Imminent Danger: And How to Fly Straight Into It (9 page)

Eris frowned. “But if the government policy is noninterference, wouldn’t abducting a human from the middle of her school campus be against the law?”

“Is that what happened to you?”

She nodded.

“Well, the Ssrisk don’t really follow the law. Neither do my people, for that matter. Our species are too martial to pay attention to those simpering politicians on Alpha Centauri.” He favored her with another grin and then reached out a hand toward her cheek.

Eris leaped back with a yelp.

“Stop panicking,” Varrin said evenly. “You have dirt on your cheek—engine rooms are generally not the cleanest of places.”

“Oh.” Eris flushed. “It’s just … you startled me.”
This is Josh and me in the elevator all over again.
“I didn’t mean to …”

She trailed off when Varrin raised his hand and pressed his index finger against her lips. Eris could almost swear he was gazing at her with romantic intent—or perhaps something more primal than that. Feeling her heartbeat suddenly go into overdrive, she was so bewildered about what to do that she simply stood there.

Varrin moved closer. “You are one of the most intriguing females I’ve ever had the pleasure of saving,” he murmured in her ear. The breath of hot air sent a tingle down her spine.

“I—I … thank you?”

He cupped her cheek in his hand, turning her face to meet his gaze. Eris knew what was coming next. She’d seen more than enough movies to recognize the tell-tale signs of a man about to lean in for a kiss. Varrin’s stormy gray eyes were fixed intently on her own, and he ever so smoothly placed his other hand against the small of her back.

Having never been kissed before, Eris was frozen with both fear and anticipation. She had never considered herself the type to make out with a perfect stranger.
But then,
she thought,
there are extenuating circumstances.
Varrin had saved her life, after all, and …
He’s the most gorgeous man I’ve ever laid eyes on. I don’t think I could make myself stop him if I tried.

Heart now beating so fast she feared she might faint, Eris let her eyelids flutter closed as Varrin leaned toward her. His lips touched hers. It was the strangest sensation but very enjoyable at the same time. Then he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss, and all coherent thought was forced from Eris’s mind.

When he finally released her, she was so overwhelmed that she had to hold on to his arm for a moment to regain her equilibrium. Looking up at her rescuer, she said, “That was …”

“Amazing?” Varrin supplied. “Mind-blowing? Intensely pleasurable?”

“Unexpected.”

“You make it sound like you’ve never been kissed before.”

“Only in the literal sense,” she muttered.

Eris expected her admission would lead to an awkward silence followed by Varrin’s stammered apology and bumbling attempts to assure her that her inexperience was perfectly all right with him. Instead of all this, he simply grabbed her and kissed her again.

This time, it was Eris who broke off the embrace. “W-wait a minute! What are you doing?”

He winked at her, causing her stomach to jump pleasantly. “Offering you the benefit of my experience. Interested?”

Now in so far over her head that she was relying entirely on snap decisions to get her through the encounter, Eris nodded slowly. She didn’t know much about kissing, but Varrin seemed to have it down to an art, and she was more than happy to let him practice on her. Her nod was all the permission Varrin needed, and soon she was pressed up against him once more.

10

E
ris ambled into the rec room, lost in thought.

“You look confused, my friend,” Miguri said. He was sitting on a bench, a spoonful of pink mush in one hand and a small, pyramidal can in the other. “Did something happen to you?”

If you only knew.
“I got … lost in the engine room.”

“Your cheeks are bright red.”

“I’m a bit frazzled.”

“Your hair is particularly unkempt.”

Eris scowled at him. “What are you, the Spanish Inquisition?”

Miguri jumped to his feet, pointing the spoon at her. “You were dallying with the Rakorsian!”

“I was doing no such thing!”

“I warned you this would happen! He lured you in, seduced you, and bedded you, just as I feared!”

“No one bedded me!” Eris shouted. “And even if they did, it’s none of your business! Thanks so much for hovering over me like a mother hen, but I can make my own decisions!”

Miguri’s hair was spiky with alarm. “Eris, you
must
listen to me. I know you think he is a decent being, but you have to understand that he is a Rakorsian, and Rakorsians—”

“—are like rabid dogs that will turn on you when you least expect it,” Eris finished for him. “But Varrin’s different, Miguri! You said yourself that he’s a rebel or something against his species.”

“I meant it sarcastically!” Miguri trilled. “The idea of a
good
Rakorsian is absurd, rebel to his kind or not. All Rakorsians are aggressive, cruel, and entirely self-centered.”

“Varrin is
not
like that!” Eris snapped. “He’s kind, and helpful, and sweet, and you have no right to be so biased against him when he saved your life! And anyway, you’re blowing this way out of proportion, because I only kissed him.”

“Only kissed him?
Only
?” Miguri said. “Among my kind—” He stopped, and then shrugged. “Ah, well, different species, different rituals, I suppose. As long as you did not get hurt.” Miguri dug the last few spoonfuls from the can and then stood up. “If you will excuse me, I think I will rest again. The events of the last few days have drained my energy.”

As soon as Miguri left, Eris collapsed into the nearest chair.
I don’t understand why Miguri is getting his tail all in a knot. Varrin has been a perfect gentleman, even counting our little encounter just now.

The sound of booted footsteps broke her reverie. Varrin strode into the rec room looking annoyed. “There’s been a change of plans,” he announced. “I was just contacted by my superior at IFTAP. They’re refusing to pay me a bonus for rescuing you and the rodent so efficiently.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Eris said sincerely, “but why does that change our plans?”

“Because right before the Minister vid-called, I was contacted by an agent who offered to pay me double if I handed you over to her instead of IFTAP.”

“I still don’t understand. What’s the problem?”

Varrin moved casually toward her. Eris hoped he was planning on kissing her again. Instead, he grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the door.

“What are you doing?” Eris demanded.

“Just putting you somewhere safe to keep you out of trouble for the next few days,” the Rakorsian replied. “My finder’s fee drops if I deliver damaged goods.”

Eris was aghast. “You can’t be serious.”

“Business is business, terrestrial. It’s nothing personal. And thirty thousand tetras is a lot of money. I could buy the
Nonconformity
a new plasma cannon with that.”

Eris tried to keep her voice steady. “You aren’t seriously considering selling me out to the highest bidder, are you? What about—you know, you and me?” A wave of panic swept over her. “How can you do this? What happened to being my knight in shining armor?”

“My armor is matte black,” Varrin said.

As her rescuer-turned-betrayer pulled her toward the guest cabin, Eris was feeling disgusted with herself.
Figures,
she thought.
The first attractive, interested guy I meet, and he turns out to be a greedy, untrustworthy bastard.

When they entered the cabin, they found Miguri lounging on the top bunk. Seeing Eris’s furious expression, he sighed and said, “Has the Rakorsian betrayed us already?”

Ignoring the Claktill, Varrin released Eris and turned to leave.

“Wait,” Miguri said, sitting up and fixing their captor with a stern glare. “Who are you selling us to, Rakorsian?”

“An agent from Chakra Corporation,” Varrin replied. “She offered me a nice sum—apparently terrestrials are in high demand these days. I doubt they actually want
you
, of course, but I threw you in for free. I have no use for a Claktill.”

“You—” Miguri began.

“When you sold us out,” Eris interrupted, “was that before or after our
encounter
in the engine room?”

“After.”

“Well, at least that’s something.”

Varrin winked at her.

But Eris refused to fall for his act a second time. “And this Chakra Corporation? No, wait, don’t tell me. It’s some pan-galactic industrial giant that enslaves minorities and forces them to work in hazardous factories and mines.”

Miguri looked impressed. “Good guess.”

“Why do they even want a human? What use would I be?”

“I don’t know.” Varrin shrugged. “It’s more likely they want you for one of their other divisions. They must need you for something, considering the amount of tetras they’re willing to fork over.”

The last wisps of affection that Eris had felt growing for the handsome Rakorsian faded in that instant, replaced by a blossoming hatred. “I can’t believe I trusted you.”

“Don’t take it too hard,” Varrin said. “I’ve yet to meet a woman who can resist my considerable charms. You never stood a chance.”

Eris opened her mouth to deny his words, but he continued before she could speak. “Anyway,” he said, “we’re meeting the agent on Alpha Centauri in a few days, so you’ll have plenty of time to get used to the idea.” He stepped out of the room. “Enjoy your stay.” A thick steel door slammed shut behind him.

“I believe this is not the first time he has kept passengers against their will,” Miguri observed, eyeing the heavy door.

Eris collapsed onto her bed. “Oh, just say it. I know you want to.”

“Say what?” Miguri asked, climbing down from his bunk. “That I am infuriated about our second imprisonment at the hands of a being who I have cautioned you cannot be trusted?”

“On Earth we just say, ‘I told you so,’” Eris mumbled. “Oh, Miguri, I’m sorry! I feel like such an idiot.”

“You are young,” Miguri said as if that explained everything.

Eris continued to ramble, not really hearing him. “I’m not the type of girl who goes around making out with random strangers. But Varrin … he noticed me, you know? I felt somehow that we—I don’t know.
Connected
.”

“And he saved you from the Ssrisk.”

“Exactly! Look, I know you warned me, but … he was so
perfect
. Every girl’s dream come true.” She scowled. “I was such a fool to trust him.”

Miguri patted her hand. “I have made worse mistakes than this, my friend. Do not blame yourself for our situation. It would have happened regardless. Naïveté is not a crime. Well, it is a crime on Koralis 5, but they also outlawed eating after noon, so I think we shall discount their opinion.”

“I really wish I’d skipped class that morning,” Eris murmured.

The Claktill patted her hand once more. “Do not give in to despair. It will take us several days to get to Alpha Centauri, and anything can happen in that time. There is always cause for hope.”

Lying back on her bed, Eris laced her fingers behind her head and stared up at the bottom of Miguri’s bunk. They were in an inescapable room with a captain who, despite his good looks and charming mannerisms, was in fact a horribly immoral being. He was taking them to Alpha Centauri to sell them to a faceless megacorporation, and there was precious little they could do about it. If there was cause for hope, Eris couldn’t see it.

A few hours later, Miguri had a troubling revelation. “Chakra Corporation is primarily a mining firm,” he told Eris, “but they also have medical and pharmaceutical divisions. They are always looking for new life forms to experiment on.”

“You think they’ll make us lab rats?” Eris demanded, horrified.

“What is a lab rat?”

“You know, like a guinea pig.”

“I still do not understand. Perhaps my lamri is malfunctioning.”

“I mean, it’s someone that gets experimented on against their will.”