DeathWeb (Fox Meridian Book 3) Read online

  ‘We discussed this, Jackson,’ Hoarsen said. ‘We don’t mention the ODR around civilians.’

  ‘You’re right, of course. I’ll signal the orbital mind control lasers.’

  ‘Should he be mentioning the OMCLs?’ Marie asked.

  ‘No,’ Hoarsen replied, ‘but in a minute no one will remember he did.’

  And then David Graves appeared and no one did. It was not the big, muscled form of the general in one of his high-collared suits which caused the stir: Graves was an impressive sight with a handsome face and a cap of pale blonde hair, who was not showing his age even though it was doubtful he resorted to cosmetic procedures. His wife, however, was something else.

  Lucille Graves, according to the data Kit supplied, was twenty centimetres shorter than her husband and looked almost like a child beside him. Obviously far younger, she was very pretty with tanned skin and sun-bleached blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes, and a wide smile. Her body was lush, trim, and fit, muscled from exercise, but fairly obviously enhanced in the bust at the very least. Her dress was a plazkin tube in candy-pink and bright yellow. The yellow panels at front and back were translucent enough to show off the shadows of her breasts and the pink and yellow, high-hipped thong she was wearing under the dress. If that was one of her designs, then, yes, they were Marie’s kind of thing.

  Graves made a beeline for Fox and Marie, waving to the others in passing. ‘This, Lucy, is Fox Meridian, who you haven’t met as yet. Her friend is Marie, and I should introduce you to Terri’s young friend, but Fox is with the company.’

  Lucy beamed, reminding Fox a little of Kit, and held out a hand. ‘Pleased to meet you.’ She had a pleasing voice, lower in pitch than Fox had expected.

  Fox took the hand. ‘Mrs Graves, it’s–’

  ‘Lucy. I’m not old enough to be Mrs Graves yet. Give it another five years and I might feel mature enough. No one called “Mrs Graves” wears an outfit like this, don’t you think?’

  ‘It’s awesome,’ Marie said.

  ‘Marie’s fond of bright colours,’ Fox supplied. ‘Oh, and Helen Dillan’s joining us next month, David. My first recruit.’

  ‘I’ll take a little time to talk to her then,’ Graves said. ‘We’re coming along nicely, really.’

  ‘No business tonight,’ Lucy snapped. ‘Except for me talking dress designs with Marie.’ The little blonde closed in on the taller redhead, a predatory look on her face. ‘I’m feeling a need to get you into some of my designs and in front of a camera…’

  Graves gave Fox a shrug. ‘That’s it. We’ve lost them for the evening.’

  ‘It’ll keep them out of mischief,’ Fox replied.

  Camille Eaves was more of a match for her husband than Lucy was for hers, but on first viewing she did still seem to be there as eye candy. There was a little Mexican blood in her, mostly showing in the olive tone to her skin, but her features and figure were a little more northern European. Her body was slim, with a chest that did not quite match Lucy’s, but still looked as though it had had a little work done on it. She had long legs and quite wide hips. She was, frankly, stunningly beautiful. Waves of blonde hair fell to the upper slopes of her breasts, swept over to the left to give a nice asymmetry and show off a long neck. She had a long, straight nose, full lips, and eyes the colour of aged whiskey. Rather than a dress, she had elected to wear a red jumpsuit, tightly fitted around her legs, halter-necked, with a neckline that plunged to the gold band around her waist. A simple gold chain and more elaborate gold bangles completed the outfit. She was elegant, sexy, and fantastic to look at, and Fox saw her eyes appraising everyone she met with the kind of cool intelligence you saw on cops and criminals.

  ‘Fox Meridian,’ Eaves said by way of introduction, ‘my wife, Camille.’

  Fox took the blonde’s hand, smiled. ‘I’m told you do PR and memetics for Palladium.’

  Camille smiled. ‘Alice warned you not to take me at face value?’

  ‘Yes, but I’d have been wondering what you were if she hadn’t said anything. I could see you watching people.’

  ‘Occupational hazard.’

  ‘Same here.’

  ‘It is very difficult sneaking my numerous affairs past Camille,’ Eaves said, ‘when she’s so damn observant.’

  Both women looked at him. He kept his face straight, though Fox could tell it was costing him. ‘Garth,’ Fox said, ‘no man who goes to bed with a woman like Camille cheats on her unless he’s dumber than a bag of bricks. You’re not fooling anyone.’ Eaves gave a shrug, conceding the point.

  ‘I, however, am amenable to flattery,’ Camille said. ‘I think we’ll get on very well.’

  ~~~

  The banquet left Fox wondering how anyone was going to manage dancing after it. The Palladium/MarTech team got a table of their own, heaped with various different types of food, as were all the other tables in the hall which was being used for the meal. David Graves was the biggest eater, big surprise, but his wife did a remarkable job of keeping up, despite weighing in the same as a damp dishcloth. The woman had to have a metabolism like a furnace. Fox ate her fill, which was a respectable quantity and had Marie shaking her head in disgust, and paced her alcohol consumption, because Marie was not.

  Ryan Jarvis had managed to land himself a very attractive young companion for the night. A quite small woman with a beautiful face and figure, and long black hair, she filled her tiny black tube dress to perfection, appeared to be able to hold her own in the conversation, and was clearly a pro.

  ‘Alice asked me to find him a companion for the evening,’ Sam explained when Fox made the logical leap and asked. ‘Jasmine and I have worked together occasionally. She’s very professional, excellent in conversation on a number of subjects, and if he can walk in the morning, she let him off easy.’

  ‘Meh, it’s the last day and most of the delegates will have hangovers. We can manage without him standing up for a few hours.’

  And then the feasting broke up and there was a general gravitation into the foyer again while the tables were cleared and the band set up, and when the music started slow, presumably to allow conversation to continue and people’s meals to settle, Marie dragged Fox out onto the dancefloor to sway slowly through the motions. They were not alone, but there were relatively few people with them yet.

  ‘I just wanted a few minutes to ourselves,’ Marie said, her body pressed closely to Fox’s as they moved, smoothly and slowly, to the music. ‘It’ll get crazier in a bit, and I’ll get drunker, and I might not get this chance to enjoy holding you.’

  ‘That’s sweet. Lucy hasn’t been talking your ears off, has she?’

  ‘She’s fine. She wants me to fly out to their place in Chicago. She has a friend who does her photography, wants me to model some of her designs. She says some of her stuff is better suited to a body like mine.’

  ‘Going to do it?’

  ‘I get to keep the outfits and it’s free portfolio shots. I don’t want to get into modelling, but publicity photographs are part of the business. It’s good experience.’

  ‘So do it.’

  ‘Yeah… You know, meeting you and Sam is probably the best thing that could have happened to me. I’m really grateful for all the help. And the incredible sex, obviously.’

  ‘Obviously.’

  There was silence for a second or two, aside from the slow, rhythmic music. ‘Are you wearing anything under that dress?’ Marie asked.

  ‘Not a damn thing.’

  ‘Oh… And I don’t suppose we can leave early?’

  ‘No, we can’t.’

  Marie let out a whimper. ‘If I die of frustration, I’m coming back to haunt you.’

  ~~~

  ‘Tara.’ Fox glanced around to find her mother standing beside her. It was Fox’s turn to get the drinks and this was the first time she had been alone all evening. Andrea’s presence was acknowledged with a nod. ‘I wasn’t aware that you and the girl were so intimate.’

  Fox let out a short lau
gh. ‘You’re not old enough to come out with a statement like that, Mom. And her name is Marie. If you’re going to sound insulting, you could remember her name.’

  ‘I didn’t mean to be… I’m sorry, it did sound a little…’

  ‘Bigoted?’

  ‘Insensitive, certainly. I’ve no objection to same-sex relationships, of course. I’m just not used to them.’

  ‘Yeah… Well, Marie and I aren’t planning on getting married or anything, so I shouldn’t worry about it. How are you keeping? You both look pretty good. Both still working?’

  ‘We’re well. Both of us have moved more into politics the last couple of years. Jonathan still has a few acres he tends, mainly for us. He says it keeps him in touch with the people he’s fighting for.’

  ‘That’s nice.’ Fox wondered what kept Andrea in touch with her people. She looked quite the elegant, rather sexy, modern woman in her short black dress, the bodice and capped sleeves made of fine mesh.

  ‘We were wondering whether we might visit you… before we leave on Sunday. Just… catch up a little.’

  Fox began thinking of excuses. The drinks were ready on her tray and she could go, submerge herself in her friends. But then… ‘You’ve got an implant, right?’

  ‘Of course. We’re not entirely backward in the Belt.’

  ‘No, Mom, I’m aware of that. You didn’t have one when I left and I got my first one when I joined up.’

  Andrea’s brow furrowed. ‘No, sorry, of course. Jonathan still uses a wearable. He says he’s too old to go around having things drilled into his head.’

  ‘I’ve sent my address. Come over Saturday. It’s not far from the maglev and the area’s quite safe. I should be in all day. I’ll let you know if something comes up.’

  Andrea gave her a smile. ‘Thank you, Fox. We’ll look forward to it.’

  Returning the smile, Fox picked up her tray and started off to where the rest of the team were busy getting inebriated.

  ~~~

  ‘So,’ Fox said when she had managed to get Terri alone for a few minutes, ‘your father and Mariel.’

  Terri gave a grunt and frowned deeply. ‘Don’t. There is no Poppa and Mariel. I wish there was.’

  ‘You’d noticed how she looks at him then? It’s not just me?’

  ‘Oh no, I’d noticed. He hasn’t noticed. I really feel sorry for her. Poppa’s still in love with Momma and how can a real woman compete with a ghost? I’ve suggested he should at least try another relationship, but he… I think he’s scared of getting hurt again.’

  ‘He is,’ Fox replied flatly. ‘It’s why he’s so protective of you, and why he overdoes the gratitude to me. I was wondering what you felt about it.’

  ‘Oh, I think it’s a great idea. Mariel’s not my mother, doesn’t want to be. She doesn’t want to replace Lysander Martins. She just wants to be part of Jackson’s life. Beyond running his company, I mean.’

  ‘Tough one. Could we get them drunk and naked and slip them into a bed?’

  Terri broke into a giggling fit. ‘Don’t think I haven’t considered that.’

  ‘We’ll hold it in reserve in case we can’t think of anything else, but I’m telling you, Christmas party this year, I’m arranging to have them banging on the boardroom table.’

  There were more giggles. ‘Okay, but can we not mention them “banging” again. I might want Poppa to have a relationship, but I’m not ready to accept that “banging” is involved.’

  ‘Okay.’ Pause. ‘Would you accept “boinking?”’

  ‘No!’

  25th June.

  It was after midnight by the time they had dropped Jackson, Terri, Dillan, and Hoarsen off at the MarTech tower, where Fox had no doubt Terri would not be allowing Dillan much rest, and then Fox and Marie had made it back to the house. They went in through the back door, which gave access to the back stairs, and started to climb.

  Halfway up the first flight, Marie stopped Fox. Fox turned, grinning down at her. ‘What? We’re almost there.’

  ‘Can’t wait,’ Marie replied. She pushed forward, pressing a knee against one of the steps as she dived under Fox’s skirt.

  ‘Hey, we– Ah!’ Fox braced her arms against the walls as Marie’s tongue dived into her, pushing in and thrusting hungrily, only to be replaced by a pair of fingers while the tongue moved up and began work on Fox’s clitoris. To be fair, Fox had been thinking about what they would do when they got home as much as Marie probably had: wound up and not a little tipsy, it took only a minute before Fox’s head rolled back on her shoulders, her back arched, and she was struggling to hold her balance as a tornado exploded up through her body. ‘You’re crazy,’ Fox whispered as she came down.

  ‘We can go upstairs now,’ Marie told her, emerging from beneath Fox’s skirt.

  ‘I’m going to fuck you senseless. You know that, right?’

  ‘Shouldn’t take much effort. Half gone already.’

  ‘Oh, I’m going to put effort into it.’ Turning, Fox pressed her legs back into life and started climbing the stairs.

  Marie let out a groan. ‘Thank God.’

  ~~~

  ‘You’re walking funny.’

  Vaughn gave Fox a frown at the comment, saw the grin, and managed enough irritation to overcome the blush threatening to spread. ‘I had a very good night, but there wasn’t much sleep involved. Marie is looking a little wilted.’

  ‘Ever tried a strapless strap-on?’

  Now there was a blush and Vaughn’s voice dropped. ‘You’re the first girl I ever thought of coming on to.’

  ‘Flattering. Thank you.’

  ‘Yes, well…’ Vaughn’s lips curled. ‘You should see Ryan. I think Jasmine broke him.’

  ‘Sam did say she would leave him without the use of his legs. Are we expecting much traffic today?’

  ‘No, a fair amount of the delegates will be out of here straight after lunch. The place closes down at fifteen hundred. Uh, Ryan’s flying back this evening, so are Garth and Camille. Lucy persuaded David to stay until Sunday so she can go shopping. We might see him here this morning. And I’m here until Monday.’

  ‘I know. Sam mentioned you were spending Sunday with him. You’re coming over to the house tomorrow, right?’

  ‘I see it as my duty to ensure that the refit has worked as specified and that my customers have no complaints.’

  ‘Uh-huh. You’re not fooling anyone, you know?’

  ‘I know. Don’t care.’

  ‘That’s my girl.’

  26th June.

  ‘There are visitors at the door,’ Belle announced, appearing in Sam’s lounge beside Fox. ‘Mister and Mrs Meridian. Kit informed me that they might be arriving.’

  Fox glanced around. Everyone was dressed in something reasonably appropriate. Vaughn’s little spaghetti-strapped top and faded jeans were not something Fox had ever expected to see her in, but the look worked and was decent. Marie was in one of her brightly coloured cropped tops and shorts, fairly normal. Sam actually had a shirt on. ‘Let them in, please, Belle. I’ll go down and meet them. Everyone okay with me bringing them here before I take them upstairs?’

  No one declined, though Marie suddenly looked flustered, and Fox set off at a jog to go down to the front hall. The couple looked up as Fox trotted down the stairs; Jonathan smiled. He was back in a sweatshirt and jeans though Fox had spotted him in a fashionable, high-collared suit at the banquet. Andrea was wearing a flimsy little camisole top in a semi-transparent, candy-striped fabric with a matching bikini bra under it, an almost indecently short dark blue skirt, and white, high-heeled clogs. Her wardrobe had changed a lot in the last decade and Fox was not quite sure what to make of it.

  ‘Is it always so hot in this city?’ Andrea asked. ‘I thought I’d melt just walking over from the maglev.’

  ‘In summer, yeah. Always was, or so I’m told, but global warming didn’t do anything to help. We get rain too, but it’s warm rain. Even the big storms that swing up from the Atlantic te
nd to leave the place sweating.’

  ‘This is… very nice.’ Andrea looked around at the wood panelling of the hall. ‘You must be doing well.’

  ‘Well, I am, but the house is shared. Come on up and meet the others.’ She let them start up and then turned, leading the way through to where her friends had settled, taking a break from organising Sam’s possessions. ‘Everyone, this is Jonathan and Andrea, my parents. And Marie you two have met. She lives in the basement flat. This floor is Sam’s, and he’s the house’s owner.’

  Sam took Jonathan’s offered hand. ‘Sam Clarion. I was Fox’s next-door neighbour until I inherited this place, and I suppose I’m her landlord now.’

  Andrea gave Sam a big smile as she shook his hand. ‘People usually call me Andy,’ she said.

  ‘And Alice Vaughn is the CMO of Palladium and not a house mover.’

  ‘I was in charge of the renovations on the house,’ Vaughn said, smiling and shaking hands. ‘Since I was in town, I wanted to see how everyone was settling in.’

  ‘Nice meeting you all,’ Jonathan said. His smile was broad and not quite as fake as Andrea’s. That said, Andrea seemed in a brighter mood than she had been most of the week.

  ‘I’d imagine you’re happy with the way things went at the conference?’ Vaughn asked.

  ‘It went as I expected,’ Andrea replied. ‘I think even those who think it’s a bad idea expect this to pass.’

  ‘Unless there’s a quite remarkable change in opinion before the second of August, yes. We’ll be ready for it. It’ll take at least six months for the legal niceties to be ironed out and we’ll have all our products and services fully ready long before then.’

  ‘We’ll go up and leave this lot to shifting things,’ Fox said. ‘See you in a bit, guys.’

  Upstairs, Fox took her parents to the lounge. ‘Sorry if the place looks a little spartan, Dad. There’s some VR decoration on top of the basic.’

  ‘It looks nice. Art deco, right?’ Jonathan pulled a glasses case from his pocket and put on a visor-like pair of specs with a thickened earpiece which suggested a VR set. ‘Oh yeah, not much in addition. I like it.’

  ‘Ah, well since you can see the v-tags now, you should meet the other members of the household. Belle, Kit, would you mind showing yourselves?’