“Why don’t you go talk to him,” said Vaughn.
“But I’m not even sure that he’s gay. I thought you could fill me in. Give me some stats on the boys around here.”
“Forget it, Gus. Just go talk to him.”
“But I’m scared. Can’t you come with me and hold my hand?”
“No.”
Gus shuffled back to the main tent just as Joshua blew through the flap covered in full body paint with a broad, crooked smile on his face. “Vampire, you and the blue lady are sitting at our table so get your asses up here. We’re nearly ready to eat.”
Kora drew in a quick breath when she entered the main tent. Hundreds of glass lanterns hung from cords and silk carpets covered the floor. Low tables sat throughout piled with sumptuous dishes and pyramids of fruit. It was even more luxurious than she’d imagined. Like Joshua, Berta was covered from head to toe in elaborate body paint but she wore a blue silk gown that draped over her body to perfection. Even Ivan would have approved. She took Kora by the hand and guided her to the head of the table where Ramon winked at her.
“You lucky bastard Vaughn,” said Ramon. “I still think she’s more my type.”
“Where’s Ivan?” asked Joshua, looking around as if he’d dropped something on the floor. “I have his chair all ready for him.” He pointed to a tall stack of pillows.
“I’m right here,” said a loud, gravely voice from the entrance. Everyone turned to see Ivan wearing heavy lavender makeup, dressed in a white tuxedo with a purple cummerbund, holding two huge bags on his back. He sashayed over to the kids’ table where Nelly and the cooks were struggling to keep order. “I have a surprise for each of you,” said Ivan. “But only when you’re quiet and your plates are clean.”
All that could be heard in the tent for several minutes was the clatter of forks against plates.
“What the hell went down in Caleb’s bedroom?” Gus whispered to Kora. “Ivan looks like a ghoulish Easter elf.”
After Nelly and the cooks had cleared away all the empty plates, Ivan slowly made his way around the table, placing a magnificent toy before each child until both bags were empty. There were charming, furry robots, music boxes that filled the tent with wild animations of prancing unicorns, and every conceivable form of remote-controlled vehicle from a fighter jet to a bulldozer. The children squealed with delight and raced in all directions, the girls showing off their prizes to each other while the boys ducked outside where there was more room for battles and races.
“He’s giving away all of Caleb’s toys,” said Gus.
Joshua guided Ivan to his seat amid a standing ovation. He bowed when he reached the top of his pillow stack and raised his champagne glass. “I’d like to make a toast to my father, Caleb. He was a loving man and a brilliant toy maker, and that’s how I’ll always remember him.”
Everyone clinked glasses and cheered while Nelly and the cooks brought around the first course. Kora picked at her food, but her stomach felt too heavy to eat. After dessert, everyone wandered outside to watch the sunset. She kicked off her slippers and placed them on the edge of the platform before hopping onto the damp sand. She walked to the edge of the water where Ishmael was doing the backstroke against the glowing pink and blue sky. Part of her wanted to call out to him, but he looked relaxed and happy so she decided to let him be.
“Are you feeling okay,” asked Vaughn. He suit made him look like a fashion model and his hair, that he’d made an extra effort to comb, was curling back into the usual wavy mane that crept down into his eyes.
Kora leaned against him as she watched Ishmael. “I was just thinking how I have a new life, you, and everything I’ve ever wanted, but I don’t feel like I deserve it.”
“Of course you deserve it. Is it because you're not the one getting married today? We could easily fix that.”
Kora felt like she was going to choke. “No—don't get me wrong, because I want to stay with you forever, but I'm just not the marrying kind. Please don't be hurt.”
He kissed her cheek. “I get it, don't worry. Besides, I've heard that half of all mutant-synthetic marriages end up in divorce. I just want you for your body and that amazing brain in your head. It'll be like a five-hundred year one-night stand, trust me.” He kissed her on the lips and she felt her ankles melting until a voice called her name.
“Kora!”
Vaughn groaned and they turned to see Ivan scuttling toward them, stopping twice to empty his polished shoes of sand before he reached them. “I have two things left in my bag.” He reached to the very bottom and pulled out the Mud toy and handed it to Kora. “Caleb wanted me to give this to you.”
She looked down at the reddish toy that was like a child's rendition of Mud’s crumpled body in the catacomb. The well of guilt that had pooled in her chest suddenly got deeper. “Thanks Ivan. I’ll never forget what Caleb did for me.”
“He told me that out of all the things he did wrong to you, years ago, he most regretted leaving you alone in the dark. Is that a metaphor?” asked Ivan.
A cold shiver went through Kora. “I suppose it is.”
“I don’t understand,” asked Vaughn. “Caleb is dead. Did you see his ghost or something?”
“Of course,” said Ivan, as if this was self-evident. “And I have something for you as well, Vaughn.” He reached back into the bottom of his bag and pulled out a set of keys. “I’m giving you whatever car you want in the garage. The keys are just symbolic, though they do go to the bent pickup, if you're interested.”
Vaughn stared at the keys dangling from Ivan’s hand. “Is this a trick? Are you getting revenge for the Superbird?”
“No trick. I’m actually trying to be nice. And I think your driving has improved somewhat, though I upped our insurance last night just in case.”
Vaughn grabbed the keys, picked Ivan up, and hugged him. When he set him back down, Ivan had a shocked look on his face. “That was strange, but more pleasant than my usual position at the end of your fist.”
“Can I have turn?” They turned to see Alex standing on the platform in a red dress and clunky high heels that did a good job of masking her enormous feet.
“That dress I made for you is perfection,” he said.
“And what about me?” she asked.
Ivan swaggered toward her. “You're alright for an Ogress.”
Lucky for him, Alex laughed. “Get me a drink you little troll!” She lifted Ivan into the air and kissed him on the mouth like a teddy bear before carrying him into the crowd that had billowed across the platform.
Vaughn and Kora walked hand in hand on the wet sand, the waves splashing over their feet. She felt like a child with the Mud doll under her arm, and shivered in the breeze that blew in off the ocean. “You never told me what you and Humphrey did with Ruby?”
The relaxed expression disappeared from Vaughn’s face. “We buried her under a ton of metal in the engine room of a sunken freighter.”
“Do you think it will hold her?”
“For a while.” Vaughn squeezed her hand. “Don’t think about it right now. For the next month, I don’t want to do anything but eat and make love to you.”
“There's lots of work to do. Now that Randall is on the run from the Rothschilds, some of the Food are moving back to Santa Monica, but many have family joining them here. We've got lots of houses to build.”
“The Food can take care of themselves. Besides, that's more Humphrey's department.”
Kora looked over her shoulder at the tranquil ocean and pictured her precious synthetic wrapped in heavy chains, her eyes wide as she stared into the watery darkness like the lost statue of an ancient goddess.
“You’re still thinking about Ruby, aren’t you?” asked Vaughn.
“Sorry, I can’t help it. I know that I need to stop worrying. We’re starting our new life together and—”
“Race me.”
Kora stopped in her tracks and looked up at him, her heart speeding up in her chest. “What?”
Kora laughed as she shot across the sand toward the hills above the beach. She could hear Vaughn’s feet pounding behind her and when she hit a dry streambed, she jumped with all of her strength and landed like a gazelle on the other side.
* * * *
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Synthetic: Dark Beginning Page 30