Chapter 19 Penny
PENNY
Wrapped in whisperlight, the engine gave an angry whine as I twisted the throttle wide.
The dying planet’s chill worked to my advantage, keeping the skimmer from overheating as it bolted forward.
I managed not to crash into the ruined mansion by the skin of my teeth.
Between the weight of the painting in its crate and the power of the engine without safeties, the vehicle was damned near uncontrollable.
How the fuck did Varok steer this monster? I heaved at the controls, as though my weight would make a difference. The skimmer’s nose turned painfully slowly before suddenly careening around in a spirited attempt to crash into an ice-wrapped statue of some ancient dignitary.
I pulled up short, gasping down lungfuls of frozen air, and kicked the skimmer’s engine casing. “Are you trying to kill me, you piece of junk?”
No answer came. I kicked it again before reversing and trying again, as patiently as I could manage.
Less than half the speed Varok managed, and I hated my brain for making that comparison.
It wasn’t the fact that he was a better driver, I just hated remembering that fucker at all, knowing I was abandoning him.
Each thought of his name brought me face-to-face with memories of his crooked grin, his exasperated sighs, the way his eyes gleamed the moment before he pounced on me.
The raw, animal confidence of the alien—the first man I’d met who earned every bit of that confidence.
Am I really going to leave him to freeze?
Taking the painting from him was one thing. The Night Watch belonged on Earth, and we were both stealing it already. Stranding Varok was altogether different, but I doubted I’d have another chance to get off-world. If I waited for him to return, we’d both freeze. What good would that do anyone?
I opened the throttle a little more, sending the skimmer careening around the wide, frozen road. Faster again, forcing myself to concentrate on driving rather than distracting questions or memories. Then slower, as I side-swiped a wall, lucky not to overturn my vehicle.
Debbie kept me pointed in the right direction.
Without her to guide me, I’d have gotten lost in the winding streets, but her auto-mapping software showed me the route.
Unfortunately, monitoring her, watching the road, and wrangling the unfamiliar controls all at once was more than I could handle.
I bounced the skimmer off crumbling walls, frozen trees, and abandoned vehicles, leaving a trail of destruction in my wake.
That’s the only excuse I have for not spotting Varok before I’d almost passed him. Debbie led me onto a half-collapsed overpass, and I nearly missed the fight going on in its shadow. Movement caught my eye, pulling my attention back to the broken concrete.
By sheer luck, I turned left rather than right. And there he was, silver skin gleaming, ground stained dark around him. It wasn’t all his blood—no one who’d lost that much could stand, let alone fight.
Dead monsters lay all around him, their throats torn open or necks snapped, but more stalked closer as I watched. Well, fuck.
I’d convinced myself that leaving him behind wouldn’t matter, but that was entirely different from watching him die. I glanced back at The Night Watch in its travel case, reminding myself why I’d come to this frozen hellhole.
“Screw that,” I said. The Night Watch was a cultural treasure, an important relic of the time before we met aliens, and an irreplaceable part of Dutch history. Weighed against Varok’s life, that was lighter than a feather.
The engine howled in protest as I gunned the accelerator, drawing far more power than was safe and driving off the torn freeway.
The skimmer’s anti-grav ate the fall, turning a fatal drop into a bone-jarring impact and sending out a shockwave that sent the pack flying.
Varok spun to look at me, and his expression of surprise and awe set my soul on fire.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he roared. Yep, that broke the moment.
“Saving your silver ass,” I snapped back. “Get on, idiot, and let’s go.”
The engine’s howl turned to a stuttering cough, and the pack closed in around us. Varok raised an eyebrow in silent critique of my ‘rescue,’ and I flushed. “Okay, maybe not my best plan, but if you don’t get on, you won’t be able to chew me out for it later.”
He barked a laugh and grabbed hold of the seat, pulling himself aboard. “‘Plan?’ I plan better than this.”
“Fuck you.” Not the best retort, I know. My attention was on driving, not banter. I gunned the engine and sent the skimmer careening toward a gap between two predators. Varok snarled and hung on to his seatbelt—I hadn’t given him time to secure himself, but I trusted him not to fall.
We moved just in time. A monster hit the concrete where we’d sat a moment earlier. More closed in fast from all directions. Starved of live food, the predators were desperate and had no intention of letting us escape.
I’d hoped the sudden jump forward would scare the pair I aimed for, but no.
They charged, not caring about the danger of hitting the skimmer at speed, and I had a moment to panic as one pounced straight at me, jaws wide and claws reaching for my throat.
The impact would break its bones, but that was no comfort.
Varok’s booted foot slammed into its head at the last moment, turning a deadly pounce into an artless tumble. The Argentian slammed into his seat with an awful crunching noise, and the predator’s shoulder scored a glancing, bruising blow on my flank before spinning off behind us.
I wrestled with the skimmer’s controls, barely avoiding a fallen chunk of concrete, scraping against a wall and jinking between two buildings. Behind us, howling monsters gave chase.
My attention should have stayed on the wreckage ahead, but I spared a glance at Varok.
His silver face pulled into a rictus of pain, and the seatbelt dug into his hands where he clung to it.
He looked on the edge of breaking. That life-saving kick had taken every ounce of energy he had left.
Pure will kept him on the skimmer now, and it wouldn’t last forever. I dialed back the throttle.
“Keep going,” he said, snarling angrily at me. “They’re gaining.”
“Shut up.” I snarled right back. “If you fall off, I did this for nothing.”
“If they catch us, then we both die for nothing.”
I had to admit he had a point. To myself, anyway—no power in this universe would have gotten me to admit it to Varok. “Shut up and strap in, idiot.”
Was that a grin plucking at his lips? I couldn’t be sure.
Without another word, he pulled himself into the passenger seat and closed the seatbelt.
His right leg didn’t move properly, and he hid a wince as he put weight on it.
My ribs ached in sympathy where the predator had bounced off, but we had no time to assess our injuries.
As soon as he was secure, I gunned the engine and tried to figure out a destination.