She took the stairs two at a time, because she could and it felt good to be alive no matter what century it was.
The drive to A’rouk medical center was filled with laughter as Ash described the look on her face when he walked into the kitchen.
She looked around for Jaz when he pulled into a ground space. She wasn’t there. A quick movement had her calling her frequency.
“Brook, I’m running late. You know my door code; I’ll just meet you there.”
“I wanted you to meet Ash.”
“Can I meet him when he picks you up? He’s not allowed in my room and I don’t need the hassle.”
“Ok, see you in a few.”
“She’s running late; I’m going to meet her in her room.”
“Brook, be careful. Virtual shopping is safer than the real thing but a good hacker can still make it dangerous. If your friend says don’t do it, listen to her.”
“Don’t worry; I learned my lesson with the dish soap.” She leaned over the seat and kissed him.
With a jaunty wave, she disappeared into the ground level entrance of the building.
Ash waited before ghosting out his hover car. Allowing his body to become invisible, he trailed her into the building.
A’rouk medical facility was a large sprawling complex in both width and height. One of the things that amazed her was that it also had underground floors. She had learned it was rare. Nothing went down; everything rose like towers that hovered over the world.
The ground floor was practically deserted. It was considered gauche to actually put your feet on the flat surface of the Earth. Commoners did this, peons who knew nothing about society and lacked money to ever be in the know.
Brook laughed. If her parents could see her now, they would roll over in their graves. To see their high society princess reduced to this because they froze her. Hell might just freeze over if her parents had anything to do with it.
She walked to the lifts. Elevator wasn’t the term any longer. A lift may have been the better term because it wasn’t something a pile of people could push themselves into any more. Public lifts usually took no more than three people at a time. four if you squeezed.
When she asked what families with many children did, she was told no one had more than two. It was the law. The lift came, turning her head to the side a breeze passed her. It was just her imagination but for a moment she thought she wasn’t alone. Her hand hovered wondering if she should call Ash but then decided it was a figment of her imagination. If he thought she was unsafe, he wouldn’t let her come alone.
Shrugging her shoulders, she pushed the button to Jaz’s floor and descended. It was dark down here and somewhat dank in the lift. It let her out on a brightly lit floor, the numbers on the units were large enough for her to see even from far away. She walked down the hall looking for 458. Last door on the right.
Stopping, she took the time to study the hallway, her eyes looking for anything out of place. The feeling of being watched made her hold her breath. The feeling wasn’t unfriendly though. It was as if some mysterious force of the universe cared enough to watch over her. Shaking her head, she walked up to Jaz’s door. She would keep this one to herself.
Keying in the number, she walked into Jaz’s private space. It was stark. No pictures on the wall and the furniture seemed regulation. Her heart went out to her friend. The living room was a nice size as well as the kitchen and the bathroom. It wasn’t a bad space; it just wasn’t a home.
She turned to the door as Jaz entered it.
“Brook, you found my place. How long have you been here?”
“I just got here so the timing is perfect.”
She went over to Jaz and hugged her. “How was your day?”
“It was good. Have a seat; I’m going to change before we get started. Are you hungry?” she called over her shoulder.
“No, I just ate.”
Brook took a seat to wait.
Chapter Ten
They were sitting on the couch, Jaz grabbed a sandwich and woofed it down and was now teasing Brook.
She wiped a tear from her face. “Again. Tell me exactly how much you squeezed into the water.”
“This is not funny, Jaz.”
“I’m sorry Brook, it’s just that I can almost see your friend’s face as he walked into his kitchen to find it being taken over by suds. Was he mean?” Jaz’s voice dropped with worry.
“No, he was sweet. I thought he’d be mad and scream or not want to deal with me, but he sent me upstairs to change while he cleaned the dishes. I never met anyone like him before.”
“You picked a good man.”
“We’re not…” What could she say? She slept with him last night and was looking forward to doing it again.
Jaz laughed at her, “You were saying.”
“I was asking you exactly how do we virtual shop? Ash told me to listen to you and if you say no to heed your warning. Makes me think he wasn’t concerned about credit card theft.”
“Credit cards?”
“Plastic cards you swipe in stores with sixteen numbers on them that you can use online. Anything…”
Jaz shook her head.
“Let’s forget about them and tell me what to do.”
Jaz held up a small round cylinder. “Place this on your temple.”
Brook took it and placed it where Jaz instructed. Virtual shopping is the same as going to the galleria without having to actually drive there. The best part of it is any clothes you order will be here before we finish shopping.”
“How can that be?”
“I don’t know how it works I just know it does. Sit back on the couch and get comfortable. When you open your eyes you will be at Monburgh Galleria one of the best and most expensive around. Their virtual service is to die for.”
She sat back and closed her eyes. Her body grew tired, a feeling of lethargy took her as a warm liquid filtered through her body. Her mind slipped away as she fell into a deep sleep.
“Brook, open your eyes we’re here. Brooklyn!”
Her eyes opened with a pop as Jazlyn’s voice woke here. She was sitting in a chair as people walked past her never focusing on her.
“Can they see us?”
“Yes, and that’s the best part. As long as you come as yourself, they can see you. Some places have their virtual set so that you can come as something else and be seen. Let’s go.” Jaz grabbed Brooklyn’s hand to pull her up.
“I can feel your hand.”
She smiled, “The man who designed this tech is amazing.”
Brook rose and walked over to a tree growing in the mall. She touched it feeling the texture of the tree underneath her fingertips.
“I can feel the tree.”
“You have to be able to or you wouldn’t be able to try on the clothes and see if they fit.
“We’re really at the mall?”
“We are.”
Brook looked around the galleria. It was large with several floors. The bottom floor housed very few shops and it was almost deserted.
“Why is there even a bottom floor here?”
“Because every place needs one. The bottom floor has a couple of places that would never be accepted on floors two and up. They are visited by those who are not allowed upstairs.”
“This reminds me of a period of time in Earth’s past when we separated people based on the color of their skin.”
“That’s stupid no one has control over their skin color, besides now a day you can be any color you want to be. Purple is becoming popular among the youth.”
“I think segregating people based on the fact that they walk the Earth or don’t have as much money as you is also wrong.”
“I agree with you but there is nothing I can do.”
Brook nodded her head and looked around. No one walked; everyone was on a small disc a little wider than a flying saucer.
“That keeps everyone from touching the floor.”
There were no steps or escala
tors. The world had changed while she laid in a frozen sleep. The comforts of home were gone now. She had to make it in this complicated social climate all by herself.
All of the big hallways out in the center of the gallery were clear. You could look down to whatever level to see if there was a store or a friend from whom you may have gotten separated. You could change a level just by thinking down. It was a talent and skill that kept you from hitting another person.
“Show me a store.”
“I thought you would never ask.”
Jaz took off and Brook willed the lift under her feet to follow Jaz. It took off following her across the galleria. They dropped two floors before they ended up at Jen’s.
“This is the most popular store in the galleria.”
Brook followed her in. She was familiar with this type of store it catered to the super tiny, a club she would never be able to join. She had been in plenty of stores like it and hated them. She backed out of the store, calling out to Jaz that she was going to explore and moved another level down.
This level was hectic but peaceful. Teens walked in groups or with families pointing out clothing. A store caught her eye. Retro for the yesterday girl. She moved towards it wondering what she might like.
“Hi,” she was greeted by a sales person. “Welcome to Retro for the yesterday girl in you.”
“Thanks.” The sales woman was wearing a crinoline under her skirt from the nineteen fifties with a line of lights placed discretely in the material. It felt wrong but it looked nice.
Brook moved between the racks and found several things she really liked. Going into the dressing room and figuring out how to move onto the higher lift was fun, she managed it with a small jump. She would have simply stepped on the floor but with all the fear around it she was sure it would set off some silent alarm.
“Brook, are you in here?”
“I am.”
“You left me,” Jaz said in a sad voice.
“I’m sorry. I just couldn’t stay in there and I didn’t want to take your fun away.”
“It’s ok they kicked me out.”
“They what?” She was pissed and her voice became louder than she intended.
“They kicked me out; my kind is not allowed in the store unless I am with a person of worth.”
“Jaz,” Brook controlled her voice “let me try on these pants and then we’ll deal with that.”
Brook walked out of the dressing room with a retro pair of jeans on molded her shape. “I love these! What do you think?”
“They look great on you and they’re all the style now.”
“Great, I am going to get them as well as a few other items.” She changed and they took them up to the cashier. She paid for them and the cashier guaranteed she would have them when she was done shopping.
Brook climbed the levels like she had spent her life doing it. She walked into Jen’s, the store that had the misguided judgment to kick Jaz out. Jaz moved slowly behind her. A behemoth of a man came up next to her. He stood close to seven feet tall with a bald head and a nose ring that didn’t look nice on him. His eyes were set far apart like he wasn’t really human.
“Didn’t we tell you to never come back here.”
“Are you the one who kicked my friend out your store?”
“Who are you?”
“Brooklyn, if you don’t know who I am, you better look it up.”
He was smart enough to look through a registry he could pull up in front of him.
“Ms. Brooklyn, my apologies. I didn’t mean to offend. This one knows…”
“This one is named Jazlyn. She is my friend and is welcome to walk into any place I would be welcomed into. If I ever hear that she has been banned or mistreated in this store, I will personally own it the next day. Is that understood?”
The man nodded.
“Perfect, now we will both need our own personal shoppers, chop chop.”
The patrons pointed at her and gasped as they looked at her. Several came close trying to meet her while keeping an acceptable distance from Jazlyn. She ignored them all, placed her arms around Jaz, and spoke in a loud voice. “Friends forever.”
Jaz laughed and hugged Brook. Their personal shoppers arrived and soon they both left after having bought several outfits.
‘Brook, you didn’t have to buy me anything from there.”
“That makes it better then.”
“Makes what better.”
“Buying you the clothes because you didn’t expect it. It makes it even more special that I can do something for you, besides you were smoking hot in that blue dress with your red hair.”
“No one ever pays attention to me, but thank you.”
They hit a couple more stores shopping and laughing until both of them grew silent.
“Do you feel it?”
“I do,” Jaz responded. “It’s like someone is watching us but that ridiculous.”
“I would agree but someone tried to kill me twice.”
“I think we should go, Brook.”
“I agree. How do we get back?”
“We need an anchor like the chairs we were sitting in. They have them all over the store for virtual guest who come and go all day.”
They walked a few storefronts down and found several chairs. They took two next to each other.
“Close your eyes and think of my living room.”
Brook nodded closing her eyes. The same strange lethargy overtook her but the feeling of warm liquid covered her.
“Open those eyes, Brook, we’re back.”
“That was so much fun. In fact, it may have been more fun than actually going.”
“I told you so.”
Jaz reached behind the couch opened a door in the wall that was just above head level when sitting on the couch. Inside there were bags full of clothes.
“Told you they would be here when we got back.” They reached up and pulled them down. Each bag was neatly named letting them know whose bag it was.
Brook stuck her hand in a bag wanting to see what was actually in it when she was bitten. She screamed and pulled out her hand to see a snake clamped onto it.
“Don’t move, Brook.”
Jaz jumped and ran from the room. She came back with a clear jar, she captured the body of the snake in it and used the top to pry his teeth out of her hand. The top set came out making the bottom set jerk out. The snake fell into the jar hissing. She closed the top and threw it down the garbage shoot.
She grabbed a sharp needle and plunged into Brook’s already swelling hand.
“You’re lucky, Brook. I hate snakes, fear them actually and so I keep every anti-venom med I know about on hand. Come on, work.”
“I’ve never seen that type of snake before.”
“That’s because it not native to Earth; it’s a present left over from the Alien War.”
“Poisonous?”
“Most humans are dead in five minutes. The only good thing is that it only has one shot, it dies taking its victim with it. They are also smart; they rarely bite unless riled up.” Jaz looked at her hand and sighed with relief. “Brook, you’re going to be just fine.”
“Jaz, I think I’m pretty sure somebody is trying to kill me.”
Chapter Eleven
“What are you going to do?” Jaz was leaning back on the couch with her mouth open, staring at Brook.
“I don’t know. The caller said if I turned myself over to him he would allow me to live under his supervision.”
She spent her lifetime living under supervision. Go here, Brook, do this. No, her father would say young women should not be so forward or head strong. You must listen Brook, curb your tongue. When she asked how she would one day rule a country her father laughed. That will be your husband’s job. She understood supervision as well as Jaz did and she refused to live like that again, she’d rather be dead.
“Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.” The words fell out of Jaz’s mouth like cement bricks.
�
��Is it bad for you, Jaz?”
She ducked her head and refused to look Brook in the eyes.
“Imagine how much worse it would be for me to be a prisoner of some stranger whose only interest in me is my wealth. I can’t, I won’t live like that.”
“What are your options?”
“I run and hide, change frequency’s and hope he can’t find me. I’ll hire bodyguards. Call Ash.” She touched her ear and thought his frequency.
“Ash.”
“Hi, it’s Brook.”
“I know,” she could hear the smile in his voice. “Are you ready for me to pick you up?”
“I have to tell you something first. Someone tried to kill me.”
“Tell me everything.” His voice was soft wrapping around her making her feel safe.
She told him about the shopping and what she bought. Then moved on to tell him how Jaz was mistreated in a store and what she did about it. Finally, as she ran out of steam, she told him about coming back to her body and reaching into her bag to be bitten by a snake. Then she admitted she was scared to open her other bags; what if they had snakes in them too. She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye glad he wasn’t there to see her cry.
“I’ll make sure the bags are safe to open when I get there, leave them sealed until then.”
“Ash, maybe you shouldn’t come for me. I’ve been thinking I could change my frequency, leave the city. How would he find me? I refuse to live under his supervision telling me what I can and can’t do. I don’t want to put you in jeopardy. This way you can go on with your life. Maybe in a couple of years we can meet back up…”
She let her words die. What was the use if she left? It meant she would have to hide forever. That meant she wouldn’t be able to see Ash again, but it would be for the best.
The knock on Jaz’s door took her by surprise.
“Who is it?” Jaz approached the door carefully looking back at Brook with fear in her eyes.
“Ash.”
“It can’t be Ash he’s talking to me,” Brook said.
Ash: Love Me Harder - Alien Paranormal Romance Page 7
