MASS EFFECT ANDROMEDA: HOLLOW WORLDS
CHAPTER 16
Vidal's eyes locked on her tightly as she strolled back into the private room on Tartarus. The dark red hue from the lights created a shadow over his skin. A smirk moved across his tan lips as he kept his position on the couch. His arms outstretched across the back. "There you are. Thought your friends may not let you come back to see me."
"They just had concerns…" Torvi felt embarrassed as she stood there in the doorway. An unseen force placed a restraint on her legs. She was frozen in place. "How do Vetra and Drack know you?" She heard a bit from them as they expressed their concerns, but she wanted to hear it from him.
"When it comes to moving supplies to and from the port, we all have our connections." His explanation was vague, filtering out the details that he preferred to keep hidden. Ryder crossed her arms as she stared at him. However, he didn't budge. "Sorry, we all have our secrets."
"So, our time on Earth meant crap?" Her emotions boiled over. "You can't even trust me."
"I barely know you, Ryder." Reyes admitted.
"I gave myself to you!" Torvi felt her voice elevating. It wasn't like it was her first time ever, but still, she felt like they had a bond. How foolish of her. She felt silly. As if she was a young teenager flopping around over some celebrity that was ten years older. She was trying to be professional given her current title. Reyes was about business, but this was personal. Hot tears seeped at her ducts wanting to be released like a waterfall down her cheeks. She refused to give him the courtesy. Her sudden outburst made the man sit there speechlessly.
Finally, after several seconds of awkward silence, Reyes stood up from the couch to move closer over to her. Torvi remained guarded. She wouldn't allow silly emotions get the better of her this time. "I have to be discreet in my line of work," He explained coolly.
"'Your line of work'"? Ryder was not buying it.
"Until we deal with the issues on Kadara port, then I cannot be with you." He reached out and gingerly lifted her chin up to allow her blue eyes meet his olive ones. "Trust me. I do want you."
His soft words created a chill down her spine and she felt her lips trembling at the glimpse of hope of tasting him once more. "What issues are we talking about? You mean like Sloane's rule and the Charlatan?"
"Exactly."
"Sloane has strict control on the port, but I don't trust the Charlatan."
Reyes removed his hand quickly and there seemed to be slight flicker of anger inside his eyes. "What do you mean?" His voice neutral.
"These murders on the port. Innocent angaran. All because the Collective and Sloane are trying to play king of the mountain…. literally."
"The Collective is not like Sloane."
"We don't know that. You said nobody knows who this guy really is. We remove Sloane and what we will get in return?"
The man shrugged. "Someone who the angaran can trust. No protection fees."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Positive."
His certainty made Ryder lift an eyebrow to him as she looked for an explanation. "I thought you were a betting man."
"I am. I have seen how the Collective works…it can't be worse than this."
"Yet, you supply Sloane as well. "Torvi tossed back to him as she played devil's advocate.
"You wound me," He joked as he gently kissed her, allowing his lips to linger on hers. His hot breath caressed her skin. Moving his mouth to her left earlobe, he kissed her there sweetly and whispered, "I have missed you."
Melting as she felt his lips touch a sensitive area, Ryder could no longer withstand being angry with him at the moment. She wrapped her arms around his waist and placed them on the center of his back, drawing him closer. "I just want something familiar, Reyes. You have no idea what hell I have been through."
Unexpectedly, the man withdrew from her, placing more distance between them. "I can't do this now. Not yet."
"Why not?" She pressed as she moved towards him again, but he held up his arms to keep her away.
"Please," His voice almost pleaded as he tried not to break. "You know you make it very hard."
"What hard?" Torvi teased seductively with an innuendo.
Reyes laughed lightly. "You are very dirty." He moved to the couch once more and sat down. "I have received information that pockets of the Roekaar are popping up over various key sites on Kadara. I suspect they may be part of the murders."
Torvi sighed in frustration. "Back to business already?" She fought the faction of angaran on Havarl and Voeld. It seemed that they also took interest in the other planets like the kett.
"I thought that was the reason you came to see me," He teased.
"I did plan to stop here before I head out to check on something…" She thought back to her true intentions. She did want to see him again, but she went back to the station to find the kett transponder.
Vehn Terev was using it communicate with the kett when he betrayed the Moshae. It was time to take the fight to the ugly fucks that inhabited their "golden worlds."
"Oh?" This time Vidal lifted an eye ridge, his interest peaked at the subject matter.
Torvi grinned meanly. "Confidential."
Reyes chuckled, but she could tell her decision not to include him did strike a nerve. "Just remember I have connections in the wilderness."
Feeling confident in the location of the transponder, Ryder declined the invitation with a shake of her head. "I'm good for now. I know where to find you."
"That you do. Just do me a favor?"
"What's that?"
"Stay careful. Kadara is not Earth. No one can be trusted. Everyone has their own agenda."
