Page 12 of Asmodel

“Yeah. Something like that.” Morgan tugged her to a small cot. “Come on. Sit down. Tell me your name and where you’re from. Then I’ll tell you what I know.”

Izzy’s face heated. Darn it! Herabuelawould scold her for her lack of manners. “Oh gosh, I’m so sorry.” She stuck her hand out. “My name is Isabella Pilar Ramirez Torres.”

Morgan accepted the clasp and shook her hand before letting go.

“Please call me Izzy. I am, er, I was, one of the head librarians at the New York Library.” Her face heated as she chuckled. Sometimes it was easy to forget she wasn’t that anymore.

Morgan nodded and sat on one of the small cots. “Come, sit, and I’ll tell you what I know.”

“Oh, I’d appreciate that. Thanks.” Izzy plopped onto the thin mattress next to Morgan and sat cross-legged with her hands on her lap.

The hours flew by as Morgan went into a fantastical narrative about being abducted by a female Zerin she’d never seen before who gave her to some kind of “gray alien”, like those from Earth’s UFO lore. Complete with a large, bulbous head and massive black oval eyes with spindly fingers on their hands. They put a wide leather collar around her neck that immobilized her. Then she was injected with something that made her pass out. Next thing she knew, she’d woken up here.

When Morgan mentioned the collar, Izzy grasped the similar one around her neck and gasped. “What is this? Will it hurt?” Even a hint of pain turned her into a total wuss.

“One of the sexbots told me it was called anuteshsnare.”

Izzy watched Morgan’s knuckles turn white when she gripped the black collar around her neck. “Sexbots?” What in the world…

“Oh yeah. Wait till you see one of those.” Morgan’s firm lips softened into a tight smile. “One of them should be bringing us something to eat any time now.”

On cue, Izzy’s stomach growled. She hadn’t eaten anything that morning because she was looking forward to all the goodies promised at the “day off” celebration.

A light clanking sound outside the room caught her attention.

“Oh good. Here’s one now.” Morgan put an arm in front of Izzy as if to protect her. “Stay here. Don’t move from this cot,” she admonished. “They don’t like it when you get too close. When I first got here, I tried to grab one. Bitch knocked me out by using something in this collar. I was out for hours. And believe me, the headache lasted for days.”

“Days?” Izzy put a comforting hand on Morgan’s arm. “How long have you been here?”

Morgan squinted. “Not sure. How far was theStarChancefrom Zerin?”

“We were just arriving.” She winced. “The Zerins planned a party for us the day before we went to the exchange. And that’s when my liaison injected me with something. Next thing I knew, I woke up here.”

“Hmm.” Morgan put her forefinger on her bottom lip. “They nabbed me the third week in.” She put her hand on her lap and shrugged. “I guess I’ve been here a little more than a week.”

The enharmonic sound of metallic footsteps came closer.

“Wonder which one it is today.”

Before Izzy asked what she meant, a shiny figure strode toward them holding a tray on an open palm with several square blocks resting on it.

Izzy hissed. “Oh my goodness. Is that a robot?”

“I am Delight 9D33.”

Izzy winced at the shrill tone coming out of the robot’s blinding-orange lips.

“You will stay on that bedding while I disconnect the field and place your substance on the floor,” the robot commanded.

Izzy couldn’t move even if she wanted to. The collar had her in a tight grip. With wide eyes, she watched the neon-orange robot turn off the iridescent, hazy force field, giving her a clear view of the machine.

The darn thing could have stepped out of a Barbie-doll box—complete with a slender figure, long legs, and a disproportionately small waist. The face was delicate and symmetrical, with two large, wide-set, bright-orange eyes, a small nose, and full lips. Instead of having hair, this robot was bald. Her metallic-orange head shone in the low corridor light.

The strangest thing was the four breasts tipped with pumpkin-colored nipples. It reminded Izzy of a female dog after having a litter of puppies.

Izzy’s eyes widened at the five-inch stiletto heels it had instead of feet. They were a startling neon green that matched the see-through sarong wrapped around its waist that hid little.

“Oh my stars, Will Robinson.” Izzy whispered with her hand over her heart. For the first time since leaving home, it hit her. “I’m really lost in space!”

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