Mara didn't know whether to scream or cry. She had failed, and she never failed. Not with men anyway. Today had certainly been a banner day. She yanked off her blue robe and threw it in the corner before pulling on her favorite sleep gown. She sat at her vanity and raked her brush viciously through her blond hair. How had everything gone so horribly wrong today?
OoOoOoOoO
The day started as any other. First she bid her father a good morning. Then she flirted with the palace guards on her way to breakfast. After a fight with Tavius and a clandestine kiss with Otho, she settled for a leisurely day of court gossip in the Ladies Sitting Room. A commotion caught her attention as Otho and a few guards entered the Throne Room with a stranger. The Chamberlain gave her a knowing look, directing his gaze at the newcomer.
Mara raced down the main staircase as her father entered and headed for the Throne Chair. She took her seat next to him and gazed at the stranger frankly. Handsome and very self-confident. She wondered who he was even as he tried to introduce himself. She blinked in surprise when he barely noticed her father activate the chair. She shared a glance with Otho. There was more to this man than met the eye.
A guard showed the man from the Throne Room to guest quarters, and Mara slipped away to find the chamberlain. She found him in his office studying the scanning device.
"Who is that man, Otho?" she demanded.
"Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard," he answered.
"There is nothing wrong with my hearing. I didn't ask his name. I want to know why you brought him here."
"Because he has more of the gene in his blood than all of the royal family combined."
Mara was shocked. "You are sure of this?"
Otho looked insulted. "Of course I'm sure. I scanned him twice. You understand what this means, don't you?"
She held his gaze as she considered his words. "If I have a child by this man, I will ensure my succession to the throne."
He nodded seriously. "Exactly."
"And you think I should seduce him?" The thought stung. She knew Otho wanted her. She felt slightly humiliated that he could so callously discuss a sexual encounter between her and another man. She had expected raging jealousy. What was he up to?
"Now is your chance, Mara. You may never have another."
"And if I don't get pregnant tonight?"
Otho shook his head. "I'm not talking about just one night. Offer him the throne itself. Make him want to stay."
"You want me to marry him?" She felt the dagger hit its mark.
"I want you to do what you have to do. All you need is a child. Accidents happen all the time, my love."
She gaped at him in amazement. "You would kill him?"
"Only if that's what you wanted. I would do anything for you."
Mara left Otho's office and wandered the palace grounds, deep in thought. Could she do this? Give herself to a strange man just to rule? Could she take the chance that Tavius wouldn't kill her as soon as their father died? She had thought Otho loved her. How could he suggest this?
Her brain hurt. She sat on a garden bench and rubbed her temples. She glanced at the tower and felt fear wrap cold tendrils around her heart. She knew from Otho that the bloodlines were so contaminated that she and Tavius would struggle to control the Chair. They would be vulnerable to the Wraith if the blood continued to be diluted.
She clenched her jaw and made her decision. She would entice Lt. Col. John Sheppard into marrying her and providing an heir with a strong bloodline. She didn't need his heart, just his body. She would use him to get what she wanted. Once he figured it out, it would be too late. He could either accept it, or…. She didn't want to consider the ramifications.
She flirted shamelessly with him at dinner, giving her most wide-eyed innocent look that every man fell for. His attitude toward the villagers surprised her. He thought of them as equals. How odd.
She visited his room, using all of her feminine wiles. And it was working. He was obviously attracted to her. He was surprised but responded to her advances almost immediately. She told him the story she and Otho fabricated, and he fell for it. She pushed him down on the bed and leaned down to kiss him again. He returned the kiss momentarily and then suddenly sat up, pulling her hands away.
He babbled incoherently about duty and honor and home and family. He grabbed her robe, swiftly putting it on her shoulders and closing it in the front all while muttering about being thankful that she wasn't an Ancient and that McKay, whoever that was, wasn't there. His face was red, his hands were shaking, and he wouldn't look her in the eye as he gently pushed her from his room.
OoOoOoOoO
She had failed. There would be no heir with superior blood to Tavius. Mara climbed on her bed, pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. She hoped she would live once her brother became Lord Protector. She startled at the knock at her door.
"Come."
Otho's face appeared in the doorway. "What are you doing here? You were supposed to be with Sheppard."
Mara bit her lip and turned away in shame. "He sent me away."
The chamberlain looked dumbfounded. "What?"
"I failed, alright? I tried, and I failed."
"He didn't want you?"
"Oh, he wanted me. I'm sure of that. He just has more self-control than we gave him credit for. He seems to feel a duty to his people and didn't want to be in a compromising position." She laughed in disbelief. "The one man I need is the one I can't have apparently. He's too honorable."
She secretly delighted in the wince that flickered across Otho's face at her words. "So, what now, Chamberlain?"
"Then we'll appeal to his sense of honor. I'll tell him tomorrow of how your life is in danger. I'll figure out a way to make this work, Mara. Trust me."
The End.