"Master Arvil, I like this served at my home," the same guest spoke again slowly, as if he were thinking carefully about each word before he spoke.
"Perhaps something might be arranged," Arvil smiled. Jazal was still drinking and didn't speak. It was probably better that way. Anith was talking animatedly with another guest, who was politely ignoring her. Lita and Kita sat on either side of Delvin. Well, he was making his bed. At least Arvil didn't get homicidal when somebody slept with his cousins.
"We'll bring two more assistants from The San Gerxon," Arvil told me inside the kitchen later. His guests had gone to Arvil's media room with Jazal and the others. Our current assistants were there pouring drinks. Xiri and I were doing our best to clean everything up.
"Thank you, Lord Arvil," I nodded to him. Xiri was doing the same.
"Next time, I'll try not to shoot the garbage inside your kitchen, Reah." Arvil walked out, heading toward the media room and his guests.
"He needs a new woman and fast," Xiri muttered. I agreed. I didn't want Arvil San Gerxon to come anywhere near me. At times, he was polite and congenial. Until he decided to kill you, that is.
* * *
"We have eight new houseguests, plus the brother and his crew," I sighed as I sat next to Teeg on the sofa. He'd been watching news vids when I arrived—Campiaa had pirated feeds from the Alliance.
"Who are they?" Teeg casually stroked fingers against my temple.
"No idea—they look humanoid for the most part, but their eyes are slitted like a snake's and they have small nostrils and hiss a little when they talk," I closed my eyes; Teeg's fingers were sending me to sleep.
"Come to bed, baby." Teeg's voice was soft as he lifted me and carried me down the hall. I wasn't awake when he got me into bed.
* * *
The pounding on Teeg's door in the middle of the night had us both off the bed in less than a blink, only Teeg was growling as he pulled on his pants. I didn't have time to wonder or worry over being in his bed to begin with. I was right behind him when he flung his door open after checking the security camera on the wall. Delvin was outside, waiting for us to answer the door.
"Arvil wants both of you to come and come quick, we're getting away from Campiaa—tonight."
Teeg and I were flinging clothing, shoes and toiletries into bags that Teeg pulled out of his closet. Delvin was tight-lipped when Teeg asked him where we were going. A hover-limo waited for us outside; the driver helped Teeg fling bags into the back and we were at Arvil's palace in a fraction of a click. The other thing that surprised me, in addition to my being wakened like that, was that there were no less than six females I didn't recognize who were going with us.
"Arvil employs them—they service his best guests," Teeg whispered when nobody was listening to us. The amount of luggage for Arvil, his brother, wife and cousins, the wizards, all eight of them and the houseguests was staggering. Xiri's gear, with that of his two assistants, was much more modest.
"I wouldn't have taken you, Teeg, but we have to keep Reah happy," Arvil tapped the top of my head. My hair was growing back some—I no longer looked like I'd been shaved.
"I'll do my best to keep her happy," Teeg said. Arvil's wizards folded us away, bags included.
Chapter 7
"Welcome to my home." The guest who'd spoken the night before was giving us a formal greeting now. His home was a large, single-story in a plantation style. Tile and wood floors were everywhere, and it was spotless. He had a good housekeeping staff, looked like.
"We not properly introduced," our host took my hand and bowed over it slightly. He had skipped over some of his words. I noticed that the others did the same, whenever they spoke. "Fine cook is rare. I am Farzinalek, but please to call me Farzi." That was easy to remember; it sounded a lot like Marzi—another person I would never forget. "Of course, Master Farzi." I nodded respectfully.
"Where are we staying?" Anith's voice was annoyingly whiny. Teeg was pulling me away from Farzi even as he thought to address the problem of his other guests. Arvil, his family and his wizards all got rooms inside the main house. Teeg and I were given a guest bungalow a few steps away. Xiri and his assistants got the bungalow next to ours. Farzi looked as if he'd prefer to send Jazal and Anith to a bungalow, but that would offend Arvil so he didn't.
"Reah, you and Xiri will be helping with the cooking here, since we are imposing on Farzi," Delvin informed me. I nodded before we were led out the door and shown to our bungalow.
"Baby, I wanted you in my bed before, but I wasn't going to do anything." I listened to Teeg's words as we both stared at the wide bed inside the only bedroom in our bungalow. "I'll sleep on the sofa if that's what you want," he added.
"No. Let's just go to bed—I'm tired and I don't know how much they'll expect me to do in the morning," I muttered.
"Come on," Teeg pulled me with him. Our bags had been left on the floor, Teeg and I stripped to our underwear and crawled into bed like that. When the aud-alarm went off in the morning, I found myself pulled tightly against Teeg and his body was angled over mine. He didn't want to let me up, either, but let me go after a few kisses and protests.
"We got moved because our eight guests got wind that the Alliance was tailing them on the last part of their trip to Campiaa. Arvil didn't want trouble, so he had his wizards move us here," Xiri hissed as we went through cabinets to see what we had to work with.
They must have been important for Arvil to come back with them, but I didn't tell Xiri that. He loved to gossip and could get more information out of anybody than anyone else I'd ever known. I got confirmation on Xiri's gossip a few ticks later when Lendill spoke in my mind. Reah, where are you? he asked.
No idea—we got moved in the middle of the night, I answered. Lendill cursed in several languages.
Are you with San Gerxon and several reptanoids?
Is that what they are?
Yes.
I wanted to ask about reptanoids but didn't—I had no desire to get a mental slap on the head.
Reah, do you have any idea where you are now?
No. It looks like a jungle outside—lots of tropical trees and plants, and it's really humid. I only saw that this morning, while I was walking to the main house. Single level—looks like a plantation home. Huge.
Reah, we've been after those reptanoids for a while. If you can get any information on where you are, send it right away.
All right.
* * *
"Reah, what we have for breakfast today?" Farzi had come into the kitchen.
"What would you like, Master Farzi?"
"Whatever you make we welcome." I wondered why Lendill had been after these for so long. Was there an entire planet of these beings or were there only a few? What had they done that the ASD wanted them? "I dismiss cooking staff before we leave for Campiaa; they not good anyway." His clipped common speech made me think that he had another language, although his words in the common tongue were precise.
Xiri gave me a look as Farzi settled himself onto a chair at the island and we cooked breakfast for him. Others wandered in, including more reptanoids, wizards and finally, Arvil. Jazal and his crew were still in bed.
"You have carpenter with you?" Farzi turned to Arvil.
"He can do anything as far as building goes," Arvil replied.
"Perhaps he help me—we find a way to kill wood-chewing ants here. But much wood on south side of house needs replacing," Farzi said. "Ours here now not know much in way of building."
That told me that the reptanoids hadn't put up the house or anything around it. Had they bought this place or gotten it some other way?
"Reah, find Teeg and bring him in—we'll see if he can help Farzi out." Wiping my hands on a towel, I nodded at Xiri to keep up his inventory and went off toward our bungalow.
"Teeg, we can feed you at the house—I think they need help repairing termite damage and none of them know what to do," I said. Teeg was up, dressed and going through the tiny kitchenette we had
, looking for something to eat. We didn't have anything there—I saw that right away.
Teeg got his breakfast in the main kitchen later as he listened to Farzi describe his insect troubles.
"Not a surprise, they like moist, warm places," Teeg agreed. I took his empty plate and he followed Farzi toward the south end of the house.
"I am come to help with missing food." A reptanoid came silently through the wide door. Xiri stared at our new arrival, so I had to piece out what he meant.
"You mean you'll help us get what we need?"
"Yes—what is missing." He gestured toward the cabinets.
"Very good—where can we find missing food?" I was getting on board with this. He grinned at me, which transformed his face. I couldn't help but smile back at him. He and the others all had brown hair and golden-brown, slitted eyes. In the dim interior of the plantation's kitchen, his eyes rounded until they appeared almost humanoid. So far, too, I hadn't seen anything violent from any of the eight reptanoids and wondered again why the ASD hunted them.
"I drive," he was still smiling at me. He drove. The vehicle was an ancient hovercar, but it ran. I got the idea he was the one who kept the vehicle in good repair. Xiri and I learned he was called Nenzi. Nenzi took us to a thriving market about a click away. Solar power was in use, so meats and other items in need of refrigeration were kept cold or frozen.
"Buy missing food." Nenzi held up a necklace chip.
"How much?" I asked, unsure how much he wanted to spend.
"Whatever," Nenzi flung out an arm. Plants, dust and children seemed to be everywhere as we made our way through the market. The children were all wearing the least amount of clothing one might get away with. The native population was darker-skinned than the reptanoids—I saw that right away. The children were running and shouting as they played, using a language I didn't know.
Xiri and I made our choices, Nenzi right behind us. He paid for everything—we had to get quite a bit to feed the crowd at the plantation. Nenzi didn't seem to mind. I was thankful the plantation had several large keepers—we were going to need them. Tropical fruit was everywhere and freshly picked. I had a sauce recipe that required some of the fruit we found. That went into our purchases.
The hovercar was packed full for our return trip, so I paid more attention to the fields we passed on the way home. I was looking for drakus seed but didn't see any from the road. That didn't mean it wasn't there, though.
They have grapefruit, orange, nanna, mango, pineapple, avocado and round melons, I sent to Lendill. All growing locally. They also had meat from a sheep they called palaca, I added. I found green nuts too.
Reah, I know that's important to you, but I'm not sure what good it will do us, Lendill replied. I'd have gotten out my comp-vid and gone looking to see where all those things were grown in one place. But then I wasn't Vice-Director of the ASD, either.
Then give it to Chash as a research assignment, I grumped and ended our communication.
* * *
"It would have worked perfectly, if somebody hadn't gotten wind of us," Norian wanted to shout or put his fist through a wall; he couldn't decide which. "When we caught that fool wizard Haral on Reliff, Aryn's compulsion worked flawlessly. Haral spilled the information that the reptanoids were in this up to their foreheads. We would have had all of them; we were an arm's length away from having them," Norian wanted to go to lion snake so badly it was almost painful. He wanted to bite something—kill something. Realizing it was very close to the full moon on Le-Ath Veronis, he did his best to calm down.
"If we'd known this wasn't going to work, we could have turned the wizard over to King Wylend. He has a death warrant out on that one, and probably most of San Gerxon's other wizards too." Lendill was nearly as frustrated as Norian was. They should have had Reah back by now. Both he and Norian had thought it would only be a matter of days. Now, they had no guess at a timeline—they didn't even know where Reah and the others were. Lendill didn't want to hand the information to Tory and Aurelius. Gavril, too, young as he was, wanted information and was begging his mother to ask Norian about Reah every day.
* * *
"Reah, do they expect you to do this every day? Work from dawn until they go to bed at night? What are those house servants for?" Teeg was hauling me inside the door. We'd been at the plantation for a week and there hadn't been anyone there to offer us a day off or give us a break. I fell in bed every night, asleep before my head hit the pillow most of the time. When the alarm went off, I dragged myself to the shower, cleaned up and went off to the house.
It took Xiri, Ande, Malin and me all day to serve three meals, drinks and snacks for all the people at the plantation. Arvil went off in a hovertruck a time or two with Farzi, Nenzi and several wizards. I wasn't invited along. I could only assume they were going to inspect the crops. Jazal, Anith, the twins, six courtesans and Delvin stayed behind, lazing around the pool and sipping drinks that we made for them. We were now serving thirty-six people—that included the staff at the plantation. Nenzi had driven us to the market twice since we'd arrived. Now Teeg was seething over it.
"Teeg, just let it go, all right? I don't see anyone else with cooking skills, do you?"
"I don't see any one of them helping, and Arvil doesn't think you need more assistance?"
"Come on, I want to go to bed, not get into an argument." I pulled Teeg's arm, leading him away from the door.
"Reah, I get to knock off work before the evening meal." Teeg had been rebuilding walls and woodwork damaged by termites.
"That's nice." I was headed toward the bed.
"Reah, I want to love you. But I'm not about to take advantage of my girl when she's so tired she can't stay awake."
That stopped me where I stood. "Teeg, I'm sorry. I have to go to bed."
"Then I'll take you," he grumbled, lifting me right off the floor.
* * *
"I see we tire our cooks." Farzi walked into the kitchen the next morning as I was pulling the second pan of pastries from the oven. The kitchen was hot from the oven—the plantation's solar air cooler could only do so much and the humidity inhibited its effectiveness. Xiri was already fanning himself and Ande and Malin looked like a bucket of water had been dumped over their heads. If my hair was longer, I imagined I'd look just the same.
I didn't really have time to talk with Master Farzi but I wasn't rude, even if I wanted to be. I drizzled glaze over the pastries as Xiri put plates of sliced fresh fruit out, and then added broiled strips of bacon. Eggs were difficult to find, so we saved those for sauces and baking most of the time.
Farzi followed us as we carried huge trays of breakfast plates into the dining room—it was cooler in there, at least. Arvil was served first, as usual, and then Farzi, who sat down, still watching us. We went down the sides of the table after that, putting a plate in front of everyone. The staff's plates were left on the island in the kitchen—at least they came to get their own after it was cooked. Teeg did the same, only he usually took his breakfast outside where it was cooler.
When I got back to the kitchen, I broke with tradition and took my plate outdoors to eat beside Teeg. He sat on a low wall surrounding a flowerbed. I leaned against him while I ate, then set my plate aside after eating only half my food. I closed my eyes.
* * *
"Reah, wake up." The words were soft.
"Hmmh?" I moaned softly when I opened my eyes. Teeg had wakened me, but Arvil was standing in front of me when my eyelids lifted.
"Take her to the bungalow. I'll handle this," Arvil said and stalked off.
"What happened?" I was suddenly frightened.
"Farzi informed Arvil that there were too many people for four to wait on hand and foot," Teeg pulled me up. "Come on, sweetheart, we just got the day off."
I was happy to shuck my clothing, wash in a cool shower and climb into bed in clean pajamas. At least our bungalow had a clothes machine—it washed and dried. Teeg stripped down to his underwear and crawled in bed w
ith me. I slept until late in the afternoon.
"Reah? Sweetheart, wake up." Teeg was nuzzling my chin and neck. He nipped my neck lightly, too. "Come on, baby, open your eyes."
I reached up to run fingers through his dark hair. It curled just a little. Teeg gave me a crooked grin before leaning down to kiss me.
The covers were on the floor, we were both naked and Teeg was giving me pleasure. "I know what my Reah wants," he whispered as his body stroked into mine. His kisses covered my moans as the waves of ecstasy came. I felt like a wanton, wrapping my arms and legs around his body and digging my nails into his back. He didn't seem to care.
* * *
"Want more?" Teeg's body was between my legs as I sat on the bar in our bungalow, eating a slice of melon with my fingers. He wiggled suggestively, letting me know he wasn't talking about the fruit. I fed him a chunk of melon. He let me finish the rest of it before he took what he and I both wanted.
* * *
I learned what course of action Arvil had taken the moment I walked into the kitchen the morning after my day off. The place was a complete mess.
"Those women not know how to cook," Farzi was there and shaking his head. "I and mine were forced to hunt."
"Sorry," I heaved a helpless sigh.
"None of your fault. You were tired. I have hope you are rested, now?"
"I am rested now." I started cleaning up the mess.
"Perhaps Master Arvil will bring those here yesterday and force them to learn?"
"I have no control over that," I said, wiping flour off the counter and into a waste bin. They'd wasted at least five pounds of flour—it was scattered across the flat surfaces in the kitchen.
"What you control, young cook?"
"Nothing." I ran water in the sink, preparing to wash dishes. Xiri walked in, yawning widely. He took one look at the state of the kitchen and moaned.
Demon Revealed (High Demon Series #2) Page 11
