Page 27 of Single Stroke

“I will keep you safe,” Yas’kihn vowed.

“You have to rest, too,” she pointed out.

“I will rest after we have eaten and I have dug us another shelter.”

She pressed her lips together, wanting to argue and knowing she had nothing with which to counter his argument. Instead she said, “Do you think we’ll ever get off this planet? I assume we are on a planet? Moons and asteroids don’t really support life, do they?”

“Yes, other escape pods have surely landed on this planet.” Yas’kihn figured her last question was rhetorical and decided against answering it, instead informing her, “I have the pod’s distress beacon. With luck, we will soon be found.”

“Yeah, but by whom?”

He decided that question was rhetorical, too.

When Yas’kihn judged the meat sufficiently cooked, he handed a strip to his mate and watched Louella gnaw at it with her blunt teeth. Her nose wrinkled as she managed to tear off a piece and chew.

“Tastes like mud and fish and rubber bands,” she commented after swallowing.

Yas’kihn tossed a strip into his mouth, chomped it two or three times, and swallowed.

“How do you do that?” she asked, looking at the cooked meat in her hand.

He bared his sharp, pointed teeth. “I’m a predator. My teeth are not made for chewing.”

“Huh.” Louella gnawed off another small piece and chewed. Although she appreciated having the meat, she hoped never to eat it again.

Chapter9

Over the next several days, they discovered more unpleasant realities within their oasis. The fruit-bearing trees were carnivorous, sending out grasping tendrils whenever something edible came near. Armed with his blades, Yas’kihn managed to harvest several of the large, oblong fruits only to discover they were not suitable for human consumption. A few hours of vomiting followed by delirium and dry heaves left Louella weak and dehydrated. The fruits did not upset Yas’kihn’s digestion, but the overly sweet taste reminded him of decaying meat—distasteful. The oasis served as home for a handful of different shrubs, of which one had edible leaves that tasted bitter and did not agree with his digestion, although Louella compared the taste to something she called arugula. She ate those with reluctant gratitude.

Louella’s injured foot slowly healed. She was grateful for the emergency medical kit salvaged from the escape pod. She was convinced it alone prevented the cut on her foot from becoming infected.

Yas’kihn killed another of the amphibious creatures living in the pool and butchered it for what little edible meat it provided. That stretched out their rapidly dwindling supply of emergency rations. At least the water-dwelling creatures did not crawl over the low wall. Neither of the refugees saw the people who had built the wall, nor did they know whether the planet retained a population of intelligent life. Yas’kihn suspected if it did, those people would be deadly predators much like his own and well-adapted for the desert planet. Again, much like his own.

For her part, Louella simmered in a growing stew of aggravation. She hated—hated—feeling helpless. She’d spent her life proving she was smart and strong enough to break free of her family’s multi-generational cycle of poverty and dependence on the government dole. But here in this lethal desert, she felt as helpless as a newborn kitten.I hate being so dependent on Jax, but I’m grateful he’s willing and able to take care of me.

Every morning as the desert planet’s three red suns crested the horizon, the general superior prayed to his warrior goddess, Durja, for deliverance. On the eighth day following their crash landing, the roar of engines filled the air and sand flew everywhere as an unfamiliar ship landed. Keeping Louella sheltered under the emergency blanket he had stretched across branches like a tarp to protect his mate’s delicate skin from the searing sun, Yas’kihn watched with caution as two members of the ship’s crew disembarked.

The first crew member spoke, but the movement of his mouth did not match the words Louella heard: “We received your distress signal.”

“Who are you?” Yas’kihn asked, claws unsheathed. He was not inclined to observe polite manners. The universe held many unfriendly and exploitative beings.

“Ah.” The crew member removed his helmet to display large, pointed ears and distinctly feline features. “I am Captain Ashtul, prime of Kee Pride and captain of this ship.”

“Kaanian,” the general superior murmured, more for Louella’s benefit than his own. He relaxed, deciding to place his confidence in the alliance Ahn’hudin held with Kaan.

Louella peered from under the corner of the blanket she was using to shield herself and tried not to gasp. She didn’t succeed. The soft sound caught the Kaanian’s attention. She wanted to flinch beneath the flat, greenish glare.

“You are human,” the captain said, his eyes narrowing with interest.

“She is my mate,” Yas’kihn said, his tail winding around her and drawing her close to his side.

Louella decided that discretion was the better part of valor and said nothing to deny the Ahn’hudi warrior’s claim.I’d rather be Jax’s mate than this cat’s.

The Kaanian sniffed the air and his ears flattened. “I do not smell your scent on her.”

“These are hardly ideal circumstances,” Louella retorted, stung by the possibility that the captain might try to separate her from Yas’kihn.Better the devil you know, huh?She looked up at the hulking warrior and smiled. “I’m sure we’ll fix that as soon as we get back home, right, honey?”

Yas’kihn looked down at her winsome expression. His yellow eyes glittered. “Of course, pretty spark. I can hardly wait.”

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