“I’ll talk to Tamman. But both of you need to dry out a little first.”
“Ooookay, Devlin, shir,” she said dreamily. Then her brow furrowed in thought. “I think I gotta…”
As Cat doubled over to vomit, Devlin held up a wastebasket.
* * *
Devlin woke up to the door chime. He blearily looked at the clock on the nightstand, which read 8:00 AM. It was later than he usually rose, but the last couple of days had been…interesting, and he HAD been getting up later while on leave. He could get on schedule when he went back.
Then he realized something else was out of sorts. He felt something warm on his back. Sleepily, he turned in bed and found a shape under the covers. That’s not right, he thought. He lay there half asleep, then like a gravmissile, realization struck home. His eyes snapped open, and with morbid fascination, he pulled back the covers and blanched.
The nude form of The Cat was lying in bed with him. She sleepily reached back, pulled the covers, and snuggled under them, some inarticulate noise coming from beneath the blankets.
Devlin nearly fell out of bed.
“CAT!” he hissed. “What the ACTUAL hell are you doing in my bed?” He noted absently that he was still dressed.
He remembered climbing into bed in the wee hours of the morning with his clothes on. He’d stayed awake with The Cat, holding her head while she puked, then tucking her in after she passed out. He remembered doing that very thing with his mom when he was a kid, and with a few of the female “friends” he’d been acquainted with as a teenager. Some of those girls he had woken up with the next morning. Then realization hit again, and this time he was relieved.
Irony…he thought. Naked woman in my bed, and I’m GLAD I didn’t screw her. He shook his head.
Maybe Cat WAS right. Maybe the Universe had some sort of intelligence behind it…and it was sick.
He reached out and shook the form. “CAT,” he said, “what the hell are you doing in my bed?”
For a moment the form under the covers didn’t move. “Where…Oh, shit!”
“Yeah…Oh, shit…” Devlin said. “Why are you in my bed…and WHY ARE YOU NAKED?”
“I was just sleeping. I do that occasionally.”
“But you’re naked!”
Cat sat up. As she did, the sheet covering her fell down.
Devlin quickly turned his head. She giggled at his reaction. Devlin felt his cheeks heat.
“I woke up about two hours ago and felt like cold crap.”
“But…you’re naked.”
“Devlin, you’re such a prude. Yeah, I sleep nude, and you’ve seen me nude before.”
“But if you were cold, why didn’t you put something on?”
“Don’t confuse things, Devlin.”
“But…”
And stop saying ‘but.’ It makes you look like an idiot.”
“But…”
“Why are my ears ringing?” she asked suddenly. “And why does it sound like a windchime.”
Devlin’s eyes snapped toward the front of the apartment. They widened in horror.
“Stay here,” he hissed.
“Whatever.” She burrowed back under the covers.
* * *
The door was in mid chime when he hit the open button. Courtney was standing there. “Hi. I hope you don’t mind, but I needed to talk to you.”
Devlin’s eyes bugged a little as he saw the woman in his doorway.
“Can I come in?” Courtney said, brushing past him.
“But…”
“Did I come at a bad time?” she asked as she walked into the living room.
“Uh…well…I…uh,” he stammered. He tried to find his voice as—
“I decided to get a shower, but I forgot my shampoo. Oh, hi.”
Devlin felt his heart stop as The Cat walked past them, as carefree and just as naked as the day she was born, back into “her” room.
Devlin suddenly knew what it must be like to be on the receiving end of a Legion Combat Drop. He looked at Cat, at Courtney, then back at Cat, then back at Courtney. “Uh…”
Courtney watched the naked girl disappear, then turned on Devlin. “Who…the fark…is…that?” she asked, her face starting to get red. Devlin knew trouble when he saw it.
Look, Courtney…it isn’t what it looks like…I can explain…”
“Explain what?” she said, backing him into the door. “Explain how you’re already involved and wanted to get a little side…”
“Uh, well, ah no…”
“I thought you were…”
“She’s just a friend staying here for a few days.”
“A friend? Walking starkers in your living room? I’d say she’s a little more than a friend.”
“Well…um…sort of…but she’s…”
Courtney cut him off. “Hey, I get it…” Courtney said, pushing past him and heading for the door. Devlin put himself in her path again. “Courtney! Wait!
She tried to get past him, but he put his hands up. “Please,” he pleaded. “Can I explain?”
The woman inhaled deeply, her nostrils flaring. “I can’t believe I thought you were different than any other guy.” She crossed her arms and glared at him. “Okay! EXPLAIN! And it had damned sure better be good.”
“Okay,” he said. “She is a friend. Just that. She and her boyfriend had a really bad fight, and she showed up yesterday and needed a place to crash.” He paused as if that were sufficient. But Courtney was having none of it.
“Go on,” she said, raising an eyebrow. “You need to explain the whole naked thing…and coming out of what I presume is your bedroom.”
“Okay…” he said, inhaling again. “She was incredibly drunk when she got here last night. I was with her all night.”
Courtney tensed at the last sentence. “Not WITH her. She got sick and was puking her guts up. She fell asleep, and I fell asleep not long afterward,” he explained, as if it were all perfectly reasonable. Courtney cocked her head. She seemed to be sizing Devlin up like a butcher sizing up a side of nearbeef.
“We’re still not at the ‘naked’ part…or bedroom.” She smiled. Devlin had seen similar expressions on instructors when he was in basic training. Usually before something painful happened.
“She needs a shower. The door chime woke us both up. She needed to clean up, and I told her to use my shower. She comes from a planet that doesn’t have a lot of body modesty, but I didn’t think she’d come out here while I had company.” He shrugged and grinned. “I guess she needed her shampoo.”
Almost on cue, The Cat came out of her room and headed back into Devlin’s room. She smiled and shook her shampoo bottle as she passed.
“See?” He smiled sheepishly. Courtney glared at him for what seemed like an eternity.
Finally she said, “That sounds like the biggest crock of complete crap I’ve ever heard,” Courtney said. She let him hang for a few moments more, then she giggled. “Which is probably why I’m almost inclined to believe it. It sounds too preposterous to be a lie.”
Devlin felt his shoulders sag a little. He had just met this girl, and he hadn’t figured out whether she was just a girl, if she was involved in whatever had happened with the thugs yesterday, whether she was trying to get close to him to kill him, or she really might like him, or even if he liked her. He just knew he wanted to make a good impression.
All those emotions and his disappointment at being doubted must have played on his face, because after a moment, her expression softened. “I’m sorry, Devlin. We just met, and here I am judging you like we’re a couple or something. I’m sorry.”
“It’s…uh….um…okay,” he stammered.
The girl smiled then. “I came by to tell you, I went back to the store, and the owner had my comm. It’s a little beat up, but it still works. Apparently the grocery owner told the constables about what happened, and they were happy not to pursue it. I have a breakfast date with Nancy before she starts work, so I wanted to swing by and ta
lk to you really quick before she had to be at work.” She paused and looked down shyly. “I wanted to thank you and leave you my comm number.”
“Um, uh thank you,” Devlin said as she pressed a slip of paper into his hands and stepped up on tiptoes and kissed his cheek. She smelled good, like wildflowers.
“Call me,” she said as she opened the door and slipped out.
Devlin stood there with his mouth open and his hand holding the slip of paper.
“Who’s that?” a throaty purr whispered in his ear.
He spun around and glared at the grinning, still nude, Cat in front of him. “Dammit!” he fumed. “Why are you still in here? Don’t you have hair to wash or something?”
The Cat laughed and sauntered off to the bathroom. “Touchy…” she said mockingly. “I was going to ask you to wash my back.” She laughed even louder as the couch pillow hit her in the backside.
* * *
“Seriously, Devlin, who’s the girl?” Cat asked as she ate the breakfast Devlin had made for her while she showered and got dressed. She was dressed in the standard utilitarian coverall that hid some of the curves of her body, which Devlin figured was the point. She’d had her fun at his expense, and this was as close to apologetic as she ever got for being a flirt.
Devlin sat down with his own eggs and told Cat about the events of the day before.
Cat chewed, her face thoughtful as Devlin filled her in on the previous day. “Sounds awful coincidental, her bumping into you at just the right moment. Tamman, Jonesy, and I did a similar scam during a couple of jobs on Jayne’s World. Get the mark looking at the tits while the other two do what they need to.”
Devlin nodded, then sipped at his coffee. “Believe me, I’m paranoid enough to have considered that three or four or sixteen times over the last 24 hours.”
The Cat looked at him. “But you don’t really think that’s the case.”
He grimaced. “I sort of don’t know what to think.”
“Or are you thinking with other parts, Devlin?” Cat asked archly. He scowled, and she chuckled. “I’m not really trying to be facetious, Dev. A guy’s decision-making faculties tend to be depressed when around a pretty woman. Before you really trust this girl, you need to make sure you’ve got your back covered.” She took another forkful of eggs. “What were they after? You, the girl, or just random?”
When he said nothing, she answered for him. “You figure it was a hit on you.”
“Wouldn’t be the first,” he conceded. “The question is, who?”
“I’m guessing you have an idea,” Cat said, taking a bite. Devlin nodded.
“I like Allonsy for this,” he said, “but I’m also wondering about The Old Man.” He thought for a moment. Allonsy Martin and his Old Man ruled the criminal underworld on Devlin’s home planet of Caliban. Devlin had beaten Allonsy to within a centimeter of his life. It was that encounter that had landed an almost eighteen-year-old Devlin in jail, faced with a life sentence or military service. Ever since, Devlin had lived with a price on his head. “You’ve done work for him, what do you think?”
“Not sure,” she answered, frowning. “Him, I dealt with, but not a lot. He seems competent, a businessman, even if the business he conducts is not…nice.” She shook her head. “I don’t see it. If Old Man Martin were going to hire a job, he would have gotten decent thugs, maybe a merc team. Cheap muscle gets cheap results. Martin hires pros. Hell, he hired me—even if he never knew he was hiring me.”
Devlin nodded. “Yeah. If Martin were after me, he would do it quick and clean—no collateral damage or witnesses. This was sloppy, badly done, and noisy as hell. So Allonsy all over.”
“Allonsy,” she agreed. She thought for a moment. “Tell you what, Devlin. I’ll get into the data stream and see if Allonsy put out a general contract, or sent a hireling to subcontract.”
Devlin forked a pile of eggs onto a piece of toast and took a bite. After chewing for a moment, he swallowed and said, “Well, while you do that, I’ll go visit Cooper and see what I can do with Tamman.”
She sat very still, but Devlin put his hands up. “I’m not going to promise anything, but I’ll do what I can to get Tamman to talk to you. Maybe you can talk him out of the whole marriage thing. I think it’s stupid, but you gotta do what you gotta do.”
The little hardcase looked like she might cry right there, but then she sucked in a breath. “Alright, Devlin,” she conceded. Then she sat straighter on the stool. “But I’m not going to promise anything, either. If he forces it, I’ll leave. And there won’t be a damn thing you or even the admiral can do to find me.”
“Fine,” he answered, rising. He picked up their finished plates and put them in the wash unit.
A few hours later, a thoroughly exhausted Cat walked out of her room into the kitchen. She had spent the whole time Devlin had been gone immersed in the data stream. But for all her searching, she hadn’t found ANYTHING that would help Devlin. Well, that wasn’t quite true, she had a message from Allonsy to someone named Cerberus. No indication of who or what it might be. She poured a glass of milk for herself. She really didn’t want to look at alcohol for a few days.
She was preparing to go back to the ‘stream when the door chime sounded. She went to the door and checked the security feed. There was a delivery person. Tall woman, blondish. Wearing a parcel service uniform. “What do you need?” Cat asked over the comm.
“Delivery for a…” The delivery person consulted the pad in her hand and compared it to the package. “N. Devlin. This address. Would you like to accept?”
Cat wrinkled her face and then sighed. “Alright.” She keyed the door to open.
As it did, Cat noticed someone else come around the corner from the lift tube. She glanced and recognized the face.
“Oh, hi. Devlin’s not…”
The stunner hit, and the world went white.
* * *
Devlin got off the lift, tired and pissed off. He had spent the day at the barracks trying to talk Tamman down off the cliff.
After six hours of arguing, yelling, threatening, and at least once nearly coming to blows, Devlin had finally convinced Tamman to at least talk to The Cat and find out WHY she wouldn’t marry him, where the money went, and where they went from here.
When he got to the door, the security protocols were off. He frowned. The Cat was just as paranoid as he was. If she were here…she would have left them up. If she was gone…she would have left them up.
He reached into his jacket and pulled his rail pistol. He opened the door.
“Come in, Mr. Devlin. Come in.” A man dressed in a brown suit was seated on one of his chairs.
“Who are you?” Devlin demanded.
“Who I am is not important. What is important is my associates have some of your…associates,” the man said very calmly. “Oh, do put the pistol away, Mr. Devlin. You’re not going to kill me. It would be…bad for your companions.” He regarded Devlin pleasantly.
“Where is the lady who was here? And what other companions are you talking about?” Devlin asked, putting the pistol back in its holster.
“The lady known as,” he consulted a card, “a Miss Katerina Schrödinger—a rather odd name to be sure—is currently the guest of some friends of mine.” He smiled. It didn’t reach his eyes. He consulted another card. “A Miss Courtney Sharpe is also our guest.”
“So you’re the controller for Larry, Moe, and Curly,” Devlin said as he walked over and sat down on the couch.
“Excuse me? Mr. Devlin…’
“The three stooges you had attack me yesterday. Very sloppy. Especially since they involved an innocent bystander. But you’ve done screwed the pooch, as they say in my hometown. Miss Sharpe had nothing to do with me. I hadn’t met her until yesterday.”
The man frowned. “Well, no matter, we’ll just…”
“Just call your boss and tell them I want to see the girls, and I want them set free before I go wherever with you.”
“N
o, Mr. Devlin, that’s not how this works.”
“That’s exactly how this works. Get on your comm and call them…NOW. Otherwise, I’ll kill you, take your comm, get with my boys, and go hunting.”
The man seemed indignant, but he sighed and pulled out a comm. “He wants to see them.” He held out the comm so Devlin could see.
Cat and Courtney were bound and gagged. Courtney seemed to be unconscious. Cat looked straight into the comm, her head shaking vigorously. A hand backhanded her. Her head snapped back, and when it came up again, her eyes were filled with hate and rage. The tiny screen went blank.
Brown Suit put the comm away and asked, “Are you satisfied now, Mr. Devlin? If you resist, the girls die. Your choice, Mr. Devlin. But time is wasting.”
Devlin glared at the man. He knew better, but he reached in and removed his pistol from its holster. He handed it to the man in the brown suit. Brown Suit took it, then asked, “And where is your BFT located?”
“My what?”
“Please don’t be coy. We know about your tracker unit. I am not taking you anywhere until we have removed it.”
Devlin shrugged. “Right ass cheek. I already have a scar there.”
Brown Suit scowled. “Are you trying to be funny, Mr. Devlin, because I can assure…”
“Seriously, or maybe not seriously. I told them to put the damned thing in my ass. I already had a scar on my ass, and I didn’t want another. I thought it was hilarious at the time…afterward, not so much.”
The man in the brown suit smiled coldly. “That’s fine, Mr. Devlin. I won’t have any problem finding it.” He reached into his suit coat and pulled out a device and a stunner. “Although this is liable to hurt. Quite a bit, I’m afraid.”
* * *
Devlin woke up slowly and tried to decide which hurt worse…his head, or his ass. Bastards, he thought. They checked BOTH cheeks. First things first. He was lying on his side. His hands were secured behind his back. His feet were free, but the way his posterior hurt, he didn’t think he wanted to move a whole lot.
The Dogs of God Page 46
