It reminded Darla of something her dad had mentioned once about wild animals and tempting food. Heydar had done what he could to ensure nothing would follow its nose back to their location. She couldn’t help but admire his prowess and situational awareness, even in this strange environment.
“Eat,” he said, handing her the still-warm bundle.
She didn’t have to be told twice. Darla opened the leaf and felt her mouth water with the first whiff of the cooked meat. She was mostly vegetarian back home on Earth, but here, in a survival situation? Beggars couldn’t be choosers. And this smelled amazing.
She tucked in with gusto, devouring her meal in a flash, her body feeling worlds better with the nutrition flowing into her veins.
Heydar ate his portion quietly then took the leaves and carried them far off into the trees to dispose of them before returning. He dragged several boughs and leaned them against the log she had been sitting on, spreading broad, waxy green leaves across them, followed by a layer of smaller reddish ones, fashioning protection and insulation until a crude lean-to had been erected.
“Night is upon us, and this will have to do,” he said, surveying his work. “It is time to sleep.” He crawled into the shelter and lay down on his side.
Darla wasn’t too keen on sharing a crappy woodland shelter with an alien, and she had several objections running through her mind, but her aching body was having none of that. She was tired and worn out, her adrenaline stores drained to zero. If she didn’t rest, and soon, she would be in a bad way. And given what they were facing come tomorrow, she was undoubtedly going to need her strength.
With a sigh she lowered herself down and crawled in beside him, feeling his blazing heat radiating in the small space.
Well, at least I won’t freeze to death, she mused as she closed her eyes.
She was fast asleep in under a minute.
CHAPTER NINE
Darla had fitful, crazy dreams. Crazy, hot, erotic dreams that had come out of nowhere. Her subconscious was really playing a number on her. Of course, she had been taken captive, escaped, and been rescued, though that bit had been done by a thick-muscled alien with the most beautiful eyes, so maybe that had a little something to do with it.
In any case, it had proved to be a much more pleasant night than she’d have imagined, especially tucked away in a makeshift lean-to on a hostile world.
She roused from her slumber, stretching her limbs and letting out a contented yawn. Turning on her side, she felt for the expected heat of the alien she’d been curled up next to but found no one there. A sudden flash of fear surged through her, replacing the warm, fuzzy contentedness post-dream with an adrenaline-fueled jerk to full consciousness.
Her eyes snapped open, searching for Heydar. The alien was nowhere to be seen.
That motherfu—
Darla scrambled out of the lean-to and leapt to her feet, spinning three-sixty. It was a clear morning, the kind she remembered as a kid and longed for as an adult. Wispy clouds were drifting high in the blue sky, swirling in the thermoclines. There were no birds in sight, but she could easily imagine a flock of geese or ducks cruising on elongated wings.
She noted that the air was carrying a light scent, an almost sweet, earthy smell, the dark, nutrient-rich soil feeding the explosive growth of impressive greenery all around her. The overall feel would have been relaxing as fuck. That is, if she wasn’t stuck a bazillion miles from home, stranded with a surly alien and hunted by the pack of the lizard-like bastards who’d kidnapped her in the first place.
Hell, minus that, she might have even enjoyed the scenery.
She looked up at the trees around her. Not as tall as the one she’d climbed with Heydar, but tall enough. She made her way to one with a good spread of branches. More importantly, it was one growing in such a way that she could reach the lower ones without assistance.
Darla jumped up and wrapped her hands around the closest, pulling herself up and swinging her legs to a foothold with agility that almost surprised her. It seemed those kickboxing classes were paying off after all.
She made her way upward, taking her time and carefully placing her hands and feet. A fall from this height with no hospital anywhere remotely close? A small injury here could prove more than a little dangerous. Fatal, even.
Up and up she went, weaving through the branches until she made it to the top of the canopy where she could get a better look at where the hell she actually was in relation to, well, everything.
She reached what looked like a good spot and set herself in position, making damn sure she had selected a sturdy limb before wrapping her legs around it. The view was, yet again, amazing.
In the morning light this world was even more beautiful than she’d initially noticed. She saw the distant mountains, now with their peaks shrouded in a morning mist reflecting the sun, as well as the desert and plains that she hadn’t seen clearly the other day.
In the distance, the burning remains of the segment from the Raxxian ship were still aflame, pumping smoke up into the sky in a steady stream. Apparently, whatever they used for fuel, there had been plenty of it.
Darla turned, scanning the rest of the area, looking for anything that might be of use. A town, a farm, anything. She slowly turned, taking it all in. She had glanced past an adjacent tree when she paused. Something was off. Something had caught her eye. A glint of gold.
She squinted, looking closer. Shrouded in the treetop, a large, violet and gold eyed man crouched, leaves tucked into his torn clothing, a hand-woven crown of foliage draped over his head, hanging down over his broad shoulders.
It was incredibly simple, yet with just the vegetation at hand, Heydar had somehow camouflaged himself perfectly.
And Darla didn’t give a shit.
“What the fuck?” she growled. “You just up and abandon me like that?”
“I did not abandon you.”
“What the hell do you call bailing on me without a word? Leaving me all alone in some primitive caveman shelter?”
“I was gathering information while you rested. You were tired.”
“Not so tired that I’m not going to be pissed that you left me there. What if an animal came? Or a Raxxian?”
“There are no Raxxians in our vicinity. And as for animals, the only tracks I have seen so far belong to smaller varieties. Nothing that would be a threat to you,” he said with an amused twinkle in his eyes.
“That doesn’t matter. And what the hell are you grinning at?”
He nodded toward the ground far below. “You climbed the tree without assistance.”
“Yeah? Big deal.”
“You required my help yesterday.”
“Well, you weren’t fucking there to help me today.”
“Indeed,” he said with a chuckle. “A good night’s rest has clearly invigorated you, and your focused anger has served you well.”
Darla felt a little flash of pride creeping in and mixing with her ire. Now that she stopped to think about it, she had managed to climb the tree with surprising ease, partly fueled by sheer irritation.
Heydar had been right about that, and the accuracy of his observation, along with her not noticing until it was pointed out, irked her even more. Honestly, she didn’t know whether she should be pleased or even more infuriated by the whole situation. Before she could make up her mind he raised an arm and pointed.