Page 102 of Light Leech

“When?” I asked.

“Tonight,” Koro said. She looked at Naoma. “The Eunuchs are interested in seeing you.”

“Where is it?” I asked.

“Deer Palace Pavillion,” Kao said.

“Never heard of it,” I said.

Kyo smiled. “But you will. I had never heard about you until now, and after the news coverage, it seems like there is a lot more to you than your quiet little appearance.”

“What do you mean?”

“Looks like you’ve got some entertainment for the ride.”

Koro pulled Kyo up and waved for us to follow, not caring to wait. “Skyride’ll be out front in a few minutes. It’s a twenty minute ride but we need to stop at home to change first.”

Kyo looked back at us, resisting her sister who continued to pull her along. “You can borrow some of my clothes, Nay. I’m sure we have something left around from some poor shac’s one-night stand for you, Petya Nebokov.”

What did the news say?

I was terrified to learn and prayed that Ralia was aware of it for any necessary damage control.

Naoma eyed me, looking just as uncomfortable with the public’s newfound knowledge of me.

I realized that despite Ralia’s best efforts to cover our tracks, she couldn’t erase my past.

How long could we survive as ghosts? What was Naoma risking by standing with me? If my voracious hunger came to light, would she sacrifice her career to stay with me? Who in their right mind would? With half of her life missing from her memory, was she in the right state of mind to make such a choice?

What was I thinking? Of course she was in the right state of mind. She was as sober and cognizant as anyone, perhaps more than most after being freed from the technological vices that bound all of us, even though she was back on the net.

Maybe this was just another excuse for me to hold to, knowing that she deserved a life away from the imps.

Yet she knew our work was more important than any lumen-producing career.

My mind was vacillating between justifications and accusations against our reasons to be together. None of it mattered. She was sharp. With it more than me. I trusted her decision and would accept it with joy and sorrow.

We followed them out of the building, listening to the girls complain about the swarm of fans who had remained in the building for a chance to see them. Behind their complaints, they waved as the security guards pressed back the fans whose desperate fingers reached out to touch their false gods.

The guards pressed the crowd away from the skyride with blue light shields with pulsing batons in their hands as a warning to any fans who thought they deserved to be an exception.

Naoma and I sat across from 3Rochi in the cabin of the white skyride limousine.

Koro breathed out and slouched against the couch-sized seats as the doors closed and cut off the roar of the crowd. “I’m zeggin sick of the back-to-back pop-ups.”

“Same.” Kao tapped a button and a table rose from the center with drinks. She took a glass of water and offered it to her sisters. Only Kyo accepted.

Kyo raised a glass out to Naoma, who declined. “You ready to get back to this, Nay?”

“I…um…” She stared out the window at the crowd, whose gazes shot towards us despite the tinted glass.

Koro pounded the partition behind her. “Let’s zegging go already!” She looked at Naoma. “Sorry.”

“No, thank you. I…” She sighed.

“Need a break?” Kao asked.”Private time with her boy?” Kyo asked.

Kao shook her head, then pointed to me. “Press the button on your right to raise the partition on your side. You didn’t watch the news yet, did you?”