Lion Man's Captive by Kaitlyn O'Connor (read full novel .txt) 📕

it, too, wasmalfunctioning, he glared down at the wrist computer and finallytested it. The test indicated that it was functioning properly andhe lifted his head and scanned the area again.

“What’s wrong?” Anya askeduneasily.

Aidan glanced at her a little absentlyand then at the display of his wrist computer. A little surprisedto discover the computer had translated—or seemed to have—heresponded. The computer displayed a translation for him. “Not seesheep.”

Anya gaped at him and then frowned. “Wedon’t raise sheep around here! What are you looking for sheepfor?”

Aidan studied his wrist computer andfelt his face heating with discomfort. “Sheep. Sh-ee-ip.” He made amotion with his hand of something flying through theair.

Anya uttered a snorting laugh. “Oh!Ship!” She frowned after she’d looked around. “Is it supposed tobe?”

Aidan nodded, pointing toward theremains of what must have been a very large building if the jaggedremnants that formed a perimeter were any indication.

Anya studied the ruin. Itdidn’t look to her as if there was anything but a pile of rubblebut maybe his ship had somehow ended up under the rubble?

It made sense if the ship had come downafter the bug-thingies had started taking everything apart. And shethought he had.

“Maybe it’s under thatstuff? How big is it?”

Aidan frowned, studying the rubbledoubtfully and his computer’s translation of Ah-na’s comments.Finally, he shrugged. The computer said it was there. The rubblepile certainly looked big enough to possibly be concealing it. Ifit was under the pile they might not be able to dig it out, but itwas certainly worth checking.

Of course, it might be too damaged atthis point to do them any good as far as shelter, but there wouldbe some helpful survival gear and supplies inside at the veryleast.

Moving forward, he began circling themound in search of a spot that looked like the easiest place totackle excavating the ship.

Anya had started to follow when shestubbed her toe on something and damned near sprawled out in thedebris. Her heart was already hammering uncomfortably fast from hernear accident. When she looked down to see what had tripped her,however, it leapt up another notch and her anger instantlyvanished. It was a can. Bending, she snatched it up and examinedthe label.

“Ugh! Beets. It just had tobe beets!” She would have jumped at the chance to eat almostanything else if she’d had to chew through the damnedcan!

Fortunately, it almost immediatelypopped into her head that there was only one logical explanationfor the presence of the can.

The alien ship had come down right inthe middle of a grocery store!

The thrill that went through her atthat thought was indescribable. Food! She was sooohungry!

Dropping to a squat, Anyabegan sifting through the debris a little frantically. The can ofbeets had been virtually intact—a little banged up, but still wholeand with a recognizable label. There had to be others—notbeets—a lot ofother cans if she was right!

Either she was wrong, though, or therewas just too much debris from the building itself to make findingthe contents of the building possible. The light was failing fastand even without a roof it was getting harder and harder to see.Hopeful excitement had dimmed to frustration and the beginnings ofanger when she finally shoved a chunk of twisted metal aside andfound three dented, slightly mangled cans beneath it. She let out awhoop of triumph and grabbed them up, examining what was left ofthe labels with frowning intensity. Pleasurable anticipation waftedthrough her when she discovered that one of the cans seemed to bepeaches.

Someone—or something—huffed a breath ather that almost seemed a derisive comment on her thoughts. Anya wastoo focused on her food-finding expedition to register theproximity as she should have. Her fight or flight instincts shouldhave exploded and shot her into action. Instead, anger pouredthrough her in the wake of the blast of hot, to her, critical,breath.

For a split second after she lifted herhead, or maybe a handful of seconds, she merely stared at the huge,shadowy figure looming over her. Then, very belatedly, her fight orflight instincts kicked in and she screamedear-splittingly.

Either the sound startled the monstrousbeast and he jumped back or she leapt back flat footed—maybe both.All Anya knew was that one second she was practically nose to nosewith the beast and the next she’d gained almost enough distance forflight.

Not quite and she didn’t turn fastenough. The beast roared at her abruptly. When it did, Anya pitchedthe cans she was holding at it. One hit its snout. One can pingedoff of a two foot long tooth and the other hit the back of thebeast’s tongue and lodged in its throat. Anya didn’t register thatmiracle shot and the beast’s immediate reaction—chokingconvulsions—until much later, however. The moment she’d unloadedher ammo, she screamed again, whirled, and took off, bounding overthe debris that littered the ground like a startleddeer.

Aidan raced from behind a mound ofdebris. Anya altered course and headed straight for him. At least,she thought she did, which made it difficult, later, to decidewhether he was rushing to her rescue or if he merely defended bothof them because she led the beast right to him.

Regardless, he caught her protectivelywith one arm and lifted the other, temporarily suspending herflight as he fired … something … in the direction of the beast.Anya registered a flash of light and a thunderous clap of sound andcaught a glimpse of the beast writhing on the ground as Aidanshifted his grip on her and began to run, dragging her withhim.

There wouldn’t havebeen a drag if she’d hada clue of where he was going. She would have led the way. The dragcame from Aidan’s determination to hold on to her and herdetermination to run in a different direction than he wasrunning.

Finally, he snatched her off her feet.She had the brief impression that he was running directly toward ahuge mound of debris and then a mouth yawned open and Aidan dashedinside of it. A faint bluish light engulfed them.

Impressions of all sorts of thingspelted Anya but until she’d assured herself that the beast wasn’tright behind them she didn’t really have any interest in anythingelse. Aidan set her on her feet and examined her with shakinghands.

“Ah-na hurt?”

Anya promptly burst into noisy