Huntsman (3 page)

Sno sat quietly for a moment. “How is the shop going?”

“Great. I don’t have to do a darned thing. I hired good people and they are running it like clockwork. The money just keeps pouring in.”

It was true; her little café was doing business hand over fist. It appealed to everyone who enjoyed a good meal, no matter their walk of life. They opened at dawn and continued on until nearly midnight. All Harka had to do was count the receipts and sign the chits for payment.

Things were already in the works to open another café on the other side of town.

“Where did you learn all that?”

Harka shook her head. “I have no idea. It must have been in the monitor state. There must have been something in my patient’s head.”

Sno looked at her with curiosity. “You are remembering?”

“No. But, I think the blurred memories become instinct and you can use them or not. I chose to and they seem to be working.”

“Huh. All I got from my experience was an instinct for tomorrow’s weather.” Sno snickered.

Harka laughed and parked near the dress shop. “Well, as long as it is good weather for the event, I will be content.”

“What do you do at work when the weather turns?”

“We make soup. Come on. Let’s get pretty.” Harka got out of her vehicle and Sno exited as well.

It was time to see if they could find anything to suit them.

During their rummaging through the racks, a familiar face appeared. Harka grinned and they had a mini reunion with Ohra who had also been called to the event.

As a group, they were able to find gowns that suited them all. Sno was in midnight blue and sparkling crystals, Harka was in burgundy and gold and Ohra had chosen a pale blue flowing gown that made her look tiny and vulnerable.

With their trophies in hand, they left the dress shop and Ohra went off on her own way while Harka and Sno headed for the salon. It was time to see if something could be done about their hair.

Making their way up the hill on the night of the party, the interior of the vehicle was silent. Sno was wearing tiny crystals in her hair, which glowed like stars.

The blue streaks that Harka had the hairstylist put into her hair felt right and made her smile. Something about it satisfied another of those instincts in her, so she embraced it.

They showed their invitations to the guards, and someone was dispatched to park her tiny vehicle.

At Sno’s urging, they had arrived early, and it paid off. As they walked into the building, a thick pathway of larger escort cars were pulling up and blocking the entryway.

After a security check, they headed to the woman with the clipboard, and at that point, they were divided and seated at separate tables with meters of strangers between them.

Harka fidgeted and stared at her name card in front of her plate.

Her table began to fill and she smiled and introduced herself to each new arrival as they sat.

Immediately on her right, a man sat, and he turned to introduce himself, pausing before he spoke. She met his gaze, and he was staring at the blue streaks in her hair.

“Is something wrong?”

He shook his head. “No, you have just reminded me of someone that I had almost forgotten.”

Since he was stunned, she took the lead. “My name is Harka Tweel, Monitor of Horalthia.”

He smiled slowly. “It is a lovely name. I am Archivist Derin Conic of Edinar.”

She extended her hand and he took it, turning her palm over as if he would see something there. He stroked her hand gently, and while she was a little embarrassed, she also felt a nearly audible click in her soul.

They sat in silence with her hand in his while the room filled around them. She finally pulled her hand from his when she caught a glimpse of Ohra across the room. Harka waved at her and she waved back.

Jolted back to reality, Harka sat with her hands in her lap and listened to the conversations around her.

“You are surprisingly quiet, Ms. Tweel.”

“Archivist, call me Harka, please. I am on my best behaviour.” She smiled shyly at her dinner companion.

“Well, Harka, you are being too quiet. What have you been up to since you were a monitor?”

It was a safe enough topic, so she told him about her business plan and the success of her small café.

By the time she was finished with her details, the monitors were being asked to stand up for a round of applause.

When she was back in her chair, the woken Edinar were asked to rise.

Archivist Conic rose to his feet and nodded to those around. When he sat back down, he smiled at her. “What do you dream for yourself?”

She shrugged. “I already have my dreams. What do you dream of?”

He blinked his deep brown eyes and smiled. “I dream of unending reading material, a cabin in the woods and a woman distracting the hell out of me.”

“That is a fairly general dream.”

“Ah, but this woman is special. She haunts me and makes me ache and laugh in turn.”

“Aching sounds painful.”

“I can manage it. The promise of pleasure later makes many things bearable.”

To Harka’s surprise, dinner and dessert had come and gone without her noting it. She had eaten mechanically because she felt full and could taste the dessert.

She sipped her wine and swallowed hard. “Pleasure?”

“Indeed. Horalthians and Edinar are compatible.”

“Oh, so your woman is a Horalthian.”

“She is.” He smiled and propped his head on his fist, staring at her.

She sought to change the topic. “How was your physiotherapy after your long sleep?”

“It was short. One of our healers had been woken just before me. He was able to assist with the building of muscle and coordination.”

Harka looked him over. “I think he may have overdone it on the muscle building.”

Archivist Conic laughed and Harka blushed.

“I am sorry, Archivist Conic, my mouth runs away with me sometimes.”

“Call me Derin. I find your ability to share your thoughts very admirable.”

She didn’t know where to look, so she watched the people heading to the dance floor.

“Harka, would you dance with me?”

She blinked rapidly while she composed an answer. “I am not very good.”

“I can take a few knocks. Come with me.”

He stood and extended his hand to her. She placed her skin along his and, once again, felt the electric shock that ran up her arm, into her brain, to her heart and then moved lower.

She eased to her feet and walked with him to the dance floor. With a smooth motion, he turned her into his arms and they moved with the rest of the crowd on the floor.

Harka lost track of time. She danced, paused, had a few sips of wine and returned to the dance floor with Derin as an enthusiastic and graceful partner.

By the end of the night, her feet ached, her throat was sore from talking about anything that entered her mind and she was ready to head home.

“Well, Derin, I have had a wonderful time, but I think it is time for me to be on my way. Have you seen Sno around? I gave her a lift and told her I would take her home.”

“I believe that her dance partner is seeing to her return home. They left an hour ago.”

Harka looked around at the sparsely populated hall and said, “Oh. Well, I had better get myself home then.”

“Allow me to see you home. You have had some wine and are tired. You should not be driving.”

She couldn’t fault his logic, but… “I am going to have to bring my vehicle home tomorrow. This just makes an extra trip for me.”

“I will have them deliver it to your home. Shall I take you home?”

There was no reason not to go with him, so she nodded. “Please. I have to do payroll sometime tomorrow, so a good night’s sleep and a clear head would be helpful.”

They left the observatory and he gave the officer in charge of the vehicles her address. It would be delivered by dawn.

He gave the same address to his driver and tucked her into one of the state vehicles.

She sat next to him on the seat and settled in for a one-hour drive. “I am sorry if this takes you out of your way. I got my new accommodations near my café. For convenience.”

“It is no problem. I have been working with the Horalthian archives and organizing some of their data-retrieval devices. I have a few days off coming to me.”

She smiled, and to her surprise, he put his arm around her and pulled her in to rest against him. She inhaled his scent and smiled at the dazzling familiarity. Her body knew his, and she had no idea why.

Tentatively, she placed her hand on his chest, and his heartbeat thudded under her palm. It was the shortest one-hour ride of her life.

When he walked her to the door and saw her inside, she was uncharacteristically quiet. He smiled when he saw her living room. “Books.”

She blushed. “I have always had a thing for books, but lately, I have been having a dream about a room filled from floor to rafters on every wall. I plan to make that a reality.”

He turned her to him and kissed her slowly. She went up on her toes, her sore feet forgotten for the moment, and returned it with interest.

He pulled her tight against him and their kiss increased in intensity. She wanted him, wanted to feel him against her indefinitely.

Derin slowed their connection and shuddered as he backed away. “I will wish you good evening then. It has been illuminating, Harka.”

She followed him to the door and called out, “Six months in your mind and this is all I get?”

He paused and slowly turned. “You know?”

“There was something in the way you laughed when I babbled, and when you kissed me, I was sure. You were the patient I was with.”

He nodded. “I was. What do you remember?”

“It isn’t memory precisely, it is sensations, the feeling of repeating the first moments, that sort of thing.”

Derin smiled, “May I call upon you tomorrow?”

“I will be at the café most of the day doing paperwork, but sure, you can come visit me there.”

“I will see you tomorrow then, or should I say, later today.” He winked and walked off with a swing in his stride.

She watched him go until the doorway dug into her shoulder. With a sigh of regret, she closed the door and locked it. “Until tomorrow then.”

Her small café was bustling, but she hogged her spot in the corner booth, working on the payroll and watching for a visitor. Mid-morning, her vigilance was rewarded.

Derin, two other Edinar and Sno came in. Harka hid in the shadows while they were shown to a seat.

She quickly verified all the hours and signed off on the paperwork before tidying it in a file.

The server came by and said, “The cute one is asking for you.”

Harka nodded and slipped to the back to put the paperwork in the manager’s office. When she returned, she had made sure that her hair was neat and her clothing straight. She stepped out and into the bustling room, waving to a few regulars.

Derin’s features lit up when he saw her. “Harka, I am glad we were able to find you here.”

Sno waved, but she was snuggled up against the largest Edinar that Harka had yet seen.

“I am glad you were able to make it. Have you had a chance to make a decision?”

Derin gestured for her to take the seat next to him. “Not yet. I was hoping for your input.”

Harka laughed and directed him to foods that he would find close to familiar. They spent an hour with the others, sampling foods and pointing out favourites to others.

Sno’s companion said, “We need a shop like this closer to the base.”

Harka laughed. “I am working on it. The problem is location and permits. It is already at capacity for food vendors.”

He grimaced. “I will look into it. This is the best meal I have had since I woke.”

Sno nodded. “It really is. He’s fussy.”

Harka watched the closeness between the two and suspected that they had had a relationship before last night’s events. Sno had never said anything about him, but she had been a medic before she was a monitor.

The group dispersed but Derin remained. “I have taken a day off and would love to show you my home.”

Harka bit the inside of her lip. “Is that a good idea?”

Derin cocked his head. “Well, it will put you squarely into my clutches, so I think it is a great idea.”

She giggled and nodded. “With that as an inducement, I will be right with you. I just have to get my bag.”

Harka ducked to the back office and grabbed her bag.

The manager gripped her arm. “You are going with an Edinar?”

Harka smiled. “I am.”

“Thank goodness. I was wondering what it would take for you to go out on a date, now I see it was a man who was recently on the brink of death. Kinky.”

Harka smacked her friend on the arm and headed back into the café where Derin was taking care of the bill. She was pleased to see that he was a good tipper, and when they stepped outside, the dark car was waiting again.

She was bundled inside, and she smoothed the skirt over her thighs. “So, where is your home?”

He grinned as he closed the door behind him. “I am amused that you are asking now. It is on the other side of the compound, facing the forests.”

“That sounds like the location of the great archive of Horalthia.”

“It is. I have been put in charge.”

“Oh. And you live there?”

“There have been some concessions. I have also been granted property in the deep woods for my own recreation. There is a small cabin being built for me.”

She blinked. “You like to hunt.”

“I do. I also like the quiet of the woods.”

They crossed the city and went through familiar checkpoints. Harka’s status as a former monitor allowed her access to the secure areas with Derin. Her time as monitor was finally doing some good.

When they entered the underground drive, she moved closer to Derin. She had never been a fan of being underground. She didn’t want to curl up to him for protection, she just wanted to use his body heat to let her know where he was.

Once the car came to a halt, Derin walked around to open her door. She stepped out carefully, her narrow ankle-length skirt did not allow for a lot of free movement.