Page 17 of Zylus

“You want to know ‘or what’?” I growl. “Or I’ll expose every dirty little secret you’ve been hiding. The fraudulent business deals, the tax evasion, the bribes to local officials. Oh yes, I know all about them. I’ve been keeping tabs on you for years, waiting for the right moment.”

The color drains from Nivar’s face. “You’re bluffing,” he whispers, but I can see the fear in his eyes.

I laugh, cold and humorless. “Am I? Care to test that theory? I wonder how your high-society friends would react if they knew the truth about the great Nivar. How quickly do you think they’d abandon you if you wound up in prison?”

I release him, and he stumbles, barely catching himself on the gaudy end table nearby.

Nivar is sputtering as he clutches his throat. Not so high and mighty now.

“Here’s what’s going to happen,” I continue, my voice low and dangerous. “You’re going to sign over any remaining claim you have on the Interstellar Inn to the rightful owner, the woman who won the lottery. You’re going to make a sizable donation to the Arixxia Fields Children’s Hospital—anonymously—so you get no glory from your ill-gotten gains.”

He takes a step toward me, then thinks better of it. The male spends his days getting manicures and looking over spreadsheets. I lift heavy things for a living. We both know who will win if he escalates this into a physical fight. I’m not the helpless younger brother anymore.

“And you’re going to stay the hell away from me, Misty, and anyone else associated with the inn. If I so much as catch a whiff of you near the property, I’ll burn your entire life to the ground. Are we clear?”

Nivar, for once in his life, seems at a loss for words. He nods, a jerky, panicked movement.

“Good.” I straighten my clothes as I consider any other threats but oddly, I have nothing left to say. “I’ll have my lawyer draw up the paperwork. Expect it within the week.”

As I turn to leave, Nivar finds his voice. “You… you’ve changed, little brother.”

I pause at the door, looking back at him. “No, Nivar. I’ve just stopped letting you push me around. It’s time you faced the consequences of your actions.”

With that, I shift into my spectral form and vanish, leaving Nivar alone in his ostentatious, soulless house. As I make my way back to the inn—back to Misty—I feel a weight lift from my shoulders. For the first time in my life, I’ve stood up to my brother, and it feels damn good.

The Interstellar Inn isn’t just a building to me anymore. It’s a symbol of everything I’ve fought for, everything I’m becoming. And I’ll be damned if I let anyone, especially Nivar, take that away from me or Misty ever again.

Chapter Thirteen

Misty

It was only by accident I noticed the medical kiosk in the grocery store when we stopped there earlier today. A shallow dive on my wrist-comm informed me the self-contained metallic stall was fully equipped with the medication and knowledge to provide me with birth control.

Now that I’ve returned to the store alone, I slip into the vertical med-pod, the curved metal door whooshes closed behind me, and a friendly computerized voice asks what I need. Because of my subdural translator, we communicate easily.

The computer takes less than a minute to research Earth women’s specific needs, and two minutes later, I’m painlessly injected with what I’m informed is a shot that will last until I request the antidote.

When the door slides open no more than five minutes later, I walk out and grab a rotisserie something or other for dinner. It was already cut into parts, so I didn’t have to ask too many questions about what type of animal I’m going to eat. And yeah, no matter what it looks like, it smells too good to throw away.

As I hover back to the inn, I conduct a swift internal debate about whether I’m going to have sex with Zylus, or if I want to keep things atthe “just friends” level. Well, I think we passed “just friends” with that amazing kiss last night.

Although we basically just met and I am not now, nor have I ever been, a one-night stand kind of girl, I’m considering letting my passions be my guide. The still, small voice in the back of my head is on warning mode though.

You own a B&B together. You’re going to be living in the same house for the next few months, working elbow to elbow, breathing the same air! What if things go south? What if you have a falling out?

What is it they say about romance in the workplace? Oh, yeah, it’s a one-word answer—don’t. What would we argue about though? What type of kitchen appliances to buy? Truth be told, he’s probably right about having state-of-the-art ovens and a large-capacity fridge. When we’re at 100% occupancy, we’ll need it.

I’m still conducting my internal argument when I walk through the door to a house that sounds eerily quiet. Vortex greets me, a shaggy comet of flying turquoise fur. For a wild animal, someone must not have told him he’s supposed to be standoffish.

My voice lifts an entire octave as I coo to him, waggle the bag ofsmelkasnaps we bought for him earlier, and then tease him with what’s in the bigger bag.

“See this, Vortex? I got this for you. You’re going to love it.” After a moment more of increasing the suspense, I pull his gorgeous scarlet bed out of the bag as if I’m a magician producing something enchanted from her hat.

Seeing Vortex running in wild, little circles, you’d think I had supernatural powers.

I make a beeline to the hearth and set the bed down in the perfect spot. Although Zylus said the littlechitzawould immediately tear it apart, he does nothing of the sort, choosing instead to sit regally on it, then look up at me with the most beautiful, dark, puppy-dog eyes.

It’s only now I realize the shower is running upstairs. Since there’s no dining room table, I set up dinner on the coffee table and put a few pillows—the ones Vortex hasn’t ravaged—nearby, so we can comfortably sit on the floor.

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