Page 5 of ReBOrB

Once Reb closed the door behind them, he put one arm around Cam’s waist and held her other arm under the elbow. Propping her up as she slid one foot in front of the other. He knew she felt faint.

If he said anything, she couldn’t hear it. Her heartbeat was too loud. Pulling air into her lungs, the only thing she could smell was cleaning products. She knew Reb had a spicy, old forest aroma coming off his flesh. She wanted to get somewhere she could inhale his scent again.

A man stood between them and the elevators. He dressed just as they were in the Viant robes. Her body clenched in fear, but Reb didn’t hesitate. His brother then. The one who was listening to the medical personnel in the break room.

Cameron knew the nursing staff on Earth had little opportunity to sit and rest. Shift change and patient status reports would keep them all in that room. Unless an alarm sounded. Cam refused to worry about their escape. She couldn’t do anything but hold on to Reb’s arm and put one foot in front of the other.

She wanted to see if this alien had the same color skin as Reb. Daydreaming about twenty sky-blue men linking arms and dancing—entertained her until they neared the elevator. In the back of her mind, Cam realized having blue guys dancing down the hall was a bad sign. She shut her eyes for just a moment. Yep. Dizzy and seeing tie-dye colors on the back of her eyelids. She took a deep breath—hoping more oxygen would help.

Cam didn’t dare look at Reb, or it would take her attention away from walking. She just kept one foot in front of the other and let him guide her down the hall. Part of her was worried that she couldn’t see another man in front of the elevator. She saw a silver stand holding a sign in front of one door. Then remembered Reb said something about his other brother doing maintenance on the elevator. She hoped it worked. She didn’t think she could walk much further. And she certainly couldn’t handle stairs.

Swallowing, Cammy realized her mouth was dry. Her stomach growled. Long and loud. The sound made Reb chuckle. He turned her into the elevator, where a bright purple alien wore an outfit that reminded her of overalls. He used a rag to rub a spot on the wall. The other brother slipped in behind them. Cammy grinned when she got a glimpse of his cherry-red face when the hood fanned open.

Not sky-blue. So, were all twenty of them different colors?

She must have asked out loud because all three said, “Yes.”

She laughed as she sagged against Reb. Before she could even attempt to stand, he scooped her into his arms. Then whispered, “It’s okay. We’ve got you. The hover isn’t far.”

Cammy smiled. She let her body rest, but kept her eyes open. The elevator stopped in what she assumed was the basement. The halls were dark, but her rescuers didn’t seem to care. She couldn’t see a damn thing, but evidently, they knew where they were going.

In just a few moments, they were in front of another door. The purple maintenance brother went first, slipping out for just a moment. Then the red brother opened the door and Reb took her into the night air. She took a deep breath. The air was sweet. Like they were standing in a field of flowers.

Alien flowers. She wanted to see that, but she couldn’t keep her eyelids up. “Tired,” she whispered. Hearing a soft slide and a snick, she assumed they were at the hover and another door.

Reb tightened his hold for a moment and said, “Sleep. We’re safe right now. I’ll find something for you to eat.”

Grinning, Cammy turned her face into his neck and sighed when his spicy scent replaced the flowers.

Chapter Four

ReBOrB

Reb glanced at the floor where he laid Cameron. She hadn’t moved. He did a quick scan of her body from head to toe before hovering away from the medical complex. She was… depleted. The little Earther female needed nutrient-rich foods, hydration, and lots of rest. He would do a more detailed scan when they stopped.

There were enough dehydrated foods and water tubes stored on the hover to last for several days. He also knew she hadn’t eaten since the red aliens kidnapped her from Earth. BrOdByc told him that Casey wasn’t sure how much time passed from when they were kidnapped until she regained consciousness. His brother’s mate estimated that she had been awake for five days on the Siloth ship before they landed on Viant. She didn’t know how long she’d been in stasis. She had no memory of the pods.

But BrOdByc had looked up Earth’s location and how long it would take the Siloth ship to cover the distance to this planet using black holes and other tricks in order to save time. The Siloth must have kept both women in stasis for at least two weeks. The pods would meet their nutritional needs with fluids.

The medical center also had Cameron on fluids. He wanted something better for her. She needed actual food. Simple items first. To get her digestive system working again.

Both the woman and the hover would need sunlight. Their transportation was solar-powered, and the female’s humanoid body required the vitamin-producing rays as well. Which meant getting away from the populated spaces and escaping the seeking eyes employed by the Andaran, since the man planned to search all the buildings in the city.

Reb’s sole purpose in the next few days, maybe weeks, was to keep Cameron safe while he helped her heal. No matter what that required. If possible, the brothers wanted him to find a sparsely populated spot far enough from the city, where the DoMicile could land. But his ship wouldn’t come for them until the Captain finished his investigation. It would be too risky for their large spaceship to make more than one trip down to Viant’s surface.

Just as it was too risky to communicate electronically with the ship until they were ready. Their communications couldn’t be overheard, but someone might notice the electronic trail. Mind to mind, ReBOrB could remain in contact with the Captain and the others on the planet. But both the ship and the brethren who were in space were out of mental reach.

Which meant Cameron couldn’t speak to her sister. He dreaded telling her that.

Expertly, he guided the hover over a small open market that was closed down tight because of the late hour. He considered gathering a few items from the market, but that would mean leaving the little Earther in the hover. Reb didn’t want her waking alone and afraid. Besides. He wouldn’t just take something without payment. He would leave coins and because this market was near the med center, the Andaran’s spies would undoubtedly ask questions. Reb didn’t want them to track them even this far. Better to be careful.

They needed more distance. Yet, he wanted to find somewhere to hide soon. Reb had been mostly awake since she went into the facility. He needed rest before he passed out.

Maneuvering around what appeared to be a residential area, he discovered an open field. In the distance were mountains. In between the flat fields and the towering peaks, he noticed taller greenery. Trees maybe? Or vines. It would be wonderful to find an orchard. Fruit would be an amazing treasure.

Getting closer to the field, ReBOrB frowned. It was filled with flowers. Each stalk had a deep purple flower head that had six lilac and white striped petals. He recognized them as the same species Brode said were being used to perfume the air in the city. They were also used to make the kack Brode’s mate soaked in when he rescued Casey.

The native flower was called the Viant Violeta. It was both an aphrodisiac and caused mild fatigue. He could smell the sweet fragrance. Brode had said that the Earth females were greatly affected by the scent.