She didn’t think of herself as that kind of girl, but sometimes it was damn nice, especially on this planet full of low lifes and criminals. Figures her first alien world would be at the butt hole end of the universe.
He touched her arm very gently but firmly. He turned to stare at the slaver until the man took another step back, then Haze cleared the room with Vi in tow.
As they went to the street, he dragged her along beside him. He seemed to be in some sort of fury now, walking fast so that she had to trip along to catch up.
After a minute of this, she thought it was time to protest. “Uh, Haze, I’m totally going to pull myself out of your grip if you don’t knock it off.”
“What?” He drew up short and released her. “Let’s get back,” he said and moved at a more casual but still hurried pace to their hotel.
As they entered the elevator back at the hotel, he stood silent beside her. The doors slid open, and he strode down the hall to their room.
After unlocking the door, he held it open so that she could walk in. He closed it behind them and tossed the key on the bed.
Haze froze and ran a hand through his hair. At that moment, their eyes met, and she felt their desire leap between them. He took a quick step over and pulled her into his arms. He moaned softly as his lips found hers in a hurried kiss. His tail wrapped around her waist holding her close.
As they broke apart, she was panting slightly from his feverish kiss. “How much trouble are we in?” she asked.
He sat down on the bed, looking dejected. “The whole thing is a mess. I didn’t know what else to do but get out of there. That guy makes my blood boil. I can’t believe, of all places, that guy would show up here.” His expression hardened. “I can’t believe that filth touched you. I wanted to rip off one of his heads and feed it to the other one.”
“Yes, the guy doesn’t deserve a head — either one — but probably better that you didn’t though…” She took a seat across from him at the couch. “So, who was that guy? Something was up between you two.”
“I sort of stole from him. It was awhile back. And nothing that actually belonged to him, if you know what I mean.”
“What? You did what now?”
“It was early days, after the academy, before I joined the Xeo Tarlith crew. I was on a planet pretty far from here and ran into him while trying to make a deal with some locals. Nethar and his crew had a couple slave girls with them.” Haze’s voice dripped scorn. “They were dirty, malnourished, pathetic creatures. I lifted them from his ship while he was attending to the sale of them. I took the women to a safe place. I didn’t think I’d ever see Nethar again.”
“Wait …How come he didn’t shoot you back there?”
“Like he could…” Haze sighed deep. “As far as I know, he thinks his crew stole the girls. At least, I made it look like it. Kind of had to hide a couple bodies in the course of things.” He glanced up. “Don’t feel bad for them. Nethar was the best of them, if you know what I mean. They deserved it.”
“Uh, yeah,” Vi nodded her head. “I don’t think I’ll be feeling bad for any of them. So what? You think he figured it out?”
Haze shrugged. “He knows I wasn’t hot on him being a slaver. He might be putting a few pieces together, especially seeing you. Maybe thinking I stole those girls to go into business for myself.”
“Then he doesn’t know anything for sure?”
“Not really, but it’s not the best timing to see him.” He leaned back on his arms, his tail flicking against the bottom of the bed as he thought, his lanky body stretched out.
Not discounting there was some serious shit going on, but fuck, he was hot. Vi shook her head.
Haze sat back up, seeming to come to a decision. “Well, this deal has gone from bad to worse. It’d have been much simpler if I’d kept you in our room today. For now, you’ll want to stay here until I come back for you. Don’t order room service. Don’t open the door. I’ll leave the pack in case you need anything, okay?”
She nodded her head. “Yup. I can do that.”
“I’m going to get the shuttle prepped and verify she’s charged, so we can leave as soon as the deal’s done.” He looked at her apologetically. “I’ll be better able to evade anyone following me on my own. I’ll be back this afternoon, hopefully with items from a successful sale.” He dug into his pack. “You can eat what Seban brought you if you get hungry.”
“I guess I should have brought you a gun.” He pulled a knife out. “Your father teach you to use a knife?”
Vi shook her head.
“When we get back to the Xeo, we’ll work on that.” He placed the knife on the bed for her anyway. “I’d leave Tiny, but I don’t think she’d really suit you. She’s got a bit of a kick.”
“Hah. I can imagine. I’ll be all right. Next time, just let the girl pack a little heat if she wants to.”
Haze stood up, holding Tiny beside him, glancing around the room another time. He bent down and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Stay out of sight, yeah?”
She nodded.
He strode out the door. As it swung shut and locked behind him, Vi felt the emptiness fill the room.
She was on a scary ass end of the galaxy, playing off as a slave amongst slavers, and she was now alone.
This was just perfect.
22
Haze
Haze tested the door to make sure it locked and headed for the lobby.
There wasn’t much he could do about his appearance, but he had plenty of tracker skills to throw off this lot.
This held true until he reached the edge of town, going along the path as it sloped slightly upwards across the chasm, and came face-to-face-to-face with Nethar again. And realized he was complete shit at stealth. As a Mahdfel, he was too used to the straight-on approach.
“Hmm,” the man said. “Funny to see you here, Hazryn. That girl’s plenty pretty, sure, but not really your type, I think? I think you might prefer them a bit more dirty, hungry. Isn’t that right?”
“Whatever, Nethar. If you can’t keep track of your girls, nothing of mine to care for.” Haze shifted Tiny to his other hand. He could kill just fine from either, and it seemed warranted to remind a certain slaver scum that he had her ready. “Want to get out of my way, voluntary-like, or would you rather I remove your legs so you sort of…” He gestured to the edge of the path. “…fall out of my way?”
Nethar held up his hands, which were disturbingly empty of weapons. “No need. Just thought I’d have a bit of a chat, seeings as we’re such comrades now.”
“We ain’t comrades, Nethar.” He held up Tiny, contemplating. The world certainly wouldn’t miss scum like Nethar. “So, how’d you follow me, anyway?”
“Boss has everyone looking for you, and since everyone works for the boss…” He shrugged his shoulders. “It all kind of works out in our favor, yah?”
“What’s your boss want?” Haze asked resigned.
“Just a chat. A small talk about engine parts… girls that don’t belong to you. The usual.”
Haze shook his head, drawing himself up. “I only got what’s mine here.”
Nethar nodded fast, bobbling with both heads, a smile on both faces. Then he stopped and shrugged his shoulders. “Do you though? Have what’s yours, I mean?”
Haze went cold at that, as he comprehended that Nethar meant that Vi was in danger, possibly already taken. Time slowed down. The air crystallized in front of him, and it was as though a burst of light spread from the sun. His tattoos warmed and glowed, spreading up his arms, ’til he burst into the flames of hellfire.
He was behind Nethar in a moment – less than – his hidden knife pressed to one of the man’s throats drawing drops of blood. “I’ll do it personal,” he warned. “You’ll feel every bit of it with your healthy head until I do that one too. What have you done with what’s mine?”
The slaver started to speak, but a loud clap of thunder rang out, putting a hole in the man and spinning Haze a
round from the impact.
“We just want to talk—” a man up the path said.
Haze didn’t let the man finish, throwing his knife with one hand as he fell to the ground, breathing dust. Haze rolled to the side of the dusty trail, letting himself roll to the bottom of the chasm. He scrambled against the side of the slope, his only hope that he had managed to hit the guy. If he’d missed, the guy would be on him in a minute, and Haze was definitely in an exposed position.
He inspected his body for damage. It appeared to be ricochet damage to his stomach from the blast that killed Nethar. Nothing that his Mahdfel genes couldn’t handle, especially if he could somehow sneak to the shuttle for some of his supplies. Of course, Tiny and one of his knives was now at the top of the trail, and he certainly wasn’t going back that way to collect it.
As though to prove he needed to get moving, he heard a groan from up above. So not dead but wounded. Unfortunate, but at least it bought him some time.
All of his senses had come alert now. He’d been phoning it in, thinking that Nethar was still the same useless, loner, slaver scum, underestimating everything about these men, betraying Vi’s trust in the process.
Fraska.
This boss man owned a planet, and yet, he was still after Haze’s ship and the potential booty on-board. It looked like they wanted to take over his ship’s route and the cargo.
Whoever it was, was dumb enough to think that Nethar was just the flunky to bring Haze in. Er, had been…
Haze’s only hope was that they truly believed he’d been looking for spare parts, that he really was a slaver, and that Vi was a slave. If they figured out that his ship was limping, the scavengers would be on the Xeo Tarlith in a heartbeat and leaving its real crew to float home.
It looked like they were trying to use Vi as a bargaining chip, so at least they would keep her alive long enough to sell her.
He held his wounded side and sidled along the bottom of the chasm toward town. He’d have to find a different path this time, the one he probably should have taken in the first place if he hadn’t been so cocky.
First things first, he had to get back to his shuttle, heal the damage, and do something about his green skin. Probably his tail too.
23
Violet
Vi stared at the door as it closed and locked behind Haze. It was so strange to be alone, no way to even contact the ship. She should have pushed Oz or Haze to let her bring a wristband, regardless of how it might look. Maybe she could have strapped it to her thigh or something.
Oh well, she’d probably have been tempted to talk to Haze the whole time and distract him.
She settled down for a bit, trying to decide what to do. She turned on the little video box that was set against a wall, very similar to a TV but different, but she couldn’t get into it. It was too awkward listening to the translator fix words for her. Normally, it was seamless enough, but this was like watching a foreign movie where the words don’t match the mouth movement, or maybe she was too out of sorts.
She dug around in their pack and pulled out her drawing pad and pencil. Time to make good use of her boredom. She’d made a good start at her space painting, but it still needed work.
After a few minutes, as she focused on her task, there was a loud bang on the door. “Service for you,” the male voice said.
She got up and moved cautiously toward the door.
“I’m good thanks,” she called.
“Service for you,” the man repeated. “I must provide the request.”
“That’s okay. I’ll pick it up later from the lobby.”
She heard a grumbling voice, then a loud thud of something being thrown against a nearby wall. Vi drew back. This was definitely not good.
“Uh, please come back later. I don’t want whatever you have. Haze will…” Her words dropped off. Way to make sure whoever it was knew Haze wasn’t in. “Haze asks that you come back later.”
Vi rolled her eyes in frustration at herself. Way to cover things.
The door clicked and swung open. Two oversized, bulky aliens stood there. They had a deep red skin. They had the same strange, small black eyes as the merchants in the square, but these ones were tall and bulky. They looked like they were built for muscling their way through any issues.
“Get her,” one said to the other.
They rushed in, sort of at the same time, like those comedy shows, except not at all funny, in any way. Vi dropped everything and bolted for her bathroom, as though it would do any good.
She swung the bathroom door closed as they burst into her room.
She shrunk back and stepped into the shower as though the shower door could provide another layer of protection. She was stupid. Now, she was just pissing the shitheads off.
Sure enough, one of the men barked out a laugh. The door cracked and swung open as he put his weight against it to break through. She shrunk against the wall as the shower door also swung open.
“Don’t be stupid, slave. You’ll come with us.” He reached forward and dragged her out.
“Let go of me.” She struggled. She dropped down and ripped herself out of his grip, but it was no use. The place was too enclosed, and where was she even going to run to?
The man backhanded her which sent a ringing, smarting sensation through her head. “That’s enough,” he said angrily. “We can find lots of ways to mark you up that most people will never even see. You got me?”
“Haze is going to kill you,” she said in her darkest voice.
“Right. We’re quaking in fear.” He grabbed Vi’s arm and pulled her into the room. “Search the room. See if anything’s worth taking.”
The other man sifted through the pack Haze had left with the food. He tossed her sparkly onto the ground. “Junk mostly,” he complained. Then he slung the pack over his shoulder. After a moment’s inspection, he stuck the knife Haze had left her into his belt.
Vi glanced back and saw her drawing pad lying at the foot of the bed near where her sparkly had fallen. Weirdly, of all things to run through her mind, she hoped that Haze would grab it for her. He could give it back to her once he came to kick these guy’s asses with it. She fantasized for a moment about him using her drawing pad to unman them. She knew Haze would make them regret messing with her. Hopefully, he’d make it as humiliating as possible.
If only her body mass was bigger. She knew a few things from her father, using her quickness against an opponent, but she’d never been into hand-to-hand fighting. But one thing she did know: there were two of them, and they had a lot more mass and training on their side. She’d have to go along like a good little slave until they let their guard down.
Not that she’d want to be too accommodating. She could only imagine what happened to slaves on a slave planet. Although, perhaps she could get one alone, go for the ‘nads… something like that. Damn, Haze better show up fast.
Her cheek was already swelling up.
As they stepped into the hall, she saw the lump of a service man in the hallway. He was just starting to pick himself up from the floor and cowered back from her captors. As they approached the elevator, she tried to pull away, slow them down. “Where are you taking me?”
The man fixed her with an evil eye, then he smacked her hard in the face a second time, making her head swing back and the lights flicker.
“Don’t speak again.” He pushed her into the elevator. “I brought a gag if that’s what you need.” He turned to his ‘colleague’. “Actually, tie her up. I don’t want a scene.”
The man dug a thin rope out of his pocket. He pulled her hands behind her back and tied them tight. He ran a hand down her ass and squeezed. She tried to pull away, toward the other man, as though that would help.
That man shoved her hard against the wall. “Stop moving. I don’t want my pay docked because you’re so marked up he can’t recognize you, but some things are worth it. Do you understand?”
“Layce,” the other one said. “Why don’t we pause th
e elevator? Have a quick tussle with this one first?”
“Greth, you want to wet your whistle, do it with your own paycheck. I’m not getting docked because Boss can’t get Gosa to buy back your sloppy seconds, got it?”
The other man, Greth, squeezed her thigh and adjusted the pack on his back. “Sure.” He leaned forward and ran a disgusting tongue up her cheek. “But maybe after that Gosa fool is dead, Boss will give me it as payment.”
“Right. Dream on.” The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. “Let’s go.”
No Haze waiting in the hallway… She hadn’t really expected it, but yet hope had somehow blossomed anyway. She was certainly going to kill Haze whenever he got back though.
Vi’s knees felt weak. What the heck was she going to do now?
As they walked past the lobby, the desk clerk glanced over. “Afternoon, gentlemen. Enjoy yourselves.”
She glanced over at the man, slowing to a stop. She was about to say something when Layce came to an abrupt stop and wrapped a hand around her neck. He squeezed a little too hard and used it to shake her back and forth. “Slave, you’re not from around here. Maybe you’ve lived some privileged version of slave life and don’t understand how things are.” Using his grip on her neck, he pulled her up on tiptoes and bent down toward her so they were on eye-level. “No one cares. Right now, I am your Master. You got it? Stop trying my patience before I give you too many slaps, and Boss really does dock my pay.” He gave her a final shake. “But don’t think, for a moment, that I won’t do it.”
Vi nodded her head quickly; her mind racing.
He shook her away, releasing his grip contemptuously. He walked toward the desk clerk. “If you see Mr. Gosa, you be sure to tell him Boss has his slave, yes?”
“Certainly. It would be our honor,” the clerk said with a wide smile. “The Hotel Vanguard appreciates the Boss’s business, as always.”
Layce nodded. “I will be sure to let the Boss know you said that.”
Haze (The Telorex Pact Book 2) Page 9
