by Selena Kitt
“It is but I don’t like her,” K said stubbornly. “I don’t trust her. I was trained to judge the enemy in a split second and something about that Ilesca is wrong.”
“Yeah, she’s got whiskers and most likely a tail.” Boone grinned. “Unfortunately, she’s also got what we need so we’re going to have to deal. Cheer up, darlin’—we’ll be out of here before you know it.”
K gave him a dark look. “I pray to Purity you’re right but I doubt it, Boone. I really doubt it.”
Chapter Nine
K scanned the landing platform, feeling naked. Her unprotected skin itched for her suit and her fingers twitched as though reaching for the triggers of her gauntlets. But she had no weapon—not so much as a sharp stick. Boone and Loki were armed of course—Boone with a pulse pistol that looked more like a cannon since it was sized to fit his big hand and Loki with his gogi dagger. K, however, had nothing.
Seeing the weapon strapped to the Erian’s waist reminded her that just a few solar weeks ago she’d tried to use it to purge herself. He was within reach now and her hands were unrestrained—a fact that Loki was not happy with but Boone had insisted on. K wasn’t thinking of purging herself now, however. Now the only reason she wanted the weapon was to have something to defend herself with. She didn’t like being dependent on others to protect her, not even Boone who she was beginning to trust despite herself.
Because of her misgivings about Ilesca, K had asked for a weapon and Boone had promised to take it into consideration. He’d gone to talk to Loki about it but on that point the Erian had absolutely balked. “You’re letting her come with us planetside—fine,” he’d spat at Boone. “You want to keep an eye on her, I understand that. But if you give her a weapon—if you let her have so much as a fucking rusty butter knife from Earth-that-was—then I am not going with you. She’s a trained killer and we’re her targets. You’d be stupid to forget that Boone.”
“K is an honorable person,” Boone had argued in a low voice. “She’s promised not to try and kill anyone until she gets her suit back.”
“And you believe her? Goddess, Boone, please tell me you’re not that stupid. Look, you don’t know the Purists, not like I do. I was their prisoner—I’ve seen what they’re capable of.”
“I know you had a rough time in their labs,” Boone had said softly, putting a hand on the other man’s shoulder. “But I need you to trust me on this, Loki.”
“Why, so you can get us both killed? Face the facts, Boone—you’re starting to have feelings for this girl and it’s getting in the way of your better judgment.”
“What? You’re crazy,” Boone had protested but was there a glimmer of doubt in his light-on-white eyes? K, who had been watching from her hiding place behind the bulkhead, wondered.
“I’m not crazy—you are. You’re the one falling for a Goddess damned Paladin. I see the way you look at her, the way you touch her—”
“I touch her because I have to—because she’ll die if I don’t. Now if you know a better way, feel free to share it right now.” Boone’s voice was low and dangerous. “In fact, I’ll bet you do know a better way. You know a hell of a lot you’re not telling.”
“I’ve told you all you need to know. I’m sorry I told you that much.” And Loki had spun on his heel and marched away, leaving Boone to mutter something under his breath that K couldn’t quite catch. She’d been too busy wondering about what she’d heard to worry about Loki’s parting invective anyway.
Could it be true that Boone had some kind of emotion for her? Maybe the same kind that Six, the pilot on her old purge squad had appeared to have? K had felt nothing for Six except maybe a very cold kind of revulsion when he’d tried to touch her. But with Boone... she shook her head. With Boone things were all mixed up. He was the enemy—he’d ambushed her, killed her squad, and contaminated her beyond hope of cleansing or redemption. And yet...
“Hey K, you okay?” Boone’s soft question pulled her back to the present.
“Fine,” she said shortly. Pushing the disturbing thoughts out of her head, she began wishing for a weapon again. I still have my hand-to-hand combat training to fall back on, she reminded herself. But without her skinsuit that would mean touching whoever she was fighting. Just the thought of that—of touching anyone besides Boone—made her stomach roll until she wanted to heave. She would do it if she had to but... Please Purity, let it not come to that. Please, I can’t—
The large bronze door at the far end of the landing platform slid smoothly open, interrupting her silent prayer. Standing there, as though posing for a vid shot, was Ilesca. It was early morning on the half of Minotaur they’d landed on and the cat-woman appeared absolutely radiant, outlined by the golden glow of interior lights behind her.
“Welcome visitors.” Her soft, purring voice put K’s nerves on edge and the way the cat-woman was scanning Boone didn’t do anything to quiet them.
“Ilesca. Nice to meet you in person.” Boone stepped forward and put out a hand but the cat-woman ignored it. She flowed smoothly forward, moving in a way that was more animalistic than human, until she was right in front of him. Then, standing on her tip-toes to reach him, she placed her hands on his shoulders and rubbed her cheek against his.
“That is our greeting here,” she murmured, just loud enough for K to hear. “And I am more than glad to give it to you and welcome you to Jamesville.”
Loki uttered a short laugh. “Nice. And is there a Johnsville and an Abrahamsville too?”
Ilesca studied the Erian with wide, unblinking eyes. “Johnstown is the next township over—why do you ask?”
Loki smirked. “No reason. It’s just that anyone who names a town after themselves doesn’t seem to be overburdened with modesty.”
“My father founded this settlement—he carved it out of the wilderness with his own two hands. Why should he not be proud?”
Loki opened his mouth but Boone cut in smoothly. “No reason at all. It appears to be something to be proud of—what we can see of it, that is.” He smiled down at Ilesca who was still standing much too close—at least in K’s opinion. The cat-woman’s large, disgustingly protuberant breasts were pressed against his chest, her long red nails rested lightly on his shoulders as she looked up into his eyes.
K had a sudden, intense urge to walk over and rip the woman’s hands from Boone’s body, spin her around, and push her down to the ground. Then she would grind that pointed, cat-like face into the dirty tarmac of the landing platform until she begged for mercy. She doubted if Ilesca would retain her seductive little smile after that.
The urge was so strong that K was actually taking a step toward them, her hands raised, when a thought stopped her cold. Is this what Boone meant when he asked if I was jealous? It was hard to believe—she’d denied the emotion out of hand when he’d accused her but then, she’d never felt it before so it was easy to deny. But this feeling, this desire to do violence because she saw another female’s hands on what K considered to be her property was new. It even superseded her dread of touching someone besides Boone without her suit. Could it be that she was jealous after all? Ridiculous, she told herself uneasily. I just don’t want any of her contamination to rub off on me the next time Boone and I touch.
“Well, maybe we ought to get going,” Boone said, smiling uneasily down at Ilesca who was still all over him.
“Maybe we should. I know my father is most eager to meet you.” With one last full body rub she finally released him. “Walk this way if you please,” she said, turning to lead them back to the open doorway.
“Honey, if I could walk that way I’d own my own brothel,” Loki muttered, sotto voce. The cat-woman’s full hips swayed from side to side like a pendulum with each tiny, mincing step she took.
“Shut up.” Boone nudged him and looked back at K. “Coming?”
“Of course.” She strode forward, wincing as the purple leather boots Loki had grudgingly allowed her to borrow pinched her toes. No one else’s shoes had fit her
and she didn’t have any of her own—she hadn’t needed any with her skinsuit. Boone had promised to get her new clothing and shoes on Minotaur—he’d claimed it was the least he could do. K just hoped he did it soon. She felt undressed in his voluminous dress shirts, even when they were cinched at the waist.
This was the first time she’d seen him wear one of the shirts himself since he was usually dressed in the soft synthi-cotton upper body garments he called t-shirts. K had to admit he filled the dress shirt out much better than she ever could. The smooth black fabric of the one he was currently wearing was stretched across his back, emphasizing the width of his shoulders. It was tucked into his low-slung black leather flight pants. He had a very muscular ass, she noted and then wondered why she would notice such a thing at all. After all, the black skinsuits she and her fellow Paladins had worn were much more formfitting than Boone’s present outfit and she’d never taken note of any of their bodies. But somehow Boone’s large form drew her eyes.
Stop being ridiculous. The cat-woman is the one to keep an eye on. K kept her gaze fixed firmly on Ilesca’s rounded hips as they passed through the wide doorway and into the well-lit interior.
Inside the large space they found themselves in, everything seemed to be made of dull, battered metal. The area was sparsely furnished with benches that looked as though they could withstand a great deal of mistreatment and almost nothing else. The floor was made of some reddish-brown stone and highly polished, enough that K could look down and see a dim reflection of herself as they walked.
“I’ll take you directly to Father’s lab,” Ilesca was saying to Boone—she seemed content to ignore Loki and K completely and focus on him. “He has it right in the same building as the port so he can get supplies more quickly. And of course, it’s a good thing to be close to an escape vehicle at all times.”
“Oh? And why is that?” Boone wanted to know.
Ilesca batted her long eyelashes at him and twitched her whiskers. “In case of a saurian attack, of course. The new electro-shock perimeter we’ve set up recently helps deter them, as do the scent repellants, but we do still have one or two get through now and then. They can be most... persistent.” She stopped in front of a bronze door banded with iron and turned to face them again. “Which is why Father’s lab is underground.”
Boone raised his eyebrows. “Isn’t being located by the landing port protection enough? Can’t you just take off in your ship if a saurian breaks into your compound?”
“Escape from the planet’s surface is a last resort. But even if we do have to leave, Father can’t have a deranged beast running amok in his delicate equipment.” She pressed a series of buttons to one side of the door and there was a soft clicking sound as the auto-lock disengaged. “After you, Doctor Boone,” she purred.
Boone eyed the narrow dark passageway that was revealed when the door slid to one side with what K thought looked like trepidation. It truly was a small space, especially for someone as large as him. He would have to bend almost double to even get down the stairs.
“Our most abject apologies for the size of the corridor,” Ilesca murmured. “I promise that once down the stairs, the space opens up.”
Boone shrugged. “Not a problem. It’s a good thing I’m not claustrophobic though.” He ducked to go through the doorway but K stopped him with a tug on the back of his shirt.
“Wait. Let me go first.”
“Why?” He turned, frowning at her and she knew he was thinking that she wasn’t even armed.
“I’m smaller—I can maneuver more easily.” K gave him a level stare. “Let me go first, Boone.”
Ilesca appeared to notice her for the first time. “How charming. Is this creature your bodyguard? She doesn’t appear to be armed—how does she defend you?”
“Who are you calling a creature?” K gave the cat-woman a cold look. She was taller than Ilesca which helped.
Ilesca stared back just as coolly, apparently unfazed by their height difference. “What’s wrong with your eyes?”
“I am a fourth level Paladin which means that armed or not, I am perfectly able to protect Boone, especially if you’re leading him into a trap.”
“Ladies, please.” Boone put out a hand to stop them. “There’s no need for hostility.”
“Not yet anyway.” K kept her eyes on Ilesca. “Lead the way and we’ll follow.”
“As you wish, bodyguard.” The cat-woman’s full lips twisted into a superior smile that K wanted to wipe off her face with a fist. Then she nodded and led the way down the narrow stone steps.
“Why’d you stop them?” K heard Loki whisper as they made their way down. “For a minute I thought we were going to get to see a cat fight—literally.”
“Shut up, Loki,” Boone growled. K could feel his breath at the back of her neck—he really was too large for such a small passage. The sensation was oddly comforting but she took care not to let it relax her too much. She needed to keep alert in case there really was a trap at the bottom of the stairs. Despite the fact that they were simply on Minotaur to get the ship fixed, she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something wrong here—very wrong.
Ilesca had at least been telling the truth about the space underground, K saw as they finished their long descent. The narrow staircase opened out into a huge area—clearly it was a natural cavern that had been molded into a living quarters. In contrast with the wide, empty room above it was lavishly furnished with a thick purple carpet and fixtures and furniture made of shiny brass and glass. The ceiling was so high it was difficult to make out what the lighting fixtures were made of but they cast a warm golden glow over everything that seemed to make the large space more cozy somehow. K distrusted it at once.
“This is some lab you’ve got here. Where’s the equipment?” Boone said scanning the huge room.
“This way.” Ilesca led them through what appeared to be some kind of a sitting area with comfortable brass-studded leather furniture and tall bookcases filled with old fashioned paper volumes. After that they came to a dining area much like the one on the ship although the furniture was considerably more elegant and less battered. A food prep area followed and then they came to a large shiny brass wall with a narrow hallway down the middle and a door on either side.
“We have no natural partitions here so we’ve had to build some.” Ilesca nodded at the wall. “We use a lot of brass because the metals to make it are most common on Minotaur. The door to the left leads to our guest sleeping quarters. And this leads to Father’s lab.” She pressed a series of buttons on the shiny wall beside it and the door on the right slid open with a soft whoosh. “Please come in.”
K went before Boone without asking. She assumed Loki was bringing up the rear but she didn’t really care. Her interest was in what danger might lie ahead, behind the tall, polished brass wall.
Inside the space was partitioned into rooms of varying sizes. Ilesca led them past several doorways and down to the very end where it opened into a much larger area. K looked suspiciously for any signs of a trap but all she could see were several large pieces of expensive looking computer equipment as well as some counters and stools, all made of brass. There was a glass partition at the end of the room which seemed to contain cages, though what kind of animals were inside, K couldn’t tell.
“Well, well, well—Doctor Boone. Such a pleasure!” A tall cadaverously thin man with a shock of thick white hair came through a side door that appeared to lead to a small, inner office and held out a hand to Boone.
“Doctor Abrahams.” Boone took the offered hand and gave it a firm shake. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
“None of it good, I’m sure.” Abrahams cackled in delight at his bad reputation. He was wearing strange brass and crystal goggles that shielded his eyes from view and he stared up at Boone myopically. “My, they do grow them tall on Colossus, don’t they?”
“I’m on the big side even by Colossian standards.” Boone grinned charmingly. “My mom always joked
that dad must have put quick-grow in her caffeine brew when she was carrying me.”
“I can certainly see why.” Abrahams cackled again. “And who are these two—your assistants?”
“This is Loki, our pilot. And this is K—she’s a fourth level Paladin.”
“She’s his bodyguard,” Ilesca put in nastily, her whiskers twitching.
Doctor Abrahams appeared to remember that he was wearing the brass and crystal goggles because he slipped them up to sit on the top of his head in order to study K more closely. “Indeed? You have a fourth level Purist Paladin as a bodyguard? I must say, Doctor Boone, I am most impressed.”
“She’s not actually—” Loki began.
“Still a Purist,” K finished for him smoothly. There was no way she was going to let Ilesca and her father see any division between herself and the others in her group—it wasn’t tactically sound. “That is to say, I still adhere to the precepts of Purity but I have been contaminated and so cannot go back to Athena,” she added.
