Chapter Five
Nighttime in downtown Donnelle was an otherworldly wonder. The streets, as usual, were packed with crowds of native Ilyrians and aliens from dozens of other worlds.
Street vendors called out in scores of different alien languages, tempting passersby to taste their wares, or try their hand (or tentacle or paw) at a game of chance. New, strange scents mingled in the air, some delicious and some downright weird. A pair of tall aliens that looked like duck-billed dinosaurs gangled past, making honking noises through the crests on their heads. They were either drunk, or came from a planet that had very different gravity. A trail of large pinkish-gray slugs meandered across the square at a glacial pace, glowing softly. Hovercabs zipped overhead, gaining altitude after picking up their fares, their sleek shadows passing across the faces of the twin moons.
Unfortunately, Violet wasn’t in the mood to appreciate it.
She’d hurried back to her living quarters after storming out of the meet-and-greet, and Dorcas had offered to go out to dinner with her, to take her mind off things.
“Which one of those giant hairballs upset you? Because I’m going to tan his furry behind.” Dorcas scowled, waving her cane menacingly. Since she’d arrived on Ilyria a week ago, a walk-in clinic had cured her arthritis and given her perfectly functioning new knees and hips, but she still liked to carry the cane and play the part of “helpless old lady”.
“Nobody. He’s not worth it.” Violet sniffled. She hated that she’d been thinking about the huge, handsome Vulfan for the last twenty-four hours straight. She hated that he hadn’t thought she was his “true mate”, when she’d felt so overwhelmingly attracted the moment she’d laid eyes on him. And she hated how stupid he’d made her feel.
“If he made you cry, he’s getting the cane,” Dorcas insisted. “The pin-headed gollywampus.”
“Good heavens, Dorcas, watch the language,” Violet said, stifling a smile.
“I hate to set a bad example for you, but that giant hairball has me all het up.” Dorcas scowled ferociously as they headed down the sidewalk.
“Violet! Wait!”
Was that Treffon calling her? She scowled. She was in no mood.
“If he’s here, I don’t want to go out to eat. Let’s just go back to the Starcrossed tower,” she said, and they wedged their way through the crowd towards the hovercab stand.
It was a surreal scene. It was like being in New York, except the cabs were silvery, and flew, and the people who were crowded in line waiting for them were aliens with pointy ears or antenna or skin that was every color of the rainbow.
Violet frowned impatiently at the crowd. “Damn it, he’ll get here before we can get a cab. I’m not in the mood to talk to him.” Indeed, Treffon was barreling his way down the sidewalk to get to her, shoving his way through the thickly packed crowds.
Suddenly a hovercab glided towards them and the door slid open. The pilot-bot inside waved its metallic arm at them. Dorcas and Violet hurried towards vehicle.
Before they could get in, a tall, insectoid alien with antennae ran over and leaped in. It had three long, skinny fingers on each hand – and it extended its hand and flipped them off with its middle finger as the door slid shut.
“Huh,” Violet mused. “Apparently that gesture is literally universal. Also, what a dick! Or a bitch – I couldn’t really tell.”
Dorcas scowled at her. “Remind me to wash your mouth out with soap later, young lady.” Then she waved her cane angrily at the departing cab and its rude passenger. “I’ll squash you like a bug!” she shrieked. She paused and frowned. “Wait, was that speciesist?”
Before Violet could answer, the cab, now a block away, exploded in a shower of metal shards and sparks. People screamed and ran as hot metal rained down on them.
A jolt of fear shot through Violet.
“Oh my God. That hovercab was meant for us. Someone sent the cab for us and tried to lure us in. Whoever is trying to kill me…they’ve followed me here.”
Dorcas’ eyes widened in alarm. “We’ve got to get you out of here! Make way, make way!” She began slashing viciously with her cane, dragging Violet down the sidewalk, away from the explosion.
They ran around the corner. A hoverbus was parked in front of a hotel, and the door was open. Several people were climbing in. Violet and Dorcas quickly crowded onto the bus with them and plopped into empty seats behind the driver, who appeared to be Vulfan. Webbing shot out and wrapped around their waists, securing them.
The bus rose into the sky. Below them, they could see red and yellow flames, sparks, and a black cloud of smoke rising from the hovercab’s wreckage. Saucer-shaped emergency vehicles with green flashing lights were gliding towards the site of the explosion.
What to do, what to do?
Could Violet be sure the attack had been meant for her? It really had seemed as if the cab had specifically singled her out. Then again, maybe the attack had been meant for the green insectoid – he or she had been such a jerk, it was entirely possible that the creature had made enemies. And Donnelle was a trading port for numerous planets, which meant that all kinds of intrigue and shady business dealings took place.
She should report what little she knew about the attack, though – although she wasn’t sure who to report it to. She could start by telling someone at Starcrossed, she decided. Probably Zura. Zura was the captain of a security squad – she’d know what to do.
“Um, we’d like to stop off at the Starcrossed tower,” Violet called out to the driver.
“The Starcrossed tower? You got on the wrong bus, lady,” the driver yelled back. “This is a bus for volunteers heading to the resettlement center.”
