Maybe he was irritated from an hour of treats being withheld and having to dance to my tune, but Feodor was in no mood to have me snap the leash on his collar. Cursing a little when he nipped my fingers, I scooped him up and lugged him with me, though Feodor squirmed the whole time.
We fought our way outside, with one chain-breaker in front and the other behind. In the lot, the Consortium flight-limo was the only vehicle remaining. The door slid open and as I dumped Feodor inside, he took another nip at me. Damn it, that one hurt! Swearing, I checked to see if he’d broken the skin. And that, of course, was when Feodor thought it would be a great idea to make a run for it.
Being gundogs as well as retrievers, Russian spaniels are fast. Feodor was no exception. In seconds, the dog hauled ass across the lot while barking his head off, chasing after gods knew what. I gave a cry of dismay and tried to follow, getting about ten feet before a chain-breaker grabbed my arm and directed me to the flight-limo in no uncertain terms.
“The dog!” I shrieked, not even bothering with Russian. “I have to get my dog!”
If I wasn’t so distraught, it might have been funny to watch the two chain-breakers with their wraparound sunshades and impassive faces glance between each other, deciding what to do. Who would watch me and who would get the dog? I started swearing and shouting at them until a moment later, one of them went after the dog. I don’t think I’d ever seen a chain-breaker move so fast.
He beetled after Feodor and into the trees where the dog had run, still barking. That left me frantic, and the remaining chain-breaker vigilantly scouring the area, looking for threats I couldn’t even imagine.
And then I stopped, the oddest sensation washing over me. I shivered and felt the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand upright. I was being watched. I didn’t know how I knew it. It wasn’t like my gut kicked me into high alert, although I’m sure there was an element of that in it. I just felt like someone was close by, eyes trained on me, observing my actions. I glanced over my shoulder, this way and that, though there was nothing to see. I rubbed the back of my neck as if that might help ease the feeling. If anything, the sensation grew worse. I became aware of how alone I was, just me and the chain-breaker in the empty lot.
Before I could mention my half-formed feeling of dread, the chain-breaker placed his hand on my neck and pressed me into the flight-limo. The grip was no-nonsense and firm, demanding compliance. I scurried inside and a beat later, the flight-limo took off into low-street orbit. Feodor! How could I leave without my dog? At the same time, I had the sense I had to get out of there. Had to get away from the kennel. Feodor was chipped and coded. I knew he’d be brought home without incident. But this sense of being watched and my need to get away—that was something else. It was a tangible, concrete feeling to be acted upon.
With it came a realization: Whoever was after my family, their attention had shifted to me. Brody had been right all along—I was their grand prize.
15
I consulted the Tarot that evening. Unfortunately, the best I could coax from the cards was the Two of Swords, reversed. Deceit. Disloyalty. Someone I thought an ally was lying to me. It made me want to swear. I worked for One Gov, damn it. The list of people who fit into that category was endless. When I tried again, I pulled the Nine of Shields, reversed. More deception. More trickery. Plans I’d made in good faith had gone astray. And to top it all off, I got the Four of Cups, which had nothing to do with the luck gene conspiracy but spoke to a general unhappiness with the way things were going and an inability to appreciate the good things in my life. Great. Just what I wanted to read in the cards—my lack of faith had screwed things up, which was exactly the thing Celeste had told me.
After Feodor was returned to me some hours later, I got caught up on my mandated fitness hours. I also did some research on nexus-node seventy-five. I’d dealt with Mannette. Now it was time to tackle Tanith. If I was going to meet her for lunch tomorrow, it would help if I knew what to prepare for.
Nexus-node seventy-five turned out to be Old World Paris, circa 1890. That meant parasols, corsets, big hats with feathers, elbow-length gloves, satin shoes, and long flowing dresses with puffed sleeves and high necks. Shit. I’d need a whole new outfit shipped to Alexei’s property on the CN-net in preparation. Then I’d have to go there and get changed before heading to nexus-node seventy-five. Not something I felt like wrestling with, but I couldn’t overlook that Tanith had selected a nexus-node she thought I’d like. She knew how enamored I was with Old Earth from before the floods. She also knew my love of languages and how this would give me a chance to use my French. Even if lunch with Tanith left me feeling like I was preparing for battle, old-school gladiator style, not making the effort to meet her halfway would be a shabby thing to do on my part.
I was due to meet Tanith at noon Mars time. I’d need to leave at least two hours earlier to ensure I’d arrive on time, as well as eat something before I logged in. We may have been meeting for lunch in Paris, but you couldn’t eat on the CN-net. Even though you paid gold notes for things you bought on the CN-net, anything consumed there didn’t nourish you. If we didn’t need to return to our physical bodies, I imagined some people would be perfectly happy to spend the rest of their lives logged in to that illusion. Maybe I’d been wrong to be horrified by Belikov’s homunculus project if this was the way humanity wanted to go.
Rather than ponder a nonbiological reality, I got Feodor settled, ate my snack, logged my calorie consumption points, went to the bathroom, and got comfortable in bed since I had no idea how long I might be. Closing my eyes, I reached for that little wriggle of awareness that was the CN-net. I cued up nexus-node eighteen and let myself drop.
When I opened my eyes, I stood on the jump pad. A private access nexus-node rather than public, it was also the closest node to Alexei’s property. Private nexus-nodes were nothing like public ones. Those resembled the Y-line pod launch platforms back on Earth, being utilitarian, purely functional, and really dull to look at. Everything was in shades of gray and white, designed for the masses who were just passing through on their way to somewhere better.
Private nexus-nodes were first-class all the way. It meant never having to wait for the next available jump pad in and out of the CN-net or when moving between realms. There was no feeling like you had wandered through a cut-away cross-section of a building’s internal waste recycling system. Instead, they conveyed the sense that you had been invited into someone’s living room, about to be entertained before dinner. The colors were tranquil and soothing, keyed to each avatar’s preferences. Music played in the background—some sort of pocket symphony meant to be harmonic and welcoming. And from the jump pad, it was a simple stroll to the AI-managed valet parking. I could climb into my waiting vehicle and be off to my next destination without wasting a second of allotted CN-net time.
I hadn’t even realized there was public and private access until Alexei had shown me the differences. The dichotomy irked me. One Gov promised equality for all, but the more gold notes you had, the smoother your ride through life. I’d grown up poor, always on the outside looking in. Now that I could fit in the way I’d always wanted, knowing that divide existed bothered me even more.
Traffic was nonexistent in this section of the realm. I made it to Alexei’s property in record time before jumping out of the flight-limo and dashing into the house. Or rather, castle, because that’s what it was—an honest-to-gods castle with a moat, drawbridge, turrets, working cannons, and a courtyard. The grounds were sprawling with acres of greenery that included several fountains, many statues cast in marble, and a hedge maze. All of it was covered by a dome that prevented anyone from gazing inside even though the closest neighbors were miles away.
The castle was all stone and tapestries and endless candles that flickered as I sprinted past. The house AI had activated the welcome protocols the moment I set foot on the property, letting me inside rather than locking the doors, firing the cannons, and stopping just short of i
ncinerating my avatar.
The butler greeted me in the great hall. He was tall, thin, with dark hair just beginning to gray at the temples, and wore a fitted black jacket and pants with white gloves. With his pale skin and blue eyes, he was some code artist’s idea of what a butler should look like, generated from a template stored in a database somewhere in the tri-system. If we’d wanted, the skin and eye color could be changed, but the rest of the settings were fixed. AI-generated staff only came in flavors dictated by One Gov, performed a select set of tasks, and winked in and out of existence as needed.
“Good morning, Mrs. Petriv,” the butler said in English. The language setting was multicultural, adapting to different languages as needed. As for the last name…This was the only place in the entire tri-system where I was addressed by something other than Ms. Sevigny. Alexei had insisted and one night, after he’d weakened my resolve with several orgasms, I’d agreed. I had a suspicion he planned on being more insistent in the future—if that future even happened now.
“Hi, Sergei. I’m not going to be here long,” I said, already heading up the steps at the far end of the great hall. I passed a roaring fire in the hearth, three medieval winter-themed wall tapestries, and half a dozen suits of armor. “I’m just here to get changed. Sorry I can’t stay longer, but I’m in a rush.”
“Very well, Mrs. Petriv. We’re always happy to see you when you’re here. Irina is already waiting, available to help with whatever you require.”
“Thanks, Sergei. That will be great.”
Irina was my personal maid. Seriously, when had I ever needed a personal maid before?
I strode through several corridors filled with more tapestries, suits of armor, walls adorned with coats of arms, and whatever else I’d always imagined might be stuffed inside a castle, before I got to the bedroom. Why I had a bedroom, I didn’t know. It wasn’t like I slept there. Yet inside was a large canopied bed, several dressers and a desk, and another roaring fire.
Irina was a plump, rosy-cheeked middle-aged woman. Her brown hair was pulled into a low knot at the base of her neck, and she wore a plain gray dress and white apron. Another AI template created by an unimaginative CN-net code artist.
“Good morning, Mrs. Petriv,” Irina said in a pleasant, lilting voice, sticking to her script. “Will you want a bath first?”
Why I wanted to bathe my avatar, I had no idea. Technically, avatars could get dirty, but they didn’t sweat or smell or get bad breath. Still, this was part of an AI CN-net script, so I just went with it.
“No time, I’m afraid. I’m meeting my grandmother soon.”
“Everything you ordered arrived on time and is waiting for you in the dressing room.”
And so the ritual began. Dressing. Hair. Makeup. All of it done with the help of Irina, who laced me into my corset and fastened all the mother-of-pearl buttons at the back of my dress. When I was ready, Irina beamed and stood back to admire her work while I studied myself in the oval full-length mirror.
“C’est manifique,” Irina said in French.
I returned her smile in the mirror. “Merci, mais ce n’est pas moi. Vous faites du bon travail.” Thanks, but it isn’t me. You do good work.
The dress was mint green and covered me from neck to ankle, where matching low-heeled shoes peeped out. White satin gloves went past my elbows, while the rest of my arms were hidden in puffed sleeves. The corset made my waist appear tiny, and I barely felt the whalebone digging into me thanks to my avatar’s limited sensory input. My hat was wide-brimmed and decorated with silk flowers, and my hair had been set in waves, then pinned back in a French twist. Lastly, I carried a parasol tucked under my arm. I looked exactly the part I needed to play for lunch. It was also a hell of a lot of work and had taken more time than I thought. As I hoofed it down the stairs and out to the waiting flight-limo, I resolved to suggest something a little less high-maintenance to Tanith for our next lunch.
Then I was back at the jump pad to launch myself to the specified nexus-node. No lines. No crowds. No pushing. When I opened my eyes, everything was different yet again.
What I saw looked positively gothic with its arched ceiling and towering columns. There was nothing of the sleek steel and chrome I was used to. It looked elegant and refined, without a speck of litter. Then again, there wasn’t much litter in the CN-net unless the particular realm called for it. A few people strolled by wearing outfits similar to mine. Many were couples, arms linked together and heads tilted toward each other. Some kissed as they chatted, and everyone spoke French. I hurried after them, excited to see what waited beyond the doors.
Outside, the sky was a faint, clear blue and the sun bright and warm. Ahead of me was a tree-lined sidewalk and rows of shops and restaurants. There were men on horseback, as well as horse-drawn carriages. Women walked in groups with delicate parasols opened to shade them from a sun that wouldn’t burn. In the distance, I saw the Eiffel Tower, standing like some benevolent sentry watching over everything.
My breath caught in excitement and I couldn’t help but utter a tiny squeal of delight. I tried telling myself it wasn’t real because it was stupid to act all fangirl giddy, but my brain didn’t care. Old Earth before the floods had always fascinated me. A brush of sadness followed. I wanted to be here with Alexei, experiencing this moment with him. Maybe all our moments were over. Maybe I would be sharing them with someone else.
“Felicia! You’re here! I trust you made it without issue?”
I pulled out of my funk and turned; Tanith waited for me. She stood on the porch of the nexus-node jump pad—the building that housed it resembled an old-fashioned train station. Her outfit was similar to mine, down to the parasol and the gloves, except hers was a pale peach that complemented her coloring.
Calling her beautiful was an understatement. Her long black hair was pulled back from her face and pinned like mine, and her dark brown eyes that slanted like a cat’s were made up to look both exotic and mysterious. She looked a little like Monique—in the shape of her face and elegant line of her neck and shoulders—but Monique had had Felipe’s blond hair and green eyes. I’d always thought I resembled my father’s side, but the more time I spent with Felipe and Tanith, I knew that wasn’t entirely true.
Another thing I’d noticed both Monique and Tanith shared to varying degrees was a civilized savagery. Monique had been cold, calculating, and ruthless in her ambition. I’d yet to see those characteristics in Felipe, but maybe he hid them better. However, they were there in Tanith. It made me wonder if I’d inherited that same potential. I thought about it a second, recalling my newfound simmering anger, before moving on. Yes, I probably had.
“No trouble at all,” I assured her after we’d hugged and made air kisses at each other. We both spoke French. Hers was perfect, which surprised me, given that I knew her first language was Portuguese; she’d probably downloaded a language patch through her t-mods. Mine was learned the old-fashioned way and practiced rigorously.
“I’ve seen the news reports regarding your father’s family, and I’ve talked to Felipe, who’s passed on what he knows from what you’ve told him. How awful for you, and how frightening for your family. I understand MPLE is investigating on Mars, but if you need more help, don’t hesitate to ask Felipe or myself. We will be there for you in whatever capacity you need.”
“Thank you. That’s very kind,” I answered, surprised by her thoughtfulness. “Things are rough, but we’ll pull through. Alexei has people looking into what happened as well, so I’m sure we’ll find something soon.”
“Ah yes, the Consortium.” Her smile faded before she said, “I was worried you might cancel today. I’m so glad you didn’t.”
“Me too. This realm is wonderful! Thank you for suggesting it.”
She perked up at that. “I must confess, I had help. Felipe thought you might like this.”
“Well, he was right,” I said, looking around and taking in the sights and sounds. “I had no idea this realm even existed. Ther
e are so many to keep track of. I’d have been here sooner if I’d known.”
“I’ve been here several times but am always discovering something new. I’m glad we get to explore it together. I’ve arranged for a short carriage ride, then lunch when we reach our destination. After that, there are some lovely shops we can explore.”
The carriage ride was all I could have wished for and I gawked like a tourist. Open-topped and pulled by two white horses, our carriage rolled past the Arc de Triomphe, down the tree-lined Champs-Élysées, along the bank of the Seine, and finally right under the Eiffel Tower. A little farther away, we stopped at a café where we ordered flakey croissants and chocolat chaud so thick, I could have stood on it. We sat outside on the patio, the Eiffel Tower soaring overhead, and watched the people stroll by.
Then came the part of our visit where we ran out of small talk and things had the potential to become awkward. So far, we’d been doing well, but I couldn’t force a relationship where none existed. Tanith didn’t have that way with people Felipe did and I kept looking for Monique-like tendencies. I already had a contentious relationship with one grandmother. I wasn’t sure if I could handle two of them.
“Did you want to investigate the shops now?” I asked at a lull in the conversation.
“I thought I’d have another chocolat chaud, if you don’t mind? A few more minutes can’t hurt, and I love imagining I’m cheating the calorie consumption index, even though I know it isn’t true.”
I paused in the act of pushing my seat back from the table—all black wrought iron and surprisingly heavy—and sat back down.
“Okay. I feel the same way.”
She smiled at me, and there was a moment where it seemed a little brittle. I’d spent years studying faces. I knew what to look for, and Tanith looked anxious before she smoothed it away. Then she was back to me, saying something about pastries. When I saw her eyes flick over my shoulder, I turned to catch what had thrown her off.
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