The Lasaran (Aldebarian Alliance #1) - Dianne Duvall Page 0,33

insists on walking us to the rooms, make him think there’s another car in the parking lot so he won’t think we came together.”

“All right.” He had seen many Earth cars before he’d narrowed down his investigation to the base they had just escaped.

Concern darkened her pretty brown eyes as she stared up at him. Now that they weren’t running for their lives, he realized she was almost as small as Amiriska. “Can you walk on your own?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s do this.”

Taelon clenched his teeth, straightened his shoulders, and followed her to the office.

The skinny young man behind the desk ended up being easy to manipulate. He was lazy and actually seemed to resent their interrupting the game he was playing on his phone. Taelon made him see a husband standing beside Lisa while Taelon hovered behind her and made the boy see him as the soldier who had leant him the clothes he now wore. Fortunately, the boy wasn’t inclined to escort either of them to their rooms, saving Taelon from having to expend more mental energy.

Though only a few minutes passed, he was exhausted by the time he and Lisa ducked into a room with the number 9 on the door.

Both released long sighs of relief.

Glancing up at him, Lisa smiled wearily.

His own lips turned up as he reached out and brushed her hair back from her face, tucking it behind her ear. “Thank you.”

She shook her head. “I never would’ve made it out of there alive without you.”

He frowned. “That soldier said their orders were to kill everyone who worked there.” And she was wearing one of the butchers’ lab coats.

“Well, they were doing a stellar job of it when we left. I don’t know who those soldiers in black are, but they were there to free their friends and punish the assholes who hurt them.”

He bit back a laugh, knowing it would hurt too much. “That’s an apt way to describe them.”

She grinned. “Assholes?”

He nodded.

“Yeah. I think so, too.” Glancing at the wall beside the door, she flipped a switch. A small white dome on the ceiling brightened with yellowish light. Lisa stepped past him and drew some unattractive curtains closed. Facing the room, she grimaced. “Reminds me of some of the apartments I looked at.”

The small room held little appeal. One wall was orange. A bed with two white pillows and a brown blanket butted up against it, along with a stand that boasted a single drawer. The other walls were a dingy white. A small table with two chairs hovered near the window. A long chest with drawers lined the wall opposite the bed, a television bolted to its surface. The carpet that covered the floor bore a brown-and-gray pattern with worn spots that formed a path from the door to the bed and to a small room in back.

Lisa strode forward. “We need food.” She sank down on the bed. “And you need clothes and”—she motioned helplessly to his chest—“bandages and I don’t know what else to help those wounds heal.”

He shook his head. “You need rest.” She looked as tired as he felt.

“Food first,” she insisted. “When’s the last time you ate something?”

He thought about it. “Before they captured me.”

Dismay rippled across her pretty features. “They’ve been starving you?”

He wanted to ask the same of her. Her limbs were far too thin. “They fed me through tubes.”

Frowning, she dug the mound of papers out of her pocket. “Then we definitely need to get some food in you.”

“I don’t want you to leave.” He feared it wouldn’t be safe.

“I can order a pizza and have it delivered.” Scooting along the edge of the bed, she leaned toward the small table, picked up the communications device that was even more primitive than the motel clerk’s phone, and pressed a button. A moment passed. “Hi,” she said brightly. “This is the couple in room 9. Would you happen to know if there’s a pizza delivery place nearby?” She listened, then moved her mouth as though silently repeating something. “Okay. Thanks.” She hung up the phone, then pressed a long series of numbers. “Hi,” she said again after a minute. “I’d like to order a pizza, please.” She glanced at Taelon. “Make that two pizzas… large… one with extra cheese and the other with, um… do you have a vegetable-lover pizza or one with lots of vegetable toppings?… Yeah, that sounds great. We’re in room 9 of the Thornview Motel. Do you know where that is?” She