Page 9 of Alien's Luck
“Me? You were supposed to lose,” she retorted. “What were you thinking?”
“I would not leave you alone with that male. He is dangerous.”
The nerve of her, sounding virtuous when she changed the plan. She lost the bet. She always lost the bet, and Carla was the collateral. That was the plan. When she got the mark alone, she drugged them. It was simple. Easy. Foolproof.
Except Poppy went off script.
“That’s how we work,” she snapped. “You don’t change plans in the middle of a job.”
“Incorrect. Plans must be altered when confronted with new information. Tavat was a bad target.” Then, in a quieter tone, “He would hurt you.”
Oh no, that sounded like an emotion.
She never asked Poppy about her life before Reazus Prime. She had absolutely no problem stealing or throwing a punch, especially against those she believed had it coming. The fastest way for Poppy to decide you deserve it was to hurt someone smaller and weaker, and not in a big-sister-protects-you way but in a rage-inducing, berserker dragon way. She lost her damn lizard mind and went full Godzilla. Popzilla, if you will. It had gotten them into more than one scrape.
There was a story there, a reason why she flew into a rage, but Carla never asked. To be fair, Poppy never asked about what Carla left behind either. Some things were too painful to talk about.
“Don’t get all sentimental on me.” Carla squirmed. “Set me down. We’re far enough away to walk.”
Poppy’s hold tightened as if she disagreed. She continued to carry her; each step felt like she was being shaken. By the time Carla was well and truly dizzy, she finally relaxed and set her down.
“How far are we from the hostel?” Carla braced a hand against a wall, waiting for her head to stop spinning.
Poppy held up a hand, signaling her to be silent.
She listened. The noise of the city seemed distant, even as they were in the heart of the Hub. Was that footsteps?
“This way,” Poppy said, heading to the right.
Carla wasn’t going to argue. Poppy had better hearing and eyesight than her, so maybe she heard something promising.
Or maybe they were going in circles.
In this part of the city, it was hard to tell. The Hub, the largest city on the planet, was a chaotic mess. Originally built when Reazus Prime was a prison planet, the Hub was a transportation and administrative center. The older sections were orderly, populated with grand buildings and wide streets. Honestly, the old city reminded her of photos of Paris, that elegant city with wide streets built for the ease of movement of troops and the difficulty for the rabble to erect barricades.
Nothing said oppression like elegant buildings and picturesque boulevards.
What came after the prison shut down and the administrators abandoned the planet, the city exploded with chaotic growth. New buildings were repurposed shipping containers, junked spaceships, and basically anything people could get their hands on. Quite environmentally friendly, if you were looking for a silver lining. Too bad safety regulations and building codes didn’t exist. Streets were narrow and twisted. Utilities were spotty and questionable. It took a brave person to drink the water from the tap, and Carla wasn’t that brave. Police? Nah. The swankier neighborhoods hired watchmen. A person might hire private security if they were concerned, but most people looked after themselves.
The Hub was a chaotic, colorful, and loud mess, and Carla adored it. And the people…
The city was packed with a variety of aliens from all over this corner of the galaxy. There were the lizard guys, obviously,and some with stony gray skin, not to be confused with the gargoyles. Those were totally different aliens with stony gray skin and wings. People came in so many colors, not just the human brown-beige-pink, but purples, blues, greens, gray, and red. Wings. Tails of all varieties. Horns? Take your pick. You had horns like a ram, an antelope, or a nice classic demon. Fur. Scales. Eyes? You could have two or four. Same with arms. The one constant was people tended to be bipedal and had the same general shape with limbs and a torso.
Carla loved it. The whole package. Sure, being abducted sucked and there was some trauma to work out, but she didn’t miss Earth. She sure as hell didn’t miss her abusive family, her boring job in medical billing, or the daily struggle to keep body and soul together. Life on the former prison planet wasn’t a picnic, but it agreed with her.
The city was so different from the small Midwestern town where she grew up. That place had been suffocating, the kind of town where it was impossible to keep secrets, and everyone knew your business.
And turned a blind eye while her father drank himself to death and dragged his family along with him.
No? Too bitter?
Carla shook out her hands, letting the unpleasant memories fall away with her nervous energy. Dwelling on the past didn’t help. She needed to focus on the here and now.
She and Poppy wound their way through the dark alleys, pausing to hide in shadows when they heard footsteps. She flinched when she splashed into what she hoped was a puddle of rainwater, the fluid soaking her toes. Her poor shoes. They were soft leather, meant to be stealthy and quiet, and not for traipsing about in the dark and stomping through questionable puddles. She hoped they could be cleaned. Human feet were smaller than average and her shoes had to be specially made.
The rumble of trains and the noise of passing traffic lessened, and the odor of seawater grew stronger. They must be near the docks. The narrow alley opened onto a larger plaza filled with light and noise. Bar and tavern patrons spilled onto the street. Across the plaza was their hostel.
Finally, they were home. Well, home-ish. Since arriving on the planet, they had rented rooms as a place to live. They stayed in some truly terrible places, like the place that had such a thick layer of mold and fungus on the walls that it had to be structural support. Or the place converted from old, rusted shipping containers. Their current hostel was a luxury. It had electricity, plumbing, and no one asked questions. Perfection.
