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Even in the tight space, Miranda kept her distance from him, pretending he didn’t exist. Fanian had expected her to beg and plead for him to let them go. Instead, she read the children a bedtime story from what Adam had said was a book. It was small, square, and hard with bright colored pictures. He’d never seen a book that wasn’t available via holographic from his comlink.
Fanian inched forward for a closer look. That finally earned him a stern glare. “Unless you want a punch to the face, keep your distance,” Miranda growled.
Adam and Lexi sat snuggled in her lap, eating protein bars and hanging on her every word. Well, that was until he had intruded their space.
Adam looked his way and placed a finger on his lips. “Shh, it’s story time. Don’t interrupt.”
“Do you dare silence your elders, child?” Fanian asked in a huff. He wasn’t upset with the child. He was more upset with Miranda for not letting him see what the book was all about.
Fanian scooted back to the spot he’d found where the ice was at its thinnest. He didn’t want Miranda to gain access to it. He guarded it well. He’d already tried to call a claiming pod, but it hadn’t been able to get through. When it was time for the evening alarm to sound—which was close—he would grab them and await the pod.
Adam angled his neck to glance at his mother. “What’s an elder?”
“Leave it be,” Miranda told Adam. “Just ignore it. It’ll be gone soon, and then we can leave this place.”
“But I don’t want to leave. We haven’t met Santa Claus, gone to his workshop, or seen any of his elves yet.”
Wait. Is she calling me an ‘it’?
“I didn’t mean we would leave the North Pole. I meant we would finally be able to get out of this hole.”
“This planet is called Turolois, not the North Pole. And who is Santa Claus, what kind of workshop does he have and what are elves?” Fanian asked.
Miranda snarled at Fanian. “No one is talking to you. Mind your business—”
“Santa Claus lives in the North Pole, and he comes around once a year to bring all the little boys and girls toys. But only if they’ve been good. He has a workshop where his elves make them. We’ve been on an adventure to see him!”
“Hush, now, and let me finish reading the book,” Miranda told Adam. Adam lowered his head to view the book, then Miranda continued reading her story to him.
None of what the boy said had made sense. It sounded like Miranda had lied to her son about where they were. That made sense. If he had children and ended up in such a place, he would’ve done the same. Lie. Kill—anything he could to keep his family alive.
It was a shame. If he’d met Miranda anywhere besides Turolois, he might’ve been interested in her. Maybe even romantically. He wouldn’t have done anything regarding that pursuit, though. Miranda had children to take care of and didn’t need the trouble that followed him.
He would’ve watched her from afar, admired her strength, but that would’ve been it. Besides, a female like Miranda wouldn’t have appreciated any advances a male like him made on her. She needed stability, credits, a home, and protection. He lived in a space ship and traveled wherever a bounty job took him. The credits in his account weren’t enough to provide for a family. A space ship wasn’t a home. The protection part? No, for that as well. How could he protect her when he couldn’t protect himself?
Fanian settled in and listened to Miranda read. He liked her voice. He could listen to her talk all night. When she talked, he almost forgot where he was, what they were doing, and the soon to be outcome. The cadence of her voice rose and fell, like riding a soft breeze. If he dared close his eyes—he didn’t because she still had her electrocution device and would use the opportunity to attack him—he could imagine being in the fictional place where this Snow White took refuge with working dwarves.
His mother had never read to him before bed. She had better things to do than indulge him. But...it would have been nice. Maybe.
Miranda eyed Fanian for what seemed like the hundredth time. He sat legs crossed on his precious spot and watched her. Well, not her exactly, but her lips. He seemed to be paying attention to her story, too much for her liking. It was like no one had ever read out loud to him before.
The story would’ve been over a long time ago if she’d been reading the book word for word, but she had to make it last. Without the book, there wasn’t anything to do besides endure a stare-off with Fanian. It also kept the kids calm. Her nerves were already shot as it were. She needed something to do and reading, and making up stories allowed her to not focus on what would happen to them.
The ordinarily bright colored sky was beginning to gray. Her chest tightened, and her voice wavered. She was about to be in a fight for their lives.
She read the last line of the book and hoped it wasn’t an omen. “The end.”
She closed the book and stuffed it inside the diaper bag with the others. Her fingers grazed the only weapon left other than the taser. Luckily, the kids also had access to pods that sent them weapons. Miranda grabbed the dagger and discreetly slid it up her sleeve.
As calmly as she could, she made Lexi a bottle. Fanian watched, unmoving. She was grateful he at least wasn’t talking. She needed all her wits about her if she was going to get them out of this alive.
“And here I thought you would accept your defeat graciously,” Fanian said.
She thought he hadn’t seen her sleight of hand. She wouldn’t have the element of surprise on her side. None of that mattered. She would still fight. “If you thought that, you’ve clearly never met a mother defending her kids before.”
He glanced at her wrist. “Nothing will stop me from taking you this time. My mistake before was thinking I needed to take you to Az’ud in one piece and undamaged. Nothing in the contract states the condition in which I present you. He only asked for a childbearing human. That’s it.”
Miranda pushed past how his voice made her feel and focused on the anger boiling under her skin. Whenever she did that, she found his voice had little to no effect on her. “You’ll have to kill me.”
Fanian tilted his head. “Dismember. Maim. Hurt. But not kill.”
“Then maybe it’s time that I kill you. For good this time. It’s been a long time coming.”
“You’ve tried. Many times. You are stubborn.”
“At least tell me why I can’t kill you? While I do love the attempts, it’s exhausting.”
Adam chewed his bar. “It’s because he’s a robot? Remember, mommy? After you kill it, the game people fix him back up.”
Fanian cocked a bushy white eyebrow. “What is a robot? My translator must be inaccurate because it’s telling me a robot is a machine. Devoid of feeling and life.”
“That’s exactly what you are,” she said through pursed lips. Then she turned to Adam. “Honey, the robot doesn’t understand that he’s a robot, so I’m trying to figure out how to turn it off for good. That way, we can win the game and get our medals.”
Adam opened his eyes wide and nodded. “I saw a movie like that before. The robots thought they were real people.”
“Exactly. We know they aren’t real. But they don’t.” There. That seemed plausible. Now anything else Fanian said would only prove her point. He was too stupid to realize he wasn’t real.
“Now, I understand why you keep referring to me as an ‘it.’” Fanian snorted. “Sure. I’ll play along. I’m an evil robot.”
He’d taken her by surprise. She’d expected him to call her a liar, tell Adam what was going and scare the bejesus out of him, but Fanian had a broad smile plastered across his face. She wouldn’t let this opportunity go to waste. He obviously was enjoying himself. So sure, she would play with him.
“What’s a medal?” Fanian asked.
“It’s for after we win the adventure,” Adam said excitedly. “It’s going to be gold and really big. It’ll hang from my neck.”
“That’s right, baby. I’ll get you the biggest medal ever.” Miranda turned her attention to Fanian. “Now tell me, robot. Are you immortal? Is that why I can’t find your off switch?”
“No. Not immortal. Just harder to kill than most.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Plus, I’m a special robot. I don’t need the game people to fix me. I can regenerate.”
That would explain why every time she hurt him, he came back healed. She’d thought the hunters had access to fancy medical technology, and they kept saving him from the brink of death. This information wasn’t what she was prepared to hear. She might never be able to kill him.
“What species are you? I mean, what kind of robot are you?” she asked.
“I usually keep what I am to myself. But I don’t mind telling you since you’re ignorant of such things. I’m a Givvek.” At her blank stare, he raised a shoulder. “It’s not like you would know my species. You, humans, think you’re the only ones out here in the vast universe.”
“Some of us. Not all. But knowing what I know now, I wish I was back there, ignorant, like everyone else.”
“Is that why you want to go back so bad? So you don’t have to worry about any of this?”
“That, and I miss my family, friends, life, blue sky, noise, going to work, real food, all the comforts of home.”
“From what I hear, it’s an awful place.” He wiggled his nose. “Corruption, endless in-fighting.”
“But, it’s home.”
“What about their father? You didn’t mention that you missed your mate.”
“Enough about me.” She didn’t want to have this conversation, not with him and not here. Miranda nodded in his direction. “So, your species...you all have this special ability?”
By the tick in his jaw, he didn’t seem to like the subject change. “Yes.”
There were probably a ton of other species who had special abilities. Some of them were perhaps other hunters too.
She let out a heavy breath. “Great. There’s a bunch of self-generating aliens with crazy voice abilities running around here.”
Something passed across his face, both darkness and sadness. “The odds of you running into another Givvek on Turolois are null, and the odds of you encountering another in this galaxy are slim. We’re rarer here than humans.”
“Wait. Are you saying that you’re not even from this galaxy?”
Fanian shook his head.
She glanced up at the sky. The evening alarm would be ringing soon. If she kept him talking maybe he would forget about claiming her. Once his pod came it would be too late for him to reach her. It was a stretch, but not the worst idea she’s come up with yet. “Tell me about your species and home.”
He appeared shocked. “You want to know about me?”
She lifted a shoulder. “You’re technically the first ali—er, robot I’ve met. Why not learn about you? Where are you from and why did you come to this galaxy?”
“Givveks were once a powerful species hailing from planet Naahrex, a rich and bountiful world. In our galaxy, we held great positions of power, but one horrible twist of fate brought war, then famine, then servitude. The Thruul came. They enslaved us. Those of us who resisted were slaughtered and they hunt those who fled.”
Miranda didn’t really want to know his planet’s history or his species. She had her own worries but she found herself hanging on his every word.
“The Thruul had brought war and destruction to our doorstep. The warmongers wanted our regeneration and healing properties, coveting both for their bio-weapons and armor. With us enslaved, the Thruul could eventually reign over their solar system. Then the sector. There was no stopping them. Soon they branched out, conquering every planet they happened upon. All the while, seeking out the Givveks’ who’d escaped. I hear stories about what happens when they find us. They squeeze every drop of blood they can from male, female, and child. The Thuul’s thirst for power is never-ending. It was no longer safe for us to stay in our galaxy. Now we’re scattered about the universe.”
“So you know what it’s like to be hunted down, and yet here you are, hunting me and mine,” she couldn’t and didn’t want to hide the disdain from her voice. He should know exactly how she felt.
“I have no choice. I have to survive. It’s nothing personal.”
In the blink of an eye, the sun went down, casting darkness over their pit. Her breath stuck in her throat. If there were anything in her stomach, it would be coming up now. Even without looking at her comlink, she knew what time it was. Her chest swelled with overwhelming panic.
Time to fight.
Miranda set Lexi on Adam’s lap. “Mommy has to fight the robot, okay?”
Adam nodded.
“It’s going to look real and scary, but this is something I have to do. Hide Lexi’s eyes and close yours.”
“But what if you go away with the robot and me and Lexi are left here alone?”
“Call—” She inhaled sharply. They no longer had the communication icon. If Fanian took her and left them behind, her kids would die in this hole.
She turned to Fanian, blinking back tears. This was it. No more fighting. She couldn’t risk falling into his pod while they fought, leaving Adam and Lexi to freeze to death.
The cocky smile was gone from his face. He looked...sad. “This is inevitable,” he said softly. His voice, ordinarily calming, lulling even, never held a hint of compassion as it did now. He beckoned her. “Gather their things and come here. There’s no need for any more violence, Mishka.”
She wanted to scream, cry, beat something, but in the end, she slung the bag over her shoulder, picked Lexi up, held Adam’s hand, and walked over to Fanian, sealing their fates.
The alarm sounded.
“This might not be as bad as you think. You might like your new life,” he said as the ground beneath their feet rumbled and shook. Rumbled again. Then stopped.
She would not like her new life. Her children would suffer. This was the end. Hot tears streamed down her face.
“Mommy, does this mean we aren’t getting our medals?” Adam asked softly.
She was exhausted and didn’t have it in her to concoct another lie. “No, baby. We aren’t.”
“I’ll make sure you get your medal,” Fanian said, surprising her yet again.
The ground rumbled louder this time. Then silence. Fanian and Miranda shared a glance.
Miranda wiped the tears from her face. “What happened? Couldn’t the pod get through? I thought it had to take you. What happens now?”
Fanian’s eyes opened wide. He grasped his collar. He dropped to his knees then fell to his side, convulsing in a fit. His eyes rolled back in his head. Foam pooled around his lips. The sounds coming from his clenched mouth were incomprehensible. Miranda grabbed the kids and pressed her back against the farthest wall. Two things were very apparent.