I’ll always believe him.
How could she not?
She realized she trusted the Cyborg implicitly, emotionally, irresponsibly.
He ushered her through the austere building and past the few androids and tenants milling about who gawked at her like she was a cheap toy. She allowed him to lead her. There’d never been a man in her life that she’d given control to so easily, and the realization startled her.Maybe this is what I need?
He’s my family.
She’d do anything,anythingto protect her family. Janet looked up at Zeph. His eyes were forward and determined, candy-apple green and bizarrely beautiful. He was one of a kind. One in a billion.I deserve that, don’t I?
She deserved nothing. She peered up at the skyscraper they’d just exited with horrible clarity. “Zeph?” she started, hating the tremor in her voice, hating every step she took away from the metal and concrete walls she’d rather be behind.
He opened the hovercraft door for her. “What?”
I’ll protect you too. I’ll do everything I can to save you. You were right...
“Never mind.”
His eyes burned into her as she settled into the seat, willing her walls to close back around her. She stared down at her heels until he closed the door and moved around the vehicle, getting in on the other side of her.
The tinted windows concealed them entirely, and she knew no one would be able to see them.
Whether there was something between her and Zeph was yet to be seen, despite their physical attraction to each other. They hadn’t had sex since the encounter on the bridge. She took in a shallow breath, pressing her bare thighs together.
Janet felt his eyes land back on her.
She ignored them.
After a short eternity, the vehicle shot into the air. Her fingers twisted into the sequined fabric of her dress, briefly forcing the small cocktail shift farther up her legs. Zeph’s grip flexed on the wheel.He’s angry?Her eyes narrowed upon his straining fingers and the quick ripple of spotted green there before it disappeared. In turn, it made her own fingers clench. So many thoughts ran through her head as they sped away from the condo.
She liked the look of his fingers; strong, long and lean—like him. The way they curled and gripped the slight curve of the wheel, tightening and loosening in uneven patterns. Before long, Janet realized she was mirroring his tensed fingers with her own.
She forced her gaze away, taking a deep breath.
Skyscrapers filled her vision, in every color of the rainbow, illuminated by lights that were built into their exteriors, and by countless more that shined upon them. They quickly melded together into a ghastly neon spectacle that was as hideous as it was powerful. Hypnotic. Intoxicating. Janet glanced down at her dress to see it aglow with dazzling colors.
She tapped her heels, excitedly.
Giant beams of light caught her attention, all coming from a large industrial building directly before them. As they neared it, a pounding bassline filled her ears, growing louder with each second. The lights coming from the structure flashed in sync with the muffled music. Her pulse mirrored it—much like her fingers kept mirroring Zeph’s. The hovercraft slowed.
“Is this where Raphael is?” she asked, awed, gazing upward. The wordDimesfilled the air above in an explosion of neon color, followed by a quick warning about seizures. She blinked, and the words were gone.
“Yes.Dimesis his calling card,” Zeph muttered. “The one and only Elyrian nightclub where there are no laws. The local authorities are paid to ignore it, and the economy benefits greatly from its fame.” The vehicle came to a stop. “It’s not much to look at is it?”
Janet wasn’t sure about that. Her entire world was filled up with dazzling color and building music, but it wasn’t only that, there were people, hundreds of real people—even Trentians—gathered around the outdoor bars and tables.
“It’s incredible,” she said in amazement. “I’ve never seen so many people in one place. Are you sure no one will notice us?”
Zeph snickered. “Trust me, sweetheart, there are more androids than you realize, and everyone else is high as fuck on Elyrian ecstasy and cocaine. In fact, the flashiness itself is just an elaborate illusion. The same toy I gave Lily but at a much larger scale. It’s everywhere on this shithole, trying to polish a piece of trash.”
Janet hummed. Even if what he said was true, it was still utterly dazzling. Elyria was nothing like Kepler. For one, it actually had a real city.A city!She was beginning to understand the concept, but it wasn’t only that. The geography between the many buildings they drove past was desert, endless desert, with interlocking and vibrant blue pools of water along many of the roadways below. She sat up straighter, letting her previous thoughts fade into the background, too excited for the evening to begin.
“I’m ready. Let’s go in,” she said, continuing to tap her heels.
She tore her eyes from the party scene to look at Zeph when he didn’t respond and the vehicle doors remained closed. An expressionless, blank look met her as he stared straight ahead without registering her. It was as though she didn’t exist. She knew he was out of his head and the sudden thrill of the party vanished.
“What’s wrong?” she asked quickly. “Do you sense something?” She searched for EPED ships through the mess of frenzied lights and color.
