by Elin Wyn
The father, no, the hunter, sneered.
“After your first performance at the auction on Katzul, whispers started. I wondered what was going on. It wasn't hard to talk to the newest crop of women, find our lovely Princess Tiatra here, and convince her she’d have a better deal working with me.”
I shook my head, trying not to stare at Maris's limp form. She was twisted, awkward and broken. Hair loose, covering her face, I couldn’t see how injured she was, couldn’t see her hands.
They’d pay. As soon as I got my hands on them.
Wait. My head cleared, just a bit more. Just enough.
Hands.
“So, the whole rescue was a setup?”
Slowly, carefully, I twisted open the hinge at my left wrist.
I tried not to flinch at the soft click, but the hunter didn’t notice.
He just shrugged. “The odds were in my favor. If nothing happened, the woman would be auctioned on schedule, and everything would go according to the original plan. If there was a new player involved, some do-gooder out to free the women, well, I had a back door to get them back,” he nodded his head towards the bitch, apparently named Tiatra.
No, Princess Tiatra.
Feeling blindly for the small blade embedded in my prosthetic, I got to work on the cords behind me while every word the hunter spat at us cut just as deeply.
“But, on the chance it was the same group that had taken the human women from Outpost Nine?” The hunter displayed sharp, jagged teeth, perfectly suited for tearing and ripping. “Well, that would be a payday worth the gamble.”
I felt kicked in the gut.
We’d never thought of disguising the human women from the refugees.
Instead, we’d thrown them together, thought it would help.
And it somehow gave them away.
“But why work with them, why even be in the auction?” I couldn’t wrap my head around it. Why would anyone, even a bitch, do that?
Tiatra’s chin rose. “The Dominion offered us protection. In exchange for my people, I offered myself.”
Huh. I could understand that, could even respect it, I guess.
“And when this one came along, I saw a way to return home to the Xio system. He promised to take all of us home if I helped him.”
The Xio system.
I knew something about that, had heard rumors of skills, abilities.
But it would have to wait.
“What now?” I asked. The binding cord was cut, and my blade was back inside my pinky. All I needed was a chance, if I could somehow get them to turn away from me, or against each other.
“We go home,” she said. “All of us.” Her voice had been almost sympathetic, the bare bones of her story almost sorry enough for me to believe.
“Well,” the man said, with a sideways glance at Tiatra as he spoke. “About that.”
Tiatra turned towards him, her head tilted to the side as she tried to figure out what he was going to say.
“I,” he started, then hesitated. He brought his weapon up to scratch his cheek, then pointed it at her. “I lied.”
He pulled the trigger.
The loud blast echoed in the cargo bay, the reverberations of the sound hurting my ears. I nearly brought my hands up, then remembered I was supposed to be tied up. The man walked over to Tiatra’s body.
“Sorry, lady. You never once had a deal that was going to be paid off.”
With a shrug, he walked away from her body and back towards Aavat.
My heart stopped.
Not because of the murder of Tiatra.
Not because of the murdering asshole stalking towards Aavat.
But because Maris was awake, and it looked like her hands were unbound.
Tiatra had fallen just to her side and, with unfocused eyes, Maris ran her fingers quickly over the dead woman’s clothing, searching for something.
She pulled it back quickly, shielding what she’d found with her shoulder, but I’d seen enough that, for the first time in my life, terror ran through me.
Maris had found a small blaster on Tiatra’s body.
This man had already shown himself to be deadly, and a bit unstable. If he was willing to kill his partner, he’d have no compunctions about killing anyone else.
That meant he would kill me, or Aavat, or Dejar, any of us, in an instant if we made a move towards him.
Maris with a blaster had no chance.
But before I could shove my numb legs into motion, she took wobbly aim and fired.
And missed.
Maris
Damn it!
I grasped the blaster, squinting, shaking my head to try to force the double vision away.
The sudden movements sent a wave of dizziness over me.
The blast fizzled to nothing against the insulated wall of the cargo hold.
And the bounty hunter turned back, black eyes narrowing as he watched me struggle, half rolling away from Tiatra’s corpse.
I didn’t know what species he was. Tall and broad like a Shein, but with skin the gray, rough texture of a peeling tree. His mouth was no more than a lipless slit, but his teeth… they’d give me nightmares later, I just knew it.
If we lived through this.
“Someone’s got a little fight in them, eh?” the bounty hunter growled. His footsteps reverberated through the metal floor beneath me. “Lucky for you, I’m in the mood to play a bit longer.”
He lunged at me. My reactions were sluggish, dull,
I dodged far too late.
He gripped my arm, the sharp pain drawing a yelp from me, forcefully hauling me off the floor. I heard the blaster skitter away as he kicked it into the darkness between a stack of crates, far out of my reach.
“I’ll kill you,” I tried to shout, but my voice was weak and crackly.
The vent fans were doing their job, but not fast enough.
The bounty hunter shoved me hard. I fell back onto the metal floor, my bones barking in protest. My legs turned to jelly, and I couldn’t right myself.
“Come on, little soft one,” the bounty hunter taunted. “Try to kill me. I’ll even stand still for you. Have a free shot on me.” He grinned, and I shuddered. “I’m sure they don’t need all of you.”
I struggled to my feet. I couldn’t take him, even if I hadn’t been exposed to the gas for as long as the rest of the crew. Instead of lunging for him, I ran to the door of the cargo hold and threw it open.
The scrubbers had done a better job in the corridors. Really needed to bump that up on the maintenance list.
I took a deep gulp of fresher air as the fumes dissipated even more.
“Don’t bother running,” the hunter said. “There’s no place you can go where I won’t track you down.”
“I’m not running,” I told him. “And I haven’t taken my free hit yet.”
Behind him, Orrin slowly got to his feet. His balance was unsteady, his eyes sliding in and out of focus.
Oh no.
The bounty hunter noticed I wasn’t staring at him. He started to turn his head to follow my gaze.
Oh no oh no oh no.
“Hey!” I shouted before he could see Orrin was on his feet.
The hunter looked back to me and I charged him, throwing myself against him with all the strength I could muster. I stumbled backward. I didn’t even make him lose his footing.
“That was a good effort,” the bounty hunter chuckled. “I’m feeling benevolent. Why don’t you go again?”
“She doesn’t need to.” Orrin clubbed the bastard on the back of the neck.
The bounty hunter stumbled forward as he whirled around. Orrin came at him again, this time knocking him off his feet. They struggled on the floor, equally matched in size and strength.
I rushed to the side of the person nearest to me. Kalyn. Good. I knelt beside her and tried to shake her awake. She groaned and coughed. Her wrists were unbound, and I wondered if the arrogant bastard hadn’t thought the soft little humans were a threat.<
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“Nod if you can hear me,” I urged. She dipped her chin. I draped her arm over my shoulders. “Use all of your strength. Help me get you to fresh air.” I lifted her off the ground. Her legs scrambled for purchase on the smooth floor of the cargo hold.
“Do your best,” I urged, already breathless and dizzy again. I dragged her out of the cargo hold and a few feet down the hall where most of the sleeping gas would’ve dispersed.
“Just breathe,” I urged her. “When you’re ready, help me get the others.” Kalyn nodded weakly.
Orrin held the bounty hunter in a headlock, his face looked the color of a beet. I started towards the corner where the blaster had gone, but the pair rolled across the floor, blocking my way.
Dammit. There’d be no finding it.
Get the women, so they could help me get the guys.
Focus on what I can do.
But still, I worried.
I grabbed Lynna next. She was a doctor. I needed her well and alert as soon as possible so she could get the med bay running. But she was even more out of it than Kalyn and I struggled to get her out the door.
I struggled even more, not looking over my shoulder to make sure Orrin was all right.
I placed Lynna beside Kalyn, who had more color in her cheeks now.
A loud crack sizzled through the corridor and my stomach twisted.
That was the unmistakable sound of a blaster.
I ran back to the cargo hold just in time to see Orrin sink to his knees with his hands clamped against his stomach. Blood dripped from his fingers, as shimmery as his skin.
“No!” I screamed.
The bounty hunter turned to face me with madness in his eyes.
He lifted his gun.
I felt no fear.
I closed my eyes and waited for the final blow, but it didn’t come.
Someone gave a shout. I opened my eyes. Dejar and Aavat were on their feet now, blood dripping from their wrists where they’d torn through their bonds. Kovor wasn’t far behind them. Qal’s eyes were open, alert and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Aavat lunged for the hunter. Dejar lunged for the gun.
And I ran to Orrin, the only one that mattered.
He was on his back now, laying in a pool of his own blood. His eyes were open, and he was still breathing.
“Maris,” he rasped.
“Don’t try to speak right now,” I urged him. I lifted my shirt overhead, not carrying that I was only in my undergarments from the waist up. I balled up my shirt and pressed it against his wound as tightly as I could.
He hissed in pain.
“I’m sorry,” I pleaded. “I know it hurts, but you have to stay with me.” The gas, combined with the physical exertion and emotional stress, began to take its toll on me. My vision blurred. I felt lightheaded once more.
“Get somewhere safe.” Orrin’s voice was barely louder than the sound of the struggle behind us.
“I am somewhere safe,” I insisted. “If I’m with you, then I’m somewhere safe. Stop trying to talk. Just focus on staying awake. I need you to stay awake.”
Another blaster shot rang out behind us. I turned, fearing that the hunter had struck down another one of the crew.
Instead, Aavat stood with the blaster in his hands and the bounty hunter dead at his feet.
I released the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
“He’s dead,” I told Orrin. “We’re all safe now. He’s dead.”
“How is he?” Dejar asked, his usual composure in splinters. He knelt beside me, placing his hands over mine to add to the pressure on Orrin’s wound.
“Get Zayn or Lynna,” Dejar ordered over his shoulder. “Whoever is more alert, just get them!”
I slipped my hands out from under Dejar’s. They were stained with blood. I tucked them behind my back, so I wouldn’t look at them and Orrin wouldn’t see them. I moved to sit by his head.
“I’m well enough to prep the med bay,” Lynna called through the doorway of the cargo hold.
“Go as fast as you can,” Dejar urged.
“You’re going to be just fine,” I whispered to Orrin. “Everyone’s working together to save you.” I glanced up for a brief moment, long enough to see that most of the crew and alien women were coming out of their drugged sleep.
“Tend to the ones who haven’t woken yet,” I urged Vixaine. She nodded, paler than usual.
“Maris, his eyes are closing,” Dejar exclaimed.
I looked back to Orrin. Heavy lids drooped over his eyes.
“Hey,” I called to him. His eyelids flickered at the sounds of my voice. “You can’t die on me today. In fact, you can’t die on me, ever. We have a lot of work to do. I can’t do it alone. I won’t do it alone.” My voice grew thick with tears, but I refused to cry. Hearing me in distress wouldn’t do Orrin any good. “You haven’t finished that list of tasks,” I sniffled.
“Aavat, go help Lynna set up the med bay,” Dejar urged. Aavat ran out of the cargo bay, for once, not swearing.
“Be strong for me.” I leaned down to whisper in his ear. “I’m not as strong as you think I am. I need you with me.” I pressed a kiss into his forehead. His eyelids flickered again.
“Please don’t die. I’d be lost without you,” I whispered so quietly I couldn’t even hear myself.
“Med bay is ready,” Aavat announced, a little breathless.
“We’ve got to move him,” Dejar told me. Aavat, Dejar, Kovor, and Qal lifted Orrin off the floor, keeping him as level as they could. “Find the rest of the family, too!”
I couldn’t move. My limbs wouldn’t obey my commands. For a long while, all I could do was stare at the pool of blood on the floor.
And wait.
Orrin
All I could hear were beeps.
Very annoying beeps.
Very annoying beeps that pounded in my head.
I wanted those beeps to stop.
I wanted the pounding to stop.
I wanted everything to stop.
Not just the pain and the beeps, but the sharp pain in my arm, the dreams of blood, the nightmares of Maris’s body hitting the floor as her insides spilled from her, the memories of…something.
I wanted all of it to stop, except one thing.
I heard Maris. I heard her voice.
That was the only thing that I wanted to continue. Her voice, her words, her emotion…those were the only things I wanted.
The rest of the world, the galaxy, even the universe, could blink out of existence as long as I could have her voice in my head.
The only thing better would have been her touch on my skin.
That was all I wanted.
Oh, would those damn beeps just stop, already!
I had to do something, anything, to get those beeps to stop. I started by trying to move my arms, but I found that I didn’t have the strength to move them. Next, I tried to move my head, but it weighed more than a Shein battle-cruiser.
I resorted to trying to open my eyes. I found that they were heavier than the Skimmer, but more receptive to the notion of movement. As my eyelids slowly, ever so slowly, opened, the light that flooded in was painful.
“Erngh.” I wasn’t sure what the noise was that escaped my lips, but the incoherence of it matched how I felt. I felt something on my hand—soft, gentle, positioned slightly wrong as it pressed down on whatever was causing my arm to hurt—but I didn’t want it to let me go.
I forced my eyes open and everything was bright, blurry, and painful.
“Hey, big man.” The voice sounded shaky, almost as if the owner of it had been nervous or scared. I still had no strength to move my head, but I had enough strength to flex a finger, so I did. Whoever was holding my hand leaned over me, blocking the light from blinding me.
My vision, still a bit blurry from my eyes being closed and then from being blinded, slowly worked itself out. The person standing over me began to materialize before me. Gray eyes looked down at me, concern evident withi
n them. Then came the dark, curly hair. As I tried to say her name, Maris’s olive complexion slowly came into focus and I could see her beautiful face.
She looked haggard, her eyes were bloodshot, her curly hair was disheveled, and the worry on her face, while still beautiful, was something that my fuzzy mind knew was wrong.
I opened my mouth to talk, but she placed her finger on my lips and told me to ‘shh’.
“Just rest. You’ve been unconscious for nearly two days,” she said as she gently caressed my face.
The vision from my nightmares came, the battered, bloody face overlying this sweet, perfect one, and I reached to grab her, make sure she was real, but I only managed a twitch.
“Easy. Just take it easy,” Maris whispered as she shifted to my side, eyes shining over gray smudged hollows. “You need to take it slow.”
I opened my mouth to speak again, and as her finger came back to my lips, I kissed it. She smiled, and that made me feel better. “Where…” It was exhausting to talk, but I had to. “Where are we?” I had so many questions in my head, and that wasn’t the first one I wanted to ask, but it was the one that managed to escape.
“We made it back to Qasar Station. We’re docked on the far side, away from where we were before.” She sat down, and I found that I was able to move my head to follow her. She looked as if she hadn’t slept in days.
I patted the bed next to me. “Get in. Sleep.” My words didn’t have a lot of strength behind them as I felt my own mind drifting again.
She laughed, though it sounded forced. “Do I really look that bad?” She shook her head. “I’ll be fine, I promise. How are you?”
I forced my eyes open again. I didn’t know how I felt. I was tired, groggy, and all I wanted was to sleep away everything. “I’m okay,” I lied.
“Liar,” she said with a slight chuckle. “You got shot. I’m not an expert on Shein anatomy, but Lynna told me that another inch to the right and you would have bled to death before we got you in here.”
‘Here’ was the med bay. I finally realized that, and the infernal beeping was the machines I was connected to. Then the memories flooded back to me. Tiatra, the man with the blaster, our fight, and then the sudden explosion of pain as my stomach erupted.