by Stone, Layla
Z sat back. “He works on Yunkin? Is he a Yunkin?”
“Yes,” she answered.
He smiled slightly.
She had no idea why he seemed pleased. Then it hit her. He was a black-market dealer. He collected names and details. Not to have, but to use. The excitement was not heard in his voice, but it was in his eyes. “How did you work that? I know they arrange their marriages, they don’t meet and marry.”
“I was adopted by Yunkins. Grew up there and was married to an officer.”
He didn’t speak for a moment, then he said, “You grew up on Yunkin. Married and divorced?” He didn’t wait for her to confirm it, he just went on. “If you’re the one off the planet, that means you were exiled. Which is why you were on the Krant’s ship. And it’s why you are selling a stolen liquid to get off this planet. Probably to settle down and start over because you have no one. No family, no nothing that will claim you. Divorce is dishonorable. There is no going back after that.”
Yes, to all of that. And she wanted to slap him for throwing it in her face. Dishonor? Yes, she had dishonored her family, but Olmy was scum, and she didn’t have to honor him.
“Divorce may have been dishonorable to my ex-husband, but it was the greatest day of my life. And if you think I’m going to apologize for it, you’re wrong. So sorry you’re not going to get any contacts from me. I burned all the ones I had.”
Z moved his head from side to side. She assumed that he was either thinking or making it look as if he were contemplating something. “You burned them?”
“Yes.”
“Alive?” he asked. She thought he might be joking. Wasn’t sure.
“What?” Alive? “No. I didn’t kill anyone. I burned those connections.”
He was still amused when he said, “You know names, titles, and contact information. That will be my price.”
“What price?”
He stood and tucked the gun into the back of his pants. “Your captain was right. Whoever the homner belonged to will come for it. They will kill you for taking their product. So, I’m offering to protect you. For a price. That price is all the names and contacts from Yunkin…and Captain Eriben.”
He’d just threatened to kill her. Now he was offering to keep her safe…for names? This was why people didn’t trust anyone from Lotus Adaamas.
Standing up, she mirrored Z’s stance, hoping he didn’t stop her when she walked out. “I’m not paying you. You’re supposed to pay me for the homner. You don’t want to do business, fine, give back the liquid.”
He took a step towards her, closing the open space between them. The tension in the air was back, but this felt different. It was the arrogant smirk, the dark eyes, and his nearness to her lips. “I’ve learned a lot living on Adaamas. Namely, always lead with your best deal. If your client pushes, make them regret not trusting you from the get-go.”
She couldn’t help it. Adelia scoffed. “That’s not a deal. That’s extortion.”
“You don’t have a gun to your head. I’m not forcing you to take this deal, so it’s not extortion.”
“You have a gun in the back of your pants. Don’t act like this is a safe and harmless negotiation.” Adelia was stunned by how he’d twisted the situation, his words and his emotions. He was being irritating yet doing it with a smile. It was beguiling.
“Tell me, Pet,” he whispered, “do you even know what safe looks like? Because you didn’t have it on Yunkin being abused by your ex-husband. You didn’t find it on the Krant’s ship. The dirtbogger abandoned you on a planet, hoping the person who was trying to set him up followed you and not him. With all that, can you honestly say that you know what safety looks like when it’s extended.”
“I know what safety looks like.”
“Describe it to me.”
Describe safety? To do that, she’d have to describe her dreams, and she didn’t want to share them. So, she didn’t respond.
Z’s amusement faded. “All right… Here’s my new deal. But to hear it, you’ll need to come with me to my office.” He didn’t grab her arm or force her. Her first instinct was to run and get away, but he still had the homner, and she didn’t want to leave without it or the money.
5
Twisted Deals
To Adelia’s frustration, Z never turned back to see if she was following, which was why she had to speed-walk around the stack of pallets and follow him through the maze of stuff wrapped and unmarked. She was thirsty and could feel the soreness in her muscles as she walked behind him. Could feel the blisters still stinging with every step because her skin had been rubbed raw.
They moved past the boxes in a hallway to another side of the warehouse. This one was fancy with stylish lights, artwork on the walls, cool-colored paint, and two mysterious-looking black glass office doors. Z walked to the first one. Holding the door for a few seconds, she realized it was verifying his prints.
Inside his large office with its wide, black stone desk and four handy Minky screens on either side were two guest chairs, soft, plush micro-fabric with armrests.
She took one, sat down, and felt the chair recline some, making it even more comfortable. This was luxury. She shouldn’t have liked it, but it gave her a reprieve from the blisters and her sore calves.
Z sat down pulled open a drawer, then pulled out two glasses with intricately cut designs. They looked expensive. Then he pulled up a bottle of jubriaan and poured himself a glass, set the bottle back down in the drawer, and then pulled up a smaller bottle of water. It was made of crystal and had a unique curve to it. He poured her some in the other tumbler and then pushed it to her.
“It’s mixed with cinder oil. It’s a little bitter, but it will fix you up.”
She didn’t reach for the glass. “What’s cinder oil?”
“Drink it. You’ll see.” He picked up his own drink and sipped it. Then he took another sip. He didn’t push her to try her water, he just leaned back in his seat and said, “Here’s my new deal. One hundred keleps for the homner, and five hundred more if you hand me a list of your contacts from Yunkin and your old captain.”
“The homner is worth more than that.”
He took a sip of his light amber liquid and agreed. “It is, but it’s also stolen goods, and it will cost me in time as I find a buyer who will take the product even though I can’t prove which manufacturer it came from. Also, I will be indirectly protecting you in this because I don’t plan to use your name as the person who sold it to me.”
That was a better deal. “You said your deals get worse. But this one is better.”
He finished the drink, set down the glass, and sat forward. “Do we have a deal?”
“You didn’t answer my question.” She was stalling. She was comfortable and didn’t want to get up yet. Reaching over the desk, she took the glass he’d poured the oil-laced water into and drank the contents. It was warm with a bitter aftertaste, but it was liquid and refreshing, and she wished she could ask for more.
Z watched her place the glass down with a look of confusion, but it was gone a second later. “My first deal was better. But it’s off the table now.”
“How was it better?”
“Take the deal, and I’ll explain.”
“Explain, and I’ll take the deal.”
“No.”
No.
He said it with such finality, she assumed the entire conversation was over. Pushing herself up, she told him, “We don’t have a deal. Give me back the homner, and I’ll be on my way.”
He peered up at her, smugness or irritation in his eyes. She didn’t know which. His hair didn’t fall in his face as he dropped his head, opened a drawer, and pulled out the same jubriaan bottle from before. He poured another glass and then returned the bottle to its spot. She noticed he didn’t offer her another drink.
Which rightly prickled her ire. “This shouldn’t be difficult for you.”
He leaned back, kicked up his shoes, and crossed his ankles. “That’s not an option.
But you’re in luck, I’ve decided to offer you a new deal.”
“No. I don’t care what it is.”
“For a list of contacts and the homner, I will arrange a flight to Marnak, as well as ensure that no one knows who stole it from the docks.”
Twisted, drivel-drinking Terran. “I didn’t steal it.”
Z shrugged.
Adelia wished the glass she had was still full of the water-oil mix. She would have loved to toss the contents at his face. She wanted her product back. She wanted a warm bed. She wanted cold water, food—lots of food—and to not be haggling a deal with a demented Terran who thought he was a Demon.
“I’m not going to Marnak. Ever. But if you suggested Port Meno, I’d be tempted to take the offer.”
Z snorted. “Port Meno? That’s where you want to go?” With derision, he added, “Place is a bug-infested hellhole.”
How dare he ruin her dreams. “At least breathing doesn’t burn your throat.”
“Yes, you’re right, the few minutes it takes for your body to adjust to the acidic air is worse than being eaten by blood-draining insects. Not to mention the other slimy, skittering things that find their way into your bed and crawl into your ears to lay eggs. Sounds like heaven.”
“At least there aren’t any Terrans.”
He chuckled darkly, took a sip of his alcohol, and sat forward. “I’m sure there are a few.”
He was likely telling the truth. But that wasn’t the point. The point was…she wanted for this to be over. “So, do we have a deal?”
Z looked genuinely confused when he asked, “A deal for what?”
“To send me to Port Meno?”
“No, I wouldn’t do that to you. Maybe my backstabbing associate would, but not to an unsuspecting female like yourself.”
She rubbed her temples. It was like talking to…no, she didn’t have anything to compare Z to. “I want to go there. It’s not like you’ll be taking advantage of me.”
“I understand that,” he said, moving his glass to the side as he talked. She watched the contents, expecting it to slosh.
It didn’t.
He continued.“But what you don’t understand is that I have standards. Those standards don’t include sending a female by herself with no contacts to a planet that will take advantage of her as much as the bugs do.”
She crossed her arms. “Maybe if you paid me the money the homner is worth, I would have an easier time getting settled there. Find a job, get more money, and finally have a place of my own.”
“Get a job and find a place of your own?” he murmured tonelessly. His expression looked contemplative. He gently set the fancy tumbler on the stone desk, then used his fingers to twist the glass around and around. His eyes looked lost, as if he were viewing nothing. He didn’t look at her for several moments.
The movement of the glass stopped. “I’ll tell you what.” He touched the desk with his finger and made a quick swish and circle. The desk powered up. Z picked up the glass, drank the contents, and then put the tumbler back in the drawer. Then he grabbed her glass and did the same.
The desk, to Adelia’s amazement, was interactive. Then she saw a prompt for her kelep account information. “I’ll pay you one thousand for the homner. All you have to do is enter your information there.”
He pointed at the prompt.
She waited. He didn’t mention the contacts again. So, she did. “Is that all?”
“Yep.”
One thousand was good. Better than one hundred. She typed in her information and watched as her account was instantly a thousand keleps richer. “Thank you.”
Z stood and held out his hand in Terran fashion. “You’re welcome.”
She took it and shook, feeling a little bereft when their hands unclasped. It was over. This was what she had wanted. What she needed to start a better life. “Well, I’m gonna go.”
“Okay,” he said pleasantly, which of course made her a little worried. He might try to double-cross her.
She got to the door and noticed that he was following her. She stopped for a moment, and he continued walking to open the door. Then he ushered her in front while tapping something on his Minky watch. It was a newer version than hers.
“Those come in handy.”
“They do,” he agreed.
He walked her past a front desk that was bare but clean. At the front door, he exited with her. “I’ve ordered a Daamus Rounder to come and pick you up.”
“Thank you.” Even better than she’d expected.
When he finished tapping and typing, he turned to her. “There is a nearby hotel called Stems. It’s reasonably priced and is always stocked with water and food packets. If you want real food, you will have to wait until five or six.”
“In the morning?”
“Degrees.”
“What? What does the temperature have to do with it?” It was still warm outside, even without the blazing star overhead. Who knew how long it would take to get to five or six degrees Fahrenheit.
He placed one arm over the other, then pointed his index finger of the top arm out and slowly rose the finger, not the elbow. “This is five degrees. It’s where the sun will be when most hotels serve food and drinks.”
Then he moved the finger to point straight up, the elbow still touching his other arm. “This is ninety degrees.”
“Are you talking about angles?”
“Yes. We use degrees instead of standard minutes.”
She’d had no idea. “Oh.”
“The star will be at zero soon. You won’t have to wait long.” Their time-keeping method was the strangest thing she had ever seen and heard.
“How do you tell time at night when the sun is down?”
“We don’t.”
Adelia, despite herself, laughed. How unorganized and yet…charming for a Demon-run planet. “Well, thank you for explaining. That helps a lot.”
He nodded. The air went silent, but she was feeling good, so she didn’t say anything. Then she realized she felt good. No blisters, no dry mouth, nothing. Shocked, she touched a hand to her mouth.
Z watched her actions. “You okay?”
“What was that stuff you gave me again?”
He smirked. “Told you, that stuff works well.”
“What was it?”
“Cinder oil. From the Angny planet. They don’t usually sell to outsiders, but I’ve got an inside man.”
The Daamas Rounder came into the parking lot then and pulled up to them. The door lifted, and she took a step towards the opening. Z moved to the door, keeping her from entering. “One more thing.”
Her face fell.
“Tomorrow at forty-five, I’m holding interviews for a front receptionist. The pay is three thousand keleps a month. The hours are long, and you would have to deal with me, new and old clients, and answering all voice and video calls. This is not a deal, it’s an offer. Think about it. If I see you tomorrow, great. If not, I understand.”
Adelia wasn’t sure why she found his offer so hilarious, but she did. She would have long hours and have to deal with him? “A few hours ago, you were holding a gun to my chest.”
His hand reached behind his body. He pulled the blue gun from his pants and handed it to her, the pointed end facing him. “A parting gift, then.”
She took the gun. It was lightweight and compact with a retractable safety and fancy blue lights. It was elegant and posed a unique threat. It wasn’t the first time she’d held a gun, but it was likely the first time she’d held one that was probably custom-made—worth thousands, if not more. It was beautiful, and she wished she could keep it. But she didn’t want the gift to turn into a favor later.
She handed it back. Turning the grip towards him, she said, “It’s a beautiful gun. Lightweight, small, and concealable. I can see why you bought it, but I don’t think I will need a gun to fend off the bugs on Port Meno.”
He took the gun and slipped it into his back pocket. His dark eyes slowly raked over her, li
ngering on her mouth. They stayed a little too long, but she refused to blush. He didn’t radiate need or hunger. He was guarded, as if something had happened that he didn’t trust.
Ending their meeting as copasetic as possible, she offered, “Good luck tomorrow.”
Z gave her a curt nod and then stepped back to let her into the Rounder. Her shoulder brushed his chest as she stepped in. The contact sent a thrill through her until she sat down and looked at the bloodstains.
How could she have forgotten about the man he’d murdered? Stupidly, she heard herself say, “I won’t tell anyone about the dead male.”
Seriousness flashed in his face. “I didn’t kill him. He’s just unconscious and inside a healing container.” Z shut the door and turned around, cutting off her response. She wanted to know if he was telling the truth. And if so, what was a healing container?
6
Seth of Stars
Adelia walked into her hotel room, realizing that the place was nicer than she was used to. Even in Yunkin with two high-ranking parents, she hadn’t had as many drink options, food from different planets, and amazing artwork that she couldn’t help but stare at.
The colors blended in a way that told a story of their own. The emotion captured in a place that couldn’t be touched or taken away. She loved it.
She had cut into her thousand keleps by a lot. She wondered if Z had planned it that way, but after seeing the painting over her bed, she wasn’t mad anymore. It was worth it.
Adelia woke up to a loud bang. When she was conscious enough to know what was going on, she realized that someone was knocking on her door.
She pulled on her dirty clothes and yanked open the door. It was the blue female from the highway.
The sleep-interrupting Demon crossed her arms. “Didn’t think you’d get rid of me that easy, did you?”
Adelia felt Instant regret that she hadn’t kept the gun Z offered. Speaking with more bravado than she actually had, she threatened, “I didn’t think of you at all. So, yes, it was easy.”