Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 79603 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79603 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
“Well, let’s see…” Imani counted things off on her fingers. “One thing I got turned out to be a bowl of bugs. And then there was the decapitated, roasted head. And the screaming, bleeding cheese…” She shivered. “Ugh—all of it was just disgusting.”
“Mother Hownow never liked fancy food either,” J’are told her comfortingly. “I promise what I ordered is very plain. Oh, and none of it is still alive.”
“Thank you,” Imani said gratefully. She really was beginning to get hungry by now. It had been a long time since dinner the night before—which had only consisted of two pieces of fruit, at least for her.
Luckily, it didn’t take long for the server to bring the items J’are had ordered. They were served on bright green plates, that matched the tables and chairs, which made the food itself really stand out.
The cutlet was a deep red with grill marks. It tasted a little bit like a spicy hamburger steak, which was nice—Imani didn’t like things too bland. There was also a kind of bread that reminded her of the zucchini bread her grandmother used to make from the fresh zucchini she grew in her own garden. It was studded with crunchy turquoise nuts and had a sweet, moist texture that melted in her mouth the moment she took a bite. The salad looked a little bit like purple kale but had the flavor of broccoli and cheese, which Imani loved. And the sparkling drink was pale blue and tasted delicious.
“This is wonderful!” she exclaimed, after she’d tried all of it. “So much better than all that weird stuff they served at the Luxx. I’m beginning to be glad we were kicked out!”
Speaking of which, she really needed to send a report about everything that was happening to Commander Sylvan. He would be expecting to hear from her, Imani knew.
Pulling her tablet out of her carryall cube, she typed him a quick message detailing their second court appearance and sent it off. She didn’t put in anything about the two assassination attempts because she felt that now that she and J’are were in a public place, they were safe.
She didn’t want Commander Sylvan to worry and think he had to send in some kind of extraction squad, which she knew would complicate the Kindred’s political relations with Yonnie Six. So she only said there had been some “complications” and that she hoped she would be finished and ready to leave Yonnie Six very soon.
“How long do we have until our court time?” J’are asked, as she finished sending the message and put away her tablet.
“Um…” Imani looked at her watch. “Plenty of time still—four and a half hours before we have to be there.” She looked around the restaurant. “I don’t really want to sit here for that long but I think it’s better to stay in a public place so I guess we’re stuck.”
“But we’re not stuck in the restaurant,” J’are objected. “Why don’t we go swimming?”
“Swimming?” Imani asked. “In the, uh, the anti-grav pool thing you were talking about?”
“Of course. Haven’t you ever been in an anti-grav pool before?” J’are asked, raising an eyebrow.
Imani shook her head.
“Nope. All our pools on Earth most definitely have gravity—that’s what keeps the water in the pool. Why—is it hard to swim in a pool with no gravity?”
“It’s fun.” J’are’s eyes glowed with excitement. “I haven’t been since I was a young one. Do you want to try it?”
“Well sure—why not?” Imani smiled. It had been a long time since she’d been swimming herself. “Oh, but I don’t have a bathing suit,” she added, frowning. “And neither do you.”
“That’s all right—we can buy them in the changing room. They have a bot that specializes in fittings.”
Imani wasn’t sure about that, but the swimming did sound fun.
“All right,” she said. “Let’s try it.”
“Okay then—come on.” J’are grinned. “I think you’re really going to like it.”
Twenty-Four
They rented a locker and two changing rooms—which turned out to be wooden booths in a long row of identical stalls. But of course, before they could use the stalls, they had to have something to change into.
“This is the suit bot,” J’are said, taking Imani to the front of the locker area where a silvery droid sat. It appeared to consist of three parts—a round, bulbous head, two long, skinny silver arms, and a squat rectangular box, all sitting on a wide counter and connected by long wires.
“Um…how does it work?” Imani eyed the droid uncertainly. The bulbous head had glaring red eyes which made it look kind of scary in her opinion.
“You just let it scan you and then it prints out the perfect sized suit,” J’are told her. “Watch—I’ll go first.”
He stepped directly in front of the bot and said, “Scan,” in an authoritative voice.
The round red eyes lit up at once, shooting out twin beams of red light which scanned J’are completely, starting at the top of his head and ending at his feet.