********

Fourteen.


“You wanted to see me, Father?” Justin announced himself as he entered the Tch’fl’s office a few days after his disclosures to Daphne.

“Yes. Come in. Come in!” The Tch’fl seemed like he was in a good mood as he waived his son towards one of the guest chairs facing his huge glass-topped desk. “I’ve got excellent news. I think we’ve come to terms on the deal with Calcascadia.”

Justin stifled the sigh of relief he felt at this being Craig’s big news. When he’d first been summoned, he’d worried that somehow the Tch’fl’s spies had overheard him plotting with Daphne. Not that they’d come up with a real solution yet, only that they were going to have to make a run for it and hope for the best. Luckily, it seemed like Craig had been too busy with this trade deal to notice Justin’s increasing disgruntlement.

Craig went on to detail the broad terms of the trade agreement he’d worked out, which involved an exchange of the textiles manufactured in Tch’fl Frederick’s Southerly factory for communications devices and other highly prized mechanical items that no one in the Dominions had the capability of producing. It was a complex arrangement, but if it worked out, Tch’fl Craig would end up even richer than he already was. This deal would make the Taylor Domain the undisputed financial leader in all the Easternness and probably allow Craig to secure the Chairmanship of the Council. In other words, this was a major coup. It was no wonder Craig looked so happy.

“. . . So I’ll have to make at least one more trip out there to look over the manufacturing plant and finalize the deals. I’ve already talked to the Council about using the Dominion’s flyer for the trip. I’m leaving on Wednesday; it shouldn’t take more than a week. But while I’m gone there’s a lot you’ll need to handle back here to get everything ready on our end,” Craig summed things up.

Which was when a great big metaphorical light bulb went on in Justin’s head. Access to a flyer was exactly what he needed to help get himself and his little family far enough away from Craig that they might actually be safe. He’d heard that before the war flyers were common all over, but these days they were rare. Nobody had the ability to manufacture the parts needed to keep them working and even if they did, the huge amounts of fuel they required made their use impractical. There were only a handful of operational flyers in all the Dominions. So, to get access to one was practically unheard of. It was an opportunity that Justin couldn’t let slip away.

“You know, Father,” Justin piped up, interrupting Craig’s plans. “I don’t know nearly as much about all the details that need to be handled locally as you do. You’d be much more effective here than I would be. Wouldn’t it make more sense for you to stay and orchestrate things on this end and let me fly all the way out to Calcascadia and do the site inspections for you?”

“I don’t know. It’s an important trip and the negotiations could still go sideways if the Calcascadians aren’t treated just right,” Craig replied, clearly hesitant.

But at least Craig wasn’t completely discounting Justin’s suggestion; the Tch’fl just needed to be sold on it, Justin thought.

“I’m pretty good at charming people, Father,” Justin stated, offering up one of his sunniest and most winning smiles as an example. “I’ve handled other important deals for you and never let you down, right? I’m sure I can handle a mere site visit on your behalf. As long as you’ve thoroughly briefed me in advance about what you want, it should be easy. Plus, it’ll save you all that travel, which you know you hate.”

“I do detest long trips like that,” Craig conceded. “After the last trip out to Calcascadia, it took me almost a week before I recovered from the flight and got caught up on everything back here.”

“I remember. I also remember having to listen to you complaining and vowing never to set foot in a flyer again,” Justin teased his father amicably. “Seriously, Father, you should let me handle this for you. I’d be happy to. Not to mention that I’ve never been to Calcascadia before - Hellation, I’ve never even been as far as the Wastelands - and I’d love to see a little more of the world. Now’s a good time, too. In a few more months, if all goes as planned, I’ll be a father myself and then I probably won’t want to travel far from the Estate. At least not for a while. You know what? I bet Daphne would also love a little mini-vacation before she settles down into motherhood; I could take her with me and we could make a holiday out of it.” Justin could see Craig was mostly convinced but probably thought he should continue to protest on principle, so it was best to wrap this up. “I think this is an excellent plan. You have the best ideas, Father. Thanks. I’m going to go tell Daph right away so she can start packing.”

Justin practically ran out of Craig’s office, hoping his strategy of making Craig think it had all been his own idea would work. He raced down the hall towards Daphne‘s chambers not even pausing to knock on the door before he barged in. Daph was lounging on the reclining chair in the corner reading a book, which she dropped as soon as Justin came in and she noted her husband’s heightened state of agitation. Justin dropped to his knees in front of Daphne‘s chair, leaned over, grabbed her shoulders, and pulled his wife in for a lip-smacking kiss.

“We have a plan,” he whispered. “Get the Surrogates and meet me in my room as soon as you can.” Then he paused for second and changed his mind. “On second thought, let’s talk outdoors, in the gardens, where no one could be listening in behind a door or through the walls. Meet me by the fountain in five minutes.”

Without waiting for Daph’s response, he was off again, running through the halls and then, when he finally made it outside, pacing around the gardens while he worked out the details of his new plan. Scarily enough, he thought this might just work, as long as they could figure out a way to slip off while they were in Calcascadia. The only possible deterrent factor was that he had no idea what life was like in the far away land. But it couldn’t be worse than it was here in the Dominions and at least they would be far enough away from Craig that he couldn’t easily get to them. Justin hoped it would be far enough.

Daphne and the rest of their merry band of deviants arrived before Justin had time to start doubting himself too badly. They all took up seats on the concrete benches surrounding the big garden fountain. The area around them was cleared of all but small bushes so they were reasonably assured that nobody could be spying on them. And once he had his audience assembled, Justin sat down next to Brian, took the older man’s hand in his own and then leaned in to kiss the Surrogate on the lips in an unprecedented public display of affection that caught Brian, as well as the other three, off guard. Then Justin started in with his explanations.

“I know you’ve all noticed how distracted I’ve been lately. I’m sorry I couldn’t explain what was going on earlier, but I just didn’t want to worry everyone unnecessarily. There’s been a lot of shit going down around here, though, and I need to bring you all up to speed so we can plan what to do about it,” Justin started off, hurrying on despite the way Brian’s body went stiff with concern beside him. “Unfortunately, our dear Tch’fl wasn’t as pleased by the news that all of you were breeding as I had thought he’d be. He took the news to mean that he could wait and see which of you were carrying male offspring and then get rid of the female fetuses.” Brian let out a muffled ‘fuck’ and sagged back against the back of the bench he was sitting on. “Daphne and I are NOT going to let him do that, though. I promise you, Brian, I’m not going to let anyone do that to you again.”

Brian looked skeptical but Daphne backed him up immediately. “I’m with Justin on this. I won’t let Craig do that to any of you, either, guys,” she confirmed. “We promise to stand by you. But we’re going to need you to stand by us too.” She turned to Troiyes then, taking up the Surrogate’s hand in hers and smiling over at him. “It’s all the more important now because I just found out the other day that I’m pregnant too. Surprise, Troi. It looks like you're going to be a daddy twice over . . .”

“What? You're . . .” Troiyes looked warily over at Justin, who just smiled at him and shook his head.

“It’s okay, Troi. I’m fine with it,” Justin assured him. “As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t matter who the parents are of any of these babies. I don’t want any of you to lose your children because of my Father’s bigoted ideas. Whatever strange thing we all have going seems to work just fine for us, and I’m no longer going to let anyone - my father, society, or anyone else - tell me what’s right in that department. And if we can’t live the way we want here, then we’ll leave and go somewhere we can.”

“You said you had a plan that would make that work?” Daphne interrupted him, pressing for the skinny.

“I do. It’s not going to be easy, though, and if we get caught or it doesn’t work . . . Well, you all have the right to decide if you're willing to take the risk before I drag you into this. So, before we go into the details, you need to make a decision.” Justin turned towards Rose, who was sitting alone on a bench by herself. “Rosie, you’re the one Surrogate who probably has the lowest risk. Craig approves of female Surrogates and, if Daph and I are gone, he’ll need you and the heir you’re carrying more than ever. You could stay here and you’d probably be just fine. As soon as your baby is born, you’ll be sent back to Saperstein and can just carry on with your life as if nothing happened. It’s your call.”

It was obvious that little Rosie felt put on the spot by being singled out like this. She was the youngest of them all, and hadn’t ever really been out in the world much, so it was understandable that she was reticent about speaking up. However, Justin thought he’d detected a core of something stronger hidden behind her plump, curvaceous, unprepossessing exterior, so he wasn’t surprised when she eventually did voice her opinions.

“I’m game,” she stated boldly. Daphne looked at her questioningly, so she elaborated a little further. “You and the Mis’la have been great to me. Back when I was doing my Surrogate training I'd heard all sorts of horror stories about what might happen, but you’ve both been really nice. I know you’re probably the exception to the rule, though, and I’m not looking forward to getting assigned to another Master that won’t be quite so nice. Besides, I like all the fun we have together. I see no reason to walk away from a good thing. So if you guys are going to make a break for it, I’m coming with.”

“Okay. What about you, Troi?” Justin asked.

“Fuck, yeah. I don’t want to lose this baby or you, Daphne,” Troyes declared, leaning in to kiss the Mis’la with a possessiveness that proved his point. “And, for what it’s worth, I don’t want to lose the rest of you either. I like our groove just fine as it is. Count me in.”

Everyone turned to Brian next, waiting while the laconic older Surrogate took his time to gather his thoughts.

Brian shifted so he could look at Justin directly, as if he needed to be convinced of the answer to the questions he was about to ask. “You’re sure about this? You’d leave all this,” he gestured around the well-groomed formal gardens that evidenced more than almost anything else the wealth of their current circumstances, “to run off with some white trash Surrogate you barely know? Are you fucking crazy?”

Justin laughed at the look of disbelief on the man’s handsome face. “No, I’m not crazy. I’m in love, actually. With you, you big idiot. Now stop calling me names and let’s get this thing sorted out.” Brian looked more surprised by Justin’s declaration of love than he had by the plan to run away; it made Justin laugh. “Hellation, Brian. How could I NOT love you and our baby.”

Justin leaned in and took Brian’s lips in a sizzling hot kiss while the rest of the group looked on and chuckled quietly. When it seemed like the kiss might progress to something more serious and less likely to be stopable, Daphne finally interrupted with a loud *AHEM*. Justin reluctantly pulled away and blinked around himself as if surprised to see the rest of them still there.

“Jus . . . Your plan?” Daph prompted.

“Oh, yeah . . .” Justin blushed as he scooted far enough away from Brian that he wouldn’t be further tempted. “So, Tch’fl Craig is sending me to Calcascadia to finalize the trade deal he negotiated. He’s arranged for me to take the flyer operated by the Council of Dominions. It’s at least four thousand klicks away from the Taylor Domain, with the whole expanse of the Wastelands in between. If we’re going to try and run, we can’t get much further from Craig and his Dominion contacts than that.”

“That’s perfect,” Daphne burbled. “He’ll never be able to catch us way out there. How are we going to talk him into letting all the rest of us go, though?”

“I think I’ve already talked him into you going, Daph. As for the rest of you, I say we don’t ask, we just show up at the launch field en masse as if it’s a done deal and bluff through it. It’s better to beg forgiveness afterwards than ask for permission beforehand, right? If we’re called on it, I’ll just say that I wanted to keep an eye on our breeders while I’m traveling. Craig won’t be at the field himself, though, so I think it’s unlikely it’ll even get back to him until after we’re off the ground and well on our way. The only part I don’t have figured out is what we do when we’re on the ground in L’angeloes. I have no idea what the conditions are like there. For all I know it might be worse than the outside world here in the Easternness. But, since I don’t see any other alternatives here, not with Craig being the vindictive bastard he is, I think this is our best shot no matter what awaits us in Calcascadia.”

“We don’t have any choice. Even if it’s not a nice place, at least it will be far enough away from Tch’fl Craig that we'll have a head start. We just have to find a way to slip away from the traders that Craig is in contact with; they would probably give us up to placate Craig. If we can do that, I’m sure we can figure out how to get by. I don’t care how hard it is. I‘m not giving up my baby or any of the rest of you,” Daphne insisted vehemently.

“You’re all fucking crazy,” Brian mumbled under his breath. “You pampered rich kids have no idea what it’s like out there. You won’t survive a year. WE won’t survive . . .” He ended with his hand lying protectively over his belly and a worried frown on his face.

“I’ll make it work, Brian. I’m not giving up on us.” He laid his hand over Brian’s, leaning closer so his words would remain private. “You told me you wished you could escape from being a Surrogate. You wished you could keep one of your babies. This is the only way I can give those things to you, Brian. Don’t give up on me now.”

“If they catch us . . .”

“Yeah . . . So we just don’t let them catch us,” Justin asserted, reaching up to grab hold of Brian’s face, forcing the older man to look at him. “We can do this. I know it won’t be easy, but we can find a way. I know we can.”

Before the Surrogate could respond, though, their clandestine fivesome was rudely interrupted by a clatter of pebbles on the garden path leading from the house, and a few seconds later Dom’l Hobbs appeared, coming around the corner from behind a large cypress hedge. Justin let go of Brian, dropping the hand he’d been holding as well, but he didn’t move away. The defiant Mis’l was through letting Hobbs or Craig control his life any longer. He only had to get through a couple more days and then, hopefully, he’d be free.

“There you are, Mis’l,” the Dom’l commented, looking judgmentally down on the picture of Justin sitting so familiarly next to the male Surrogate. “Tch’fl Craig sent me to find you so we can follow up on the arrangements for your trip. I understand the Mis’la will be going as well?” Hobbs looked at Daphne who nodded to him but didn’t say anything. “Very good. I’ll have the staff begin packing for both of you. In the meantime, there’s a number of contract details the Tch’fl wanted me to go over with you before we leave. Did you want to start on that now?”

Justin hadn’t missed that little ‘we’ Hobbs had voiced. The scheming little prick was undoubtedly being sent along to spy on them. No matter. Justin would find some way to get past Hobbs. He had to. He wasn’t going to let the likes of Dom’l Christopher derail everything.

“If we must,” Justin replied, resigning himself to spending the next few hours with the officious Dom’l. “I’ll meet you in my office in five minutes.” He dismissed Hobbs and waited patiently till the man had bowed and backed away, then turned towards Daphne, his voice lowered to a confidential hush. “Make sure you bring along all your jewelry and as much coin as we can carry. And you’ll need to figure out a way to pack regular clothing for Brian, Troiyes and Rose too. But don’t let the maids see what you’re packing; we don’t dare trust anyone.”

“Got it. I’ll take care of all that, Jus. But what are we going to do about Hobbs?” Daphne asked, biting at her lip with worry.

“I’ll take care of our nosy little Dom’l,” he promised and then got up to follow in Hobbs’ footsteps, hoping he’d be able to pretend obedience for the next couple of days until it was time to make their big escape.

********

The Taylor contingent was scheduled to take off bright and early Wednesday morning. However, in an effort to head off any possible objections from Dom'l Hobbs, Justin, Daphne and their three Surrogates left the Estate more than an hour before the scheduled departure time. Justin’s driver was surprised when they all showed up in the garages and demanded to leave immediately. Of course, he would never question the Mis’l even if he did find it curious that the three red-robed Surrogates were being brought along. The driver did quietly comment to his companion on the fact that the Mis’l and Mis’la had packed so sparingly - they only had to load two cases into the back of the motor along with three small overnight bags, a remarkably small load for the type of trip contemplated - but he supposed that, perhaps, the rest of the luggage would be coming along later with the rest of the party.

The Dominion’s flyer wasn’t ready when they arrived at the field, but the pilot was happy to let the Mis’l’s party board and wait inside while they finished fueling and completing the other pre-flight preparations. The flyer was elegantly appointed, as would have been expected for any Dominion conveyance. Besides the usual seating areas within the main cabin, there was a small closed off room at the rear of the fuselage that was completely private. Justin quietly suggested Daphne take the three Surrogates back there and remain hidden until the flight had taken off. Hopefully no one would bother to look and see exactly who the passengers in that area were. As soon as his crew were settled in their hidey-hole, Justin seated himself on one of the benches in the main cabin, busied himself reviewing contracts and other paperwork, and waited for the rest of the Taylor Estate delegation to arrive.

Dom’l hobbs arrived about fifteen minutes later, looking disheveled and flustered. His tie was undone and his shirt was improperly buttoned. He was out of breath and sweating heavily. As soon as he saw Justin seated on the plane, however, he stumbled to a halt, looking around the cabin as if he were surprised to find the Mis’l there.

“Problems, Hobbs?” Justin asked coolly, looking up from the contract he’d been pretending to read.

“Uh, no, Mis’l. No problem. I just . . .” Hobbs took a deep breath and seemed to pull himself together. “I was concerned when the staff told me that you’d left the Estate earlier than planned. I thought perhaps there was some issue that you might need me to attend to, so I rushed directly over here. It seems you’re already settled, though.”

“Yes. I’m fine. You didn’t need to rush,” Justin smirked at the lying sack of shit.

Hobbs looked around the flyer once more and then asked, “I don’t see the Mis’la; did she decide against joining you on this trip after all?”

“My wife is lying down in the rear cabin,” Justin explained briefly, not venturing anything further, which was his prerogative as the Mis’l.

“I see. Would you like me to check on her for you, Mis’l? If she’s not feeling well, I could arrange for the staff to bring her something . . .” Hobbs ventured.

“Sit down, Hobbs. Daphne is perfectly fine and would not appreciate you butting in on her while she’s resting,” Justin practically growled at the thinly veiled attempt to spy on his wife. “However, I could use some refreshments. The flyer staff didn’t have any coffee ready when we boarded. You can see to that now, Hobbs.” Justin used a shooing motion with his hand to get the Dom’l moving and enjoyed the look of consternation he got from Hobbs at reducing the Estateman to the level of a butler. “Better hurry before the flyer takes off.”

Justin maintained his duty as sentinel, guarding the door to the rear cabin, for the next forty minutes or so until the pilot announced that the flyer was ready for take off. Hobbs took a seat near the front of the cabin, alongside the other staff who would be accompanying the party. He continued to shoot inquisitive looks Justin’s way the whole time. The Mis’l could tell it was killing Hobbs not to know exactly why Justin’s party had come to the field earlier than expected but the Dom’l didn’t dare ask outright and Justin wasn’t giving anything away.

As soon as the flyer reached cruising altitude, one of the servants got up from his seat and brought the pot of coffee over to refresh the Mis’l’s cup. Justin ordered him to leave the carafe. Next, the servant brought over a tray of pastries, which Justin took out of the startled man’s hands as he stood up. Without a word of explanation, he put the coffee pot on the tray and then turned to carry the whole thing into the rear cabin, slipping inside without opening the door any wider than needed and immediately kicking it closed behind him. He probably shouldn’t have been surprised to find his wife and the three stowaways in a jumble of naked bodies on the bed.

“Since you so rudely started without me,” he spoke up teasingly, “I guess I’ll just take this tray of breakfast goodies I brought you and leave.”

“Oh no you don’t!” Daphne hissed at him, crawling out from under Troiyes and Rosie to grab at Justin’s pant leg. “Gimme! I’m starving.” Justin huffed a small laugh but obediently deposited the tray on the end of the mattress and stepped back as the ravenous pregnant hordes descended on the food. “Mmmmm. This is just what I needed, Jus. I don’t know about the others, but breeding makes me hungry. I feel like I’ve been eating pretty much all the time for the past week.”

“You’re just lucky you’re not sick,” Brian said as he cautiously nibbled at a piece of croissant. “It’s not fair. I can barely keep anything down and you lot look fresh as daisies all day long. What’s your secret?”

“Clean living,” Troi joked, causing them all to break into laughter.

“Not too loud, guys,” Justin cautioned, remembering to lock the door to the small cabin before he seated himself on the end of the bed and began to massage Brian’s shoulders. “I’m sorry you’re not feeling well. Is there anything I can do? Were you this sick all the times before?”

Brian looked a little worried when he answered. “The first time, yeah, I was sick as a dog.”

Justin knew the Surrogate was thinking about the pregnancy he’d lost and rushed to reassure him before Brian started to brood. “I’m sure it’ll get better soon. The medic who did the ultrasounds said the breeding sickness usually goes away after the first few months. In the meantime we just need to keep you busy enough that you don’t notice you’re feeling ill.”

“Oh yeah? How you gonna do that?” Brian asked with a playful note in his voice.

Justin responded by leaning forward and pressing his mouth firmly against the other man’s in a deep, sensual kiss. When Justin finally opened his eyes again, he discovered his shirt had disappeared and they’d somehow rolled closer to the head of the bed with Brian perched over him. Daph had saved the tray of food; she and the other two Surrogates were sitting at the tiny table in the corner, still munching away, while they watched the entertainment happening on the bed. By now, however, they were all so intimately acquainted with each other, that having an audience didn’t faze him at all. If anything, Justin’s arousal was heightened by the knowledge that they were all watching as Brian unbuttoned his pants and then peeled the trousers off. And by the time Brian was bent over, licking his dick up to full hardness, Justin had completely forgotten about their watchers.

At least until Brian started to lift Justin’s legs up over his shoulders.

That got Justin’s attention again. He’d never let Brian fuck him in front of the others before. That had always been something they’d kept private. That was something just between the two of them.

Justin grabbed Brian’s wrist and resisted the movement. Brian looked down on him questioningly. Justin’s eyes darted to the side of the room where the other three were sitting. Brian’s lips curled up at the edges the tiniest little bit and his eyes crinkled with a hint of amusement but he shifted backwards a fraction of an inch and just waited.

Justin could feel Brian’s heavy, full erection lying hot and ready against his inner thigh. There was a sticky bead of cum that had dripped down onto his skin, connecting them and tickling as gravity pulled at the spot of moisture. Justin wanted Brian inside him so badly at that moment that he could barely breathe. It felt like it would be the most natural thing in the world. All he had to do was lift his legs and Brian’s cock would be right there, ready to slide home, filling him, completing him. But that would also mean exposing himself completely to Daphne and the other two Surrogates.

He must have hesitated a second too long because, before Justin could make up his mind, Brian started to move backwards, away from him. Justin felt a moment of panic and immediately cinched his ankles together behind Brian’s back so the larger man couldn’t get all the way away. Brian looked down on him, his head cocked to the side, as if trying to figure out what Justin wanted.

Justin took a deep breath, and answered the unspoken question as boldly as he could. “I want you inside me, Brian.”

“Are you sure?” he asked, with another sideways glance to where the others were sitting, all of them now staring at the drama playing out in front of them.

“Yeah. I’m sure. I’m done hiding from people or sacrificing what I want because of others’ judgments.”

Brian nodded with a glint of pride in his eyes and then bent forward so he could kiss the hell out of his brave lover. Justin happily kissed him back. And when they finally broke apart, he brazenly lifted his own legs up so that his calves were resting on Brian’s shoulders. There was a convenient tube of lube waiting next to the pillows, which Brian made quick use of, and then a second later the large, blunt head of Brian’s dick was knocking against Justin’s hole. Justin happily opened up and let the visitor inside, enjoying the burn as his muscles stretched and the tiny nerve sensors transmitted the pleasurable jolts of friction to his brain. Fuck it all. If this wasn’t right, then why did it always feel so damn good?

It didn’t take long before the flyer cabin disappeared from his consciousness. He no longer saw the faces of his wife and friends watching them from the corner. All Justin could see was Brian’s face as it bent to kiss him, hovered over him, shone with the ecstacy of their joint passion, strained to hold back while the waves of pleasure began to crest higher and higher. He couldn’t resist reaching up to pull his lover’s face down, close enough to bite the tempting ruby-red lips, hoping to hang on to the precipice of lust for just a while longer before they were both tossed over the edge. But the impetus to rush forward like a lemming and take the inevitable plunge was simply too great - and besides he had to open his mouth to breath - so Justin finally let go, relinquishing Brian’s mouth but not taking his hand away from the older man’s cheek in order to maintain some connection. And that’s when the final frenzy of euphoria swarmed his senses and Justin gave in completely to the joy of the moment. The warm wash of the cum coating his stomach and filling his ass at the same time made a delicious contrast to the cool balm of the endorphins in his blood as the two men reached that happy climax together and then collapsed in a tangle of sweaty limbs and sated bodies.

This was worth everything. Everything. This was why he was doing everything.

“That was so fucking hot!” Daphne gushed, climbing onto the bed next to them and ruining the moment of post-coital bliss where Brian was slumped over the top of him as they both panted and gasped for air. “Damn, Jus! No wonder you boys can’t seem to keep your hands off each other.”

Justin knew he was blushing but couldn’t stop it. The best he could do was hide his face against Brian’s shoulder while his partner in crime chuckled unabashedly. Daphne was giggling along boisterously.

Which was probably why none of them heard at first when the cabin door inched open. It wasn’t till their unwanted visitor gasped loudly at the scene inside that any of them looked up. Hobbs was standing there, apparently paralyzed by the shock of finding his Mis’l lying naked on the bed with the Surrogate’s softening dick still up Justin’s ass. Talk about being caught in a compromising position, right?

Nobody said anything or even moved for at least a half a minute.

Finally, Justin sighed and broke the silence. “Was there something you needed, Hobbs?” he asked, using his most authoritative Mis’l voice. “I’m a little busy here, you know. Or were you planning on standing around, gaping like a fish all day?”

“I . . . Uh . . . I was, um . . . The pilot . . . I came to warn you that the pilot said we might be experiencing some turbulence coming up,” Hobbs eventually managed to stammer out his excuse.

“You came because you’re a nosy git who wanted to spy on us,” Justin argued. “And now that you’ve gotten an eyeful, and satisfied your curiosity, you can leave.” Everyone in the room could hear the edge of anger in the Mis’l’s tone, including Hobbs, who bowed his head as he started to comply. “Oh, and Hobbs,” Justin added before the Dom’l could get the door all the way closed. “If you EVER again come into my room without knocking or being given permission, I’ll have you fired and your entire family thrown out on the streets. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Mis’l. My apologies,” Hobbs mumbled and quickly retreated.

Nobody said a word for at least a minute after the door closed again. They’d all known that their subterfuge would eventually become known, but they’d hoped it wouldn’t be till they’d landed. And worse yet, the Dom’l had intruded on them at a VERY inopportune moment. It was one thing for Hobbs to walk in on Justin fucking one of his Surrogates who wasn’t really supposed to have been brought on this trip, and another thing altogether to find the Domain’s Mis’l in the act of taking it up the ass himself. No one knew what the possible consequences might be.

Then Brian whistled and aimed one of his quirky, crooked smiles at the still-fuming Mis’l. “Damn, kid! Watching you do your Dominion thing like that makes me so fucking hard. You up for one more?”

Which made Daphne snicker, and a second later the rest followed, bursting out in a round of hilarity that helped ease all their nerves.

When the laughter died down, though, Justin could tell his wife was still worried. “He’s going to be a problem, isn’t he?” Daph asked, staring at the door contemplatively.

“What can he do?” Justin replied. “We’ve got to be well over the Wastelands by now, so there’s no way he can get ahold of my father until we land. And communications between the Dominion and Calcascadia are notoriously unreliable. With any luck, Hobbs won’t be able to get word back to Craig till our plans are well underway.”

“Let’s hope you’re right.” Daphne sounded unconvinced but still determined. “We need to be more careful though. I can’t believe you didn’t lock the door when you came back here, Jus.”

“I did . . . Hobbs either had a key or he picked the lock, the bastard. No wonder he’s such a good spy for my father if he can get into locked rooms like that. Let’s just hope my threat to fire him causes him to think twice before doing it again.

Brian rolled to the side, picking up a towel to wipe himself off and then tossing it to Justin for his use as well. “If the Dom’l is that tight with your father, I doubt it will do any good. It might just piss him off even more,” the Surrogate conjectured calmly. “You do realize we’re probably going to have to take him out if you really want this plan of yours to work, right?”

Justin didn’t answer. Privately, he thought Brian was likely right. It wasn’t a very pleasant prospect, however, and he hoped it didn’t come to that.

Not that he’d let Hobbs stop them, though.

********