I should’ve stayed with her.
“Why are there so many male racers breaking rules this round?” Rosy asks a guard. “Someone give me an answer!”
No one speaks up. But I have an idea.
Rosy glances at me, then the rest of the joint group, and sighs. “We’regoing to have to break a rule to keep everyone safe. Private guards around the event arenas. Brief them.”
Rosy walks off with assistance from her main guard.
An ABR security officer directs our group in areas through the complex, where we will be permitted to stand and observe. But while we’re out here talking in the field, I’m worried about what’s happening inside.
I cannot leave my post without exacerbating the situation. I’m supposed to be a human guard. I must act like one.
They cluster us up in rooms adjacent to the mingle celebration with cameras watching the festivities.
A security officer pulls me aside. “Care to explain this?”
He shows me a video recording of me body slamming a Ginarigon almost twice my thickness.
“Momentum and MAMA.”
He frowns. “No one is stupid enough to believe that. Even the news is commenting on how strange it is that a human man was able to tackle a Ginarigon with such force. Don’t do it again.”
“You’re telling me not to protect my client.”
He snarls at me. “Yes,Elix.Show some restraint.”
I have no such plans. When I look up at the camera, I see Zariah running to her room and narrowly slipping inside before a Ginarigon tries to smash it in with a fist.
I’m desperate to protect her and track down Rosy.
“This place isn’t safe for Zariah. Do I have permission to pull her out? Can you eject her? Is there anything we can do?”
Rosy stops in the hallway and turns to me with some effort. “Only if she breaks a rule can she be ejected. Only if she chooses, will she be welcome to leave. We protect women at all costs. Just ask the three of my guards in the infirmary right now.”
“This can’t be getting good publicity,” I remark.
“Quite the opposite. We now have extra patrols arriving in orbit. More teams of security arrive in an hour. Ratings and viewers are soaring.”
“So you’re using her?” I snarl.
“No. I don’t give a damn what people think.” Rosy points a bony finger up at me. “I care about preserving humanity, about women’schoices. This game isn’t about wants. It’s about needs, about finding the ones that make our hearts, sparks, and cores ignite.
“What do our genetics demand? Our bodies respond when they find a match. Our hearts and minds just need to confirm it. The more raw and primal this race is, the stronger the breeding stock we create. That is how we survive.”
I pull a page from her ABR founder’s notes that I skimmed during the application process. “What does survival matter if we do not create the only thing that does not exist on its own without us?”
She stills, all irritation slipping under a mask of sudden pity. “You applied to race? When?”
“Several years ago when the emptiness started driving me crazy. You rejected me.”
“That doesn’t make sense. I rarely reject anyone other than criminals.” Rosy shakes her head. “I’d remember your application if I’d seen it.”
“I’m registered with Sol and Terran security systems. Maybe you need to look into your team. There are several males who show signs of being bounty hunters, marauders, that type. Gear, tattoos, scar brands, and the way they all clustered up over abounty hunter’s daughter. You have to see, something doesn’t add up.”
Rosy rubs her face. “I was hoping this last race would be a fun way to go. This is getting out of hand. I cannot keep up with the technological changes anymore.”
“I’ll look into it, ma’am,” her guard says. She nods and motions for him to contact the team about an audit.
