“Doesn’t look good,” she said softly.
“No, it doesn’t,” I agreed, agitation stirring in me. “I have this feeling…Maybe we shouldn’t be here.”
Mannette had this way of looking at you that made it seem like she was staring into your soul, probably because she was recording everything she saw so she wanted as much detail as possible. Even if that’s all it was, her gaze was penetrating and disturbing.
“You think we should leave?” she asked in that same soft tone. All hint of the party girl had vanished.
Had I misread events and this was my Eight of Thorns? Was I wrong about Belikov? Hard to say. I was so off course, it seemed not even my gut knew which direction to lead me. I had no idea if it was telling me the right thing to do now, but I’d made a commitment to Novi and I didn’t go back on my word. “You don’t have to, but I’m going in,” I answered, looking from her back to the house.
As if my words had summoned her, Novi appeared on the front porch, waving. There was a bright smile on her face as she gestured for us to come closer.
“Glad you made it. Everyone is waiting inside, excited to get started. Come on in!”
I pasted on a smile and made my way down the front sidewalk to the porch. Even as I walked, my gut protested each footstep, demanding I turn around and walk the other way. As I got closer, Novi slipped inside the house, disappearing behind the front door, leaving it slightly ajar. My footsteps slowed to a stop. Mannette kept walking with her show-friends, her PVRs in front of her, one facing her, one facing the house. Her security team was playing catch-up for some reason, taking up the rear when they should have been in front. Although maybe that was what Mannette demanded of her crew.
Suddenly, I wanted my own security detail to check every room in that house before I set one foot inside. I had zero desire to go into that building, commitment or not, but now Mannette’s people were on the front porch, almost to the door, and I wasn’t sure what to do. I felt my c-tex bracelet flutter on my wrist, but I couldn’t check it—not with all the other bracelets halfway up my arm.
“Maybe we should wait,” I called out, even as Mannette’s male PVR entered the brightly lit house. “Let’s have security check it out first.”
My gut jumped up another notch. I couldn’t just let them go in there. I needed to stop this. Swearing under my breath, I hurried up the sidewalk, the last to enter.
Inside looked just as neglected as outside, and I couldn’t help but wonder why anyone would want to live in such conditions. It was dirty and squalid, with no pictures on the walls and no decorations of any kind.
“What a rattrap,” one of Mannette’s friends said, wrinkling her nose as she looked around. “Haven’t they ever heard of soap and water?”
I frowned. “Where’s Novi?” Not only that, where was everybody else, because it seemed like not only was there no party, we were the only people in the house.
I heard a door slam in back. Ignoring my gut, I raced down the hall on the warped floorboards, trying to keep up with the source. Had Novi just run out the back, ditching us? My c-tex vibrated again. Again, I ignored it. I couldn’t get to it—not now at any rate.
There were footsteps behind me. Mannette’s male PVR, keeping up with me as if I might be onto something interesting.
“You hear the door slam too?” I threw over my shoulder.
“Yup.”
Steps from the back door, I skidded to a halt in front of an open doorway, again ablaze with light. Weird. Nothing in the house, yet all the lights were on.
Well, that wasn’t entirely true. This room had one piece of furniture in it. A cheap-looking baby crib, heaped with blankets. I stopped because I couldn’t help myself, paralyzed at the sight. Why had Novi left her child behind? Who the hell could leave their baby?
I took a step toward the crib, drawn like a moth to a flame. Had Novi known that? Had she noted my fascination with her baby and known I wouldn’t be able to stay away? My gut wanted me to get the fuck out, but the baby…I couldn’t leave a baby behind regardless of how messed up the situation might be.
Mannette’s PVR muscled past me, anxious to see what was in the crib, getting to it first. My c-tex was fluttering on my arm nonstop. Whoever wanted to get through was so desperate to reach me, my arm started to itch. I scratched at it absently through the layers of bracelets, watching the PVR approach the crib. I let him go, not sure what I was supposed to do. I was in full-blown panic mode now, my knees threatening to buckle in their desperation to run away, rebelling against the part of me wanting to stay.
I had the oddest sense of déjà vu, of other cribs and other babies back on Earth—of little clones rigged to explode if anyone so much as tried to leave the building with them. And I realized then there was no way in the world Novi would leave her child behind under a heap of blankets. Whatever was under those blankets wasn’t a baby.
I lurched into the room, smacking my hip against the door frame and knocking the travel case with my Tarot cards off my shoulder and to the floor. As the same time, the male PVR was lifting the blanket. I was close enough now to see it wasn’t a baby there after all.
“What am I looking at?” the PVR asked, sounding confused as he looked at the metallic cylinder with the flashing red lights in the crib.
Gods, how many damn disasters was a girl supposed to deal with in one lifetime? A year ago, I would have said my quota should be none. Now, I couldn’t even tally the list of nonsense and bullshit I’d had to wade through.
“Get out! It’s a fucking bomb!” I screamed, yanking him from the crib.
My momentum hurled him back against me. I collided into Mannette, who’d come in behind. And behind her was a virtual conga-line of idiots, all of us watching the cylinder’s lights flashing faster and faster.
“What’s happening?” Mannette demanded.
Then her security detail came in so we were all trapped and looking at the bomb like it was the most interesting object on Mars.
“Back up! Get out! Move!” I screamed, fighting my way through the horde and trying to bodily push everyone out by myself.
At that point, common sense and panic kicked in. Everyone made for the door, each trying to get through it first. The male PVR shoved me aside, knocking me over in his haste. I saw my travel case get kicked to the side, out of reach and impossible to nab as everyone fled. I felt arms snatch me around the waist and jerk me upright with enough force to knock the breath out of me. Then we were all moving as a group, down the hall, and to the back door. After that, I really wasn’t sure what happened because that was when the bomb exploded and sent us all reeling out of control, deaf and blind to the world.
Chapter Fourteen
Somehow, I made it home. Dirty, bruised, my ears ringing from the explosion, with both shoes intact, but no Tarot cards. Granny G’s cards were gone, destroyed in the explosion that also demolished the house and part of the one beside it. My chain-breakers had stepped up, plucked me out of the backyard, where I lay sprawled on the ground, then whisked me away before I was fully aware of what was happening. I’d lived through this disaster, but was it the one the Eight of Thorns had predicted? Or was there another event looming on the horizon even worse than this?
In Alexei’s house now, I wandered around, shell-shocked, not entirely sure where anything was, or where I needed to go. My c-tex bracelet vibrated crazily on my arm. I turned it off, unable to deal with whatever shims were coming through. I coasted on autopilot, my brain unable to stop long enough to dwell on any particular thought as the night’s events played on in an endless loop inside my head.
I’d lost Granny G’s cards. Someone had tried to kill me. I wasn’t sure if Mannette or any of her entourage was okay. What would I tell the family about the cards? I’d be shunned by everyone now. What I’d done was unforgivable. No one would understand. Was Alexei’s life in danger? Had someone been trying to kill me to get to him? Was Novi working on her own, or had the miners used her to strike out at the Conso
rtium? Why hadn’t I seen this coming more clearly? I was better than this. Things didn’t normally catch me so off guard. Not something this significant. Maybe it was too much for my luck gene. Maybe it couldn’t handle how it had lined up events so dramatically. No wonder I couldn’t handle Granny G’s cards anymore.
The thought made me laugh, but the sound that came out of my mouth was downright manic. I slapped both hands over my mouth and ran through the empty house, trying to find a place where I could hide, somewhere I felt less exposed with doors that locked. The house AI turned on lights as I entered each room until I found myself in the master bathroom. I slammed the door behind me, locked it, then slumped to the floor.
The master bathroom had a magnificent shower. With multiple showerheads and nozzles, water could potentially come at you from every direction with varying pressures and speeds. It also had seats, which I’d thought strange at first until I realized it doubled as a stream room and sauna. Also, I’d been shown there were other, more interesting things you could do besides sit.
Even though sonic cleansers were growing in popularity, I’d grown up poor so this was the ultimate sign of luxury. Not the shower itself, but the fact that you had enough gold notes to afford all the different products that went with it like soap, lotions, or fluffy towels on heated towel racks. And if you had enough gold notes for such unnecessary things, it meant you didn’t have to worry about food, clothing, and whatever else came with growing up in a family of con artists who didn’t hold normal jobs like everyone else.
It occurred to me I wanted a shower so I proceeded to strip. Dress, scarves, jewelry, shoes—all of it went to the floor in a heap. I felt better as soon as I stepped inside the shower stall with its glass walls textured to look like waterfalls, cocooning me in safety.
I had no idea how long I just stood there under the hot water when I felt Alexei behind me. Of course I hadn’t heard him come in and so what if I’d locked the door? If he wanted in, a tiny thing like a lock on a bathroom door wasn’t going to stop him in his own house. I couldn’t even say I was startled. Even if things were unsettled between us, I knew if I really needed him, he’d be there. And right then, I needed him more than I needed air.
I didn’t turn to face him—just sank into his chest when his arms went around me. I felt something tightly wound inside me start to loosen as he held me and my head went back against his shoulder. Water rained down on both of us as we stood there, him holding me, me leaning on him. I didn’t want to say anything to break the moment. Neither, it seemed, did he. He reached past me and picked up my shampoo. Then he proceeded to wash my hair, which had to be the most luxurious feeling I’d ever experienced. By the time he was done, I felt so boneless, I was amazed I hadn’t washed down the drain.
Eventually, he pulled me from the shower. He proceeded to dry me, wrapping a towel around my body before seeing to my hair. I let him treat me like a doll, moving me where he wanted me, feeling too fragile to protest.
We ended up sitting on the edge of the bed—me in a towel between his legs, my back to him while he brushed my damp hair. All this was done without speaking, as if he knew I’d talk when I was ready. While I still wasn’t myself, just having him there made me feel better.
He’d worked his way through most of my hair when I finally said, “She was a client who came to see me the night of the Euphoria disaster. She said her husband worked in one of the off-world mines and had issues with the Consortium ownership. I had no idea she had this in mind when she booked her appointment.”
“I have people looking for her.” From his tone, it sounded like it wasn’t going to be pretty when he did.
“I thought all the problems with the mines were resolved.”
“For the most part they are, but some are still not happy with the changes made when the Consortium took over. My guess is this woman and her husband belong to a larger group with enough resources to put behind their agenda. They saw you as the easiest way to strike at me, so they took advantage. I don’t know who they are yet, but I will.”
It surprised me he would admit something like that. I knew how much he hated not being in control. “You can’t be expected to see everything coming at you. If they have spooks in their group and stay off the CN-net, you wouldn’t be able to see them at all.”
“Even still, it should never have touched you.”
“I should have been more on the ball too,” I confessed. “I’ve felt off ever since you went away. I can’t seem to tell up from down. I’m not reading people right. I’m messing up everywhere.”
“This isn’t your fault. It’s mine for bringing this chaos to our door. They think hurting you will cripple me. They don’t realize you’re the only thing preventing me from crushing them out of existence. Now I think it’s the only approach they understand.”
I had no response to that, so I remained silent and let him brush my hair.
“The MPLE asked to be allowed to question you,” he continued. “I told them no, and I would send a statement when you were ready.”
“Can you do that?”
“Do you think I’d let the fools they call a police force anywhere near you given what happened last time?” he asked, sounding disgusted. “Since no one was technically hurt and the charges are primarily property damage and vandalism, they agreed an interview was unnecessary.”
“Mannette and her people are alright?”
“They’re fine. Ms. Bleu is already spinning this into gold notes. Her viewership has quadrupled in the past few hours. She’s no doubt wishing she’d blown something up years ago.”
“You don’t think she blames me for putting her in a bad situation, do you?”
His laugh was short and derisive. “Unlikely. As soon as she comes down from her CN-net media high, I’m sure she’ll be shimming to thank you.”
“Don’t say that. Mannette is my friend.”
“A friend I wish was out of your life given how she’s taken advantage of you.”
I had nothing to say to that because as much as I adored Mannette, in some ways, he was right. He set the brush down on the bedside table and pushed my hair over my right shoulder until it was off my neck. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me against him. Then I felt his lips at the base of my neck. I sighed, shivering at the contact.
“Don’t you know how important you are to me? Why are you going out of your way to make me insane with worry?”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut, bringing my hands up to lie over his. His words reminded me of something Vieira had said. I was Alexei’s sanctuary from the rest of the world, to be protected at all costs. It was a pretty sentiment, but I was beginning to wonder if it was stifling as well. “You know I don’t go out of my way to look for trouble.”
“I know. It just seems to happen.” With his lips brushing my skin, he said softly, “I want to propose something to you and I want you to consider it logically before you get angry.”
“You make it sound like I have a temper,” I complained—another thing I’d heard from Vieira. How bizarre it was all coming back to me now.
“I never said you did, though you do have a tendency to restate your points with greater intensity if you don’t think I’m listening.”
“Alexei—”
“I asked you to consider what I have to say first. I haven’t even told you yet and you’re already upset.”
Ouch. That shut me up. “Then say it.”
“I think it might be best if you closed your shop.”
I stiffened. “Alexei, no! You can’t ask me to do that.”
“You almost died tonight. How many times does your life need to be in danger before you take precautions? Being with me makes you a target. With the Consortium’s arrival tomorrow, things will become worse.”
“I agree it was scary, but I don’t see how closing the shop makes a difference.”
“Then think about this: What if Lotus had been hurt? Or Mannette? What if tonight had ended d
ifferently and she’d died in the explosion? How would you feel knowing your actions put her in danger when you could have prevented it?”
Damn it, he was right and I was just being stubborn for stubborn’s sake. If something truly awful had happened to Mannette tonight, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. The guilt would have eaten me alive. Still, it hurt that this was even happening. I sighed and sagged in his arms. “I don’t disagree with you. I just don’t like it. This is what I’m good at. If I can’t do this, what am I supposed to do with myself?”
“I know the shop isn’t making you happy. Take this time to think about what you might want to do instead.”
“But I don’t know anything else,” I ground out, frustrated.
“It will come to you. For now, this is the way things need to be. It won’t be forever,” he said, lips still against my neck. “Let me take care of you.”
When he put it like that, what could I say? How could I complain when he was being sweet like this? “Alright, but only until you find the people responsible and turn them over to the MPLE.”
“Of course,” he agreed too easily, which made me think he was just humoring me.
I felt him lift up my left hand, and before I could register what he was doing, he slipped a ring on my finger. I looked down at the diamond, which had to be as big as a robin’s egg, sparkling so brightly, it seemed lit with an inner fire. It was circled with two rings of smaller diamonds in what was probably a white gold, diamond-dipped setting. Though the fit was perfect, it looked ridiculously enormous on the third finger of my left hand.
I stared at it, not really getting it, because I honestly wasn’t sure what he intended. Then because absolutely nothing was going as expected, I blurted out, “What the fuck is this?”
“I wanted to give this to you in Apolli, but that was a disaster. Then I thought after you settled in here. And now tonight has happened and you were nearly killed. Apparently making the perfect moment happen is beyond my ability to control, and I can’t let this go any longer.”
The Chaos of Luck Page 19