The Light-Field (39 page)

‘What if Khalid —'

‘Telmo and Kalayna are no use to Khalid dead.' Lucian flattened his objection. ‘And if we don't get some rest soon, we'll be beyond any form of rational thought.'

Yasper backed down and took a seat. ‘Do you think it is just a happy coincidence that he took Telmo and Kalayna? Or is he onto us?'

‘I feel it is the latter,' Taren replied. ‘I've felt it all day.' She cursed staying her hand when she could have snatched them both out of there this morning. ‘Stupid!' She hit herself in the head.

‘I urged you to refrain,' Lucian reminded her.

‘I held you up arguing,' Yasper said.

‘Just how many miracles do you expect to make happen in one day?' Lucian reminded her in exasperation. ‘Get some rest … everyone. We'll brainstorm some more in six hours.'

 

When the cold, dark shadow cleared, Kalayna and Telmo found they had been brought to an engineering lab, and the view out through the windows seemed to indicate that they were in deep space.

‘You are Khalid Mansur?' Telmo queried before Kalayna got her wits about her.

‘We've been over that already.' Khalid let them both go.

‘But, weren't you in prison for attempting to kidnap President Anselm?' Telmo swung around to address him. Kalayna backed up also, now that her memory had been jogged as to who their saviour was.

‘Happily, that is no longer the case.' He forced a grin and looked to Kalayna.

‘What do you want with us?' She didn't like the way the outlaw was looking at her — it was creeping her out.

‘Besides needing you to lend your considerable technological expertise to a few projects I'm planning,' he began, civilly, and then abruptly grabbed Telmo around the back of the neck, ‘I need you to tell me about your friends on AMIE.'

Kalayna gasped, shocked to the core to discover that one little wave to Kale and BA on camera had put them all at risk. Telmo was younger than she was and had the physique of a scholar who was not going to withstand a whole lot of torture. ‘What do you want to know?'

Khalid manifested a blade in his free hand and traced the sharp point down Telmo's smooth pink cheek. ‘Such a pretty boy,' he noted, ‘it would be such a shame to scar such a perfect complexion.' He pressed harder and his blade drew blood.

‘
Don't
… please.' Kalayna heart shattered at the thought of Telmo in pain. ‘Just ask me what you want to know. I'll tell you.'

Khalid stared her down to ask, ‘Do your friends on AMIE have the Powers like you do?'

He could not have opened with a more cutting question. Kalayna choked down her immediate response.

For her hesitation, Khalid slashed his blade across Telmo's cheek and through his perfect mouth.

Both Kalayna and Telmo howled in pain at once; Telmo bled and Kalayna wept. ‘Yes,' she cried out. ‘Yes, they have Powers.'

‘What Power?' Khalid hounded, as Kalayna crumbled to her knees, devastated by the position she was in. ‘What Power? Tell me, or I shall take out his eye!'

‘PK!' she yelled. ‘They had PK, okay?'

‘Are you sure? Both of them?' Khalid was completely stunned to hear this; he'd thought he'd wiped out every other living soul with his talent —
except Spyridon
.

Kalayna nodded in response.

‘Their names?' Khalid requested.

‘BA and Kale Tane —'

‘Their
real
names.' Khalid held his knife tip a hair's breadth from Telmo's eye.

Kalayna began weeping and shaking her head. ‘They never told me.
That's the truth
,' she was quick to add. As Khalid rolled his eyes in disbelief, Kalayna knew Telmo was going to lose his eye. ‘But I heard a friend call Kale “Starman” once.'

Khalid dropped Telmo and the knife vanished, as he headed straight for her. ‘Starman?'

Kalayna nodded vigorously, as Khalid grabbed hold of her.

‘I thought I'd killed that little shit!' Khalid was lost in his own thoughts. ‘And no doubt BA is his missing partner, Mythric Zeon — a.k.a. Spyridon Vidor.' He looked back to her so suddenly it gave her a start. ‘They both carry a charm?' he queried her, but she was puzzled.

‘Do they?'

‘Think?' He shook her. ‘Or I'll slash your toyboy beyond all recognition!'

‘Um.' She was shaking so hard, it was difficult to think.

‘Think!' He shook her again.

‘I'm trying, so
back off
!' she roared, sick of being bullied, and Khalid stepped back.

‘Fine,' he mocked. ‘You've got two minutes.' He manifested the blade again and moved to grab Telmo, who was cowering on the floor. The boy tried to scamper, but Khalid willed him back into his grasp.

‘Kalayna?' Telmo appealed for help as he stared at the tip of the blade poised before the pupil of his right eye.

She'd seen both men practically stripped naked at the beach most days; they wore no rings, no jewellery at all. The only thing was … ‘A black armband,' she announced, and Khalid let Telmo go.

‘A what?'

‘A black armband, on their upper left arm,' Kalayna explained. ‘I never asked what it was for, as they carried their fishing blades in them, but they never took them off.'

Khalid was frowning, but the explanation sounded too abstract to be a fabrication.

‘I swear to you … that's all I know.' Kalayna appealed for mercy, not yet aware that Khalid only showed mercy when it served his purpose.

‘I believe you.' He looked to Telmo, bleeding all over the floor, and made a grabbing motion with his hand. Telmo's wounds vanished and Kalayna was speechless with confusion, joy and resentment.

‘What … whoa.' Telmo held his face, feeling the relief immediately.

‘You've been most helpful.' Khalid headed for the door and turned back to face them once he'd reached it. ‘Continue to be and I shall keep you alive.' He left the room and locked the lab door behind him.

‘Telmo!' Kalayna stumbled over and fell down beside him, searching his face for any traces of Khalid's abuse. His face was as perfect as ever, and she kissed him.

‘You're shaking so hard.' Telmo hugged her tighter, hoping to calm her nerves.

‘I thought I'd lost you,
twice
!' It felt wonderful to be held by someone she cared about, and today had only amplified her awareness of how close she'd grown to her partner.

‘That's the first time you ever called me by my first name,' he noted, as she nestled her head in his neck.

Kalayna found her smile; it was true, she always called him Dacre, and he'd always referred to her as Miss Zuri. ‘Ditto,' she replied.

‘Well, I had a dagger pointed at my eyeball,' Telmo joked. ‘What was your excuse?'

‘I thought I was going to lose the man I love.' She pulled back to look him in the eye, her heart thumping a hole in her chest. ‘It was only when they nearly took you away that I realised … nobody else is going to fill the hole that losing you would leave in my l —'

This time when Telmo kissed her, she felt her attraction flare into full blown passion, as he tantalised her mouth with his soft, sweet kisses. He was nothing like all the men she'd been attracted to in the past; he wasn't heavy-handed, forward or dominating, and that was such a turn on!

‘I wouldn't get too cosy, if I were you.' Khalid's voice startled them both to attention, and they looked up to find he'd popped back into the lab. ‘Did I mention there are the spirits of over a thousand dead men on board this craft, all of whom love nothing better than to see a woman abused.'

Kalayna gasped at the news.

‘So I wouldn't do anything to get them too excited, if I were you.' He grinned and vanished.

The pair were left spooked and bewildered in the wake of the news. Kalayna began viewing their surrounds more warily.

‘As I scientist, I don't believe in ghosts.' Telmo lifted himself off the floor to look over the lab more closely, and plastered across the toolboxes within was the name the
Insurrecto
. ‘But then again.' He indicated the labelling. ‘I do believe this vessel crashed at Dead Man Downs over a thousand years ago.'

‘But it looks brand new?' Kalayna was baffled.

‘Obviously, Khalid is very powerful,' Telmo guessed. ‘It makes you wonder what he really needs us for?'

‘Dead Man Downs is cursed.' Kalayna swallowed hard. ‘Especially to women!'

‘Best keep the captain of this ghost ship happy then,' Telmo suggested, coming back down close to Kalayna to prevent a panic. ‘These walls almost certainly have ears.'

She nodded, understanding they could not speak openly about any plan to escape, and Telmo winked at her.

‘Well, then,' he spoke openly once more. ‘If we are to be working on projects for Khalid, let's check out what equipment we have to work with.'

Kalayna grinned, getting his drift. ‘Yes, let's.'

 

Amie, who had gone to bed earlier than most on board, was wandering through the marine module toward the lift to Module B, when she unexpectedly found herself confronted by Khalid.

‘How did you find me?' Amie backed up on sighting him. She'd awoken alone and Swithin was probably up having a swim in Module D, which meant she and Khalid were all alone in Module E.

‘I couldn't,
could I
?' Khalid said, sounding annoyed. ‘But you did send me that very detailed animation of the interior of this vessel.'

He found the ship!
She felt sick about it. ‘What a shame Lucian didn't change the design, you might have found yourself implanted in a metal pylon.'

‘You digress.' He manifested a high-powered laser hand gun. ‘Let's get back to
why
I couldn't find you?' He grabbed for her upper right arm, and when she leant away to avoid contact, he grabbed hold of her hair and yanked her close. ‘Show me or I'll blow your fucking brains out!' He shoved the weapon in her mouth.

He would too; she knew he would. There was no stopping the tears of remorse flowing down her cheeks. She was breaking the major rule
of carrying a Juju stone — never let anyone see it. She reached inside her crew jacket and pulled a piece of the rainbow light imbued rock out into view. To her surprise Khalid pushed her away, and made no attempt to take it from her.

‘Where did it come from?' he demanded, covering his mouth, nauseated by the open presence of the light-filled item.

‘Phemoria, I believe.' Taren had never told her any differently.

‘Rubbish.' He took aim at her again. Her heart leapt into her throat as Swithin crept up silently behind Khalil with a large metal tool, raised and ready to strike. As he brought the weapon down, however, Khalid vanished — like he had eyes in the back of his head.

Swithin swung around and backed up to protect Amie, in case Khalid came back. ‘Are you all right?'

‘Absolutely, no.' She pushed past Swithin in a hurry. ‘I need to speak with the boss, Khalid can find the ship!' She ran to the lift up to mid-deck.

‘Well, obviously!' Swithin pursued his wife.

They took the lift to B Module, and turned into the corridor that led into the crew accommodation and offices in A Module to find Taren charging toward them.

 

‘Khalid,' Taren and Amie said at once, stunned. They both shut up to hear what the other had to say.

‘I felt his presence —' Taren began.

‘He can find the ship!' Amie cut in, nearly hysterical with shock. ‘He demanded to see my Juju … I'm so sorry —'

‘Don't worry.' Taren hugged her sister-in-law, who'd become a very close and trusted friend over the years. ‘The knowledge won't serve him.'

‘But won't he just be able to will himself to our source?' Amie was scared this might be the case. ‘He knows it came from Phemoria!'

Taren gave a shy smile; her little white lie all those years ago had paid off. She'd never told Amie the truth about the Juju — not
because she didn't trust her, but because she knew Amie was on Khalid's radar. ‘Not to worry,' Taren replied. ‘Even if he could find their source, which he can't, it would make him sick beyond functioning. Still, it was stupid of me not to think to protect the ship, having had so many see that interior animation. But I can fix that right now,' she said determinedly, letting Amie go and heading past them into B Module.

‘Where are you going?' Swithin asked.

‘To place a Juju stone at the heart of AMIE.' The way she was headed was the fastest route to the greenhouse in Module C. This granted entry to the central utilities chamber where the power cells, fresh water and fuel were stored. ‘Then I'm going to chase down Khalid and get our people back.'

‘How?' Swithin asked as he followed Taren.

‘Dead Man Downs seems a good place to start.' Taren gritted her teeth, unsure if it was Khalid or herself she was maddest at. They had two children on board this craft; what if Khalid had gotten to one of them?

‘Well, I want in on this mission.' Swithin pulled her up. ‘That bastard does not get to put a gun in my wife's mouth and get away with it.'

‘Considering Khalid's complete lack of regard for life, you may come in handy,' Taren conceded. ‘You're in.'

 

Taren stood back admiring the large chunk of Juju. She'd placed it upon a round plinth off to the side of the carpeted walkway through the utilities area and it looked like a stunning work of art. The movement of the celestial rainbow over the surface of the rock was mesmerising, like watching a beautiful water feature — only with more colour and no liquid.

‘That ought to keep the demons at bay,' commented Swithin.

‘I know I feel safer,' Amie concurred.

‘There you are.' Yasper entered, looking frustrated. ‘I've been looking everywhere for — Whoa!' He saw the huge Juju.