Chapter 26: A Refugee Shows up

The next three weeks passed slowly. The new command post schedule with the concubines helping proved to be an excellent idea. Everyone had more time with their concubines and at the same time fewer shifts on duty. The concubines blossomed under the praise and attention they received and it was a rare night that someone did not find a reason to throw a party in the recreation room.

Kitty had moved in with my concubines and me. At first she tended to jump and look to hide whenever any male entered the room she was in. Meiko and Brittany were her constant companions and worked hard to build her trust in me. They would report to Tina and Bethany about the progress Kitty was making. During this early time I was not attempting to get too close to Kitty. Instead I showed the scared girl affection and care. I smiled at her whenever I had an opportunity and made sure to treat her like a princess. She was starting to smile as I entered a room containing her. She also adored the baby rabbits and spent a lot of time watching over them.

Bethany and I were having a short conversation at the school. Bethany still spent time there every other day and had asked me to visit with her.

"Kitty's ready," she told me in a whisper.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "She still jumps when I enter a room and stiffens when I hug her."

"Does she push you away?" Bethany said with a smile. "Haven't you noticed that the last two times we got the console games out she fought as hard as anyone to win kisses?"

"I had wondered about that," I admitted. "But I need her to be sure. I have an idea."

"Yes?" Bethany asked.

"Easy, we have another console night, but near the end we have the prize be that the lady winning gets to drag me to the hot tub for some caressing and kissing. If she truly wants it, she'll try hard, and I'm sure the rest of you can lose with style and grace," I said as I winked at Bethany.

She laughed and gave me a kiss. "Oh god, you always seem to know what the right thing to do is. That's just the way to do it. Only, I think we all are going to want our own alone time with you."

I accepted the kiss and was pulling Bethany in close to caress her ass when Timothy's voice came over the speaker. "Um ... James ... Can you come to the command post ... We have a ... situation."

Bethany let me go, and winked as I stepped away and turned to leave the school. "Go and hold his hand," she giggled as I bowed in apology and ran out of the room.

I wanted to call for more information, but the run was short and I dashed into the command post to see Timothy and his concubines looking at the repeater screens showing the outer entry doorways. I was going to ask, why, but looked over and paused.

Standing in the area between the first and second doors were six people. I took a moment to look them over as Timothy babbled. "We don't know how long they've been there. We were performing the standard communication readiness tests and Ulla turned to see them there."

"Have they said anything?" I asked as I identified one of the figures. It was the tall, slender woman who had been with Ruth the day the passage opened. She was holding two teenage children against her body while the other two adults and a child of about five leaned against the wall behind her. There was a look of fear in the eyes of everyone except the one woman who had an aura of resignation around her.

"No," Ulla said. "At least, not since we noticed them. They just seem to be waiting."

Just then Janice, Brittany and Kitty burst into the command post. "Tina and Meiko are doing a maintenance check on your armor," Janice reported.

I was about to nod when Kitty gasped. "Barbara!"

Everyone turned to look at Kitty who was staring at the screen and the tall woman who dominated the others. "What?" Timothy asked.

Kitty pointed at the screen. "That's Barbara. I remember her because Dennis liked to force me to go to the meetings. She has been working with Ruth."

"So she is one of Ruth's..." Veronica muttered.

"No," Kitty replied. "Or not exactly. Barbara had a pod in the Gray ring and was pretty much forced to follow Ruth. Although I understand she was a co-worker of Greg's and at first did not see a problem with that."

"I'd guess she does now," Janice said, looking at the screen.

Brittany gasped. "Oh god! Look at the one girl in her arms; she's got to be nearly fourteen. I wonder if that became an issue."

I looked more closely and it was clear that Barbara's two children included a girl who, as Brittany had said, must have been at least thirteen. I noticed that the girl had perhaps the most terror in her eyes, but was still trying to offer a little comfort to her brother. I could see none of the people there talking and finally reached over to the equipment rack for my helmet.

"Well, folks, I get a feeling that talking over the speakers isn't going to solve this one. So Veronica, can you call up a few people and let Yvette know that we have guests and I'll go lay out the welcome mat," I said as I pulled out four flechette guns and four rifles. I secured one of the flechette guns to my side, but handed additional ones to Janice and Brittany before turning to leave the command post. To my surprise Kitty jumped up and put her arms around me as I exited.

"Don't leave me," she cried.

I looked down to find her eyes filled with tears. "I'm not leaving you. I'm just going to welcome someone who hopefully will become a new friend."

Kitty shook her head and held on tight. I tried to gently break her grip, but she kept on holding tight so I finally knelt down to look her in the eye. She sobbed once and then wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me so hard I could feel my lips bruise.

"Don't leave me!" she cried again. "I need you."

Janice giggled as I looked over at her for guidance. I was wondering what the problem could be when Brittany shrugged and spoke. "I guess she finally decided to admit the truth."

"What truth?" I asked as Kitty continued to kiss my neck and shoulders. The kisses were gentle but demanding and more than a little surprising considering Kitty's previous resistance to being touched.

"That I love you with all my heart," Kitty whispered in my ear. "That I watch you with your lovers and realized that I want that same love and care. That you already trust and respect me, but were willing to wait for me to heal. I've finally accepted all that and more. Dennis is an evil man; he revels in causing pain and in breaking a concubine's will. Juliet saw that and warned me, but forgot when he forced anal sex on her without lube and then he beat her to death for being contrary. Since we landed on the planet, he has brought in several other concubines, and twisted and turned them, making me watch as he broke their minds and spirits."

"But not yours?" Veronica asked.

Kitty held me tighter, pushing her breasts into my chest for a moment. "While we were still on the ship, he was afraid that if I broke, he'd have no plaything, so he made it a game to toy with me without providing too much pain. After landing he just kept me around and used captured concubines for his play."

"I'm surprised you can trust another man," Ulla observed.

Kitty stunned us all by laughing and forcing another kiss on me, thrusting her tongue down my throat. "James is so not Dennis! He's been nothing but gentle with me, and the screams of pleasure from his concubines are like a wonderful birdsong. Juliet told me sex was indescribably wonderful with the right man. After Dennis I wondered if she was lying, but I see Brittany walk out of the hot tub room with her hair a complete mess and still looking more beautiful than I can imagine because of the huge look of contentment and love on her face. Besides, it's not like Dennis had sex with me often. Sometime during the voyage here he decided that he prefers forcing himself on the other men."

Veronica who had worked in a psychology department at a university snorted. "God, he has that much of an inferiority complex that he needs to prove he's top dog by mounting the others. I can't imagine how the CAP scoring missed that. He's got to be almost a complete sociopath."

I shrugged. "Well, that doesn't explain why we have Ms Volleyball champ standing in our doorway with her household. I think we should greet her." I stood up and pulled Kitty into my arms for a moment giving her a kiss on the forehead. "And later, you can demonstrate that what you just said is the unvarnished truth," I whispered to her.

Kitty's joyful cry was followed by a near throttling hug as she wrapped her arms around my neck. A moment later she let go and dropped to the floor only to take my hand and half drag me out of the command post and towards the crossing as Brittany and Janice followed, laughing.

We reached the crossing to find Yvette and Terrence there along with their concubines. I handed two rifles each to Yvette and Terrence as we looked at the screen. The extra rifles were passed on to Philippe and Nathan while my extra flechette gun was passed to Diana who insisted on holding something.

"She's just standing there silently," Yvette said. "I get a feeling she's hoping for something."

"Kitty says it's Barbara, one of Ruth's followers, but possibly a reluctant one. Add in the fact that the girl in her arms has to be nearly fourteen and it's possible she is hoping to find refuge with us," I said.

Terrence was checking over his rifle. "Well, if that's the case, we need to talk to them in person and not over the speaker system. Any ideas?"

"We go meet them," I said with a shrug. "If the meeting goes well, we can bring them here and then separate them for introductory meetings and a review. Philippe can talk to the man; I'd say Janice and Diana should talk to the woman. I'd prefer Bethany, but she's got school duty. Brittany and Kitty are the right age to talk to the children, unless we want to contact Shawna and see if Jose can be asked to do it."

"Hey! I have children in my household," Yvette said with a laugh.

Terrence just shook his head. "No, James is right. Your children are great, but the oldest, Roge is only ten, and might not relate well. Also both Brittany and Kitty are from outside, they might have more insight into which questions to ask. I'm sure those children have seen too much already."

Yvette colored a little, but then nodded towards the youngest child who might have been five and was huddling in the arms of the young woman accompanying Barbara. "Let's send that girl to the school immediately if we let them in. I'll warn Roge, Lupe and Heidi to try to draw her out. They are all ten and will think it great fun, but Roge will understand to watch for any signs of trouble."

I nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Shall we go and meet the neighbor?" I quipped as we walked forward to the door. "Door." I called out.

The door opened as Yvette stepped to the side to watch the monitors. Terrence and Diana stepped next to me as Janice and Nathan sprinted forward on the left and Brittany and Philippe took the right.

Yvette saw this and laughed. "Its almost like we drill for this," she quipped as I stepped forward and into the passage.

The trip this time was a bit slow. There was considerable tension, and Terrence was worriedly trying to convince Diana to head back and wait with Yvette. She just smiled and kissed him before turning back to face the rest of the group who were staying just ahead of us.

When we arrived at the next pressure door, Janice and Brittany both lay on the floor while Nathan and Philippe settled into a kneeling position that allowed them to cover the doorway. Terrence laughed at this, but waved Diana to the right wall as he stepped over to the left. I secured my gun to my right hip and gave Kitty a hug with my left arm before looking up.