Paladin 2: Chapter 2

Kira was up with the dawn, the next morning. Even though she and Jace had a long trip to take, the farm chores wouldn’t do themselves. The Haven teens were also up and helping, but running a farm was a lot of work, and it wasn’t fair to leave the kids handling all of it, so Kira put in an hour pushing through as much work as she could manage. With her strength and stamina, that was quite a lot.

Once she’d done all she could, Kira went back inside, washed up, and wolfed down a quick breakfast. She was ready to go well before Jace completed his own preparations.

“The coat’s blue will make you look more trustworthy,” Mara was explaining to him as she straightened his navy-blue coat.

“I like my leather one better, though,” Jace complained.

“I know you do, dear. And if you weren’t heading to a fancy banquet, I’d say wear whatever you want! But you are, so I suggest you listen to your wife!”

Kira chuckled under her breath at the exchange. The way Jace and Mara spoke to one another always amused her. She had no memories of how a couple was supposed to interact, but her gut told her the Havens were a good model to follow.

“She’s right, you know,” Kira told Jace.

“She usually is,” he replied. “It’s annoying at times, but I’ve grown used to it! Are you ready to go?”

“All set,” Kira said.

Jace eyeballed her up and down. “No bag? We’ll be staying overnight.”

Kira tilted her head to the left. “I packed a small bag. It’s over by the door.”

“Then I suppose we are ready to go,” Jace replied. “I think I hear our ride approaching, too.”

Because Jace was one of the farmers being honored at the banquet, they’d also arranged a ride for him to attend. They were sending a special air car to pick him up.

Jace leaned in to give Mara a last kiss. “I wish you could come, too!”

“So do I,” she replied. “But the farm will not take care of itself, and as much as I wish I thought the kids would be able to handle it without the two of us…”

“Maybe in a couple of years,” Jace replied with an arched eyebrow. He chuckled. “But no, you’re quite right, not yet. It would be lovely if you could come, though.”

“You know, I could stay here to mind things, and the two of you could travel together,” Kira said. She’d mentioned this once before, when they were first planning for the event, but the Haven’s had opted to send her anyway. She figured it was worth one more try. Big parties with fancily dressed people wasn’t her scene.

At all.

“Kira, you know I’d feel safer if you were there with him,” Mara said. She crossed the distance to stand in front of the younger woman, and took up Kira’s hands into her own. “I know this shindig isn’t something you’d go to, normally. That’s why I appreciate so much your willingness to do it anyway. With all the trouble and strife that’s hit Percival, I’ll feel a lot more secure with you there than I would with myself. You will take good care of my Jace, won’t you?”

What could she say to that plea? “Of course I will.”

Kira owed the Haven’s everything. They’d saved her life when Jace found her dying in the desert. Then they’d put her up, tending to her until she recovered from the dehydration, malnutrition, and exposure that almost killed her. After raiders hit and Kira showed her unique talent for violence, after she went to Sunset City and figured out who those raiders were and—after a fashion—put a stop to the raiding, the Havens then took her back in again, offering her a job and a place to stay for as long as she wanted it.

With no sense of her past, Kira had every reason to feel adrift and lost in the world. Thanks to the Havens, she didn’t, and she would never forget what she owed them for that.

The roaring of an engine caught her ear. “I think the car is almost here.”

“Can’t hear it yet, myself,” Mara said. Then she peered out the window. “But I can see it. Good ears you’ve got.”

Kira snorted. Her hearing had been enhanced, of course, along with most of her other systems and senses. She’d spent a couple of additional sessions with Sage, plugged into the healer’s diagnostic computers while they worked to trace exactly what had been done to her. The hope was that eventually Sage might be able to figure out who had modified Kira so thoroughly. So far no luck in that regard, although it was clearly someone with access to extremely advanced technology.

What they had discovered was just how extensive those changes had been. Kira had a small computer built into her skull. It was nascent right now, for some reason. It wasn’t fully functional, like it had been left in a kind of ‘sleep mode.’ Sage hypothesized that it had something to do with controlling her nanite suite, and that Kira ought to be able to do far more with the microscopic robots than she currently was.

“Don’t know how to fully activate it,” the old woman had said, scowling at the readout from a medical computer as it scanned Kira. “But if it ever does, it might open up some new options for you. This nanite setup is top shelf stuff.”

The little robots were designed to do far more than simply help her heal fast. Supposedly, they could even operate outside her body—in theory, anyway. But without the computer there to control them, or allow Kira to somehow control them, they were much more limited, operating only in their basic, autonomous mode.

Kira stepped outside to meet the air car with mixed emotions. The last time she went to Sunset City, she ended up shot at, had a building dropped on her head, and eventually helping run a rescue mission in space. It had not been a quiet vacation, and while she hoped this trip would be different, the whole thing made her nervous enough that she’d slipped a blaster into her bag. After all, she was going along at least nominally as security for Jace, so being armed just made sense.

She knew Tristan would be the one running overall security for the event, which eased her worries somewhat. The mercenary was smart and almost as capable as herself. Kira grinned a little, at that thought—Tristan would likely have balked at the comparison before grudgingly admitting she was the better fighter. It was something she liked about the man. He was tough as nails, but he wasn’t afraid to admit when someone else was better. With him running security, maybe she could ease back some, this trip, and just enjoy herself.

The air car slid to a stop and then gradually lowered itself to the ground. A large hatch opened upward on the side. Kira peered in and blinked. The driver was young, much younger than she’d expected. He was a dark-haired kid with dusky skin and eyes that showed at least some wit burning behind them.

“Here to pick up Mr. Jace Haven?” the kid asked.

“Can I see your ID?” Kira asked. “Just want to make sure.”

“Oh! Yeah, sure,” the kid replied as he fished out an ID from his pocket. “I’m Sandor. Sandor Perkins, but you can call me Sandy. Everyone does.”

He held the little holographic form up to display for her. Kira checked it over, but it looked valid and accurate. He was who he said he was, and he was a licensed driver. Not really a kid, either—Sandy was nineteen, at least according to the identification.

“Thanks, Sandy. You know where we’re going?”

“Absolutely! Two passengers to the Government Center building, dead center of the city. Won’t be a problem at all, ma’am. I’ll get you there. Then, when it’s over, I’ll take you home again.”

Well, that would be convenient, anyway. Kira glanced over her shoulder to call for Jace, but Mara was already bustling him out the door. He had a small duffle bag in his hand and made his way quickly down the path toward the car.

“I see our ride is here! Let’s not keep him waiting, then,” Jace said—as if it hadn’t been him keeping the car waiting!

Kira kept her smile about that on the inside, simply nodding instead as she gestured to the open doorway. “After you.”

Jace slid into the car, and Kira joined him, her bag on her lap. The door slid smoothly shut once they were both inside.

“Hi, Mr. Haven! I’m Sandy. I’ll be your driver today, and for your trip home as well. If there’s anything you need, my car is stocked! We’ve got water in the cooler back there, and harder stuff too if you’re into that. Also, snacks in that compartment right there.”

Sandy pointed out the snack and beverage containers, but Jace shook his head, a small, amused smile on his face. “I think we’re all right for now. Just had a lovely breakfast my wife made us. But I may take some water later. This is a long drive, yes?”

“It’ll take a few hours, for sure. But I’ll get you there as fast as I can, Mr. Haven,” Sandy replied.

“I’m sure that’ll be perfect. The event doesn’t start until this afternoon, anyway,” Jace said. “Let’s be off!”

The car lifted off the ground, and quickly picked up speed as it zipped down the hill, away from the farm. Kira couldn’t help but feel her gut tense as they sped away. Intellectually, she knew they’d be fine. The raiders were gone. The major threats were past. But part of her, the part that ran on instincts she’d honed in a prior lifetime filled with violence, warned her to remain alert.

She shushed that voice as best she could, but it was insistent enough that she remained tense for the rest of the drive.