"Reah, the servants' quarters are getting cramped at Arvil's. Xiri can have your space. Move in with me. I have an extra bedroom. You won't be bothered. Unless you want to be, that is." Teeg offered a wry grin.
"Arvil won't allow it." I hunched my shoulders. If I had the choice between living with Teeg or taking the chance that someone else might die in front of me at Arvil's, well, Teeg would win every time. There were other reasons, but I wasn't ready to face them yet.
"He will, I've already asked him. He thought he'd be forced to move you onto the family floor—he didn't want any of the others up there. I'm less than a quarter click walk from Arvil's palace. Come on, Reah. I'll feel better if I know you're safe while you're sleeping."
"It'll take five ticks to move," I ran a finger down the side of my wineglass, gathering up condensation—I'd asked for a chilled, white wine. "I think I have five outfits."
"And three pairs of shoes. Reah, eight-day is tomorrow. I'll help you move and then we'll find more clothes and shoes."
"Teeg, you don't have to run after me." I stared into warm, dark eyes.
"Reah, I've never found anyone else I wanted to run after." I watched his lips as he spoke—they were sensual and smiled crookedly at his statement.
My mouth was hanging open as I stared—Teeg reached over and lifted my jaw up with a finger to close it.
Teeg told me he'd come for me around nine bells, so I was standing in the kitchen the following morning, having a quick glass of juice and some toast when Xiri came to me. He'd been preparing breakfast with one of his assistants. "Reah, Neele's been sleeping with the housekeeper," Xiri whispered next to my ear. "You ought to say something to him—he'll get killed if Master Arvil finds out."
Mutely I nodded at Xiri—he was right. I only had a moment to ponder how Xiri had learned of Neele's indiscretion when Neele walked in, dressed only in pajama bottoms and looking rumpled. He snagged one of the breakfast pastries that Xiri's assistant had just pulled from the oven when Arvil walked in, dragging the housekeeper with him by her hair.
Neele died with a single ranos pistol shot to his forehead, a tart halfway to his mouth. The housekeeper, who'd started screaming, was flung on top of Neele's body and shot in the head as well. Blood gushed all over the new tiles when Xiri dropped to the floor in a dead faint. His assistant was curled up on the floor and shaking, a look of horror on his face. It most likely mirrored the expression on my face, to be truthful.
"You couldn't do this somewhere else?" Teeg drawled as he walked into the room. "I just had those tiles laid." Arvil lifted an eyebrow in Teeg's direction but didn't say a word. Instead, he stalked from the kitchen, shoving the ranos pistol into his belt.
"Reah, just grab your things and let's go," Teeg was herding me through my small bedroom as quickly as he could. "Let those wizards clean up the mess."
"But Xiri."
"Xiri will be fine—his assistant is helping him," Teeg hissed. "Come on, sweetheart. Let's go." Teeg wasn't waiting around for me to look for anything I might have left behind. He was hauling me out of there as fast as he could. I was shoved into a hover-taxi waiting outside Arvil's walls and Teeg ordered the driver to leave as quickly as he could.
"Reah, I'm sorry, but that was Arvil's lover, and he doesn't take that from his lovers. I don't want him looking in your direction next." We were already at Teeg's apartment complex and he was tapping on the window that separated us from the driver. The driver scanned Teeg's wrist for credit after we climbed out of the vehicle, loaded down with my few possessions. The cab driver left us standing there.
"Come on, Reah. You can't let Arvil do this to you. You have to act normally the next time you see him."
I think my teeth were chattering—shock was setting in. I hadn't hired Neele and I knew he had a wandering eye, but I never expected him to act that stupidly. Now he'd paid for that, as had Arvil's housekeeper. I realized I hadn't even known her name.
"Drink this." Teeg had dumped my clothing onto the floor the moment he got us inside his apartment and kicked the door shut. He'd poured out a very generous portion of bourbon in a glass and handed it to me. "Drink it all," he directed. Teeg watched as I swallowed the bourbon in only a few gulps. "Here, have more." He poured out half as much again. I drank that, too. He tilted up the bottle and drank what was left.
"Come on, love, we're going out in public." Teeg hauled me off the barstool; we left my clothing lying in the foyer and walked out the door.
Teeg lived on the ground floor of a three-story apartment building and we walked down cushioned walkways until we came to streets filled with shops of all kinds. Tourists were everywhere—Arvil owned most of the shops open for business, in addition to a majority of the casinos. Teeg told me that as we walked along.
"See, there are shops that cater to small women," Teeg pulled me inside a shop.
"Trust me, your chip will hold up," Teeg declared as the pile of clothing grew. I'd picked out mostly slacks or pants, with shirts and blouses to go with them. Teeg asked for skirts and dresses. He insisted on staying just outside the dressing rooms as I was fitted for underwear.
"See, this makes what you have much more appealing," the clerk informed me as I stared at the lacy underthing that now covered my br**sts. Several of those went into the pile, as did panties that showed much more than they concealed. My face was burning when I got away from the salesclerk.
My credit chip did cover what I bought, and it was substantial. Teeg paid extra to have it packed up and delivered to his address later. Then we went shopping for shoes. Teeg was very fussy over dress shoes. "Just the right amount of heel," he said. "No sense in killing yourself or damaging your toes." I paid for twelve pairs—Teeg paid for another six. Those were the ones he liked and I didn't have any use for. Those would be delivered, too.
"Now, let's get the best food on Campiaa that doesn't come from Reah's kitchen," Teeg hugged me against him as we walked down more cushioned sidewalks.
The best food turned out to be a tiny restaurant that took your order at the counter and then shouted out your name when it was ready. Self-service, for the most part. I understood the logic—there wasn't any room to put tables and no room to place wait staff—the outer area was filled with tourists waiting for their food or waiting to order.
"This is good," I lifted my sandwich, wrapped in one of the best flatbreads I'd ever tasted. The sandwich was filled with beef, onions, sour cream and a sauce I liked very much.