Creature Worlds: Solar Slick (6 page)

I hadn’t even thought about that. “No,” I gasped. “Oh God. What do I do?”

The doctor held out his hand and passed me the vial. “Take it with you. It will keep for years if you keep it cold enough. After the baby is born, if you still decide you want to stop shifting, then take it. There are enough for two doses in there. And if you needed me to, I could create more.”

“More?” Tigg asked.

“Yes, for future children you may have. The cure will stop the shift in the person who takes it, but you will always carry the gene. Each child may or may not inherit it, and in turn may pass it on to their own children. Perhaps some may decide to not stop the shift. It should be an individual choice.”

He was right. It wasn’t up to me to make the decision for my child. “I’ll wait,” I told him.

“Good.”

“I’m sorry, doctor, but we need to leave now,” Tigg said giving my arm a little squeeze to urge me on.

“Yes. We do. Thank you, doctor. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

The doctor smiled at us both. “Good luck.”

We left the lab and hurried toward the exit remembering time was not on our side. After we wound our way through the busy city sidewalks toward the edge of town, Tigg picked me up into his arms again and ran until we reached the field where the spacecraft was parked. We climbed aboard and strapped ourselves into our seats. As Tigg lifted off and began the slow incline toward the sky where we could then use top speed to breach the atmosphere, he turned in his seat to stare at me.

“Minka?” he said.

“Yes?” The serious look on his face was slightly distressing.

“Let’s not go back.”

“What? Not go back? Where, to Treox?”

“Clay is waiting there for the menite and even if we did get it to him in time you know that’ll never be the end of it.”

It’s what I’d known all along. “You’re probably right.”

“We could go somewhere else. Just until Clay gives up waiting for us. Then, before the baby is due, we can return.”

“He’ll never stop looking though, that’s the problem. Sure, he may get fed up and leave, but he’ll be back. And what if next time he threatens our family?”

A dark look flashed across Tigg’s face. “I won’t let him hurt you or the baby,” he assured me.

“You can’t just kill him, Tigg. You’ll be hunted down and thrown in jail.” Damn my hormones, I felt like crying again over the futility of our situation. “And now I can’t take the cure and get Clay off my back until after the baby’s born.”

“So let’s disappear then, until you can take the cure. When you’re ready to have the baby we’ll go so deep into the jungles of Treox that Clay’ll never find us.”

It sounded like a plan. Part of me cringed at the thought of hanging out in the hot, bug-infested jungle for any length of time, but I would do it for the baby. At least Tigg hadn’t suggested we go there now. But where in the universe could we hide from Clay? Was anywhere safe? Clay had resources and a ship larger and faster than Tigg’s. We couldn’t outrun him and I knew of nowhere we could hide.

Unless—

“Ventillia.” I said the name as though it were something foul.

“What’s that?” Tigg asked as though he hadn’t heard me or was pretending he hadn’t.

“It’s the only place Clay would never go.”

“With good reason.” Tigg actually shivered. “Don’t they kill Lizords on sight?”

I shrugged. “They probably kill a lot of things on sight. I’ve heard it’s not the friendliest place to visit.”

“But you think it’ll be safe from Clay?”

“Yes. And I think you’ll be all right there, as long as you’re with me. My father told me that Ventillians are very clannish and if I say we’re a family…”

“They’ll accept me?” Tigg interrupted hopefully.

I smiled at him, hoping I appeared reassuring. “I don’t see why not. I mean, as long as you don’t gobble any of them up when they’re in spider form.” I laughed at the distasteful frown he flashed.

“Very funny. Now, what should we do with the vial?”

“Ventillians live very primitively despite their technology. The planet’s much the way Earth was in medieval times. They have no electricity so keeping the vial cold may be difficult.” I thought for a moment. “What about Zenet? My parents still have a home there we could stash the vial in.”

“Too bad we couldn’t hide out there.”

“Unfortunately, it’ll probably be the first place Clay looks for us. He won’t care what I’ve put in the fridge though. And it’ll be kept cold. I’ve kept the utilities up on that place as well as the one on Earth, for just such an emergency.”

“Good idea. So we’ll hide the vial on Zenet now, and then head to Ventillia?”

“Sounds like a plan.” I settled back into my seat knowing Zenet was a good four-hour flight from Earth.

Chapter 10

Making love with Tigg was a great way to pass the time. I held his head in my hands as his whip-like tongue gently thrashed the pebble of my breast. Though he tried creatively to distract me, I was still wary. Frightening thoughts continued to bombard me about going to my father’s home planet. For one, I’d never been there before. All I knew about Ventillia was what I’d heard or read about it. I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on Tigg. My back arched as I felt him slowly enter me, both of his rods taking me simultaneously.

Would I ever get used to such bliss?

“Minka, my love,” he whispered.

I met his heated stare and startled when I caught a glimpse of his bared cobra-like teeth. They seemed to make an appearance whenever we were in the throes of passion. “Don’t bite me,” I reminded him.

“Pleassse,” he hissed.

“No, piss off.” I winked at him to take the sting out of my words.

He winked back. “Sssoon,” he reminded me. It was true, in a moment of weakness, I’d agreed to let him bite me every two or three months, just to keep the scent of him fresh upon me. What a weird mating ritual.

It was kind of cute the way he lost control of his words and his teeth when we joined as one. He was definitely growing on me. How quickly he had found a way beneath the high wall around my heart. Now I couldn’t imagine my life without him.

Afterward we fell asleep in each other’s arms until the autopilot alarm sounded, letting us know we’d reached our destination. I’d been to Zenet before. It was a frequent vacation place for my family throughout my childhood. About one fifth the size of Earth, Zenet was a lot like my home planet, being a combination of bodies of land and water. The different climates were also similar to Earth, offering skiing in the mountains or sunbathing on several beaches. In fact, Zenet was what many considered to be a vacation hot spot. It was vastly popular with its enchanting landscapes, offering unification of nature and modern comfort. Native species on Zenet were gentle, adorable animals and insects resembling butterflies and ladybugs. There were no annoying pests such as mosquitoes, nor were there dangerous animals on land or in the water. Unlike Earth, there were never any terrible storms, earthquakes, volcanoes, tidal waves or tornados to fear. Rain fell from time to time, in mild, short interludes or gentle sun showers, nourishing the abundant plant life. Yes, Zenet closely resembled paradise.

My family had a charming private home on a sandy beach close to the water. We were able to land Tigg’s spacecraft right on the sand outside the beach house. Tigg jumped down, stumbling when he landed in the sand.

“What is this, Minka?” he asked in wonder, lifting his booted feet up one at a time and carefully replacing them.

I smiled at the awe-filled expression on his face as he gazed around at the vast strip of beach and beautiful blue ocean. “It’s sand. And that’s the ocean. Just like on Earth. Although not polluted.”

“It’s beautiful.”

He helped me out of the craft and I frowned when I stood beside him and noticed the slight protrusion of my belly. I was growing larger every day and starting to feel the effects of pregnancy, such as tiredness, raging hormones and hunger. “Let’s go inside and eat,” I said.

Tigg agreed and helped me across the deep white sand and up the steps to the deck of the house. The key for the sliding back door was hidden under a little statue and soon we were entering the house. It was a comfortable, two-bedroom, open-concept layout, much like the home we had on Earth.

“I’ll see what there is to eat,” I said, heading for the kitchen. I had the vial from Dr. Jeneva in my pants pocket and I placed it behind a bag of frozen ready-meals in the freezer.

“Too bad we couldn’t stay here,” Tigg said. He was standing before the big picture window that looked out onto the ocean. The view was amazing.

“I know. Once Clay’s out of our lives we can come back whenever we want.”

“I’d like to stay here forever,” Tigg said, his voice sounding far away.

That was startling. “I thought you loved Treox.”

He shrugged. “I do, it’s my home. But it’s changed so much since the others arrived; the domes and all the mining going on. It’s not the same.”

I knew exactly what he meant. I’d seen the same thing happen to the big cities of Earth, all in the name of profit and progress. Zenet was owned by a handful of multi-millionaires from all over the galaxy who had strict rules against aggressive development. They had a council in place, making sure the planet kept its innocence intact. State of the art science facilities were situated in beautiful buildings around the planet, researching innovative and undamaging ways to harmonize man and nature. It was in one of these buildings that my parents met and fell in love.

“I wish we had more time, but unfortunately Clay’s expecting us soon and when we fail to show up he’s gonna come hunting.” Tigg still had that giant knife in his boots and I knew that if it came down to protecting the baby and me, he wouldn’t hesitate to use it. I couldn’t let it come to that. This baby needed both parents. Especially the one who knew what to feed him—or her.

“The vial is hidden?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Then we can leave for Ventillia.”

The tone of his voice betrayed his misgivings. I walked over and wrapped my arms around him, resting my head against his back. “Four months isn’t long. It’ll fly by, you’ll see.”

But several hours later, as Tigg’s little ship entered Ventillia’s atmosphere, I felt a terrible wave of dread. Was this a huge mistake we were making? What if something went wrong or something bad happened to Tigg? Regardless, I didn’t see what other choice we had except to go forward with our plan.

As expected, considering the tight security on the planet, Ventillian ships flew up to intercept us and escort us in. When we landed in a secure zone, a stern voice came over the little ship’s radio transmission and started firing instructions at us.

“
You are to come out slowly with your hands in the air. You will surrender yourself to our officers with no resistance. I repeat—no resistance—or you will be fired upon.”

I turned in my seat and looked at Tigg’s grim face. “Welcome to Ventillia,” I said with a smile.

We stepped out of the craft as instructed. Tigg had the foresight to remove the deadly blade from his boot and left it behind on the ship. With our hands high, six heavily armed officers rushed up to meet us. They immediately conducted a search of our bodies with hand held scanners. Tigg watched me closely, seeming ready to jump to my aid if the need arrived. I winked at him despite the tremor of fear inside me.

Once satisfied we weren’t packing weapons, we were led toward a huge stone fortress I would best describe as a medieval castle plunked down in the middle of a desert. I’d seen pictures in history class of such structures, created several centuries before my time. We walked over an actual drawbridge that spanned a moat. I looked down as we crossed and searched the black water for signs of crocodiles. We were led into a courtyard, surrounded on all four sides by vast stone walls appearing ten or more stories high. Tigg loosed a low whistle and I knew he was impressed. So was I. It was like stepping back into time, right into history.

We came to a stop, surrounded by the soldiers, in the middle of the courtyard. Before us, set against the far wall, was a set of double doors, arched and made of sturdy wood. Iron rings acted as handles and two uniformed men who’d walked ahead were now pulling these apart. Once opened wide, we saw a tall, grandly dressed man revealed. He stood still in his magnificence and when every man present went down on one knee, Tigg and I did the same.

I’d told Tigg before our arrival that Ventillia, which was almost the same size as Earth, was divided into four kingdoms. We’d aimed our landing for the place my father had resided in. In his time here, the king had been Ayon, an old, but fair man, my father had told me. The man now striding grandly towards us, wearing the crown of kingship, was young. Ayon’s son perhaps?

He stopped before us and smiled. “Welcome to Malenea, first kingdom of Ventillia,” he said. Though his lips curled and his eyes twinkled as he assessed us, appearing genuine enough, I couldn’t help but feel the return of foreboding. Try as I might to dismiss it, it was there. I returned the king’s smile and forced away my wariness. Like it or not, here we were, and here we would stay until the time was right. It was the only place I knew to be safe from Clay.