Page 23 of Hunter's Valentine

I hacked at the scourge mindlessly, like they were the ones causing me pain. By the time I realized they were about to overrun me, a centicreep had snuck up behind my position, blocking my way to my shuttle. I initially thought I’d dodged the creature’s first strike, but it was quick, and I looked down to see a long gash on my calf.

Krux!

Like a scuttler’s claws, the centicreep’s many blades were tipped with a neurotoxin. Hunters were engineered to be resistant to it, same as we were to the fungus, but not immune. I’d be able to recover from a cut like this, but it would take time—time I wouldn’t have if it slowed me down enough for the centicreep and the other scourge to tear me apart.

Before I could even react, it struck again, catching me on the arm. More pain had me turning to see a scuttler tagging me with its claws as well.

My odds had just decreased substantially.

I did what any wise hunter would do: I ran. I used the buildings to my advantage, running through them until I found myself trapped. Someone had barred the door from the other side, and the only way out was the way I came. There was another door, but it only led to a storage room.

I could try to fight my way out. The hallway I’d come down was narrow. I’d only be fighting one or two scourge at a time. But even as I considered that option, I felt myself weakening. I’d received a larger dose of the toxin than I’d thought, and it was already making its way through my system.

The scourge were almost on me now, and I didn’t have time to deliberate. I ducked into the storage room and slammed the metal door shut behind me. I put out a call for help, but it was too late. The door wouldn’t hold for much longer, and I was struggling against the toxins.

My last thought as everything went dark was that I’d never see Sara again.

***

When I finally opened my eyes, I was looking into familiar, stormy gray ones. Sara. I blinked to make sure it was really her. It was.

“Mur’k?” That was her voice too.

“Sara?”I reached for her, but I didn’t seem to have any arms. “Did I die? This must be the afterlife. I must have been a great hunter if you are my prize for all eternity.”

She made a strangled sound. “That’s ridiculously sweet. But you are still alive, Mur’k.”

“Does that mean I don’t get to keep you?”

There was a sound of a male clearing his throat, and I looked around the unfamiliar room, really seeing it for the first time. There were red and pink paper “hearts” strung up along the wall. What day was it? It was dark outside the window, and the hallway was dark as well. Had I missed the day of heart giving?

Roger leaned against the wall by the door. “Glad you’re up, Mur’k. They retrieved your shuttle, so you can rest there as soon as this healing device is done.” He nodded to the unit strapped to my leg. “But no rush. We don’t need the classroom back until morning.” He turned to Sara. “You realize it’s not either or, right? You can help us outandhunt with Mur’k. The hunter shuttles are fast. If we need you, he can get you here quickly.” Then Roger gave us a single nod before stepping out into the darkened hallway.

“How are you feeling?” Sara’s brows were furrowed, and her eyes were rimmed with red, like she’d been crying.

“Better, now that you’re here.”

“They told me it looks much worse than it is, and that you’ll recover.”

“I am a Xarc’n Warrior; we heal quickly.”

“You… You were already gone when Jack took me to the hunters’ compound. I wanted to ask you if you wanted to come visit me here. I realize that you only asked me to stay with you because you wanted a hunting partner, and I know I said no, but I…” She blew out her breath. “I really like you, and I’d like to keep seeing you.”

My chest swelled and erupted into a joyful symphony.

“I would like that too,” I said. “And I do not simply want a hunting partner. I want you. Stay with me. We will stay near New Franklin.”

She nodded in a human-style affirmative, a smile lighting up her beautiful face. The healing device beeped, signaling that it was done.

“Let’s get back to your shuttle,” Sara whispered, her eyes glancing over to the open door just as a pair of curious youngsters poked in their heads. “We’ll have more privacy there.”

That was for the best. “Roger had called this a classroom, which I understand to be a place where young humans learn.”

“It is.”

“Why am I in here instead of the infirmary?” They had pushed several small desks together and I was lying on them.

“Because you kept fighting the hunter that was trying to carry you, so he left you in here. Don’t worry, he knows you didn’t mean it. You were processing the toxins.”

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