The Price of Conquest

A low, annoying tone awoke Tyler. He glanced at the time. It was almost noon.

The late hour did not surprise him. He and Kressa had stayed up most of the night getting to know one another, at least getting to know one another physically. There were still a number of intriguing mysteries about her that had little or nothing to do with her body, and he intended to follow up on all of them to see how far his increasingly tempting musings about taking her on as a partner might lead.

The tone sounded again, and Kressa stirred beside him.

He brushed his lips against hers. "Go back to sleep, love. It's only the comm."

She moaned pleasantly and curled deeper under the blankets.

He rolled out of bed.

A thin silver chain and amulet rested on the nightstand. Tyler vaguely recalled Kressa removing it sometime during the night when their activities threatened to snap the thin chain.

He studied the amulet briefly, certain he'd seen its likeness before, and then glanced at the bed. Kressa was asleep again.

He picked up the necklace, wrapped the chain around his hand, shrugged into his robe, and headed for the Gamble's control room.

The comm buzzed again as he entered the room.

He saw who was calling and answered the audio-only signal with a scowl. "What is it, Boech?"

"Hey, Tyler, I hear you're lookin' for Sangrey," Trass Boech's rough, thickly accented voice said over the comm.

"What if I am?" Tyler asked. It amazed him how quickly news of that type could travel. He trusted it hadn't traveled to the wrong ears.

"I might have a clue where he is," Boech said. "If you could forget a certain few hundred credits…"

Tyler made it a habit to get people in his debt on the chance he might one day need information, assistance, or some other favor from them. Those who dealt with him knew he didn't necessarily expect payment in kind, only in value—such as forgiving a small monetary loan for a piece of useful information.

That was another reason he didn't miss Garth. Too often, Tyler had needed to use the favors he accrued to bail his wayward partner out of some trouble he got himself into. Now, Tyler was going to start collecting on those favors for himself.

"Boech, if you help me find Sangrey, you can forget you ever knew me."

"Yeah?" The man sounded positively ecstatic. "I hear he's been seen at a couple of them high-credit glove clubs in Vaxua."

Tyler smirked. Glove, street slang for whore. Not surprising, given Sangrey's tastes. "How long ago?"

"A couple of days. Word is he got himself a penthouse suite in one of the top-class hotels, so he might still be there."

"Thanks," Tyler said. "I'll let you know if I find anything, then I'm out of your life."

"Great! I mean… uh—it's been great working with you, Tyler."

"Yeah. I'll see you around." Tyler switched off the comm and leaned back in his chair to consider what he had learned.

He had no reason to doubt Boech, but he wished the information was a little fresher. A person could get far in two days. Yet, as Boech pointed out, there was a chance Sangrey was still in Vaxua. The man's last job scored him a hefty sum of cash, a good portion of which Tyler was sure he'd want to throw away on one of his infamous binges. If that were true, all Tyler needed to do was find out where Sangrey was staying.

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Tyler stood to return to his room, and then remembered the amulet he held. He studied it again briefly, returned to the control board, and queried the Gamble's computer.

* * *

Kressa awoke with a start. Something was missing. The gentle pull of the Gendzet medallion, a sensation she'd felt every waking moment for the past few weeks, wasn't there.

She looked around.

She was alone in Devin's bed. She remembered waking up earlier to the sound of an incoming call, only to have him suggest she go back to sleep.

Recalling that she had removed the amulet during one of their rounds of enthusiastic bedplay, she looked at the nightstand.

It was empty.

Maybe it had slipped off. After all, her attention had been on other things at the time.

She started to roll over to check the floor, but Devin appeared in the doorway, dressed in a loose robe.

She looked up at him with a smile. "Who called?"

"A business associate." He sat down on the edge of the bed.

Kressa realized they hadn't gotten around to discussing their occupations last night. In truth, they hadn't discussed much at all, not that she was complaining about what they had done.

"Have you got any plans for the next few days?" he asked.

Does spending as much time as possible in your bed count as a plan? Kressa thought, and then pursed her lips to hide her smile.

"Not really," she said. "Why?"

"Would you like to go to Vaxua with me?"

"What's there?"

He caressed her cheek. "You, I hope. And a good time. Fancy rooms, gourmet food, elegant clubs. My treat. Probably no bar fights, though."

She smiled. "When do we leave?"

"I'd like to be there tonight."

"I'll have to go to my ship and pack some things." She slid out of the bed, stood, and stretched.

Devin watched her with an appreciative smile. "Take your time."

Sometime later, as Kressa was preparing to leave the Gamble, Devin stepped up behind her.

"Don't forget this." He slipped the Gendzet necklace over her head.

She wondered where it had come from, and then realized he must have found it on the floor.

"Thanks," she said, once again experiencing the amulet's gentle pull on her awareness. She turned to face him. "It shouldn't take me long to pack. When do you want to leave?"

"I have a few things I need to do before we go. Meet me back here in, say, two hours."

She nodded and turned to leave, but he caught her wrist.

"Not so fast, love." He pulled her gently to him, wrapped his arms around her waist, kissed her, and then leaned back slightly. He held her gaze for a long moment, and then glanced down at the Gendzet amulet. He ran a finger under the chain and hooked the medallion into his hand.

"Does this mean anything?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"There seems to be some kind of writing here."

She glanced down at the amulet resting in his palm, wondering how much she dared tell him. If he didn't know what the amulet was, it was probably safest for everyone involved if he remained uninformed.

"I don't know," she answered finally—and truthfully; she did not know what the markings on the amulet were meant to signify.

"Where'd you get it?" he asked, lowering it gently to lie against her chest.

"From a—friend." She tucked it into her shirt.

"A male friend?" he asked with a playfully feigned pout.

She gave him a lopsided grin. "Yes, as a matter of fact. Actually, we're not much more than acquaintances."

He returned her smile and kissed her again. "Neither were we."