Cortana could feel her heart thumping as the automated taxi pulled to the place where she was meeting Locke. A part of her knew that she was playing with fire and potentially making a fatal mistake with her relationship with John.
Relax, Cortana told herself. It's just a few drinks.
Of course, it wasn't just drinks. Cortana could not even make herself believe that lie, but it wasn't cheating. There were tons of women who had found themselves temporarily attracted to another guy while they were in a relationship and had never acted upon it. They had figured out a way to work through their unfaithfulness of the heart, and that was exactly what Cortana planned to do.
The only problem was that Cortana was much more ambitious than most women, and far more prideful, and pride comes before the fall.
The automated taxi eased to a slow halt, a soothing synthetic male voice telling her, "You have now arrived at your destination, the Paper Moon night club. Hours of operation are 5 p.m. to 4 a.m. Would you like to set a pick-up time?"
"Yes," Cortana said. "Come back here at midnight and take me home."
"Certainly," the synthetic voice said. "Your total amount due is thirty credits. Would you like to pay in..."
Cortana did not allow the taxi to finish speaking to her, hastily swiping her card and punching in the security code. She got out of the cab and slammed the door shut on the male voice just as he was thanking her.
Not very lady like of me, Cortana reflected. Then again, there was only one male whose attention she was interested in capturing tonight.
She made her way unsteadily towards the club entrance. Cortana was strangely nervous, her heartbeat thudding in her chest and filling her ears with the sound of drumbeats.
Calm down, Cortana told herself. You're acting like a school girl with a crush.
Not for the first time Cortana thought about just heading back to the apartment. When she saw the massive line outside the entrance of the club, a thick blob of people stretching back for at least half a block, Cortana felt a little relieved.
At least I'll have an excuse, she thought. She made an obligatory effort to find Locke's face in the crowd of waiting people, but quickly gave up. A Spartan might easily stand out in a crowd due to their height, but any attempt to pick him out of this tangled mess of people was a fool's gambit.
Cortana gave a thought that if it had been John she had been looking for, she would have been able to pick him out in a heartbeat, no matter how large the crowd.
This warm thought gave her an extra boost of confidence, reaffirming to her that her intentions tonight were pure.
Well, maybe not pure in the strictest sense, but her loyalty to John was still beyond question, and when Cortana tore off his clothes that night to fuck him beyond all sense and reason, she knew he would thank her.
That, and a little bit of extra info she planned to gather about a certain Spartan IV would not be unappreciated she was sure.
The Paper Moon, an unassuming name for a club as any she supposed, had a fittingly unassuming entrance. A solid brick wall served as the front of the club, and a regular size door underneath a green awning and surrounded by thick velvet ropes was the club's only visible entrance. The club's name flashed above the entrance in small pale letters. From the street the sign would just barely be visible.
"Almost like they don't want people to find the place," Cortana muttered to herself. She looked at the massive line again. "Not that it did them any good."
Waiting in line was not an option, but where patience wouldn't serve, perhaps a little flirtation would.
Cortana strutted up to the entrance, summoning all the confidence she could muster and allowing her hips to sway ever so slightly. A massive bald man stood guard at the entrance. He was tall, large, even obese, but nonetheless intimidating. He stood facing the line with his arms crossed. Seemingly in no hurry to let people in. He wore all black, and even though it was night he was wearing sunglasses. Cortana had little doubt that those glasses were at this very moment displaying a guest list, or even receiving messages from the club owner himself. On the front and back of his black t-shirt, the word STAFF was written in bold yellow letters.
Cortana conjured up the most innocent, slightly naughty, and devilishly flirtatious smile she could manage.
Might take a little bit of work to win this big guy over, but I know you got the charms Cortana, she thought to herself.
When the guard glanced over at her, Cortana flashed a brilliant smile at him, but before she could launch her first flirtatious salvo, the guard reached over and opened the velvet rope blocking the doorway, motioning for her to pass on through.
"Right this way ma'am."
The ease with which she had gained entry gave her pause, and before she could stop herself Cortana was asking, "But I don't have a reservation."
The guard looked her up and down. "Ma'am, a girl as fine as you don't need no reservation. Hell, I'd get fired for leaving you out here."
Slightly stunned, Cortana decided to just take the compliment and not question it.
At the very front of the line a man, and what Cortana assumed was his girlfriend, looked on in disbelief.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me," the man said. "We've been waiting in line for two hours."
The guard gave him a dangerous look. "Sorry brother, but you don't fit the criteria for entrance." He motioned towards the girlfriend, a woman that could only be described as a platinum blonde bombshell in a tight green dress. "She does though. Come on honey, you can either stand out here for another two hours with this looser, or you can come in here and find yourself a real man."
The blonde only hesitated for a moment. She gave her boyfriend, perhaps soon to be ex-boyfriend, an apologetic smile, and then joined Cortana behind the velvet rope.
"You got to be shitting me," the man said. He made a move forward. To do what Cortana could not say, but the large guard was on him in an instant.
"Come on, let's go. I'm not interested in seeing Brad get his ass kicked." the blonde urged Cortana, pulling them both through the door. It led to a long hallway decorated on either side by dramatic crimson curtains. Beyond the hallway, Cortana could hear the pulse of dance music.
"You don't seem that concerned about him," Cortana noted, the two women walking side by side down the hallway.
"I know I should be," the blonde said, biting her lower lip. "Suppose I should feel guilty, but I don't," she added bluntly. "I guess that makes me a bad person."
"It might," Cortana answered carefully. "But I don't think people come to a place like this to be good."
Cortana had looked up the Paper Moon briefly before hopping into her cab, and had quickly come to realize why Locke had chosen it.
The blonde laughed. "I did try to warn Brad about the reputation this place has. Guys who bring their girlfriends here don't keep them for long, and girlfriends who come here alone have more on their mind than just dancing."
"And what do you have in mind?" Cortana asked.
"Hmmm," the blonde mused. "Would serve Brad right if I went home with another guy."
They had come out of the hallway and into the club proper. It was much smaller than Cortana had expected. Far more intimate, and not nearly as crowded as she would have thought.
Exclusivity as a business model, Cortana thought. The drinks here must be astronomical.
The Crimson red theme continued into the club, red mood lights setting a cozy atmosphere. On the dancefloor Cortana could see bodies moving in a slow passionate rhythm, the DJ in the back cloaked in darkness. Only his arms could be seen as he manipulated a holographic display, the dark outline of his head bobbing to the music.
"Oh my, look at that," the blond said, her eyes looking hungrily at the bar.
Cortana followed her gaze, and found Locke sitting by himself. There was a drink in his hand, his posture giving off the air of cool command as he sat with his back to the bar, brown eyes calmly surveying the dancers on the floor.
"Maybe I should go home with him tonight," the blonde said, biting her lower lip.
Cortana's mouth broadened into a mischievous grin. "I wouldn't count on it. That's my date you're looking at."
"Oh my," the blonde said, eyeing the shorter brunette with what seemed like a new appreciation. "Well done. Is that your boyfriend?"
Cortana shook her head. "No."
"Do you have one?"
"Yes."
"Well then," the blonde said, grinning slyly. "Looks like me and you are kindred spirits tonight." She gave Locke another look. "You're a lucky girl."
"Wish I could say the same for my boyfriend," Cortana said.
The blonde giggled. "Well I'll leave you to it. Have fun."
With that she was gone, the green dress disappearing into the crimson fog.
What did I just say? Cortana thought. The words about John had come of their own accord. It was a lie of course. Cheating on John was the last thing she had come to do.
Yet somehow, playing along and pretending that she was had given Cortana a sudden rush. It disturbed her.
Keep focused on what you came here to do, Cortana said to herself.
Cortana reached into her purse and pulled out her data pad. Selecting the camera and holding it up, Cortana focused on Locke, and then snapped a picture. She brought the datapad down and brought up John in her messages. She attached the picture of Locke and entered a caption.
Look who I found
She smiled slightly as she sent the picture off to John, imagining what his reaction might be once he got it.
If I'm lucky he'll be storming off Infinity the moment he gets it, Cortana thought devilishly.
Her attraction to Locke had thrown Cortana for a loop, sure, but as was her nature Cortana took it for a challenge. An opportunity to fulfil one of her darkest fantasies. Yes, she would go on a date with Spartan Locke. She would flirt like there was no tomorrow, but when Locke propositioned her, as Cortana was sure he would, he would face a flat-out ego shattering rejection.
Cortana even had a little speech planned for him in her head. About how she was going to head home and let a real Spartan have her.
Of course, that's where John came in. Cortana could already imagine what her Spartan would be willing to do to her in order to reestablish dominance. Thinking about it was enough to make her shiver.
Your move Chief, Cortana thought. Don't disappoint.
Her datapad buzzed, and Cortana looked at the message from John.
