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Evie spotted a flash of green, but Tristan was right. His friend maneuvered through the crowd flawlessly, disappearing before she even caught a real glimpse of him. At least he was out and about, hopefully taking his mind off of his troubles.
As they made it to the capitol building, Evie felt a pinch of melancholy at splitting up from Tristan. It was only for a few hours, but she wanted to spend as much time with him as she could.
“You know, Cazar’s brothers keep an arsenal in the mansion,” Evie mentioned nonchalantly, wanting to bring the topic back to Tristan befriending the rest of her new family. “You could get your hands on all kinds of alien technology to test out while you’re here.”
Tristan grinned, showing off a set of pearly white teeth. “Now that sounds like something I’d be interested in.”
“Great!” Evie exclaimed, smirking. “Then you can bond with all of Cazar’s brothers!”
“Now hold on a damn minute, Evie. One tolerable alien is more than enough to make friends with.”
She rolled her eyes. “We both know you’re going to meet them and like them. It would have already happened, but you spent all day puking your guts up into the toilet.”
The visitors began to file into the capitol through the large entryway, and her lips pursed in displeasure. Soon it would be Tristan’s turn to enter.
“Don’t look so grumpy,” Tristan teased, wrapping her in a bear hug. “I’ll be back to pester you before you know it.”
“You better,” she wheezed as his grip tightened around her.
Reluctantly, Tristan let go, giving her a wave before he followed everyone else up the steps. Nodding to a few of the guards standing nearby, Evie turned back around, heading toward the city center once more.
She’d promised Cazar that she would take a transport to the labs, but it was only a few minutes away and such a nice, balmy day out. Calling a transport would be silly when she was so close. And besides, a walk would do her good. She didn’t dawdle, though, following another sidewalk that would take her directly to her destination.
She’d only just made it to the front of Cazar’s lab, spotting the front door in the distance, when she heard movement behind her.
Footsteps slapped hard on the pavement, seeming to draw closer and closer with each second. She ignored it, picking up her pace so she could get out of their way. It was probably just a jogger or something, and she didn’t want to turn around and gawk at some poor person exercising.
She’d almost reached Cazar’s door when the footsteps drew infinitely closer. Too close. Warm breath hit the back of her neck, and she jumped, letting out a panicked shriek.
Evie spun around, taking several steps back when she caught sight of a familiar face, moving so quickly she nearly tripped on her own feet. Her mouth dried, fear skating up her spine as she glanced up in horror at the one person she never wanted to see again.
The security system kicked on just as Cazar was returning to his labs from the serving quarters, a drink in hand. The holopad laying face up on his desk chimed twice to indicate a visitor before a 3D image of outside popped up above the screen.
Cazar saw the back of Evie’s head as she slowly approached the camera, backing toward the door. Brow furrowing, he took a sip of his drink. Why was she behaving so oddly?
“What are you doing here?” she asked, so lightly that Cazar could barely hear the question.
Who was she speaking to? Tristan? Why wouldn’t she just come inside? Setting down his drink onto the countertop, he snatched up his holopad, activating the speaker.
“Evie? Is everything alright?”
She jumped at his question, but it wasn’t her that he heard reply but a male who was out of sight of the camera.
“Aren’t you going to tell me that you missed me?” The male’s voice was smooth and unfamiliar, putting Cazar immediately on edge. Evie was still slowly backing toward the door, as if seeking escape. Dropping the holopad back onto the counter, he stormed to the front entrance, his steps quickening with each second.
He’d go check on Evie this instant, just to assure himself that she was alright.
A deep gnawing began in his gut as he prowled from the lab and into the hallway. Slamming his fist into the button that would open the front door, he felt his impatience mounting. Something was wrong.
Voices were raised on the other side of the door, and his hackles immediately went up, body tensing. Evie sounded panicked, and it only made the gnawing in his gut worsen until, suddenly, his head began to ache.
His vision blurred, gray creeping in around the edges, blending with the sea of colors that were beginning to swirl in his irises. Cazar slapped a hand onto the door frame as the room slowly began to sway. He shook his head as if to clear it, but that only proved to worsen his vision.
Warm air hit him, a direct contrast to the cool environment inside as the door slid open. Perhaps it was the quick shift in temperature, but Cazar’s world tilted on its axis, and his head began to pound viciously.
What the hell was wrong with him?
He tried to take in the scene around him, but it was difficult to focus. He managed to spot Evie’s silhouette in front of him, scenting her fear and terror a moment later. Reaching for her, Cazar grabbed Evie’s arm, pulling her into the safety of his lab before he stepped outside, using his own body as a shield.
