They spent the day in the cabin, sitting on the cot. The girl rested her head against his chest as Kaine told her stories of his exploits. He embellished many of the details to make them more entertaining. He was not used to having an audience, but was finding the experience enjoyable.

Every so often he would look through the window at the darkening sky and wonder when the doctor’s friend would come to their rescue. It was almost night, and he was growing restless. So much time wasted. He had half a mind of breaking out of the cabin on his own. He might have tried that, too, had he been alone. But he wouldn’t put the girl’s life in danger.

Voices outside announced the change of the guard. When nothing happened for another hour, he gently pushed Ondine aside, stood, and walked to the window. Looking out, he saw two men standing near the door and recognized neither of them. Which was the doctor’s friend? Was he even one of these? Maybe the guy had fallen sick... or had, for some reason, been held back and replaced.

He frowned. Could he take both of them? Not likely. They were burly and his phaser had been taken. He looked around the room, hoping to find some other way out—despite having checked twice already.

His eyes stopped when they met Ondine’s. She was staring at him.

“What?” he asked with a frown.

She said nothing—she never did, of course. Instead, she motioned toward the door.

He looked over his shoulder.

There was nothing to see... though he heard a muffled thud, followed by a grunt, then silence.

He made for the window and was halfway there when the door opened and one of the two guards stepped in. Glanced at the two of them. Nodded.

“Nevin asked me to get you out of here. Let’s go.”

The man turned and headed off without waiting for a response.

Kaine was about to go to the girl when he felt her small hand slip into his. She stood next to him, looking up with a serious expression on her face.

“Alright, kid. I guess this is it.”

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

They walked out and he glanced at the other guard who lay on the ground, unconscious, as they made their way toward a nearby glider. The healer’s friend stood there, waiting for them. He motioned toward the open door and they slipped in.

“What did you do to your friend?” asked Kaine after the man had got in and closed the door.

The guy snorted. “I barely knew him. He’ll wake up in a couple of hours with a massive headache.” He brought out a thumb-sized bottle as the glider lifted and set off. “Doctor gave me this. Said to put some into the guy’s coffee. Odorless and tasteless. Takes a bit of time to work, though.”

“Oh.” Kaine sat back, with the girl curled up against him. “Well, thanks.” The other man shrugged as he put the vial away. “What’s your name?”

“Linton, if you must know.”

“Are you going to get into trouble? That guy will know—”

The hulk cut him off. “He won’t know nothing. I’ll be back before he comes to, and I’ll laugh at his face for falling asleep.”

“How will you explain that we’re gone?”

Linton shrugged again. “We don’t get paid to look inside. He’ll never notice. The next shift won’t bother to check either. By the time someone comes to get you, it’ll be late in the morning and I’ll be half a world away.” He grinned. “Doc bought me tickets to Iriaki for me and the family.”

“What if someone does look inside before then?”

Another shrug. “Then I bash their head in and leave early. Simple.”

Was this guy for real? Kaine couldn’t believe it could really be that easy. Nothing ever was—at least not in his experience.

He decided to change the subject.

“Where are we going?”

“Nevin bought you stuff, too. Ain’t he generous?” Linton snickered as he produced a chip and handed it to Kaine. “Tickets off Xovu, to whatever destination you want. Private shuttle. Just tell the pilot where you want to go. Leaves tomorrow morning. Hopefully, before anyone notices you’re gone. In the meantime, he booked you a room at the Lux Nova. You’ll want to stay indoors as much as possible.”

“Why?”

Kaine took the chip and slid it into his wristpad, reading the display as he listened to the guard’s answer.

“You never know. And too many cameras. So even if no one notices you’re gone until you’re off planet, they might be able to track you down through video feeds.”

“They’ll still record us coming in and out when we leave.”

“Can’t be helped.” The man brightened. “Oh! I almost forgot. Nevin did provide a vision scrambler.” He rummaged through his pockets until he produced another chip. “Here!”

Kaine took it, blinking. “A scrambler? Really?”

“You’ll be recorded, but this should help make the recording blurry and unusable. Still, you wouldn’t want to use it too much lest you draw attention from security.”

“Right. Guess we’ll just have to order in.”

“Wise call.”

The glider landed, and the door slid open. Ondine jumped out first and Kaine followed, activating the scrambler as he stepped out. He turned to the man who had helped them.

“Thank you, Linton. We wouldn’t have made it without you.”

The other shrugged. Waved without a word. The door closed and the glider drifted off.

Kaine watched it go for a moment, then grabbed the girl’s hand.

“Stay near me, kid. We don’t know how much range the scrambler has, so better safe than sorry.”

Together, they walked into the hotel.