Koko the Mighty (26 page)

Detecting movement, she then notices three bodies sorting themselves out along the wall’s upper edges. The three are visible only from the waist up, and two appear to be male and the third looks female. It’s hard to see much else because all three have their backs turned, and one of the men seems to be addressing someone farther inside the compound. When the female steps forward, Wire waits and then when the woman turns she chuckles softly to herself.

Bingo.

If only she hadn’t lost the rest of her gear when the Goliath crashed. One well-placed shot with a rocket-propelled grenade and Wire could easily take out Martstellar like a thunderbolt from the blue. Getting inside the compound will take some minor planning, but nevertheless Wire’s mood has brightened considerably.

Grabbing Trick by the scruff of his neck, she hauls him to his feet.

“Guess what? Today is your lucky day, maggot.”

Later that evening, after a long day of fixing the Commonage’s blatant susceptibilities, fortifying the tunnel gate with additional chains, and helping the Commonagers build impromptu barriers and placing them along the outer walls of the compound, Koko returns to her room in Lodge Delta and is surprised to see Flynn sitting in one of the straight-back chairs beneath the window. Shutting the door, she quietly leans a newly fashioned wooden battle staff in a corner. Once the barrier assembly was under way, Pelham had showed Koko a pile of good unused lumber and Koko took a piece of the unutilized wood to hone down a battle staff. Intrigued by what she was doing, Pelham asked how she could make a battle staff for herself. Koko showed her how easy it was and suggested that later when all the fortifications were in place the rest of the Commonagers should make battle staffs for themselves too.

Flynn looks up. “Oh, hey there…”

Koko crosses to him. She pauses for a moment before she lowers her face and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Hey there yourself.”

Achy and sweaty, Koko decides for now it might be better to just forgive and forget their blow-up back in the infirmary. Running a palm over a bothersome cowlick in Flynn’s hair, she looks down at the object in his hands.

“Is that a book? Huh. You don’t see a lot of those things around anymore. I hope you’re reading something good.”

Flynn turns the book over so she can see the embossed title:

The Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights.

“It’s kind of dense,” Flynn explains. “And it’s been slow going with only one eye, but it’s not half bad. It’s all about this guy with a mess of problems. Lots of betrayal, virgin executions, tragedy, the whole deal. I think you’d like it.”

Koko strokes his hair some more. “I’m not much of a reader,” she says. “Where did you get it?”

“Some Commonagers brought it here an hour or two ago when they came by to change the linens. I guess they thought I might like something to pass the time. Check out the cloth binding. Must be a couple of hundred years old at least. They said it came from Sébastien’s private collection.”

Koko then remembers her earlier infiltration into Sébastien’s quarters, and thinks about the memory dot she retrieved from the crushed needle drive that she almost forgot is still in her pant pocket. She has a hunch that the memory dot might contain damaging information on the Commonage and exactly what Sébastien and Dr. Corella are up to, but seeing that she doesn’t have access to tech at present and the transport is on the way within hours, she makes a mental note to look at it once they’re good and gone. Flynn points to a teapot on the desk.

“Want some tea? It’s jasmine, and it’s really, really good. Nice to sip after a rough day.”

“No thanks. So, how’s the leg?” Koko asks.

Flynn beams. “It’s good. Actually, Dr. Corella went so far as to show me all these trippy MRIs of my muscle tissue. I’ve got to stretch at least three times a day for the foreseeable future, but in no time I should have ninety-five percent mobility.”

“Wow.”

Koko deliberates whether she should bring up their leaving the Commonage again. Considering the fever of their spat in the infirmary and her epic loss of control shortly thereafter, she then reasons it might be best to skirt the subject for now. Flynn… he looks so mellow. Koko then wonders if there’s something medicinal added to his tea. Man, when they finally get to wherever they’re going she’s definitely going to make it a priority to pour herself a tall belt of something strong.

Flynn sweeps his fingers lightly up and down her hip, drops his hand, and tries to find his place in the book. It’s weird, but with him being beardless he looks almost five years younger, and despite his eye-patch a twinge of deep affection flickers in Koko’s belly. Outside, a cloud change gilds out the room with a buttery, twilight glow.

“I think I’m going to have a rinse,” Koko announces.

“Okay. Did you get anything to eat? We can grab a bite in the commissary if you want.”

“Not hungry,” Koko says, and then adds saucily, “not hungry at least for food.”

Trying to read, when Koko clunkishly kicks off her boots, Flynn raises his head again and sees she’s pulled off all her clothes.

“Are you really that into that book of yours, baby?”

Flynn’s mouth drops open. Reaching the bathroom doorway, Koko turns and raises an arm up the bathroom’s doorjamb. Flynn shuts the book and sets it down on the desk. Rising, his limp is slight, but when he reaches Koko he slides his arms around the small of her back.

Koko slips her hands down between his legs. Instantly she can feel him swelling beneath her fingers, so she presses her face into the space between his chest and his shoulder.

Flynn gulps. “Been a while…” he says.

“That it most certainly has.”

Flynn angles his head toward the bathroom. “Kind of small in that shower stall for two.”

Koko pulls his shirt over his head and unfastens the drawstring on his pants. “We’ll see about that.”

“Dr. Corella told me to be careful.”

“Oh, I’ll be careful with you, handsome.”

“But I have to keep my bandage dry, and I’m still tender.”

Flynn steps awkwardly out of his pants and Koko laughs. Like her, Flynn has opted against wearing the Commonage Farmer John undergarments.

“Tender right now sounds fantastic.”

Turns out the bathroom’s shower stall is too small for the both of them, and minutes later they end up tangled and wet on the bed. Minding Flynn’s mending leg, Koko gently rides his damp hips as Flynn reaches up and lightly touches her face. It’s a slow start, but soon they pursue familiar and trusted moves. The soft sweep of Flynn’s hands moving over her sides and how he gently brushes her hair away from her forehead triggers a melty quiver, and, yearning to feel his heat and modest length, Koko takes him deeper inside. Damn, she’d wanted for them to take their time, but as the seconds pass they’re quickly off to the races. Nerve endings awash in rhythmic sparks of pleasure, it doesn’t take either of them long, and sensing Flynn is about to erupt, Koko lowers herself and twirls her tongue deep into his mouth. A clenched release—mutual and satisfying.

Koko rolls off him and catches her breath. Nuzzling herself against his side, she listens to the thrum of Flynn’s heart and places a hand on his chest. His good eye has gone glassy, and when Flynn purses his lips he lets out a fading note—a bomb falling from above.

“That was great,” he says.

Koko giggles. “That it was. Hey, Flynn?”

“Yeah?”

“I know now might not be the best time to bring this up…”

“I guess I kind of rushed it.”

“Rushed?” Koko laughs. “Oh, that. No, not that. That was fine. That was more than fine. That was long overdue. No, it’s something else.”

Gallantly, Flynn adjusts one of the bed’s pillows behind his head to support them both and strokes her back. “All right… what’s on your mind?”

“Well, back in the infirmary, you know, when Dr. Corella showed up and I lost my head…”

“You want to apologize?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m sorry too.”

“But before, like before I went and lost control, I started to tell you… we’re not staying.”

Flynn goes still as a post and then sits up quickly. “I knew it—why do you always have to go and spoil everything?”

“Now, wait a second…”

“I mean, these people, they’ve got a good thing going here, Koko. Sure, I know it’s not a tropical, kick back and watch the world burn and pour me another Mai Tai paradise, but why? Why do you want to leave? We’re safe.”

“Flynn, we’re really not.”

“Oh, c’mon, don’t start with all that nonsense again. So what, we’re just going to pick up and wander out into the prohibs on our own? That doesn’t sound so hot to me.”

“But we won’t be wandering out into the prohibs. The transport is on its way. True, we might have to stay sharp when it arrives, but it’s all been taken care of.”

“But you’ve just spent the day helping them set up their defenses.”

“Oh, that. That’s not just for them. After those de-civs got in last night, for the time being that’s for our safety too.”

Flynn pauses. “So when?”

“The transport? Later tomorrow or the day after at the outside.”

Flynn shakes his head sullenly. “Then I guess it’s a done deal. Thanks for consulting me first. Thanks a lot.”

Koko props herself up on her elbows. “C’mon, you ought to be relieved.”

“Honestly, I don’t know if I am. I’m just so sick of this, Koko.”

“Sick? Sick of what? Sick of me?”

“No—sick of this, you and me, us being on the run. Killers hounding us, all the craziness that seems to follow you like a shadow you can’t shake. And I have to say, this asymmetrical behavior of yours isn’t exactly making me feel any better either.”

“Last night this place was attacked, Flynn.”

“Oh, I know… by de-civs. And you took care of them single-handedly. I saw the results.”

Koko looks up at the ceiling. “God, can someone please tell me what happened to that great guy I used to know? I swear, he was plowing me like a champ just a minute ago.”

“Har-har. Go ahead, make jokes.”

Koko tries to rub his back. “C’mon, baby…”

Flynn jerks his shoulder away sharply.

“Jeez,” Koko says, “did nice guy Sébastien tell you about the CPB filing an insurance claim on the submarine?”

Flynn turns his head. “What?”

“Yeah, the CPB claims the sub we stole was destroyed during a deep-water dive and said we died along with it. I was skeptical at first, but then when we were discussing the Commonage protections after last night’s attacks I made Sébastien show me the documentation. It looks legit.”

“But why would they do that?”

“Beats me,” Koko says. “It could be they just want us to disappear, a cost benefit thing, but coupled with all this Commonage pap and de-civs outside the walls, it’s got me on edge. Anyway, I think Sébastien doesn’t care anymore. He and Dr. Corella just see us—well, me at least—as a destabilizing force. And while they asked that I help with getting some basic defenses in place, I think both of them have got a hard-on for a Koko-free Commonage.”

“But…”

“But what?”

“But this… this could be a good thing for us, Koko. The CPB falsifying an insurance claim that large and asserting our deaths publicly is a major risk. If they’re telling people we’re dead, I think you’re right. Maybe they really don’t care about us anymore. This could be a perfect opportunity for us. We could—” Flynn stops and looks around the room.

“Oh, c’mon. You’re actually telling me you’re still keen on all this subsisting in the wilderness crap?”

“Well, it’s not so bad.”

“Flynn, we’ve only been here for a couple of days, and most of that time you’ve been getting put back together. You may think the Commonage is great, but it’s definitely not. De-civs outside the walls, random incident or not, staying here unarmed is definitely not an option.”

“God—you and the weapons thing again. Got to have my weapons, got to be armed—no one knows we’re here, Koko! Commonage life, I know it might take some getting used to, but we could stay here. Back in the infirmary you said I didn’t have my head on straight. Maybe you’re the one who’s not seeing things clearly.”

Koko scrutinizes Flynn’s face. Like a blizzard of puzzle pieces swirling finally into place, all at once everything gels together.

We’ve come too far… there’s too much at stake…

I’ve taken great pains to alter the perceived hazards…

A personal investment?

A social petri dish?

The printout and data plug, how Pelham said that Dr. Corella used to be some expert in regenerative neuropharmacology, Sébastien’s touted pharmaceutical and chemistry credentials, Kumari trying to leave, how the twins when she went off in the infirmary snapped to the doc’s order and became bizarrely enervate, all of it suggests…

No. Could it—?

Flynn draws a hand across his face and wrestles his way out of bed. Hobbling toward the bathroom he picks up his clothes.

Fuck
—
they must’ve done something to him! To everyone!

Flynn looks back at her. “You know what? You do what you want, but I for one am not in any hurry to whisk off to C-GRAP or any place else out there and struggle to put my life back together yet again.”

Blood boiling, Koko sits up.
Oh, God
, she thinks,
how could I have been so blind?
Dr. Corella and Sébastien—every nerve ending in her body is screaming at her to jump up, find them, and rip their shitsucking throats out. But then Koko cautions herself. She needs to tread very carefully here and stay calm. She can’t betray any alarm to Flynn. She needs to keep him close.

“Look,” she says. “I’m sorry I brought it all up, okay? I’m sorry.”

“Don’t patronize me.”

“I’m not patronizing you, Flynn. Please, just come back to bed.”

Flynn stares at her and then tosses his clothes on the floor with sudden disgust. When he plods over and sits back down, Koko crawls over and kisses his shoulder.

“Listen, why don’t we just get some sleep, and we’ll talk about it some more in the morning, okay? Fresh heads, maybe grab some eggs? I’m really tired, Flynn, and who knows, maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m the one not seeing things clearly.”