Chapter One
Mganak looked up from the filter he had been repairing when the proximity alarm sounded. While an artificial object in the vicinity meant the prospect of salvage, he was returning from a successful trip and in no immediate need of credits.
“What do you think, Sagat?” he asked the rajpar who had curled up in his usual nest of blankets to watch Mganak work. Sagat yawned widely, the overhead lights glinting on his fangs, then put his head back down.
“You’re a big help,” Mganak grunted, then sighed and went to check the scanners. There. An abandoned lifeboat floating close to a nearby asteroid. Since it wasn’t emitting a signal, the occupants must be long gone—rescued or deceased. Either way, the ship itself should be worth a fair number of credits, and it was small enough that he could bring it into his cargo hold.
Switching to manual controls, he navigated closer until he could seize the vessel with the ship’s grappling arm, then opened the outer doors to the hold. A few minutes and some careful maneuvering later, the small lifeboat was safely inside. As he restored the oxygen levels in the hold, he briefly considered just leaving it there but curiosity got the better of him. He’d just give it a quick inspection before resuming his journey. If all it needed was a quick retrofit, he could begin the repairs on the way home.
From the outside, it appeared to be undamaged, and his hopes rose that it would only require a few simple repairs. There were no identifying markings, but that wasn’t uncommon—the very fact that many ships used generic lifeboats was one reason why it should be an easy sale.
As he entered the small airlock, he was surprised to find the lifeboat still maintained a breathable atmosphere. But then again, they were designed to support life for an extended period of time. Hopefully, that meant the occupants had been rescued.
He slowly opened the inner door, already braced for what he might find. But instead of an empty vessel—or dead bodies—the ship was full of living beings. But it was the female directly in front of him who captured his attention. Shock held him motionless as he stared at her.
Since the plague that had devastated the Confederated Planets had disproportionately affected females, it was very rare to see one traveling in space, let alone one as attractive as this one. Big brown eyes stared up at him from a pale face covered with small golden specks.
She blazed with warmth and color in the dim interior of the vessel, from the quantity of bright red hair escaping from a futile attempt to confine it to a long gown of bright fabric that floated around her small curvy body. The cloud of fabric couldn’t conceal the lush swell of her breasts—or the fact that she was pointing a blaster at him.
Despite the weapon, his body responded immediately to her presence. He automatically stepped closer as her tantalizing scent reached him, his tail flicking in her direction.
A startled gasp made him drag his stunned gaze away from her long enough to check out the other inhabitants of the small vessel. A very young female gazed at him with wide eyes, her hands clasping the shoulders of an even younger male. A second, much older female regarded him with complete disdain. All of them appeared to be of the same race as the first female, but the final occupant was not. A very pregnant Vedeckian huddled against the wall, and he bit back a sigh.
“What the hell are all of you doing in here?”
Wanda’s heart raced as she stared up at the giant green alien standing in the airlock of the lifeboat. The Vedeckians who had originally abducted her from Earth could almost pass for human at a distance. This male could never be mistaken for anything other than an alien. Textured green skin covered almost reptilian features with big, dark eyes and a thin mouth. Instead of hair, a series of ridges curved back over his head and down across his shoulders. His very broad shoulders. A tight-fitting dark shirt clung to an impressively muscled body, and the part of her that secretly devoured romance novels automatically responded.
Her gaze started to drift lower, to equally tight black pants, and she yanked it back up to his face, trying to decide what to do. She had been prepared to confront the Vedeckians, not this stranger. What was he going to do with them? Aside from his intimidating—and disturbingly exciting size—she didn’t feel threatened, not even when he took a step closer.
“What the hell are all of you doing in here?”
The low, deep voice sounded more frustrated than angry, but her chin went up instinctively and she tightened her grip on the gun. At least the translator the Vedeckians had so painfully implanted in her head worked with this alien as well.
“We were abandoned,” she said shortly.
“I do not understand. Was your ship in danger?”
“How should I know?” She scowled at him. “We were just prisoners. When the guards rounded us up and shoved us in here, they didn’t bother to tell us why.” And despite the cramped conditions and the eventual shortage of food, it had still been a hundred times better than being in a Vedeckian cell.
“Prisoners?” He sounded as if he’d never heard the word before.
“Yes, prisoners. Do you think we chose to be taken from our planet and shoved in a cell to be treated like animals?” Taking a deep breath, she lifted the weapon they had found in a concealed compartment in the lifeboat. “I demand to see the captain immediately.”
Unfortunately, he looked almost amused now that his initial shock had faded. “You demand?”
She took a firmer grip on the gun. “Yes. We wish to be returned to our planet. Now I want to see the captain.”
“You’re looking at him. I am Captain Mganak Sar’Taren, and this is my ship, The Wanderer.”
“My name is Wanda Peabody and I—we don’t belong here. You will return us to our world,” she said as confidently as possible.
He didn’t seem to be listening. Instead, he looked from her face to the children and Alicia, and finally to Kareena. Her heart sank as he slowly shook his head.
“I cannot do that.”
“What do you mean you can’t do that?” She tightened her grip on the gun, praying that she wouldn’t have to use it. “Aren’t you forgetting that I’m the one who’s armed?”
He shook his head again, then with an unbelievable flash of speed, he snatched the gun out of her hand before she had time to react. Kareena gave a muffled scream, and she could swear she heard Alicia make a disgusted snort, but her eyes were focused on the stranger’s face as she stepped protectively in front of the others. He still didn’t look angry, but she knew how the Vedeckians had reacted to any sign of rebellion.
“Please. I’m the one who had the gun. They haven’t done anything wrong. If you need to punish somebody, punish me.”
Davy suddenly twisted out of his sister’s grip and darted in front of Wanda. Little hands on his hips, he scowled fiercely up at the alien. “Don’t touch.”
Even though his sister had warned her not to touch the little boy without warning, Wanda automatically reached out to pull Davy back in case the alien reacted in anger. As soon as she put her hands on Davy, he started to keen and rock back and forth. Darla rushed over and urgently tried to reassure him. Alicia demanded that he keep quiet. Kareena cried. Wanda found herself giving the alien a despairing look.