LC01 Sweet Starfire

by Jayne Ann Krentz

  Severance said again, “Cidra.”

  She ignored him again. “I hope Fred is enjoying his stay with Desma. He certainly seems to like her. He’ll be in for a shock if he wanders into the lab, though, won’t he?”

  Severance unfastened the opening of his sleeper. “Cidra, come in here with me. There’s room for two.”

  Her head snapped around. “Severance, no, I don’t think that would be a very good idea.”

  On one level he agreed with her. But he couldn’t spend the rest of the night listening to her tension. “Then relax. I’m not about to fight my way through those trousers you’re wearing. I’m just offering a little human comfort.”

  “I’m not a child.”

  “Did anyone ever hold you until you fell asleep when you were a child?”

  There was a long silence. “Harmonics don’t touch each other except when they’re in full telepathic communion. My parents were never able to experience that kind of bond with me.”

  He heard the careful explanation and then reached across to unfasten her sleeper. “Come here, Cidra. I’ll hold you until you fall asleep.”

  “Really, Severance, that isn’t necessary. I’m just fine the way I am.”

  He sat up and pried her gently out of the sleeper. She resisted slightly at first, and then, with a warm, scrambling rush she was inside his sleeper, curved against his body. She lay still for a moment, and then he felt her begin to relax. The distant clank of talon armor sounded again, but this time she didn’t flinch. The lumbering warriors continued to fight their battle in the darkness while Cidra gradually ceased to be an unwilling audience.

  Some time later, when he was absolutely sure that she was asleep, Severance allowed himself to cradle Cidra more intimately. His hand drifted to her breast and rested there as he yawned deeply. She felt good nestled into him this way, her firm buttocks tucked against his thighs. He liked the relaxed way she was finally sleeping. It made him feel good to have her trust him, even on an unconscious level. She was so concerned with trust, so convinced that she could never establish it completely with a man until she was a Harmonic.

  Cidra wasn’t born to be a Harmonic. Severance knew that with a certainty that burned deep. He wondered how long she would pursue her fruitless quest. It wasn’t in her to acknowledge defeat. The only thing that would deflect her from her goal was if she, herself, changed her mind. And from what he knew of her that wasn’t likely. She was a stubborn woman.

  He allowed himself the luxury of resting his hand on her breast and decided that he could be just as stubborn as any false Harmonic. With that, Severance finally slipped into sleep him self.

  It wasn’t the clanking of zalons or the screams of another jungle denizen, but the sound of human voices and the hum of a river skimmer that awakened him the next morning. For a moment Severance lay still, considering the coincidence of another skimmer having chosen this tributary to travel. It wasn’t very likely an accidental event. According to what Severance had been told, only the ExcellEx field camp lay along this tributary, and Overcash was the only skimmer pilot supplying that base. He yanked on his trousers.

  Overcash’s greeting boomed out over the water. “Hey, come ashore for some hot coffade. We’re just about to eat.”

  “Sounds good,” came the response. “I’m coming in.”

  Severance heard the answering voice and reached for his pulser holster.

  “Severance?” Sleepily Cidra blinked and looked up at him. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing yet.” He finished strapping on the pulser and slid out of the sleeper.

  “Then why are you . . . ?”

  “Racer’s here.”

  “Racer!”

  She sat up, startled. Her face was flushed and her braid half undone as she stared at him in astonishment. Severance wished he had the freedom to get back into the sleeper with her and conduct an intimate discussion on the merits of human comfort. But that option wasn’t open to him.

  It’s one renegade hell of a coincidence that he’s running the same river with us. I don’t trust him any farther than I can ship him without postage.”

  Severance stepped out into the dawn to find Racer was already on shore, his skimmer bobbing lightly behind him on the water. The man’s blue-green eyes followed Severance as he emerged from the tent.

  “Spend a pleasant night teaching new tricks to the Harmonic, Severance?” Racer smiled and lifted the pulser in his hand until it was pointed at Severance’s bare chest. “Maybe before this is all over I’ll take the opportunity to add to her education. But for now, drop the pulser, Severance. I’m here to do a little business. Bonus business.”

  TEN

  What’s the matter, Overcash? ExcellEx bonus money not good enough for you? Think Racer’s going to pay more? You’re in for a surprise. Racer’s not all that reliable. Take my word for it. I’ve had firsthand experience.”

  Inside the tent Cidra listened in shock to Severance’s cool, contemptuous voice. She shoved aside the feathery light sleeper. As she struggled with the awkward boots that went with her new outfit, she could hear the three men very clearly. Their rough, tense tones sounded infinitely more lethal than the noises of the jungle morning.

  “Shut up, Severance,” Racer said. “We’re just going to conduct some business. After which we’ll leave you in peace. Where are the sensors, Overcash?”

  “In the skimmer’s cargo hold.”

  “Get ‘em out. Load them onto the skimmer I brought.”

  “But why?” Overcash sounded honestly confused. “I thought we were going to take both skimmers back with us.”

  “I’ve changed the plans slightly.”

  Severance interrupted mildly. “He does that a lot, Overcash. Racer’s changes of plans have a way of leaving a man holding a lockmouth by the wrong end.”

  “I’ve told you to shut up, Severance. Call the little Saint out of the tent. You can’t hide her in there forever.”

  Cidra was already stepping through the iris diaphragm opening. She spoke very softly. “I’m here, Racer. There’s no need to shout.”

  “Stay where you are, Cidra.” Severance ordered without turning to look at her. “Don’t come any closer.”

  Obediently Cidra halted, taking in the scene with a quick glance. Overcash was transferring the carton of ExcellEx sensors from his skimmer to a second craft that had been made fast alongside. While he labored Cord Racer kept a pulser trained on Severance. The pulser Severance had been wearing was missing from its holster. Racer had taken it.

  Severance stood with his customary ease. If there had been a chair nearby, he probably would have sprawled in it as usual. Nothing except the contempt in his expression gave any indication of his tension. But Cidra sensed the leashed fury in him so clearly, she thought for an instant that she had almost read his mind. The sensation was disconcerting.

  Racer showed his tension much more visibly. It radiated through his body as he faced Severance. His eyes were narrowed, and the hold he had on the pulser seemed far too tight. When his gaze flicked briefly to Cidra, she knew he had already dismissed her as a source of trouble. She knew that in his mind she occupied the status of a “harmless Harmonic.” And at the moment she did feel harmless. The frustration was enough to push aside some of her fear and allow anger to take its place. But as she stood silently beside the tent Cidra kept all of her emotions sheltered behind a serene facade.

  “We’ll make this short and sweet, Severance,” Racer said. “Wouldn’t want to take up too much of your valuable time. You’re going to need it to try to walk out of this jungle by sunset.”

  Overcash finished loading the cargo and jumped to the bank. “There’s no way he can walk out by sunset. I made sure we came far enough yesterday to make that impossible for anything but a talon. Want me to collapse the tents?”

  “No need,” Racer replied. “They won’t do him any good. That lightweight armor isn’t enough to do any more than keep the bandini off him. And I don’t want to w
aste time. We’ve already wasted too much as it is.”

  Severance looked at him with idle interest. “Those were your men at Lovelorn? The ones who posed as port security?”

  Racer shrugged. “A couple of incompetents. But I didn’t have time to be too choosy. Quench moved unexpectedly when he commissioned you to make the run with the sensors. I’d been expecting him to delay for another few days. As it was, I barely got word of it in time to make any kind of try at all. I’d like to know what you did to those guys, Severance. They were almost incoherent when I finally found them.”

  “You should have told them that coming aboard Severance Pay without an invitation wasn’t going to be a simple slide-in, slide-out job.”

  “I figured two of them could handle it. Especially with you running around Lovelorn trying to pick up some extra credit from one more patron. A good postman like you couldn’t resist just one more commission, could you?”

  Severance nodded. “I wondered about that deal at Lovelorn. Especially yesterday, when I couldn’t find the man who was supposed to be waiting so eagerly for the case.”

  “Good help is hard to find,” Racer drawled. “And getting harder all the time. Didn’t have much luck with the renegade I hired to pick up Cidra the other night, either. After I met her at the Bloodsucker it occurred to me that she might be a handy sardite chip. Thought if I had her, you might be more amenable to a little bargaining.”

  For an instant Cidra felt her outward control slip. “That was your man in the lab? The one who hurt Desma?”

  Racer gave her a short, wry glance. “He wasn’t after Desma. But he figured she would head for the lab when she got the malfunction alarm. The idea was that you would be alone in the house. Easy pickings.”

  “But she followed Desma to the lab instead,” Severance said.

  Racer shrugged. “It still would have worked if one of those bugs Desma keeps as pets hadn’t gotten loose. The way Payne told it, he was lucky to escape alive. This time I decided I’d better handle things myself. My clients are getting impatient.”

  “I’ll just bet they are,” Severance murmured. “You’ve missed twice so far. What makes you think you’re going to have any more luck this time around?”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, Severance, my luck is running very high today. Thanks to some advance planning.” Racer spoke over his shoulder to Overcash. “Is the skimmer I brought ready?”

  “All set. I’ll take the deflectors.”

  “No, we’ll leave those behind along with the tents. The screens have already been used all night, haven’t they?”

  “Sure, but . . .”

  “Then they haven’t got more than a few hours’ charge left. Without the skimmer’s fuel cells there’s no way to recharge them.”

  “What are you going to do with the skimmer I brought?” Overcash demanded.

  “It’s going to be in a severe accident. And that’s what this whole scene will look like in a couple of days. An unfortunate, but not untypical, Renaissance river accident. Skimmer sinks and the crew is left on shore with failing equipment. By the time another skimmer heads up this far, there won’t be much left. Renaissance will see to that for us.”

  “You’re a fool, Racer,” Severance said wearily.

  Overcash moved uneasily, his hard face knotting into a frown. “I don’t know, Racer. Might be better to make sure of ‘em before we leave.”

  Racer shook his head. “Too much chance another skimmer will be along in a couple of days. If we use the pulser, there’ll be evidence. I’ve heard too much lately about that renegade named Quench who runs ExcellEx. He’s trying to build a reputation as a company owner who looks after his own. If he hears that his handpicked mail pilot got shot trying to deliver the sensors, he’ll demand an investigation. And he’s getting big enough to force one. Hell, he’ll pay for it out of his own pocket if he gets really mad. No, this has to look like an accident.” A terrifying screech sounded from the jungle followed by a bitten-off scream. Racer smiled. “Come on, Overcash. We’re not leaving anything to chance. No one spends a night in a Renaissance jungle without equipment and lives to tell about it. Everything will be over by morning.”

  Overcash looked unconvinced, but he obviously wasn’t going to argue. He turned and jumped on board the second skimmer and made ready to loosen the moorings. Twin dracon eyes emerged briefly in the river as if curious. They disappeared again with barely a ripple.

  Severance studied Racer as if he were looking at the man through a microscope and didn’t like what he saw. “Think it will work this time?

  “It’ll work,” Racer said roughly.

  “Maybe. Maybe not.” Severance gave every appearance of being only mildly interested.

  “Tell you what,” Racer said, glancing at Cidra, who was still standing motionless in front of the tent. “I’ll do you a favor. I’ll take Cidra with me.”

  Cidra started, growing cold inside. “No.”

  Severance was watching Racer. “And do what? Throw her in the river when you’ve finished with her? She might as well stay with me.”

  Racer grinned, sensing that for the first time he had a handle on the situation. He seized it, motioning Cidra with the pulser. “Get on board the skimmer, Cidra. You don’t want to stay behind. Something in this jungle is going to have your shipmaster for dinner tonight, and you’ll be dessert if you’re hanging around.”

  “No,” Cidra said again. She looked to Severance for some support, but he was quiet, almost thoughtful. “I’m staying here.”

  “She’s a Harmonic, Racer. If the right people find out you’ve hurt her, there’ll be a reckoning. You know that.”

  “I might not have to get rid of her,” Racer temporized, “if she has the sense to keep her mouth shut. Do you, Otanna?” He made the formal title a mockery.

  “I don’t understand.” Cidra’s tone was aloof, but her heart was beating much too quickly, and the palms of her hands, folded serenely in front of her, were damp. This was as bad as facing the intruder in the lab had been.

  “Sure, you understand. Harmonics are real good at understanding, aren’t they? They’re also real good at keeping their promises. I’m going to take you with me. At the end of the trip you’ll have a choice. Give me your word as a Harmonic that you’ll keep quiet about what happened here this morning and I’ll put you on the next freighter to Clementia. Refuse and I’ll feed you to a dracon.”

  “Why don’t you simply leave me here with Severance?”

  “Because knowing you’re going to be warming my bunk for a couple of nights will eat him up inside. I want to give him something to think about while he’s waiting for the deflector screens to fail.”

  Cidra understood. Racer thought that she and Severance were lovers. He thought he could use her to twist the blade in Severance. She knew in that moment that there was far more between the two men than was obvious. This kind of hatred went back a long way. She shivered and unconsciously stepped closer to Severance.

  “Go with him, Cidra.”

  She was stunned at Severance’s soft order. “I will not go with him. I work for you. I’m staying here.”

  “Cidra, with him you’ve got a chance. Take it.”

  Overcash snarled. “How long are we going to stand here and chat, Racer?”

  “No longer.” Racer lifted the pulser slightly. “Get on board the skimmer, Cidra, or I’ll kill Severance and be done with the whole thing.”

  He would do it. Cidra looked into Racer’s face and knew he had been pushed far enough. Any farther and Severance would die. He wouldn’t even have the hours until nightfall that the deflectors could provide. She was trained to analyze a situation and react logically. Without a word she stepped past Severance and walked toward the skimmer.

  Racer visibly relaxed, a satisfied expression in his eyes. “They always say Harmonics are bright. Be interesting to see how good one is in bed. The next couple of nights are going to be amusing. Think about them while you’re waiting for the d
eflectors to run out of power, Severance.”

  “You know what’ll happen if I make it out of here, don’t you, Racer?” Severance asked very softly.

  “We both know you’ll never make it out, so there’s no need to worry about it. If I were you, Severance, I’d stop wasting breath on threats and start thinking about how long those deflectors will last without a recharge.” Racer backed to the boat, keeping the pulser trained on Severance.

  When he was on board, Overcash slipped the last tethers holding the skimmer in place and moved into the cabin. Cidra stood in the stern, her eyes on Severance as the skimmer’s fuel cells hummed to life. The power packs glowed green beside her in the rear of the boat. She was cold and sick inside. When Severance met her gaze and smiled faintly, she felt an unfamiliar stinging sensation behind her eyes. Her hands tightened in front of her.

  “I’ll take the wheel,” Racer said as the skimmer moved away from the shore. “This next little surprise has got to be timed properly.” He holstered the pulser as Overcash stepped out of the cabin.

  Cidra tensed as the skimmer drifted farther from the bank. Severance was walking back toward the tent. He seemed in no hurry, but Overcash frowned and palmed his own pulser. The base of the weapon glowed red. “What’s he doing?”

  “There’s nothing he can do,” Racer told him from inside the cabin.

  “I don’t like it.”

  “You don’t have to like it. In another couple of minutes the skimmer will go to the bottom and, with it, any chance he’s got of getting out of this in one piece.”

  Cidra listened to the exchange, aware that in typical Wolf fashion both men had assumed that she was incapable of being a threat. They were right. She could not hope to use her Moonlight and Mirrors on both of them at the same time. Not when each man was armed with a pulser. But their attention was not on her, and this was the only opportunity she was going to get. She edged toward the high gunwale of the skimmer. It would be better if she could take off the boots, but that was not possible.

  “He’s disappeared!” Overcash yelled. “I think he’s inside the tent. I can’t see what he’s doing.”