Chapter Fourteen
Allie rolled to herside and groaned.
“Hey, feeling better?” Shank’s familiar arm slid around her waist and pulled her back until she was nestled against his chest. It felt good.
“My head isn’t falling off,” she admitted. “Crap. I can’t believe I fell asleep. Is the doctor here yet?”
“She came and left. She said your blood pressure was off the charts, and gave you a sedative shot, and then we let you sleep.”
Allie shifted onto her back and rubbed a hand over her face. Her eyes were gritty with the residue of sleep, and her limbs felt sluggish. “I never take naps.” Allie frowned. She literally couldn’t believe it because she was normally one for tossing and turning even under the best of circumstances.
“Well, you know how we have tech that other people don’t?” Shank asked in his most apologetic tone. Allie’s arm hairs stood on end.
“Yes?” she asked suspiciously. She looked over, and Shank was slowly peeling a wide sticker off his temple.
“This helps counteract the sleep signal, although if you just fight the urge to sleep, that works too. The signal isn’t overpowering.”
Allie pushed herself up on one elbow. “The urge to sleep?” Oh, this was not good.
She looked around, and the cabin shocked her. Shank had turned the lights on low so Allie could see the sheer amount of space. They could have sparring lessons in here, and along one side a narrow window showed a wide swatch of space, the view interrupted with support beams to reinforce the window. “Holy crap,” she breathed.
“Yeah, this is one of the kidnap rooms,” Shank said. “It’s a little creepy, isn’t it?”
“It’s beautiful.” Allie took in the soft blues and greens of the carpet and the sleek silver walls. This looked like the set from some damn vid romance.
“Yeah, until the ship gets caught in a rough section of hyperspace, and you get thrown into the wall to your death.”
Allie frowned at Shank. “That’s slightly disturbing. Has that ever actually happened?”
Shank shrugged. “Not that I know of, but these rooms do still make me a little uneasy. The ironic thing is that we’ve had people complain that these are too cramped. They want better quarters.”
“Better than this?” Allie laughed. “You guys kidnap some pretty high-quality hostages.”
“We try,” Shank agreed. “Kidnapping is pretty high profile, so we only do it when the money’s worth it.”
“I bet. So, explain this sleep thing.”
Shank’s gaze skittered off. “It resonates at a frequency that enhances a person’s desire to go to sleep, and it makes it easier to stay asleep.”
