Shark Bite (Cyborg Shifters Book 3) Page 4

  “Speak!” Netto growled, switching his attention back to the reason why he and Zeph were there at all.

  “The crops have gone bad.” Montihan set down his glass. “At least in every agri-lot in the Eastern seaboard, and as of today, my daughters and I checked the lots closest to home.” He lifted a stone out of his shirt and handed it to Netto. Netto turned over the cloudy stone, what appeared to be a dirty piece of sea-glass, in his hand. He handed it to Zeph. “What was ripe last season is now as decayed as the lots that phased out farther from home.”

  “When did this start?”

  “Several years ago, some of the distant beds out in the ocean along our islands turned cloudy. We thought nothing at the time. Not all the homesteads had been affected, only some, so we noted it as an anomaly and ate the loss.” He sighed, “It only got worse. Each year the beds closer to home produced less, and it wasn’t just us anymore. It was everyone.”

  “Was this during the nearby takeover or after?” Zeph asked.

  “After. I don’t know if it’s related. I can’t see how. Charlene has suffered as much as the rest of us. And based on you guys coming out upon my request, I can only assume the EPED is concerned about the price increase.”

  “We are concerned.”

  Janet sighed audibly. “God forbid.”

  “I would think so,” Zeph’s voice came out harsh. “Considering that stone reinforces the cases that contain bacteria that could wipe out mankind. That stone is used in every modern Earthian spaceship. I’m sure you wouldn’t like to see Kepler cut off from the rest of the universe. It would be a shame for you to never again have lavender grace your skin.” He brushed a finger over Janet’s arm.

  “What about the water?” Netto interrupted, emboldened to solve the problem and not because every time he spoke, Rylie looked back at him. At him and not his partner. “Did it change?”

  “Yes, but not much, the salt levels increased—”

  “Which increased the temperature,” Netto stated, nodding.

  “Only by a fraction of a degree, a minuscule amount that could have been caused by an intense warm season,” Montihan finished.

  “We’ll take our own samples while we’re out.”

  Netto glanced at Rylie as she sat forward, and she visibly wilted under everyone's stare. “There’ve been deaths, and our waterships have been tagged by bugs.”

  “We discussed the bugs before you arrived,” Montihan interjected. “The deaths are concerning too.”

  With his eyes still on her, Netto answered, “Control told us.” Their gazes locked for a flickering moment before she looked away. He captured it in his mind.

  “Do you think the deaths are connected?” Zeph asked.

  “They have to be. All of them were workers, all of them were out on the ocean, and with each disappearance, a watership vanished as well. I don’t see how it connects with the bad crops though, or the bugging,” Janet said. “It’s been a bad year,” she turned toward Montihan. “We’ll be better next season.”

  “So, we have bad crops...several deaths, and spies. What exactly do you want us to do?”

  Janet rolled her eyes, “Isn’t that obvious?”

  “Leave,” Rylie hugged herself.

  “Fix it.” Montihan looked steadily at him and Zeph “And you’ll get your glass.”

  Chapter Five

  “We have no stones to give them,” Rylie ran her palms over her face until her fingers threaded through her hair. Exasperation and fear had taken over.

  “Hush, please. Even though they’re gone, doesn’t mean they can’t hear,” Da pleaded. It was just the two of them left. Janet had stormed out, soon followed by their guests. The entire day felt like one long, unending nightmare from which she had yet to wake.

  “I hope they do hear!”

  “If they fix this for us now, they’ll get their end of the bargain, eventually. It works out for us...and for them.”

  Rylie turned to him, “We’re not a shady homestead! We don’t lie! You’ve made us into something we’re not. How could you do that to us? We may never be able to give them what they want. Do you want the EPED to breathe down our necks?”

  “One of the missing waterships turned up.”

  She stopped.

  “—parts of it did, at least.”

  “When?”

  He sighed, “Several weeks ago. It’s what spurred all of this.” He waved his hand, his voice growing tired. “It was off the north coast between our lots and Crestalview’s. One of Charlene’s workers found it.”

  Rylie palmed her face some more, feeling wary herself. The adrenaline that had coursed through her veins had been replaced with exhaustion. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I didn’t want to worry you.”

  “Was there any sign of a body?” She slouched onto a nearby seat and leaned her head back. She caught a faint whiff of something masculine, something she had never smelled before, and it occurred to her she was sitting where the Cyborg had. The blue one.

  “No, none...” A hand settled on top of her head. “You should get some sleep. We’ll be starting out early tomorrow.”

  A moment passed as he stepped away, his steps trailing toward the exit.

  “Da, is it really that bad?”

  He paused, and the pregnant silence was enough of an answer for her.

  “I don’t know, Buggy, but those men tonight, if anyone can fix it, it’ll be them.”

  She frowned and stopped him one more time. “Janet’s playing with fire.”

  He chuckled, one foot on the dock, “I wouldn’t be so sure about that. She could be playing with metal.” And he was gone. Rylie squeezed her eyelids shut and breathed in the strange smell that engulfed her.

  This time yesterday...

  She had no idea what had happened. If someone had told her she would be fretting over her da’s business practices and two Cyborgs, she would have laughed. Instead, here she was, soothed by the shallow rocking of the boat and breathing in a strange man’s scent.

  Before her thought ended, she was across the lounge picking up the cups, a shiver crawling up her spine. And with the dishes in hand, she stepped onto the dock, her pathway guided by dim green lights and starshine. She looked back out to the ocean, silently begging it to be the same ocean that she had grown up with. One that produced beautiful jewels, crystalline waters to swim in, and strange creatures.

  Rylie stopped begging and willed it.

  “You shouldn’t be out alone at night,” a heavy voice sounded behind her. She started with a squeak, the cups clinking together in her grip, and put distance between her and the lurker.

  “Netto?”

  Of course, it is.

  “Yes.”

  “You scared me.”

  He shifted away from her, his profile coming into view, and looked out at the ocean as she had moments ago. Even in the dark, she was aware of him, of every movement he made. Rylie squinted her eyes to make out his details but couldn’t. He just looked like a tall man in the dark.

  She was oddly disconcerted by it.

  “I’m sorry,” she blurted out without knowing why.

  His eyes remained on the sea. He stared at it as she stared at him.

  “Why?”

  “I was rude. So was Janet. I know you were invited and doing your job.” She tried to find the words to explain, finding that the darkness gave her courage but not much else. “I...I don’t like surprises...” she trailed off.

  “Stress.”

  “Yes, stress.” She took a step closer to him, closing the distance she had created in an effort to make a connection. “I don’t like outsiders.”

  “Nor does your dad.”

  Rylie smiled. “Nor does my Da,” she echoed.

  They stood companionably for a short time as she turned her attention back to the ocean. The quiet laps of water hitting the shore and the chittering of bugs were the only sound between them. It soothed her.

  “It’s beautiful, isn’t
it? Even at night when the water is black, you can still almost see the reflection of the stars on it.”

  “Yes.”

  “What’s it like out there?” She lifted her gaze to the clusters of lights in the sky, the falling souls, the soft colors of a nearby nebula. “I bet it’s incredible.”

  “It’s quiet,” he answered. Rylie waited for more but he didn’t elaborate.

  “It’s quiet under the water too.”

  “Yes.”

  “You don’t talk much do you?” She glanced at him as he turned to look her way, his face hidden behind shadows.

  “No.”

  She laughed. “Why?”

  “My teeth,” he eventually said.

  “I can’t see your teeth in the dark.” Rylie shifted the drink glasses so they hung from her fingers on one hand. “Lily is really taken with you. She loves the unusual...doesn’t take after either of our parents. They hoped for a boy but wouldn’t undergo in vitro. I think Janet and I scared them from having another girl. When Lily arrived, well, they named her after some flower in hopes she’d be normal,” Rylie chuckled. “Instead, they got a little monster in the making.”

  “Why do you scare them?”

  Rylie shrugged. “Don’t know.”

  “Have you been here your whole life?”

  “I’ve never left the surface. Janet has. I have been to the colony though.” She hugged herself hoping his judgment wouldn’t come. Offworlders looked down on those who weren’t raised and educated on Earth. “We had our schooling electronically.” Rylie added, “I know of Earth.”

  “Hmm...”

  A blush rose to her cheeks. She hated outsiders for this reason.

  “You’re lucky,” he said, pulling her from her thoughts.

  What?

  “People would kill—kill—for what you have. Your dad gave you an insular paradise. Never feel ashamed of it.”

  “I don’t,” she said after a moment, feeling chastised.

  Rylie closed her arms around herself tighter as a gust of wind came in from the ocean. The smell of the water filled her nostrils as the breeze pushed back her hair. She shuffled on her feet and turned her head to protect her eyes. It was a rare night when the ocean mists didn’t descend. When she looked up, the Cyborg was watching her.

  “Cold?”

  Rylie shook her head. “No more than usual. It’s always like this at night.” She watched as the man peeled off his suit jacket, already knowing what he was planning to do. “I don’t need—” Netto placed it over her shoulders. “—Thanks,” she said glumly, sinking into the overly large, stiff fabric. It instantly warmed her from the inside out as if it had just come from the dryer. “Thanks,” she said again, pulling it around her.

  “Yes.”

  It made her feel equally comfortable and uneasy. “I’m not like Janet,” she blurted out and immediately regretted her words. She was happy he couldn’t see her face and pulled his blazer further over her. When he didn’t respond, she changed the subject. “Will you be able to help us?” she asked. “Da is so sure of himself.”

  Netto humphed and took a step toward the water. “Yes.”

  He really doesn’t like talking. Rylie bit her tongue. I think he’s worse than me. If she were a Cyborg, rich beyond belief, powerful enough to rule a planet, and had an endless amount of freedom, she didn’t think she would be as quiet as she was. Her mind briefly thought of Zeph and his brazenness.

  “Thank you,” she whispered, not knowing what else to say.

  Netto moved from her and down toward the shore. Her eyes were glued to the dark figure that crept away, silent and predatory. Another shiver ran up her spine as he began to take off his pants. They dropped to the sand, leaving behind a dark pile. Rylie held her breath as his dark figure met the equally dark water.

  He was about to go into the water at night, something her parents had forbidden her and her sisters from ever doing. Scaring them with tales of riptides, whirlpools, and monsters. And of the fact, that if something should ever happen at night, the likelihood of rescue once below the water was minimal.

  But she couldn’t take her eyes off the Cyborg who was up to his shins in the glittering waves. His presence set off hundreds of light-swimmers all around him. The bright blue creatures drifted toward shore after dark. Rylie found her hand twitching to throw rocks into the water to set off more.

  His skin glows. She was very aware of the jacket still around her shoulders and the penetrating heat that went with it. His unusual, somewhat comforting smell.

  Rylie turned around and scurried up the bluff. When she looked back at the ocean, Netto was gone, as if he had never been there to begin with.

  It made her a little wistful and a little sad.

  Chapter Six

  The music woke her. Rylie sat up in bed, one moment asleep, the next moment tangled in her blanket as she struggled to get up. Her bedroom door slammed open to reveal her wild-eyed sister.

  The holo-clock read three hundred hours and Kepler’s sun had yet to shine through her window.

  “We gotta get down to the watership,” her sister yelled as she ran back to her own room, grabbing an already packed bag, and rushing down the hall.

  “Wait!” Rylie grabbed her own bag, and without a second thought, went after her. Apparently, she and her sister had come to the same conclusion last night: their da was going to start out without them.

  It was dark as she ran from her house down to the docks, knowing her way without guidance, even through the impenetrable early morning fog.

  The music still played and it came as a relief when her bare feet hit the dock. The lights of her watership were an easy beacon to guide her to the end. She was following them when her sister’s laughter pealed through the mist.

  Not Janet’s, but Lily’s. Her baby sibling collided with her, shrill with excitement that only little kids had, laughing and screaming at the same time. Lily knocked her back a step.

  “Woah, you okay?” Rylie wrapped her arms around her sister, who struggled to remain contained.

  “I’m gonna getcha!”

  Rylie looked up as her sister screamed and was lifted out of her arms. Zeph raised Lily up into the air. “Gotcha.” She couldn’t help but smile seeing her spun around, by a frightening Cyborg, no less.

  “You two have become fast friends,” Rylie exhaled and winced at her sister’s high-pitched laughter.

  “I’m fast friends with everyone!”

  Netto stepped out of the fog behind Zeph, impeding on their little bubble. Zeph stopped spinning her sister and lifted Lily up instead, placing her on Netto’s shoulders. Rylie had to strain her neck to look up at Lily’s gleeful face. Baby hands ran all over Netto’s shaved head.

  He looked serious. An odd contrast to Zeph’s and Lily’s faces. His eyes found hers, ignorant of his partner, and she realized she still wore her oversized nightshirt and shorts.

  “It appears you’re the last one to arrive,” Zeph interjected. “I would have wagered on your sister.”

  “I want to be a Cyborg!”

  “You two are encouraging her.” Rylie ignored her embarrassment under Lily’s excitement.

  “Of course we are,” Zeph chuckled. “Who wouldn’t want to be a Cyborg? Look how handsome we are.” He waved his hand between him and Netto. “Although little Lily here is already gorgeous, she would wreak havoc as a Borg, melting everyone’s hearts.”

  Rylie laughed. “I guess that could be her special ability. Heart melting.” She ignored Netto and kept her focus on Zeph and her sister, but it was hard when he stared bullets at her, into her. His eyes heated her skin despite the early morning chill.

  Lily took that moment to yell out, “I want to fly! And have pointy teeth and be blue.”

  “It looks like you’re already flying, little love,” Zeph preened as Lily leaned over Netto’s head and pulled at his lips. It made a funny picture and she wished she had a way to capture the moment.

  “Don’t encourage her. You
two won’t have to be here to see her heartbroken after you leave,” she laughed.

  “I wanna see your teeth.” Lily continued to claw at Netto’s face, who began to shuffle back and forth on his feet to jostle her around.

  “How can we leave such a precious beauty behind?” Zeph smirked down at Rylie, and she had the notion he wasn’t speaking about Lily anymore. “That would be a sin if another Cyborg entered her life and took her under his wing. I’d think Netto and I would have to call him out.”

  She decided to ignore Zeph as she stepped past him. Rylie raised her arms to take her sister from Netto’s shoulders. “Time to come down from there, Lily. We have work to do.”

  To her sister’s fussy cry, Netto lifted her above his head and handed her over. Lily wailed as her playtime ended. Rylie hugged her writhing limbs while she fought to break free. Being the enemy under the dual gazes of two Cyborgs was uncomfortable, and for the first time she was profoundly happy she wasn’t a Trentian...or a soldier on the wrong side of the field.

  Rylie turned and led Lily off the dock and shooed her back up to the house. Their mother retrieved her at the steps of the bluff. When she was safely away, Rylie headed back to the boat, finding the dock empty of strangers.

  She stepped up into the watership, and into an array of unusual tech.

  The men at work were placing the gear away. She scooted past them and into the housing part of the ship, heading toward her bunk. The watership was made like a tugboat but had some of the amenities of a yacht. There was the top deck at the front, the lower deck in the back where they had spoken the night before, and the bridge in between. She passed through the kitchenette and attached lounge, toward the crew’s quarters.

  It was her watership but Da kept the detached captain’s suite. It held a mini-office they both worked in when alone at sea.

  She peeked through the open door into an additional room of bunks and stopped short. Inside was one large, open duffle bag.

  She sucked in her breath and leaned in to look at it. Her fingers tightened their grip on her own bag as she made out a myriad of things she didn’t know the name for. But they all had the look of something that would be used by a Cyborg.