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"Faye, stay calm. Don't make any sudden moves," Klinn called out.
I froze, staring at the dog while it stopped eight feet in front of me. Its front claws would put a bear to shame. "I’m pretty sure it’s not going to let me go anywhere."
The dog’s claws made deep marks in the soft lunar soil. Klinn stepped between me and the canine to set up a barrier. He held his hands up in a calming gesture, trying to soothe the agitated animal.
"Easy there, fella. We mean no harm. Just trying to make a delivery to your neighbor."
The dog's barks started to subside, and it cautiously sniffed the air, assessing the situation. Klinn slowly extended a hand, allowing the dog to get a whiff of his scent. The creature seemed to relax, its demeanor shifting from aggressive to wary.
Meanwhile, I took a step back, my heart racing. Klinn remained calm, standing still with his hand extended until the dog backed away. The animal gave us a final look before it turned and retreated into the doggie door of the neighboring house.
Klinn waited a few additional moments before he turned his attention to me. "Are you good?"
I nodded. "Nice save."
"Don’t mention it. Aren’t you glad we didn’t split up to make these deliveries?" He slung the backpack on. "We can head to the ship. We’re done here."
I cast a watchful eye on the house next door in case the canine was just biding its time to come out again.
***
Klinn and I boardedthe ship and hopped on over to another sector of the moon to make deliveries. I guess moon residences were this galaxy’s version of the suburbs.
We repeated the pattern the next day, making another round of deliveries. By the end of the day, I sat in the quiet corner of the storage room, feeling a weariness seep into my bones. I scanned the near-empty shelves that once held replicas of priceless artifacts, now replaced with the hard-earned cash Klinn and I collected.
There had to be enough to buy fuel and anything else needed to haul this ship to Xaxos.
I got up and left the room to grab a glass of water from the kitchen. I passed Zorbluk in the hall. He walked right past me to join Gravix in the cockpit. He shot me a glare before he shut the door behind him.
Alrighty then.
I noticed a subtle change in the atmosphere. Ever since Gravix and Zorbluk interrogated me, they became increasingly guarded. I supposed I would be alert as well if I were in their shoes and a detective was on board, but my instinct made me aware that something felt off.
I resumed moving through the corridor. I found Klinn at the kitchen table, munching on a piece of purple and white fruit. "That looks good.”
"Thank you. I did extra sit ups this morning."
I rolled my eyes, though one glance at his flat abs in his fitted black shirt made me recall how he had the strength to shake off three good-sized cops during his booking on Earth.
"Take one." He offered me a dual-colored fruit from the bowl on the table. "You haven’t eaten much since you’ve been onboard."
"I didn’t think anyone noticed."
His gaze traveled down to my fuzzy sock-clad feet. "I notice a lot about people, too.”
I bit into the fruit. It had a pleasant berry flavor with a smooth, almost banana cream sweetness. "How did you meet Gravix and Zorbluk?"
He set his half-eaten part of fruit down on a plate. The path of his gaze shifted before he sighed and leaned back in his chair. "I grew up on the streets of Kajal. So did they. Before the Wanderstar Fleet formed, the city wasn’t safe. Invasions kept most of the money from civilians, which meant a lot of us had to scrape by any way we could."
I nodded, trying to support an objective stance even as a note of sympathy ran through me.
He went on. "Zorbluk and Gravix were the only survivors of their families when Quareks invaded. I came home one day and found my mother fled the city without me. She attempted to make it to our home planet." He had a faraway stare as he looked towards the wall. "I learned that she didn’t."
"I’m sorry." I didn’t feel like eating the fruit anymore.
Klinn’s deep, dark eyes found mine again. "To answer your question, the guys and I’ve been through thick and thin together. Gravix can pilot just about anything. Zorbluk’s imposing enough to make people think twice about pissing us off. We always found a way to make it."
His story tugged at me. Yet, my concern for their recent behavior persisted. "I don't doubt the strength of your friendship."
