Shaking his head, Seamus matched her, “Okay, winner takes all. How about we toss another wager on top? I’m sure you have connections outside Mindblown, if I win you get me an update on Kaylee.”
Victoria’s face went blank as she eyed him, “I would require something similar from you if I win, Seamus. Say, having you walk through a memory you would rather not?”
His eyes narrowed as he considered her, “You promise that this will be straight up?” She nodded, to which Seamus sighed then took a deep breath, “Fine. I agree.”
The dealer dealt the hand face up as there was no reason to hold back the hole cards. In the end Seamus ended up with a pair of aces, but Victoria had kings and twos. The saloon faded back to the library they had started in as Seamus acknowledged his defeat. He sat there a little bleakly as he wondered what Victoria would make him see this time.
“I am sorry, Seamus. I will see what I can do to get you the news you want but it will take some time. Currently, you owe me a memory. Are you ready?”
Seamus closed his eyes as he nodded his head, “Hit me.
Seamus found himself abruptly bodiless, looking down onto a scene he recognized instantly. He was suspended near the ceiling of the court hallway, as if he was the camera on the wall of the place where he’d committed his crime. A second later he saw himself plus the criminal walking in from the jail side door, the inmate taking small steps due to the ankle shackles. Seamus felt his heartbeat increase as he watched the duo walk towards him, knowing what was coming.
A few steps later he watched his double’s foot step deliberately onto the shackles holding the inmate’s legs, causing the inmate to fall to his knees. The double leaned down with a firm hand on the inmate’s shoulder, keeping the man in place on his knees. He watched the side arm being drawn as his double leaned in to speak into the inmate’s ear. He knew the words he had said, so he heard them clearly. He had known the camera in the hall hadn’t been equipped with audio pickups.
“You took away her innocence as well as harming her to the point of never being able to walk again, you miserable little shit. You thought you were going to see the judge but that isn’t going to happen today. Today, I mete out the justice that you really deserve and when we meet again in hell, I will hound you for all of eternity. This is for Kaylee.” His double put the gun against the back of the inmate’s head and pulled the trigger twice. A split second of panic showed on the man’s face before the two hollow points ripped his brain and head apart, covering the hallway with his brain and blood. Seamus’s agency didn’t use hollow points in their side arms, but he had come prepared for just this moment.
Stepping away from the body, the double set the gun down then lay face down on the floor and cuffed his hands behind him. He could hear the yells and screams from those nearby along with frantic radio traffic about shots fired. He remembered feeling nothing but calm acceptance as the court bailiffs came running out and found him. A few minutes later he was surrounded by his once fellow officers who took in the scene, aghast at what they saw. Many turned away from him in silence while a few cussed him for what was about to befall the agency, when the feds showed up to investigate. Only one person looked on with a sad face.
He watched as his old friend Sergeant Grey took a knee next to him, leaning in to speak softly, “Why? Why did you do it?”
Seamus turned his head to look at his old sergeant before he replied, his eyes lifeless, “Kaylee.” He turned his face forward again and cleared his throat, “Can I be read my rights please, and get booked in?”
The officers blinked at him in shock at his calm, even tone. He was hauled roughly to his feet and one of the officers tightened the cuffs even more. The sergeant of investigations read him his rights and Seamus was led away to the jail.
Suddenly he was back in the room with Victoria, who was watching him intently. “Would you care to comment on that memory, Seamus?”
Seamus looked over at Victoria with flat, lifeless eyes, “He deserved it.”
Victoria frowned slightly for a second, “Did you notice anything unusual?”
Seamus shook his head, “Nothing, it is as I remember it.”
Her frown deepening, Victoria shook her head, “I’ll leave it there for now Seamus, but there is something wrong with what just transpired there and I am not talking about you killing the inmate. I hope you will be able to see it one day.”
Brow furrowing, Seamus wondered what she was getting at but before he could say anything else Victoria stood up. “Well, that concludes our time for now. I look forward to our next visit. If you ever wish to ask me a question while in game, I have gotten approval to let you send in-game messages to me. Just send it to Victoria AI, it has been added to your Mindstone. I will reply as I can once I’ve made sure it is something you are allowed to know.”
Seamus stood up, his eyes still flat, “I want to say thank you Vicky, but right now I can’t. Until the next time.”
The room vanished, leaving him in darkness with a blinking clock flashing away before him, telling him he had fourteen hours before the server was back up. Closing his eyes, Seamus wished he could just skip the next fourteen hours.
Seamus woke to see the clock ticking down the last thirty seconds, which brought a smile to his face. He closed his eyes to wait them out, eager to be back in Alpha World. A brief moment of uncertainty swept through him as he thought about Stacia. Would she be mad at him or understanding of his not being able to get back? On top of that he briefly wondered how Alistern would take his sudden disappearance for a two-week period. Taking a deep breath, he tried to center himself as he heard the clock ticking away the last few seconds until the server was live again.
Chapter Three
Blinking, Alburet looked around to find himself at the Homestone location in the graveyard just outside the Dead Man Inn. He glanced around, seeing a few others who were as eager as he was to be back in the game appearing as well. Some of them seemed upset that they had been moved to their Homestone locations during the server downtime. Alburet heard quite a few disgruntled mutters.
Alburet ignored the bitching from the other players and headed for the inn. As he entered the inn, he dismissed the notification of the chance to reset his abilities. When he cleared the notification, he found Alistern waiting for him with a grim look. Alburet came to a stop and gave a polite nod, “Alistern.”
“We need to talk. Follow me,” Alistern turned to go down the hall beside the stairs.
“I will be glad to speak with you in ten minutes. First, I must do my best to fulfill a promise now that I have been able to get back to this world. Stacia has been waiting for me ever since the bridge between our worlds was closed. So, I ask that you give me ten minutes to reassure her that I’m back first.” He spoke politely but firmly, so Alistern would know he was serious.
Alistern’s eyes flared as he turned to face Alburet, his voice rising into a yell. “First ya abandon me daughter for weeks and now ya refuse a simple request?!”
Alburet didn’t flinch away from the enraged father, instead standing his ground while meeting the angry eyes of Alistern. “I will speak with you once my duty to Stacia is discharged and not before. Your daughter has been waiting for me and her welfare is of much greater concern to me than yours.” He finished speaking and started to walk towards the stairs.
Alistern’s face twisted as he took a single step to block the stairs, when Lilith appeared behind Alistern. She touched his shoulder, stopping him. “Dear, stop this please. He will speak with us shortly, give our daughter the chance to see her master first.” Lilith spoke the words softly so only Alistern and Alburet, who was just outside of Alistern’s reach, could hear them.
Alburet nodded his thanks to Lilith a fraction of a second before bounding up the stairs two at a time. He rushed to the room he had rented, flinging open the door to see Stacia standing in the middle of the room looking anxious as she twisted the skirt of her maid outfit. When his eyes met hers they both felt a tug of
emotion and they rushed together into an embrace. Kisses and words of love were exchanged as they clung to each other. Alburet was a little overcome with just how much his heart had yearned for her in the single day apart.
“I’m sorry, Kitten. They closed the bridge between our worlds and I couldn’t get back any sooner than now.”
Stacia met his wet eyes with hers, which were equally wet, “I know, master. I got ya note from the bird messenger two weeks ago, just a bare hour after ya left. I thank ya for getting me that message, without it I might have despaired. Even with it I grew anxious and the seeds of doubt began to grow in me heart.” She tightened her grip on him as she buried her face in his chest, taking a deep breath to pull in his scent. “I missed ya so much that every day me heart ached at ya absence.”
Kissing the top of her head, Alburet tightened his hold on her. “No more worries for a time now, Kitten. Other than the fact that I have to go speak with your father in a minute. I think he’s a bit upset with me.”
Nodding, Stacia filled him in on the last two weeks, “The mornin’ ya left both Da’ and Ma’ came to talk to us. I told them ya had been recalled to ya other world. Da’ has been in a mood ever since, doubtin’ ya was comin’ back. Ma' and me tried to tell him different but he did nay want to listen. For the last week, Stewart and he have been switching off watching the bar, waitin’ for ya to come back. I will go with ya to speak with him.” Her eyes were bright, her happiness that Alburet was back with her evident on her face.
Tilting her face up a touch more he kissed her with love, not turning the kiss into a passionate one but a lingering one instead. When he finally broke the kiss, he leaned his forehead against hers, “I will always want you by my side Stacia, my wonderful fiery kitten. Let’s go speak with your father, maybe we can show him how together we are whole. But first change into another outfit. You’re more than just my maid now, you are so much more now.”
Stacia nodded, reluctantly leaving the embrace to change her clothing. She ran into a problem almost immediately, as her only other outfit was her set of adventuring leather. She explained the problem to Alburet to get his advice.
“Put on you adventuring clothes for now. We shall fix that, right after we finish speaking with your father.” Once she was changed Alburet held out his arm to her, “Come, Kitten.”
Taking his arm with a broad smile Stacia snuggled up to him, “As master wishes.”
He made a note to speak with her about the different connotations that word had to him, later. He just smiled back at her as they went downstairs to find Alistern. It didn’t take long, as he was still at the bottom of the stairs along with Stewart, Grimgar, Almira and Lilith. Alburet looked over the group and gave a polite half bow, “As I said I would, I have come back, sir.”
Alistern growled, “Follow me. Stewart, make sure he doesn’t try to run off.”
Lilith sighed at her husband, just shaking her head as she trailed after him. Grimgar and Almira watched Alburet and Stacia with interest but no hostility. Stacia greeted both of them before they all followed Alistern. Alistern led them to the private dining hall as the room had magic on it to dampen any sounds.
Once everyone was inside and seated Alistern spoke up with an angry voice. “Why did ya run off and leave me daughter for two weeks?! What kind of man are ya to take me daughter, turnin' her into ya succubus then abandon her like ya did?!”
Stacia opened her mouth to speak but Alburet stopped her with a gentle squeeze of his hand. She glanced at him and stayed quiet. Alburet smiled at her then began to speak. “It wasn’t a choice, Alistern. The connection between this world and the one we two-souled come from was closed for a time. When that happens, it yanks us from this world and we can’t come back until it reopens for us. This will happen at times. Normally we have more warning than we had this time. It also normally won’t be as long as it was this last time, I hope. I had to call in a big favor to just get a message back to Stacia before the connection was brought completely down. As for turning her into my succubus, as you well know I am sure, it was a surprise to all of us, except her and Lilith. It is also something I would not change for anything in either world at this point. The fact of the matter is I love your daughter for who she is. Even if she wasn’t my succubus I would still love her.”
Squeezing Alburet’s hand Stacia added her two cents. “I willing and gladly bound meself to him, Da’. He did nay turn me into his succubus as much as I tricked him into being me master. If ya object to the bond we have, then we shall leave until ya do accept us.”
Alistern’s eyes went wide, his jaw dropping as he stared at his little girl. While he was momentarily speechless Lilith spoke up, “That will not be necessary, Stacia. We will never turn our backs on you or the man you love. In fact, since you both love each other so much and we still wish to keep the family secret hidden as much as we can, I have a plan.” Lilith’s smile grew as her eyes swept her friends at the table. “I think you two should marry.”
Alburet had thought Alistern looked shocked before but now he knew what a shocked Alistern really looked like. A stiff breeze might have knocked the man over. The same could be said for Stewart, who was also open mouthed at the suggestion. The other two at the table nodded slowly, seeing Lilith’s wisdom for what it was. It would be much easier to play off the devoted wife adventuring with her husband than a maid following him around.
Alburet himself had been blindsided by the idea and was trying to figure out how he felt about being shotgunned into a wedding in the game. Stacia had let out a squeak, her eyes wide while a smile blossomed on her lips. She turned to Alburet, her eyes hopeful and eager, hoping he would agree while also fearful that her mother might be moving too fast for him. Alburet looked at Stacia and felt his heart beat a little faster seeing the sheer hope in her eyes.
Taking a deep breath, Alburet came out of his shock before the other two. “I don’t know if I am worthy of that, but if Stacia wishes it I will marry her.” As the last word left his mouth Stacia tackled him, knocking him to the floor and kissing him with passion as tears of joy fell from her eyes.
Chuckles and smiles came from Grimgar, Almira and Lilith as they watched the happy couple. Stewart finally got over his shock, and seeing Stacia so deliriously happy, felt his own heart warm at the sight. He shook his head as he watched his goddaughter kissing the man she loved, remembering a lost love he once had.
Alistern finally got his mouth closed and stood up, his face turning red. “No, I will not allow…” was all he got out before a hand slapped the table, cutting him off.
“Alistern, it be time to let her go, me old friend,” Grimgar said. “It be time. Let her flex her wings and soar with happiness. Iffin ye try to cage her now she will never come back to ye again.”
“He’s right,” Almira added, “just look at how happy she is. Isn’t that what all parents want for their children, happiness?”
Stewart coughed gently, “Even though I worry old friend, I see how happy she is and I do not wish to change that.”
“But…” Alistern tried again only to stop as Lilith rubbed his shoulder.
“We found love and happiness, dear. Doesn’t our daughter deserve the same chance?” Lilith said softly.
Bowing his head, Alistern gave in, afraid that he might indeed drive his daughter away if he kept at it. “Iffin he agrees to it I will stop the objections.”
Alburet broke the kiss to reply from his place on the floor. “I agree to marry your daughter, Alistern. I will also give you my word to always protect her as best I can, as you would Lilith.” He got to his feet, pulling Stacia up with him. “I thank you all for believing in me. I will do my best to prove your belief in me well founded. Now, how does one go about getting married on this world?”
Lilith beamed, “I’ll make all the arrangements. We shall have the event in four days, but the day before I shall need Stacia all day.”
Stacia was vibrating with excitement as Alburet replied, “Thank you, Lilith.
Seeing as it’s the middle of the night and it’s been some time since Stacia and I had time together, I think I am going to abscond with her. Grimgar, Almira, we’ll be by after sunrise to sell off some gear when we go out to buy some things. Stewart, thank you for backing Stacia’s wishes.” Alburet paused to firmly face Alistern, “Sir, I will always protect and honor your daughter. Give me a chance to prove my word. Lilith, thank you for your help in this.”
Alistern nodded once, “I will give you the chance as my wife and friends have asked me to.”
Alburet gave a small bow to those at the table before he offered his arm to Stacia. Once she took it, with a smile still plastered on her face, he escorted her out of the room. He led her back up to his room, ushering her in before shutting the door behind them. As soon as the door shut he pulled her back hard into his chest as she had been a step in front of him. As soon as her back collided with his chest he wrapped his arms around her. One went around her waist, securing her to him, while his other snaked up so his hand ended up on her throat while his forearm nestled between her breasts. He took a firm grip on her, tilting her head back and to the side so he could whisper into her ear.
Forming the Company (Alpha World Book 2) Page 3