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doctor.
Wordlessly seething, Rice turned back to Maymon. She touched a pad at the head of
the bed and the transparent walls surrounding them suddenly turned opaque, blocking
Maymon from Talos s sight.
Turning back, Talos appeared at the open doorway to the cubicle and spent a few
moments watching the out-of-place young pirate relentlessly flirt with Rice before
interrupting. Dr. Rice.
Startled, Rice spun around to face him. He nodded at Maymon and murmured, Don t
let him out of here on his own. It s not safe. He glanced at Maymon s swollen eyes, tear-
streaked face and torn clothes. He warned, For anyone.
Rice paused, then nodded in reluctant agreement.
And runt? Maymon looked up at Talos expectantly. Talos s voice became soft and
appreciative. Thanks for back there. A glimmer of pride marked his tone. You re one
tough little shit.
Shrugging, Maymon tugged at the band on his wrist and beamed at the hunter.
Always pay back a debt. You save me life, I save yours, guv. True mates, eh?
Slightly unsettled by Maymon s choice of intimate wording, Talos only nodded, then
walked away. Listening to the sounds of Maymon s playful, flirtatious chatter with the
medical staff as he walked, Talos ground his teeth until they ached. He never realized before
how much like a disease guilt could be, growing and twisting inside a person. Or how
invasive and powerful the desire to own another creature body and soul could be.
* * * * *
Once Talos reached the restricted area of the main docking bay, he checked over the
remaining damage to his ship. The crew of human technicians working on it was small due
the high level of security clearance required by anyone who worked on an Oracan vessel, so
the repairs were going slowly. Any number of worlds would pay an indecent amount of
riches to know how Oracan time-traveling technology worked on their ships. Talos would
Details of the Hunt 63
have had to do all of the work himself if any of the damage had been to the engines. As it
was only the stabilizers, one weapons housing, and a portion of the hull had been severely
damaged.
A new stabilizer element had been acquired and Talos had instructed the crew to leave
it for him to install. He didn t like anyone inside the main workings of his fighter, even crew
with the proper security clearances.
As it was, once this crew had finished with what they could repair, he would
meticulously inspect every inch of the ship to be sure nothing had been tampered with. The
dangerous life of a successful hunter left nothing to chance. They learned to trust others,
even friends, only so far. That was a lesson his younger brother hadn t learned well enough.
While he worked beside the technicians, several small ships docked in at the far end of
the bay, mostly small shuttles from nearby planets. Preoccupied, Talos ignored them all until
one particular group of visitors disembarked from a larger, long-distance shuttle.
Attracted by an odor that made his nostrils flare and the roof of his mouth itch, Talos
could tell from their heavy scent that the passengers were Venucian. One cloaked and
hooded visitor paused to cast a furtive glance toward the Oracan fighter, then stalked away
from the disembarking crowd and hurriedly walked out of the bay. Curiosity piqued, Talos
scented the air again, but couldn t place the cloaked man s scent past the point that he was
human. His sensitive nostrils were overwhelmed by the strong, dense smell of the musky
Venucians.
Too far away to see the figure s shadowed face well, Talos pushed the mystery aside
and returned to the business of repairing the Dango. He needed to get a certain pirate out of
his life before his instinctive urges forced him to compromise his sworn oaths.
* * * * *
Sedated, Maymon lay naked on the sick bay bed, covered from the waist down with
only a light blanket. Old knife wound scars and healed burns dotted his body, their ragged
outlines raised and dark against his smooth, hairless skin. His long hair trailed over the edge
of the bed and tiny spots of color tinkled here and there where numerous hidden glass beads
reflected the harsh lights over the examination table.
Dr. Rice ran a handheld diagnostic scanner over Maymon s body while Amy assisted by
checking the pirate s vital signs.
Rechecking the monitor s readings, Rice raised her eyebrows in surprise. Well, that s
impressive. Fourteen different diagnoses ranging from mildly incidental to near life-
threatening.
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