Play Not With Feelings, For You May Win The Game
Kerr swatted her shoulder urgently several times. “Stop!” she yelled over the noise of the motorcycle.
Lusa turned. Kerr pointed at the door to the abandoned adult shop. It was damaged.
Lusa killed the engine and hopped off, not waiting for Kerr.
Shards splashed and glinted in the morning sun – from the wrong direction.
Whoever had broken the door had done it from the inside.
Lusa unclipped the kukri from the base of her spine and leaned against the wall. She tilted her head toward the door.
Kerr raised an eyebrow.
Lusa rolled her eyes. “Throw something,” she mouthed.
Picking up a piece of glass, Kerr tossed it through the shattered door.
“Now hide!” Lusa hissed.
Kerr scrambled over to the other side of the door frame and waited, listening.
Nothing.
Either no-one was there, or they were smarter than to come running. Lusa entered the building carefully.
Filtering through the dust, Sunlight illuminated the array of fake appendages.
Pools of blood had dried to the floor and against the walls, but those who had lost it were nowhere to be found.
The doorway to the back room was significantly wider than it had been and the Hexaline that it had been made of now sat in a bloody pile of rubble.
“What the hell happened here?” Kerr stared in wide-eyed horror.
“Scan it,” Lusa ordered. Nanites would still be present in the blood, whether Kerr knew about them or not.
Kerr did as she was asked. “It’s not Chalice. I don’t know about Pinga.”
Lusa exhaled quickly, relieved. Kneeling to examine the rubble, it became obvious what had happened. “Pinga did this.”
“Pinga did this?” Kerr repeated. “How?”
Lusa stood up and put her kukri away. “You’re not the only ones who like to tinker with things. Tornit reprinted some of the gears in Pinga’s arm. Mom redid the hydraulics and added a higher Watt power source.”
Kerr scanned the doorway. “Then why would she let us take her?” Perhaps she thought Pinga hid behind it.
Lusa laughed. “Because she was trying to get into Chalice’s pants. Or yours. She’s not picky.” Pinga probably thought they were playing a kinky game.
Kerr blew out her cheeks. “That explains why you were so angry with her.”
“Someone showed up and Pinga went on a rampage.” Lusa kicked a chunk of rubble away.
“I’m glad we didn’t piss her off, then,” Kerr muttered.
“Oh, I doubt she was angry.” Lusa snorted at the way Kerr’s eyes widened. “This was probably fun for her,” Lusa explained. While she preferred grace and efficiency, Pinga hit things hard and repeatedly, like Sesi, but with reckless abandon. “Whoever cleaned this up had quite a job to do.”
“Do you think…” Kerr paused, “she killed Chalice?”
“Pinga’s into a lot of weird shit, but fucking corpses isn’t one of them.” Lusa surveyed the rest of the scene. Blood splatters and coagulated remnants of unidentifiable body parts among a veritable buffet of adult novelty products.
Lusa stepped around a sticky blood puddle, vast enough that it hadn’t had time to dry. The ceiling had started sagging where Pinga had torn off the door frame. Leave it to Pinga to destroy a load-bearing wall.
The bars of the go-go cage had been scattered and Hexaline dust covered everything else. Kerr held the EMP cuff aloft. “Chalice must have removed it. If it broke, she’d still be wearing it.”
“Look at you, detective.” Lusa smiled.
Kerr glowed. She pointed to the remains of the fire door. “They must have escaped through there.”
“Where are they now? Did Chalice message you?”
Hoisting herself up onto the remains of a table, Kerr stared at her knees while her legs dangled. “This is the oldest part of town. Technically part of Facility Two. None of the towers work here and the access tunnels don’t connect to ours.”
Lusa thought that sounded an awful lot like I don’t know. The tenuous amicable feelings between them evaporated and she had Kerr’s collar in her fist before Kerr understood what was happening. “Where. Is. My. Sister?” Lusa enunciated every word, low and restrained.
The slight hitch and glint of delight in Kerr’s eyes threw her off.
Lusa released her and stepped back. She was trying to threaten her, not start foreplay, goddammit.
Her mouth hung open for a few moments while her brain tried its best to catch up, both of them finding confusion in each other’s eyes. “Sorry,” she muttered finally.
It didn’t erase what they both knew had happened, but it did draw a line. And in doing so, it admitted that something beyond that line existed – that it was possible to cross, however inadvisable that may be.
Kerr pulled the wrinkles from her shirt. “Optis have trouble connecting out here.” She didn’t take her eyes off of Lusa. “It’s a dead zone.” When Lusa didn’t lunge at her, she continued. “But we get here from the edge of our access tunnels. The access is a half-hour walk from here.”
“Let’s go then.” Lusa started toward the bike.
Kerr called after her. “There’s a problem, though.”
Lusa exhaled to keep control. “Which is?”
Kerr turned at a sudden noise. Lusa froze. She didn’t hear anything, but Kerr had aural processors and she didn’t. “Fuck,” Kerr swore. “In here.”
Lusa found herself being shoved into a closet. Her heart trilled unexpectedly. People didn’t normally throw Lusa around, especially not people as small as Kerr.
“Stay quiet,” Kerr hissed.
“The only one talking is you.”
Even in the darkness, Lusa could feel her glare.
In here. Do a scan.
“Pure hell. How does your biosig blocker work? Can it shield two people?” Kerr failed to hide the panic in her voice.
Knowing there was no explaining something that didn’t exist, Lusa could still bluff. “Which direction are they coming from?”
Kerr pointed.
“Turn this way then.” Lusa shuffled Kerr to put herself between her and whoever was outside. She wrapped her arms around Kerr for good measure.
Kerr started hyperventilating. If she continued, they would surely be heard.
Lusa held her tightly, stroking her hair. “It’s okay, they’ll be gone soon.” They might not be. They could both be killed in minutes. Lusa quickly made a plan for taking out the first one who opened the door. If they were lucky, he wouldn’t be seen and she could do it quietly.
All clear, boss, but the spot’s naff. We can’t use it. It’s falling apart.
Footsteps drifted away. Lusa exhaled, not expecting that to work. She relaxed her grip and tried to step back, but the closet was too small. Kerr didn’t move.
“Are you okay?” Lusa asked.
Kerr kept staring. She must be in shock.
“Are they still he…”
Lusa’s head slammed against the wall with the force of Kerr’s lips careening into hers. Kerr fell back onto her heels, but quickly returned her tiptoes to pepper Lusa with kisses again.
“Sorry,” she stammered between kisses. “I should have asked first.”
“But you’re still…”
Kerr leapt into her arms, forcing Lusa to hold her. “Shut up.”
Lusa stumbled as far as she could go, slamming Kerr’s back flat against the wall. Kerr took the opportunity to wrap her legs around Lusa’s waist.
Lusa understood that the recent life-or-death situation, combined with the forced proximity of the closet and a little shared trauma resulted in relaxing her grip on her self-control.
Her reservations about whether they should, whether they hated each other or whether she would ever find someone who could handle her fell away.
And Lusa without reservations was both a glorious and terrifying thing to behold. It was also something for which Kerr was entirely unprepared.
Kerr may have kissed her first, but Lusa kissed back like it was a challenge. Not a dance or playful negotiation. Even invasion didn’t fit. Ownership did. Lusa took her mouth like she owned it. No invite, no option to decline, no opposition.
Lusa fumbled with clasps and buckles on unfamiliar clothing. Kerr, pinned and hoisted off the ground, was in no position to help.
“Hold this,” Lusa ordered, though Kerr felt, more than heard the words. Something thrust into her palm.
Lusa unclipped her knife belt. It slid across fabric and landed with a dull thud against the dusty floor.
“Thanks.” Her lips motioned again and she retrieved the object Kerr held, but couldn’t see.
Lusa drew it between them and Kerr’s shirt fell away.
“What the fuck?”
“Is there a problem?” The primal energy in her eyes told Kerr in no uncertain terms that there had better not be. Also, the knife at her throat. And that this was about to be the hottest thing she would ever experience.
Warning after warning. Chance after chance to turn away and Kerr had persisted and now, she would reap what she had sown. She could protest that, had she but known, she would have turned back. But Lusa had played this game many times before. Girls would still dive, headfirst to drown deliciously.
“Now you,” Kerr panted through bruised lips.
That was new. Usually, they let Lusa take what she wanted and kept their mouths shut. Lusa thrust her hips against Kerr, pinning her to the wall, igniting a soft gasp. Bracing her there, she leaned back, peeling her top over her head.
Even in the dark, she could see Kerr gawking at her the way her muscles twisted and popped beneath her skin as she moved. She was used to being admired, which is why she usually covered up, even if it stoked her ego a bit.
Kerr ran ceramic fingers across her waist with reverence, but couldn’t resist travelling farther.
Fingertips danced across muscle and bone, and then, the impossible softness of her breast. Against her fingertips, the back of her hand, her forearm until she cupped the back of her neck and pulled her in to kiss her again.
This time, Kerr was more prepared for Lusa’s violence.
And Lusa took greedily.
Kerr writhed, hips arching, legs clamped tightly around her. Lusa obliged, slipping long, deft fingers beneath her waistband. She was already a mess and Lusa determined to make it so much worse.
Two fingertips, just inside with her clit nestled between her knuckles – the way Lusa liked it. Kerr’s eyebrows tented along with full throated approval at the initial promise of relief.
“More.”
Lusa’s brain froze. More what? She was used to being used as a substitute for a man. The girls at the Lake would close their eyes and pretend while Lusa got them off. But Kerr wanted more. Kerr wanted her.
Kerr grabbed her wrist and angled her hips, forcing Lusa further inside. Lusa felt immensely grateful she didn’t have to ask.
“Now slow. Long,” Kerr panted.
Lusa wasn’t used to being given instructions either. For the first time, her appetites hadn’t been considered poor substitutions. They’d been received and met. She wondered; what would happen if she let herself truly go? But those were dangerous thoughts.
Lusa angled and dragged her fingers as slowly as she could stand.
It reminded her of when Callie let her pet Minuschok under her chin, the great rumbling from the oversized cat betraying the danger hiding beneath a moment of peace.
For once, Lusa felt as though she might have roused something bigger than she knew.
Taking her by surprise, Kerr’s ceramic fingers wrapped around her neck while the nails of her other hand grasped her forearm.
“Count down,” she demanded.
“What?” Lusa couldn’t fathom what she meant by that, but Kerr’s eyes left no room for interpretation.
“From ten.”
“Ten.” Lusa still didn’t know where this was going, but Kerr had shoved her out of the driver’s seat and was gleefully steering them off a cliff.
Kerr pulled her fingers deeper, accompanied by the heaviest breath Lusa had ever heard.
“Nine?” Lusa guessed, thrusting in again a bit quicker.
“Don’t change anything.” The words tumbled urgently from Kerr’s small mouth. “Just count.”
Lusa nodded, bracing her forehead against Kerr’s.
At five, Lusa had shed her apprehension at the strange request. At four, her ears hurt at the sound of Kerr’s praise. By three, her song had become a constant note. At two, the flutter and at one, the flood.
Kerr came apart in her arms and Lusa held the pyroclasm, fully aware that if she let this continue, it would burn her walls to ash.
Whatever this was would be a transforming flame.
Kerr could embrace what she had created, or suffer the abhorrent consequences – assuming she knew what she’d created at all.