Vanished (8 page)

He walked on
and she followed, his words echoing through the short hall. “Well, it occurs to me now that asking you to let ten strangers attack you might not be the brightest thing I’ve said today. And I’ve had a few doozies.”

He gave her a quick smile, and she knew he was thinking about the conversation she’d interrupted.

“I think, honestly, that you need to put it out of your head and not think about it. Tiptoeing around me won’t help. Censoring thoughts and ideas, historically, is not a good idea.” She glanced at him, catching his quick nod as he focused on the hall before them.

“Well, you’d kick their asses anyway.” He
shook his head, expression growing serious. She laughed.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence. I think I would until they realized I wasn’t made of glass. Then they’d squash me.” 

He shook his head and turned, halting before a door. “A word of warning… Blaran… well… he’s Blaran.”

The door slid open. A male towered over her, though still a few inches shorter than Radek. Gray eyes and sandy hair offered a light impression, but thick, heavy features reminded her of the mountains on the surface of Earth.

He studied her, eyes narrowed. “Papria.” His matter of fact tone struck some chord in her.

“I know you.” The words burst from her, and she noticed the change in him. Tiny motions, the straightening of his spine, the shift of his shoulders, the furrowing of his brow… he knew she remembered.

“No, you don’t.” Anger resonated from him, and she didn’t understand at first.

“You. You turned us in, that day Zoltan came over and we…” Her words trailed off, a blush blazing across her cheeks. Blaran
had lived in the apartment across the way; his bubble had given him a clear view of hers.

Memories flooded back.

The o
fficial narrowed his gray fish eyes at me. “These are serious allegations. You know the laws.”

“And I assure you, none were broken. I’d like to see the proof of this “indecent act”
I’ve apparently committed.” My back stiffened, fury blazing through me.

The official gave an exasperated sigh, tracing some response on the report shining from his
datapad. “There is no evidence. You’ve passed scans. This is a warning, consider yourself flagged.” He shifted to the next offender, dismissing me.

Seething,
I left his office, catching sight of the neighbor who lived across the way. Realization set in, and I glared at him before stalking back to my apartment.

The memories faded, and she caught Radek’s interested like a slap to the face. Glancing back at Blaran’s emotionless face, she knew he recognized her. Unsure what to do, she tilted her chin up, glaring at him.

“Are we going to have a problem?” Her words resounded through the small room, and he blinked, some measure of shock registering behind those expressive slate-colored eyes.

“Depends. Are you going to get into any risqué situations with your ex lover or anyone else, regardless of convention?” The might behind his tone diminished toward the end of the sentence, as if losing steam along the way.

“I just might. Do you think you have the right to police my body?” She
leaned her upper body back a few inches, her hands falling to cup her hips.

He relented, taking a step back. “Nay, only protect it at your discretion.”

Her arms darted across her chest. “I’m not sure how I feel about that.”

He mirrored her motions. “Nor do I. Truce?”

“Start over?” she asked, offering her hand.

He shook his head. “I’ll never forget looking out the window and seeing you under-“

“Ahem. Truce sounds good.” Radek’s sharp remark cut Blaran off.

He
nodded, took her hand and shook with a firm grip. He released her and turned his back. Put off by his quick trust, she relaxed her aggressive posture.

Radek led her out, his shoulders tight.

“Anything I need to know about Hadrain?” she asked, wary after the last meeting. Of course, she knew there was no way Radek could have known about her history with Blaran. Radek let out a rough laugh.

“Nah. He’s quiet.”

“You have to worry about those ones more.” At her words, Radek turned, halting so abruptly she almost crashed into him again.

“He’s quiet, but he hears and remembers everything.” His gaze slid back and forth over hers, and she tried to decode his meaning. He moved away, opening another door.

“Hadrain?” Radek’s coarse voice echoed through the space.

A moment passed, then the response sent a shiver down Papria’s spine. “Later.”

Radek shrugged, turning with an arched brow. “His highness requests a later meeting. Shall we go now?”

She flashed him a quick grin. “Let
’s go.”

He hesitated. “Actually, it’s nearing third shift. I’m going to go get some shut eye.” His posture shifted, and she sensed his discomfort.

“Say it.” Her arms crossed over her chest.

“I’m torn between asking if you need anything, and wondering if my asking is rude or out of place.” He refused to meet her glance, and she sighed.
He was going to be difficult, and every time he tensed up, memories flooded her, triggered by his need to bring them up. All she wanted to do was forget, why didn’t he
get
that?

“Look, I want you to speak freely-“

“No, no you don’t.” His gaze met hers, then skittered away again. “I saw the look on your face when Vendas talked about finding you attractive. Certain things, for propriety’s sake at least, need to be recognized.”

“Well, of course-“

“Then don’t say speak freely if it isn’t what you mean. Ma’am.” The last word was curt, and she recognized it as a means to force the image of respect while the rest of his words were less than kind.

“Speak freely as you would if I was anyone else here. You wouldn’t talk about your attraction to the men here, would you?” Some of her annoyance melted away as his expression turned thoughtful.

“You know, I’m not sure. It’s never really come up. I suppose you’re right, though. Need me to lead you back to your quarters?” His serious features softened with a grin.

She nodded. “Yes, please.”

His footfalls rang on the honey-combed, metal grating underfoot. She glanced over her shoulder into deeply shadowed eyes. Hadrain’s dark skin caught the minimal light, though he stood back in the shadows. His licorice eyes impressed a feeling of danger on her, like one might feel when staring down a panther. The door slid closed, and she turned, following Radek.

“You know what?”
she asked Radek’s retreating back, realizing she didn’t want to be alone to face her demons just yet. “Would you be up for drinks?”

He glanced over his shoulder at her, changing course. “Sure. Mess should still be open, not that it matters.” She hurried to keep u
p with his long steps. The stairs down to the mess hall warned the room was dimly lit.

Radek made his way down before her, and she heard him
speaking in tense tones. She hurried down the last step and nearly crashed into Vendas.

“Now it’s a party!”
He gave her a joking smile, making his way to the bar.

Papria
stood, frozen in place. His glance turned worried, and she felt Radek close in on her, his arm touching hers.

Vendas sat back, an easy elbow resting back on the bar. Despite the grin on his face, she felt his tension.

Zoltan rose from the bar, his angry eyes shouting at her in the silence. “What? Am I not allowed to be in the same room as you, either? Worried I’ll rape you too?”

The
words left his mouth slurred, but she didn’t care. With a sharp scream, she launched herself at him. Rough hands clamped on her hips. She was guided to her feet and spun to face Radek.

“
Look at me.” He held her, his hands moving from her shoulders to her cheeks. Dark blue eyes caught her attention, soothing the rage boiling within her. “Me! Look at me.”

She
obeyed, the fight draining from her body. His pupils dilated, the blue narrowing as he focused on her. His breaths deepened, and she realized hers were, as well. The calm whispering over her eased the tension binding her muscles, and she relaxed.

“Really? You’re not going to threaten his life too?” Zoltan’s tone turned mocking and she broke from Radek’s grasp, rolling back out of his reach. She smashed into Zoltan, knocking him off the stool. They crashed to the floor, the blind struggle blurring the walls as they rolled over and over. His drunkenness and her rage evened the ground between them, though his weight
still put her at a disadvantage.

Coming out on top, she slammed his shoulders into the ground, her fingers around his throat. He lifted his head and she slammed it back.

“How
dare
you mock me!”

“You blamed me for something I didn’t do, you crazy bi-“ Her fist smashed into his face, ending the hateful words. He laughed, turning his head to
spit blood on the floor.

“You hit harder now. Your dad and I taught you well. Funny, he though
t we’d end up together.”

“I will never love you, I didn’t then, I don’t
now.” Her rage broke free.

His eyes snapped to hers and the world shifted. He pressed her into the ground, his
livid face hovering close to hers. “You did love me.”

She shook her head, but his lips pressed to hers. With a scream, she flipped him. Pain exploded through her fist as her knuckles connected with his jaw, his nose, his cheek. The pain flowed out of her in a rush, slowing only when exhaustion set in.

Wiping the back of her fist across her stinging eyes, she stared at the blood on her hand in horror. Glancing back at the men, she saw Vendas and Radek studying her. Hunter green eyes met hers.

“Feel better now?”

She nodded, then shook her head. Radek ducked behind the bar, pulling forth a med-kit and removed a reconstruction tool. He tossed it to her, and she caught it, staring at it. She knelt beside Zoltan, pressing the tool to his battered face. Once he was healed, he sat up, backing away from her.

“You’re drunk.” She glared at him, and he got to unsteady feet and stumbled out.

With heavy steps, she crossed to the med-kit and replaced the tool. Both men gave her funny looks.

“What?” she asked,
glancing from one to the other.

Vendas lifted his
eyebrows toward her hands and her gaze darted to her knuckles. The deep purple bruises already dark marring her skin didn’t surprise her.

“I earned them. Now I live with them.” She rubbed a thumb over the sensitive fl
esh. When she glanced back up, she was met with pure, heady admiration.

Vendas
lifted his glass in her direction before downing it in a gulp. He turned to the surly man behind the counter. “Three please?”

Papria winced. She hadn’t even noticed the man and wondered where he’d been. She took a seat between the men and Radek leaned over to speak softly in her ear.

“Don’t worry. He was in the back cleaning up and only caught the very tail end of your little show.”

She nodded
, relaxing.

The bartender placed three small glasses before them and filled them with clear liquid from a silver cylinder.  The men slammed theirs, but she only stared at the little glass. When the surly man left for the back again, she spoke.

“Why did you guys let that happen?”

Though she didn’t look at them, she sensed the glance that passed between them.

Vendas answered. “That’s how we do things. You have beef, you deal with it.”

Radek’s throaty voice
added, “We were watching, in case things went sour, but you looked like you had yourself handled pretty well. Besides, it’s not healthy to bottle up those emotions. Letting them out can really clear your head.”

“Then you can mess
it up again with alcohol.” Vendas smiled, nodding at her drink.

She lifted her drink
to her mouth, her eyes watering at the strong vapors. Two sets of curious eyes, light blue and dark green, watched her.

With a deep breath, she swallowed the fiery liquid in a gulp, wincing at the sting. Holding the little glass between two fingers, she pressed the outside of her wrist to her lips, the burn bringing tears to her eyes.

Vendas pounded the bar with a heavy palm. When the bartender reappeared, Vendas lifted three fingers, smiling at her. “Yeah, like a man. Damn, girl.” He turned to Radek. “She’s fearless, isn’t she?”

Radek jerked his chin up. “Yeah, and full of surprises.”

She set her glass on the counter. The man refilled it before moving on to the others.

“Bottom’s up.” Vendas lifted his glass her direction, she touched her glass to his, before draining it.

“Don’t push her,” Radek said, his eyes darting over her.