didn’t have the influence of his family name to back him up, they might have been dismissed on the spot or faced criminal consequences for injuring the suspect. He knew the world wasn’t fair and he didn’t like to take advantage, but this time he would.
He could count his past mission failures on one hand and still have fingers to spare. And two of those failures had been at Lena’s side. He couldn’t control the fact that she wasn’t ready, and he felt like he was being punished for her shortcomings. Unfair. But he had to clamp his mouth shut until his jaw hurt to keep from saying anything. They were about to spend up to two months together and he didn’t want to start them off with resentment.
Stypon would resent him as it was. Luckily, Micia had agreed to watch the trott, but he would have felt better if he could say farewell himself. He was still adjusting to life back home and he wanted to spend his time with his pet, not hide away in the middle of nowhere.
Lena tried to start a conversation after an hour and a half or so, but Solan wasn’t in a talking mood. Another hour went by in silence. And then another. Aorsa wasn’t that big; if they traveled much farther they’d reach the end of the continent. He hoped they weren’t going to find a boat at the end of this road.
He got lucky. A small village was the first sign of life for miles, a collection of a few houses and apartments and a main street full of shops. Not much, a few thousand residents at most, but it was civilization. And hopefully a sign that they’d reached their destination.
Their vehicle took them through the town and then down a narrow, pitted road that ended at a small house. Well, small by Solan’s standard. At least four of the structure could fit into his home.
Lena leaned forward to get a better look. “Isn’t there supposed to be a training facility? A trainer?” she asked.
“This is the facility.” He said it with more certainty than he felt. But it had to be. He didn’t know much about these places, but he knew they were designed not to draw attention to themselves. The Synnr military didn’t like to advertise their shortcomings.
“And the trainer?”
When had he become the authority on the subject? He snapped the question back before he could make things even more tense between them. The day had already dragged on too long and Solan was ready to collapse into bed. He had no idea what time it was and he didn’t care. He was done.
The palm scan lock at the door read his hand and let them inside. The door opened into a sitting room with a small sofa and a few chairs facing an entertainment center, just like any other house. Down a long hallway he spotted an open door that must have led to the kitchen and another one that led to the bedroom.
The single bedroom.
Thankfully there were two beds.
Solan pulled out his communicator and put it on the small table beside one of the beds before shrugging off his jacket and laying it on the blanket. There was nothing special about the room. Each bed was big enough to hold two people if they squeezed tight, but that wouldn’t be an issue for them. There was a bedside table beside each bed and a larger table in the middle of the room with a full basket sitting on top of it.
“What the actual fuck?” He watched as Lena picked up a slim tube and then put it back as if it burned her. Then she picked up another item, her eyes got wide, and she threw it back down.
He stepped up to her to get a better look. Sexual lubricant and a few toys. Items some Matched units might need. “I suppose they don’t want anyone leaving for... supplies.” It was expected that Matches would be sexually active; he didn’t see why she was so surprised. Perhaps they did things differently on Earth.
She stared at the basket for several moments before swallowing hard, her cheeks tinged red. “Well, that’s one team building activity we know is off the table.”
Solan had his own trouble looking away. There was no reason to find it strange or alluring. Adults had sex. Matches often had sex. There was nothing prurient to providing assistance to that end. It was healthy. But his