Page 25 of Zinnia and the Zombie (Alien Abduction #26)
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Z innia tried to step in front of Jaxx but he kept her pressed against his back. She knew he’d wanted her to stay hidden but when he said that Doren was going to kill him, she couldn’t stand it any longer.
She’d been studying Captain Doren through the narrow crack in the storage compartment door as the two males spoke, trying to decide if he was truly dangerous.
He was surprisingly attractive for a pirate.
A wild mane of dark hair framed what she had to admit was a handsome face, despite his rather alarmingly sharp teeth.
His eyes were an electric blue that seemed to absorb every detail of his surroundings despite his deceptively relaxed stance.
Jaxx’s casual pose was equally false. When she’d recognized the subtle shift of his weight that meant he was preparing to attack despite the weapon trained on him, her heart lurched in her chest. Doren would shoot him before he could close the distance and even stasis couldn’t save him from a direct hit to the heart.
At least Doren was laughing rather than shooting, although his weapon remained steady in his hand.
“Well, well,” he drawled as she peeped around Jaxx’s shoulder, his gaze sliding over her with frank interest. “This is an unexpected bonus. The Grorn don’t usually take human prisoners.”
“She’s not a prisoner. She’s my mate,” Jaxx growled, pushing her gently back behind him. “If you touch her, you will die.”
“You seem to forget that I have the weapon.”
“It won’t make any difference.”
Jaxx’s voice was so cold that Doren’s smile faltered for a second before he raised an eyebrow.
“I’m almost tempted to take you on, but that would be wasteful. I should have realized there was a human female involved.”
Human? This time she realized that he’d recognized her.
“You know what I am?” she asked, trying to peep around Jaxx again.
“For my sins. Humans are quite the fashionable little pets these days.”
Jaxx growled as she gave a startled gasp.
“That’s what the Ithyians said. I don’t understand.”
Doren raised an eyebrow again. “Those bastards? You have been having an interesting time.”
“Enough,” Jaxx snapped. “You’re not taking her and you’re not taking me so why don’t you get the hell off my ship?”
Doren’s amusement disappeared.
“You seem to forget that not only is this not your ship, but it has no power. Assuming you didn’t die of starvation, you would be easy targets for anyone who came along. Perhaps I should leave you here after all.”
Before she could respond, the door to the bridge slid open again.
A tall human woman started to step through the opening and promptly stumbled.
A huge hand kept her upright and the newcomer flashed a quick smile at her rescuer—an enormous male with blue skin and a wild mane of white hair adorned with tiny braids.
He looked like an alien Viking. He even sounded like one when he growled at Doren in a deep rumbling voice.
“What the fuck’s taking so long?”
“I imagine it’s because the pilot isn’t a Grorn after all,” the woman said calmly, smiling at Zinnia as she pushed her glasses up her nose. She appeared to be a little older than Zinnia, and she was dressed in a practical coverall that suited her tall, thin body.
“Hi. I’m Faith. And this big lug is my mate, Athtar,” she added, giving the Viking’s hand an affectionate pat.
“I’m Zinnia,” she managed, still stunned at the sight of another human. “And this is my mate Jaxx. You’re human.”
“Of course I am. Now why don’t we go back to our ship?—”
“My ship,” Doren interrupted, glaring at the woman, and Athtar growled at him again. Faith ignored them both.
“The other ship, and talk? You really can’t stay here,” she added when Zinnia gave Jaxx an uncertain look. “Don’t worry. Doren isn’t really going to try and sell you. Either of you.”
“I should,” Doren said, still scowling.
“But you won’t,” Faith said calmly before turning back to her.
“Is there anything you want to bring with you?” Her expression brightened when she looked around the bridge and spotted the container of plant samples.
“Where did those plants come from? Do you have any to spare? I’m conducting an experiment in cross-propagation between different planetary species with similar physiology but I haven’t had a chance to pick up as many samples as I’d hoped. ”
“Because you’ve been leading me on a wild fucking chase across half the damn galaxy,” Doren grumbled, but he looked resigned rather than angry.
“She found the fucking ship for you.” The blue giant was still scowling.
“But no Grorn. I don’t suppose you left any of them alive?” Doren asked Jaxx.
“No,” he snapped. He was still standing protectively in front of her. She could feel the tension in his body, but the dynamic on the bridge had shifted with the appearance of the other two and she was no longer scared Doren was going to shoot him.
“I think we should go with them,” she said softly.
“What’s going to happen to this ship?”
“I told you. I’m going to collect the bounty,” Doren said, giving him a challenging stare.
“I know the perfect fucking client,” Athtar said suddenly grinning at them. “He’ll pay a fucking fortune.”
“He will,” Faith agreed. “Now come along.”
Jaxx hesitated a moment longer, but when she nodded he sighed and picked up their meager belongings.
He kept his other arm around her as they went through the airlock and onto the other ship.
It was… unexpected. Based on the exterior, she’d expected it to be bristling with weapons and trophies.
Instead it was more like Aladdin’s cave, filled with colorful tapestries and cushions and a motley collection of objects.
She was still trying to take it all in as they followed Doren into a lounge draped in hot pink silk. He threw himself gracefully on a divan adorned with jeweled pillows and scowled at Faith again.
“You wanted to talk, so talk.”
Faith had bent down to examine the container of plants and backed into a fur-covered footstool as she straightened. Athtar sighed and pulled her down onto his lap as he sat down in an enormous carved wooden chair. She didn’t even seem to notice, giving Zinnia a thoughtful look.
“Who took you from Earth?”
Before she could answer, Jaxx took a seat on a bench covered in purple velvet and tugged her down next to him. She gave him a quick look, wondering if she should avoid the question, but he nodded at her.
“Jaxx said they were Ithyians. We met on their ship.”
Faith sighed. “Karthajin is trying to shut down the illegal slave trade but he hasn’t been entirely successful.”
“He made it worse when he claimed a human as his First Consort,” Doren drawled. “What did he expect? He made it fashionable.”
“Karthajin is the new Emperor?” Jaxx asked, finally breaking his silence for the first time.
Doren’s gaze sharpened. “He’s been Emperor for almost fifteen years now. You didn’t know?”
“I didn’t even know there was an Emperor,” she said quickly, not liking that speculative gleam. “Emperor of what?”
“Fucking everything,” Athtar muttered. “The Kaisarian Empire claims dominion over all known space.”
“Even the Outer Rim?” Jaxx frowned.
“In theory, yes. As a practical matter, the Royal Fleet doesn’t have a strong presence out there. Which is why I prefer to spend my time there,” Doren added.
“Then you shouldn’t have come pestering my mate.” Athtar was glaring again but Faith shook her head.
“I’m glad you showed up. The research into the Serpent’s Maw has been fascinating.”
The Serpent’s Maw? The Grorn priest had said something about Jaxx being the key to it when he found Jaxx in the plaza. From the sudden tension in Jaxx’s body, he remembered that as well. When he remained silent, she looked at Faith.
“What is the Serpent’s Maw?”
“A fucking legend.”
“Not exactly,” Faith corrected. “It’s a fanciful name for an actual physical location. I’ve established that much. But what’s beyond it? That’s where it becomes difficult to separate legend from reality.”
“The Vault is real,” Doren insisted, his eyes glowing.
“I hope it isn’t,” Faith said quietly.
“Why not?” she asked. “What do you think it contains?”
Faith hesitated for a moment, then sighed.
“The power to create life. Or destroy it.”
Doren broke the sudden silence by calling up a holographic image in the center of the room. The image displayed a long, coiling nebula, stretched across space like a vast, cosmic serpent.
“This,” Doren said, “is the Serpent’s Maw.”
Jaxx tensed again. “I’ve heard of it. A navigational hazard. A death trap.”
“It’s more than that,” Doren said. “According to Grorn religious texts—which I’ve had the dubious pleasure of studying—the Vault contains precursor technology. Technology beyond anything currently known.”
“The Grorn believe the Vault holds the key to their species’ salvation, but they can’t just walk in and take it,” Faith added. “They believe that they need certain biological keys to unlock the Vault.”
“Which makes the question of why they were hunting Jaxx particularly interesting,” Doren drawled.