by Stone, Layla
Pulling her hand away, she shook her head. “I’m pretty sure if you were supposed to know, Karr would have told you.”
“Unless he specifically told you not to tell me, you can. And that’s the deal I’m offering. Free rein on my things for a simple job description.”
Nara touched her neck. “Then I accept your deal. What Karr wants me to do is fix a few hundred people who were experimented on.”
Experimented on? “What does that mean?”
Dropping her hand, she said, “I told you what you wanted to know. Our deal is over.” Pointing to his couch, she added, “Now it’s time for you to honor your part, Night Demon. Find something to watch and try not to make any comments because I get a little crazy when corbis make comments while I work.”
“What’s a corbi?” He assumed it was a derogatory term, but he didn’t like not knowing what it meant.
“It’s similar to being a nip, I’d imagine.”
“A nip is an idiot who thinks they’re important, but in reality, they’re a nobody,” he clarified.
“Well, a corbi is an idiot who is too stupid to realize it.”
Speaking slowly through a clenched jaw, he said, “I’m not stupid.”
She shrugged. “And I’m not a nobody.”
* * *
Shine was on the couch watching a documentary on Numans.
At first, Nara thought he was responding to the job she was doing for Karr. Most people freaked out around Numans or their experiments. But when Shine pulled up the show, he’d pressed continue on the eighteenth season, episode four. “How long have you been watching a documentary on Numans?”
“A while,” he answered as the opening music began. A narrator began… Things weren’t always as they seemed on the planet...
Nara rolled her eyes and headed to the bedroom, hoping she was right about the proximity of the cuffs.
First, she opened one of the larger pods and started assembling the white entryway lights that she planned to install. Unfortunately, Shine had to pause the show to move into the kitchen while she put them up.
After the lights, she hung the entryway paintings. Four long rectangles in dark blues and greys with splashes of white and light green. It was abstract but had soft colors and rounded shapes that she could see Shine enjoying. She didn’t know if he liked them or not because he switched to watching his show on his pad and moved only when she pulled him to a new spot.
The last touch was a durable rug.
After the entryway, she put together the soft grey dining room chairs. Four to be exact. The table was easier to assemble, but she had to use the pods to bring it to the kitchen. She would have asked Shine, but he was sleeping, his head leaned back on the wall, eyes closed, and the program still running. She was getting an earful of all the scientific advancements her kind had made.
The table took less time than the chairs, but it was still missing that last touch. She couldn’t leave it bare. Her fingers twirled in the air as she mentally went through the catalog in her mind. “Ah, I got it.”
She went back to where Shine was sleeping and took the Minky pad. While he slept, she couldn’t help but sneak a peek at the muscles she had felt earlier. Grabbing the ends of his shirt, she lifted up and saw that he was indeed fit.
“Very nice, Shine.” His bronze skin was soft and hairless. His stomach was relaxed, but it was not skin and bones. She almost rubbed her finger over his flesh, imagining that it was as warm as his shirt was.
Nara dropped his shirt and used his Minky to order the obsidian glass bowl. The table needed it, and if she could find a few wicker balls combined with a Yinork sapling that had white bark, it would be great. Along with the brown and black, it would look complete. She already loved it. Two more clicks and the pod was on its way.
The next pod she opened was her dinner that had gotten cold. Taking the fork, she gobbled the rice dish as fast as she could while looking over everything she still had to do. Five minutes later, she was emptying a pod of medical supplies. She put those in the hallway storage closet—after she had reorganized all the supplies.
She was feeling more energized by the second. There was nothing she wanted to do more than turn the dark space into something thriving with life and cool inspiration. The more she did, the better she felt. She couldn’t wait until Shine woke up so she could show him. But she wouldn’t wake him, he had to do that himself.
She tackled his bedroom last. It was where he would spend most of his time and where he needed to be perfectly at peace. It had to say: “Shine.” Or, more importantly, it needed to represent the Shine he could be.
After she’d finished, she hung up her new clothes and had to drag Shine’s body to the door of the bathroom so she could take a shower. Thankfully, he didn’t wake.
Finally, she was freshly showered and dressed in a new set of clothes. Resting on the bed, she watched Shine, willing him to wake. But he didn’t.
Looking around the room, she caught sight of his old blanket and thought she should put it on him. “People do that kind of thing,” she told herself. She’d never bothered to care for another person, so this would be a first for her.
Laying the throw over his body, she stared at the clever Night Demon who looked more handsome than she had noticed before. Maybe it was because out of all the deals he could have made with her since she arrived, the only thing he’d wanted was to know what she was doing.
Given the few times she’d interacted with Night Demons in the past, she had been expecting a lot worse. But something was different with Shine.
9
Cancer
Shine woke up on the floor. Nara stared down at him, looking beautiful and far too cheery. “I’ve been waiting for you to wake up to see what I did.”
Her smile was blinding, and he soaked it in, but he didn’t want her to know that. “Watching me sleep? That’s not weird or anything.”
“It’s not weird. And you’re not getting up or looking around. I’m going to explode if you don’t get up. Now.”
She was excited for him to see her work? Cute.
He rubbed his eyes and lifted to his elbow to look around the bedroom. It was a whole different color. “How did you paint the entire room while I was sleeping?”
“Oh, that’s not paint. It’s a powder polymer. It permanently adheres to the paint. I don’t need to remove the furniture or anything.” She jerked her shoulders up as she bounced. “I designed it myself.”
He had to look at her again because he didn’t know the female in his apartment. She’d created a powder polymer? He couldn’t even wrap his head around that. The science behind it…he tried to guess how she’d done it because if she could create that, he should be able to think it through easily.
“All you noticed was the color?” she said, waving her hand at the bed, the new frame, the new colors—dark grey with black accents and way too many pillows.
“That’s a lot of pillows.”
“Of course, you’d say that.”
Nara waited until he was up and then forced him to walk her to the kitchen so she could make her lunch and get a green Nebula energy drink.
He followed, slowly taking in the living room. She’d changed the colors there, too. She’d done it to cut the long room in half with two different rugs. One side had a desk, his Minky pad, and a digital photo of his mother. The ocean painting hung above the workspace. He didn’t like it there. “That painting belongs in my room,” he announced before going to plucked it off the wall.
“I know you don’t understand all this, but it doesn’t.”
He whipped around. “No, you don’t understand.” He walked back, unhappy to see that the nail was gone. Setting it on a chair to hang later, he turned around to see Nara with her arms crossed, commanding the doorway.
“I’m going to explain this to you.” She circled a finger to indicate the room before adding, “This is your room, and as such, it needs to be comfortable, and it needs to be clean. It has to have an app
eal that calls to your animalistic nature because, eventually, you’ll have a female in this bed, and you know what she’s not going to want to see? A picture of a boy with his mother on the beach. Because that’s disturbing.”
His nostrils flared as he crossed his arms. “If I need a blitz, I go to Northend, find a willing partner, get it done, get it over with, and part ways with her. No questions, no names.”
Nara winced. “Just pick one and stick it in? Gross. You need better standards.”
“You’re the one talking about blitzing. I was just giving you the data.” The female was a judgmental ass, and he was more offended than when she’d accused him of being into gambling.
He was not going to let her dictate anything in his place. That would not happen, which was why he wasn’t going to budge on the picture of his mother being in his bedroom. He needed to see her every day, or he would forget her.
“I don’t even know why I try,” Nara said before walking to a small box and lifting the lid. She took out another necklace that looked like a white pulsar agate. Another extremely expensive item that he felt like a slap to the face.
“Did you move in overnight?”
She walked back towards the bathroom. “Excuse me for buying some clothes and finding an appropriate place to put them.”
Shine watched the bathroom door close with a sneer.
His Minky screen pinged, alerting him to a visitor in the lobby.
Accepting the visitor with his Minky pad, he waited for Nara to exit the bathroom. The front door was too far for their cuffs. While he lingered, he peered down the wide space into the kitchen.
The dining table looked good. It was a small rectangle with four chairs. The entryway was different too, and he liked whatever the four painting things were. Everything looked great, and he knew that he needed to let her know that. Especially since she’d done all of it while he was sleeping, and she was probably exhausted.
The bathroom door opened, and Nara walked out, her hair done in perfect curls, the new necklace on with a black blouse. She had been beautiful before, but now… she was sexy, even with her pinched expression.
“Your ride’s here,” he announced, trying to think of a good way to tell her how good everything looked.
Nara turned and walked out of the room. Following, he saw her heavy steps and knew she was good and pissed, and damnit if it didn’t make him feel worse. Swallowing hard, he opened his mouth and shut it. No words came to mind.
Nara rounded the kitchen, headed straight for the refrigerator, and pulled out a slender green can.
Again, he tried to think of something to say, but instead, he just stared at her.
Nara sashayed to him until they were practically touching. Her voice raspy with emotion, she said, “I was trying to think of three positive things about you, but all I came up with is you don’t snore, and you look almost pleasant when you’re sleeping. If we’re going to live together, we might as well try to get along.”
Shine touched one of her curls. It was soft and shiny. And even though she hadn’t made a deal with him, she was asking for him to get along with her. He decided right then that he’d make an effort. “I like your hair up and a little messy. I also think your smile is the most beautiful part of you. And the third thing is you’re a hell of a designer because this looks like a whole new place.”
Nara’s throat jerked. “I didn’t think you’d take that seriously.”
“I take everything seriously.” Then he added, “It will probably give me cancer one day.”
Nara’s head fell forward to his shoulder as she giggled. He remained stoic because it added to his serious comment and seemed to make her laugh more, which was better than having her insulting him and them being at odds with each other.
A succession of bangs sounded on the door. Nara leaned back, her eyes misty from laughing. He didn’t know how she did it, but she kept looking better and better.
10
Veeda
Nara was in the lab when Karr walked in. She was looking over the procedure to remove the microscopic string under the person’s skin when she told him, “I know why you picked Shine.”
“Oh, do you?”
“He’s obsessed with Numans. He’s watching a twenty-two-season documentary on my race. He would be the best person to get along with me.”
Karr said, “Shine has many obsessions. When he was six, he wanted to be a Kingling. He walked around in furry blue slippers with a dragon’s head and told everyone his name was Leshko. And two days ago, you saw his longest-lived obsession—visiting his mother’s grave on her birthday because he blames himself for her death. I could go on, but he bores me.”
She turned away from the screen to look at Karr. She hoped that the male would laugh and tell her he was making it all up, or maybe say something that lessened the cruel way he spoke about Shine. But he didn’t. Karr just stood there in another frumpy sweater, his face devoid of any empathy. Soulless bastard.
Nara remembered the argument she’d had with Shine that morning. Considering how stupidly stubborn he was about keeping that painting in his bedroom, it all made sense now.
Karr had taken advantage of Shine on what was probably one of his lowest moments. Feeling a surge of protectiveness towards her Night Demon roommate, she told Karr, “You took advantage of someone on their dead mother’s birthday? If you were looking to be the number one cold-hearted bastard on Lotus Adaamas, you succeeded.”
“As if you wouldn’t do the same thing if it suited you. You’re just as cold-hearted, only you’re not as clever.”
Nara was getting really tired of males telling her that she wasn’t smart. Just because she didn’t think like they did, didn’t mean she was dumb. She was brilliant. A Numan. In her element, neither Karr nor Shine could do what she does. Karr was an arrogant, condescending Demon who’d tricked her.
The lab door opened, and Denny, her Red Demon chauffeur, escorted in another patient.
The Flourg was female. She held her hands close to her chest and lowered her head as she scanned the medical bed. Denny pointed to the cot. “Lay down.” Noticeably, the female started shaking.
“Today’s the day you do something, or I start doing something to you,” Karr said to Nara in a nonchalant tone. He watched the female, and Nara noticed that his eyes didn’t change. It was as if he were watching paint dry. After a few moments, he turned his head in a lackadaisical manner.
Karr told her, “If you were anyone else, I’d describe what I would do to you if you don’t get something done today. But considering your sensitivities, I’m going to spare you. But only until the end of the day. Then I’ll show you. So, figure out your problems and get to work. I have a time table, and you’re screwing with it. I’m contemplating killing you just for pissing me off.”
Nara was unfazed. “Then who would do this? Because I doubt you’ll find another Numan.” Because Numans didn’t broadcast who or what they were to those not of their race.
“I could replace you in a week.” Karr flicked her forehead, and she swatted at his hand. Karr laughed in her face.
Ignoring the atrocious sound, she turned back to the female being strapped down to the bed. The Flourg was crying, loudly. Snot bubbled from her nose because she didn’t have free hands to wipe it away. Nara had to close her eyes with disgust.
She opened her lids again when the lab door shut, and Karr’s laughter disappeared. Denny was gone, too. Nara was alone and isolated with the weeping star-bright.
“Lovely,” she said to herself.
Nara grabbed a handful of sanitized rags and walked to the bed, unbuckling the female’s arms as she threw the rags down on her chest. Clean your nose and shut up. I’m trying to think.”
She had to think of something because she was too damn pretty to be cut up into pieces. And she had a thriving business to get back to.
The female blew her nose, and Nara braced for it, turning her head. Then she heard the female say, “Are you working for Veeda?�
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Nara did a double-take at the Flourg. “What did you say?”
“Nothing.”
No, no way had the female just said Veeda’s name. Nara held out a trembling hand. “Do you know who did this to you?”
The female nodded.
“Who?”
The female pointed at her chest and then her arms and legs. “Veeda is the one who did this to us. She turned us into this so we could work in a the phosephenite mines. Light gives off heat, we don’t. And she did something to us that made us colder than usual. I’m always cold.” Licking her lips, the female repeated, “Always.”
Nara felt like a breath of air could knock her off her feet, but by some miracle, she stayed standing.
The female asked cautiously, “Are you really a Numan?”
“Of course, I am.” Nara wondered why the female wouldn’t know that she looked almost identical to Veeda. But what if… “Are you sure it was Veeda who did this to you? Did you actually see her?”
Nodding quickly, the female said, “I saw her. She looked like a grim reaper.”
“A what?” But then Nara remembered the Terran art depicting grim reapers. Holding her hand up to silence the female, she said, “Veeda looked like a person in a black hood?”
“No, she was pale, and I could see her veins through her skin. She was bald and had long fingers, and her eyes were sunken in. I still have nightmares of her.”
Nara stepped back, holding her hands up in shock. “She’s bald?” And withered? What had happened to her?
The Flourg nodded. “Did you know her?”
“A long time ago.”
The last time she’d seen Veeda was when the soulless bastard had turned her skin into tree bark. Nara had been seventeen years old and locked in a closet when her brother Ansel had found her. He’d taken her to his room and had to put her to sleep so he could cut off her skin, and he’d kept her that way until he was able to grow it back.
