Chapter 7
A month and a half with one John Daggon as a housemate and Vic had actually managed to come to terms with the fact that he was sheltering an alien cop. It took Maria's frequent teasing to remind him that there was anything even slightly unusual about either the situation or the man himself. After some initial awkwardness over issues like hygiene, personal space, and Daggon's unsettling habit of touching people, he had really settled into human culture quite nicely. Tease that she was, Maria's ribbing had become less about Daggon's behavior than about getting a rise out of Vic.
Vic was actually glad that he had found Daggon. Not just a fine cop, the Cirronian was a good friend, one of Vic's few. Evenings not spent knocking back drinks with Maria were generally spent hanging out with Daggon, discussing the differences between the legal systems of their respective homes.
Tonight, though, Maria was attending her godson's birthday party and Daggon was at the hospital again. He made a point of visiting Karen there whenever he was in town and even more frequently than Jenny had originally suggested, something the Doctor welcomed as both good for Karen and a chance to keep a covert eye on Daggon. For her part, Maria was following through on her threat to meet with Jenny regularly. Daggon was no fool, knew that the two women were keeping tabs on him, but he did not care in the least. He cared about Karen and visited her every chance he got.
With Maria and Daggon both gone, it was just Vic. Just as well, really, he decided. It had been a horrendously long day at the office, with two mob families in the middle of a battle for supremacy. One of them, run by some guy who went only as Zin, was new on the scene and making a bloody splash, meaning lots of extra work for every homicide and vice cop in the precinct. Tempers were short at the precinct and no one was socializing with anyone else from the station on their down-time, needing to draw a clearer distinction between their work and personal lives. Maria and Vic were not spending even half as much time together as normal, usually only meeting in church on Sundays.
Physically and emotionally exhausted, Vic sat alone in his dark living room, watching an X-Files rerun and drinking a warm beer. Maria would have been appalled and called him a heathen for drinking his beer warm, he reflected with a smile. He raised his bottle in a silent toast to his absent partner and recited Mulder's monologue to Scully along with the character.
He looked up at a light rapping on his door, wondering who would be knocking at this hour. Daggon and Maria both had keys, and if it had been work related, someone would have called. Wondering who else that left, he put his beer down and rose, walking to the door. As he took a quick look out the window, part of him hoped that it might be Mel.
Not Mel, but a young woman, professionally attired and looking over her shoulder like the devil himself was after her. Vic quickly opened the door. She spun to face him, her expression wary as she regarded him. Vic revised his initial assessment of her to an age of not more than eighteen or nineteen. A very attractive and mature eighteen or nineteen, certainly, but still just a kid. A 'kid' who looked ready to break his neck if he moved too suddenly…
"Help you?" he asked in a neutral tone, his curiosity peaked.
"John Daggon here?" she asked in a low, expressionless voice, sparing another glance over her shoulder.
Vic frowned at that, wondering if she was being chased. "No, not right now. You want to come on in and wait for him to get back?" he offered.
She shook her head shortly. "I'll come back."
"He shouldn't be much longer," Vic told her, reaching for her shoulder as she turned.
Her hand shot up and caught his wrist in a vice-like grip. "Do not touch me," she whispered, shaking her head faintly.
Vic looked down at the delicate hand on his wrist. Tiny creature, super-human reflexes, unnatural strength. Shit…
"You're a fugitive," he whispered.
"I am." She nodded and released his hand, taking a single step backwards. "I'll return."
"How did you get this address?" Vic whispered, not at all sure that he liked the idea of them knowing who he was or how to find him.
"Relax, Detective. Only a handful of us have it. I was able to… find it." She allowed herself a bitter smile.
"What do you want with Daggon?"
"To turn myself in. I'll return."
"Whoa, hang on!" Vic reached for her shoulder again, snatching his hand back.
"And they call humans slow learners." She shook her head again. "Where is he?"
"He's… visiting a friend."
"I see." She nodded faintly. "When is he expected back?"
"Been gone for awhile now, so it shouldn't be too long." He hesitated, a little nonplussed to find himself making polite conversation with a fugitive. "So, you… want to turn yourself in?"
Another faint nod. "May I wait for him?"
"Uh…" Vic shifted uncomfortably.
"Hello, Vic," Daggon's cheerful voice rang out as he walked up the sidewalk to the front step. "Who is your friend?"
"Aeko, sir," the fugitive informed him, turning to face him and inclining her head politely.
"No dead bodies on the front porch!" Vic hissed frantically when Daggon reached for his pocket.
Daggon frowned faintly but nodded. "Inside," he ordered, walking up to Aeko and wrapping one hand around the back of her neck.
She grunted and made a face but allowed herself to be steered past Vic and into the kitchen.
"Sit." He pointed towards the table and pulled out his Collector, handing it to Vic. "Watch her," he directed, stepping around Vic and walking to his room.
"Daggon!" Vic protested, staring after him, then deciding that he did not want to turn his back on a fugitive. He could only hope that the fugitives were unaware of the fact that Daggon's Collector could only be used by another Cirronian.
"Relax, he'll be back," Aeko assured him easily. "In the meantime, it's not like I'm going to lay eggs in your chest while he's in the house."
Vic's eyes widened. "Eggs? In my…"
"Joke," she informed him, rolling her eyes. "Honestly… Last time I checked, this body isn't equipped to lay eggs."
"Climate's wrong anyway, Vic," Daggon added, returning to the kitchen. "She couldn't possibly be in season in the middle of a Chicago winter." He retrieved his Collector from Vic who was standing in the middle of the kitchen looking staggered, and turned his attention to Aeko. "You will tell me the specifics of your crime," he ordered.
"I was convicted of sabotage by the Dessarian Authority and of High Treason by the Migar Security Council." She looked up at him, her expression sullen. "You know that, though. So what do you want to know?"
"Your husband was never caught, was he?"
"No, he never was," she replied in a bitter voice, not looking at him.
"I am sorry."
Her head shot up and she regarded him with mute surprise. "For what that's worth," she managed finally. "Thank you."
"Why did you do it?"
"I thought he loved me."
Daggon nodded slowly and touched his palm to her forehead. "You made the right choice in coming to me."
She closed her eyes and nodded, leaning her face into his hand.
"What's her crime?" Vic whispered.
"She shared valuable physics research with her husband. He sold it to the Vardians and then vanished, leaving her to face the consequences."
"And she ends up in prison?"
Daggon nodded. "Life term. It's the standard punishment for High Treason."
Vic opened his mouth to speak again.
"You should be aware," Aeko interrupted quietly. When she had their attention, she continued, "Zin selected this planet for a reason. He even selected Chicago for a reason. He hopes to find something here."
"What?" Daggon asked, frowning. He had always assumed that Zin's selection of Earth meant nothing.
"A weapon."
"The Strada Brac?" Daggon whispered, paling. "No, it's a myth…"
"Zin would beg to differ." She shrugged. "There is also a search underway in England. There may be others as well; I don't know."
"How did you find this out?"
"I occasionally serve as a liaison between the fugitives and Doctor Lana."
"Lana is Zin's most trusted Lieutenant," Daggon told Vic in an aside. "She's been missing for many years."
"No, she's been on Earth for many years," Aeko corrected. "Laying the groundwork for Zin's arrival."
"And you work for her?" Vic asked. At her nod, he grabbed Daggon's shoulder. "You can't Collect her life-force. She's too valuable alive."
Aeko's eyebrow shot up. "Kindly define 'valuable'?" she requested in a low, angry voice.
"You're tight with Lana. You can get our boy here information."
"He's not 'my boy', and I prefer to be Collected now, thank you. A life-term on Sar-Top is quick and painless compared to what Lana would do to me if she found out I worked for him."
Daggon glanced from Vic to Aeko, his expression thoughtfully. "You regret what you did, what came of it?"
"You think I'd be here if the answer to that were no?" she scoffed.
"This is your chance to start making amends."
She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. "Damn, I could use a drink."
"I'll get you one."
"How old are you?" Vic asked.
Aeko glared at him. "Old enough."
Daggon handed her a glass of scotch, sitting down across from her. "I can't force you to do this and I wouldn't try. But, I can tell you that it would be the right thing, Aeko. You help me and you start to make up for the deaths you caused," he told her gently.
She glanced down at the glass for a moment, then drained it, extending her hand across the table. "I'm in."
"Good." He clasped her hand in both of his. "I'll be in touch. And you know where to find me if he gets close."
She nodded and rose. "He may have a weak spot," she added.
"Oh?" Vic asked.
"There's a woman."
"Isn't there always?" Vic muttered, shaking his head. "This Lana woman?"
"Hardly." Aeko shook her head. "A human woman. No one knows what he sees in her, but he goes out of his way to cultivate her."
"See if you can get us a name," Vic said.
"I take my orders from him," Aeko reminded Vic, jerking her thumb at Daggon.
"See if you can get us a name," Daggon suggested gently.
"Yes, sir." She nodded.
"Okay, go now. I'll be in touch," he promised.
"Yeah, lucky me." She looked from Daggon to Vic, her expression grim. "Thanks so much for talking him into sparing me." Shaking her head, she turned and started for the door. "Some days it just does not pay to get out of bed…"
***
Mel woke up to the sound of hushed voices and the awareness that she was alone in bed.
"Oh, what does she want with him at this hour?" Mel groaned, knowing that only Lana could be behind Julius' absence.
It was either wait for him to return or go retrieve him. Bored and not particularly inclined to go back to sleep, she rose and shrugged on a silk bathrobe. She found Zin and Lana in quiet conversation in the office adjoining his bedroom, standing near each other, their heads together. Both were dressed in bathrobes as well: Lana had obviously been pulled from bed herself by whatever business she had for Zin.
It had bothered her at first that they lived together, especially since Lana had a habit of walking into Zin's living quarters in the mansion without knocking, but she had soon gotten used to the idea. She sometimes suspected that Lana was more deeply involved in Zin's work than Zin himself was. The girl was never without at least two tasks to occupy her attention. Mel sometimes wondered if she had even noticed that Zin was a male. Besides which, Zin seemed to view her almost paternally. They had certainly never slept together and she knew that for a fact. Mel had been a little shocked to discover that her first time with Zin was his first time ever.
Lana looked up first. "Ah, good evening, Miss Porter. Did we wake you?"
That was what bothered her now, more than any amount of intimacy between Zin and Lana could have. These impromptu 'business' chats never continued once either of them became aware of her presence. Zin would either send Lana off or return Mel to bed and then return to Lana. Either way, the details of his business were still an almost complete mystery to her beyond the few generalities he had shared on their first date.
Part of her knew that she should probably question this fact, but another part quietly insisted that to question Julius would be to alienate him. She wondered at that response, too, though. Surely Julius, constantly encouraging her to expand her horizons as he was, would not object to a few direct questions. Except that he would and she knew it. So it was either challenge his secrecy and lose both a lover and a teacher or continue to play the dumb little girlfriend and retain both. And just as she had never questioned Rod, she refused to question Julius.
"Oh, no, Lana." Mel smiled faintly at her, shaking her head. "Just curious what Julius was up to at this hour."
"Talking shop, as always," he assured her with a laugh. Leaving Lana's side for a moment, he approached Mel, gently stroking her throat as he whispered, "Go back to bed, Melanie. I'll be back in just a few minutes."
"Everything okay?" she asked, half-closing her eyes.
"It will be."
He kissed her tenderly for a moment before gently turning her and ushering her back into the bedroom. Smiling, he untied her belt and let her robe slide to the floor, taking a moment to admire her before pulling back the covers and helping her into bed. Another kiss, a gentle caress, and he pulled the sheet up to her chin.
"I'll be back in a moment, Melanie, and then we'll work on tiring you out enough to get you back to sleep, okay?"
She smiled. "I'll be waiting."
"I know." Zin winked at her and then returned to his office.
Lana was perched on the edge of her desk, her short robe revealing rather a lot of well-shaped leg.
Zin took a moment to admire the view before inquiring, "Showing off, my dear?"
"Mmm, just trying to point out that Melanie Porter is not the only creature on the planet with great legs." Lana winked and hopped off the desk, her expression demure.
"Smart-ass…"
Lana ignored him. "So I should go ahead and have him killed?" she asked, careful to keep her voice low with Mel awake in the next room.
"Yes." Zin nodded. "He'll be a good example to our other human… associates."
"Subordinates," Lana corrected him mildly.
"Subordinates," he corrected himself, nodding. "Now run along." He gave her throat a gentle squeeze. "After all, you need your beauty sleep, my dear." He gave her a gentle pat on the behind as she left, then returned to the waiting Mel. "Sorry about that, Melanie," he told her, slipping off his robe and climbing back into bed.
"You've been so busy lately," she sighed, snuggling against him. He raised an eyebrow at her words and she shrugged, dropping the matter. "You're going to exhaust yourself, Julius."
"I know, I know." He gave her a tolerant smile, wrapping his arms around her. She was well-trained, always knew when not to push. "But we're trying to acquire some new properties. Once we're more firmly established on that front, I won't need to work such odd hours, I promise."
"You'd better not have to," she grumbled with mock-severity.
He chuckled. "So, what did you learn today?"
"Well, I'm getting very good at healing. Not just bruises any more, either, but cuts, too."
"Splendid!"
"I don't even leave a scar any more," she told him proudly.
"My, my, aren't we the bright girl?" he asked, smiling down at her. "Melanie, you have no idea how much this news pleases me. How about opening locks? Weren't you supposed to start on that this week as well?"
She nodded. "I'm up to turning deadbolts. Still having a little trouble with regular locks."
"Well, you'll get there," he promised.
"Why do I have to learn how to open locks anyway?" she yawned, resting her cheek against his chest.
"You never know when you might accidentally lock yourself out of your apartment," he teased. "Trust me, Melanie. It will help with the other skills you'll be learning."
"If you say so." Mel grinned up at him. "So, what's after breaking and entering?"
He chuckled. "Self-defense, of course."
"What, like Karate?"
"No. We'll be teaching you to use your powers to defend yourself."
"How's that work?"
"You'll see," he promised. "I'll arrange a demonstration."
"Great," she murmured.
"There is one more thing we need to talk about," he told her.
"What's that, Julius?"
"Daggon."
"Who?" she yawned.
"I've been putting off telling you. I didn't want to alarm you." Zin sighed. "But the more we accomplish here, the more likely it becomes that he'll come after you."
Mel was no longer even slightly tired. "Come after me?" she repeated, staring up at him.
He nodded slowly. "Melanie, a man like me earns enemies."
"Enemies?" she whispered, blinking.
"Daggon wants to take me down in a very bad way. He may go after you to get to me. This is why I want you to learn how to use your powers in self-defense."
"Oh, God. You really think he'd try to hurt me?"
"Hurt you, or try to turn you against me with words." Zin shrugged. "You need to guard yourself, not trust strangers."
"I… I won't," she promised. "I'll be careful."
"Good girl." He smiled down at her again. Affection and gratitude ensured that she would be inclined to believe him. Now that she knew to consider Daggon an enemy, there would be little he could accomplish. Any negative word about Zin out of anyone's mouth would be suspect. It was a beautifully simple system, and one that would only increase her loyalty to him as time progressed. She was definitely a find, his Cirronian pet. "Now go back to sleep."
"Not tired."
His smile widened. "Good. Neither am I."