Page 7 of Grumpy Alien Bodyguard

Reku’s lips curl into a cruel smile, and he reaches out, his clawed fingers brushing against my cheek. “You’re either very brave or very stupid, little human. But I’ll give you this—you’ve got guts.”

Daria watches me with a mix of fear and something else—curiosity, maybe. She doesn’t speak, but her eyes dart between me and Reku, as if she’s trying to figure out what’s going to happen next.

A comm unit on the armrest of Reku’s throne flashes, the harsh red light cutting through the dimness of the room. Reku’s eyes flick to it, then back to me, his gaze hard and unreadable. He doesn’t move for a moment, as if weighing whether I’m worth the interruption. Finally, he snarls and slams a clawed hand down on the unit, accepting the call. Audio only.

“Reku!” The voice that crackles through is male, sharp and laced with panic. “What have you done, you fool?”

Reku’s lips peel back in a feral grin, his bone spurs twitching as if they have a mind of their own. “It’sCaptainReku to you, worm,” he hisses, his voice low and dangerous. “And I did nothing more than what you paid me for, and nothing less.”

“You were supposed toscuttlethe Triumphant, not steal it!” The voice is practically spitting now, the words tumbling over each other in their haste. “The lack of wreckage has the Alliance sniffing around. They’ve sent a ship to investigate. They could already be on their way!”

Reku’s grin widens, his teeth glinting like shards of bone. “Good. I hope they are. I’ve been itching for a fight.”

“You’re going to ruin everything!” the voice snaps, the panic giving way to anger. “You’re going to expose me!”

“I will not scuttle a perfectly good ship,” Reku growls, his voice rising to a roar that makes the walls tremble. “And I will kill anyone foolish enough to come here. Captain Reku out.”

He slams his hand down on the comm unit again, cutting off the connection. The room falls silent, the only sound the faint crackle of his neural whip as it rests across his lap. His eyes lock onto mine, and I feel the weight of his gaze like a physical force.

“Now,” he says, his voice dropping to a low, menacing purr, “it’s time to deal with you. Like I dealt with your captain.”

He reaches down beside his throne and grabs something, tossing it onto the floor in front of me. It lands with a wet thud, rolling to a stop at my feet. My stomach lurches as I realize whatit is—the captain’s severed head, his eyes wide and unseeing, his mouth frozen in a silent scream.

The room spins, my vision blurring as the concussion, dehydration, and sheer horror of the moment hit me all at once. I drop to my knees, the collar biting into my throat as I retch, bile splattering onto the expensive, looted carpet at Reku’s feet.

Reku’s roar of fury shakes the room. “You dare defile my spoils, human?”

I can’t answer, my body wracked with dry heaves as I kneel there, trembling. All I can think is that whoever the Alliance sent, they’d better get here soon—and they’d better bring an army.

CHAPTER 4

VARNOK

The Sweet Charity drifts closer to the derelict fueling station, its cloaking device humming softly in the background. I lean over Gas’s shoulder, my massive frame casting a shadow across his console. “You sure that cloaking thing’s working? I don’t fancy being turned into space dust before I even get a shot at these Reapers.”

Gas doesn’t even look up, his golden fur bristling with irritation. “It’s on, boss. No electronic scans are going to find us. Trust me, I’ve got this.”

“But they could still look out a porthole and see us,” I growl, my tail flicking behind me. “We’re not invisible.”

He finally glances up, his beady eyes narrowing. “Why would they do that? Who stares out into the void for fun? It’s all black and depressing. They’re probably too busy sharpening their bone spurs or whatever Reapers do in their free time.”

I grumble under my breath, my scales itching with impatience. “Just find us a place to dock without getting noticed. I don’t want to show up late to this party.”

Before Gas can respond, the ship shudders violently, alarms blaring. The dim lights of the cockpit flicker red as sparks fly from the console. “What the—?!” Gas’s hands fly across thecontrols, his voice rising an octave. “We’re under attack! Some kind of Reaper shuttle just came out of nowhere!”

I grip the back of his chair to steady myself, my claws digging into the upholstery. “Weapons status?”

“Offline!” Gas yelps, his fur standing on end as another blast shakes the ship. “They took out our cannons with the first shot! I’m trying to evade, but this shuttle’s fast—like, stupid fast!”

I snarl, my mind racing. We don’t have the time or the firepower to outrun this thing, let alone fight back. “How long to repair the weapons?”

“Longer than we’ve got before they turn us into a floating scrap heap!” Gas’s voice cracks as he jerks the ship to the left, narrowly dodging another volley of fire.

My eyes land on the torpedo bay, and a reckless grin spreads across my face. “Open the launch tube.”

Gas freezes, his paw hovering over the controls. “What? Why—? Oh no. No, no, no. Whatever you’re thinking, I don’t like it.”

I’m already moving, my boots clanging against the metal floor as I sprint toward the torpedo bay. “Just do it!” I rip the side panel off one of the torpedoes and start pulling out the warhead, scattering parts across the floor.

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