Creature Worlds: Solar Slick Read Free

his bite marks. “Since you have no prior claim on Minka that you wish honored, I claim her as my mate, true and clear. Forever. I will protect what is mine.”
    Mine? Forever?
    “Don’t get your scales in a knot, buddy. You can have her—as soon as she does one more little job for me.”
    “What job?” Tigg and I both said in unison. I didn’t want to have any more involvement with Clay, nor was I stupid enough to believe what he said was true, that perhaps he would finally leave me alone.
    “I did a little checking on this planet and it seems to have precisely what I want.”
    “Which is?” I asked.
    “Menite.” I should have known. A gem more coveted than diamonds, menite was all the rage on Earth.
    “Impossible. The mines are heavily guarded. No one gets in or out without being searched.”
    “But you could get in,” Clay said.
    I glared at him in warning. “The mines are open day and night. They never close. Even if I could get in, I can’t carry out all that you want and not get caught.”
    “Then we’ll need a distraction,” he said, eyeing Tigg.
    “Leave him out of this,” I said.
    “No. If you do this thing, I will go with you,” Tigg said.
    Clay smiled. “It’s all settled then. Let’s go.” He snapped his fingers and the thugs went out the door. Before Clay left, he raked his gaze over me. “I’ll be back tomorrow. You will be here.”
    “And then things are finished between us, Clay,” I told him.
    “Yes,” he agreed, then turned to leave.
    I shut the door behind him and leaned against it. Tigg was staring at me and I knew he wanted answers.
    “What does he want you to do, Minka? Is it dangerous?”
    I let out a big sigh. There was no way I was going to get through this without someone else finding out my secret. “He wants the menite. He wants me to steal it. And yes, it’s dangerous.” For you , I wanted to add. Clay didn’t like loose ends. If everything went as planned, and I stole for him, he would most likely kill Tigg and force me to return to Earth with him. But if I tried to flee, Clay would find me and probably kill Tigg anyway just to spite me. I shivered over the thought of being under Clay’s control again.
    * * * *
    The next morning Tigg arrived at my door bright and early. He looked remarkably well rested for a guy who was about to embark on a dangerous and illegal mission. I, on the other hand, had spent half the night tossing and turning, while scenario after scenario played out in my mind, all of them ending the same way, with Tigg dead or hurt, and me back with Clay. Try as I might, I couldn’t figure a way out of this fix.
    “I thought I told you to disappear into the jungles of Treox and lay low for a few days?” I said to Tigg as he casually strolled into my apartment. Despite my fear for him, I was relieved he’d come back.
    “We will do this thing together and then we’ll get on with our lives.” His eyes drifted toward my belly and I remembered what he’d said about us being a family. Could it be possible he’d actually impregnated me? How could he be sure?
    “Clay will be here any moment.” I couldn’t think about a future with Tigg right now. Not when I wasn’t sure if he would survive the next day or two.
    Tigg followed me into my tiny kitchen and I handed him a cup of coffee. I was already on my third cup. He took the cup from my shaky hands and drilled me with a curious stare. “Why are you so afraid of Clay? What power does he have over you?”
    I shrugged. “We go back a long way. He knows stuff about me, stuff he could reveal to the authorities and get me into trouble.”
    “Is that why you’re hiding out on Treox?”
    “Yeah.” I didn’t even bother to voice a denial. I could tell by the way he squinted his reptilian eyes that he knew he wasn’t getting the whole story.
    “If he reveals stuff about you then wouldn’t he be putting himself in danger as well?”
    “Clay has a way of making himself look squeaky clean.