Page 18 of Stalker
“I can relate to that, after five years as a sex worker, commonly known as a whore. And you’re okay with that?”
“Many females have been forced to trade sex for safety or food to survive. Or they endured rape to avoid being beaten or killed. What you did before was part of the woman you have become, of who you are now, my mate.”
Neely nodded, not knowing what to say.
“My life with you started three days ago when I pulled you out of your burning flyer. Before therapy, I lived to kill beings, sentient beings determined to destroy our species.”
“They made a pretty good start when they bombed Earth. There are cities back East that have been abandoned and whole towns empty with their buildings untouched but deteriorated from neglect.”
“We’ve found it’s like that worldwide,” Stalker said. “It’s the same here in California. The communities that managed the best were those with enough self-sufficient people who were prepared and helped their friends and neighbors meet their needs.”
“What about neighbors? Do we have any?” Neely asked.
“Not human ones. We are in what was once a national forest. I was granted permission to buy this parcel to build our home for security reasons. I wanted a safe place for my family. Not everyone will welcome us with open arms. Let’s go outside so you can see the property.”
Stalker kept her hand in his, and they walked out into a meadow surrounded by a forest of conifers. The house was nestled among a small stand of young sequoias. There was no road or even a walking path nearby.
Off to one side, there was a row of objects that Neely couldn’t identify. “What are those?” she pointed.
“Targets. They can be stationary, or they can hover and move around.”
“Good, I can use the practice.”
“And we will practice. We have a practice setting on our weapons that will fire low-level laser beams, and the targets will beep when you hit them and calculate your accuracy rate.”
“How about physical fighting? You said you’ve done that.”
“Yeah. My father taught me some, and one of the cyborg converts trained me some in mixed martial arts. I learned enough to get out of a few jams.”
“I will teach you more. We will just make our presence known in Los Angeles. From what I’ve seen so far, it's gangers and overlords like Farringay outside Starport City.”
“How are you going to civilize that?” Neely asked as they strolled around the meadow near the tree line. “Some of those guys will shoot you if you look at them wrong.”
“Bullets won’t penetrate my skin far enough to do much damage, and they won’t pierce our armor,” he said confidently. “Do you know if the Eastern Overlords do business with these overlords?”
“I only know I’ve never transported anything this far west.”
“Darken Wolf, one of the cyborgs in my marine ranger team, has evidence that Overlord Devlin White is trafficking humans from New Mexico. That’s why we were there doing recon.”
“That still doesn’t explain why Colton Price pursued and shot my flyer down. No way did he mistake my flyer for one of your sky cycles. They are an entirely different configuration.” Neely spouted bitterly. “He wouldn’t make that mistake.”
“He said; you weren’t who he was after,” Stalker said, reviewing the incident on his internal computer.
“That doesn’t make any sense. Price had to know it was my flyer. If he wasn’t trying to kill me, why would he shoot me down?”
Stalker stopped and turned to face her, still holding her hand. “I think it was your cargo. He prevented you from delivering the ion rifles to Overlord White.”
“But, he’s one of White’s henchmen. He’s been there for almost a year.”
“He could be a Federation plant or an agent of a rival overlord. Whatever his agenda, I don’t think he is on White’s side,” said Stalker.
“He didn’t have to blow up my flyer. He could have just intercepted the weapons.” Neely pouted.
“I could kill him for you….”
Neely’s mouth dropped open, and her eyes went wide as she looked up at him. He was serious!
“Uh, no thanks. I’m upset about my flyer. Besides, you shot down his flyer,” she admitted. She paused, looking around. “Stalker, this place is beautiful, and the house blends right in.”
