Devotion (Chosen by the Karal #5)(6)

“Funny Daddy,” he said.

She nearly loosed his hand as she carried on walking, but she held on to the tips of his fingers, looking up at the screen to see if there was a cartoon hero on it. But the face of the man who had drowned in the canal still looked down on them.

“Does he look like your daddy?” Tikki asked. She had no idea who Charlie’s father was.

“Funny Daddy is like Tikki Mommy.”

“You mean he isn’t your real daddy, but looked after you? Like I am looking after you?”

“Yes.” Charlie was still staring at the screen, and Tikki suddenly had the overwhelming urge to pick him up and run. If the man staring back at them had any connection to Charlie, that was bad news. It surely couldn’t be a coincidence that two people so closely connected to Charlie had fallen into the canal.

“Come on, Charlie, let’s go eat. I bet I can find you a cookie,” she said, hoping she could live up to her promise, but there were still a few luxuries left in her apartment from Okil’s last visit. All she wanted to do was get out of here and hide. Suddenly everyone around her on the crowded street was a potential murderer, come to take back Charlie and give him to back to his real father. A father who had now murdered twice.

“Chocolate cookie?” Charlie asked excitedly.

“Might be, we’ll have to go and have a look. Coming?” She pulled him forward and he followed, trusting her, smiling at the thought of the cookie.

Tikki looked around as they walked, but none of the faces jumped out at her; no one looked like a murderer. She thought of Okil, and wished he was a human from Earth so she could call him and ask him what she should do. But there was no way to contact Okil, even if he was still on Earth. No, she was on her own and would be from now on.

“Reja,” she said quietly, and instead of heading straight home, she went in the direction of the hair salon where her friend worked.

“Aren’t we going home?” Charlie asked.

“Soon, Charlie, we are just going to visit Auntie Reja first.”

“Will she have a cookie?” he asked.

“I’m not sure, but if she doesn’t, there is still one waiting for you at home.” She turned down a side alley and they walked about half a mile to a small shop in a back street. Reja liked to impress people by calling the place she worked a salon, but in fact it was a pitiful place. Women with long hair came here and had it cut off to sell to the wigmakers who catered to the pents and the StreamStars. Tikki had seen grown women cry over having to sell their dignity for the price of a loaf of bread. But long hair was no comfort to hungry children. Tikki opened the door of the shop. There were no customers in there, only Reja picking over the long strands, cleaning them and packaging them ready for collection.

“You aren’t so desperate that you need me to cut your hair are you, Tikki?” Reja asked, smiling at her friend and then waving at Charlie. “Hello there, young man. Shall I see if I have a special treat for you?”

“Yes please,” Charlie said, happy now they had taken a detour to come here.

Reja disappeared into the back room and came out with a small box. She opened the lid and there sat six chocolates. Not simchoc: no, this was the real thing. Tikki’s mouth watered just to look at them.

“They are beautiful,” Tikki said quietly.

“I know. A client bought them in as a thank-you. She said I had the best quality hair in the city.”

“And she gave you chocolates.”

“Yes. I would rather she told all her friends to come here instead, I certainly could do with the uptick in business, but I can’t remember the last time I had real chocolate, so I’m not complaining.

“Are you sure? About letting Charlie have one?”

“Yes, I am. You are the sweetest boy I know, so here, Charlie, take your pick.”

Charlie took one, choosing one with a squiggly pattern of white chocolate over a sumptuous-looking rich, dark velvety truffle, not realising quite what a precious thing he held in his hand. “Thank you, Reja.”

“You are welcome, little man,” Reja said, smiling as he bit into the chocolate, licking her lips as if she could taste it herself.

While Charlie ate his chocolate, Tikki asked Reja, “Did you see the image of the man who drowned in the canal last night?”

“Yes. I saw it on the StreamScreen at lunchtime. What a waste, he slipped in the dark and fell into the water. Couldn’t swim. Or so they say.”

“What do you mean or so they say? Do you think he was murdered?”

Reja laughed. “You have a hyperactive imagination. I didn’t mean he was murdered. I meant they say he drowned and not that he died of poisoning. Do you have any idea what is in that water? I expect there are enough pollutants in there to burn the flesh from your body.”

“Oh,” Tikki said.

“What? Do you know something I don’t?” She stared at Tikki. “Oh my goodness! Do you think he was murdered?”

“No,” Tikki protested. “I don’t know what I think. I don’t even know who he was.”

“He was one of the StreamStars who worked on the Karal Project.”

“The Karal Project?” Tikki asked. She had never heard of it.

“Well, you should watch more then just the RealityStarStreams. That way you might learn something. The Karal Project is a franchise set up to prove that the Karalians have something more sinister in mind other than simply wanting females to breed with.”