to steal the juice. She told me she just wanted to see what the inside of a Draax royal ship looked like. I said sure and the next thing you know, she’s shoving bottles of juice into my backpack. I told her no, I wasn’t going to steal anything from you guys, but she had a gun and threatened me. But then she heard you guys coming on the ship and, like, took off.”
“Out the same door that Galan and the others entered into?” The king raised one eyebrow at me.
“Uh, I’m not sure,” I said. “I wasn’t feeling very well. I was kind of dizzy and a little out of it, to tell you the truth. I’m chocked full of cancer.”
“Yes, I heard,” the king said. “Go on with your story, little human.”
“I didn’t have time to put the bottles back in the shipping container so I, um, hid in the storage space. My plan was to leave the bottles and get the hell off the ship, but I passed out, probably because of all the cancer. When I woke up, we were already in space and I was very sick. I vomited on Galan’s shoes.”
“Not mine,” Galan said. “Krey’s.”
“Oh. Anyway, as you can see this has all been a huge misunderstanding. So, maybe,” I smiled at Teo, “instead of turning me over to the cops, you could just drop me off somewhere on a beach? I’m not picky about which beach. I hear Mexico is lovely this time of year.”
“You are lying to us, human,” Teo said. “There is no Cheryl.”
“You don’t know that,” I said. “There could totally be a Cheryl. In fact, there is a Cheryl and she’s the one to blame.”
Teo hesitated before shaking his head. “It does not matter. It will be up to the authorities on Earth to sort the matter. You will be returned to Earth tomorrow morning. I have alerted the authorities in your city about your crime.”
I swallowed again. The urge to cough had returned and I tried to ignore it as Galan said, “Tomorrow morning?”
“Yes.” Teo was looking over his tablet again. “Hendren and Laos are making a trip to Vokine. They will take the human with them and return her to Earth before traveling to Vokine.”
“It is out of the way,” Galan said. “The jumpgate to the Milky Way is in the opposite direction. Krey and I could make another supply run to Earth in a few days and return her then.”
Teo shook his head. “There is no need for another supply run so quickly, Galan. It is a waste of fuel to make an extra trip with another ship when Hendren and Laos are leaving tomorrow.”
“My king,” Galan said, “if we give the human a few days, we can heal her of her cancer.”
I stared in shock at Galan as Teo snorted. “It is an unnecessary waste of the gallberry plant. You know as well as I do that the human will not survive for more than a day or two in the Earth’s prison. She is too small and weak.”
“I’m stronger than I look,” I said. “Plus, I’m innocent, remember? I probably won’t even go to prison once I talk to my lawyer.”
I liked that I sounded confident, even though I knew that my chance of not being sent to prison was slim at best. Still, if I could be healed by the Draax before I left…
Maybe it’s better if you die of the cancer, Ellis. The old Draax is right, you won’t survive prison.
I ignored my inner voice. I might survive. I was small and quick, and I knew how to hide. And if that didn’t work, I’d whore myself out to the toughest guy in my prison block in exchange for keeping me safe.
My stomach rolled at the thought, but I shoved any trepidations about my survival plans away ruthlessly. I didn’t want to die, and I’d do whatever it took to survive.
“It won’t hurt to heal her first,” Galan said.
Teo sighed. “My king, it is a waste of resources. What do you think your people will say if they discover that you wasted juice and ship fuel on a common thief?”
“Saving a life is not a waste,” Galan said.
I appreciated his effort, but I could already tell that the king wasn’t gonna go for it.
The king stared thoughtfully at me for a few minutes before shaking his head. “I am sorry, Galan, but Teo is right. It is a waste of resources.”
“Quill,” Galan