Kristar (Bookstrand Publishing Romance)

by D Renee Bagby

  Kitty glanced over her shoulder at Ice. “Do you care that Danny went to screw her boyfriend?”

  “So long as this isn’t a habit—”

  “It’s not,” Rob said quickly. “First time. That’s why… I mean, clean up isn’t that bad tonight. Phil and me can handle it. No need to pay all three of us when two can get the job done, right? I mean…that’s not…don’t fire Danny or anything. I just meant—”

  “It’s fine and not why we’re here,” Ice said.

  “Uh yeah. Sure. Did you want a drink? I’m not as good as Danny. I mean, she got certified and all that and she knows drinks I’ve never even heard of. That is…I know a lot of drinks and—”

  “Stop talking before you hurt yourself,” Kitty said, patting the man’s hand. Typical. Everyone feared Ice, but she didn’t have time for Rob’s jitters. “Have you seen a scroll?”

  “A scroll? Like an old-timey, we’re-on-a-quest-to-slay-the-dragon scroll?”

  Poor choice of words, Kitty thought as Ice clenched his jaw. Rob didn’t know Ice was a dragon. In fact, only Kitty knew since the rest of the club employees were human and in the dark about preternaturals being real. “Something like that. Have you seen one?”

  “Can’t say that I have.” He turned and yelled, “Yo, Phil. You seen a scroll?”

  “A skrull? Why would I see a skrull? I don’t read comics.”

  “Well obviously you do if you know what a skrull is. And I didn’t say skrull, I said scroll. S-C-R-O-L-L. Scroll. You seen one?”

  Phil joined the group, grinning. “Way to go, Rob. I didn’t know you could spell. I thought you were still stuck on your ABCs.”

  Rob gestured to Ice, which made Phil choke the same way Rob had a few minutes ago. Phil’s happy attitude dropped and he cleared his throat. “Nope, haven’t seen a scroll, sir. Sorry.”

  Kitty hopped onto the bar and swung her legs over so she could drop down on the other side. She went to the liquor wall. “The picture was this specifically. It has to be here.”

  She had no clue why she would draw the liquor wall and not the exact location of the scroll but then, Kitty had no control of the entity of truth when it took control. The questions it answered were unknown to her unless the person asking shared, which rarely happened. The few times in the past when she’d performed for Ice he hadn’t bothered to stay once he’d finished. She’d returned to reality to an empty room, a stack of bills before her, and missing up to an hour of time.

  It didn’t matter how much Ice gave her, she hated going under. And Ice might suggest it again if she didn’t find the scroll. The shelved bottles were finger-width apart and nothing peeked out between any of them. Most of the bottles were full and unopened. The few that were open were clear and contained only liquor.

  Kitty sighed and shook her head. “I don’t see it. You?”

  Ice said, “I don’t either.”

  She had to glance at Chigaru for his negative head shake since he decided not to speak. She sighed again. “Now what?” Inside she pleaded for Ice not to suggest another reading. The scroll might have moved between the first reading and the time when the club closed. Another reading would tell them for certain but she didn’t want to do it.

  Ice asked Chigaru, “Do you have another way to get home?”

  Chigaru shook his head.

  “Then you’re stuck here until we find that scroll.”

  Rob leaned over to Kitty and whispered, “What’s up with that?”

  She shook her head. “Don’t worry about it? Get back to work before he notices you’re still standing here doing nothing.”

  Rob and Phil rushed to the back. No one would approach so long as Ice stood there. That guaranteed them a little privacy.

  Ice said, “In the meantime, you can work here to earn your way and stay with Kitty.”

  “Say what?” Kitty yelled without meaning to. A few people looked her way while others worked harder at whatever task they performed, probably not wanting to witness whatever was happening. “You’re just going to volunteer my place without even asking? Don’t you have a mansion with a bunch of empty rooms? Let him stay with you.”

  “Not possible. I have a situation that would be exacerbated by the addition of a guest. Since he will work here, it makes sense for him to stay with you. He won’t have to worry about transportation and you know his story. As well, you are the one who must read the spell in the scroll once it’s found.”

  “Why me?”

  “Do you know of any other close to here with stronger magical ability than you?”

  Kitty wanted to argue but Ice had won. If the spell to send Chigaru home needed a powerful magical user, that explained why he had landed in front of her. No other in the city claimed more power than her, even if she didn’t know how to properly use it. And they wouldn’t be able to explain Chigaru to anyone else in the club without revealing how the real world worked and dealing with a bunch of theatrics. Humans were annoying like that. As one of the only preternaturals on site, Kitty was it. She sighed loudly with her head thrown back.

  Ice said, “Good. That’s settled. Chigaru, what did you do before coming here?”

  “Just make him a bouncer. He’s big enough,” Kitty grumbled.

  Chigaru said, “I am a royal guard.”

  “Royal?” Kitty perked up. “As in a king and queen?”

  “Yes. I am the captain of the queen’s personal guard.”

  “Nice. So why the hell did you give up that to come here?”

  “I did not think coming here would take long, so I did not see it as giving it up.”

  “Oh.”

  Ice said, “Kitty is right then. You’ll be a bouncer—a guard for the club. You’ll be paid in cash since I don’t anticipate you staying long—”

  “I hope not,” Kitty said under her breath.

  “—thus spending money to secure an identity would be a waste. A simple fake ID should suffice for everyday life. Vincent can get that for you. Speaking of…” Ice looked around and then whistled sharply.

  Vincent, who had been hovering nearby but out of earshot, ran to join them. “Yes, boss?”

  “You said you needed another bouncer. Meet Chigaru.”

  “The guy Kitty hit with her car is our new bouncer?”

  Kitty said, “Look at him, Vincent. Does he look like he got hit by a car?”

  “You’ve got a point. Even with that missing arm, I doubt anyone will want to start shit with someone as big as him. Hell, the missing arm just makes him more intimidating.” He shook hands with Chigaru. “Welcome to the club, Chi…uh, what was your name again?”

  Chigaru started to answer but Kitty said, “Just call him Chi. Makes life easier for everyone.” She climbed onto the bar and stood. As she thought, most everyone looked her way. For those who didn’t, she stuck her fingers in her mouth and whistled. “Listen up!”

  Everyone stopped their tasks and gathered around.

  Kitty gestured to Chigaru. “This is Chi. He’s our new bouncer. He’ll be on shift with me.”

  Red asked, “Why’s he on shift with you, Kitty-honey?”

  “Because he’s staying with me. And I’m not driving out here on my days off.” She gave Vincent a pointed look. “You’ve been warned.”

  Vincent said, “We’ll see.”

  “You’ll see him not being here unless you decide to pick him up since he can’t drive.” She assumed he couldn’t drive. Since he didn’t correct her, she guessed she had assumed right.

  Ice said in a low voice to Vincent, “On shift with Kitty, paid in cash, and get him an ID.”

  “Ah. Got it.” Vincent nodded then said in a normal tone, “He’s on shift with Kitty which means he starts tonight.”

  Red said, “Which means Kitty-honey can’t take him home and wear him out.” She winked while a few others laughed.

  Kitty rolled her eyes as she jumped down from the bar beside Chigaru. “Quick introductions. The mouthy redhead is Red. Easy to remember, I know. You alread
y met Brat.”

  Angie yelled, “Hey!”

  “Those two are Pixie and Dusty.” Kitty gestured to the two women standing shoulder to shoulder. “Everyone calls them the twins since they’re always together and they are twins.” She rattled off the names of the other fifteen girls who all waved when they were called as well as the seven waitresses and the hostess. “You sort of met Phil and Rob already. They tend bar with Danny, who you’ll meet tomorrow. You’ll be working with Holland and his crew.” She pointed to the man in the back of the crowd dressed in a dark suit. “Do what he tells you and you should be fine.”

  Chigaru nodded the whole time.

  She turned to Ice with her hand out. “Suit money.”

  Ice didn’t question it. He pulled out his wallet and gave her a credit card. “It’s an open-ended cash card. I want receipts and I want the card returned.”

  “Thank you.” Kitty took the card and tucked it between her breasts. Clothing shopping meant getting up early to go before her shift that night since nothing would be open for another three to four hours. Kitty planned to be in bed by then.

  She glanced at Chigaru and sighed again. She wouldn’t be in bed alone either. A part of her thrilled at that idea, while the other part found the whole situation tedious. She had a two-bedroom apartment. She used one room for storage and didn’t own a couch. That meant Chigaru would be sleeping on the floor or sharing her California king.

  Kitty hoped this would be a temporary arrangement. The scroll would turn up tonight, by some miracle, and Chigaru would be on his way home.

  Chapter Four

  Ice showed Kitty the picture she’d drawn. The liquor wall again. She sighed and sagged in her seat. This question-and-answer session took place promptly after close so there would be no doubt. The search had ended before it began.

  Kitty pushed to her feet. “That’s it then. We’re heading home. Come on, Chi.” She would have to buy him some more clothes. They had gotten a suit for work, another pair of jeans, a shirt, and some other essentials for what Kitty had thought would be an overnight stay.

  She hadn’t wanted a repeat of the night before but couldn’t think of a way around it. She’d felt bad putting a guest on the floor so had resigned herself to the idea of sharing the bed, but neither of them had gotten much sleep. She blamed nerves. She didn’t know Chigaru’s excuse.

  They’d gone to sleep on separate sides of the bed and woke up with Kitty curled around Chigaru’s side and his hand cupping her bare ass. Kitty hadn’t wanted to change her habit of sleeping nude and Chigaru had no issue doing the same, but that had made things awkward when they woke up. Since Chigaru hadn’t tried to talk about it, Kitty let the subject die.

  Chigaru asked, “You won’t look?”

  “We looked last night and there was nothing there. But if you want to look again…” she trailed off as she headed for the bar.

  Danny waved the glass she was drying at them. “Finish your meeting with Ice, I see. What’s the verdict?”

  “Chi is going to be with us a while.” Before Danny could make small talk, Kitty asked, “Have you seen a scroll?”

  “Phil and Rob mentioned you were asking about a scroll last night after I left. Nope, haven’t seen it.”

  “That’s what I thought. Thanks anyway.” She glanced back at Chigaru, but he didn’t say anything, which meant nothing since the man didn’t talk much. She hadn’t known him long but got the feeling silence was normal for him.

  The silence extended over the drive home and into bed. Kitty fell asleep with her back to Chigaru and a pillow between them. She woke cuddled against his side, except this time she shrugged. He was comfortable, warm and not taking advantage of their shared nudity and the compromising position. She closed her eyes to resume sleeping. They had the night off and the last two days had exhausted her.

  “Perhaps I should sleep on the floor,” Chigaru said in a low voice as he dropped his hand from her behind.

  Kitty missed the heat and wanted to tell him to put his hand back, but they didn’t know each other like that. “Up to you.” She rolled away from him and got off the bed, headed for the bathroom. Sleeping in wasn’t going to happen so she decided they should get up and get their errands out of the way.

  Chigaru needed clothes and Kitty needed more food in the house. She exited the bathroom and found Chigaru staring at her Earth pillow. The round pillow that had been flattened after years of use had a globe printed on it.

  She asked, “Something wrong?”

  “I wonder how your Earth and my Gezane can be the same planet yet have such varied histories.” He gestured to Africa and then South America. “On Gezane this is one kingdom known as Cheslav.”

  Kitty returned to the bed and knelt at his side. “One kingdom? How with an ocean splitting it in half? Doesn’t that make governing it hard for the ruler?”

  “King Alric lives in the eastern palace in the winter and the western palace in the summer. Magic is utilized for transportation across the ocean and he has many trusted governors.”

  “That still seems like a lot of work.”

  “Long ago it was two kingdoms until the two heirs married and made it one. That was a time before humans and bhresyas fought.”

  “What’s a bhresya?”

  “I am bhresya.” He paused and frowned a little. In a cautious manner, he said, “In the old tongue of my people, it means people of Bhres.”

  “So you’re from Bhres. Where’s that?”

  “There is no Bhres any longer. The kingdom was split into Nexeu, meaning land kingdom, and Jexeu, meaning sea kingdom.” He circled his finger around the majority of the Asian continent. “This is Nexeu.”

  “That’s pretty big too.”

  He dragged his finger over the Pacific and Indian oceans. “This is Jexeu.”

  “Why split them?”

  “To hide our true numbers from the humans. Bhresya and humans have long warred. It was Serenity’s marriage to King Melchior, king of Nexeu, that brought about peace. Though we are at peace, the humans remain ignorant of Jexeu.”

  Kitty grinned at him. “I’m human and you told me.”

  “You are not of Gezane.”

  “True. And even if I was there, I wouldn’t tell anyone. I know a thing or two about keeping secrets.”

  “I hesitated speaking this truth to you because it is not the way of my people to share this knowledge. King Melchior did not impart it to Queen Serenity until she became the true bhresya queen. His advisors warned against it.”

  “What’s that mean? True bhresya queen? And why the hell am I learning about your world instead of you learning about mine?”

  Chigaru smiled at her. “True bhresya queen means Queen Serenity is privy to all secrets of the kingdom though she is human. The biggest of those secrets is the truth of why the kingdom is no longer called Bhres. Also, she can rule should anything happen to incapacitate King Melchior and her child is uncontested heir to the throne though Princess Nilam is a half-breed.”

  “Humans and bhresyas can interbreed, just like the dragons and humans here. Good to know.”

  He set aside the pillow. “Tell me of these dragons. I never heard the word before coming here and yet Ice says that is what I am.”

  “I’m not sure how you really look, but dragons were huge winged beasts with great magical powers and a really long life span. Close to one thousand years most people say.”

  “Bhresya live approximately six hundred years.”

  “Definitely dragons then. You spoke of a war between your kind and humans on your world, well the same thing happened here, except there was no marriage or treaty that would end it. Dragons were slaves and then they rose up to free themselves. After a few centuries, history lost track of them. They became myths and legends when really they took on human form and started mingling. Generations later, most dragons are more human than dragon and their magic has waned a lot. They aren’t as long-lived anymore either. Most dragons live to be two centuries, if t
hat much.”

  “And what are you? The power you displayed isn’t one I’ve seen before.”

  Kitty figured the conversation would turn to her. It still made her temperature drop to talk about it. “I’m complicated is what I am. What I do is a gift and a curse. My power to divine the truth is the strongest in my family. When my mother figured that out, she changed my name.”

  “To Kitty.”

  She shook her head. “No, Kitty is a nickname, like Chi for you. My real name is Kristar.” She stopped and gave Chigaru a pointed look. “Don’t call me that. Ever. I hate that name. I was born Krystal. My mother changed my name to reflect the bright future she saw for me as a star among the heavens. Hearing it is a reminder of why I fled. She signed me up for every dance class she could find. Every waking moment I wasn’t in school was spent learning every form of dance imaginable. Tap, ballet, modern, line, salsa—anything and everything.” She hugged her arms and shook her head. “I hated it even though I excelled at each.”

  “You draw the truth. Why dance?”

  “Drawing is child’s play. Anyone with even a bit of my talent can draw the truth. Maybe not all truth, but they can still do it. In order to truly tap into my full powers, I have to dance. My mother wanted me to be an oracle. An oracle has access to all the knowledge in the universe when she dances. Not just any dancing either. Beautiful dancing. The movements of her body are the key to unlocking the gates that lead to knowledge. Once open any question can be answered.”

  She met Chigaru’s gaze, unable to tell if he was impressed or not. The man did stoic well. He would be great in a poker game. His stone-faced silence made her think he might be bored with the topic and waiting for her to finish so he could do something else. Humoring her.

  “Whatever,” she said with a shrug. “It’s no big deal.” She turned to leave the bed.

  Chigaru caught her arm and held her. “Continue.”

  “What?” She looked at him. “Why do you care?”

  “Continue.”

  Pulling on her arm didn’t get him to release her. So maybe Chigaru was interested after all and she had misinterpreted his silence. “Not being from around here, you wouldn’t know that an oracle makes good money. Amazing money, actually. To have any question answered, any at all, and know the answer you hear is absolute truth comes at a very high price. Some pay hundreds of thousands, some millions. Every time my mother spoke of my future, she always obsessed about the money. She looked at me and saw dollar signs, not a daughter.