Total pages in book: 159
Estimated words: 144433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
"Who? Is she the one in charge?" Her expression grows wistful. "I don't suppose you have a pet cat in there somewhere, do you?"
I don't even dignify that with a response. I climb out of the stasis pod, and my feet feel like bricks of ice. My tail is silent, no jangling jewelry to denote my wealth, and the lack of sound is jarring to me. How am I supposed to live like this? I run a hand down the one-piece, plain bodysuit I'm wearing. It's a dull gray that doesn't set off my white fur to its full advantage, and there's not a hint of tailoring. It's the first non-bespoke piece of clothing I've ever worn and I decide I hate it. The cuffs don't even land at the proper place on my wrists, the sleeves are too short. Humiliating. I agreed to go into exile. I did not agree to be disgraced. "Where is Zebah?"
"You keep asking for that person and I don't know who that is. Is she another colonist?"
Colonist? The kef? "No, she's a bounty hunter. She arranged for me to meet up with a human servant here on Risda III that Kazex knows. This is Risda III, is it not?"
Her weird, furless face scrunches up again. "I'm picking up a cat that Kazex got for me."
I think we've both been fooled. Zebah isn't trustworthy, and yet somehow I've allowed desperation to cloud my common sense. "I believe there's been a mix-up. Either that, or we've both been lied to."
The human crosses her arms over her chest. "Damn right. Do you know how much I paid to get a pet?"
"So you're not my servant?"
"So you're not my cat?" She raises her brows at me, her expression challenging, even as her voice mocks me.
I decide I despise her.
CHAPTER
FIVE
ZHURRRVAS
I flick a bit of dust off my sleeve and eye my surroundings once more. There's no need to panic just yet, I tell myself. Perhaps a few things were miscommunicated. "I think we both need to speak to this Kazex in regards to our situation. I'm sure he will be able to clarify matters."
"Maybe there's a note in your crate?" the human offers helpfully. "Sometimes when someone finds a pet on Earth, they drop it off at the pound with a note on their crate explaining where they found them."
"I'm not your pet," I snarl at her.
She ignores me, leaning over the stasis pod and digging around. A moment later, she makes an “aha” sound and holds up a piece of plas. "This has alien writing all over it! What's it say?"
I take it from her, and huff with annoyance a moment later. "First of all, you're the alien. Second of all, you just voided the warranty on the pod."
"Oh." She purses her lips. "I still think there would be a note somewhere."
She truly won't let the idea die, will she? "You are appallingly stubborn for a servant."
"I'm not your servant. Like you said, I think someone made a mistake. I bet a note would explain everything."
It takes everything I have not to growl at her.
"Why are you coming to a human planet anyhow?" she asks.
A human planet? Hardly. "This is some mesakkah lord's private planet. I'm told it's barely colonized—"
"By humans, yes," she interrupts.
I wonder if anyone would notice if I throttled her. " —and that it's a good place for me to hide out."
"Hide out? From what?"
My brother's assassins, I want to say, but if I do, I suspect she'll run. Or worse, she'll tattle on me to the authorities and the last thing I need is any mesakkah noticing that I'm here on the planet. "I just need to hide," I mutter. "This is Risda, isn't it?"
"It is. I'm Maeve, by the way." She holds her hand out at me. "Last names don't much matter anymore, so just Maeve will do. I'm the only Maeve on the planet."
It's a terrible name, but she's a terrible human, so I suppose it fits. I eye her hand, waiting for it to do something, and contemplate what name I should give her. Not my full name or titles, that's for certain. Perhaps an assumed name of some kind. "You can call me Zhur."
"Cool. Nice to meet you." She reaches out and grabs my hand, slapping it into hers and then bouncing them up and down. "That's a handshake, by the way."
I recoil from her touch, appalled that she would reach out and grab a praxiian lord in such a forward manner...but then again, she doesn't know that I'm a lord, does she? I grit my teeth, because this is going to be quite the trial. "Well, Mav—"
"Maaaayyyyyyve," she drawls.
"Whatever. I believe you're intended to be my servant. Have you seen my luggage? I packed light for this trip."
She tilts her head in that funny way of hers, as if she's not quite understanding what I'm referring to. "Were you supposed to have luggage?"