Sunscapes Trilogy Book 1: Last Chance

by Michelle O'Leary

  "Don't give me shit, Mina,” Kai growled, as he brushed past his sister and made his way towards the kitchen.

  "Certainly not—that would be unsanitary."

  Sin rolled her eyes and gave Del a wry smile. “I keep trying to tell him it does no good to pick a fight with an AI, but he doesn't listen. Make yourself comfortable. I'll get that contract."

  She slipped into the next room, and Del moved after Kai to the kitchen. There was a long counter with stools along one side, and he pulled one out and sat. Kai looked as though he was mixing yet another drink, and Del watched with some amusement as he measured amounts of five different liquors into a glass with solemn care. Then he dropped a pearl of something reddish orange into the mix with a flourish before pushing the glass towards Del. The pearl dissolved in a flood of warm, swirling colors, and Del glanced up to see Kai grinning at him in challenge.

  "A supernova. Guaranteed to burn you clean."

  "Just what I need,” Del said dryly.

  Kai chuckled as he turned away. He started pulling food cubes out of a receptacle as his sister returned.

  She tossed a flat viewer on the counter next to Del. “Read that over. If you see anything you don't like, let me know. It's a standard pilot's contract, but we can tweak it.” She moved to assist her brother in putting the food cubes in the reconstructor.

  Del picked up the contract and began to read, lifting his drink and taking a cautious sip. Cautious or not, he had to pause in his reading as sudden tears sprang into his eyes. The ferocious burn of the drink seemed to consume his whole head before moving into his chest. He gasped as quietly as he could, but when he blinked his eyes clear, he met Kai's twinkling green gaze and humorous smirk.

  "S'good,” he croaked.

  Kai's snort of amusement goaded him into taking another sip. The burn wasn't quite as bad the second time and he lifted the glass in defiant salute. That elicited a low chuckle from Kai, as he turned to pull reconstructed produce from the machine, crisp and fresh as the day it was harvested.

  Del went back to reading the contract as the twins diced vegetables and meat. The two seemed to be doing their level best to get in each other's way, bickering all the while, but Del ignored them. The contract held his attention—he'd never read a more fair and equitable arrangement. A weird sense of disorientation gripped him, and he wondered if he was dreaming. He was free of the Core and he was being asked to join a company that offered him every benefit without apparent gain for themselves, except for the condition that he would work for them for one year. After that, he had the option to renew or to move on ... This couldn't be real.

  Del tossed the viewer down and said, “You can't be serious with this."

  Sin lifted her eyebrows at him with a faint smile. “Found something you don't like?"

  "No, and that's the problem. It's a fantastic deal. What's the catch? And it says nothing in there about paying you back for what you gave the Core."

  "Paying us back isn't necessary."

  "Yes, it is,” he ground out, holding her gaze with grim intent. He wasn't taking charity. If they could be more reasonable than the Core about payments, than with his new salary he could clear that debt within a pretty short span of time. Of course, he didn't know how much the penalties and fees had been that Griffin had made them pay. “Exactly how much do I owe you?"

  She waved a hand in careless dismissal. “We can talk about that later—"

  "I want it in the contract,” he insisted and refused to look away when she narrowed her eyes at him.

  "That anxious to be indebted again, Del?"

  "I don't take charity,” he growled and she grimaced, dropping her gaze.

  "Fine,” she muttered, “it'll be in the contract."

  "Before I sign.” He shoved the viewer across the counter at her and lifted his eyebrows.

  She pressed her lips together and glared at him, but picked up the viewer. After tapping away at it for a moment, she slid it back across the counter. He scanned it briefly and shook his head, trying not to look dismayed at the amount there. Griffin hadn't allowed him to go easily. “There's no interest or time limit on this."

  She folded her arms and stared at him, expression chilly. “What's your point? It's in the contract."

  He stared back for a long moment, trying hard to see the glitch in this paradise that they were offering him—besides lusting after his boss. “What do you want from me? What's in this for you?"

  "We want an excellent slicer pilot."

  "There's gotta be more to it."

  "There isn't,” she answered serenely, but her eyes dropped and she began to assist her brother again.

  He thought about calling her on that lie, but the truth was he didn't want to. He wanted what they were offering, wanted it bad enough that he could taste it. He took a large swallow of the supernova before placing his thumb on the scanner, sealing the deal. Neither twin seemed to notice that he'd just signed his life over to them. He took another swallow of the drink and watched them cook.

  "Hey, Mina, want to run that schedule by us now?” Sin asked as she elbowed her brother away from the sautéing meat, sprinkling some kind of aromatic spice on it.

  Del's stomach rumbled in response to the enticing smells rising from the cooking dish.

  "Certainly. You both have a conference call with the board at seven. Officially it is scheduled for an hour, but you've blocked it off for two."

  "It always runs over,” Kai responded as he pulled a steaming bowl of rice from the warmer.

  "There is the meeting with the accountant at nine, and the dignitaries from the Yakamoro Collective have confirmed their arrival for ten—"

  Both twins swore and looked at each other.

  "Forgot they were coming,” Sin sighed, and Kai grunted.

  "So who gets to play with them this time?"

  "I made nice with them last time."

  "You did not!"

  "Did so,” Sin protested, facing her brother with hands on hips.

  "Fine! Hand shuffle?"

  "Go,” Sin answered, holding out a hand.

  Kai placed one of his on hers, and Del looked between them with amused disbelief. They were about to play a child's game, shuffling their hands one on top of the other while reciting a nonsense rhyme—the last hand to shuffle to the top was the winner.

  "Easy peasy, Yousy Mesy,

  One by one they go on top,

  Watch real close it's time to stop."

  Kai's hand clapped over his sister's on the last word, and he grinned down at her in triumph while she groaned in mild despair.

  It was too ludicrous for Del. He started laughing. Trying to muffle it by ducking his head, he put a hand to his forehead to block their view as he shook with suppressed laughter. His attempt at discretion was a failure.

  "He's laughing at us,” Kai muttered in a musing tone.

  "I can see that. What'd you do?"

  "Why is it always my fault?"

  "You gave him the supernova before dinner."

  "So it's my fault he can't hold his liquor?"

  Waving a hand to make them quit—they weren't helping—Del wheezed, “Stop.” Taking a couple of deep breaths in an attempt to control his chuckles, he stared from one to the other. “You two own a company that rivals the Core, you made Hec and his slicer groupies do flips without even trying, you throw around credit like it's water ... and you're playing hand shuffle to decide your schedule?"

  They stared back at him with blank expressions for a second, before Kai leaned close to his sister and asked in a whisper, “Does he have a point?"

  "Why are you asking me?” she whispered back, and her brother gave a careless shrug before turning to Del.

  "Do you have a point?"

  "Do you make all your business decisions that way?"

  The twins looked at each other as if seriously contemplating his question. Then Sin turned a solemn face to his and answered, “Well, no, sometimes we arm wrestle."

  Then she wi
nked at him with a quirk of her lips and began dishing out the food as he tried to suppress more laughter at the visual. Sun's tears, these two were going to be the death of him. He swatted at Kai as the other man tried to sneak his drink away from him.

  "No more supernovas for you, Giv,” Kai scolded, but his eyes twinkled merrily.

  The twins sat on stools with him instead of moving the meal to the dining table, and Del appreciated the gesture. The kitchen counter made the dinner much less formal and allowed him to relax. It wasn't every day that his life changed so radically.

  They were silent for a few minutes as they dug into the food, but then Sin paused to ask, “Mina, when's our next off-lane run?"

  "In three days."

  "Hm, not very long to get you ready,” she mused, eyeing Del critically. “I wish we had more time to let you get comfortable, but you've got a lot to learn between now and then. Unless you'd rather sit this one out?"

  He gave her a disgusted look. “You didn't hire me to sit on my ass. Besides, it's not like you have to teach me how to slice. What more do I need to know?"

  "I know you can slice, but Shadow ships take some getting used to.” She said it as if it didn't mean anything, but then slanted him a teasing look.

  He felt his heart kick, for more than one reason. “I get to fly a Shadow?"

  "Told you we needed to get you one,” Kai mumbled without looking up from his plate.

  Del sat still for a long moment and tried to curb the urge to demand that they get started right now. A Shadow. He was going to fly a Shadow.

  "But that's not the only thing you need to learn. Our pilots are integral in the maintenance of our slicers and other vessels. We think it's important for you to be aware of every aspect of your ship."

  "I've always maintained my own slicer,” he said, but she didn't seem to hear him.

  "You also need to learn the ins and outs of the station, or at least the parts that you'll be using. Plus you need to know who to go to in case something goes wrong, which it always does—” she cut herself off with a curse and shot a look at her brother. “Spec! Damn, we still need to talk to him about the conveyors and clamps."

  "No problem. After the board meeting, you go sooth the accountants and I'll corral Spec and company. Then while you dance with the YC, I can show Del around. Deal?"

  "Fair enough. Mina, I want some time off in the afternoon to spend with the crew."

  "You have a meeting at three with the FPA, and you've slotted your clothing designer for five."

  "Eh, that dress for the luncheon—send a message to Cale asking him to move it up to four. We can dance the FPA out of here in an hour."

  "It is done."

  "Thanks,” she murmured and took another bite of her food.

  Del finished his meal and pushed the plate away with a satisfied sigh, wondering what they needed to talk to the FPA about. Then he decided it wasn't something he should be wondering. “Thanks for dinner. It really was some kick-ass stir fry."

  They gave him identical grins and spoke at the same time. “Our pleasure,” was Sin's reply and, “Toldja,” was Kai's.

  "Do you cook for yourselves all the time?” Most people got fully prepared meals to reconstruct. It saved time.

  "Only on special occasions,” Sin answered, but the teasing glimmer in her eye told him that she was playing with him again.

  Unable to resist that look, he gave her a half smile and asked, “What's the occasion?"

  "Losing my first slice, of course."

  Del chuckled with a shake of his head and downed the rest of his drink. He'd gotten used to the burn, but it had spread a pleasant lassitude along his muscles, and he wondered if he'd be able to stand without staggering.

  "'Nother drink, Giv?” Kai asked as he stood and gathered plates. His tone had been casual, but there was something in it that made Del glance at him sharply. Kai grinned at him and lifted an eyebrow in challenge.

  "Thanks, but I think I'll pass,” he declined in a dry tone, and Kai snickered softly. “I think I should be clear headed on my first day at work and not dog-sick with a hangover."

  "You're no damned fun,” Kai said as he rounded the counter and put the plates in the sanitizer.

  "Isn't there some FPA regulation against getting your employees stinkin’ drunk?"

  "It's flexible—special occasions don't count,” Kai responded, and Sin gave a low laugh.

  It sent a shiver along Del's spine, and he eyed her hungrily out of the corner of his eye. “Special or not, I should probably quit while I'm ahead. And get my ass to bed. Speaking of, where is my bed?” Del saw Kai's head come up sharply and realized how that might have sounded, but didn't take his eyes off of Sin.

  "The pilot's quarters are a couple of levels under this one. I'll show you where—"

  "I'll take him,” Kai broke in. “I need to let Spec know I'll be chewing up some of his time tomorrow anyway. The pilot's quarters are on my way down there."

  Del met Kai's gaze with a cynical half smile, knowing he was trying to prevent the two of them from being alone, but said nothing as he rose to his feet. He was gratified to see Kai look away—and to see that the room wasn't trying to slide out from under his feet.

  Sin rose with him. “Well then, get some rest while you can, because tomorrow's going to be a big day. Kai will be around to get you about midmorning."

  They headed towards the door, Kai trailing them.

  "So what do I do for the first part of the morning?"

  "Sleep, relax, settle in ... decorate.” She flashed him a teasing grin.

  His stomach muscles tightened and he let out a slow breath. Without knowing he was going to do it, he paused and took her hand in his. “Thank you."

  She raised her eyebrows and her grin took on a dry edge, but her fingers curled into his without protest. “For letting you sleep in?"

  "No ... well okay, yeah.” He grinned as she snorted in amusement, but then he sobered again. “But mostly for everything else."

  Her smile softened and her eyes took on a luminous shimmer that made his throat close with the need to taste her again. “You're welcome."

  The soft skin under his fingertips was a tantalizing torment, and he was half a second away from doing something really stupid when Kai put a hand on his shoulder, reminding him of his presence. Del looked up into Kai's amused gaze with a dazed feeling like a dreamer waking from sleep.

  "Our pleasure, Giv. Don't think we won't get use out of you, though. This won't be a sun cruise, I warn you.” With a pointed look, he turned away and opened the door. “Now, let go of my sister and I'll show you your new place."

  Feeling his cheekbones heat, Del released her hand, but she smiled blandly as if such things happened to her all the time. And they probably did, he thought with an inner grimace of jealousy. “'Night,” he mumbled.

  "Sleep well,” she answered as they stepped out of her quarters. She gave them a little salute as the door closed between them.

  Without further comment, Kai led the way back through the entertainment suite and into the lift. Kai touched the controls and then glanced over at Del, expression bland. “The pilot's quarters are two up from the slicer bay, one under our offices. The level directly under your quarters is the offices and living space of the support staff."

  Del nodded to acknowledge that he heard and wondered when Manakai was going to give him another warning to stay away from his sister. But the other man surprised him. They rode down to the pilot's level without a word about it.

  "I'll introduce you to the rest of the crew tomorrow,” Kai said as he waved Del out of the lift politely. “I'm sorry about not doing it before, but that was bad timing all around. You shouldn't have any trouble with them tomorrow, though. They're a good group, and Pete hasn't been here that long."

  They started down a long hallway with widely spaced doors on either side. “Does that happen a lot?"

  "What, one of the crew taking a dive? Hardly ever. We're pretty selective about picki
ng our pilots."

  "Yeah, about that...” Del started, but Kai had stopped at a door and gestured at the red keypad.

  "It's keyed to your DNA. My sister and I have an override, but we won't use it unless there's an emergency."

  Del touched the pad, and it flickered from red to green as the door slid open soundlessly. The lights came on as they entered, and Del looked around at his new home with disbelieving eyes. It was only sparsely furnished, but it was the largest place he'd ever lived in. “You sure this is all mine?"

  Kai chuckled. “Yup, pretty sure. The few things you had in your slicer have been moved up here and are through that door—bedroom. You can contact supply for anything else you'll need. We've got most of the normal stuff on the station, clothes and whatnot. For anything more exotic, we can order it and ship it here ourselves. We don't have a courier service for nothin'.” Kai flashed him a grin and headed back towards the door. “I'll see you in the morning."

  Del remembered what he'd been about to ask before they'd reached his new place. “Wait..."

  Kai half turned and lifted his eyebrows inquiringly, the expression a spooky mirror of his sister's.

  "You said you're selective about picking your pilots. You also said I'm not the only one with a bad past—a while ago I watched you turn in a drug runner. Why us? Why do you pick people who've got problems over somebody with a clean record?"

  Manakai studied him for a moment with cool green eyes, and Del knew he wouldn't get his question answered. With a sudden grin, Kai said, “You're more fun at parties.” Then he left.

  Del sighed. He shouldn't have expected anything else. Alone in this new world he'd been pulled into, he swayed as a sudden wave of weariness swept over him. He'd explore his new place tomorrow. Right now what he wanted most was to fall face first into bed.

  Stumbling into the next room, he paused to absorb the size of his new bedroom. With a shake of his head, he made a quick stop in the equally large bathroom, before heading towards the bed, tugging his clothes off as he went. Rolling into the soft cushion and feeling it adjust to his body weight, he groaned with relief. He had time to think that it had been a hell of a day before sleep tackled him.