Page 51 of Diamond

I don't want to begin thinking about all the things that could have happened if I didn't toss that rock when I did. I'm still surprised it worked at all.

Roshan is moving quicker than he ever did with Tehlmar steering and it warms my heart that he is now seeing the good in Kuret.

I believe in the judgment of animals, and I was determined to keep my distance and stay on alert around him as Roshan had. Then he proved to be more than a senseless killer and the events of tonight have shown me a different side of him.

There was not enough time to think, but I could see that during the struggle, he tried to fight without killing. I can see what he meant now by having to kill or be killed off first. I'm caught between a fight of morals and survival, but I know what side I am choosing now.

It seems that Roshan has chosen as well, or he would be resisting Kuret. I was afraid I would have to keep shuffling along in frontof him with my ankle injured… wait, now. I just realized I've been walking on it just fine since I woke up.

After a quick rotation, I confirm that it isn't hurting anymore. Quick checks on my other injuries let me know they've healed as well.

I glance over at Kuret and notice that his wounds are also closed up. He's using his hand without favoring it and I'm not sure he even realizes it yet as focused as he is on our surroundings. The glow from his chest gives me a clear view of his leg wound.

Our quick healing is a mystery, but not one I can solve just by staring at him… though I can't seem to stop following the long, hard muscles in a V pattern, leading to somewhere that makes me press my thighs together.

Kuret has a body type I am not used to seeing in the men back home, not that I have much experience. He is big and well-built but made of mostly lean muscles. As far as I can tell, he has almost no body fat, but I highly doubt it's from special exercise regimes or diets like it is for humans. It's just the way his species is built.

His muscles and markings follow patterns that would screamalien, even without his dark-gray skin, sharp teeth, and the nostrils on the sides of his face. Then there's his long braids, which at first terrified me when I saw animal bones woven into them.

Now I notice there are other things woven into them. Beautiful little sculptures of animals I've never seen before, rough beads,stones, even a few feathers. They tinkle together in a soothing sound when he moves.

I'm still staring when he pulls us to a stop, my face flaming when he catches me at it. I'm about to comment about his braids when he starts speaking.

"This should be far enough for us to rest again for a while."

I shake my head to fling off my, quite frankly, disturbingly erotic thoughts, then look around. He's found another cave. The region must be teeming with them to have seen so many in such a small area.

He gets out of the cart, his hairless brow furrowed as he looks down at his leg. I assume it must feel better than it should.

"I'm healing far faster than normal here, Kuret. Are you as well?"

He looks back up at me, his large eyes with their horizontal pupil communicating his puzzlement. "Yes," he confirms. "This happened with another wound, and it isn't natural. Why would they make me heal faster if they just brought me here to hunt me?"

My own brow furrows as I try to get into the mindset of a species that traffics women and brings people to a planet to hunt them. Then I realize it must take a lot of resources to capture, contain, and move people as dangerous as Kuret.

"Well," I say, drawing the word out, "it's just a guess, but maybe it's because you are expensive… uh… prey. If a hunter woundedyou, but didn't kill, and you got away, they wouldn't want you to die holed up somewhere you couldn't be found."

He blows out a breath that makes his braids shift and his large hands clench, sending ripples of light through his marks. "That makes sense, in a terrible sort of way," he grits out.

His hands unclench and he opens the injured one to look at it. Then he shifts his weight on the ground, clearly testing how much he can rely on it.

"I am not quite healed enough to fight, but enough to teach you some ways to defend yourself. Will you let me?"

He's staring at me intently and a surge of fear passes through me. I hadn't thought the decision would be quite so soon.

He lets out another breath and starts speaking again. "If another one of those creatures was about to attack you, what would you do? What if next time there is a whole group of them? They aren't always solitary, Nasrin. What would you do?"

My hands shake. I would defend myself. I would defend Roshan… and Kuret. I glance down at the gun, remembering the burn of the barrel in my mouth, which sends a shiver of fear snaking along my spine. I need to put those memories aside. They were from a very different life in a different world.

Before coming here, I would never have considered it, but that terrible green creature, Tehlmar, the leering genali… Who knows what other amoral people are out there. Defending myself doesn't make me anything like them.

Learning how to use weapons just means I'll know how to keep Roshan and me alive. It would put some of the power of taking care of myself in my own hands. I glance down at them. Not being able to use weapons meant I was at the mercy of terrible people on Earth. It will mean the same here, but even worse.

Defense doesn't make me evil.

The thought sends a shock through me, and I tear my eyes from my hands and look at Kuret. Defense didn't make him evil, either. I think back to the fight with the green creature and realize he listened to me when I told him how his extreme violence disturbed me.

As much as I long to, I still don't trust him, because that would be stupid. But so far, he's done exactly what he said he would do.