Page 28 of Fighting Gravity
“Rhone Lok’rath.”
Ket raised his brows again and regarded me with a different expression. One that said he knew exactly who I was.
12: Rhone
“Lok’rath? I haven’t heard that name in a long time,” Ket said, standing off the sofa.
At full height, he was a head taller than I was with about half the mass. With his three-fingered hand, he stroked his pointed chin and looked me over thoroughly.
“Your clan is all wiped out, isn’t it?” he said.
I let the corner of my mouth lift into a smirk. “Is that what the whispers are saying these days?”
My answer made him uneasy. He tried to hide it, but the subtle bob in his throat told me everything.
“So? What brings you to my port, Lok’rath?”
“I need a ship.”
“And… you think I can get you one?”
“I know you can.”
He let out a low chuckle and shook his head like I was joking.
“Say I did have a ship for you. A very nice one. What exactly are you offering for it? You can’t have thought killing one of my nozun would help this negotiation.”
“Your arena has been quiet lately.”
I could feel Veron’s eyes whip toward me.
Ket’s smile drooped. “What do you know about my arena?”
“I know that no one talking about it anymore. Shame. It used to be your biggest claim to fame and fortune.”
“So? You want to fight in my arena?”
I shrugged. “I bring the crowds. You get the winnings. Then I get my ship.”
He was putting a lot of thought into it, but I knew he couldn’t refuse. Shikari loved a fight. Especially one they could watch instead of participate in. And profit? That was just a bonus.
But then his eyes shifted away from me and glanced behind. The way his expression changed said he wasn’t looking at Veron. He was looking at my human. His head tilted with curiosity and he sidestepped, reaching for Quinn. I moved to intervene when one of thosedrekkingshock sticks jammed into my back. Ket tugged Quinn away from me and swept the hood off her head, revealing her pale skin and black mane. He took a deep breath of her unusual scent and a greedy smile spread across his mouth.
“What is this?” he said excitedly.
Quinn struggled against his grip with as much vigor as she would mine, turning from him when he leaned in to look more closely at her strange features.
“A human? This far out?” Ket said. “I never thought I’d see one up close. How strange.”
“She is a prisoner,” I said. “Myprisoner.”
He never took his eyes off of her. He was enamored by her rarity and stroked his clawed fingers through her black tresses.
“I like it. I’ll take it as payment for your ship.”
“She’s not on the table.”
“Oh? Why is that?”
