The woman smiled and blue overtook the other colors in her gaze. “Actually, we both have our father’s eyes.”
“You’re General Noirte’s sister?” Celinna asked.
Celinna had never met her before? How odd.
“This is Saroji,” Autumn explained as the slender young woman glided across the floor. “She’s Ra’jen’s half sister, and she’s here to help you heal.”
Excitement sped Cub’s heart, yet anxiety tightened her belly. She’d never realized hope could be so painful. She still wasn’t convinced these women wouldn’t demand some form of payment, but this was as close to security as she’d come in a very long time.
Cub spent the better part of the next two weeks with Saroji learning how to cope with her loss and the rapid-fire changes her life was undergoing. Unlike her brother,
who had blazed into Cub’s mind, Saroji used a touch so gentle, so skilled, all Cub felt was the reaction of her emotions.
Cub was able to self-correct her speech pattern without needing a language infusion. She’d been a college senior when the Gathosians arrived and accessing those memories allowed her to shed her “refinery persona”.
“We can’t keep calling you Cub,” Autumn decided one night at dinner.
She had to admit that she felt like an entirely different person from the filthy ragamuffin Ulrick had rescued that day. “I don’t want to go back to my birth name. I’m not that person either.”
“Then choose another name,” Autumn suggested. “You’re about to launch the next stage of your life. It might be best if you separate it completely in your mind.”
“I want to be called Winter,” she said emphatically.
Autumn smiled, wiping her mouth with a lace-edged napkin. “Is there a reason for your choice?”
“Grizzly’s last name was Winters. I’m leaving Cub behind, but I’d like to take a small piece of my friend with me.”
Autumn nodded, her blue eyes warm and encouraging. “An excellent choice.”
Chapter Three
The conversation Winter had been dreading came the following Wednesday night. Saroji had returned to the army base two days before, so Winter knew her emotional recovery had been deemed sufficient, if not complete. Autumn had mentioned the “new stage” of Winter’s life several times, but they had yet to define what the stage would entail.
Winter smoothed down the narrow skirt of her dress as she took a seat in front of Autumn’s desk. Each time she looked in a mirror, she still felt as if someone else was staring back at her. Her features had matured in the four years she’d spent at the refinery. As had her body. The curves she’d fought so hard to conceal were now a valuable asset.
Autumn folded her hands on the desktop, her gaze assessing. “How are you feeling? Have your sessions with Saroji been effective?”
“Very much so.” Winter kept her knees pressed together and placed her hands on the armrests, hoping her anxiety didn’t show.
A gentle smile curved Autumn’s lips, and her gaze warmed. “Your transformation has been astounding.”
“Thank you.” Despite her determination to appear calm and composed, Winter’s voice sounded tight and tremulous.
“Relax. You look as if you’re waiting for a sentence at the end of a grueling trial.”
The description wasn’t far off. Winter rested back in the chair and crossed her legs. “I don’t want to be a pleasure ambassador, yet returning to the workforce holds even less appeal. Are there any other options?”
“For you there might be.” Autumn pushed back her chair and came around to the front of the desk, sitting beside Winter. “You’re in a unique position, as was I.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I chose to become an ambassador over joining the workforce. I figured my body was no longer my own regardless of where I went. The embassies enforce rules and codes of conduct on the men who would have access to me. I figured it would be safer.”
“But?” There was obviously more to the story.
“But when my training was complete and I was faced with the reality of selling myself, I couldn’t do it. I became a whipping girl instead.”
Winter felt her mouth gape. Had she meant it in the literal sense? “You were punished in place of one of the ambassadors?”
“It was an act meant to tease and titillate the customers, but my partner altered the whip and beat me senseless. That’s when I met Ra’jen. He healed me, and our attraction was instantaneous and powerful.”
Winter took a deep breath. It didn’t take a detective to see where this was leading. “You’re hoping a similar attraction will develop between Mr. Brant and me?”
“Are you attracted to him?” Though Autumn’s expression remained serene, her blue gaze penetrated.
“I hardly remember him.” Winter glanced away, unable to maintain a straight face as the lie crossed her lips. His face haunted her dreams, and the memory of his kindness meant more than she cared to admit. If Ulrick hadn’t been there that day, she would be the subjugated chattel of one of the pod captains right now.
“Well, he remembers you. He calls every day for an update, and he’s anxious to interview you. I suspect that the interview is merely an excuse so he can see you again.”
“So I become Mr. Brant’s mistress. I entertain him until he tires of me, then what?” Resentment welled within her, making her reckless and bold. “I don’t want to become a madam. I think what you’re doing is just as degrading as what your girls are subjected to.”
Surprisingly, Autumn didn’t take offense. “Would you object to people believing you were an ambassador if you didn’t actually fuck your customers?”
Winter uncrossed her legs and scooted to the edge of the chair. Every scenario she’d imagined led to her losing control over her body. “I’m listening.”
Autumn returned to her desk and opened one of the drawers. She took out a small case and opened it, setting it on the desk in front of Winter. “This is a brainwave modulator. I call it a succubus. It allows a person to create waking dreams—images and sensations so intense they’re indistinguishable from reality.”
“I thought you didn’t trust Gathosian technology.” This sounded far more invasive than the language infuser.
“I don’t. This is Pryett technology.”
“I’ve never heard of the Pryett.” Winter pulled the case toward her and looked at the device. It had two parts, both slim and rectangular, one about the size of a postage stamp, the other slightly larger.
“Ra’jen and Saroji are Pryett. When their world was decimated by the Gathosians, they were able to rescue a few of their extraordinary gadgets.” Lifting the smaller piece out of the contoured case, Autumn handed it to Winter. “The technology is patterned after their ability. It allows us to do what they do naturally—to some extent. These are extremely rare and valuable.”
“If I break it I buy it?”
“If you break it, it can never be replaced. The engineers who designed it are all long dead.”
The tiny device suddenly felt heavy. “How will creating waking dreams enable me to be a pleasure ambassador without actually having sex with my clients?”
Autumn retrieved the larger piece of the device and handed it to Winter as well. “Master and slave. The larger one takes control of the smaller one, guiding the images and controlling the outcome.”
“Like Saroji did during our sessions,” Winter murmured, beginning to understand. “So I’d put the smaller one on the client and use the larger one to guide him through all the things we did together.”
“Exactly. He’ll remember everything as if it really happened.”
“How do we prevent him from remembering that I used this device on him? For that matter, how do I get the device on him in the first place?”
“I have a mist that creates a momentary stupor. The device is self-adhering, so a moment is all you’ll need. As for remembering the procedure, the device is programmed to create a few moments of delta waves as it initializes and again as it disengages. All your target will remember is the dream.”
“What do delta waves do?”
“The brain produces delta waves when a person is deeply asleep, and theta waves while they dream. There are beta and alpha waves as well, but our primary concern is theta.”
“This is safe?” Winter turned the pieces over, studying them from every angle. They were slightly flexible and basically smooth. There were no prongs or visible circuitry. “Have you used this thing?”
“I’ve created solo images, and Celinna and I have been taking turns ‘commanding’ each other. It’s really extraordinary.”
Agitation threaded through Winter’s excitement. She wanted to believe this was a viable option, but there was a gaping hole in the explanation. She returned the succubus to its case and looked at Autumn. “What is gained by all this? You have a waiting list of women who are willing to fuck these men for real. Why bother with someone like me?”
Autumn leaned her hip against the desk and smiled. “Ulrick hasn’t called my office asking about anyone else.”
“You expect me to use that thing on Ulrick Brant?”
“Only if you don’t want to have sex with him, which I think you do.”
Winter shot to her feet and moved away from Autumn. There had to be more to this than she was saying. It didn’t make sense that a madam would accommodate her reluctance. “What do you really want from me?”
“It’s not what I want from you. It’s what I want from him.”
“I’ll bite. What do you want?” She crossed her arms over her chest and studied Autumn’s face, looking for any hint of deceit or insincerity.
“Information.” The word rang with import and implications. “Brant is entrusted with locations and Gathosian activities that are crucial to our cause.”
“Our cause? What cause is that, and who are you including in ‘our’?”
Autumn moved back behind her desk and sat. “One step at a time. If you’re interested in working with me, Ulrick will be your first assignment.”
None of this seemed quite real. It was all happening so quickly, and nothing good ever came without a cost. “Is there something specific you need him to tell me?”
“There are all sorts of things he would be able to tell us, but our top priority is the location of Evard Keenan.”
“Who is Evard Keenan?”
“He’s a chemist who specializes in the compound. Ra’jen believes our best hope of escaping this infernal addiction is to find this man and gain his cooperation.”
“And Mr. Brant knows where to find him?”
“That’s our hope.”
Winter nodded, still struggling to believe this was actually happening. “If I agree, what’s the next step?”
“I’ll let Ulrick know you’re ready to be interviewed, and we’ll see how it goes. In the meantime, I’d like you to work with Celinna. We need to accelerate your training, make you more comfortable with your sexuality. These men must believe you’re a pleasure ambassador, even if we know your true purpose.” She closed the case and held it out.
With trembling hands Winter took the succubus from Autumn. “How long do I have to decide?”
“What are your other options?”
The question wasn’t meant to be cruel, but it cut into Winter like a blade. No matter where she turned the ending was the same—she became the sexual plaything of some random man. This was her only hope of regaining some measure of control.
“I’ll do it.” Her heart lurched at the thought. She’d just agreed to be a spy, an agent of some nameless force, using her sexuality as a weapon. At least she would be wielding the weapon, and her efforts would harm the bastards who’d brought her to this point.
“Wonderful. I’ll let Ulrick know you’re available.”
* * * * *
Not wanting to seem too anxious, Ulrick scheduled his meeting with Winter for the following afternoon. He had expected Autumn to change Cub’s name, but Winter? Was that really any better than Cub?
He shook away the thought and watched for her arrival on his security screen. A nondescript skimmer floated to a stop in front of his house. The passenger door swung open and long legs, sporting high heels and clad in black silk stockings, gracefully extended from inside the small hovercraft. Had one of the ambassadors accompanied Cub—no, Winter. Her name was Winter now.
The woman placed her feet on the pavement and stood, pausing to look around. Sunlight gleamed off her sleek dark hair, which barely brushed her shoulders. A black-and-white dress skimmed her curves, hinting at her figure rather than displaying it. He caught a glimpse of her profile as she headed for the front door, but the wide view camera was at the wrong angle to show him her face.
Quickly accessing the camera near the door, Ulrick studied her features. Thick-lashed dark eyes were all that remained of the traumatized child he’d dragged from the
refinery. She was lovely, elegant, yet sensual. A touch of color accentuated her high cheekbones and sculpted mouth. Her lips appeared soft, slightly pouty.
He’d suspected she would clean up well, but this was amazing.
She pressed the buzzer and looked around for the camera. “Hello? Mr. Brant is expecting me.” Her voice seemed softer now, her speech pattern corrected. How had Autumn accomplished all this in less than a month?
He deactivated the lock and pulled the door open. “Right on time. Welcome.” He swept his arm toward the interior of his home. Curiosity burrowed deeper, stirring intrigue and the elemental awareness of a man for a beautiful woman.
Winter stepped through the doorway, offering him a tentative smile. The foyer opened onto a large living room. Her gaze took it all in without obvious reaction.
“You look amazing.” He closed and locked the door then led her farther into the room. “I had no idea you were so beautiful.”
“Thank you.” She seemed uncomfortable with the praise. “I hadn’t seen myself in almost four years. It’s all rather disconcerting.”
She strolled toward the windows on the far side of the spacious room, and the subtle roll of her hips drew his gaze to the distinct curve of her ass. Was she naked beneath the dress? Most ambassadors didn’t bother with undergarments. They wanted their customers to have access to… She wasn’t an ambassador! He had to stop thinking of her in that light. She was here to answer his questions, not ride his cock.