Just look at what had happened with Kyle’s mom.
People feared the gardener and the things that person was said to have done.All fake, of course.Rumors and innuendo.Some of which Gus had seeded herself.The rest had kind of taken on a life of their own.
At this point, Gus had so many identities waiting on the sidelines that she never acted under her own name anymore.Except for her siblings, no one knew Pityrodia Augustensis existed.
Sometimes that thought made her lonely.But only sometimes.
The rest of the time she relished the privacy her alter egos allotted her.
Kyle’s expression didn’t hide his skepticism.“Youwork for the gardener?”
Gus had expected this.The gardener was a notorious figure on Titan.There were many people who had attempted to pose as that person’s emissary and suffered the consequences of their poor judgment.
It would have been strange if Kylehadn’texpressed doubt.She would have wondered what was wrong with him.Right before rethinking his role in her organization.
“Check your messages,” Gus instructed, guessing he probably hadn’t seen the message she sent earlier.
From the slight smell emitting from his body and his overall unkempt appearance, she was guessing it had been a few days since he’d last surfaced from the augmented reality he’d lost himself in.
His unreliability and his slight gambling problem were the primary reasons why he had only ever risen to the status of a belladonna instead of the oleander that his skills warranted.
Kyle’s frown showed suspicion as he tapped on the controls installed in the arm of his chair.
A window opened on one of the screens.
Kyle squinted, reading the message Gus had sent.
“The gardener would like to know what is taking so long,” Gus said with a politely ruthless smile.
Kyle flopped back in his chair with a groan.“You can tell the gardener to go fuck himself.Does he have any idea how many people are on Titan right now?Hundreds of thousands.He’s asking me to find a needle in a star system.”
Gus’s expression cooled.She wasn’t a big fan of being cursed at.Even if the person doing the cursing didn’t realize it was her his words were intended for.
“Perhaps you would already be done if you did not distract yourself with other pursuits,” Gus said pointedly.
This was a familiar song and dance of Kyle’s.She’d heard it all before.First, he’d whine about how impossible the task was.Then he’d demand additional compensation.He’d only get down to business once his ego had been sufficiently stroked.
“You tell that psycho that if he wants this done, he needs to pay up.”Kyle rubbed his fingers together.“I’m talking credits here.”
Gus called it.
“Enough of this.”Caius stalked forward, grabbing Kyle by the neck and lifting him partially out of his chair.“You were given a task.Will you do it or not?”
Kyle gurgled, unable to speak around the hold Caius had on his throat.
Gus rushed forward.“What are you doing?Let him go.”
“You said we needed this person’s help.He’s being difficult.I’m simply expediting the situation.”
“By killing him?”Gus tugged at Caius’s hand to no avail.It didn’t budge from around Kyle’s throat.
“If he fails to cooperate, that is an option,” Caius allowed.
Gus resisted the urge to slap the Tuann upside the head.It was difficult and required more self-control than she typically needed to exert.
“Did you forget where we are?If you kill him, we die too,” Gus snarled.
They’d just had a conversation about not underestimating humans.Yet here he was, seconds later, doing exactly that.
