“Silly of Dieter to leave it in the way.”
“Full-sight folks don’t think about ordinary habits being an issue.”She tried to shrug, gave up on it, then prodded her temple with gentle fingers.A fresh bolt of fire lanced outward.“A bruise.”
“And an egg,” Grunt said, shuffling his feet like he was about to leave.“Computer, grant Tiny permanent access to Room ‘402.’”
“Access has been granted to Tiny and a full sterilization done.Security is also restricted to Tiny.”
“Thorough as always, Computer,” he teased.
“Wait, tell me, what do you do for fun?”Tiny flicked her wrist before stroking around the forming egg.“All this time on my hands…”
“I listen to audiobooks, play games, tweak Computer, that sort of thing.You need anything, let me know.I’ve been gathering a treasure trove of soap operas, audiobooks, music, and all legal.”
“Yes to all of that.”She clasped her hands at her chest and beamed in his direction.
“I’ll leave you to get settled.I’m one door down which I’ll keep open in case you need me.”
Her heartbeat fluttered at his thoughtfulness.“Thank you.”
“Grunt, tell me what you see.”She didn’t usually ask people to do this, but she was drained, and it was taking all her energy to stay up.
“Sure.It’s a four-by-four cube with a single bed to the left, and a closet, hidden toilet and shower to your right.”He caught her hand and rested it on cold metal.Narrow ridges registered on her fingertips.“Those mark each one.”A swish was one of them opening or unfolding.“This’s the closet with your very own blanket.”
She gaped at his retreating footsteps.“Shower?”she squeaked.“As in real water?”
“Yes,” he called from afar.
Farg.She didn’t have soap and hadn’t washed her hair in years.
And how had he known about her desperation to nap?Had he listened in on Computer’s conversations when he ‘tweaked’ it?She shoved her bag aside with the sweep of her foot, then shut the door.Whatever Grunt did wasn’t her problem, nor did she have anything to hide.Stroking the area of the wall, she found the open closet and a scratchy blanket.With that in hand, she shuffled around the small space until her knees knocked the lip of the bed.
One final pat to confirm the extent of it, and down she went.
Chapter Eight
“Whatdoyoumeanwe have found one?”Nenn asked, looking up from his hand of teyor cards.This was his fifth attempt to complete a round successfully.And every damn fail, it was either the blues or the greens that snagged him.
He tossed in his hand and arched a brow at Vaen, who slid onto the bench beside him with a plate of roasted kurrula.Its wings were a little undercooked to Nenn’s liking.Giniiri preferred banaari or vibuy to be charred.
“Using calculations, Aehort Uz located one of those capsules that exploded the Senate.”Vaen sucked on his thumb before turning the cooked bird to bite into its breast.He crunched through the tiny bones, almost making Nenn wince in empathy.
“Incredible.I assume we are tracking it?”
“It landed on an uninhabited planet.”Vaen pulled a jar of water closer.“Drafe’s directing Caah to power up the shuttle.He sent me to find you.”
Nenn jerked back.“Me?”With a grunt, he gathered his cards, stacked them, and shoved them inside their leather sleeve.
“Yes.If there is a body inside, we will need a maed to analyze it.”
“Logical,” Nenn said, except he knew nothing about the species that had been in the explosive pod.
“No rush.There is still time.”Vaen lowered his gaze to his plate, saying no more.
Nenn rose, intent on finding Drafe.Vaen’s ‘uninhabited planet’ didn’t say much about what awaited them.A jog took him to the bridge.Displayed on the forevids was a pretty blue planet, coated in white swirling clouds.
“We head out soon.”Drafe glanced at Nenn, his lips thin.
“What is wrong?”Nenn shifted his focus between him and the planet.
