truth would ever surface. Nobody on the council would admit anything but, during her interrogation, she’d deduced the council suspected Chameleon had been on ’Topia during the cleansing. If so, he was dead now.

  Eugenics formed the cornerstone of Xeno society. All its laws and actions were based on it. A creator species, the consortium had built its galactic empire through selective genetic engineering and terraforming. Besides seeding planets with intelligent life they’d created, they’d tinkered with their own genetics, programming into their DNA not just physical traits but also instincts and behaviors like obedience and fealty, ensuring Xenos acted and believed a certain way. Deviation resulted in euthanasia for the good of society.

  Siblings, she and Chameleon shared significant common genetic material. It didn’t matter she hadn’t participated in or been aware of his plans. Genetic guilt made them co-conspirators. His debt had become hers, and she continued to pay for it every day. For three years, she’d lived with the fear each day could be her last.

  If he hadn’t died, Chameleon would have been executed for his crimes, but the council could never publicly acknowledge one of their own had turned against them. So they had covered up his involvement and made her the scapegoat for everything.

  “Filthy horam!”

  She faltered a half step. The voice belonged to Petono, the man she would have mated if not for Chameleon’s insurrection. They weren’t genmates—testing at birth had determined she didn’t have one, but he belonged to the highest class of elites, and her family had a long history of service on the High Council. Their legal union would have made them a powerful force in the consortium.

  Stripped of rank, status, honor, and possessions, she’d been ejected from the floating glass and crystal Capitol City where she’d lived her entire life, except during her tours of duty. Only the elites could live in the floating Capitol overlooking the rank-and-file Xenos.