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Once in his apartment, he nabbed Harlow gently around the waist, threw her into his bed, and made love to her again.
She gasped as wave after wave of pure sweet loving washed over her as he took her to places she’d never imagined.
As dawn’s light filtered above them, he fell away from her, finally sated.
She dragged herself over his body and placed her head on his chest, listening to the drumming of his heart.
He lazily ran his hands through her hair. And just as she fell asleep, lulled by his caress, she heard his whisper.
‘Kara, I love you so much. You’re my starlit dusk, my lavender twilight, my hopes and dreams come to life.’
The words hung in the air as emotion exploded in her chest, and she bit back tears.
She lifted her head to look up at him through her misting eyes. ‘Kage, I -’
He gave her a long look, then lifted a finger to cover her lips, like he’d done earlier at The Nebula Crown. ‘Don’t say it until you’re ready, baby. Only when you’re ready.’
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then, she nabbed Kage’s hand, kissed his palm softly, and lay her head back against his powerful heartbeat.
And felt the gut-wrenching agony of the age-old lovers’ paradox. The same one that had flamed out so many yearning spirits over the eons. In which searching souls found a love so true but lacked the strength to reach for it.
Kage
A warning sound broke through his deep slumber. His node alert.
Kage stirred in bed, biting back a groan. A day after the bout with The Mortician, his muscles were still a mass of aches and pains.
He pushed past the agony to answer the alert. The chrono beside his bed showed the time as 0200.
What’s happening?he crabbily asked Mirage.
You asked me to check in when we heard about Harlow’s necklace. My persistence paid off, and we’ve just had a breakthrough. I just received a tip from LynxStokil, owner of a shabby black market and pawnbroking dealership in Pikani Central. He claims to have seen the necklace in possession of an unidentified woman. She walked into his shop wanting to exchange it for schills. Something was off about her, so he checked through Sysnet to double-check it was legit. Found it flagged as stolen. He also recognised our alert and, wanting no trouble, sent me a message. I asked him to place a nano tracker on it - without her knowledge - which he did. I now have the nano code and the woman’s supposed location.
Where?
MajiCastle. A boarding house in Pikani South.
Kage sighed—just his luck. The underground zone was one of the tunnel’s most lawless.
Did he nab an identikit?
She didn’t have one, he says. But he sent me footage from his cam of when she went in. Her face is visible, so I’m sending it to you now. I can confirm it’s the same woman who robbed Harlow that night.
Sante. I’ll comm you when I get there.
Kage pushed up quietly and eased out of bed without waking his woman. He glanced at her sleeping beside him.
She’d been curled against his back, and now she rolled, searching for him. Not finding him, she burrowed against a pillow, mouth soft, her lavender hair falling over her cheek.
Sweet Eden, she was beautiful.
Every moment with her was everything. He’d move nebulas and star clusters for her if he had to - and he hoped recovering her necklace might help lift some of the pain that still clouded her eyes.
Minutes later, he’d dressed in a dark unobtrusive tracksuit and thick boots. Then, concealing his weapons in pockets and hidden flaps, he silently stepped out of his apartment, having left a note for Harlow.
He quickly exited the building in his flyer, winging across Eden II in the dark of night.
He headed towards Pikani South. The subsurface combat zone of the rock. Where die-hard crims and koko dealers reigned over a populace of homeless and broken souls who kept falling into the pits of a meaningless existence, regardless of the help provided by the Elder Council and Eden II’s well-funded social programs.
