“Back to the Blood Circuit, I guess.” He shrugged, his broad shoulders rolling. “It’s the only other place I feel like I belong. I’ll fight for myself this time, instead of a Mistress.”
“But that’s so dangerous!” Jillian protested. “You told me the kinds of monsters and creatures you had to fight and you were younger back then!”
“My Ursus can handle whatever they throw at me,” Kalis said stoically. “And if he can’t, well…” He shrugged again, leaving the words unspoken.
Jillian felt like a cruel hand was squeezing her heart.
“I wish you wouldn’t go there,” she whispered tightly. “I’m sorry you don’t feel like you can stay here, but couldn’t you just get another job and we could avoid each other? Couldn’t you just try to forget about me and find someone else? Some other Earth woman who wouldn’t be so…so frightened of your Ursus?”
The thought of running into him with another woman on his arm was excruciating—but still not as bad as the thought of the big Kindred living his last years in a cruel, blood-soaked ring fighting for his life.
Kalis only shook his head.
“For me, there’s no one but you, little Mistress,” he said softly. “I don’t want any other female. If I can’t have you, I have to leave. I’m sorry.”
“When will you go?” Jillian whispered, looking up at him with stinging eyes.
“Tomorrow after dinner service,” he said promptly. “Don’t want to leave you short-handed the very first night you’re rolling out a new menu.”
“Okay.” Jillian supposed she ought to say something about him giving her two weeks notice, but really, what point was there? He’d clearly made up his mind to go and there was nothing she could do about it.
“Okay,” Kalis echoed her. He reached out and brushed her flushed cheek with his knuckles gently. “Take care of yourself, Jillian. Promise me you won’t go to the Buy-All-Sell-All alone.”
“I…I won’t,” she whispered. “Hard or Kind will go with me.”
He nodded.
“Good. Then when I think of you, I can picture you safe and happy aboard the Mother Ship.”
Safe but not happy, whispered a little voice in Jillian’s head. Don’t let him go, Jillian—tell him to stay! Tell him you’ll try!
But the memory of the huge green Grizzly thing rose in her mind’s eye, its snarling jaws and steak-knife fangs—and the words stuck in her throat. She could only say, “Goodbye,” and nod as the big Kindred walked slowly away down the corridor, soon to be out of her life forever.
42
“Well, they seemed to like the new menu,” Lydia said brightly, as they were closing down the kitchen for the night. She and her husband, Lor, had been back for some time now and were working as diligently as ever.
They were going to have to work a little harder until she could find a replacement for Kalis, Jillian thought dully. The big Kindred had finished with his station and then, when the last ticket was filled, he had excused himself quietly and left. She hadn’t been able to watch him go, knowing as she did, that she would never see him again. That had been almost an hour ago
“Chef? I said the customers seemed to like the new menu,” Lydia said again, pulling Jillian out of her morose thoughts.
“Oh, yes—it seems to be a big hit,” Jillian said dully. She tried to smile, but the expression felt more like a grimace.
“Say, are you all right?” Lydia looked at her with concern on her freckled face. “I don’t want to step over the line, but you haven’t seemed like yourself tonight at all. In fact—”
“Chef? Call for you.” Lor’s deep voice cut through his wife’s worried words.
Jillian looked up quickly, eager to get away from her line cook’s searching eyes.
“Yes? Who is it?” she asked.
Lor shrugged.
“Someone from Communications says they have a call from Earth for you. You want to take it?”
He was still holding the cordless communications device, which provided the line the restaurant used for outside calls and to take reservations. You couldn’t use a Think-me for things like that because mental communication was so intimate and usually reserved for people you already knew.
“Yes, I’d better take it.” Jillian took the com-u from him and nodded her thanks. Then she took it into the pantry for privacy and closed the door behind her.
“Hello?” she said, putting the small device to her ear.
“Ms. Jillian Marks?” a Kindred voice said.
“Yes—that’s me,” Jillian replied.
“We have a call for you from Earth. Will you accept it?” the Communications officer asked.
“Yes. Yes, of course.” Jillian nodded, though she knew the officer couldn’t see her.
Her heart was pounding as she wondered if maybe it was Kalis calling. Maybe he’d decided to make a trip to Earth for some reason and he was asking her to come down and spend some time with him so they could talk a little more. Maybe he was willing to compromise and leave his Ursus out of the equation after all…