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“Oh, yes. What they did to you is against their charter. They are to have the care and keeping of the soothers, providing them with set hours when possible and mental stimulation. They opted for the easiest means, which was keeping you in that small apartment. They were to provide you with guards to walk around and exercise you on the station.”
“They never did that.”
“No. You were good. You were profitable, and if they kept you constantly on duty, you could make them a tremendous amount of money.” He nodded. “And you did.”
“How do I access my account?”
“We have moved your funds while you were being repaired. I thought it wise to cut the tracking from the station.”
“I thought they would have locked it.”
“Oh, they tried.” He smiled. “We have freed them and changed your trackable identity to something else. We have removed soother from your file, but you may still declare it as part of your identity as your filed occupation.”
“But, oh. I get it. The records of me being on that station are gone.”
“Correct. I have a question for you.”
“Shoot.” Aya sipped at her tea.
He paused, tilted his head, and then said, “Does my appearance bother you?”
“No. I just watch the muscles around your eyes. They tell me what your mood is, and your voice emotes as well. Understanding things of that nature is my main concern.”
He cocked his head. “So if the room is dark, I would have an advantage.”
“I can still watch your eyes. I am guessing that they glow in the dark.”
Devran was amused. “That is very observant of you.”
“Um, how long was I in that unit?”
“Sixty days. I thought it was six days, but the unit had to recalibrate.”
“Oh. Well, heck.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “That is more than I expected, but I guess I don’t have anything on the agenda.”
He nodded. “There is something in the wind if you want to meet with your own kind.”
Aya looked at him. “There are some of my kind out this way?”
“Yes. There is a party on a world named Siloven. We can go there after we meet with Kazi and begin the case against the station that held you.”
“How does that work? Can I win compensation?”
He chuckled. “If Kazi takes the case, you can win the entire station.”
“What would I do with a station?”
“Collect the revenue and make sure that it operates appropriately.”
Aya blinked. “How would I do that?”
“You would hire a managerial team and follow up on their reporting.”
“Oh. Okay. But that probably won’t happen.”
“If the station is in a Hmrain territory, he or she may lose the planet nearest the station. What they did is very serious.”
“And as long as I never got out, they would continue to benefit from my skills and the steady stream of clients.”
