Exhausted after their return from the North Country, she and Jon had collapsed in bed and stayed there. Drained of energy, she'd slept for an entire day. After two days of doing little more than eating and sleeping, she felt her energy coming back again.
The shower door opened and Jon stepped out, a towel around his neck.. "That felt good." He approached her and slid his arm around her back, leaning close to kiss her cheek.
"Jon, you're going to wet me up. Why don't you use your towel?"
"If you had a dryer you wouldn't need towels." He rubbed his face against hers.
Feeling his stubble against her face was strangely stimulating, but she wasn't in the mood for anything more right now. "I like using them. Besides, this is an old apartment. I don't have all the luxuries you're used to."
"A body dryer isn't a luxury," he said, running his hands over her bare arms. "You don't have to stay here, you know. We can get a place in the Palatine district."
"Jon, let's take it a step at a time. I'm comfortable here. Besides, you'll be going to Astarte soon."
"Only to visit." He hugged her, planting a big kiss on her neck. "And maybe you'll come with me."
"We'll see." She glanced in his direction in time to see his bare bottom disappear around the corner as he headed towards the bedroom. That was another topic they'd have to discuss. Though she could leave Hathor, it wasn't easy to accept something she'd been told all her life was impossible.
If only her mother had known, that one fact would've changed her entire life.
At least Brandon and Catherine Mantee had managed to escape without detection. Jonathan had been visibly relieved when his father had contacted him from Demeter.
One day they'd have to confront the truth about Jonathan's origins. If he started to develop abilities, what then? And what of Zina's actions? She'd taken a life. It didn't matter that Ilana wasn't a Guardian.
She'd have to check the company records and see if she could find anything about Ilana. Was her story true? It was plausible. But Zina would never admit to it.
Stifling a yawn, she set the cup on the counter. Used to waking early, she'd wanted to get up at 5:00 this morning. But Jonathan didn't see the point of rising before sunrise.
He'd convinced her to stay in bed and snuggle under the covers. Of course, it hadn't taken much convincing on his part.
Jonathan came out of the bedroom and stood in front of her. He was wearing a pull-on blue shirt that fit close to his body, and dark pants that fit rather well in other places. Grinning, he turned around to model for her.
"How do I look?"
"You already know the answer." She smirked.
"Be back soon." He kissed her.
"Jon," she said. "I can go with you."
Matt had been taken to the medi-evac after he'd been detained by company security. But after about a day of medical observation, they'd shipped him off to detention building. Whether he'd be sent back to the mines or released hadn't been determined yet.
His wealth could go a long way towards getting people to forget about his connection to Ilana. Since she could no longer tell her side of things, she'd get all the blame for the robbery.
"It's better if I go alone. I won't be long."
"All right." She wasn't going to force the issue. But she could see that he was going to continue being stubborn about some things.
He went to the door and paused before he touched the fingerpad. "By the way, I'm stubborn about a lot of things."
"Hey! You said you couldn't always tell what I was thinking."
"Not always. Just enough to keep things interesting."
*****
The detention area was so different from the rest of the city that Jonathan was almost reluctant to get out of the transport. It looked desolate, without color or any activity other than the movement of security officers. Nadira had requested that he be given access to talk to Matt, and thanks to her he didn't have to pass through the regular checkpoints. Instead, he'd met the chief of security for the detention complex, and she'd personally escorted him to Matt's lockup.
"How long will he be here?" Jon asked, as they walked down a long, brightly lit corridor.
"That depends. The decision will come from company administration. They questioned him earlier. If he doesn't go back to the mines, he'll have to leave the planet for a while. Maybe forever."
At the end of the corridor, Jon had to pass through a set of double doors, then a single door that pulled back into a pocket in the wall. Inside there was a small space, just large enough for one person.
Matt was dressed in the grey knit top and pants, just like the clothing Nadira had given Jon after his attack. There was just a chair, a bed and a combination toilet/wash area in the corner. Up near the ceiling a small window provided a slit of sunlight that reflected off the shiny, metal surfaces.
"Jonathan. I didn't expect you to come here." Matt stood, his hand gripping the edge of the chair.
"How are you, Matt?"
"Better." He dropped back down in the seat. "I almost didn't make it."
Jon perched himself on the edge of the bed. The cushions weren't soft, but they were functional.
"I need to know. What happened? How did you let Ilana do that to you?"
"You should know the answer to that. She knew how to find your vulnerability and exploit it. Isn't that how she got you to bring her here?" Matt replied.
"Why did she need to come back here? Why didn't she just go to Cat and get her payment while she was on Astarte?"
Matt shook his head. "She needed to get back here to regain her power. If they stay away from Hathor too long, they lose it."
"You were suspected of stealing from Novacorp."
"I'm not. It was a set up."
Jonathan expected him to say more, but instead he looked down at his folded hands. Matt looked years older than he did just days ago. He had dark circles under his eyes and creases cut into his forehead. He already looked like he'd been living in an underground cavern for years.
"You let her attack me and Nadira. She'd already attacked my father at the mine."
"When I called you, I didn't know she was going to be at my apartment. She came after I talked to you."
"But you knew she sent those men to kill me."
"No, they were supposed to take you from the hotel. That's all. Besides, I didn't know anything until after she set it up. I never meant anything to happen to you." Matt rubbed his hands over his face.
"Why did you tell her about my father getting people off Hathor?"
"I thought I could trust her, but it was all a lie."
"My family trusted you. How could you betray us?"
"Betray? That's funny, Jon," Matt snorted. "Ask your father about betrayal. When we were all working together years ago in the West, your father betrayed me. He knew how I felt about your mother. He knew it and he took her away from me. And you know why he did that? Because she was pregnant with you. Her family wanted to get her away. But you know the real reason? They wanted her with your father because he was successful and had everything I didn't have."
Jonathan fought to hold back his rising emotions before he did something he would regret.
"Are you saying that Brandon's not my father?" Jonathan slammed his hand on the bunk. "Damn it, answer me!"
"You're his son, all right. You're both just alike," Matt spat. "I'd been sentenced to the mines. Brandon was successful and growing wealthy by then. He talked her into staying with him after she escaped from Hathor. She believed Brandon could protect her from the company if anyone found out the truth. But I didn't have influence then. I had nothing.
Matt pulled back the grey hair that hung down on the left side of his face, revealing the tat that was placed on all thieves who were sent to the mines. Resembling two interlocking chains, it was branded a centimeter or two from his ear.
"Matt!" Jonathan had never seen this before. His father's friend had, as long as he'd known him, worn his hair long, covering
the sides of his face.
How could he have known this man all of his life, and never known this?
"I could have the mining tats removed, but not this. It's a reminder."
"If you're angry at my father, why did you help him?"
"I did it for your mother. I thought one day, she'd realize what I felt for her. I have as much wealth as your father now, if not more. I thought she'd see that I'm the one who really loved her." He buried his face in his hands.
Even though he didn't have her side of the story, he knew Matt was lying. His mother hadn't stayed with his father because she'd been forced to or because of his wealth. They were in love and that was something Matt would never understand.
"You did it for yourself, Matt. You and your exec friends were stealing from the company. Ilana was going to tell the Guardians. You told her about my father to save yourself. And you know what? When you did that, you also put my mother and sisters in danger. Got anything to say about that?"
Matt waved him off. "You need to go now."
"You're right. There's nothing else to say."
*****
When Jon returned to Nadira's apartment a couple of hours later, she was anxious to hear what had happened.
"What did Matt say?"
"Do you think he'll get sent back to the mines?"
"I don't know, Jon. If he gets protection from his friends, who knows? The company might not want his punishment to become public knowledge, considering how prominent he is. It won't reflect well on Novacorp."
"So they'd rather hide it?"
"If others see what he could get away with, then it will be known that the company is vulnerable. They'd rather make this go away."
"Is that why Zina's getting away with it?"
"If I tell the Elders what Zina did, the rest of the story might come out too. Your father will be sent to the mines. Is that what you want?"
"It's not right. My mother can never see her family again. Hell, I can't even meet them."
"You can't take the chance, Jon. Anyone who knew about it or helped her to escape will be sent to detention, or worse. Your family will be forced back to Hathor. If your sisters don't develop abilities, they'll be nonahli. Outcast with no family or friends. Forced to survive any way they can. You must never forget what's at stake."
Jonathan sat down next to her on the couch. "It's still not right."
"That's how it has to be for now."
He wanted things to be resolved and the guilty to be punished. So did she. But it was going to take a while.
"Jon, why don't we go out? Let's go back to the plaza."
"Since when do you want to go out in a crowd?"
"Let's get away from here for a while and not think about any of this." So much had happened over the past few days. She wanted to clear her mind of it all. If just for a few hours.
"All right," Jonathan said. "Let's go."
*****
After dinner they strolled over to the waterfront and sat on a metal bench facing the water. It was quieter here. Off in the distance, a ferry boat skimmed across the water, lights blazing. Above them, the moon Isis followed Osiris across the starry night sky.
"I've been meaning to ask you, why is your club called, 'The Answer?'"
Jonathan smiled, remembering why he'd chosen it. "My father always wanted me to follow him into the mining business. When I got the club, it was my answer. After that, Dad realized I wanted something different for my life."
He slid his arm around her shoulders and felt her warm energy flowing into him. At the time, his club had been the answer. But now, everything was different. Hathor was where he wanted to be, and it was where he wanted to stay.
"Yes, you can stay, Jon," Nadira said.
"What? Oh, so you can read my thoughts too?"
"Jonathan, really, I've always been able to do that," she said, laugher in her voice. "But I promise not to do it all the time. Just enough to keep things interesting."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Deborah A Bailey's other published works include a short story collection, Electric Dreams: Seven Futuristic Tales, two non-fiction books, and articles for various online publications.
Drop by http://www.BrightStreetBooks.com/ to learn more about her current books, find out what she's working on, and see what's coming next.
Hathor Legacy: Outcast Page 16