Chapter 2 #3
“Pretty sure I still owe you a dozen favors.” She pauses and glances behind me, like she’s looking for eavesdroppers. “I have two unbonded women staying with me right now… do you want to meet up to discuss options in a week or so?”
“Didn’t realize there would be other bachelorettes on the planet.”
“There are usually one or two floating around. We can talk about that later though.”
She reaches out like she’s about to hang up and then her brows furrow. “Hey. You’re okay right?”
I smile, thinking about the bruises, and try not to wince. “I’m going to be.”
When the call ends and the quiet settles in, it’s not the cold that makes me shiver.
“I’m done,” I call out, because I don’t want to get up, but I don’t want them to think they can’t come back.
Shock is the first to return to me. Then Arc, but he makes a detour and Risk watches him go with a curious smile before he sits down on the perpendicular couch seat.
Arc joins us bearing gifts.
He places a box on the table in front of me. “It’s a bondmate kit. Aside from the irrelevant items, it has some information you should have and… other things.”
I open it while he sets a bag of other things beside it.
The irrelevant items, I assume, are the bottle of Vitamin S and the information pamphlets on inevitable pregnancy.
I manage to not think too much about those as I pull out the other things.
The infamous Margot’s number is on a card with a note to call for any help, instructions, lessons, or advice. I talked to her once, for a Playlien piece… she’s gorgeous and terrifying.
Lists of emergency numbers, and… cooling pads and chafing cream.
It doesn’t surprise me. It shouldn’t surprise them. I close the top and move to the next bag. Toiletries. Much more important.
But still missing a few things.
Arc hands me a tablet with every conceivable thing I might want on it, but… “Can you switch the language settings? I can’t read Sianese.”
The language is pretty. It almost makes an abstract painting, but the circles that create their letters just look like circles to me.
It takes a few keystrokes, but when he hands it back to me, the text is all in English.
I scroll through the excruciatingly thorough inventory and select my preferred shampoo and conditioner along with the purple rinse.
They have the brand deodorant, but not the fragrance, which is fine.
And I check the bag one more time before I get a roll of floss and a reusable handle.
It’s the handle that reminds me to get a razor too.
“Find everything?”
“Everything I can remember.”
“It’ll be here in a little while. And if you think of anything else, we can get that too.”
I nod and look down at the small pile of things.
“You can stay in the room we put you in,” Arc says.
The way that Shock and Risk look at him, I know it’s his room. The way he says it… I don’t think he plans on using it while I do.
“Thank you.”
I stand and don’t mind the way Shock steadies me with a hand on my leg. “I’ll put these away.”
Arc nods and picks up the pile of new clothing. I don’t need to read his mind to know he’s going to follow me. And that’s okay.
But he doesn’t follow me into the bathroom, and he’s gone before I finish pulling the toiletries out of the bag.
By the time I open the bondmate kit again, I feel alone.
That’s not quite right. I feel… isolated.
I should want some time alone. I should feel some kind of apprehension about this situation…
All I feel is the desire to keep one of them with me.
I look at the pill bottle. If the universe didn’t want me here… if it didn’t want me to take these pills, it wouldn’t have given them to me.
I take one dry, and after some quick thinking about Agency ads, I take another. I place the bottle on the counter beside the other things they got me. They were pretty thorough. I wonder if they had a list.
My eyes are almost as heavy as my limbs and I know I need to lie down again.
But I don’t want to sleep in here, where they’ll leave me alone. So I grab two of the blankets and make my way back out to the living room, bundling myself up on the couch. It’s warmer here with the fire anyway.
“So…” I look at Risk… the man who seems to just know things. “Why did someone take me from Earth?”
He flinches and, in that moment, I don’t want to know the answer. He doesn’t want to know the answer.
“They were going to deliver you to the Company.”
The other two curse.
It takes a moment for my brain to connect the bouncing dots in my mind. “They’re the ones who wanted Laurel, right?”
He nods.
“Well, sucks for them.” I snuggle my cheek into the blanket, feeling drowsier than I want to. “They can’t have me.”
RISK
Chrys is asleep on the couch, Shock has come to sit close to her, and Arc is pretending like he’s the only one of us who isn’t watching her sleep.
I think we’ve all been too afraid to speak and wake her, but that’s about to end.
“Kimba’s here,” I tell them softly. “She didn’t bring Drift.”
It’s probably better that Kimba has shown up now… Chrys needs to eat. We would’ve had to wake her anyway.
While Arc goes to the door, I gently shake Chrys awake, and warmth flutters through my chest when she smiles at me.
“Hi,” she says, her voice breathy and soft.
“We have a visitor. And she already knows you’re here, so we can’t hide you.” Mary told. I don’t know why—I don’t know everything—but Kimba came specifically for Chrys.
“What a shame.” She stretches and flinches but when she pushes the blankets off, her cheeks have a delightfully rosy flush. “Who is it?”
“Kimba.” I don’t have to explain. She’s heard of Kimba.
The tone of the doorbell echoes overhead.
“Oh boy.”
I help her stand up as the woman in question comes in, taking off her scarf and gloves and unzipping her jacket.
“Saints. I dressed for the normal ice box and it’s practically balmy in here.” Her focus turns immediately to Chrys. “I was told we have you to blame for the thaw.”
“Hi Kimba. It’s nice to actually meet you.”
“I would say the same, but I don’t have all of the details of the circumstances that brought you here.” She looks Chrys over and the three of us stay silent.
With Kimba, it’s best to answer her questions and let her tell you when to speak or you’ll wind up feeling like a complete fool.
She scrutinizes all of us and then says, “Alright. Let’s sit down and you can tell me what’s going on.”
Arc takes her coat and things and sets them on the table near the door before he follows. When he sits, Chrys moves to sit sandwiched between us.
One of Kimba’s eyebrows raises. “I was under the impression that you were on the ship that crashed in our backyard.”
“That’s right.”
Kimba’s gaze goes to Arc, eyes narrowed.
“We’re not bonded. I got the kit in case it had something she needed in it.”
We take turns explaining things to her and Chrys makes it clear she doesn’t want her sisters to know.
Kimba looks at Arc when she says, “Are you willing to take that chance?”
“Yeah.” He nods, and even if she doesn’t believe him, I do.
Kimba analyzes all of us, but she doesn’t tell us what I know Arc can hear clearly. She wants to know more. But she knows that asking isn’t going to get her any more answers than she already has.
“I shouldn’t leave you here. But, if it’s what you want, I will. Someone wanted you on Isia, and if they’re going to come after you, at least I know one of you boys will be here, even if there’s an incursion, and… I agree. The fewer people who know you’re here, the better.”
“We need to take her into Ilidi City.”
All four of us look at Arc.
“Why?” she asks slowly… as if she’s afraid of the answer.
“The medical scanner cleared her, but I want a human doctor to check her out too. Cindy’s busy… Taking her into the city isn’t that big of a risk.”
She doesn’t want to do it. But eventually, Kimba sighs and dips her head in a quick nod. “Fine. I’ll set something up and you four can coordinate how to get there and who goes with.”
She stands and looks solely at Chrys. “You and I are going to have a conversation later… without these three around.”
Kimba wants to make sure she understands what staying would mean. She wants to know which of us Chrys would choose.
I try not to look at Arc, but he doesn’t manage to keep the knowledge of her thoughts from his face.
Thank the saints she doesn’t know what the scowl he just pulled was for.
“I’m leaving now, because staying much longer would make the others ask questions. And none of us want nosey Nellys dropping by, now do we?”
“I don’t know what that means,” Shock says, “But I’m sure you’re right.”
Leaving Chrys with Shock, Arc and I follow Kimba to the door. Arc knows what I’m about to tell her. If he wanted me to stop, he would have made me already.
“The Company is involved.”
Kimba looks from me back to the others. “You’re sure?”
I can’t tell her how I know, but, “Yes. Have the CSS figured out what’s going on in Calisan?”
“No. But Drift’s contact is heading out there to see what’s going on in a few days.”
Arc puts his hand on my shoulder and tells her, “I’m going with him.”
Her brows fly up. “Is that already planned, or have you just decided?”
“Yes.”
She shakes her head and closes her eyes so she doesn’t roll them. “Fine, but you know I’m going to tell D, and you know he isn’t going to be happy.”
“None of us are happy about how she got here. He can join our bad mood.”
Glancing past us, she watches Chrys and Shock as she teaches him how to play rock, paper, scissors.
“Be careful. And I know I don’t have to tell you to take care of her. I’ve seen the shopping list.”
“Good.” I don’t tell her to stop poking. Her curiosity has been sated. “Remind your mate that he trusts us to make certain judgements on our own. This was one of them.”
“Sure.” She gets the last of her snow gear on. “And you keep telling yourself he’s the one you need to worry about.”