Page 4 of The Dalgur’s Pet

The dress she had worn to dinner with Anthony.

Anthony, her boyfriend.

No, her ex-boyfriend.

After he’d broken up with her, she’d stormed out of the restaurant, tears burning her eyes as she got into her car and took off into the night.

Into the desert.

There was nothing, and then there was the light.

The light in the sky, one that had grown closer and closer until she had passed out.

Where the hell was she?!

“She is awake.”

The words were quiet, and they sent a jolt of panic through her as her eyes darted around the room.

Was she in the hospital? Had she been in an accident? Crashed her car into some unknown vehicle? Oh, God, she would never forgive herself if her foolish actions had harmed another. But no, she didn’t feel any pain, nothing that would indicate a serious collision.

Had she been kidnapped? Had some pervert snatched her from her car after she’d passed out? Why had she passed out? Was there a gas leak or something?

What the fuck was going on?

Slowly, she focused on two things at the edge of the room.

Things that were making their way over to her.

Giselle wanted to scream, wanted to run, but her body was frozen, trembling as the creatures stepped into the light.

They were… they were unlike anything she had ever seen; her scream catching in her throat as her eyes widened with terror. Their skin was dark purple, the color of an eggplant, and though they were humanoid enough, they were distinctly inhuman.

“Who are you?” Giselle asked, her voice quivering as her eyes remained glued to the creatures.

This was exactly like a story from her favorite podcast, the one with recollections from people who claimed they’d been abducted by aliens. The bright lights, the strange figures, the loss of consciousness and memory. She’d enjoyed the content well enough, but had always assumed that most—if not all—of it was fake. But now…

The shorter one put a hand on the other’s chest, then stepped forward, its head cocked to the side.

“I am Vrix,” it said, the voice mellow and smooth, with a hint of mechanization. It turned to look at the other, who had crossed its arms over its chest. “And that is Thase. You are on our ship.”

“Ship?” she murmured, struggling to keep her eyes open but utterly terrified at what would happen if she closed them.

Ship. The glowing light in the desert. Ship.

She was on a ship.

The creature leaned forward, placing a clawed hand on her cheek, its red eyes glowing.

“You’re on our shuttle, the Starlet. We’re returning to one of the planets in our sector, Occaro X7, though it will take a few days.”

Giselle winced at the monster’s touch, at the way it stared at her like she was something to be devoured, a wicked grin curling its mouth.

But it wasn’t a monster, was it? If what it was saying was true…

She was on a ship, in space, at the mercy of two creatures that were not from Earth.

Two aliens.