by Tammy Walsh
“All right, don’t rub it in.”
“And joining with our one true love really does make us stronger.”
She looked at me with a keen sense of uncertainty. I just smiled at her and gently kissed her on her fingertips.
“Really, truly, my love,” I said. “Help me. And in the process, maybe I can help you. Multiple times.”
I pressed my lips to hers again, and this time, though she stiffened in my arms, she didn’t pull away. She gave in to me, fell into me, and she was mine.
The lovemaking this time was not fast and frantic. A piece of her still believed she might hurt me. She rode me first, bucking gently and rubbing herself against me back and forth, and when I didn’t flinch or stagger, she began to ride me up and down.
Once again, I was struck with how gorgeous she was.
We made love like it might be our last day alive. If we failed to reach that shuttlecraft in time, it might well be.
She hesitated when I made to climb on top of her but I insisted. She opened herself up to me as I drove myself hard into her, taking her, savoring her.
Relishing her.
And when I finally came, it was while I looked her in the eye, the two of us joined in that one special moment, joined beneath the broken ceiling of a shattered barn somewhere in the depths of the galaxy.
Just us in this intimate moment.
We lay on the hastily-made bed she’d fashioned for me on the floor. We stared up through a hole in the roof at the starry night sky. Where we hoped to be in a few short hours.
I still had some gaps in the escape we made earlier. Not all of it made sense.
“How did you manage to get me in the cart you found at the side of the road?” I said.
“With a lot of difficulty,” Maddy said. “I put the arjath beside the cart and then loosened the ropes so I could scoop my legs under you and use them as a ramp to slowly side you down into the cart bed.”
I took her hands in mine and hissed through my teeth when I saw the redraw marks across her palms and the tiny green flecks of rope fibers that had embedded in her skin. I pressed my lips to her soft palms and felt at her until I came to the fibers with my tongue.
She pulled back but I didn’t let go.
“It’s ticklish,” she said.
“You didn’t complain earlier,” I said.
“You weren’t playing with my hands earlier.”
“The lips and tongue are the most delicate parts of the body… Well, one of them. I can feel the fibers in your skin and gently tease the fibers out one by one.”
“My hands are dirty.”
“There’s nothing about you that’s not dirty. That’s why I like you.”
“Like? What happened to love?”
“That was before sex.”
Maddy balled up her fist to punch me in the face. She struck me in the chest and I laughed. It was such a weak and fragile punch—though I imagined it was meant that way—and I wrapped my arms around her. I held her close even though she tried to block me with her clenched fists and weedy arms.
“You know how much you mean to me,” I said.
“A lot less after sex, apparently,” she said.
She frowned at me but couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face. She got the joke. She released her arms and let me take her hands again. I plucked out another half a dozen fibers before I was done with the first palm. Then I got to work on the second.
“I’m impressed you managed to get me in the cart and bring me all the way out to this barn,” I said. “How did you even know where to find it? I guess you stumbled across it?”
“No,” she said. “Klang and Trang brought us here.”
I froze in pulling the fibers out. My heart was in my throat.
“Klang and Trang?” I said. “Who are they?”
“The guys who found me trying to get you in the cart,” Maddy said. “It was a good job too because I’m not sure I would have managed without them.”
“Who are they?”
“They’re a couple of local Yayora. You know, the local little green people? They drove the cart here while I slept in the back with you. They’re really nice. I know you’ll like them.”
I’m not so sure about that.
“Are they still here?” I said.
“They’re downstairs,” Maddy said.
I crawled over to the narrow set of steps that led to the first floor. I peered over the side.
Please tell me I’m wrong…
They sat hunched around a small cooking pot. They sliced vegetables and chopped fresh meat they’d caught. It looked like a perfectly normal scene.
Unless you knew what you were looking for.
“We can get dressed and go down there,” Maddy said. “They said they would cook something while they kept watch.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” I said.
“You don’t need to be nervous. They’re lovely people. We never would have gotten here if it wasn’t for them.”
Sure. Right where they can keep an eye on us.
“We have to get out of here,” I said.
“Get out of here?” Maddy said, taken aback. “We’ve got a few more hours for you to rest before we need to make a move on the shuttlecraft. And get this, they’re contestants on this dumbass gameshow too!”
“Pack up your things. We’re leaving.”
Maddy folded her arms.
“I’m not going anywhere unless you tell me what’s going on,” she said.
“Those things down there, they’re not Yayora,” I said. “They’re Changelings.”
Maddy unfolded her arms.
“Changelings?” she said. “But they look nothing like them. Changelings are giant insects.”
“Not when they shift. They can adopt any shape similar in size to their own. That’s why they like copying other creatures like ours. Because we fit perfectly within their range.”
Maddy ran her hands through her hair.
“No,” she said. “That can’t be right. How do you know they’re Changelings?”
“Because of the telltale signs,” I said.
“Like what? Maybe you only think they’re Changelings.”
“Take a look at them,” I said. “Look at their wrists. See that bunch of skin like a bracelet? That shows you it’s them. When they take the shape of a creature, the excess skin has to bunch up somewhere, and for them, it’s around their joints. No doubt about it. If I had to guess, I would say they’re trackers like our horned friend earlier.”
“Then why did they help me? They could have killed us easily. They would never get an easier kill than that!”
I shrugged.
“There could be many reasons,” I said. “Maybe the show’s controllers are suffering bad ratings and they don’t want us to die too quickly. Maybe they want to design a more exciting finale. Or maybe these guys are cruel and want to play with us before they kill us.”
Maddy stamped her foot on the floor in agitation.
“I’m such an idiot!” she said.
I raised my hands to signal for her not to stamp her foot again.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “If I knew what they were, what they really were…”
“You would be dead,” I said. “And so would I. It might not seem like it now but your ignorance could be the best thing to happen to us. You got the help you needed. I was unconscious and unable to recognize them for what they are.”
“So what do you suggest we do?”
“We have to get out of here.”
“How do we do that? We can’t just walk down there! They’ll know something is up and kill us if we try to leave!”
I thought through our situation. We were trapped in the barn’s attic with a pair of killers downstairs. What were our advantages?
“They think I’m still unconscious,” I said. “So what you’re going to do is go down there and tell them you want to get some fresh air or feed the arjath or something. Then you’l
l bring that arjath over here, to this hole in the roof. I’ll throw down a rope and climb down it. We’ll be done before they notice anything’s up.”
Maddy gnawed on her bottom lip.
“I don’t know…” she said. “What if they notice something’s up?”
“Then you can shout for help. I’ll come down and fight.”
She ran a hand over my shoulder.
“You can’t do that,” she said. “You’re not fully healed yet.”
“You’re going to have to try your best,” I said. “It’s the easiest, safest way.”
And you’ll be outside in case anything goes wrong. You can escape to safety if I can’t reach you.
I checked the device at my waist. It blinked with the signal.
“It’s not much further,” I said. “If we ride the arjath toward the horizon at a steady pace for an hour or two, we can make it to the shuttlecraft and get out of here.”
I grabbed Maddy by the shoulders.
“Do you think you can do it?” I said.
She looked a little hesitant.
“Yes,” she said. “Yes, I can do it.”
I kissed her full on the lips. I swear, I would never get tired of how good she tasted.
“You can do this,” I said. “I know you can.”
Maddy took a deep breath and descended the steps. How any man could resist gazing at her and not lose his mind, I didn’t know. I watched that sexy ass as it descended the steps into the lion’s den.
I watched as Maddy headed down the stairs, bracing the wall with one hand. The creatures heard her coming and turned to watch her approach.
Klang licked his lips on seeing her. My fists clenched. I swear to the Creator, if they so much as put a hand on her…
Their ugly sneers curled upward into warm smiles as she hit the first floor.
“How’s the young Titan doing?” Trang said.
“Better, thank you,” Maddy said.
“Is he awake yet?” Klang said.
“No, not yet,” Maddy said. “He mumbles in his sleep but hasn’t opened his eyes.”
“Don’t worry, lass,” Trang said. “I’m sure he’ll come around soon enough.”
“I hope so,” Maddy said. “He’s pretty tough but he took a big blow. I’m not sure many people can recover from that. Not even a Titan.”
“He’ll come around,” Klang said, leering at her. “If I had someone like you to come back to, you can bet I’d do everything I had to to get back to her.”
Maddy turned to Klang and smiled politely. Trang scowled at her “brother.”
My left nut they’re siblings. A girl didn’t get jealous like that when her brother showed an interest in a girl.
“I thought I might get some fresh air,” Maddy said.
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Trang said. “Iron Hoof is still out there. He could attack at any moment.”
Not if you have anything to say about it.
Claiming the kill was all these creatures ever cared about. Another notch to add to their huge collection. The more kills they got, the more money they earned, the more famous they became.
And I knew without a shadow of a doubt they enjoyed what they did.
“I need to check on the arjath anyway,” Maddy said.
I kept a close eye on the creatures as they eyed Maddy warily. They didn’t want her to go outside, not when they had her in their sights and could kill her any time they wanted.
Just looking at these two made me feel sick to my stomach. They weren’t the type to tease an audience. They were the type to kill and murder and maim because they enjoyed it. If they didn’t kill the first chance they got it was because they’d been ordered to prolong the inevitable from their bosses.
Their bosses were the head honchos of Lovers’ Escape. There was a cloaked room somewhere out there where they controlled the show and issued their orders. Their commands might as well have come from God.
“I’ll come out with you,” Trang said. “At least if there’s two of us, it’s less likely he’ll get both of us.”
Maddy smiled but it was nervous. She didn’t look my way as she didn’t want to give away my position, but she was nervous as she crossed the threshold and stepped outside.
Her expression was as plain as day: Now what do I do?
She was going outside for a nice stroll in the moonlight with a killer. But there was only one of them. It could have been worse. They both could have gone with her.
“Damn it! Hurry up!” Klang said, bolting to his feet and speaking to no one I could see. He dug the communicator out of his pocket and pressed it his face. “Just how long do you want us to wait? They’re right here! We could have done them in hours ago! Ratings? Ratings? Who cares about viewer ratings? What about my ratings? What about our kill ratings? I swear, if the horned creep takes these kills from under our noses again…”
He stood in the middle of the room and tapped his foot in agitation. He sighed and shook his head.
“Yes,” he said, though he didn’t look happy about what he was hearing. “Yes. Fine. Then how about the one upstairs? The Titan? He’s unconscious. I can kill him in his sleep. I can do it any way you want.”
He sighed and stared up at the ceiling. I eased back slowly to avoid being seen.
“How about if I shoot him with adrenaline and make him sit up?” he said. “That will wake him up and he’ll be full of beans and it’ll make for a good death. I’ll inject him so no one will notice. I’ll let him get in a few good shots before I do him in. Then, picture this, the whore will come back inside and find him dead. And imagine the tearjerker that will be! Then we can help her get right up close to the shuttlecraft and then kill her. Right at the moment when she’s about to escape. The audience will love it!”
He waited a moment as he listened to the other end of the line.
“Of course I’ll make it painful,” he said, spinning a knife around in his hand. “You know me. I’m the last great showman. So it’s a deal? I can go upstairs and kill him?”
I could hear the excitement in his voice.
“I swear, you’re not going to regret this,” he said.
He hung up and breathed a sigh of relief. He gave a loud “Yippee!” and then turned and climbed the stairs.
We had a plan. It was simple and no one would get hurt.
Now it had changed and we were going to have to get our hands dirty.
Why could things never be simple?
I lay back on the makeshift bed Maddy had made. She was a good girl. A brave girl. I only hoped I wouldn’t hear her pained scream in a few minutes.
By what I could make out from Klang’s earlier phone conversation, her safety wasn’t something I needed to worry about. It was mine. They were intending on killing her the moment she reached the shuttlecraft.
Not while I still drew breath, assholes.
I lay perfectly still, my body curled around in a C shape. Klang would have to get close enough to my sleeping form to administer the shot of adrenaline he promised the show’s producers. And no matter which direction he came at me from, I would have him covered.
My legs were curled up, ready to spring at a moment’s notice. If he tried to jab my calf or thigh, I would crack him in the face with a foot. If he came at me on either side, I had my arms bent and ready to lash out and tackle him to the ground.
My eyes were closed but not completely shut. I could just about see through my eyelashes.
His footsteps up the stairs were slow and deliberate.
Thump.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The asshole whistled as he came up. A merry little tune I didn’t recognize. He stopped at the top of the stairs and turned to look at me.
He froze.
Why was he just standing there?
I hadn’t forgotten anything, had I?
I hadn’t left something out that proved I was now conscious?
I didn’t think so. It wasn’t like we had a lot of possessio
ns up there in the barn loft.
“Are you awake?” Klang said.
Shit!
Maybe he knew I was conscious. Was it the way I was lying here? Did he recognize the position? I didn’t have any military training. I’d made it up on the spot.
Or maybe the producers had a camera up here. I had ruled out the possibility—if they knew I was still awake, they wouldn’t have told Klang to inject me with adrenaline to wake me up before killing me. The section was massive and there was no way they could have a camera everywhere.
Unless…
It was a ploy.
Or a distant camera spotted me and Maddy earlier, watching us make love through one of the many holes in the walls. It wouldn’t have been the first time.
Twisted fucks.
“Sorry if my whistling woke you up,” Klang said. “I often whistle when I’m excited. And what’s not to be excited about when it comes to claiming a Titan? Oh, you’re not my first. Not by a long shot. But I sure do like killing you boys. You’re tough, strong. I respect that. But for guys who aren’t afraid of death, you sure like to draw it out. I know honor is very important to your people. I’ll make sure to give the audience a good show so you’ll gain plenty.”
He sprinted toward me, his boots heavy and thudding on the floorboards.
My body tensed, ready to lash out at a moment’s notice.
He was getting close…
Very close.
Maybe I should get up and face him head-on…
No. Stick to the plan.
He skidded to a stop about a yard from my coiled legs and stared down at me with a sinister grin.
“Just checking,” he said. “You never can tell when someone is really lying there unconscious and when they’re only pretending. It takes a lot to stay cool when a man comes running at you with a knife in his hand. I guess some people could do it. But I haven’t met one yet.”
Because they never had their soulmate’s life in their hands.
I wouldn’t let Maddy down. Not ever.
“Oh,” Klang said. “I almost forgot.”
He took a bag from his pocket. It looked like a handful of sand. He dabbed his finger in the bag and smeared it over an overhead beam.