Rebel by Cheryl Brooks Read Free Book Online

Her eyes flicked sideways to Roncas. “Maybe he’s right.”
    “Mother of the gods! For once in my life, I’m right. Maybe. Ha!”
    Onca wasn’t sure why all of this had him so irritated, but he couldn’t deny that he was supremely annoyed.
    Probably something I ate. Or didn’t eat. Or lack of sleep. The latter being the most likely, he decided.
    “If you want to come with us, we’re at—no, wait! There she is!” Kim exclaimed, pointing straight ahead.
    “See any Herpatronians around?” Onca asked.
    “Nope. Don’t see anyone but her.” Kim’s face fell. “She isn’t giving me the signal. Something’s wrong.”
    Onca rolled his eyes. “Probably doesn’t expect you to be in a speeder. Or it could be a trap. Do you have a signal for that?”
    Kim nodded. “She isn’t giving me either one.”
    “One Kitnock looks very much like another, you know,” Onca said as he pulled on his pants. Stepping into his shoes, he headed for the back door. “Where are you?”
    “The corner of Latreess and Mornil,” Roncas replied. “On the edge of the commerce district. You know where that big red Wiklaraben statue is?”
    “Yeah. I know it. Head two blocks east and wait for me. Do not go anywhere near that girl ’til I get there. Understood?”
    “Bossy, isn’t he?” Kim commented.
    Roncas nodded. “You don’t know the half of it.”
    “Nice,” Onca snapped. Snatching up his tunic, he checked to make sure he had credits, his comlink, and his Nedwut pulse pistol. At least one of us is prepared.
    “Sign me onto the speeder link, Captain,” he called out as he darted out the back door.
    Climbing into his speeder, he tried to remember the last time he’d used the damn thing. At least a couple of months ago. Fortunately it was protected by a light weather shield and wasn’t covered with dust. Firing up the engine, he flew off toward the commerce district.
    He glanced at the linkpad. “You two still there?”
    “Yes,” Kim replied.
    “I’ve been thinking—”
    “ That sounds dangerous,” Roncas said.
    “Will you stop ? I’m thinking maybe I should cruise by and give her your signal. I mean, the bad guys aren’t out to get me . So it’d just look like I was picking her up.”
    “I’m presuming that would be for sex,” Roncas twittered.
    “Thought you were trying to protect the kid’s innocence,” Onca drawled. “Doesn’t sound like it to me.”
    “Yeah, right,” Kim said. “Like my innocence needs so much protecting. But a Zetithian picking up a Kitnock? Nobody would ever believe that .”
    Onca gritted his teeth so hard his fangs dug into his lip. “Will you two knock it off? I could be picking her up to take her to the space station to go visit her Great-Aunt Vlordkin for all anyone knows. It doesn’t have to be for sex.”
    “True,” Roncas admitted. “This isn’t the brothel district.”
    “Why, thank you, Roncas,” Onca said sweetly. “That wasn’t so hard, was it? Can you still see her from where you are?”
    “Just barely,” Kim replied. “We’ll keep an eye on her until you get here.”
    He flew on through the city, dodging slower traffic and a huge Darconian male who was lumbering across the street. His scaly tail swished back and forth in his wake, nearly flipping the speeder as Onca skimmed over it.
    “Sorry!” he yelled as he flew past.
    The Darconian thumped his tail on the street in reply. Onca wasn’t completely sure what that meant and thought back to the last time he’d fucked one of the dinosaur-like lizards. As he recalled, sex had definitely involved tail thumping.
    Must be a good thing, then.
    Or at least the Darconian equivalent of Hey, no problem, pal.
    Banking the speeder through a turn, he remembered he didn’t have to worry about that sort of thing anymore. No more getting an erection from Audrey’s scent in order to fuck what amounted to a snub-nosed Tyrannosaurus rex. Those days were over, whether he went back to work at the brothel or not.