Chapter Eighteen

"Thiago! Hercules!"

The imminent danger woke Eden from her slumber and forced her to take action. The apparent time shift that had cemented her in place as she watched Thiago, Hercules, and Salabar tumble over the edge shattered as quickly as it came. All that remained now was an empty platform above them with a severely chipped edge. The sweltering sea of hot lava underneath swallowed every falling piece of debris.

Eden yanked off her helmet and flung it aside. The rooms of the underground cavern reverberated with her traumatized screams of despair. She grabbed clumps of her hair, wrenching and twisting as tears seeped out the corners of her bulged, panicking eyes. Her teeth were chattering in shock as she turned to Ardela.

"How did that happen? Are they dead?"

"I don't know." Ardela wasn't moving.

Eden stared at Ardela. She hadn't known the alien for a long time, but in her experience, Ardela kept her composure and never lost her head. Perhaps this was Ardela's way of panicking. The Arkadian woman's translucent skin had turned a pasty white. The expression on her face was equally hopeless. Eden's heart sank.

"We can't stand here! Isn't there anything we can do?"

"Eden!"

Their horrified eyes moved toward the edge of their path. A cry for help rang faintly from underneath them, coupled with the unmistakable whimpers of a distressed alien arachnid. Racing to the side, they peered over the edge.

In the thick, yellow billows of smoke rising from the simmering red lava pit, Eden spotted the hazy silhouettes of Thiago and Hercules. The creature and his master were huddled together on a narrow crag protruding from a rock formation. Their arms clung to invisible handholds around them to stabilize their footing.

Eden didn't see Salabar anywhere.

"Thiago, hold on!"

Eden looked around for anything she could use to haul them up. Ardela had already sprung into action. She was stripping off thick, sturdy vines that grew wild on the cavern walls. Eden dashed off to help, positioning herself in front of another wall. She rested a boot against the rocks and wrapped her fingers around a vine as wide as a fire hose.

Her veins extruded from her neck and temples as she pulled with all her strength. She had to lean back and use both legs for leverage to make the vine finally give under her weight.

Eden carried over her small vine and handed it over to Ardela. The Arkadian bounty hunter had accumulated dozens of vines in the time it took Eden to obtain a single one, and had already knotted them all together, fashioning a makeshift rope. Thrusting one end of the rope in Eden's hands, Ardela tossed the opposite end over the cliff.

"Get ready to pull! I don't know how much longer we can safely stay on this ledge!"

Ardela positioned herself behind Eden, twisting the vines around her arms. Eden mentally ordered her uncontrollable, trembling fingers to clench, securing them around the vine. The minute, sticky fibers felt almost like velcro against Eden's sweaty palms, adhering to her flesh. Her eyes squeezed shut as the throbbing muscles in her arms started to burn from the exertion. She could feel the heels of her boots scraping against the ground. Whatever happened, she knew she could not let go.

Thanks to the alien strength built into Ardela's Arkadian genes, the women began to inch slowly backward. Incredibly, they picked up momentum, wheezing and panting as Eden passed back additional knots of the retracting vine. With one last jerk, the other end of the vine emerged. Thiago had tied it around Hercules' torso as he clutched the creature's tubby frame. Hercules grabbed at the edge, gravel crumbling under his slipping legs as he struggled to clamber onto the platform.

Thiago leaped onto solid ground. His hands never left his beloved companion's side. Ardela and Eden moved forward, each grabbing hold of one of the creature's eight limbs. Snapping his pincers gratefully, Hercules dragged himself to safety.

Everyone collapsed from exhaustion and fell flat on their backs. The group was spread out on the ground. Their outstretched arms lay limp at their sides as they recuperated. An equally exhausted Hercules slumped over on top of Thiago, bleating weakly in resignation.

Eden was first to move. "We should get out of here," she said, squeezing Thiago on the arm as she sat up. She attempted to dust off the dirt marks on her jumpsuit, but she was a mess and couldn't clean herself. "This place is still dangerous."

"What were you thinking?"

The women jumped back in surprise as Thiago turned to confront Ardela. Unconsciously, he had made his teeth visible, and his rage was on display.

"I'm sorry. I meant to stun him. I made a mistake."

"You used to be meticulous and careful to a fault in the field. Has something changed?" he said suspiciously.

"What are you suggesting?" demanded Ardela. Anger had replaced the typical confidence in her voice. "Are you delusional enough to believe I intentionally killed him? What would I have to gain?"

Eden and Hercules exchanged worried looks as the tension escalated further.

"Guys. Let's be grateful Thiago and Herc are still alive."

"Now that the target's dead, we are only entitled to a third of the bounty," Thiago seethed, making a face as he loosened the kink in his neck. He reached into his jumpsuit and pulled out a blood-red amulet with an antique silver chain, swinging the necklace in Ardela's face. "If I hadn't taken this from the slimy bastard, we might have nothing left after expenses."

"What's gotten into you?" Ardela folded her arms over her chest and slanted her head to the right. She wasn't going to back down. "If it's the money you're worried about, you can keep my portion. I'll even transfer the difference to your account if you insist on being such a child about it."

"Thinking about the consequences of my actions doesn't make me a child," Thiago muttered. The marking on his forehead started to glow red. He nodded to himself, his head drooping forward as he emitted a low, caustic chuckle. "You haven't changed at all. In case you haven't noticed, I'm not the one who can't bring herself to call a towing service to get her absurdly overpriced spaceship repaired. I'm not the one inviting herself on an engagement when she's obviously unwanted."

"Thiago, that's enough," Eden interrupted gently. Sighing, she reached out to the alien bounty hunter. At this point, she had gotten used to and secretly fond of his affinity for frank conversation and business sense. This time, he was taking things too far. "You're starting to sound vindictive and paranoid. Come on, Thiago, everyone makes mistakes. No one's perfect. You know that."

"I'm not asking for perfection, but if you're going to tag along on my missions, you should be prepared to follow my orders," Thiago barked, running an aggravated hand through his patch of platinum-blonde hair. He kicked at the ground as he muttered angrily under his breath. A lump of rock skipped away from his boot before bouncing off the edge. "None of this would have happened if I had listened to my gut and caught Salabar on my own."

"Thiago, I understand that you're upset," said Ardela cautiously, lowering her eyes in what she hoped was a remorse stance. "You know how difficult it is for me to admit my mistakes, but you're right. I screwed it up. I'm sorry. Is that what you want to hear? If you'll let me make it up to you, I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to make it right. You have my word."

"Thanks, but no thanks," said Thiago gruffly, turning away from the women. He clicked his tongue loudly against the roof of his mouth. Hercules perked up at his master's call, his tongue wagging expectantly between his pincers. "I think we both know you've done more than your share. You can keep your damn money. I'm not interested. "

"Wait, Thiago. Where are you going?"

"I'm taking the ship to get her shields checked out. Then I'm calling a towing service to retrieve Ardela's spaceship from the service station," said Thiago as he trudged away from them, Hercules following closely behind.

"I think you need to get yourself examined at a hospital."

"I don't need anything," said Thiago, pausing by the exit. He fiddled with the square band on his wrist. "A private ship will come by to pick up you both up and bring you to the city. You probably won't want to keep the driver waiting. The meter starts running immediately."

"But Thiago..."

"No buts. All I've done is agree to compromise. We're going to start doing things my way. I'll see you in a few hours."