Page 95 of Seven Oars
“So far, so good,” Gro replied.“It’s a blessing they don’t drink. Or eat the bean mash. Wish they hadn’t taken all my jerky…”
The conversation turned to Rix eating habits. The women puzzled over how little protein the Rix required to function.
Alyesha quietly entered the Cargo Hold and rustled through her neatly arranged things. Without a word to her companions, she disappeared inside the shower stall.
Gro looked at Eze.“I thought you filtered the water for Daphne.”
Eze spread her hands.“You’re welcome, I guess,” she muttered toward the shower stall.
The water ran and ran, and Alyesha didn’t emerge for a long time.
When she finally did, Fawn pounced on her with questions.
“Hey, was it Ucai? Was he nice? Did it hurt at all?”
Alyesha blinked in surprise.“I survived just fine. Let’s leave it at that.”
“But did you enjoy it?” Fawn asked.
Alyesha pinned Fawn with a haughty stare.“This is not the time or place to enjoy yourself, Fawn. Grow up.”
“Well,” Eze said sweetly,“at least you rinsed off all the alien microbes.”
Alyesha just shrugged.
“You can judge all you want, but I’m not hurting anyone,” she said coolly.“And what I do with my life is no one’s business but mine.”
She began brushing her hair, parting it down the middle.
Suddenly, Sassa poked her small, rabbity face out of the burrow of her rags.
“Have you really been with a pirate?” she asked, hurling the question like a gauntlet.
Alyesha paused her hair brushing.“That’s my business, but yes, if you must know.”She gave a delicate yawn from one side of her mouth.
Evidently, Rosamma wasn’t the only one who’d had a sleepless night.
Sassa fully emerged from her nest to stand in front of Alyesha. Her delicate, sharp features were pinched.
“You’re a traitor!” she accused, piercingly loud.
Alyesha raised an eyebrow.“To whom?”
“To us! Do you even want to escape anymore?”
Alyesha looked taken aback.“You’re mad to think I don’t! Who would want to stay here?”
She made a broad sweep with her arm, indicating the station.
“Then why do you have to degrade yourself with an evil, dirty alien?” Sassa cried.“How can you even bring yourself to be near them? I hate them!”
“You hate all men, alien or not,” Alyesha said flatly.
Sassa bared her small teeth at her.
“I have a reason to! Men are repulsive. Even if they look normal, average—filthy lechers, the whole lot. But these…” She jabbed a finger toward the Habitat, struggling for words.“They aren’t even men.”
Alyesha tapped her chin.“I can now say, on good authority, they are, in fact, men.”
