Dark Space - Marianne de Pierres [24]
Ra had become a foregoing malignant ghost.
Was his cousin trying to second-guess him? Or were their ideas uncannily taking them to the same places?
Tekton’s free-mind liked to think it was the former, indicating that, perhaps, Ra might feel somewhat threatened by Tekton, despite his apparent arrogance.
Tekton’s logic-mind, however, told him that this notion was based purely on ego and that evidence suggested that Ra merely had an inquiring mind and a strong work ethic. And if knowledge was power—Ra was growing more powerful. So be warned!
To distract himself from what, his logic-mind also hastened to tell him, was creeping paranoia, he took up perving.
It was easy enough to justify his actions as empirical observation. However, justification had become a sort of moot point now that his mind had been re-formed. His internal life had become all about choice, in which he could as easily turn off recrimination and doubt as peel a Balol ugli-peach.
And Tekton loved it.
He set about wooing Dieter Miranda with the sole (he excused himself the pun) ambition of gaining a closer inspection of her thighs.
On their first date he took her for a shuttle ride around Belle-Monde. As the creaking tug wallowed its way around the pseudo-world close to Sole-space, Tekton wondered what Sole was thinking, or if, indeed, Sole thought at all. When you knew almost everything, what would there be left to wonder about?
To his disappointment, Miranda was wrapped in a voluminous silvery garment that covered most of her flesh. Tekton mind-instructed his moud to alter the enviro setting to ‘uncomfortably warm’. He then apologised for it, grumbling excuses about the pseudo-world’s poor maintenance.
By the time the heat began to make him feel a little light-headed, however, there was little show of Dieter Miranda’s flesh.
‘How marvellous this feels, Tekton—I’ve been cold ever since I got to this damn place. Might even sweat off a few joules. Or is that jowls?’ She laughed heartily. The act of mirth filled her false cheeks with air and wobbled them.
The frisson of delight Tekton experienced nearly equalled that of the night when he had witnessed her ‘thighs’ in action (though he had taken to keeping his robe tightened in company, so as not to alert his colleagues to his feelings). He felt so gratified by her display that he picked the scorched lobster for lunch and ordered up a bottle of Lostol vintage spritzer.
Miranda’s eyes sparkled at the extravagant fare. ‘You do know how to treat a girl. Now Tekton, tell me all about you—and about that rather deliciously brooding cousin of yours. We’re dying to know.’
She flirted and bantered as she polished off the best part of his month’s complimentary food allowance.
‘And what of your affairs, Miranda? Have you sorted out your differences with Lawmon Jise?’
She sniffed, giving her best impression of grievance. ‘The man is impossible—such a pedant. Not a person to trust either, Tekton. Why, I heard he was offering information on your project—for a price. Of course I declined the knowledge. This is not a competition between us, is it, Tekton? We are more a family. A brilliant, clever family, of course.’
At that point Miranda lifted the tail of her shift and crossed her legs, showing a large measure of undulating thigh flesh.
Something in the artful timing of it triggered a thought. Moud? Has Dieter Miranda been on any other dates recently?
Date is a difficult term to define, Godhead. However, she has been in the company of others.
Who?
Most regularly, Lawmon Jise.
What do you mean by ‘in company’? Evenings? Have they been sleeping together?
Yes, Godhead.
Thank you. Dear, devious Dieter Seeward—but not devious enough.
Tekton told the moud to instruct the tug to cut short the slow approach and finished up the date early, before cognac, leaving Miranda with a courtly bow on the docking bay. No matter how much she inflated her cheeks, he vowed