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“Stop walking for a second.” She made sure Dallin’s ear defenders and glasses were a snug fit before patting his shoulder. “And maybe lower the weapon, or you’ll freak out the nice aliens who are here to party.”

Dallin grunted, then did as she suggested. He exhaled. “Thank you. I wasn’t expecting to see any Siblet beasts on the waystation. They took me by surprise.”

“Neither was I. It was a shocker. Still, we handled them. You see! We’re not just good at making awesome tests in a lab. We can kick evil critter butt, too!”

He arched an eyebrow. “Let’s locate the station security hub and let them know what’s going on.”

After a quick check of the waystation layout, they discovered the hub sat in the center of the station, a five minute fast walk away.

When they got there, three Shilocs were inside, fielding incoming alerts from panicked aliens. They were tall, muscled females, with pointed ears, wearing black uniforms.

They all turned when they approached, their hands going to their weapons.

Sloane raised her own hands and fixed her brightest smile. “We come in peace. We know what’s been attacking the waystation.”

“And you are?” one of the Shilocs said.

“Sloane Harper. And this is Dallin Conack.” She gestured to him.

“I’m Nilad. What do you know about the animal attacks?” The Shiloc stepped closer, her gaze full of suspicion.

“We work on a conservation ship, and we’ve come across these animals before. They’ve been manufactured by the Siblet.”

“The Siblet?” Nilad’s top lip curled, revealing sharp teeth. Her gaze flicked to Dallin. “What’s wrong with him? Why the glasses and ear protectors?”

Sloane nudged Dallin, but he didn’t move. Perfect. She could do without him having a brain overload right now, but she could handle the security. “Dallin’s fine. Let me fill you in. There could be more of those creatures on the station, so you need to be careful.”

She spent the next five minutes telling the station security team everything she knew, all the while, keeping a close eye on Dallin. He seemed to be coping okay, although he flinched every time someone got too close to him.

After Sloane had dealt with the station security, she poked Dallin in the ribs, and he gasped and jerked away from her. “Are you back with me?”

He rubbed his ribs. “I didn’t go anywhere.”

“Sure, you were just deep in thought. Let’s continue this poison hunt. Station security is monitoring for more creatures, and I’ve given them details of the poison and asked them to look out for anything unusual.”

Dallin was silent for a few seconds. “You did?”

“Yes! Just now. Come on, less thinking and more action. Move it, sugar, or do you need another poke to get you jump started?”

“No. I’m with you.” He looked around. “There’s a cluster of sites just around this corner. We might as well give them a once over since we’re in the area.”

“Lead the way.”

A moment later, Sloane discovered herself in front of a row of beautiful boutique designer clothes stores. She took a second to admire the striking window displays full of lace and silk. She wouldn’t describe herself as a shopaholic, but it had been a long time since she’d dressed for anything other than the practical living that came with being on-board a spaceship.

“We should go inside the stores to get accurate readings,” Dallin said.

“Are you sure you want to?” Sloane tore her gaze off a beautiful red slip dress. “There could be more hens inside looking for their wedding night lingerie.”

“Not really, but there’s no other option. Everywhere needs to be checked. It’ll only take ten minutes to scan these stores.”

“Okay. I’ll run a scan on the first store, and you can take the one next to me.”

“We should stick together,” he said. “What if there are more of those creatures lurking about?”

“I still have my aero-bots. And the creatures will be easy to spot in such a small space. Plus, I don’t hear any screams coming from the dressing rooms. It looks safe enough to me.” She grinned. “Unless you want to check out the lingerie store and test out the lacy panties in the window?”

Dallin’s gaze flicked to the window. “You take that one. I’ll be next door.” He strode away.

Sloane chuckled as she headed into the store. It was a rare guy, human or alien, who didn’t flinch at the thought of being surrounded by so much lace and silk.

She nodded a greeting at the serving android behind the counter, and did a swift circuit around the store, pretending to inspect the merchandise as she scanned for the poison signature.

Her gaze snagged on a pair of cute black panties with a little bow on the front. Before Sloane changed her mind, she hurried to the counter, paid for them, and then headed to the back of the store, where the changing rooms were.

So far, the scan showed no sign of the poison. She checked out the changing rooms, and found a door at the back, which led into a storeroom. She looked around to make sure no one was watching, then hurried inside.

There was still no poison signature registering on her scanner.

Sloane found another door that led into a second storeroom. It looked like each of the store’s back rooms were connected.

She repeated the scan, but got zero readings. The poison hadn’t made its way into this area.

Sloane was just tucking the scanner away, when a pair of strong arms wrapped around her and lifted her off her feet.