Page 66 of The Devil's Mercy

He stuck toward the edge of the road, keeping to the pavement to avoid stepping on anything and injuring himself, but wanting the comfort of knowing he could dash off into the shelter of the trees if need be. Even though it slowed him down even more, every now and again, he found himself stopping and glancing behind him. It was too dark to make anything out, but not hearing anything also helped to calm his nerves.

All Cal needed to focus on was getting away and doing what he’d planned to do last month.

Leave.

He was going to take his new sexual awareness and fly to a planet where he could further explore that, safely and anonymously. He’d never been to the world ship Alter, but he’dheard enough about it over the years to know it would make the perfect fresh start for someone like him.

A world where no one knew who he was or what he’d done, and where no one would care even if it did somehow get leaked? Sign him up.

Calix was even more determined to leave once he finally reached the neighbor’s house, but he hesitated at the end of the driveway. He wouldn’t wake the neighbors or call for help, and not just because Titus’s status as a Connect meant he’d most likely get away with it, and all of this would be swept under the rug. Cal’s anger simply wasn’t strong enough for him to want to report Aodhan or the director.

He almost laughed because, of course he was going to let them get away with it. That had to be another thing Aodhan and Titus knew full well before starting this.

Cal had been an easy target.

He deserved everything he’d gotten for being such a dumbass. Top agent with the most prestigious policing force in the universe? Ha. He was a joke.

And since he was already so low…

Hotwiring the single hovercar parked in the driveway was easy. He didn’t even feel an inkling of guilt as he pulled the vehicle onto the street.

But driving away?

Seeing the road that led to Aodhan and Titus’s house get further and further in the rearview mirror? That part was hard.

Calix decided to think of it as just another punishment he deserved for being a detective stupid enough to fall for the killer he was after. Chose to ignore the tiny part of himself that urged him to turn around and go back. To slip inside and return to the bedroom and pretend like he’d never escaped at all.

The image of Titus and Aodhan making love to each other, the reminder of how perfect they were together, and howhe’d never truly belong, was what helped dampen that inner voice enough not to give in to it.

Even though it would be difficult, Cal was confident he could do the exact same thing he’d done the last time he’d fled the planet after making a massive, life-altering mistake.

He’d start again.

Chapter 19:

3 Months Later

“Do we really think I’m ready for this?”

Unsurprisingly, Vesper did nothing but silently stare at Calix from his perch on the bookshelf. Cal had chosen the name for his sylar once they’d settled on the planet Alter, choosing it for its meaning, evening prayer. Considering where he’d come from and where he currently was, it was funny in a dark humor sort of way.

Or maybe that was just him.

He turned back to the outfits he’d laid out on the single bed in the room he’d been staying in for the past two months.

Calix had sold the golden collar Vesper had been wearing to a trade captain he’d met through his job as a detective. Fortunately, he’d known what ports they flew in and out of, and with the stolen vehicle, it’d only taken him a few hours to reach the dock. He’d been just in time to barter and hop on the first spaceship off Emergence.

But he wasn’t thinking about his escape from his past tonight. No, this was about planning for the future.

“Seriously though,” he turned to Vesper once more, “am I ready? Should I call it off and take a couple more weeks to prepare and think it over?”

The sylar yawned, showing its four rows of sharp teeth in the process.

“You’re right.” Cal sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “It’s too late for that. They should be arriving soon, if they aren’t here already.”

Tonight was his first official job as a stimulus. Alter was a World Ship/planet that was basically one huge red light district. People came here to let loose, partake in debauchery, and play out their darkest fantasies. The sex workers were known as stimulus, and were held in higher esteem than on any other planet in any galaxy. Sleeping with men for money had never been his personal dream growing up, but after a while, Calix had decided it was the right path for him.

He’d spent six weeks in training, had his certificate, and had been assigned his first clients. He couldn’t call it off over cold feet, not after all the work he’d put in to get here.

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