She saw the gray Talin tense up and knew he was going to make a move.
Damn, this had all gone to hell fast. She couldn’t fight or flee; she was going to need to use her emergency weapon. It was going to suck, but it was better than whatever yellow and gray were going to do to her.
She was fumbling in her bag with her good arm when a figure tackled the gray Talin in a blur of movement.
Unprepared, she ended up stumbling sideways and going to the ground. She automatically tried to catch herself with her injured arm and let out a shout of pain. It was bad enough that she had to stay on the ground and cradle the arm to her chest, waiting for the pain to diminish.
That’s when she discovered a spine sticking out of her forearm.
“Well, fuck,” she grumbled. Not only wasn’t she getting her bounty, but she was going to end up paying for some expensive medical care.
The gray Talin and the stranger were hidden behind a pillar, but she could hear them fighting. Both were making a sound that was a lot like hard projectiles being rapidly fired. The sound made her realize the new arrival must be her bounty.
She was lucky Zephrum saw gray and decided to take him down. He’d saved her butt. She might not get her bounty, but at least she wasn’t going to be human-napped. It was time to make a quick exit and find some medical help.
Still, she hesitated. Even though she couldn’t bring in a bounty like this, it was still a lot of wealth to give up.
No, better to retreat while her legs still worked! The pain was starting to make her feel lightheaded and shaky. Or maybe that was the blood loss.
If she got around to the front of the dock, she could hide in one of the breaker compartments and call Maslo or Eshua for help.She could call security too, but it would be nice to avoid adding to her incident record.
A wave of dizziness almost sent her back to the ground after she managed to stand up. Leaning heavily on the ship, she staggered a few steps before realizing there was no way she was going to make it to the breaker compartments.
She heard some Ugarians shouting. Someone must have finally noticed the fighting. She slumped with relief and slid down the side of the ship until her ass hit the floor. As her sleeve soaked up her blood, she decided having another incident report on her record wasn’t so bad after all.
“Little human?”
Blinking her eyes open, she looked up to find her bounty staring down at her. “You’re wounded and need help. Should I leave you for station personnel to find, or do you want to come with me? I can keep you safe and treat your wounds, but I have to leave now.”
Han must have been the most stupid human alive. She should have told him to leave her there, but if her bounty was going to tempt her like this, she couldn’t say no.
“Take me with you,” she whispered.
He made a sound that reminded her of an Old Earth cat purring.
“You won’t regret this,” he said. He put one arm under her knees and the other behind her back. Cradling her to his chest, he stood up and carried her across the dock to his ship.
Han closed her eyes and let her head rest on the Talin’s shoulder. The strong smell of hibiscus filled her nose. It reminded her of the sweet Agua de Jamaica tea her aunt would make from the flowers Mom grew. It was comforting and made her want to rub her face on him.
No, bad impulse! She couldn’t get attached. For now she needed to play the helpless human until she was feeling a little better and could figure out the best way to bring this guy in.
Considering how bad she felt, it wasn’t going to take much acting!
Chapter 3
Zephrum
Fear for the delicate human in his arms made Zephrum clumsy with the door to his ship. He silently cursed the piece of junk and wished he could’ve gotten something nicer. At least all the vital systems were sound, even if it didn’t have much in the way of amenities.
He rushed her to the only bed on the small ship. He wished he had more pillows to make a proper nest for her, but this would have to do for now.
Even though she stank of blood, he needed to get them away from this station before he could see to her wounds.
“Stay here,” he said. “I’ll be back soon to care for you.”
“Sure,” she answered. Her tone was casual, but her expressive face was pinched and she was sweating profusely. The literature he’d read from the Committee of Pet Welfare indicated these were signs of distress. “Take your time. I’ll just hang out here.”
He thought that might be humor but didn’t know how to respond in kind. “Yes, please remain still and calm.”
