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“Habitations on this planet are small and widely dispersed. The nearest place is a long way off. It would take hours to find help. And even if we did find someone, they may not want to help us. After all, we could have brought trouble to their home.”

Daisy nodded. “Okay. We’ll stay here.” Rexx’s gentle touch on her shoulder calmed her. It was always that way with him, no matter what trouble they were in.

“We’ll get through this together,” he said. “And if it is the jerks who were shooting at us, we’ll take them down.”

“Sure we will. They’ll regret ever taking pot shots at us.”

His sharp smile gave her even more reassurance. “That’s my girl. Let’s see what we’ve got in the way of weapons.”

They checked the weapons store, loaded up on extra ammo, and made sure the ship was secure.

“Computer, how close are they?” Daisy said as they got back to the cockpit.

“One mile out,” the computer said.

“We’ll be able to see them soon,” Rexx said. “Then we’ll know who we’re dealing with.”

“I’m hoping they’re inhabitants of Dapak. They could have seen the ship come down and figured we’d crashed. They could be here to help us.”

“I’ve always loved your optimism,” Rexx said.

“I’m optimistic because people don’t always want to rip you off or screw with you.”

“They usually do just that.” Rexx’s gaze ran over her face. It lingered on her mouth.

Fire lit Daisy’s insides. Was he thinking about kissing her? Stars, her brain was scrambled after what had just happened between them. She hadn’t meant to jump Rexx the second she’d seen him, but she hadn’t been able to resist. All she’d wanted to do was get naked and sweaty with him.

“Lifeforms approaching the ship,” the computer said.

“We should raise the blast shield,” Daisy said.

“In a minute. I want to know exactly who’s after us,” Rexx said.

Her heart thundered, and her fingers clenched around her gun as she stared through the window.

Rexx sucked in a breath and growled.

“Do you see them?” Daisy squinted through the window. “Who is it?”

“It’s the fucking Gente.”

“Gente! What the hell do they want with us?”

“I don’t care what they want. They can’t have it.”

“Were they the ones shooting at us?”

“It makes sense. And they’re sly enough to shoot at a transport vessel. They have the morals of norkie crud.”

A shudder of unease ran down Daisy’s spine. “It’s not a coincidence they’re here. There’s nothing special about this planet. There are no precious minerals to barter for or slave auctions to take part in. I don’t get it. The Gente are scavengers and bounty hunters. They’d think this place was primitive and not worth bothering with.”

Rexx was silent for a few seconds. “Maybe they think we have something on this ship that’s worth taking.”

The unease inside Daisy bloomed into an uncomfortable ache deep in her chest. “Like what? What do they want with a burned out ship?”

He was quiet again. “There has to be a reason they attacked. The Gente never act unless they think there’s money to be made.”

“Could they have mistaken us for someone else?”