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  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Epilogue

  Author’s Note

  About the Author

  Tired of being a sex object on Earth, Bella tries to leave in order to find herself by hiding what she truly is. Confused? She is.

  Bella has been trying to find a man who will see her for the smart and charming woman that she is. She wants them to look beyond the obvious. When she joins the Volunteers, she finds herself on a world where everyone around her hides their faces and you have to deal with their minds and positions in society. It takes getting used to, but she thrives.

  Lord Akking runs a club where aliens can meet with the Kloa traders face to face. As Minister of Trade, Akking is cut a lot of slack, but when he has her assigned as his assistant, he has a lot more than just being face to face with her in mind.

  Becoming the object of his affections is startlingly direct, and with nowhere to hide, she has to deal with her own desires and be honest about them.

  The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Object

  Copyright © 2015 Viola Grace

  ISBN: 978-1-4874-0363-8

  Cover art by Martine Jardin

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

  Published by eXtasy Books Inc or

  Devine Destinies, an imprint of eXtasy Books Inc

  Look for us online at:

  www.eXtasybooks.com or www.devinedestinies.com

  Object

  Terran Times Second Wave

  By

  Viola Grace

  Chapter One

  Bella Banks sat up straight with a bland expression on her face. She had gone through the application process, but her skills were not exceptional.

  “I understand, Recruiter Norz. I will be on my way. Apologies for wasting your time.” She inclined her head and smiled.

  He blinked his huge black eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “You just stated that I was currently unexceptional in my cognition or psychic talents. I thought that was what you were looking for.”

  He sat back. “That was not the only quality. I believe that your self-containment is going to be an asset for you. Though you are beautiful by Terran standards, it will not help you in the position I have in mind.”

  Bella leaned forward. “My face won’t matter?”

  “No. In fact, if they agree, it will not even be visible.” He smiled slightly. “For the first time in your life, you will be able to be your true self, to an extent.”

  Bella cocked her head. “To an extent?”

  “The Kloa enjoy having their staff’s features covered. It creates an environment where their wishes hold sway and only the duty is left behind. They cannot favour those who work for them because they do not know who they are.”

  “I would be a servant?”

  “You would be an assistant, and you would be invisible. Based on the answers you have provided to me, that is your true desire. You want to be known by your work, not your appearance. The Court of Kloa in the Nyal Imperium is the place to do it. Are you interested?”

  He didn’t have proper eyebrows, but the challenge in his tone was unmistakable.

  “I would become a faceless bureaucrat? Done. What position is there for me to aspire to?”

  Recruiter Norz chuckled. “You could go all the way to the top, to be an advisor to the ruling heads of Kloa.”

  Bella mulled it over for a moment and then nodded. “Fine. Where do I sign?”

  Two months later, she grunted as she hit the practice projection and followed up with a kick. The chime timed her out, and she stopped fighting.

  Bella looked over at her trainer with a smile. “Did you need me, Master With?”

  “It’s time, Bella. The Kloa ship is on its final approach. Shower and get ready. Full court gear, just like we practised.”

  “Now?”

  With nodded. “I thought it best to not warn you earlier. You get a little nervous, and then, you get aggressive. This time, you will be stepping on board with calm deliberation. Now, go. Time is short.”

  Bella muttered to herself as she left the workout centre, ran down the hall and stripped off her exercise suit on her way down the final approach to her room. The monitors would record her no matter where she was, so public nudity wasn’t nearly the deal it was when she arrived.

  The solar shower was quick, and she was developing a tan. From now on, she would be restricted to sonic showers, so it was a final farewell to the all-over warmth that embraced her.

  The court suit was waiting for her in the wardrobe, and she left the lav while pinning her hair up into the twist that was required by Kloa regulation. The suit was heavy, the inner lining made it bearable, but the outer skin of the clothing was rough. Trousers and boots went on without trouble. She had to wrestle herself into the top and lace the heavy fabric closed. When everything was settled, she put on the high, pointed collar that would frame her head. From there, she slipped on the court mask that resembled nothing so much as a fencer’s protection. It covered her hair, draped over her neck and shrouded her features in soft grey.

  She turned and looked at herself in the mirror. The world was grey, and she was a blank. She was an object with no other worth than how useful it could be. It was quite a switch from being set into certain social positions because of what she looked like. Bella was being given the chance to make her own fortunes and live the life her skills deserved. She planned to bust her ass and see how far she could go.

  With her clothing arranged, she looked around her room and picked up the small bag that she had had packed for the last ten days. She left her quarters and headed for the shuttle bay.

  The world around her was misty grey, and she smiled. She had spent six weeks of the last two months working on her ability to read and function under the mask. She could now move fairly naturally and with nearly normal speed while in the full gear.

  Her timing was perfect. She was waiting near the control booth when the shuttle came in. She watched it on the monitors, and when the connection had been created, she nodded to the guards and headed for the ship.

  The airlock to the ship cycled open. The Kloa insignia was everywhere on the ship, and the men who opened the door for her were wearing white uniforms with the same mask that she was sporting.

  “Administrator Banks?”

  “I am.”

  “Identification please.”

  She pressed her hand to the plate and felt the prick that took a blood sample. Handprints and DNA were the main means of identification on Kloa. It would also be the means by which she paid for everything on her own time, once she earned free time.

  Bella waited while the machine cycled.

  The man nodded. “Excellent. Plea
se come this way.”

  She nodded and held in her urge to stare and poke at all the new sights inside the ship.

  The men in white escorted her to the centre of the ship and helped her onto a slightly angled plank with medical apparatus attached.

  This was the part of the journey she had been dreading. Refrigerated sleep was the means by which many folk travelled through space. The Kloa were not fans of jumps unless absolutely necessary. The crew had to jump twice to get to her, but on the way back, she was going to lose six months of her life. She was ready for it.

  They hooked her up and strapped her down. She leaned back and felt the cold creep through her veins.

  She felt her heart pumping, her eyes burning and panic ran through her. She fought the straps until the sedative kicked in and pulled her under.

  It was certainly the most interesting start to a new job that she had ever had.

  A woman in a loose and gauzy white mask and uniform was holding a straw to her lips. Bella sipped, waited and sipped again.

  “Well done. You came through the transport in excellent health. Your digestive adjustment has already been completed. You are good to begin your duties.”

  Bella continued to drink in tiny sips until the beverage was gone. When the straw was withdrawn, she asked, “So quickly?”

  “There is no reason to delay. You are perfectly capable of engaging in your tasks at the court. Your liaison is waiting for you in the outer chamber. Come along. Get up.”

  To Bella’s shock, she was still completely dressed. Her hair and skin felt clean, so a sonic shower must have been involved somehow.

  Her body felt achy, but otherwise fine. The Kloa knew what they were doing when it came to cold transport.

  “Where am I going, Doctor?”

  The woman inclined her head. “To that door. Your guide awaits.”

  Bella nodded and moved slowly toward the door she had mentioned. It did feel weird to identify someone by their voice and general shape. In a way, it was freeing, and in another, it was confining.

  She shook her head and kept walking until she was out the door.

  A man was waiting with a grey uniform and a short collar behind his head. “Welcome, Administrator Banks.”

  She raised her hand in a flat greeting. “Thank you for your welcome.”

  “I am your guide to the court. I will take you through your first days until you have grasped what is necessary to complete your work. Today, we begin with your lodgings and your meals. If there is time, I will take you to the court seamstress for additional clothing.”

  She would have smiled, but there was no need. He couldn’t see her anyway. “May I know your name?”

  “Ah, of course. I am Accountant Tweff. I will be working as your assistant for a few days, and then, I will resume my original position.”

  Bella was unsure. “My assistant? I thought I would be beginning at the bottom.”

  “Your scores and life experience have placed you in an administrative position at your entry into the court. Congratulations.”

  Bella mentally shrugged. Apparently, her endless hours in a dizzying array of offices filing and processing every type of paperwork in existence, while fending off the hands and other advances of the men she worked for, had actually counted for something.

  “Please, lead on, Accountant Tweff.”

  He nodded and led her through the halls of the hospital, signed her out at the front desk and escorted her into a transport set on a rail in the paved surface.

  They settled into the pod, and the vehicle started to move.

  “All of the pods will take you to the palace if you simply put your hand on the ident pad. Your registration is your key to returning home. You can travel to any point in the cities or local provinces and a pod can still bring you home automatically.”

  “Good to know.”

  “It is the first of many safeguards in place for our citizens. You are not yet a citizen, but you are officially part of our government.”

  She inclined her head. “I thank you for your efforts to instruct me.”

  The formal words were natural to the Kloa. Their entire society was designed to keep people in the places they earned. Even the nobility gained rank in their own circles.

  Tweff wasn’t particularly chatty, but he was informative when it was something necessary.

  She was walked through elaborate and gilded hallways until they reached her quarters in a more modest segment of the structure.

  The moment she had keyed the lock to herself, he swept her away to the dining hall for administrators. He showed her the protocol for lining up to eat and carrying her tray through the proper station in the right order.

  Once they were seated together, she asked him. “Are you originally from Kloa?”

  He shook his head. “Almost no one is. Their restrictions lower their alliances to formal arrangements. It has crafted a low birthrate, but their egalitarian hiring methods has brought alien talent from across the Imperium.”

  “Like me, though I came from the Alliance.”

  “Precisely. You are managing to eat well with the restrictions of the mask. Most newbies end up with half of it in the mesh.”

  Bella had released two points on the frame, held the drapes away from her neck and she lifted small portions of her meal into her mouth with her other hand. Her practice over the last few weeks was proving useful immediately. It was nice to know.

  “I practiced what I could. The rest is all going to be learned.”

  Tweff nodded. “And that is as it should be.”

  She ignored the ominous tone in his voice and finished her meal, watching the others in the room to see what they were doing with the plates.

  Everyone left the plates and trays on the table when they left.

  When Tweff prepared to rise, Bella got up ahead of him and walked toward the door. He chuckled. “You do learn fast.”

  Relief spilled through her. She had correctly guessed a meal, now what about her work?

  Chapter Two

  It took her six months to rise from administrator to auditor. Bella was completely used to moving around in the mask and grey uniform, but she did occasionally startle herself when she saw a reflective surface.

  Today, she was working for the court records and doing an audit of the expenditures of Lord Korkham. He had deducted a number of unusual items, and it was up to him to prove that they were expenses to benefit the court.

  “Lord Korkham—”

  “Yes, Auditor Banks?”

  “The largest deduction in question is for a private club. The Face-to-Face Club. What benefit did this have to your negotiations or other transactions on the part of the court?”

  He paused, his black suit and mask completely still. “You are an alien, Auditor Banks?”

  “I am.”

  “Have you been away from the court?”

  “I have not.”

  He jerked slightly. “Well, in that case, you might or might not understand that certain species find our lack of physical identifiers distressing. They enjoy meeting face to face, and the club is a means to accomplish that.”

  Bella cocked her head. “I don’t understand.”

  “We embraced the lack of physical identity to cease the issues caused by our ungovernable vanity. Other species depend on the physical cues offered by face-to-face negotiations. This club is a private environment in which I can do so, but not break our laws and customs.”

  Bella didn’t know what to say to that. After six months here, exposing her face to someone seemed a bit perverse.

  “I can take you there if you like. I am sure you would find the experience liberating and somewhat addicting.”

  “It would not be appropriate.”

  He reached into his suit and brought out a folded paper. “It would be very appropriate. This is a writ from the ruling body allowing me to bring alien guests to the club at my discretion. You qualify.”

  She frowned. “When would this d
emonstration take place?”

  “Now is acceptable to me. You are obviously on duty and there is a detachment of traders who have been taken there for ease of communication. It is an excellent time to meet face to face and see what I am referring to.”

  Bella was conflicted, but she did have to determine that it was an appropriate expense. It was her duty.

  “I will go.” She tidied up her work, locked it in her desk and rose to her feet.

  Lord Korkham did the same.

  Without a word, they exited the financial tower and made their way down to the transport pods. He ignored the pod in front of them and summoned a separate one.

  “These pods forget. The moment that we are out of them, it will forget our destination.” They settled into the specially summoned pod.

  He keyed in the club name and address, and they were off.

  They cruised through the city, and she could see the folk who were not restricted in their display of their natural faces. The Kloa were nearly symmetrical in their features. For most species, that made them extremely attractive. Three hundred years earlier, they got a ruling class who was tired of the endless manoeuvering based on appearance and the coverage laws came into effect for all in public office or running for it.

  When you decided to speak for someone else, you had to obfuscate your features. Your words had to matter.

  She watched the pretty faces zoom past and chuckled softly at her own arrogance. On Terra, she had been stunning. Here, she was just a blank face in the crowd.

  They left the city and skimmed through a private garden.

  “We are on the property right now. As a member, I am one of the only ones with access to the land and house. You cannot access the facility without a membership.”

  “And how do they know that you have a membership?”

  “I used my code when I summoned the pod.” He chuckled.

  A large house came into sight, and Bella kept her outer calm. It was an amazing house that belonged next to the palace. A huge structure on imposing grounds, it promised an experience like no other.