CHAPTER 06
CHAPTER 06
BLUNT FORCE
––––––––
L
EAVING HIS THRUST
cycle hovering at the parking locker, Garn confronted the gate wall. A holo image of a young male wearing a wide-brimmed security hat appeared high enough Garn had to lean back to view it.
The words, “state your business,” floated from the image, crisp and clear.
“Your boss wanted to see me.”
“Are you Garnet Creek, Crystalyn’s father?”
“I am.”
“You have a great daughter, sir. We’re lucky to have her indentured here.” A loud
whoosh
from the wall preceded the gate retracting into it. Having overseen the security setup for the complex, Garn recalled he’d designed the gate wide for large cargo and had added a zoom holofeed for remote handling. “Please proceed to the warehouse, sir. She’s expecting you.” The image winked out.
Beyond the gate, a meter-thick transparent plasicrete dome covered the complex created from a suggestion of his. He strode along the spongecrete path with its hidden heat and weight sensors he’d had installed into this variation of plasicrete; it was softer for those on foot. Hovercraft transports never touched the surface until arriving at their destination, so a harder surface wasn’t required. Blocky artwork manufactured with varying colors and textures from the same spongy material lined the path on both sides. The owner had purchased the artwork after Garn had finished his consultation work, and so it was new to him. He didn’t care for it.
The dome glinted with rainbow colors, reflected in the early evening sky like a clear, chemical bubble that refused to pop, silently deterring the uninvited from landing. The open sky was still a much better view up here in High Realm as long as one didn’t look down the mountain.
Now here he was, invited beneath the dome, smack in the Dragon Lady’s great lair. The king himself had personally asked Garn to consult with Ruena on security measures, since there’d been a successful break-in. Oddly, the Dragon Lady wouldn’t reveal what had been stolen.
Garn doubted there’d been a successful unauthorized entry after he’d finished with his design. The strongest security was simple but effective, it used a combination of old and new techniques. Surprisingly, Ruena Day had been one of the rare clients who’d accepted his method from the start.
For the hundredth time, he wondered what the emergency was. When he’d sent a feed to the warehouse to check on the girls’ progress, the Dragon Lady herself had answered, asking for a personal meeting, which was odd. She’d always been a recluse.
When he pressed for specifics, she’d refused to discuss it over the feed, stating insecurities. Unless changes to his system design had occurred, the feed’s encryption here, and elsewhere he’d installed it, had yet to be broken. A face-to-face meeting was not required, but it was fine with him. He had his own questions.
Staying this late was a first for Crystalyn. What was so important it had to be finished tonight? She could’ve hired half of Mid Realm to get the project done. As part of his former servitude as head of security for the king’s administration he was privy to classified information. The Dragon Lady had enough credits to purchase one of the realms, should it be her desire. At least, she had when Garn had been in the king’s service before his wife’s disappearance, but credits had a way of vanishing overnight. How well he knew.
And another first, Crystalyn had Jade with her, a much larger worry. They should’ve been home bells ago. Had something bad happened, perhaps involving a cargo container? He hated the thought of his daughter moving them around. Thrust motors failed every day.
Garn’s chest fluttered as his unease heightened. Something bad better not have happened. He’d take the place apart with his bare hands, bad blood pump or not.
But he was creating his own anxieties, a bad habit he admonished everyone else about whenever he noted it. Lack of information tended to do that to him. Perhaps the Dragon Lady was only extending a professional courtesy to him by telling him in person his daughter’s indenture was terminated. No, the gate guard had mentioned how valued she was at her job, though he should’ve known it by now. As much as he hated to admit it, he hadn’t been the best father, not lately. He should’ve been involved deeper in both his daughters’ lives. Grieving over Sureen’s disappearance had left little room in his life to interact with his girls outside the daily routine of maintaining a household, but that was his own personal reaction and wrong. He should talk to his girls at every opportunity.
The spongecrete path led past two large hovercrafts—the most advanced models available—to end at the rear dock’s widened, stainless steel door. The pulse curtain required the extra space on each end for its integrated neural technology to function. Garn did appreciate how the Dragon Lady had taken his advice by retaining some of the best features from the original building’s design and integrating them with many of the latest advancements in security. Breaking in now would require someone who had knowledge in old technology, along with new, and had access to the tools required for both systems.
A much narrower spongecrete path pointed the way to an off-white exterior door. As Garn neared, the door buzzed loudly. Twisting the handle, he plowed inside before the lock could reengage.
The Dragon Lady waited inside.
Garn’s pulse quickened.
Ruena Day had spent some time facing a mirror and it showed. Dark purple lipstick and eye shadow matched the orchids sewn on her black fishnet dress that fell to mid-thigh. The orchids strategically covered the feminine curves of her body the dress hugged. Black silk gloves snaked to her elbows, complementing the deep purple sharp-heeled boots that climbed to just below her knees. She still wore the two scythe-shaped bangs curling out from her forehead and down both cheeks that she called dragon locks. Each dragon lock sported mauve, orchid barrettes against her head full of lush dark hair. The overall effect was startling. He was glad he’d selected his last expensive suit to wear or he’d have felt underdressed.
Eyes dark and shiny, Ruena gazed at him, a half-smile tugging at her generous lips.
“Evening, Miss Day,” Garn squeaked. Why was his voice so high? He never squeaked.
Ruena smiled, showing her white, even teeth. “Mister Creek, thank you for coming on such short notice,” she said, her voice a purr. “I hope you can appreciate my attire, such as it is. I put some thought into it after we spoke.”
Garn’s face heated as he wondered what she meant. He suspected he knew, but he found it hard to accept. Surely, she wasn’t flirting with him. He was too old, though he’d heard some women preferred older men. Perhaps so, but he didn’t feel like testing the validity of it. He would maintain a friendly relationship with her, for Crystalyn’s sake. “Call me Garnet or just Garn, please. Everyone usually calls me Garn. Mister carries such an ‘old man’ image. At least to me it does.”
“Very well, but I prefer ‘distinguished.’ You are far too handsome to be thought of as old. You may call me Ruena or just Rue. Do we have an agreement?”
So there it was. Ruena was flirting.
“I believe so,” he replied.
“Good. Now, if you will follow me, we can retire someplace comfortable.” Spinning elegantly on one heel, she stepped onto the sealed plasicrete dock. Garn’s body flushed when he noticed the orchids didn’t stay in place as she moved. She did have an exceptional form. He shouldn’t let her get the wrong idea, though. “Excuse me, Miss Day. I mean Rue. Crystalyn mentioned you permitted her to bring Jade. Are the girls still here?” He scrambled to stay close enough to speak without raising his voice. Ruena’s strides were long, even for him.
Ruena drew up short, twisting to look at him. A frown creased her forehead as her dark eyes penetrated his. Unable—or unwilling—to look away, he stared deep into them. The world froze. High intellect mixed with a fierce passion and ... and something else, drew him in and made him wonder. What could a much younger, beautiful, and supremely wealthy woman want with a dying older man?
How many moments passed, he couldn’t say. Ruena’s face smoothed. She turned and led the way deeper within the warehouse, her weight balanced elegantly on her spiked heels.
Stopping at a door, Ruena raised an eyebrow, binding Garn with her stare. “Your daughter told you she asked permission to bring her sister along? I’m afraid Crystalyn told you ... wrong. Her indenture is for her alone, and I never require her to work any Seventh Credit day.”
“I asked her about that! I wonder why she insisted you had requested her service.”
“I do not know. I dislike having anyone here, save for a small security crew, on the Seventh day. I do not agree with service on that day; everyone should have time away. After all, I may need some ... time alone. Or I might wish to spend it with someone who intrigues me, as you do, Mister. Creek.”
Garn swallowed hard. So there it was. She’d now tossed it into the open.
“Ever since our previous interactions ended a few seasons ago, I’ve searched for an excuse to spend some time becoming ... more acquainted,” Ruena went on. “When you sent the message earlier, I got the impression you wanted to meet in an intimate atmosphere. Was I wrong? Did you
not
want to see me in private, Garnet?”
Garn’s lungs refused to draw breath as he gazed at her fine raised eyebrows and the question hanging there. Beautiful wasn’t a strong enough word for her elegant, aristocratic features. Her sharp cheekbones curved down to a full, pouty mouth. Parting her lips slightly, Ruena leaned closer.
His body stirred.
Garn squashed the feeling. He still hadn’t found his daughters. He took a half step backward. When had he leaned close to her?
Lips curling playfully petulant, Ruena leaned on the door’s exit bar, presenting a side profile.
He noted the dress she wore left no room for underneath apparel. His mouth dried.
“Come now, Mister Garnet, quit toying with me. Shall we go to my office? We can discuss anything you want there. I am certain you’re parched by now.”
He stood immobile, not trusting himself to move, unable to look away. She was a rare beauty, though he hadn’t thought so in the past. She’d been too hard a taskmaster during the secure setup, demanding to know the precise details for each feature. He’d never met any woman matching his six-foot frame until Ruena.
His wife, Sureen, had barely reached his chin, but it hadn’t mattered. Sureen had been the perfect size. They’d fit together like his best suit, manufactured from precise, robotic specifications, and they’d been soul mates from the moment they’d met, and every moment after. He could still picture her smile as if she stood beside him now.
The sharp pain in his chest he’d lived with for six seasons hit him again. Everything within him ached to see her, to talk to her, to hold her. Sureen was the only woman he’d ever loved, or ever would.
The exotic beauty before him intruded into his thoughts, transposed for an instant with an image of his lovely wife. His chest constricted again. Head tilted back against the open doorjamb with her firm, full chest pushing forward, Ruena stared at him, expectation mirrored in her almond eyes, her lips pursed. When had she opened the door?
As tempting as Ruena was, he knew he would decline her offer. He loved Sureen still, missing or not. As the One was his witness, he truly missed her. Not knowing if she was alive or dead was destroying him. He’d never given up on finding out, though it’d been many a long season since she’d vanished from their home without a trace. He
would
discover what had happened to her.
Right now, he was here for his children, and nothing else mattered.
He’d made a pact early on in his union with Sureen: their children would come first, always. They’d both wanted it that way.
Again, Garn’s chest tightened, if only he knew what had happened to her, he could move on.
Ruena was still regarding him, her dark eyes shiny and expectant. “A drink is tempting, but I must go look for my girls,” he said.
Ruena’s brow furrowed with rage and smoothed so fast, Garn wasn’t certain he’d seen it. Ruena smiled. “I believe I understand now. You actually
are
looking for your daughters.” Drawing and releasing a long breath, Ruena straightened. “I won’t apologize. I’m still glad you’re here. I imagine you’ve already checked with Crystalyn’s friend?”
A friend was something he hadn’t considered. After the incident with the Hartwig kid, Crystalyn had been a loner. At least, he’d believed so. Again he was reminded how much distance had grown between him and his daughters. He needed to make it up to Crystalyn—to both of them—somehow. “No, I haven’t yet.”
“Crystalyn accepted a feed in my office yesterday from him. I’m sure we could locate the point of origin. Care to look?”
So the friend was male. Garn needed to find his daughters before trouble found Crystalyn. Worse, Jade was with her this time. “Yes I would, thank you.”
Ruena pushed the door open and placed herself beside it. “You have to promise to make it up to me, Garnet. I insist.”
He half-expected her to use the limited space between her and the doorframe as an excuse to get closer, but she remained still—even inhaling slightly to allow him room as he slid past, her perfume making his head reel.
At the threshold, he hesitated, noticing two blue obelisks positioned on each side of the door, as close to the inside wall as their bases allowed. A curtain of dark mist had dropped between them.
Oddly, the mist was moving with a spiral motion.
The whole setup sent a chill through his spine, yet he couldn’t say why, perhaps from the sheer strangeness of it.
He lifted a foot to step back.
Blunt force slammed into his back, propelling him headlong into the mist.