Assassin by Another Name Read online

  ***

  It wasn't easy, making it to the third floor. And entering the fourth floor had tested his skills to the limit. The thought brought a smile to his lips. Much of his work had involved infiltrating smaller groups - planetary criminal gangs, small Dark Side cults, and the like. It was nice to have to work for a change.

  Wrapping psionics around himself like a cloak, he walked along the hall towards the small office he'd selected. The technique wouldn't render him invisible (there were techniques that could, but they warped the path of light and left the user blind...), but it would encourage the weak-minded to simply fail to notice his presence as long as he remained discrete.

  The mental discipline for the technique was tiring, but worth it.

  Sanit's private office lay ahead. It hadn't been his first choice, but he'd quickly realized it was his only choice. The information he required, after all, was hardly likely to be found in the public network in a folder conveniently labeled "SECRET MONEY LAUNDERING INCRIMINATING DETAILS", after all. He'd have to simply download the full contents of San's private network, and sort through them later...

  The office door was unlocked. And slightly warm to the touch.

  Quentin frowned, relaxing his mental disciplines to better focus on the task before him. He made a quick gesture, causing the dull silver bracelet on his wrist to unfold, enclosing his hand in something like a lace glove of metal threads. Best to be prepared, he decided.

  The room appeared empty, but the senses of a Justiciar felt the whisper of displaced air on his skin. Caught the faint whiff of a familiar scent, heard the soft rustle of cloth and the suppressed exhalations of someone breathing. He shifted his feet, slowly raising one gloved hand as he activated an identical bracelet on the other. He wasn't...

  "Quentin?"

  Wait, what?

  Kaydia rose from behind the desk, clad in a form-hugging black gown that managed to be able to be both utterly modest and still leave no doubt of her raw sexuality. "I must sound like a malfunctioning hologram," she whispered, "but what are you doing here?"

  "I..." he started to say, then froze as he heard distant, approaching footsteps. Kaydia must have heard them as well, the way her emerald eyes flickered to the door. Then she moved, hands making fists in his lapels as she dragged him back towards the desk.

  Play along. The thought wasn't his, but as her tongue thrust into his mouth he found he wasn't concerned about whose thought it was. He pressed her back against the desk, his left-hand tangling in her hair as his tongue fought hers. The intention was to fake making out, as if they were just two drunk party goers, looking for a place to fool around away from the prying eyes of the party. However as soon her lips brushed his, fake kissing turned into real passion, deep hunger consuming them both as she opened his mouth with her tongue. She may have intended to put on an act, but there was no denying the desire that built as the kiss lingered, and grew deeper. He made a hungry sound against her lips as his right hand slid down to her hip, twisting and bunching the long fabric until he felt the smooth skin of her thigh beneath his fingers.

  Breaking away from the kiss, he pulled her bared leg around his hip and ground his hardening erection against her. His left hand tightened, and lips and teeth dragged at her high collar as he tilted her head back. Unconcerned about the approaching guard now he bit at her, little stinging pains soothed by his lips and tongue.

  ***

  Trembling fingers worked at the buttons of his shirt, fighting against a manic urge just to rip it open and caress his muscles. Instead she kept him close with her leg wrapped around him, her ankle digging in the back of his thighs. The sharp graze drew a gasp from her lips, fading into a shuddering moan as his tongue played over it. Finally she had his shirt open enough to fit her hand, grasping at his chest with needy fingers.

  “Fucking hell, HEY!” The door opened and lights flashed in, converging on their position. So lost in Quentin’s embrace, Scarlet forgot it was an act, or rather, was supposed to be an act. Which, paradoxically, made her performance all the more believable, clinging desperately to Quentin, as the security patrol entered the room. “Seriously? You passed over a whole floor of bedrooms to fool around in an office?”

  “See Harlan,” she quipped, managing to remember to use his cover name, “if we had picked a suite on the third floor we would have gotten further along before we got caught.” Scarlet quipped, unable to take her hands off him even as her feet found solid ground. The patrolman didn’t look particularly amused, turning his attention to Quentin.

  “Auditor Kwan Don, I can either escort you and your acquaintance back to the party, or I can arrange for a driver to take the two of you to a nearby hotel. We give them a lot of business, so they’ll give you a good rate. Regardless, I have to see you both to the elevator right now. I trust you two aren’t going to give me any trouble?”

  “I’ll be good,” Scarlet insisted, arm wrapped around his waist, unsure if she was playing up her performance for the guard, or truly unwilling to disentangle from Quentin, “for now.” The guard led them to the elevator, using a key card on his person to engage it and send them to the first floor.

  “So should I call for a driver, or you two returning to the party?”

  ***

  Not trusting himself to speak, Quentin busied himself with buttoning his shirt and straightening himself up as Kaydia spoke to the guard. The guard. Hells, he'd become so thoroughly distracted by her that he'd forgotten that the guard was on his way. How did she do that to him?

  "Auditor?"

  "Huh?" Quentin responded, looking at the guard blankly.

  The guard sighed, patience wearing thin. "Should I call you a car, or..."

  "No, no, no need," Quentin managed, not quite looking at Kaydia. "I've transport of my own, and I really should mingle a little more before leaving." He stepped into the elevator as the door opened. "My, ah, my apologies."

  The guard shook his head. "Just don't let me catch you up here again, and we'll call it even."

  Kaydia's presence seemed to fill the elevator as the door closed. He could smell her, feel her heat in his skin. Curious and trying to fill the tension, he turned to ask her what she was doing there. She must have had the same idea, because suddenly they were face to face.

  There was no planning, no conscious decision to what came next. He opened his mouth, intending to ask her a question. But then he was pinning her against the wall with his body, hands exploring her as his hips ground against her, his tongue and his animal sounds of hunger filling her mouth.

  ***

  "No, no, no need. I've transport of my own, and I really should mingle a little more before leaving."

  Scarlet tried to disguise the disappointment with which his remark had filled her. Not that it should have been a surprise. After all, it’s not like they were back together or anything like that. Just an act, to reduce suspicion on them, so she could smuggle her holodisk full of incriminating information out of the manse. So, even if she wasn’t leaving with him, she was leaving. Each moment she stayed increased the chances of someone figuring out she had accessed the secure files. Besides, it was probably better that they didn’t leave together, or end up in bed together tonight. She was supposed to kill him, and fucking him would only make that harder. A thought that shifted as she remembered feeling him grow hard against her.

  The door closed them in and despite the air conditioning that functioned perfectly well, it was sweltering. All she wanted in that moment was to tear off his suit and run her fingers over his body. Slip and slide out of her dress as it pooled on the floor and take in the look of frank admiration in his eyes as he gazed upon her. Feel the love flow from his mind to hers; remember how desire felt, instead of terror and repulsion and obligation.

  She looked up at him, looking up into those eyes, pale blue and full of questions and curiosity. I should go, she wanted to say; she knew she should say. The words wouldn’t come though. His own mouth opened, but instead of words, he was ki
ssing her again, pushed against the glass with his firm physique. And now her hands were tangling in his hair, and she answered his moans with her own.

  What was this now? More acting or unconstrained lust? Need, longing, hunger overtook her senses, her concerns, her hesitations. Whatever it was, it stronger that her common sense, stronger than her obligations.

  Kissing madly, neither one was paying much attention as the door opened to whispers and muted laughter. Scarlet felt the gazes, watching their passion with interest and scandal. She didn’t care. Quentin could strip her nude and fuck her brains out right here, in the middle of the ballroom, and she couldn’t bring herself to protest.

  Still, they had to breathe, and when they finally did pull away enough to gasp for breath, Scarlet heard a high pitched whistle come from the back of the room. Nearly uniform laughter broke out, and despite herself Scarlet found her chuckling slightly.

  “Duty calls, hmm?” a voice called to them. Him, most likely. “No wonder you were so quick to ditch me.”

  ***

  Laughter and applause penetrated Quentin's lust-fogged brain, and it suddenly dawned on him that there were two important elements of this elevator: it opened right into the great hall of the state, and on this level it was entirely transparent. As a result, he and Kaydia were putting on a show for the entire party. Which would naturally defer suspicion, but it was not how he'd intended to cover his trail.

  A small part of his thoughts wished they'd gotten further, though. That the whole party could have seen him as he fucked her senseless...

  He shook that thought away. "Uhm, yeah..." He ran his fingers through his hair, face sheepish. "Well..."

  Kell clapped him on the shoulder good-naturedly. "Still trying to get blood back to your brain, Harlan?" he laughed. "No worries, I understand. But you look a little pale. Maybe you should go and lie down?"

  Quentin watched Kell undress Kaydia with his eyes, and fought down the urge to break the man's nose. Instead, he half turned and offered her his arm. "Shall we depart?"

  ***

  “Actually, I should go…” she finally managed, forcing a smile. She kissed him lightly on the cheek, not daring to linger, lest she be pulled back into his arms and lose all resolve, “But it was nice to see you, Harlan. Here’s to hoping we run into each other again” The words were light and playful, but Scarlet knew there was a sinister edge to them. That she would have to kill him if she ran into him again.

  She forced herself to turn away, to walk and not look back. If she looked back she would be lost in his eyes again. If she looked back she would be Kaydia again, as he called out her name in the heat of passion. So she ignored the looks on the rest of the guests as they watched her leave, ignored the needy tears forming in the corners of her eyes. Not stopping until she was back in her rented speeder, sinking into the leather seats.

  “Fuck.”

  ***

  Kaydia left, leaving his arm hanging as he watched her go. After a second of disbelief, Quentin started after her only to find a hand on his shoulder. "Let her go," Kell laughed. "She's hot and all, but you can find another piece of ass." Kell watched her leave as well. "You're on an expense account, after all. And, technically, she'd be a business expense..."

  Kell's laughter was cut off by Quentin's fist. The man crashed hard to the ground, a fine mist of blood spraying from a split lip. For a moment, everything went still as the crowd watched 'Auditor Kwan-Don' struggle with the temptation to fall on the man. His fists trembled, and his face was white with fury. And then Quentin spun on his heel, stalking out of the hall before he lost control once more. The cool evening air didn't sooth his mood, though. And he was acutely aware of Kaydia's absence as he headed for his speeder.

  Real Danger

  “Your assassin isn’t as loyal as you think,” a distorted voice suggested. Linora scowled at the suggestion.

  “She has only had the mission for less than 24 hours. These things take time. If you could provide me more information on her intended target, I can get an estimate on how long it should take,” Linora justified.

  “She’s already found the target,” the voice shot back, sending over security footage of Scarlet tangled up with a man, pressed into the glass wall of an elevator. His hands explored her, caressing and gripping her with desperate need, a desperate need reflected in Scarlet’s arms holding him close.

  “This is…part of her process,” Linora argued, shaken by what she was seeing. She hadn’t seen such passion or desire from Scarlet in the time they had been together. Linora figured the loss of that hunger was just side effect of the reprograming. A piece of her that was lost so that Linora could have her obedient killer. “She’s just acting, to get him alone, so she can make her move.”

  “And how is that going to work when he shows up and dead and this video of her with him turns up? She has no intention of killing him.”

  Linora knew the client was right. She could see it in the genuine smile and look of happiness in Scarlet's eyes as the people around them laughed. A look she never saw in Scarlet's eyes. Not anymore. Linora frowned as jealousy tore through her.

  "I'll send in my own people to take care of it. Consider our contact completed."

  “I understand," Linora said simply, holding down her anger. Who in the hell was this man, who could distract Scarlet so? She watched the holovid play, zooming in on the man, so she could understand how Scarlet could be divert form her task.

  Those eyes, gazing upon Scarlet with hunger and...love? Eyes that had once looked into Linora's own with those same emotions flowing from his mind to hers. Dammit, no wonder Scarlet had gotten off task. All of the people in the galaxy, she had been sent against the one man who could unravel all the conditioning Linora had spent months working on.

  "Quentin. I’m going to fucking kill him this time."

  ***

  Quentin sat alone on the bed in his suite, legs folded and hands resting on his knees, seeking peace once more. He'd lost control. The thought chased itself through his mind. He'd lost control. Kell was a pig, it was true. But... he'd lost control. Lost his grip on his emotions, lashed out with anger and frustration.

  Kaydia had suffered. He'd felt it all, when she'd attacked him with her memories. Suffered terribly, as Linora had heaped abuse and degradation and suffering on her. Suffered, because he'd been unable to find her. Suffered, because he'd given her up for dead. Suffered, until all trace of the woman he'd loved had been extinguished.

  But he remembered the feel of her fingers on his skin as she'd tugged open his shirt. The way she'd returned his passion in the elevator, when she'd been under no obligation to do so. The feel of her mind against his, opening to his thoughts as he welcomed her. Was Kaydia dead? Really dead? Was Scarlet all that remained. He didn't think so. But she had been wounded, and forced into hiding. Driven deep down into her mind, where the persona of Scarlet could protect her real self from the horrors that had been inflicted on her.

  Inflicted by Linora, the woman he'd once loved.

  "Linora. I'm going to fucking kill her this time."

  ***

  Returning back to her hotel room that evening, Scarlet found that Quentin still weighed heavily in her mind. She could still feel his warmth on her skin, taste his mouth on her tongue, hear his longing cries in her mind. Fuck, she still wanted him, craved him, needed him. Retreating to the bathroom, she ran herself a bath before getting undressed. A bath was a tad bit indulgent, but she couldn’t help but think back to their last time, as he fucked her in the tub on Linora’s ship. When he assured her that he still loved her and needed her. When there was still hope for their relationship, and she was still Kaydia.

  Sinking into the heat of her bath, Scarlet found she still couldn’t relax. Unsatisfied desire gnawed at her, consumed her, and without thinking, her hands moved down her body, in a way she wished his hands had.

  Her mind went back to the elevator, only this time, he spun her around before pushing her against the glass wall. O
ne hand went around her waist, holding her against him, so she could feel his growing erection press into her ass. His other hand began unzipping her dress, while teeth and tongue teased her earlobe.

  “I missed you, Kaydia,” He murmured, as the zipper lowered to reveal the smooth skin of her back to him. She shuddered as he spoke that name, her name, or at least, it once was. Only with him could she be Kaydia again.

  “Quentin,” she gasped, begged as he kissed her neck, fingers trailing along her bare back. “Fuck, I need you.” His hand circled around her hip and down her stomach, slipping inside her panties.

  “They are watching us,” he whispered against her ear, his fingers moving down to toy with her clit.

  “Let them…let them watch…” she moaned, raspy breaths interrupting her thoughts, “Let them watch… as you… bring me …to orgasm. Let them watch me …cum.” He groped her breast form outside her dress, teeth digging into her shoulder as his finger explored her wet heat. She was lost in the nirvana of his touch, of his kiss, of his embrace, so far gone surrendering to bliss that she didn’t even protest as he gathered the fabric of her dress at the neck, pulling it down her body as he stroked harder and deeper into her depths. It didn’t take much coaxing before it was puddled on the floor of the elevator, and she was clad in merely a bra and panties.

  She turned now, interrupting his rhythm just long enough to face his, tearing at his pants with the same eager hunger he had shown her. “Fuck me,” She implored, before thrusting her tongue in his mouth, slipping out of her soaking panties. His fingers, still dripping with her lust, gripped her under her ass, picking her up and wedging her between the glass wall and his body. Penetration was sudden, and overwhelming, followed by a shuddered scream of satisfaction. He fucked her into the wall, her ass cheeks smudging the glass and squeaking with his movement.