Page 45 of Bound (Gladiators of the Gryn #3)
CHRISSIE
I never thought having two massive alien warriors backing me up would be a liability. In fact, I should be grateful for all the muscle.
Only it’s like herding cats.
Maxym doesn’t seem to be able to stop growling, and Klynn’s delight in showing off his weapons (and I mean the sharp, pointy metal ones) at every opportunity is extremely disconcerting. I’m beginning to see how well behaved they were around Rych.
Fucking hell, I miss him so much. My heart physically aches in my chest at his loss, at my need for him. Being around the others emphasizes his absence.
Despite the disgust of the two Gryn, I was able to get a medi-bot to treat Fenek. We got him to his bed, and once I was sure the rest of his dwelling was still functioning enough to provide him with the care he needed, I set up the cleaning bots for a deep clean.
I didn’t look back at the dwelling as we left in Fenek’s private transport, and we headed out to Solyom, an area of Tatatunga where Maxym is adamant we’ll get the information we need on the Drahon to find Rych.
Which is where I find myself in the feline wrangling business.
“Why not let me try?” I say as Maxym emerges from another bar snarling up a storm.
He snorts a breath. Klynn spins a sword in his hand. All around us, the inhabitants of Tatatunga give us a wide berth.
“This is the last place,” Maxym growls as I enter the bar, the two Gryn at my back.
“How about you wait out here and try to keep out of trouble?”
Klynn laughs. Which I think means he has no intention of keeping out of trouble. Maxym glowers.
“I made a promise.”
“And you’ll be right outside, won’t you? And both of you are the best fighters on Trefa, so I’m perfectly safe if I’m right next to you—or twenty feet from you.”
“What’s feet got to do with anything?” Klynn asks, his brow furrowed and his feathers shivering.
“Never mind. Just wait here.” I walk into the tavern.
The scent of stale alcohol and too many bodies hits me. I’m wondering if Maxym left this one until last because it’s the grottiest. My feet stick to the floor as I make my way to the main serving area.
“Whaddaya want?” A large hairy Panupal growls, not looking up. His silver tipped fur waves in a non-existent breeze, and when I don’t say anything, one of his eye stalks swivels in my direction. “We don’t serve females,” he says.
“By choice or because none of them would come into this disgusting establishment?” I retort. “I don’t want anything other than information, as I’d rather not get spaceworms.”
The second eyestalk spins and he lifts his head. “What?”
“You heard.”
Behind me there is a sudden scraping of chairs, which suggests Maxym and Klynn have been unable to wait more than a nano-second and have entered the tavern. The eyestalks blink.
“I’ll have you know, this place has a great hygiene rating,” the Panupal grumbles.
“For a barn, I presume. I want to know if you’ve seen or heard of any Drahon in Tatatunga.”
“Drahon?” the Panupal says, the inflection in his voice giving away his knowledge.
“Do you see those gladiators who are presently clearing your bar?” I query. The Panupal nods. “They’re with me, and I said this place looked like they wouldn’t have to wreck it for me to get the information I needed.” I lean over the bar. “Thing is, they love wrecking things, so you have about ten nova-seconds to tell me what you know before they start smashing the place up.”
I lean back and pull in a breath of slightly clearer air as the Panupal weighs up his options.
“The Drahon have been in Tatatunga for the last three nova-months gathering supplies. I’ve heard they have a base, a facility, near the old amphitheater on the outskirts of Holbak.”
“Thank you, that’s been very helpful.” I turn my back on the serving area to see Maxym and Rych about halfway to me. I give them an indication they need to turn around and leave by spinning my finger in the air.
They both look at me blankly. It’s a good thing they’re the planet’s best fighters.
“We’re going to Holbak,” I say, walking around the pair.
I’m pretty sure I hear Klynn grumble something about this not being any fun as I pass, but at least they follow me as we head back to the transport.
“The Drahon have a base somewhere near the old amphitheater,” I explain to the Gryn once we’re inside.
Both of them bristle alarmingly.
“I do not like the amphitheater,” Klynn snarls. “It’s bad.”
“We have to find the base, not go back there,” Maxym says quietly, putting his bear-like hand on Klynn’s shoulder.
“Never going back there,” Klynn replies as the transport slips into the traffic above the city.
His eyes are darker than ever, and I see one hand is shaking badly. Klynn under normal circumstances is dangerous enough, but like this…I’d rather not be in a confined space with him.
Although, as the engine explodes on the transport and it drops out of the sky, I realize which is preferable, crashing or being with two feral Gryn in a tube.
Turns out, on balance, I prefer the Gryn.