not reaching his tear-bright eyes. Bacoj’s heart tugged for the poor Imdiko.
“My notice is in. My days as the head chef here are numbered.” His joke fell flat.
Bacoj scowled. “You shouldn’t have enlisted. Definitely not if it had anything to do with me.” Guilt pricked him.
“They would have drafted me soon anyway. At least this way, I’ll continue to be a cook.”
His natural ebullience returned as he forced his grief aside and pretended resigning his position hadn’t been that big a deal. Bacoj knew better.
“It sucks. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to stay close to you, but I wish we were able to do it here at home, while chasing our dreams.”
Vax brightened with his support. “Yeah, this war nonsense is a bitch.”
“Understatement of a lifetime.”
“You’ll make it up to me, right?”
His leer reminded Bacoj of how they’d woken that morning. Of climbing on top of Vax, holding him down while he put him under his control, then taking advantage of it. His cocks heated.
Bacoj took Vax’s arm and guided him toward the exit. “I’ll make it up to you as often as you’ll let me.”
* * * *
Nobek Karil watched Vax and his Dramok pal emerge from the resort property. It took effort to keep a snarl from erupting on the impassiveness he struggled to maintain. It wouldn’t do to attract attention, especially in the exclusive Bobrol Cavern neighborhood.
He shrank into an alcove as the pair he’d followed for the past week drew near. He wished the area weren’t so well-lit. If Vax and his young friend Bacoj happened to glance to the side, they’d spot him standing there.
Killing was easy. He’d proved it time and again, until the act was damned near habit. Karil was reasonably sure that even in his weakened Elate-addicted state, he could take Bacoj in a fight. Especially if he used his knife. However, the wealthy residents of the area were sure to quickly react and com law enforcement if he did so. There was also a ton of hired security roaming the cavern, thanks to its opulent status. Karil had to admit, he’d been a fool to trail Vax into Bobrol.
Vax hadn’t given him any chance at a confrontation thus far, however, and honor demanded Karil exact retribution for Huk’s death. It was the only way he could atone for letting his Imdiko clanmate die. With so little in his life to be proud of, Karil had no choice but to seek vengeance. At least then he could claim he was still a Nobek in reality and not just in name.
Fortunately for him, neither Vax nor Bacoj thought to look for trouble. They continued past his position, intent on each other as they conversed. Karil might as well have been invisible.
He allowed them to move ahead before he emerged from the alcove to follow them through the warren of caves and buildings that made up the nicest neighborhood in the territory. As he wove through the crowd of affluent Kalquorians, Karil soothed himself by reflecting that sooner or later, he’d find his quarry at a disadvantage. Maybe Vax would break off what had apparently become a romantic relationship, leaving him on his own again. Bacoj was merely an obstacle at this point, a throat to quickly cut if Karil could find a quiet, unobserved way to do it. But Vax…oh, that fine young man deserved to see his death coming. To spend his last moments in terror, pissing himself and begging to be spared.
Karil enjoyed the thought immensely. His sexes, long deadened to pleasure thanks to his addiction, actually twitched at the thought of hearing Vax’s pleas for mercy.
No surprise there. Revenge was the ultimate thrill.
His com went off, and Karil muttered a curse. When he checked the frequency, he cursed again. He tapped the plug hidden in his ear to answer.
“I can’t speak now, my Dramok.”
Respel’s growling voice left no doubt as to his frame of mind. “Are you following that damned Imdiko around again? I’ve told you to forget the matter, Karil.”
“The fucker killed our clanmate.”
“Huk was a junkie, not worth a second of your loyalty. His addiction would have killed him in the end anyway. It was only a matter of time.”
Karil couldn’t argue with the truth. In all fairness, he’d had no more love for Huk than Respel did. Grief for their deceased third had nothing to do with Karil’s determination to hold Vax accountable. Respel should have known that.
“Huk was my Imdiko, and nobody touches what’s mine