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“Think of it like a tornado made of fire. The lightning strikes anything that can burn, sparking a fire. The wind is so strong it whips the fire into a whirl. They can be quite dangerous, depending on how strong the wind is.”
More bad news. “Okay.” I sighed. “So, we have to outlast the storm and somehow keep them from finding us.”
“They’re going to find us.” He sounded sure, as if it was a fact. “We aren’t hiding. I set up the data sensors in the most exposed locations. It won’t be hard to find us from there. Theywillfind us. If they are crazy enough to venture out once the rain is gone, they’ll check where they last saw us, and then it’s just a matter of time.”
“Do you have any encouraging news?”
“We have a force field up. It was to keep out the rain and weather, but it will keep them out too. They’ll go back to their ship, plan, and then return. That buys us more time.”
I pressed my lips together. “Once the rain is gone, could we move to a different location on the planet? Someplace they won’t be able to find us?”
“I checked over the area before coming. This was the only cave nearby. The rest of the land is either flat or covered in sand dunes. There is no better place in range.”
“So basically, we get to sit around on our thumbs until they show up and try to attack us.”
He hesitated, which was as close to a yes as I was going to get. I sighed and tried to tamp down my annoyance. It wasn’t his fault. None of this was his fault. I was the one they were after, and all he had done was help me.
Ethan stood up. “Let’s get some food. You must be hungry.”
When I hesitated, he smiled at me. “Andy will be on the lookout. He’s vigilant and doesn’t need sleep. He would see something long before we would. We’re safe right now in the rain.”
That allayed some of my fears. I was on edge still, but if what he said was true, then only an idiot would venture out in the rain. I nodded and stepped back so he could fit through the doorway. He brushed past me. I got another whiff of maple and found myself relaxing a little. Which was stupid because there was no reason his smell should affect me at all.Don’t be an idiot, Julia. So, he smells good. That should not make you feel anything.
Ethan led me to a kitchen where he rummaged around and pulled out sandwich toppings. He got some meat out and started putting things onto the counter. “Help yourself.”
I found a plate and started assembling a sandwich. I grabbed lots of meat. I would need the protein. When I had the food piled high, I sat down at the table and dug in. Ethan made himself a sandwich and sat down across from me. I watched him while I ate, trying to figure out why I reacted to him the way I did. I didn’t come up with an answer.
He knew I was watching him, but he didn’t say anything. He simply ate and openly watched me too. He seemed like a good person, but I couldn’t help remembering his face when he saw my badge. Normal people didn’t have that kind of reaction to law enforcement.
“Why don’t you like cops?” I finally asked.
One eyebrow lifted. “Who says I don’t like cops?”
“Your face. When you saw my shield.”
“I don’t dislike them,” he said thoughtfully. “I have a healthy distrust of them.”
I snorted. I couldn’t help it. “A healthy distrust? Really?”
He chewed and swallowed before answering. “I’m not a criminal.”
“See,” I put my sandwich down, “when someone’s first reaction to that question is defensive, it makes me wonder. So, I’m having a little trouble believing you.”
“I’m not.” He hesitated. “I’ve just known too many dirty cops.”
“Well, I’m not a dirty cop.” I let it go with that explanation. I could understand his reluctance to have a cop around if he’d had issues in the past. I didn’t have rose-colored glasses on when it came to my profession, and I knew there were a lot of bad apples out there. I still couldn’t help but think there was a lot more to the story, but I would give him the benefit of the doubt.
“I believe you.” He sounded like he did, too. “If you were dirty, I doubt those guys would have any need to kill you.”
That prompted a harsh laugh from me. I picked my sandwich back up. “Good point.”
We ate in silence for a while. There were more things I wanted to know about him, so I didn’t keep quiet for long. “How did you get into mete—er, climatology?” I stumbled over the word while trying to remember it.
“Well, I grew up out in nature. I’m Novem, born and raised on Fairfax. It’s part of my culture to be connected to nature. I loved it. My tribe lives out in the woods. I was always rather fascinated by the outdoors and the weather and all the cool things that happen in nature. Eventually, I went to school for it and was recruited by Centric Enterprises. I live and work on this ship now, studying nature.”
The story sounded simple. “Do you like it?”
“Yes. A lot.” He grinned. “It fascinates me.”
