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“I couldn’t sweet-talk you into staying on Kurril and fighting with us, could I?” The resistance leader asked, her voice teasing but her intent serious.
Zaandr raised his brows at her in answer.
“Never mind.” She waved a hand in the air. “You’re here now.” She pivoted back to face the building. “We have two more resistance fighters positioned in the back as lookouts, in case the Zevrians try to run.”
Tegan drew in a deep breath. She’d never been involved in a rescue mission before, or any fight, really. She didn’t even have a weapon, although she wasn’t cocky enough to think she could handle a blade like the curved one that hung from the Dothvek’s waist.
“She needs a blaster,” Zaandr said, clearly stealing into her mind and reading her worries.
One of the women slapped a battered weapon in her hand. “You ever shot one before?”
Tegan shook her head, trying to keep her hand from trembling.
“It’s easy,” the woman with wiry, black hair told her. “Point and squeeze.”
Tegan gripped it, and the woman slid her finger off the trigger. “Only put your finger there when you’re ready to shoot.”
Tegan nodded and swallowed hard. She could do this. The Zevrians were all asleep anyway. She could hit a target that wasn’t moving.
“Stay behind me,” Zaandr whispered to her. “I’ll clear the rooms. If I get in trouble, shoot.” He glanced at her blaster. “But tell me to duck first.”
She wasn’t sure if going in behind him was better or worse. The last thing she wanted to do was shoot him.
“You won’t,” he said, locking eyes with her. “I trust you.”
Tegan wasn’t sure if his trust was fully warranted, but she was touched that he said that. It did calm her rattling heartbeat, as Rose waved for them to follow her.
They walked swiftly and silently across the small square fronting the building, but before they reached it, the door opened, and a Zevrian stepped out. Tegan knew it was a Zevrian because he had the same brown skin and bumps over his eyebrows and across his temples as Tori.
Rose stopped and turned, but Tegan had an idea. She kept walking but made her steps uneven as she threw back her hood.
“Excuse me,” she drawled, intentionally slurring her words.
The Zevrian frowned as he looked up. He looked rough himself, with bloodshot eyes and clothes that looked slept in. “Yeah?”
“I’m looking for the market,” Tegan said, rubbing her eyes as if she’d just woken. “But I think I’m lost.”
The Zevrian snorted out a derisive laugh. “You sure are. The market isn’t near here.”
“No?” Tegan made a big show of turning in a circle as if looking for it. “Well, do you know where it is?”
The Zevrian walked toward her and away from the front door of the building. Now that he was closer, he focused on her, giving her a leering smile as he looked her up and down. “Why do you want to go to the market? Why don’t you stay here with me?”
From the corner of her eye, Tegan saw the two resistance fighters slip into the building behind the Zevrian. Zaandr didn’t go inside. He was sneaking up on the Zevrian.
“Here?” Tegan tried to sound as clueless as possible as she smiled at the Zevrian. Pog wiggled in her bag, but she put a hand on the leather flap to quiet him.
He jerked a thumb behind him. “In there. I can show you a better time than you’ll have at the market. “He put a hand on her arm. “Besides, a pretty thing like you shouldn’t be walking around the Den of Thieves alone.”
“She’s not alone,” Zaandr said from behind.
The Zevrian whirled around, but he wasn’t fast enough. Zaandr plunged his arched blade into the alien’s gut before he could even scream. Holding the blade inside him, Zaandr maneuvered the alien into the alley beside the building and dropped him in the shadows, sliding his blade out and wiping the blood on the Zevrian’s pants. He took the Zevrian’s blaster and tucked it into the back of his pants.
He met Tegan’s eyes, as she heaved in jerky breaths. “Good work.” Then he motioned with his head to the door into which the female resistance fighters had disappeared. “Let’s go.”
She ran behind him as they entered the building. She’d seen people die before, but this was the first time she’d seen one killed up close. She knew why Zaandr had done it, and she knew he’d had no choice. Even so, it sent chills down her spine.
Tegan blinked as her eyes adjusted to the dimly lit front room, but she could make out one dead Zevrian slumped on the floor in the corner. Zaandr didn’t pause, moving swiftly to the next room, which was empty. Sound of fighting came from the floors above, and Zaandr sped up, vaulting up a narrow staircase three steps at a time.
