Read Halt for Free Online

entering her space and sitting at the desk.
    Tazzy dropped her towel and watched him close his eyes for a moment. It took her three minutes to work out the closures to her suit, but once it was in place, she had to admit that the black and silver fabric was both warm and comfortable.
    The boots eased up her legs, and a flash of energy ran from her hip to the top edge at mid-thigh. Warmth immediately covered all the exposed skin. “What is going on?”
    “There is a heat field being generated so that your exposure won’t lead to any loss in body temperature. It runs between the edges of the fabric.”
    She felt the fabric hug her slightly, and she jerked. “Is it alive?”
    “Yes. No. Sort of.” He shrugged. “They made it for you and with your talent and particulars in mind.”
    “How did they know?”
    “They had your records. All specifics should have been accounted for.”
    She turned from side to side and checked out her reflection. “How? I didn’t know I was coming here before yesterday.”
    “They have been planning for this since you first exhibited a talent. The Nyal Imperium does not let folk like us go unused.” He shrugged and smiled, “It suits you.”
    The suit hugged her again. “I think it likes me.” Laughter bubbled up in her. She felt good. Really good. Better than she had in a very long time.
    “What is so funny?”
    She twirled quickly. “I don’t know.” Laughter spilled out of her.
    With quick steps, she walked up to him and bent down to kiss him. She bracketed his face with her hands and rubbed her lips across his, stroking slowly until an insistent pinging got her attention.
    A bot was waving a small napkin over its head.
    She sighed and pressed her forehead to Arkenor’s. “I am guessing that it’s time for dinner.”
    He blinked slowly and carefully stood up. “I would say something about timing, but I believe that I should just consider myself lucky and accompany you to dinner.”
    “It sounds like a plan, but who outranks whom here?”
    He grinned. “Let’s leave that up to Quell. All I care is that we are finally sharing the same roof. The rest will come in its own time.”
    He put his arm around her waist and it felt normal, right and intriguing. Those were three things she thought she had written out of her life. It was nice to feel them again.

Chapter Seven
     
     
    The boots adjusted from a four-inch to a flat heel with the lightest touch of her inclination. If she shifted her weight and held it, they changed.
    The adjustable heels came in handy as she left the transport on her first assignment. Local peacekeepers had an alien in their custody, and they needed someone who could speak to him to determine his origin. He was not being cooperative.
    Quell took the lead. “This is Peacekeeper Liaison Halt. Please take her to your prisoner.”
    The detachment commander blinked and looked her up and down. His hair was the normal purple of a Decolian, but he did not reach for her hand. The gloves forced him to break protocol. It was a nice touch that Tazzy had not taken into account.
    He led her through a standard peacekeeper outpost and to a holding cell. Whatever Tazzy thought she was going to meet, it wasn’t a young Hyandu.
    “Please stand back outside the cell. He will not react well if you are here.” She spoke calmly with a catch to her voice that made the deep pink male perk up his ears.
    “He attacked two of my men when they tried to speak with him.”
    “He doesn’t understand. His people do not put in implants into their children. He should have been with a handler. Where did you find him?” She used a low cadence with a higher pitch at the end of every sentence.
    “He was outside a bar. There was no one near him.”
    “Check the bar. His handler should have been inside, but they may have run when he was taken. They aren’t very good at confronting officers.”
    She waved off the peacekeeper and approached slowly.
    “That is a child?” He was