The two of us rushed to the back room, stopping for no one. Ejan’s glare must have been icy enough to scare off the majority of the people in the bar.
The armed guard at the back begrudgingly let us in, once Ejan told him that Zaza had sent us. Ejan’s drone followed us in, carrying whatever he had to sell with a quiet hum. The back room was luxuriously decorated, in what I would have imagined a brothel would look like this far out in space.
Dark red velvet curtains lined the walls and plush circular lounges surrounded tables. In the corners were a few private closed curtains.
It was silent. Ejan and I were here alone, at least for now.
We waited for a good five or ten minutes and Ejan took a seat on the closest lounge chair. He released me, and I held my arm to my chest.
He glared up at me, his frown seemingly permanent. All I could see was disgust written into his features. His iciness was beginning to grate on me and I couldn’t stand it any longer.
“The four of you steal me away and then all you do is stare at me like you can’t wait to be rid of me. Why not just send me back where I came from if you hate me so much?” I murmured angrily, and his expression softened just a little.
“I don’t hate you,” he answered.
“It doesn’t seem like it,” I replied. He sighed and was silent for a long time. He didn’t answer.
The door opened behind us and I quickly sat down beside him. Even if I didn’t trust him, or really even like him right now, he was my best bet at protection in this dangerous world.
Another Vakarran walked in the door, his dark purple skin extremely distinctive and recognizable. His copper-colored eyes curled up in a grin upon seeing Ejan and even more once he saw me. His face and what I could see of his arms were riddled with scars. Knife cuts, claw marks, gouges, burns. It looked like this Vakarran had led a rough life and survived through it all. I swallowed, looking on nervously.
“Finally bought yourself a human then, brother?” The man laughed.
“Found this one on the way. Talor thought she’d be good for us,” Ejan chuckled.
“Mhhhmmm. If I didn’t already have one myself, I’d ask to sample yours. She’s a pretty one with that red hair of hers,” he murmured and Ejan stiffened beside me, but he played it off by chuckling again.
“I don’t know, Grissom. I think Talor is rather fond of her already,” Ejan joked.
The hearty laugh that emerged out of Ejan’s brother unnerved me.
“Anyway, Zaza said you have something for me? She’ll bring in the credit gained from your last haul. I took my usual twenty-five percent.”
“Good. This time I have something better. What I’ve got is only the finest cocaine from the Venassathi jungle, Grissom,” Ejan replied with a cocky grin. His brother looked taken aback for a long moment.
“Those trade routes have been closed for years! How did you get such a fantastic haul?” Grissom asked with disbelief.
“We all have our secrets, brother,” Ejan smirked and his brother snickered.
“Indeed, we do,” Grissom replied.
Zaza came in then and the two men were quiet while she opened the safe and handed Ejan what looked like a thin metal card.
“As soon as you insert this into your system, the tech will run a program, transferring money from Grissom’s account to yours,” Zaza offered and Ejan nodded, like this was a usual part of the process. She left then, leaving the three of us alone again.
The drone moved forward, landing on the floor between the two Vakarrans. It was rather large, the size of a large narrow bed, but it opened like a box, the outer shell falling away and disappearing, folding into itself like a transformer. Inside were several plastic wrapped white packages. I counted at least twenty.
Grissom sucked in a breath.
“Holy shit, Ejan. This is several millions worth,” he said.
“I know. I want it sold for top dollar. This is the best coke money can buy,” Ejan replied and his brother nodded.
“I want twenty-five percent to sell it for you,” Grissom offered.
“Twenty,” Ejan countered.
Grissom was quiet for a long time, just staring at the drugs.