After a tense moment, Garfield let out a small yowl, turned his back on the guards, and strained toward Blue. She could feel his merriment at messing with everyone. At least someone is enjoying themselves.
Vivi, her little nose in the air, had remained by Felix’s side through the whole thing.
Blue sent Garfield a thought of disapproval, which he ignored, and turned back to where the others waited. Ahead of her, glimpsed through the buildings, a moon was rising over the mountains in the distance, its light turning the stone to silver-blue. Elder Shinzu gestured, and the mini-procession set out once more.
The quarters set aside for them were on the edge of the village. They halted at a single-story stone building that stretched the length of the block, evenly spaced doors running down the front. A small mark in the upper right corner distinguished one unit from another, similar to motels on Earth. The elder pointed to the first unit. “This one yours,” he said and pointed at Phillip.
When he stepped back and motioned to the others, Phillip spoke up. “Blue stays with me.” His Common was clear.
The elder turned back and, despite his short stature, somehow looked down on Phillip. “Young man, I will not cater to you. These are your assigned quarters, for now. Our other guests each have their own. You will need to learn restraint.” Elder Shinzu spun on his heel and shuffled down to the next door, Phillip staring after him.
Blue held her breath. Actually held it, afraid that the slightest motion from her, or anyone, would set Phillip off. They’d been so careful…
Phillip’s mouth thinned, and his eyes narrowed. His mouth opened. And he paused. Something like respect entered his eyes, and he nodded.
Maybe we’ve been indulging him too much. The elder had treated Phillip as though he were nothing more than a misbehaving schoolboy. Perhaps this was just what he needed. Blue watched a moment more to ensure that dreaded purple didn’t make an appearance. When Phillip’s eyes remained their natural brown, she followed after the others.
“Should we just leave him like that? Standing at his door?” she asked.
The elder paused outside another door, this one with a slightly different marking, and pointed at it. “For the big redhead,” he said and pointed at Mo’ata. Then he turned to face Blue. “Nowhere for Phillip to go. The crystal is secure.” His eyes narrowed. “And he will not leave you.”
Not waiting for a response, he once more set out, pausing at a door and pointing to a body. They continued this way until everyone had been assigned except for Blue and Levi. Vivi had gone with Forrest, who was two doors down, and Felix had passed off Garfield when they reached his assigned housing. Another guard had joined around the same time, which left Blue standing at the last door with three Prizzoli and a mischievous cub.
A cub currently attempting to climb Levi’s leg.
“Garfield,” Blue said, her voice stern, though some of her amusement leaked through her thoughts.
Levi flashed her a quick smile before pulling his face back into the blank lines he’d been wearing most of the day. He stooped down, prying Garfield’s claws from his pant leg, and picked him up by the scruff of his neck. Garfield let out a squeaking growl and swiped once, keeping his claws retracted. Levi clucked his tongue and then handed the cub to Blue.
Garfield snuggled into her arms and purred. It was a sound she had missed.
“This is for you,” the elder said, indicating the door.
She studied the marking closely. It looked a bit like a paw with a slash through it. It was also the second to last door in this building. She looked back at Levi. “Where you stay?” she asked in her shaky Common, hoping she used the correct words.
“With the other guards,” he said, tipping his head in the direction they’d come from. The elder spoke, rattling something off in Prizzoli, a language fluid in vowels.
Levi replied, his tone calm and words short. The third man, the guard that had joined them, frowned as his gaze darted between the two other men.
The elder narrowed his eyes at Levi and then nodded, once. “The meeting will be at second moon. Pplease ensure they are there.” He directed his words to Levi but spoke in Common, obviously for her benefit.
Wait, did I hear that right? Second moon? How many moons are there?
Her fingers dug into Garfield’s fur. His purr settled her, or maybe it was the sense of reassurance he sent. Wasn’t she supposed to be the one to care for him, to comfort him? He was just a baby himself, and he had been separated from her just as much as she had been isolated from the guys. She gathered the love she felt and sent it his way, and his purr turned into a motorboat rumble. The elder gestured to the door again and then shuffled off, the guard close behind him.
She reached for the door, then hesitated. Now would be the perfect time to get some answers. She spun around to face Levi. “What is going on?” she asked in English, keeping her voice low.
He opened his mouth, then snapped it shut, his gaze shooting over her shoulder. “Later. I promise.”
She twisted her head to see Phillip hurrying toward her. His eyes were narrowed, and even from yards away she could see the purple glow. So the “dad” voice effect from the elder didn’t last long. “Crap.” She turned back to Levi. “Later. You promised. I need answers.”
She spun to face Phillip fully. Garfield’s purr stopped, and she clutched him to her. A vision of the cub flying at Phillip, claws extended, filtered into her thoughts. Whether it was a vision from her fur-baby or a fear of her own, she didn’t know. “No,” she said to him, keeping the admonishment low. She plastered a smile on her face and waited for Phillip to reach her.
“Is this where they have you? All the way down here? I don’t like you so far away.” Phillip reached for her, gripping her shoulder in a hold just short of pain.
“Phillip,” she said, her tone a warning. Yes, she had to put up with him, keep him calm, but she did not have to allow him to hurt her.
Besides, Garfield would take care of it soon, based on the sounds he was making.
A door opened behind Phillip, and Jason emerged. Phillip twisted, his hand tightening to a painful clamp for a second before dropping away. “Captain,” he said, moving to stand beside Blue, ignoring the cub and Levi. “Fancy seeing you here. Oh, wait, you’re not really the football captain. That’s right, you’re a two-faced liar who was just jerking us around.”
Phillip’s eyes fixed on the other man, and the glow returned. That horrible glow that meant Blue would have to either soothe him or get him away from Jason. Blue held back her sigh. She was sick of this—sick of Phillip, sick of being the one to always talk him down, and sick of starting over every time someone did something that set him off. By the time they had left Karran, he’d been relatively calm. The not-so-brilliant “reception” and the preparations for it had strained that calm. Anger over the sheer stupidity of it all had her jaw tightening.
But because Blue was nothing if not intent on keeping Phillip calm—and stopping the destruction of the worlds—she once again humored him, doing what she needed to do. “Jason, please go.” Jason’s gaze shot to hers and he opened his mouth, but she honestly didn’t want to hear it. “No. Just go. See if you can find Forrest. Or Trevon. Oh, and tell them there’s a meeting. Something about a moon.” She twisted to look back at Levi.
“Yes, the elders request us at the second moon, which is not long from now,” he said in Common.
When Jason turned away, Blue stepped back and toward her door. “I’m going to get Garfield settled. Wait for me?” she said to Phillip. The last was purely to placate him. Her stomach turned at how good she was becoming at manipulating Phillip. Not a skill she wanted to be able to put on a resume: Experience with handling obsessed psycho murderer with delusions of godhood.
“I can come in?” Phillip asked. Levi was silent, but he looked to her as well.
The fact that Phillip had asked for permission eased something in her. Then again, maybe he was simply getting better at manipulating
her. “No, I’ll just be a little bit. I also need to change, assuming my bags made it here.” Not waiting for an answer, she pushed open the door to her unit, leaving the two men outside. A light flicked on automatically, and she gasped.
Colors were everywhere. If the outsides of the buildings were plain, the insides sure weren’t. She didn’t know where to look first.
Jewel-toned pillows spilled across a low bed covered in a plush, deep red blanket. Bright blue curtains hung on the rear wall, and to her left an entire wall was covered in a mural of the mountains, the paints nearly glowing out of the wall. Rugs in bold geometric patterns were layered over the floor, and gold swirls traveled the tops of the walls, leading to and from the mural. Even the furniture—a low table and lounging couch—were boldly patterned.
Reserved on the outside, party on the inside. Wonder if Levi is the same?
Blue shook off the thought and set Garfield down, allowing him to explore. As her eyes adjusted to the low light she noticed two doors in the right wall. Hopefully one led to a bathroom and the other to her clothes.
“Hey.”
She jumped, and Garfield came shooting out from under the bed.
Forrest stood behind her, his arms folded over his chest, Phillip hovering behind him. He shot her a quick grin. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. This place is crazy huh? These people are either completely repressed or have some sort of color fetish.” He still wore the armor that had been found for him, and he looked good.
He looked really good, and Blue missed him. She missed both him and Mo’ata because even though they were right there, she couldn’t get as close as she wanted to. She opened her mouth to tell him, to say something, anything that would let him know she missed him, but the words got stuck.
Levi stuck his head in the doorway. “Meeting is starting soon,” he said in English. Blue marveled again at his grasp of the new language so soon after deciding to learn it.
“Okay. Did my clothes make it here? I would like to change out of the dress. I’ll be quick.”
Levi gestured to the door closest to the rear wall. A quick look inside revealed her bag and an assortment of clothing hanging along the back wall. Another door to her right was partially open, revealing a glimpse of grey tile that matched the stone outside and a steel contraption that she couldn’t even begin to figure out.
Another strange mix of technology and old school.
Shutting the dressing room door, she took a breath. Alien worlds, alien worlds, alien worlds. If she could pull her head out of the morass of worry and unknowns hitting her from every side, this would be exciting. As it was, she wondered if she’d have an ulcer before the end of this particular adventure.
She opened the bag in the middle of the small room and pulled out the first layer of clothing. It was mostly the shirts and pants the clan had given her. Next were her coats, and she set those aside. The weather here hadn’t warranted them yet. Socks, a pair of boots, her belt and dagger. Then bright color caught her eye. The sleeve of one of her pairs of long johns. She smiled. An impulse gripped her, and she dug even farther, tossing aside pants and shirts and underwear until she found exactly what she wanted.
The jeans and shirt she’d worn the day she and Forrest returned to Karran.
Perfect.
Contorting her arms and shoulders, she just managed to reach the first few fastenings on the dress and get it off. She wriggled out of it and quickly threw on her chosen outfit. She pulled on her boots and was just about to leave when her gaze snagged on a belt. A blue belt, and attached to it was a dagger—the one Felix had gotten for her.
She didn’t think about it but once again went with her instincts. She may be stuck in something she didn’t understand, but she refused to be helpless. Scooping up the belt and dagger, she secured it around her waist and pulled open the dressing room door.
Of course everyone was there waiting for her.
“I didn’t take that long.”
Forrest, Trevon, and Felix grinned at her. Mo’ata looked her up and down, then nodded. Jason, standing as far from Phillip as he could and still be in the room, crossed his arms, his gaze fixed on the floor. The cubs bounded up to her and stretched up. Their paws reached her upper thighs now, and they patted at her.
Phillip stepped forward. The cubs dropped to the ground and tensed. She received worry and fear from them and sent back reassurance and a bit of a plea to behave. Forming an image of Felix, she hoped they would listen. After a tense moment they stalked over to the mercenary and sat at his feet.
She sent them a little pulse of love. She actually had no idea if Vivi got it or only Garfield. Turning to Phillip, she took the initiative and held out her hand. “Looks like we have a meeting to go to. Let’s go see what our new life is like.” For now.
Phillip grabbed her hand and gripped it tight. She turned to Levi, who stood by the door, and gestured for him to lead the way.
Chapter 4
BLUE
Levi led them through the village. And that was what it was. There was no need to use a transport to get around, which explained why the streets and alleys were all one surface, rather than a roadway and separate walk. They were well kept, no garbage or waste piled anywhere. The buildings varied in height, but all were that same smooth stone and had minimal markings on the outside.
“There will be guards available to each of you to help you navigate the village until you are used to the signs.” Levi paused at an intersection as a group of women passed, dressed similarly to the men in colorful coats and sashes. Two wore trousers while the rest had on skirts that swirled around their feet. They were silent, and when Blue caught one staring at her, the woman ducked her head and picked up her pace.
She hadn’t expected these people to open their arms in welcome, but they had set up a reception earlier. Hell, she didn’t know what to expect. Levi hadn’t mentioned anything except the basic protocols.
Ten minutes later they reached a large building in the center of the village. There was no marking on this one, nor were there any windows or other openings, just one door in the front. Two guards stood on either side of it, their gazes fixed ahead and their faces stoic. Levi stepped up to the door, and if it was possible the guards grew even stiffer. Levi’s shoulders hunched half an inch, and his head bowed.
Blue’s stomach twisted. She’d learned to read him so well, it seemed. Their reactions had hurt him. What must this be like, coming home? There was no fanfare, no great welcome. She hadn’t seen his interactions with the elders except at the aborted reception and with Elder Shinzu earlier, but still...
She stepped forward, and Levi stopped her with a flick of his finger. He shook his head at her and nodded to Phillip, gesturing for him to come forward. Phillip’s grip tightened on her fingers to the point of near pain, and then he let go. He stepped forward and through the door. A gust of wind hit them, bringing with it the scent of rain. A massive bank of clouds hung in the distance and obscured half the sky. Lightning flashed. Above her, a second moon had joined the first, and a third was coming over the horizon.
Levi motioned for her next, and she followed Phillip into a narrow corridor. The halls were lit with lamps of cloudy glass that flickered with a warm light. There were no seams or openings on these, either, and it took her a moment to realize they were all of one piece. One solid piece of stone or crystal of some kind that glowed from the inside.
The others entered behind her, and she moved farther down the corridor, making room. Levi squeezed past her, once more leading. “Come. The elders wait.”
Two more turns and another long hall and they went through a final door. Blue’s breath caught. If she had thought her room overdone, this went forty-two steps further. Exponentially. Colors assaulted her, along with flashes of gold. Was that a jewel encrusted chair? How could that be comfortable? A heavy scent hung in the air, clouding her senses. She couldn’t focus on anything.
How did Levi live with this? She snuck a peek at him only to fin
d him as relaxed as she had ever seen him. Still standing straight, the tension had fallen from his shoulders, and his chin was high. His expression had slid into the easy contentment she had seen only a few times in their time together. This was home to him.
“Phillip, Blue, please, be seated,” the older woman, the Chief Elder, said in Common. She gestured to two cushions set before her. She herself was seated on another, a bright red to match her robes. Other figures stood ranged behind her in similar robes of jewel-bright colors. Elder Shinzu was there as well, two rows back and to the left. He gave Blue a reassuring smile and inclined his head.
When she was seated with Phillip on her right, the Chief Elder gave her a tight smile, then pulled a small box from a fold of her robes and placed it on the floor between the three of them.
Phillip jerked forward, but came up short at a slicing motion from the Chief Elder’s hand. “The plinar, the... crystal-being, will remain locked away,” she said.
Phillip’s eyes flashed purple, and the elders shifted, their robes swaying. The Chief Elder didn’t flinch.
“It was a sound plan,” she continued, “though the metal does not interrupt the connection completely. It allows a small degree of control that is... intriguing.”
Blue’s stomach roiled. She didn’t like the use of the word intriguing. Or maybe she needed to eat. She hadn’t eaten in hours, now that she thought of it. Hadn’t someone said there would be food? Or maybe she was coming down with something?
And her mind was running around like a manic squirrel at a rave.
The Chief Elder held a hand out to Blue, and Phillip growled.
“Do not worry. I will not ‘touch,’ as you said. Blue is very special to you, I see. We will ensure she has the greatest care available and remains safe.” Her gaze swept over Blue and then rose to the men still ranged in the back of the room. “I understand you consider yourselves her guardians, but I assure you, she will have the best protection among us.”
For a Pixie in Blue Page 5
