Fugitive (30 page)

   "But?" Jack prompted.

   "I—I haven't got any ready to show you," she stut tered. "If that's what you're looking for."

   Jack shook her head slowly. "No, birds are not what I'm looking for," she replied. "I'm looking for something far more exotic than birds." Cocking her head to one side, Jack eyed her speculatively. "Seen anything interesting?"

   "Um, well… there's an eltran living in the lake," Drusilla said, grasping at straws—anything to divert attention from one portrait of Manx that was, unfortu nately, sitting right out in plain sight. She made a mental note to put it in her bedroom at her earliest convenience, but just then, she couldn't risk drawing attention to it.

   "An eltran, huh? What's that?"

   "His name is Zef," Drusilla replied, barely able to mask her sigh of relief, "and he's quite a character."

   "Is that right?" Jack said, displaying a mild interest. "Well, you'll have to introduce us, then."

   "Sure," Drusilla said briskly. "I'll just go down to the lake with you."

   Jack stepped aside as Drusilla hurried out, closing the door manually, rather than waiting for Dwell to do it.

   Leading the way, Drusilla took the stone path that curled around the house and on down to the lake.

   "Hey, guys!" Jack called out. "This is Drusilla. She's going to show us the house."

   Drusilla cringed inwardly, because that was not her intent at all. She was hoping they'd find Zef so offensive that they would leave without ever setting foot inside the house; however, as the two men turned to face her, all thoughts of Zef fled from her mind.

   For one heart-stopping moment, Drusilla thought one of them was Manx, but there was no recognition in his eyes—eyes that were a glittering obsidian rather than Manx's sparkling green, plus he had a deep scar on his cheek. Both men were tall and lean with long, curly hair—one black and the other a tawny gold—and both were dressed in loose tunics over boots and breeches. They were both amazingly attractive, but what made her gasp was the fact that they were obviously Zetithian.

   Jack was watching Drusilla intently and didn't miss one jot of her reaction. "Cool, aren't they?" Jack said easily. "The black-haired one is my husband." Sighing, she added, "Ever seen anything like them?"

   "N—no," Drusilla stammered. "I—I haven't."

   "You sure about that?" Jack prompted. "We got word there was a friend of theirs hiding out on Barada and that a pack of Nedwuts were hunting him. Sure you don't know anything about that—haven't seen anything
strange
while you were out exploring the jungle?"

   Drusilla was torn between wanting to trust these people and the certainty that it was another trap being set for Manx. "I don't think so," she said slowly. "I just paint the birds that come to the lake. I haven't been exploring much."

   "Uh-huh," said Jack. "Well, Cat, guess we'll have to look elsewhere for Manx. Funny, I was so sure he was here."

   "You looking for Manx?" Zef's raspy voice called out from the lake.

   Drusilla's eyes squeezed shut in frustration as the garrulous eltran made an appearance.

   "I've been wondering what happened to him too," Zef went on. "He was a good friend of mine. Be fuckin' fantastic if you could find him. Used to give me fish bones all the time," Zef added reflectively. "Miss that."

   "Um, this is Zef," Drusilla said. "Meet Jack and—I don't know the men's names."

   "This gorgeous hunk is Cat," Jack said, pointing to her husband, "and that other handsome devil is Leo."

   "Do you know our friend Manx?" Cat asked Zef.

   "Sure do!" Zef said. "Hasn't Drusilla told you?"

   "About what?" Cat inquired.

   Zef looked up at her questioningly, but Drusilla gave her head a quick shake, trying desperately to get him to shut up. "About fuckin' Manx!" Zef said with a snort.

   "Um, about Manx, or about fucking Manx?" Jack put in.

   Drusilla ignored the innuendo and hissed at Zef, "Zef, will you
please
be quiet?"

   "Ah," said Jack. "So you
do
know him?"

   Drusilla shook her head again. "I don't know what you're talking about."

   "Look," Jack said evenly. "The Nedwuts have nearly exterminated the Zetithian species. These guys are among the few that are left. You can trust us, Drusilla. We're here to protect Manx, not hunt him down."

   "She kills Nedwuts on sight," Leo said with a gesture toward Jack. "And so does my wife."

   "Wish I had," Drusilla muttered ruefully.

   "What was that?" Jack asked.

   Drusilla let out a pent up breath. "Guess I might as well tell you everything."

   "Yeah, why don't you do that?" said Jack. "If he's missing, we might be able to help you find him." Gazing at Drusilla with a speculative eye, she added, "You
do
want him back, don't you?"

   Drusilla's hand flew to her mouth in an attempt to stifle her sob, but her tears were unstoppable.

   Jack put a consoling arm around Drusilla's trembling shoulders and nodded at Cat. "I think we can take that as a yes." She gave it a few moments and then asked, "When's the last time you saw him?"

   "I don't know," Drusilla whispered. "I—I've lost track of the time." Running a fretful hand through her disheveled locks, she added, "I've been painting ever since he left. I just woke up one morning to find Manx gone and a band of Nedwuts on my doorstep."

   "I can tell you exactly when he left," Zef said. "He came out very early one morning to fish, caught a few and tossed them to me. Then he went back to the house in something of a hurry. I saw him head off into the jungle after that—fully dressed, by the way—which is something I'd never seen before. Kinda caught my eye, you might say."

   "He's Zetithian, all right," Jack said with a smile. "They don't like to wear clothes unless they have to."

   Cat rolled his eyes. "That is not true," he insisted. "We wear clothes all the time."

   Jack gazed at him with a knowing eye. "Yeah, right," she said with a sardonic chuckle. "But not by choice."

   "Well, no," Leo agreed. "Clothing is so
restrictive."

   Drusilla was fairly certain that everyone else knew exactly what Leo was referring to, but Zef chose to eluci date. "No room for your dick when it gets hard, is there?"

   "Oh, you're a lot of fun, aren't you?" Jack observed with a quick grin at Zef. "We'll have to talk later. In the meantime, which way did Manx go?"

   "That way," Zef replied with a nod toward the east.

   Leo nodded. "The winds here blow from west to east. That would make his scent trail very difficult to follow."

   "For Nedwuts as well as us," Jack agreed. "Well, then, east it is. Maybe we can pick up a trail of some kind."

   Cat was skeptical. "If Manx does not wish it, it is unlikely that we will find him."

   Jack exhaled sharply. "That good, is he?"

   "He was always very elusive," Leo said. "And after so many years as a fugitive, he will have become even more skilled."

   "Damn!" Jack exclaimed. "That means we have to rely on Tisana's potion, then."

   "Potion?" Drusilla said curiously. "How can a potion bring him back?"

   "One that smells like these two," Jack said with a gesture toward the two men. "It's the best plan we could come up with. We've never actually gone looking for another Zetithian. So far, we've just stumbled onto them, but Manx is cagey enough to think this is a trap."

   "Wish you could trap those awful Nedwuts," Drusilla said with a shudder. "I had the oddest feeling that they didn't believe a word I said. I—I think they'll be back. They seemed very persistent."

   Jack snorted derisively. "For five million credits? I should think they would be."

   "Who would pay that much?" Drusilla wondered aloud. "And why?"

   Jack shook her head. "That's something I'd like to know myself," she said. "I have my own suspicions as to why, but the 'who' is a mystery." She paused for a moment as though something else had just occurred to her. "You know, maybe we've been going about this all wrong," she said biting her lip thoughtfully. "We've been gunning down bounty hunters all over the quadrant, but others always pop up to replace them. What if we could stop this madness at the source?"

"The
who
?" Drusilla suggested.

   "Yeah, and when we know that," Jack said with a firm nod, "we'll understand the why."

   "But how?" Leo asked.

   Jack thought for a long moment and then her lips stretched into a diabolical grin. "I think I need to call in a favor," she said. "Hell, it might even work." Looking rather pleased with herself, she patted Drusilla on the shoulder before giving her a quick squeeze and releasing her. "Got another idea, too. I think we need to add a little something to Tisana's potion."

   "What's that?" Leo asked.

   "Essence of Drusilla," Jack replied. "Manx won't be able to resist it." Eyeing Drusilla, she added. "Think it could be an
aroused
Drusilla? That would make it even more irresistible."

   "I don't know," Drusilla said doubtfully. "Without Manx, I'm not sure…"

   "What if I loaned you Cat?" Jack suggested. "Just let him hold you and purr for a while. If you close your eyes, you'd never know the difference."

   Cat appeared indignant, but it was Leo who made the offer. "We will take her back with us to the ship," he said. "Tisana will be able to help."

   Jack's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Do you mean to tell me that she really can whip up a love potion? I tried for months to get her to brew one up for Lynx a while back and she said she couldn't." In an aside to Drusilla, she added, "Lynx is another Zetithian who was having some, ah, sexual difficulties for a while, but he's better now. Got a wife and kids and everything."

   Leo raised one golden eyebrow and smiled. "Just because she refused to do it does not mean that she is incapable."

   "Shit! I knew it!" exclaimed Jack. "She got all huffy and noble when I asked about it before. I should have known she was fibbing." Turning to Drusilla, she said, "So, what about it Drusilla? Feel like taking a ride into town?"

   Drusilla's lips were set in a thin line of determination. "I'll do whatever it takes to find him. Then I'm taking him back to Earth with me and never letting him out of my sight again as long as I live."

   "Good girl!" Jack said approvingly. "That's the spirit!"

***

The ride into town was much more comfortable than Drusilla's previous journey and was accomplished in far less time. As they approached the open area where the
Jolly Roger
sat, Drusilla was immediately struck by the sight of children out playing with their dog. In the center of the clearing, a lovely dark-haired woman in a shimmering green gown stood by a huge cauldron stirring the contents with a long wooden spoon. As she watched, the woman bent down and shot fire from her eyes, encouraging the fire beneath the pot to flame up and curl around the edges.

   "That's Leo's wife, Tisana," Jack said informatively. "She's nice enough, but witches can be very dangerous. Don't piss her off."

   "I'll be careful," Drusilla said, heeding the warning, though at the sight of Tisana's smile and friendly wave, she doubted there would be any problems.

   Jack jumped out of the speeder the moment it shut down. "How's it going?"

   "I'm not sure how well this is carrying through the jungle," Tisana said ruefully. "I can't control the weather the way some witches can, so all we have to rely on is the wind, and there's not much of it at the moment."

   "Well, we found a little something to add to the brew," Jack said. "This is Drusilla." With a broad grin, she added, "Manx's girlfriend."

   "Ah," said Tisana. "Nice to meet you, Drusilla."

   "According to her, Manx was here, but he took off when some Nedwuts showed up, and she'd really like to get him back. Adding her scent to the potion would help, but it would be even better if you could cook up something to make her smell more like a lover," Jack said cautiously. "We want this potion to be as irresistible to Manx as possible."

   Tisana's simmering gaze lit on her husband, who was doing his best to appear innocent. "Leo, what did you tell her?"

   "Nothing she didn't already suspect," Leo replied evenly. "And in this case, I believe you could use that forbidden potion of yours without remorse."

   Tisana sighed deeply. "I suppose so," she said. "But don't make a habit of asking me for it, Jack. Don't know why you think any Zetithian would need that kind of potion, anyway. Your boys may only be six years old, but they're already attracting women like flies. I even saw some Baradan girls hanging around a while ago."

   "Aw, they were just looking at the ship," Jack said with a careless wave.

   "I don't know," Drusilla chimed in. "Those boys are pretty darn cute. Wouldn't mind having some like that myself." Then she realized that while they weren't iden tical, they seemed to be the same age. "Triplets?"

   Cat chuckled. "Our Zetithian females always had three, and so far, Terran women seem to do the same."

   "Not sure why that is, either," Jack commented. "Not enough time to study it, but Vladen—he's a doctor on Terra Minor—thinks that Zetithian semen causes Terran women to ovulate at a higher rate than normal—sort of like a fertility drug."

   "Just what I need," Drusilla muttered.

   "Oh, now, having triplets isn't as hard as you'd think," Jack said in a hearty tone. "I've done it twice."

   The fact that Drusilla was much smaller than Jack made her doubtful that she'd have it as easy, but Leo was quick to put in his observation. "You may be small, but your hips are—"

   "Leo!" Tisana said warningly. "Don't say it!"

   To everyone's surprise, Drusilla laughed. "Decep tively huge, don't you think? No one ever believes me when I tell them that, but it's true."

   Leo appeared relieved, but Tisana's expression was grim. "You shouldn't be looking at her hips, Leo."

   "She sat in front of me in the speeder," Leo said blithely. "I'm not
blind."