“Y-yes.”
His head tilted slightly as he studied her. “You are not telling the truth.”
“I’m not lying,” she insisted, but her voice wavered. His face softened and he stroked her back soothingly.
“There is no need to be afraid. I do not mean you any harm. I am Commander Selik of the Confederated Patrol.”
“I’m Corinne Hale,” she said cautiously, then suddenly became aware of two things. First, she was still pressed very tightly against his huge body, close enough to feel the vibration every time he spoke and to be surrounded by an intriguing spicy scent. And second, since he was holding her arms, how could he also be stroking her back?
She looked back over her shoulder in time to catch a glimpse of a much larger version of Mikoz’s small tail before it slid lower, curling around her waist.
“Then maybe you should start by letting go of me,” she suggested, even though the move felt more like a hug than a threat.
“Of course. My apologies.” What appeared to be an abashed look crossed that stern face before he lifted her off her feet with no apparent effort, then took two steps back before returning her to the ground and releasing her. Looking back to where she’d been standing, she gulped when she realized he’d stopped her from falling down a very steep incline.
“Thank you. For catching me.”
“You are most welcome.” Dark eyes, so much like Mikoz’s, studied her. “You are hurt.”
“What?”
He gestured to her face. “You are bleeding.”
She touched her cheek and her fingers came away dark and wet. Not the remnants of her tears, but blood. When had that happened? The crash, maybe, or the climb. It didn’t matter, not if he really intended to help them.
“It’s not important. I have two children with me—a baby and a young girl. We need help. The shuttle crashed and the pilot died and we’ve been walking for hours and I don’t know where we are. Please.”
The words came out in a desperate rush and to her horror, she realized she was on the verge of tears again. Perhaps he realized as well because he took a step forward and that tail curved around her waist again. Some distant part of her brain thought she should object, but it was as comforting as it had been before and right now, comfort was in short supply.
“Of course I—we—will help you,” he said soothingly. “I came looking for survivors.”
“Survivors?”
“From the battle with the Vedeckian ship. You did not realize?”
She shook her head. “No, but I suppose that explains the explosions. Wait a minute. You fired on our ship?”
“They fired on my ship,” he corrected. “We ordered the ship to stop for an inspection because the Vedeckians have been involved in the illegal transportation of slaves.”
“Which must be why they rushed us off the ship.” She sighed and nodded. “And you’re really here to help us?”
“Of course.” He gestured to his right, and she saw what had been hidden by the angle of the rock from the top of the ridge. The dark shape of a ship, a little larger than the shuttle but with sleeker lines. Oh, thank heavens, a way off this godforsaken planet. Praying that she wasn’t making a terrible mistake, she nodded again and pointed towards the outcropping below.
“The children are asleep down there. I climbed up to look for lights, or any sign of civilization, but there’s nothing.”
“Sarat V is uninhabited. The atmosphere is breathable but the ecosystem cannot support sustained settlement. Without supplies, you would not have survived more than a few days.”
His words only confirmed what she’d suspected. “I was afraid of that, but I was also afraid that if we stayed at the crash site the Vedeckians would come looking for us. I thought if we could just find somewhere to hide, somewhere safe?—”
“You are safe now,” he said in that deep reassuring voice, and she desperately wanted to believe him.
“Then I suppose you’d better come with me.”
CHAPTER TWO
Afemale. A small, soft female with the most enticing scent he’d ever encountered. Selik was still reeling as he turned to accompany Corinne down off the ridge.
He shouldn’t have been surprised. The fact that the Vedeckian ship had fired on his ship rather than be inspected had been a good indicator that they were dealing in slaves—a suspicion compounded by the holding cells aboard the vessel once they’d boarded it. The cells had been empty but Lieutenant Varna had reported an energy trace leaving the ship before the battle commenced, most likely a shuttle.
