Slaves and Masters

"Ignore it," Cass whispered, kissing me again as I continued to slide my cock in and out of her, "They'll go away."

I just concentrated on the feeling of fucking her, her legs resting against my torso, her fingers running through my hair and down my back, my hand grabbing her arse as I slowly increased the tempo of my thrusts. We figured this might be the last time we could make love in comfort before our probable arrival in New Vegas, if we didn't catch up with Benny in Boulder City.

But someone pounded on the door again, and it was starting to put me off. I stopped and groaned. "I can't concentrate with that racket," I muttered.

"Fucking arsehole," she murmured, quickly adding, "Not you. I'm loving your cock." She sighed. "Fine. Go see who it is."

Rolling off Cass, I slid into my trousers before opening the door bare-chested, ready to give whoever it was a piece of my mind. Sure, it wasn't early, and I doubt they could hear us fucking, but we were clearly occupied. But when I noticed it was that fellow named Boone, I could only blink in surprise. He was the last person I expected to knock on the door.

"I understand you're a man who can solve problems."

"Who gave you that idea?"

"The fact three rockets launched from the facility last night and I know you were helping Manny."

I glanced at Cass, who had covered herself with the blanket. Looking back at Boone, I asked, "You need my help?"

"I do. I see you're busy, but I wanted to catch you before you left. Not sure what you're involved in, but you're an outsider, therefore you're perfect for what I need. Can you meet me downstairs shortly?"

I glanced back at Cass, who smiled, nodding in my direction. "Sure. Where?"

He gestured towards the huts on the other side. "I'm in middle one. Just knock when you're ready. And… thanks."

He walked away as I closed the door, immediately removing my trousers and joining Cass back on the bed, as she threw back the blankets and pointed to her pussy with a finger. "I believe you were in the middle of something… or you were buried in something…"

I laughed before leaning down to kiss her, making her gasp as I gently slid my cock back inside her. "Fuck," I groaned, "Tight as always, Miss Cassidy."

"Because your cock is just fantastic."

No idea how long we fucked for, long enough to enjoy at least one orgasm. It was only when lying back afterwards, smoking a cigarette, that I figured I should head downstairs and speak to Boone. I admitted to being intrigued as to who he was and definitely as to what sort of help he'd want from someone like me, or people like us. Had to include Cass in everything now.

As I lay there, enjoying a smoke, I did look over at the robot, wondering what it thought as Cass and I spent most of our time in the room either fucking or sleeping. I'd left it behind in the room recently, but knew it would likely prove itself useful the deeper involved we were in all this nonsense. But I did smile, eventually starting to laugh, as I mentioned to Cass my thoughts.

"Maybe it's jealous of all the attention I'm getting," she whispered.

We made it downstairs just in time for breakfast, though when it came to speak to Boone, Cass said he had only spoken to me, so she'd head back to the room and wait to see what I decided to do. She wasn't bothered about spending another night or two in the motel, admitting it was nice to have a room over her head, food and alcohol readily available, and a warm bed where I could fuck her all night.

Knocking on the door he pointed out, it was answered quickly, Boone standing aside, gesturing for me to enter. There was a chair I could sit down on, taking a seat as he sat on the edge of the bed. Taking out my pack of cigarettes, I offered him one, lighting both with a match, and I simply waited for him to say his piece.

"Manny give you the name of the man you wanted?" I couldn't help raise my eyebrows. "Small town. Word gets around. And I remember seeing him, the man you're after."

"Yeah, Manny delivered on his word." Boone snorted at that, so I assumed they were not friends. "What is it you want, Boone? I'm willing to hear you out, but…"

"I remember hearing the whispered conversation about me in the dining room. Better hearing than they think. No surprise most are scared of me. I'm not exactly friendly. Good reason for that though."

"Well, I'm here now. Tell me about it."

"I'll give you the short story. I was NCR. First Recon. Best marksmen in the army. Fought all over the place. Done some shit I'm not exactly proud of. But despite all that, still found my wife, Carla. Made life worth living at times. For a brief moment in time, I was happy."

"I assume something happened?"

"She's dead, if that's what you're wondering. But it's how she died, or the reasons why she died, is why I asked you here today. Someone sold her into slavery. Someone here in Novac. I need you to find out who did it, then I'm going to kill them."

"Hmmm. Justice at the barrel of a gun. Sounds familiar."

That made him look at me. "So you've done similar?"

"More than once. No regrets. There is next to no law in the wasteland. I'm not going to lose any sleep about putting down a few raiders or gang members. Are you?"

"No. That's not what I lose sleep over."

"Any suspects?"

"Everyone. The only people I can discount and you and your lady friend. That's why I can almost trust you. Almost, mind. Do this for me, then you might earn it."

"How did she die?"

I could sense the glare from behind the sunglasses. I just gazed back at where I assumed his eyes were. He eventually nodded. "Guess I could understand curiosity. Very well. Do this for me, and I'll tell you everything. No secrets." He paused a second. "You have a name?"

"No. I have amnesia. I woke up what would be a couple of weeks back in Goodsprings. Benny put two bullets in my head. Can't remember a damned thing now. Most people just call me the Courier."

"Very well, Courier. I'm going to leave this matter in your hands. However long it takes, I don't mind. I know you have your own problems, but with no-one else I can trust…"

"Where should I start?" He returned a rather helpless shrug. "Okay, you say she was sold into slavery. Who would know about that?"

"No-one. Everyone believes she just upped and left. They made their own assumptions as to why. I'm figuring that might help you figure it out."

"Okay. Guess all I can do is start asking around, see if anyone is suspicious."

"When you're done, you don't have to come and speak to me. Take my beret," he removed it from his head and offered it to me. "Make sure you're wearing it when you take whoever it is to the front of the dinosaur. Make sure it's after ten pm. That's when I'm on shift. One shot is all I need." Escorting me to the door, he said one more thing. "Best we don't speak again until all this is over. Just make sure whoever it is, you are sure it's the right person. I don't need a wrongful death on my conscience."

"Sure thing, Boone."

That first day was a waste. Spoke to a few people around Novac. Most of them barely knew her name, or if they knew her name, couldn't even really begin to describe her. They knew Boone well enough, and suggested they had at least been happy in Novac, as everyone mentioned the fact Boone had been nothing but angry since his wife had disappeared.

Returning to Cass once it was dark, I explained what Boone wanted, and admitted the day had been a bust, but I wasn't one to give in too easily. It was just going to take some investigation. "Didn't have you pegged for a private investigator," she joked.

"Neither did I. Not sure I'm getting paid for this either."

"But it's the right thing to do?"

"Yeah, I think so. Definitely a long story behind what happened. He admitted the truth about her. Everyone else believes she just disappeared. That's not what happened." I met her eyes and Cass nodded. She knew what I meant. "Might be here a day or two longer than planned, but I know we'll catch up with Benny eventually."

I didn't expect what I discovered the next morning. Figuring having a word with Manny might be a good idea, particularly as Boone let it be known they'd fallen out, I knocked on the door, Manny opening the door in just his trousers, but what caught my attention was Chris walking out of the bathroom with just a towel wrapped around his waist. Manny's eyes widened as Chris came to a halt, looking very guilty.

"It's… what it looks like…" Manny said.

I shrugged. "What two consenting adults do in here isn't my problem. Not here to talk to you about that. It's about Carla."

Manny sighed. "Figured he would ask someone eventually. Come on in." There was no missing the smell of sex as I entered the room. I'm sure the room Cass and I shared definitely had that scent. Taking one of the chairs, Manny put on a shirt and sat on the edge of the bed, Chris grabbing his clothes and disappearing into the bathroom.

"That happened fast," I said.

Manny shrugged. "Couple of drinks last night, we got to talking. Talking got to heading back here, talked some more. Talking led to… well, I'm sure you can imagine. But I'm sure you don't want to hear about that. What you're here about is Carla." I nodded. "Okay, I'll get the truth out immediately. Never really liked the woman. Walked around like her shit didn't stink. We argued often about anything and everything. But the major problem I had with her is that she made Boone walk away from the service. Boone is a soldier and she was trying to change him too much. Didn't like that. And that's why Boone and I don't really talk now either."

"Does he suspect you in her disappearance?"

"No. It was my reaction to hearing she was gone that nearly led to blows. I won't lie to say I was sad to hear she'd disappeared. I figured she just couldn't adapt to life here, so returned to New Vegas or even the NCR or at least headed elsewhere." He paused and remained silent for a couple of minutes. A sigh followed, and I did wonder what would follow. "I guess I should take at least part of the blame, as I convinced Boone to follow me out here. Carla never did like it here in Novac. Too quiet for her tastes. But her attitude stank." He met my eyes. "Think I'm guilty?"

"Nope. A guilty man would have waxed lyrical about her, how much you liked her, how much you miss her. The fact you've just been as blunt as you have been suggests, to me at least, that you have nothing to hide."

"Yeah, maybe I should have hidden one or two thing though," he muttered, "Might still have my friend at least."

Chris walked out of the bathroom and it was awkward with three of us there. Manny eventually stood up and walked him to the door. "See you tonight?" Chris whispered.

"Sure. Wouldn't mind some company again," Manny whispered back.

I looked away as the two shared quite the steamy kiss, no missing the fact they seemed to actually like each other. "Been too long since I was fucked like that," Manny whispered, and that's when I did glance at them. That I hadn't expected.

Chris noticed my glance and grinned. "I'll see you tonight, Manny."

He shut the door and returned to sit on the bed. He noticed the look on my face. "Ah, I'm guessing… you didn't expect that…"

"Not at all. But, as I said, two consenting adults."

"Ever been with a man?"

"No idea. Amnesia, remember?"

"Ah, that's right. Well, it's what I've always preferred. Anyway, not here to talk about that. Any other questions?"

"Just one. Boone said everyone in town was a suspect behind her disappearance. Who do you reckon could be involved?"

"Honestly, no-one. I think she just upped and left. Perhaps joined up with one of the few passing caravans that come this way instead of the Long 15." He shrugged. "But I know as much as anyone else."

Thanking Manny for the information, and also his obvious honesty, I headed next door to speak to whoever lived there. He introduced himself as Andy, though everyone called him 'Ranger Andy' due to the obvious reason, considering he still wore the uniform. He sat me down, offered a beer, and spoke in rather glowing terms of her, at least in regards to how beautiful she was. But he admitted that, like everyone else, her attitude left a lot to be desired, but he also understood why. "She was a Vegas girl in a small town like Novac. No wonder she was miserable here. Don't get me wrong, she loved her husband, but sometimes that's just not enough. I'm sure she hated leaving but she had to do what was best for herself in the end, no matter how much it hurt the pair of them."

Finishing my beer, I thanked him before heading back outside, and there was really only one other person I could talk to at the hotel. Jeannie May was at her reception desk, greeting me with her usual grin. She'd proven nothing but friendly, and though surprised I was asking questions about Carla, she was as honest as anyone else.

"How should I put it? I guess you could say she was kinda like a cactus flower. Real pretty to look at, but there was just no getting close to her. I got the feeling she was trying to get Boone to leave with her, but I guess she got tired of waiting."

"So you think she just upped and disappeared too?"

"She never liked living here. She liked the bright lights and fast living of New Vegas. Always came across like that, thought she was far too good to be living with simple folk here."

"You really think she would have just left Boone behind like that?"

"I'm not the only one who heard their arguments. No doubt they loved each other, I know Boone was utterly devoted to her, but she let her feelings known about living in this so-called dump. It might not be New Vegas, but these are good people who live here, hardworking, simply doing their best to make a living."

Walking out of the reception, I really had no idea who to approach next. No one had come across as having some real axe to grind against Cara. Sure, most people hadn't particularly warmed to her, but it didn't seem Carla had gone out of her way to make the best of it either. But I wandered over to the main road leading north-south, glancing up and down. Figuring I might see Old Lady Gibson, if she knew anything about her, I was halfway there when I was approached by a man. Unkempt beard. Dressed in little more than rags. Eyes were as wild as any I'd seen. But he wasn't violent nor dangerous, just utterly fucking insane.

I tried making sense of much he was saying, but it was mostly just inane ramblings. So I thought I'd as, "Do you know the man named Boone who lives at the hotel?"

"I might do."

I took that as he did. So I thought I'd try my luck. "Know anything about his wife? What might have happened to her?"

"Seen it all. Seen shadowy folk come to his room and leave again in the middle of the night. Thought one might've gone in the lobby, too, for a spell. Could be that person went in to get something. Or use the john maybe. Mighty interesting either way, you ask me."

Shadowy folk? Not entirely who that could mean. But if it was the middle of the night, that was when Boone was in position, so he wouldn't have been in the room. Perfect time for someone to come and abduct her. And gone into the lobby? Why would someone do that?

I took another chance. "You mean the lobby at the hotel? The shadow folk went in there?"

"I thought it was cannibals, come to eat us all for sure, so I kept out of sight. But now I know better."

It was a lead, but I had no real idea what it meant, though I knew what I had to do. Thanking the crazy man, I headed back to my room at the hotel, Cass lying back on the bed, listening to the radio. I sat down next to her, ensuring she kept the noise up as I whispered what I'd just been told, asking for her opinion. She knew what I was insinuating.

"You think she did it?"

"I don't know, but any evidence will be in there. So I'm going to break in tonight and see what I can find."

"Just don't get caught."

"It will be once everyone has gone to sleep."

After dinner, where I had watched the suspect the entire time out of the corner of my eye, Cass and I headed back to our room, where we lay back, smoking cigarettes and listening to the radio. She could see I wasn't in the mood for sex, not with what I could possibly find. I check the time, waiting for after midnight. Cass said she would stay up until my return as I got ready to head out.

Novac was quiet at this time of night. The door into the lobby was unlocked, thankful it opened and closed almost silently. Rounding the desk, I flicked through the paperwork sitting on it, but there was nothing I found that pointed towards Boone and his wife. Crouching down to look at the safe, it was a simple design with only a lock. Picking it was surprisingly simple. Finding it full of caps was what I expected, though there were more caps than I would thought to have found for a hotel that wouldn't have seen much business. But there was paperwork and a few holotapes inside, so I checked those carefully. What I heard sent a chill down my spine.

"We, the representatives of the Consul Officiorum, have this day bargained and purchased from Jeannie May Crawford of the township of Novac the exclusive rights to ownership and sale of the slave Carla Boone for the sum of one thousand bottle caps, and those of her unborn child for the sum of five hundred bottle caps, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged. We warrant the slave and her young to be sound, healthy, and slaves for life. We covenant with the said, Jeannie May Crawford, that we have full power to bargain and sell said slave and her offspring. Payment of an additional five hundred bottle caps will be due pending successful maturation of the fetus, the claim to which shall be guaranteed by possession of this document. M. Scribonius Libo Drusus et al.

Administrators of M. Licinius Crassus, Consul Officiorum ab Famulatus"

I didn't even bother locking the safe after closing the lid, almost staggering back outside and up the stairs to my room. Walking inside, I leaned back against the door as Cass immediately rose to her feet. "Is it bad?" she asked. I played her the message as I watched her face. By the time it was done, she needed a cuddle. "My god," she whispered.

"Boone and I have a plan. This will be resolved tomorrow morning. Then we're getting the hell out of this place."

I barely slept that night, the urge to go downstairs and put a bullet in her head near overwhelming. And since Boone knew she was dead, it was easy to figure out what he'd done, and therefore easy to figure out why he was the way he was. I explained to Cass what I thought and she couldn't help but agree.

Heading downstairs, I made sure Boone's beret was in my pocket as Cass and I ate breakfast. Made sure I was friendly with everyone as always, chatting away with the others like nothing was out of the ordinary. Cass could see I was seething inside, my hand shaking at times as I cut the steak, lifting the fork into my mouth. Checking the time, I had an hour until Boone finished his shift.

"Jeannie May, could you join me outside please? Need to speak to you in private about a certain matter." When she looked at me slightly confused, I remembered the words from the Legion in Nipton, so leaned in closer. "Ave, true to Caesar," I whispered.

She smiled at me, letting her colleague know she was going to be indisposed for a few minutes. Wandering outside, I led her towards the bridge out of town, in front of the dinosaur statue. Just before we were in place, I placed Boone's beret on my head as she turned to look at me.

"Do you have word from the Legion, young man? Do they wish for more slaves?"

I needed to hear it from her mouth. "You help them get slaves? I wasn't aware. I'm in the middle of a separate task on behalf of Caesar."

She smirked. "What do you think happened to Carla Boone?"

I looked at the mouth of the dinosaur and nodded. The crack of the rifle occurred after the bullet slammed into the head of Jeannie May Crawford, feeling the blood splatter on my face as the force propelled her away from in front of me. Looking back up, I nodded once again before I left her body behind, removing the beret from head as I walked back into the courtyard.

Wiping my face, Boone appeared through the doorway, meeting me with his own nod. Before he could ask, I played him the holotape I'd found to confirm what I'd found. His face, by the time I was done… "Thank you," he managed to say.

"I hesitate to say you're welcome…"

"I'm guessing you may have figured out how I know my wife is dead." I sighed and nodded. "I was married to her. I knew she had faults, but I loved her. It's why I married her, why I brought her out here, so we could make a life together. Wasn't going to let her be taken like that though…"

"Did you know…"

"Wasn't having our kid go through that life either. Sure many would ask why I didn't try and save her. What good could one man do against the Legion? I'd have ended up dead or in chains alongside her. No, doing what I did was perhaps the most humane thing to do, better than letting her taken to be a slave. No-one deserves that life."

"Look, Cass and I are going to leave shortly, maybe tomorrow. Could do with a sharpshooter like yourself watching my back, considering what I might find myself against."

"Hmmm. Better than staying here. Knew I wasn't going to stay once I'd found the person responsible." He sighed. "Never thought it was her, to be honest. She'd always been nice."

"Who did you think it was?"

"Honestly? Part of me always wondered about Manny, but I just didn't think he would have helped sell her to the Legion, it's why I was always left confused as to how it all happened. But bought and sold like cattle…" He met my eyes. "Let me get my affairs in order. If you're willing to leave tomorrow, I'll join you."

"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow morning after breakfast."

Heading upstairs, Cass was waiting for me. She stood up straight away, concern on her face. Only then did I think my face might still be streaked with blood. Taking off my jacket and shirt, I headed to the bathroom to wash off my face before walking out to the bedroom. Cass met my eyes. "It's done?"

"Yeah. Now I just want to get out of here. Boone is going to join us. That okay?"

"Sure. Guess he's got nothing keeping here now?"

"Person responsible for his wife is dead. That was the only thing keeping him here. Don't blame him for wanting to leave it all behind."

By the time we headed down for dinner later, everyone was aware that she was dead, and it didn't take long for the rumours to start. We ignored most of the conversations taking place, though our table earned more than once glance, before we headed out with a bottle of whiskey for ourselves, sitting back on our bed, sipping away as Cass regaled me with more stories of her life, noticing she kept them generally more upbeat.

"Want to fuck?" she asked once most of the bottle was gone.

I looked around the bed. "Well, not sure when we'll have this level of comfort again."

Clothing was removed rather quickly as I ended up sitting back against the headboard, Cass sitting on my lap, slowly riding my cock. We kissed from time to time, but I enjoyed just watching her face, how her body reacted, and certainly the noises she made. Rather complimentary of myself, as usual, while I think the moans I made as she moved faster and faster informed her as to how I was enjoying it too.

Resting her hands on my shoulders, I felt her adjust, even deeper inside her, as she really started to ride me. I almost worried she'd do herself an injury, hard and fast as she was riding me, but I could sense she was also getting close to orgasm. Mine was far away either.

"Cum in me," she whispered, so I guess my face showed her how close I was.

"Soon as you orgasm."

She kissed me hard, whimpering into my mouth, feeling her start to squeeze my cock like a voice, deepening the kiss as she released a long moan. That finished me off, both of us smiling as it was pretty much a mutual orgasm. She didn't stop, and I managed to stay hard, resting her forehead against mine. "Go as long as we can?"

"Definitely."

Though that resulted in a change, as she wanted to be on her knees again with me behind her. Definitely enjoyed that position, though slightly different this time, pulling her back so her back rested against my chest, turning her head so I could kiss her while my fingers were busy teasing her at the same time. She loved it, of course, enjoying another orgasm again, and we still didn't want to stop, eventually switching so she was on her back. We slowed down, though, as we'd been going for a while now and both of us were starting to feel tired.

"You know you've ruined other men for me now," she joked, "Though…" She trailed off and met my eyes, grinning away. "Who knows what the future will bring anyway…"

"I'd like to keep you around."

That made her laugh as I came to a stop, feeling her give me a gentle shove. "Just keep me around eh?"

"Well, certainly so we can keep doing this." I gave her a very slow thrust, watching her face light up. "Yeah, I think you'd certainly like that."

"Fucking hell, that's good," she murmured, "One more time, then we should sleep."

"Giving up on me, Miss Cassidy?"

She hooked her legs around me, running her fingers up my cheek and through my hair. "Think you can keep going?"

"I'll fuck you until morning."

The gin on her face simply made her look even more gorgeous. Yeah, I liked her a lot. Think she might have felt the same way, particularly the next kiss we shared. Soft. Sensual. And a depth of feeling that suggested she liked me quite a bit in return.

No idea what time we actually stopped making love. Completely worth it though, particularly when she cuddled into me, snuggling ever so tightly. "Thank you," she whispered.

"For what?" I wondered.

"Showing up in the outpost when you did. I just had a feeling about you that first night we talked. No jealousy about those other women you've been with either. Can certainly understand why they like you."

"Ah, so…"

"We're just travelling together and enjoying really great fucking sex. I'm not expecting commitment. You don't even know who you are. Find out all that first, then we can go from there." She giggled to herself. "At least you're not wearing a wedding ring, so I can only assume there isn't a wife, perhaps a family out there wondering where you are."

Waking the next morning, we needed a wash before dressing and heading downstairs for breakfast. Having already packed, we handed the key to the room to the new proprietor, Cliff Briscoe, who would simply take over running the hotel as no-one else was likely capable of taking over. I didn't really care, it wasn't my problem, but I still wished him luck.

Joining Boone outside, he had his sniper rifle over one shoulder, a rucksack over his other, combat trousers, shirt and jacket, with military boots on his feet. Basically, looked like a soldier ready to head towards the front line. "Ready to go?" I asked.

"I won't be looking back once we do. Where are we heading?"

"Boulder City. I doubt Benny is there, but I'm hoping we'll be given information as to where he had gone next."