The elevator was blissfully empty, as was the immaculate, finely appointed sixtieth-floor hallway. Population schematics noted the doctor as the only occupant on this floor’s wing. That would help keep things quiet. He pulled a firearm from the discreet holster under his arm as he approached the front door, turning slightly to keep his weapon hand hidden behind him. Pulse quickening, he touched the door chime with his knuckle to prevent a fingerprint.
A rough male voice squawked through the door. “Hello? Can I help you?”
“I’m looking for Dr. Saarken.”
“Who’s there? The vid is full of interference.”
“I’m a friend of Hadrian Jamison.”
Silence. Liam’s grip on his weapon tightened as he pressed the chime again.
“Please, I need to speak with you.”
Liam jumped back as the door lurched open. Standing before him was an impossibly huge, muscular man wearing only a pair of tight black shorts and matching bands on his wrists and ankles. He scanned the man for a weapon other than his chiseled mass, yet found nothing obvious. Eyebrows appeared to be the only hair on his flawless physique, and Liam had to look up to find them. Was he Adonirati? Behind the hulk stood a smaller man, looking older than Liam knew he should, and behind him, Liam could see the muscle man’s identical twin. This had to be Dr. Saarken sandwiched between his bodyguards.
Saarken scrutinized Liam, eyes drawing into a scowl. “Sergeant Liam Jacks?”
Liam froze. “How do you know who I am?”
“Why are you here? You should be over halfway to Alpha Centauri by now.” The doctor’s voice lashed out, making Liam feel like a scolded child. Saarken stared him down with a frightening intensity.
“What happened to Hadrian?”
Liam was so taken aback by the man’s forcefulness it took him a moment to respond. “Phillip Chien found him. Brought him back here. I need to find him.”
Saarken’s jaw went tight, unmistakable anger rolling off him. A shaky hand slapped the shoulder of the behemoth shielding him. “Zero. Move aside.” The large man shifted, obeying the doctor’s order. With a trembling finger, he pointed at Liam.
“You. Jacks. Put your gun away and get in here. We need to talk.”
Chapter Twelve
BEFORE LOWERING HIS weapon, Liam assessed Dr. Saarken. Chestnut hair with highlights of golden blond framed a handsome face that was etched prematurely, making him appear older than the stats on his ID file. He was frail and unsteady. The tremors in his movements could not be hidden. A slender mechanical framework was strapped to each leg, from thigh to ankle, to support him. Medical crutches were attached around his upper arms, and he had a tight grip on the handles.
Saarken huffed. “Sergeant Jacks, if I were in danger, Zero and Orez would have dismembered you by now. Trust me. I bred them to be faster and stronger than you on your best day.” He rapped his crutch along the shin of the bodyguard behind him. “Orez, get out of the way. Jacks, get the hell in here.”
Liam slowly holstered his weapon as he followed Saarken’s shambling gait into the apartment. He glanced at the bodyguard, Zero, as the door closed behind him. Orez was standing next to him and keeping out of the way. Carbon-copy men, they were so exact it made Liam want to stare. They hadn’t shown him any malice in manner or expression. Were they capable of expressing themselves? Or were they simply breathing dolls waiting for instruction? Liam felt no real hostility toward Saarken or his men, just rampant curiosity.
Exiting the foyer into the main room was painfully slow. Saarken’s walking speed was hampered by his obvious need to stabilize each step before proceeding to the next. It seemed inappropriate to walk in front of him.
“Orez, prepare a guest room for Sergeant Jacks. Zero, make us some tea.” Both Adonirati immediately set off, presumably on their tasks, leaving Liam alone in the sitting room with Saarken.
“I didn’t say I was staying.”
Saarken shook his head. “Of course, you are. It’s late and we have a lot to discuss, and you shouldn’t be running around too much in the daylight. Even with whatever tech you have that’s hiding you from my systems. Very clever.”
Liam followed the doctor across the luxurious carpeting until Saarken reached an exquisite armchair upholstered in a rich, supple leather. The doctor edged in a circle and started to lower himself into the seat. Liam stepped forward and reached out to help. Saarken slapped away the offered hand.
“Don’t touch. I’m not an invalid.”
“I’m sorry. May I ask…?” Liam motioned to the crutches and leg braces as Saarken carefully sank into the chair.
“I have multiple sclerosis.”
“That wasn’t in your dossier.”
Saarken narrowed his eyes at Liam. “I have enough clout for data keepers to respect my vanity, I suppose.”
“Don’t they have a cure?”
Saarken’s mouth became a thin line. “I’m so glad you mentioned that. As a medical doctor and genetic engineer, I had never thought of taking the cure.”
A shamed heat rose in Liam’s face. “I guess I deserved that. I’m not used to seeing anyone disabled. It’s not very common.”
“You’re right. It’s not. I happen to be one of those poor souls who are deathly allergic to the cure. I’m too sensitive to even have the allergy suppressed.” Saarken paused and took a calming breath. “This is a good day. It’s often much worse than this. I have to settle for being smarter than everyone else.” Zero appeared, placing a tray carrying a teapot and two cups on the small table next to Saarken. “Thank you, Zero. Collect Orez when he’s finished and go to our room. I’ll call for you if I need you.”
The obedient Goliath exited the room without a single word.
“You’re not going to keep your bodyguards nearby?”
“No. Would you pour the tea?” Saarken disconnected the crutches from his arms. “You’re not here to kill me, and I don’t want to kill you. We need each other, I would say. Plus, I’m betting you’ll be more comfortable without the twins looming over you.”
Liam poured the tea and sat in the adjacent armchair. He had to control the sigh that nearly escaped him. Two days in the pilot’s seat of Hadrian’s Hope had not prepared him for the luxury he was now enjoying. Aware of the holstered weapon under his arm should he need it, he waited for Saarken to take the first sip.
The corner of Saarken’s mouth curled. “See? Not poisoned.”
“You can understand why I might be a little paranoid. You seem awfully ready to help me.”
“I don’t like my work coming undone. A lot of effort and planning went into setting Hadrian free. I’m not capable of fixing it myself.” He held up a quaking hand. “As you can see, I’m hardly the man for the job.”
“You’re a genetic engineer. There’s nothing you can do?”
“My condition didn’t present itself until I was in my twenties. Somehow it had stayed hidden from standard scans. A winner in the cosmic game of impossible chance. Normally, it wouldn’t matter. A cure exists, after all. Unfortunately, drastic genetic manipulation has to be done before puberty sets in. When done afterward, the body seems to try to correct itself. With sometimes-disastrous results.”
“That’s why you altered Hadrian so young.”
“Yes.” Saarken took a long sip from his tea and frowned. “I will never forgive Phillip for selecting those two boys from the orphanage.”
“Two boys?”
Saarken nodded. “Hadrian and his brother, Donovan.”
“That shit Donovan is Hadrian’s brother?” In shock, Liam nearly dropped his cup of tea.
“Ah. I see you’ve met the snotty bastard.”
“Did you enhance Donovan, too?”
“Only cosmetically. Donovan was intended as Phillip’s consort, Hadrian as his Adonirati.” A snarl curled his lip. “Although he treated both boys as his sexual playthings.”
“Please.” Liam raised a hand as he struggled to control the grinding of his jaw. “I don’t n
eed any more encouragement to shoot that man through the head. Why take the boys? Why go to all the trouble of the elaborate cloning story?”
“Because Phillip is an arrogant man who doesn’t believe there are limits in his own life. He wanted the greatest Adonirati of all and believed a clone wouldn’t suffice. I think he simply wanted to break the rules and get away with it. He took one look at those two boys and refused to give them up.”
“But you helped him. You helped him get exactly what he wanted.”
Saarken sighed, his voice trailing off in reflection. “Times were different then. I was much stupider than I am now.”
“Tell me about Hadrian. What kind of enhancements are we talking about?”
A small smile graced Saarken’s lips as he lost himself in thought. He took another sip of his tea, and Liam swore the man looked prideful.
“I made him as strong, fast, and beautiful as possible without making him inhuman. He is a living work of art. None of my creations have ever been so perfect. I have made many Adonirati in my years. My fortune is based upon it. But it saddens me to know my greatest creation wasn’t mine originally. I was, however, especially proud of his other enhancements.”
“Other enhancements?”
“I played in his cerebrum a little bit and brought out his psionic potential.”
“Hadrian is a psi?” Liam already knew the answer. All the oddities surrounding Hadrian he’d taken for granted or dismissed were suddenly clear.
“A para-human, yes. Nothing too drastic. I brought out his empathic talents. I wouldn’t be surprised if he displayed some form of telepathic skill as well, picking up thoughts as well as emotions. He also seemed to develop some kind of precognitive skill. I hadn’t expected that. It explained his ability to outfight his opponents in the arena. He could see what would happen ahead of time and hear their thoughts and strategies.”
“Or take on seven men in the cargo bay without a scratch.” Liam’s voice drifted as he recalled the incident that nearly cost him his life. A shiver ran the length of his spine.
Saarken nodded. “I was never able to test his skills. I didn’t tell Phillip about them, so I couldn’t be sure if he was aware of them or not. From what I’ve been able to observe over the years, I’d say most of it comes instinctively to him.”
“When he fought the raiders, he walked between gunshots as if he knew where they’d be beforehand.”
“It appears he’s learned to focus it when necessary, but he would be largely untrained.”
“Why did you add those enhancements if Chien hadn’t requested them?”
“Empaths have a natural tendency to bond with an appropriate mate when they meet. It compels them to forsake all others. They aren’t even aware of it. It comes at them in a love-at-first-sight fashion.”
“Does it affect the potential mate?”
Saarken nodded. “Hadrian’s mate would be affected as well.”
“So Hadrian would force someone to fall in love with him?” Liam’s breath stalled as his pulse began to rise. Was his attraction to Hadrian a compulsion brought on by his empathic bonding? He knew his interest in Hadrian was sudden, but was it his interest?
“No, Sergeant.” Saarken’s face brightened with awareness. “It can only stoke an attachment that would have formed on its own. It may have heightened your attraction, but it can’t force you to love someone. Hadrian’s not that powerful.”
“Why make that addition?”
“To ensure Hadrian’s defection from Phillip. However, he never found anyone suitable in all the unfortunate liaisons Phillip subjected him to.” Saarken’s gaze roamed over Liam’s body. “Apparently, we needed an off-worlder.”
“Your part in this was blatantly illegal. Aren’t you worried I might turn you in?”
Saarken held up his shaking hand. “What would they do? Put me in prison? Make my life miserable?” His laugh lacked humor. It didn’t seem like the first time he’d had this discussion.
“Sergeant Jacks, my condition is treatable but not curable. When it flares up, I can’t hold a cup of tea and the numbness in my legs keeps me from being able to walk even with these braces on. Some days, I can’t take care of myself in the simplest of ways. That’s what Zero and Orez are for. They also provide companionship. No one wants to make love to a cripple in this corner of utopia. I already am in prison.” Saarken closed his eyes for a moment. “Now, ask me something useful.”
“Tell me about Leo Noble.”
Saarken took a shaky sip of his tea. “Leo was one of my patients and a friend of Phillip’s, if that’s what you want to call it. He was also completely besotted with Hadrian.” Saarken rolled his eyes. “Oh, he would never touch him. Hadrian was too perfect. Leo liked to worship him from afar. He told me he used to purchase time with Hadrian to keep him from the lecherous rabble. They would simply have dinner and conversation with his allotted time. It was quite ironic.”
“How so?”
“Leo suffered from Arkarian Syndrome, a debilitating combination of sexual infections he acquired from one of the infamous orgies he’d orchestrated. He was resistant to the cure and it failed. When I diagnosed him, I saw an opportunity. He wasn’t difficult to enlist. Hadrian had yet to bond with anyone, and Leo’s time was limited.
“Leo had the expertise to place the tech virus that would shield Hadrian long enough for him to get to the spaceport. His guards were easy to distract. Hadrian’s visits to Leo were regularly scheduled and without incident. A simple prostitute was enough for them to ignore their duty. A prepaid transport and Hadrian was on his way. I had already researched the Santa Claus. The crew’s background and the ship’s safety standard made it an ideal choice. Hadrian should have been able to travel in relative anonymity.”
“He made us suspicious. His biography was too simple, and we ended up alerting the Luxorian government when we started looking into the mystery.”
“I suppose it was a bit arrogant on my part not to have all the pieces better prepared.”
“We tend to be extremely thorough in our background checks. It was hard for us to ignore. If it’s any consolation, most people wouldn’t have noticed.”
“I suppose that’s something.”
“Did you know Leo would have Hadrian execute him?” Agitated, Liam had to suppress the accusation.
Saarken looked away. “I may have suggested something to him. Leo would never have survived the interrogation once he’d been found.”
“Chien used the murder charge to justify tracking Hadrian down in midflight. They threatened our crew’s safety to get the captain to comply. Then, when the arrest went bad, they tortured Hadrian. With some kind of odd phrase. How did they do that? Was it the subdermal tech?”
“I’m afraid so. It’s the security measure built into all Adonirati. It’s also the primary method of identification. A simple scan identifies it and marks the ownership. It’s nanotechnology that’s bonded to the brain and nervous system to make him respond to certain voice commands.”
“What kind of commands?”
“Sleep. Stay. There’s one for punishment. One to provide pleasure. I doubt that was used very often. They’re for training and control.”
“What keeps other people from using them?”
“They’re coded to specific voiceprints. Hadrian’s will only respond to Phillip’s or Donovan’s voice. I programmed all their commands from a bastardized version of an ancient Earth language so they couldn’t activate them by accident. Not that it stopped them from using them on purpose.”
“Can you remove them?”
“I’m afraid not. The nanotech needs to be deprogrammed by a specialist. I know how to activate and perform the setup on them, but not shut them down. The manufacturing protocols are proprietary.”
“That’s why you were sending Hadrian to Alpha Centauri. Dr. Hajimi Totoyo is the specialist.”
“Yes. And I still intend to get him there.”
Liam paused and stared into his cup. “Do
you think Hadrian’s still alive?”
“Without a doubt. Phillip would never go to so much trouble if he meant to kill him. He would simply have had the military destroy your ship. Besides, he’s not going to give up his favorite toy.”
“Do you know where I can find him?”
Saarken nodded. “I can help you find Phillip’s primary residence, where Hadrian lives. He’s likely there.”
“I’ll need to do some reconnaissance so I can plan my next move.”
“You can do that tomorrow evening. It’s very late. We’ll get you settled in, and I’ll help you with any supplies you might need. You can get a proper meal and rest before it all begins. Don’t worry, Sergeant. Hadrian will be all right.” Saarken returned his cup to the serving tray. It rattled as his trembling hand refused to be calm.
“Doctor, I still don’t know why you’re doing this. Why are you going to all this trouble?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
Saarken strapped the crutches to his arms and raised himself from the chair.
Restraining himself from helping, Liam sat back to process the conversation. Hadrian was likely alive and once again the slave of Ambassador Chien. Every instinct told him Dr. Saarken could be trusted, in spite of his involvement. Little things like the soft derision in Saarken’s voice whenever he said Phillip’s name stood out. A sudden realization swept over Liam.
“This is about Phillip, isn’t it? He was your lover, wasn’t he?”
Saarken froze. For the first time, he seemed surprised. He stood perfectly still, staring at a blank spot far away on the wall.
Saarken’s voice was barely audible. “The MS presented itself not long after he found Hadrian and Donovan. The first flare-up was severe and debilitating. He lost interest in the freakish cripple rather quickly afterward.”
Liam goggled. “You must be joking. All this—from the very beginning—is to get back at your ex?” It took everything he had to contain his outrage at the architect of this whole affair. Saarken began an awkward shuffle toward the hallway.
The Luxorian Fugitive Page 18
