Page 67 of Stranded with the Alien

She frowned as she thought of the carrier he’d mentioned. The Chennai. How would he know that name?

The E.S.V. Chennai had become a bit of an urban myth within SDF circles. The carrier had gone out on patrol one day and never came back.

The official story was it had been lost in an ion storm which could tear a ship apart in seconds. But among the higher-ups there were rumors it had vanished into deep space without filing a flight plan. No-one had ever heard from its crew again.

It was a coincidence, Kara told herself. It had to be. And yet…

And yet it was true that just a few weeks later the Vraxians had appeared in Earth’s solar system.

Doubt nagged at her. Had the aliens really just launched an unprovoked attack, or were they retaliating for something?

There was something else. Something she didn’t want to admit.

When Vahn had told her just now that he would never lie to her, she’d believed him. She didn’t know why, but she had. And that was just crazy.

Ofcoursehe’d lie to her. He’d lie to her at the drop of a hat because he was a Vraxian. She needed to get a grip. Everything he’d just told her was a pile of steaming crap. The first battle between their species had been over Earth and that was that.

He might have been nice to her last night when she was having bad dreams but he was still an enemy of her people. She had to remember that.

She pulled on her boots and joined him outside.

Thirty

She intended to tell Vahn exactly where he could stuff his lies but was brought up short when she found him looking at the ground with a puzzled expression. A small furry body lay at his feet, glazed eyes staring upwards in shock, neck bent at an unnatural angle.

“It seems we have another gift,” he said. Kara bent down for a closer look.

The creature resembled a rabbit though its tail was longer and its ears shorter. What wasn’t in question was how very dead it was.

“Weird. Has it been left here deliberately, do you think?”

“I doubt it is a coincidence,” said Vahn. He scanned the area. “But that would mean something has followed us from the lake.”

“That’s creepy. And at the same time helpful.”

“Indeed.” Vahn picked the rabbit up and secured it to his belt. “We had best get going. But keep a lookout for our uninvited guest.”

They ate the last of the fruit for breakfast. Kara took a big gulp of water from one of the brimming canisters as they headed off.

“Damn, I wish we had tea-bags in our ration packs.”

“Tea?”

“A hot drink, made from a type of leaf. The best thing to have when you wake up in the morning. A lot of people prefer coffee but in my family we’re tea drinkers. My mother says…”

She stopped, appalled that she’d reminded him about her mother again.

“You can talk about your family, Kara,” said Vahn mildly. “I have made peace with the fact that you were spawned from a mad, despotic, power-hungry war general.”

“Now hang on just a goddamn minute,” she began hotly, only to see his lips twitching. “Wait. Are you making jokes now?”

Laughter rumbled from his chest.

“I apologize. But you rise to the bait so delightfully. Tell me, is your temper from your mother’s side?”

“We’ve had our share of screaming rows,” she admitted. “Dad was the peacemaker in our family.”

“As was my mother. She had a calm wisdom which sadly my brother and I never inherited.”

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