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  A beeper went off somewhere and Hal said, “Okay, you can sit up now but take it slowly.”

  Freya moved slowly. Tucking her legs up first and then curling back to sit on her feet. She was dizzy for a moment. It wasn’t nearly as bad as the first time when she was a young girl. Her back had still been recovering from the initial injury.

  Freya glanced at her atramento. “How powerful are these?”

  Hal’s voice was amused. “Very and not at the same time. It is all dependent on your own EM fields. The more in tune you are, the more you can direct your EM fields to the right place. The atramento just store the energy and work as an interface with the rest of the body. I would explain more but I’m told I only really speak gobblygook.”

  Freya raised her eyebrows in surprise at the answer. “Have I ever told you before that you are a genius?”

  Hal grinned. “Yes, but you can always tell me again. Besides, Misha tells me I shouldn’t get a big head. So he never tells me I’m a genius.”

  Freya rolled her eyes at Hal. Misha adored Hal and she wouldn’t be surprised that he covered her in compliments when she wanted them.

  Freya had missed the young girl who had rescued her from the despair her accident had brought her. And now she had given her even more hope.

  Freya asked, “Do you think you will have an atramento that could make me not need the Bioware?”

  Hal hesitated. “Oh, didn’t you know? You already have the atramento. The healing atramento has already had a significant effect on your spine. I think that is why the chip was fried. The chip was already under pressure as the body has been fixing itself. I’ll eventually be able to take all the Bioware out of you completely but it is probably going to take a year or two.”

  Sudden tears came to Freya’s eyes. “Are you serious?”

  Freya would be completely healed.

  Hal frowned. “Yeah. I don’t do much bioware anymore except for the atramento as they work so much better. When you are completely healed, I’ll be able to put the sight atramento in. That way you can see the EM fields of others as well. It will help you with your work, I reckon and maybe you can see other things.

  “Natasha is the other one with the sight atramento but it reacted in a very different way to the one I eventually put on myself. I think it has other factors but I’m babbling.

  “But yeah, you will be off the Bioware, eventually. I was actually glad to put it on you. I had some idea how it would work on injured people but I had no idea how the atramento would react to already having Bioware. Bioware is pervasive and effects the EM field but as long as it is put in right it doesn’t interfere with the healing atramento.

  “Now let’s get back to exciting stuff and tell me have you slept with Rawiri yet?”

  Freya could help but laugh. “Hal!”

  ___

  Freya danced a little jig as she left the clinic. Hal had said she should put the chip through its paces and a jig seemed appropriate. She had to admit she was just happy to have her legs back.

  She never took them for granted but that made her miss them even more when she couldn’t use her legs or feel anything.

  She spotted Rawiri chatting with Misha, in the courtyard made by the buildings. She didn’t think, she just acted. She walked up to Rawiri and caught his shirt and pulled him along.

  Rawiri laughed and excused himself from Misha. “I think she wants me.”

  Misha returned the laugh and waved him off. Rawiri said, “I take it you are happy to have your legs back.”

  She flashed him a grin and pushed him into the bedroom. She worried for a moment he might be offended by her aggressive nature.

  Instead, he pulled her along and kissed her. She let out a breath of relief. She kissed him back. His hands moved over her. His fingertips skimmed over the skin at her back. She was only wearing a singlet as it had been easier for Hal to work when she had fewer clothes on. Now it gave Rawiri easier access to her skin and it made her shiver with anticipation.

  She wondered if he knew this was different. He moved his lips and kissed her jaw. When he spoke, his voice was rough and deep, “You sure about this, Freya?”

  Her heart melted. He knew. She caught his face and made him look at her. “I’m more sure of this than anything else I have ever done in my life even going into medicine. You are a fantastic man. Flawed but still bloody fantastic.”

  His eyes darkened. “For you I think I really can be fantastic.”

  She grinned at him and kissed him. Feverishly she started on his clothes and him on hers. They tumbled into the bed. She stopped him briefly with a hand on his chest.

  She chewed on her lip. “I should warn you I’m not very experienced. Most guys find me weird. I don’t—I’ve never gotten much further than kissing, ever.”

  He stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. His eyes searched her own and were warm with feeling. His voice was rough as he spoke. “Lucky me. It means I get you all to myself. I wish everyone could wait for that someone special. I wish I could have waited.”

  There was a dark look in his eyes that was not of emotion close to desire. She knew he was thinking of his first experience as a child.

  She lightly kissed his lips in a chaste little nip. Her heart ached for what had happened to him. She wished he could see how wonderful he really was because he not only survived, he thrived.

  “Rawiri, don’t worry about that. Never with me. Your past will just make this more special.”

  His eyes searched hers and he frowned. He decided and whispered, “You’re right.”

  He kissed her but this time it was far from chaste. She hummed in the back of her throat with pleasure.

  They moved slowly enjoying the little touches and kisses. She wasn’t sure how he went so slow but she was grateful for it. She could get comfortable with each act as they moved forward. Tears came to her eyes as she held onto Rawiri.

  He asked, his voice heavy with concern, “Are you alright? I didn’t go too fast.”

  She shook her head quickly. Tears slipped out of the corners of her eyes and she swallowed a lump of emotion in her throat. “I’m just amazed. I dreamed of this. I never thought it would be this special and that is thanks to you.”

  Rawiri kissed the corner of her eyes. His lips taking up her tears.

  His voice was soft like silk on her skin, “Sweetheart. It is you that have made this special.”

  She smiled at him and pulled him down for a kiss.

  ___

  The guard handed them back the metal canister after it had gone through security. Freya struggled to hold her nerves. She didn’t like this place. It felt cold and clinical.

  She hadn’t realised how much she appreciated the clutter of her workspace at her lab. It easily could have been as clinical as this barren place they called a prison.

  Agent Harold led the way to Isabella’s cell. Apparently, Isabella wasn’t even allowed out of her cell as it was too dangerous for her. It would be her death if she was discovered by their common enemy.

  Rawiri placed a hand on the small of her back and she glanced over her shoulder at him. She was glad to have him close. The comfort seeping into her and giving her courage. She didn’t think she could face that woman alone. She had been Portland’s right-hand man or woman if you wanted to be pedantic. She had even been in deeper than her brother who had been the dupe for the two of them.

  Isabella had once been a respected member of the University. She had published little but her father had been the one who had made the Weather Shield possible as he had provided the needed energy in the critical early days. She would always have cachet even if she wasn’t published.

  She had been well known for her vicious verbal barbs and she had never been one to deal idly with.

  Agent Harold opened the door and motioned for them to enter.

  Isabella had changed little since the last time Freya saw her up at the University. She lay on her bed posed to attract men. She must have heard them coming.
>
  When Isabella saw it was more than just Agent Harold, she dropped the pose and got to her feet. She ignored her and Freya wasn’t surprised. Even when they had been colleagues at the University Isabella had been above her.

  She had come from the Founders line. Her father had helped start Whatinga and she never let anyone forget it. Even if she was only a mediocre and unimaginative scholar.

  Instead Isabella stalked Rawiri. “Yummy. Can I keep him?”

  She ran her hand down his chest but Rawiri caught her hand and flicked it off.

  He growled, “I’m taken.”

  That simple phrase warmed Freya. She flashed Rawiri a smile. She wasn’t as nervous as she was before. She had dealt with Isabella before and it seemed her being a drug dealing criminal hadn’t changed anything.

  Agent Harold drew her attention. “We have come for your expertise.”

  She sighed and turned to flop back on the bed. “It seems I’m more in demand now than ever. Alright, give it to me. What do you want to know this time?”

  Freya lifted the metal canister a bit. “Do you know what this is?”

  Her tone bored as she answered, “Not a clue, I have never seen it in my life.”

  Freya wasn’t surprised by that but she could have hoped. She opened it and showed one of the preserved slides.

  Her voice determined, Freya asked, “Do you recognise this?”

  Isabella glanced at it and then ignored the slides. She looked her up and down and leaned back. Stretching like a lazy cat. This was obviously for the benefit of the men.

  She drawled out, “My, you really look like your father.” She motioned towards Freya was a wave of a lazy hand.

  Freya hesitated. She wasn’t sure where she was going with this. Isabella was a master at manipulation and mostly Freya had avoided her.

  Fear gripped her. Was Isabella hinting that her family was in danger? She cleared her throat a little. “You know my father?”

  Isabella looked at her nails in a classic and cliché attempt to look like a bored socialite. “Oh Sweetie, we all know your father. He is the one behind all this.”

  Freya shook her head. “I think you are mistaken. My father is an accountant.”

  Isabella laughed but there was no joy in the sound. “Oh, you really are a naïve, little mouse. You know your mother must have been easy prey for such a strong man like him. Powerful. Mmm. I wondered if she liked it.”

  She ran her hands over her stomach and grinned at the men before she licked her lips seductively.

  When she didn’t get a reaction from any of them. She leaned her head on her arm. “Portland was rumoured to be a Lothario when it came to loving. Many girls, and my, they lapped him up. He was even worse than my parents and they were in competition to see how many people they could lay. If you want to know what is in that canister you will have to ask Portland yourself as I have no idea.”

  Freya had other questions for Isabella but the bright light in her eyes told her she had only told this story to distract her.

  Freya gritted her teeth and then let out her anger with a breath before she continued. “You are a scientist, Isabella. Like me you are a scholar. Give me your best guess of what this all is.”

  Isabella shrugged. “DNA samples. But you knew that already. I suppose you are only bringing it to me because it has something to do with my little side project. We did quite a bit of testing in the early days. They look like some the slides we used to keep of the experiments.”

  Agent Harold said in his deep slumberous voice, “You could have told that to us at the beginning, Isabella.”

  He spun on his heels and Isabella jumped to her knees and called out, “Wait. Wait, I have other things I can tell you. Please don’t, don’t leave without—”

  She was almost sobbing by that stage. Agent Harold came back into the cell. “You should know better than to play games, Isabella.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Please, you bring in new people and you don’t expect me to play with them. Do you know how bored I am? I can tell you that those DNA samples shouldn’t exist. We got rid of everything. Dumb to keep that kind of evidence just lying around. That was before we understood it was lethal. If I had known—please whatever those are and if they are to do with, then they are your smoking gun. I was tested but Portland, he was the control. His blood might be in there.”

  There was a long pause then Harold flicked her a small bag. “Better, Isabella. Much better.”

  He left and they followed. They waited until they were sure they were out of Isabella’s hearing range when they spoke.

  Freya broke the silence first. “Do you think she was telling the truth?”

  Freya was actually asking about the chance of her father being Portland. But she realised after she had said it could be for both.

  Agent Harold opened the gate to let them out of the cell block. “She wasn’t lying. She knows that if she lies, then I won’t come back and she can’t get the drug.”

  Freya asked, “But we have a drug for those that are incarcerated or accidently poisoned.”

  Rawiri flashed a smile. “I like that you think of it as a poison.”

  She frowned at his amused tone. “What else would you call it? But why can’t she have the substitute?”

  Agent Harold shrugged. “She likes the buzz.”

  It was then she realised he was giving Isabella some of the original drug. She had qualms about that for the briefest of moments but it was a small concession in the grand scheme of things.

  Rawiri place a hand on her shoulder. “You alright?”

  She was preoccupied with the idea of Portland as her father. “Maybe, but I think I need to talk to my mother.”

  But not yet. She had to get everything sorted in her head. She wanted to be clear headed when she spoke to her mother. Though she thought she already knew the answer. That would explain why her parents had always fought.

  Chapter Eleven

  Whatinga: April 2088

  Freya flicked off another set of gloves and dropped them in a bin. She twisted her neck to ease the crick that had set in about an hour before. The tables were just a little too low for her height and her back ached from leaning over the microscopes for so long.

  But Freya felt she had figured out what this all was. She could save thousands with what she had under that microscope.

  She looked up when she realised Rawiri was waiting for her to notice him by the door. He had a small smile on his lips so he couldn’t have been there for very long or he would have been bored.

  Rawiri said, “You are very cute when you are dressed like that.” He waved to indicate her current outfit.

  She glanced down at her normal clothes of slacks and an over large jersey with a white lab coat over the top. She was not very attractive in this particular outfit but it was comfortable.

  She frowned when she looked up. Her mother told her off many times for wearing such shapeless clothes. She had said that no man would find her attractive if she dressed like a hobo.

  Rawiri closed the gap between them and tugged on her coat so she would step closer to him. She enjoyed the warm feel of his body so close to her own. She had a shiver of what she had once thought was fear but realised it was anticipation.

  She returned his smile. “You are in a good mood.”

  He lightly kissed her lips in a soft greeting. “Of course I am. I’m with you. So you find anything?” He motioned with his head to mean with her experiments and blood samples.

  She sighed and put her arms around him. “I’m Portland’s daughter. His sample was in the canister with others. It’s the early testing samples. It’s fascinating. They tried many versions of the drug and some of them had different effects.”

  She motioned with one hand the fridge where she had stored her latest results. “I’ve been able to isolate the component of the flower that causes the enzyme. I might make a cure from it and my blood. It looks like they were looking for a cure and then just gave up. It makes sense.
When you make something like that you always want the antidote before you distribute but they must have got greedy and canned looking for a cure.”

  His voice was gentle as he asked, “How do you feel about it all?”

  She knew he wasn’t asking about the cure. She curled up against his chest tucking her hands up against her face as his arms tightened around her. “It scares me because it changes everything and nothing. I was always his daughter. If there was any part of him in me, I would have seen it already. I had nightmares last night that I became a drug dealer only to wake up this morning and realise that was ridiculous.”

  He kissed her nose. “You would make a cute drug dealer.”

  She rolled her eyes at his light teasing. “That isn’t what I’m worried about.”

  His voice when he spoke was serious. “I know. You have enough to worry about. Maybe you need to let off steam.”

  Freya rubbed her cheek against his chest. “I don’t think I can. I mean—Well—I want to but—”

  Her breath caught as she realised she had him here alone with her.

  He lowered his voice. “My mother, when I was little used to say that sometimes people would look happy but it was because they were too sad to cry. She used to sing these beautiful songs and they would bring tears to my eyes because I knew when she sang, she was actually sad. But it always seemed to help.

  “Let me help here. I can’t work in the lab with you but there is something I can do you. I can make you forget for a moment.”

  Freya turned her head up and he kissed her. She said against his lips, “I want that. I want to forget everything but you forever.”

  His arms tightened around her. “I can do that.”

  Rawiri guided her to her office. “Is anyone coming here later?”

  She frowned as she thought about it. “No. I’ve been staying here the last two days so people know to stay away.”