Wasteland
by Becca Abbott
Part 20
Raoul sat on the cracked pavement, watching the sun lift above the Wasteland. The breeze was strong, coming in from the distant glimmer of sea. Bright rays of crimson and gold streaked up and out from the horizon, gilding the shadowed ruins. The bike was large and solid at his back, well stocked with supplies in the bulging saddlebags. His long legs were stretched out before him, leather-clad. He'd dyed his hair black again. Maybe later, he'd let the blond came back, but not right now. Right now, he hated the sight of it.
The sound of a truck approaching made him look around. It appeared on the curve of the abandoned overpass, Katze's red head visible behind the wheel. Raoul got to his feet, heart beating faster. The ex-Furniture pulled up beside him. Katze leaned out.
"You sure you know what you're doing?"
Raoul nodded. Katze shook his head, but turned off the truck and got out. Raoul walked with him to the back, pulling open the doors. He had eyes only for the long, silver tank. Together, the two men dragged it out onto the pavement. Raoul dropped to a crouch at the top of it and tapped out the code. There was a click and a hiss as gas escaped. The lid lifted open.
The mongrel lay sleeping, black hair fanned out around his head, heartbreakingly handsome. Raoul forgot about Katze standing behind him, forgot about everything. He stroked the clean line of jaw, the fuller lower lip – how he loved that part of Guy, loved to seize it in his teeth, love to feel his own pressed against it.
"Where's the injector?" he asked without taking his gaze away.
Katze put it in his hand. Raoul set it against the vein that beat sluggishly at that long throat and depressed the trigger. After several seconds, a shudder ran through the mongrel's frame. Dark, thick eyelashes fluttered and opened. Eyes like deepest midnight met Raoul's. The Blondie held his breath, suddenly afraid.
"Raoul?" The word was a breath, but it overwhelmed Raoul with relief and joy. He sagged forward, fingers tight on the edge of the tank, forehead pressed against them. "Raoul? What the hell is going on?"
There was a snort from Katze. Raoul lifted his head and looked down at this most annoying and fascinating of young men. The eyes that gazed back at him were clear and filled with Guy's same spirit and intelligence – and no small amount of confusion. Bending into the tank, Raoul slid an arm under those broad shoulders and helped Guy to sit. The dark-haired man clung to his arm, looking around with wide eyes.
"Raoul," he said again, puzzled. Then, eyes growing round and wide, "I – I'm still me."
"If you don't need me anymore," Katze drawled, "I'll finish up and get out of here. I have work to do."
"Thank you," said Raoul without looking around. He heard Katze head back to the truck and start moving out the second bike.
"What am I doing here? I thought – I thought I was..."
"Shhh." Seeing terror flare in those expressive eyes, Raoul kissed Guy into silence. "You're safe," he said quietly.
"But - but the mind-wipe..."
"I could never do such a thing to you," said Raoul simply. "The pill I gave you – it was something I developed a long time ago when I realized that the things I did to others could be done just as easily to me or to Iason. It neutralizes the effects of the neosynaptin. It protects your brain from the wiping process."
Guy seemed beyond speech so Raoul helped him out of the tank. He stood on the overpass, safe in the circle of Raoul's arms. Then he said, "I'm not wearing a pet ring."
"No."
Pushing back a bit, Guy looked up at Raoul. The Blondie looked steadily down at him. Now it came, his second deepest fear. "You're free to leave or to leave with me."
"Free?"
"You can go back to Ceres if you want. Jupiter will kill you if she finds you, but that's your business." Raoul took a deep breath. "Or you can come into the Wasteland with me. She won't follow us there. We can protect each other."
"Which do you want?"
Raoul smiled sadly. He touched the high, arched cheekbone, stroked back a wisp of black hair. "I want you with me," he said. "But only if you're willing. Only if you want me as much as I want you."
Guy said nothing, only stared up at him. Raoul could make nothing of his expression and, because he didn't know what else to say, leaned forward and kissed the mongrel. He put everything of himself and his heart into it, knowing that it could be the very last time he would ever have Guy in his arms.
Then, just as Raoul was certain he'd lost, Guy's arms came up and around his neck. The strong, straight body pressed against his. Guy returned the kiss with a heat and passion that left Raoul breathless and staring at him in the new sunlight.
"Let's live in that house by the sea," Guy said. "Make love to me on that balcony."
Raoul's eyes prickled. He wasn't sure why. He hugged Guy, relieved and excited – buoyant. His life lay before him, suddenly filled with light. He'd never felt like that before.
"Life is joy," Iason had told him once, describing how he'd felt to have Riki. "Each day is new."
When they finally moved apart, Katze and the truck were gone, a disappearing speck on the gray ribbon of highway back to Midas. Raoul smiled. "Ready to go?"
Guy nodded. Without another word, they walked back to their bikes and, breaking the silence of the morning with the roar of the engines, headed into the Wasteland together.
The End