Fog was dense in
large patches. Thick, making it difficult to peer more than a few feet ahead.
Japohn worried he’d find no one who’d noticed Bacoj earlier. Nevertheless, he
hurried from food vendor to food vendor, checking in with those hawking
souvenirs as well. As he’d feared, none of those he questioned remembered
encountering Bacoj. He was about ready to give up and plan a search
pattern—plus place a call to local enforcement—when a Dantovonian hop-crawled
close to speak to the Kalquorians.
“I take it you’re
hunting for your friend?”
“Have you seen him?”
Japohn asked. Since information rarely came cheap in Ler, he calculated the
amount of credits he possessed as the Dantovonian looked him up and down with a
shrewd air.
“I think he found
trouble. He appeared the worse for wear. Unconscious, in fact. The Adrafs he
was with carried him to their shuttle and left with him.”
As fear draped in
fury burst through Japohn, Vax gaped at the Dantovonian. “Adrafs? What would
Bacoj be doing with Adrafs?”
“I recognized them.
I’ve noted them in the area before, doing business for their boss.”
“What kind of
business?” Japohn had a very bad feeling about the situation.
“The kind we don’t
talk about if we want to stay alive.” The Dantovonian smirked. “Unless we agree
on a price to make the danger worth my while. Oh, their boss is also the type
who pays local enforcement well, so I doubt they’ll be of much help to you. I’m
probably your only chance to recover your friend.”
Japohn couldn’t
imagine why any crime boss would want to kidnap Bacoj, unless it was to sell
him on the black market for slave labor. However, snatching a Kalquorian for
that sort of trade tended to be too dangerous for even Dantovonian kingpins.
Only Bi’isils bought Kalquorian slaves. Those who wanted to live long didn’t
dare chance the double jeopardy of dealing with both races at once.
It didn’t matter why
Bacoj had been taken. The important thing was bringing him back safe and sound.
Japohn typed a figure on his handheld and showed it to the witness. “I’ll pay
for information.”
“That amount won’t
buy my sympathy, Kalquorian.”
Preparing for war. Fending off a vengeful
stalker. It’s the perfect time for romance on Kalquor.
In
one day, Dramok Bacoj realizes his cherished dream only to have it snatched
away. Then he meets the perfect man, Imdiko Vax. Unfortunately, Vax is a firm
believer in career before love, so he’s unavailable for courtship. Or is he?
Fending off a vengeful stalker, he turns to Bacoj for help, and discovers a
romance he can’t easily set aside.
Nobek
Japohn is all the protector a clan could hope for. However, the young warrior’s
personality isn’t geared toward working well with others. Yet when he sees the
handsome pair of Bacoj and Vax in the sort of trouble only he can save them
from, long-shattered hopes rise anew. Maybe he can be part of a clan, if
they’ll only give him a chance…
…and
if a lunatic bent on murder doesn’t kill them first.
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