Page 22 of Hidden By the Convicts
“I was hoping you’d break it to him.”
“Nope. That’s on you. And how do I explain why the guards get blasted with a chemical spray that blinds them when they enter? I don’t want them thinking this is where you’re cooking your drugs. They’ll start tearing the place apart. I still have a job to do, Harlis. We all do.”
“Tell them it’s a decontamination spray I made for you to ensure no more viruses are brought in to risk the seedlings for the next crops. Like that virus we had trouble knocking out five months back.”
Gavin thought about it. “They’ll just close their eyes in the future, to keep the spray from hitting them as they go through.”
“It’s an irritant that will bother their skin enough to distract them. I’ll give you a compound that neutralizes the effect on the skin. Believe me, they’ll wait for you to spray them because they’ll be too itchy to think about anything else. And you’ll have the code to shut the dispenser so you can enter without getting dosed. Just don’t let them know it can be shut off.”
Gavin looked at Teagen. “Are you sure you want to be here with me?” He hadn’t talked to her much lately, was afraid to, because he wasn’t sure he could keep his hands off of her. He still wasn’t sure, except here he had work to do, and he’d be too nervous about the guards coming in to think about touching her.
“I’m eager to do something. Anything other than sit in that house all day waiting for you three to return. I need something to do, Gavin, because the more I sit there alone, the more I think about everything I did that got me sent to Narkos and what happened when I arrived. And it’s a downward slope from there.”
She was biting her lip, not something he’d seen her do before. She definitely looked on edge.
“I need this,” she emphasized.
He stepped closer to her, nearly reached out and touched her cheek, but he knew better. “This wasn’t your fault, Teagen, so stop that line of thinking right now. It will only cause you more pain. You were framed by your boss. Sometimes fate just works against us and we have to make the best of it.”
“Then let me help you here. I need something to get my mind off of the guards. I feel trapped in the house.”
“You’re safer there.”
“Am I? I can’t even shower or sleep until one of you returns because I could miss hearing guards approaching. There’s nothing to do there, and no way for me to contribute. I’m a drain on your resources.”
“You’re not. But I get your point. I supposed we could try this. How about once a week to start, only when I have first shift so I can sneak you in under the cover of darkness? Carrying you around in a sack will draw attention, eventually. And you’ll have to stay the entire day, so one of us can sneak you through the compound when it’s dark again.”
“Agreed!” She jumped up and hugged him. Damn, if she didn’t feel so perfect in his arms.
“First, try out that hole so you’re comfortable getting in it at a moment’s notice. Then, I’ll show you around. You stick to the middle of the greenhouse, just in case anyone comes in unannounced. Stay near the pit. I’ll push the tree in place once you’re in.”
After she tried out the pit, Harlis gave Gavin the code that would disable the spray. “Why are you doing all this for her?” he asked the younger man. “So she’ll sleep with you?”
“I wouldn’t turn her down, but honestly, I feel bad for her. As bad as we got it, we’re out of here in ten years.”
“You better adjust your expectations about that, Harlis. We’re here for the long-term. You’re one of only a few chemists on Narkos.”
“I don’t do much over here except keep the soil levels where you need them.”
“And provide pesticides to kill off the insects that would otherwise destroy the crops, create chemicals to combat the viruses that always strike, and test the water. I’m sure I’m forgetting a few things. Don’t underestimate your importance, Harlis, but do settle in for the long haul. Dresden only cares about keeping the zurlite production running, which means we have to keep the miners fed. He’s not letting us go, not unless he has replacements. Chemists and horticulturists are rare in a prison colony.”
“Like women,” Harlis said, nodding his chin toward Teagen, who had climbed out of the hole and moved to the seed table.
She bounced on her heels in new boots, Gavin noted, energy pouring off her young body. He scrubbed his face again as his cock twitched. Even in that loose shirt she wore,hisno less, he could see her breasts bounce.
“She looks good in the pants I stole for her, doesn’t she?” Harlis said. “They’re a good fit.”
Yeah, like Harlis was looking at herpants. “Jackson’s?” Gavin guessed. No one else was that small.
“He’ll never miss them. The guy leaves his stuff everywhere. I found one of his boots the other day in the middle of the firing range. I still haven’t figured out that one.”
“What were you doing at the firing range?”
“I’ve been playing with modifying blasters so the energy won’t drain as quickly.”
“Are youtryingto help the enemy, Harlis?”
“You’re starting to sound like Bowen again. I have quotas to meet too, Gavin. But I use the chance to. . . alter a few guns here and there.”
