Chapter 3
Banjo
The first thing I notice when I come to is how dry my mouth is and how wet I am everywhere else.
Seriously, every piece of clothing is soaked and sticking to me.
I don’t remember being that sweaty, but it would explain why I feel like my mouth is full of cotton.
I open my eyes, quickly closing them again at the bright light. Am I dead?
The last thing I remember, this incredibly hot alien had been pulling me out of the mouth of some giant, creepy-crawly looking critter that had burst right up out of the ground. Just the thought makes my heart rate kick up a couple of notches. Talk about your worst nightmare coming to life.
“Stells!” The squeal of excitement brings me back to the present.
I’m okay. I’ve been rescued, or at least, that’s what I’m hoping has happened.
This could be an out of the frying pan, into the fire kind of situation, but I decide to be optimistic and assume the best of my new friend.
That optimism quickly disappears as I hear what he says next.
“He packed a sex toy!”
I turn my head in the direction of the voice, finally opening my eyes.
The alien is sitting cross-legged on the ground, my backpack open in his lap.
It looks like he’s been going through it for a while, which makes me wonder exactly how long I’ve been passed out on the floor.
I grunt as I force myself up into a sitting position.
The alien is cackling so hard he’s nearly crying, so he doesn’t even notice I’m awake until I speak. “Excuse me. Didn’t your mama ever teach you not to mess with other people’s things?”
The alien quickly glances up at me, those deep, purple eyes wide as they take me in.
Not that I’m much to look at right now, with my t-shirt stuck to my chest and my hair going every which way.
I expect him to look embarrassed, or at least ashamed, but instead he smirks at me.
Tiny fangs peek out over his lower lip. My heart beats a little faster.
Fangs. He has fangs. His face is stunning, and I kind of forget that he’s currently holding a dildo. My dildo.
“I had to make sure you weren’t bringing anything dangerous onto my ship,” the alien replies, his attention quickly leaving me.
He flicks the head of the silicone dildo, making it wave back and forth, and lets out another bark of laughter.
“And this thing is definitely dangerous. I might have to confiscate it.”
He winks at me. He’s sitting there, holding my dildo right out in the open, and he has the gall to wink at me. The worst thing is it’s working. It’s like my brain has gone completely offline. I’m totally flustered by this gorgeous alien sitting across from me.
I eagerly check him out, taking in his heavy boots, long coat, and full-on tricorn pirate hat with several giant, bright purple feathers sticking out of the back.
That hat is definitely a statement. His outfit is all in matching black matte…
leather? Do aliens have leather? Whatever it is, it’s working for him, and honestly, it’s working for me too.
“I-it ain’t dangerous or nothin’,” I stammer, my cheeks burning.
“Just…why don’t I take that and get it outta your way?
” I manage to grab the backpack, but he jerks the dildo out of reach before I can get my hands on it.
The quick movement makes my head spin, and I sit back on my heels.
“Whoa. It’s gettin’ all spinny in here.”
“Fluids!” A feminine, sing-song voice echoes through the room we’re in, which seems to be storage or something, since it’s filled with boxes.
The hatch we came through is only a few feet away.
Thankfully, it’s been shut. I don’t think I could handle seeing that giant hole in the ground right now.
The thought alone sends a shiver up my spine.
“Who was that?” I ask the alien. He ignores my question and motions to a bottle of green liquid sitting near me.
“Drink that.” I do as he says, sipping it slowly as I watch him fiddle with my dildo. He giggles a bit more, but soon gets bored with the toy and tosses it over to me. I hurriedly stuff it in my bag. Hopefully we can just pretend none of that ever happened.
“Uh.” I’m typically not one to be at a loss for words, but I’ve also never been rescued by an alien.
I think I can be forgiven for being a little out of my element.
“I’m Banjo.” The alien blinks slowly at me, like this was obvious.
He doesn’t immediately introduce himself, so I continue. “And you are…?”
“Tavryn,” he says as he stands up, brushing nonexistent dirt off those tight pants of his. My eyes follow the movement of his hands down his thighs.
“Well, Tavryn, I think you mighta just saved my life,” I say with a soft chuckle. I don’t know what that drink was, but it certainly made me feel better. I get to my feet with no issues and extend my hand to Tavryn. “Thanks. I definitely owe you one.”
Tavryn stares at my hand, his nose wrinkling.
It’s a little broader and flatter than a human nose.
Looks real good on his face though. Balances out those high, angular cheekbones.
I realize he’s not going to shake my hand and quickly drop it.
Right. This is an alien. He probably doesn’t know what a handshake is.
I try not to be too disappointed at missing an opportunity to touch him again.
“You owe me a lot more than one,” he replies.
Now that he’s not distracted by my sex toy, his tone is kind of mean.
Actually, everything about him is kind of mean, from his voice to the way he holds himself.
It’s like he’s trying his best to be able to look down his nose at me.
I guess this is him shifting into captain mode.
I liked the giggling version of him better.
“I don’t take strays, and I don’t do favors.
If you want a ride, you have to pay for it. ”
This time, it’s me staring at him. “A…A ride? On this spaceship?” I asked, swallowing down the emotion bubbling up in my throat.
I’d thought winning America’s Voice was the luckiest I was ever going to get.
I was wrong. I’d barely been away from Earth any time at all.
There’s plenty of time for me to get back, record my album, and claim the prize money. “Y’all can take me back to Earth?!”
“That is my job,” Tavryn says with a snort. I can tell he’s trying to make me feel stupid, but I’m too excited to care. I get to go home! “But as I said, this isn’t a charity. If you want me to take you back, either you or someone back home has to pay for it.”
That knocks my excitement down a few levels.
“I ain’t got any money,” I admit, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Or at least, not yet. I’m gon’ be comin’ into some once I get back to Earth.
” The prize money! I’m sure there’s enough in there to pay Tavryn and still be able to afford a new place for Mamaw and college for Viola. “How much do you charge anyway?”
“Hm.” Tavryn walks around me slowly, considering my question.
His tail flicks behind him. I’m suddenly remembering how it felt wrapped around my arm.
“Normally, a human who’s still on Earth hires me to fetch a human from the relocation program and bring them back.
I’ve never just stumbled upon a human all alone and unclaimed. ”
There’s a gleam in his eye that I definitely don’t like.
“I could get you back to Earth easily…or I could sell you off to the highest bidder.” His eyes roam over me, and I can feel his gaze on my skin.
Now I know how the cattle feel back home when they’re going up for auction.
It’s not a feeling I ever expected to experience.
“And I promise you, the price they’d pay for you is high. ”
“How much?” I croak. I wish I hadn’t finished the entire drink. My mouth is dry again already. I’m pretending it’s because I’m concerned for my well-being, but it’s really because I’m getting a real good look at Tavryn as he circles me like a vulture.
His long hair, which looked black at first, is actually the darkest purple I think I’ve ever seen.
It’s up in a variety of intricate braids.
Nestled in his locks is a set of dark horns that curve up towards the back of his head.
They look real shiny, like obsidian or something, and they have these tiny ridges all along the surface.
It reminds me that I’m standing here, talking to a living, breathing alien.
An alien who, although incredibly beautiful, is probably dangerous.
Or at least, he’s trying to convince me he is. I’m not quite sure I buy it.
“Seven hundred and fifty thousand credits. It’s a bargain, really. The contract I’m currently on is for a million.” Tavryn stops in front of me, smirking. “Do you have that kind of money waiting for you at home?”
I frown. Credits. Is that the same as dollars? No one ever bothered telling me how money worked out here. “Can you put that in dollars? Like American dollars?”
Tavryn snorts. “Stells, what’s the current conversion rate from credits to USD?” It’s clear he’s talking to someone else, so I look around curiously. Huh. No one. Maybe they’re driving the ship and just talking through the intercom or something.
“The current going rate is 1.5 US dollars for every Intergalactic Standard Credit,” the same voice from earlier says. “Therefore, 750,000 credits is equal to 1,125,000 US dollars.”