“Okay.” Though she was reasonably sure she’d be able to see in the cave without it, thanks to her newly sharpened vision, the light might blind anything that unexpectedly charged toward her.
As Ava had hoped, she was small enough to slip between the boulders. A few yards in, the passage created by the two rocks curved to one side. Pausing, she glanced back.
Jak’ri peered after her, O-rifle in hand, brow creased as one of the little lemur things crept closer to the bag at his feet.
Ava forced a smile before she followed the curve and left his sight.
Raising the blaster, she aimed it into the darkness that enfolded her as she continued forward. The passage soon became tight enough for her to have to turn sideways. Her heartbeat picked up. She had never been troubled by small, enclosed spaces the way some were. But anxiety strung her nerves taut as foreign scents bombarded her. Some were musty, like damp soil. Others bore a bestial aroma that she hoped had been left behind by occupants that had long since abandoned this niche.
The rock walls encasing her widened abruptly. Ava tightened her grip on the blaster as she entered a cave.
An empty cave, she noted with relief, that was twice the size of the holding cell she’d been kept in back on the Gathendien ship.
“Cool,” she whispered.
There were darker patches near the back that drew her sharp gaze. Just to be sure, she activated the light attached to her blaster when she explored them. One had clearly been used as an outhouse by some animal that apparently preferred not to poop where it slept. She wrinkled her nose. The other was a nook that led nowhere.
Ava? Jak’ri called telepathically.
I’m here, she said as she returned to the main space. There is a cave. It’s empty. And I don’t think anything has lived in it for quite some time. She looked up. Except for spiders. I’m seeing a lot of webs but haven’t spotted whatever spun them yet.
She turned the flashlight off.
Her eyes widened. Cool.
What?
There’s something in the walls—a blue rock or maybe ore—that’s glowing. Streaks of it now illuminated the cave like string lights.
Was it glowing before?
No. I think it might react to light.
Dragging her gaze away, she headed back through the rocky passage. The forest that had seemed dark before now seemed bright in comparison to the cave.
Jak’ri waited at the entrance with his O-rifle, looking fierce and ready to fight.
Ava shook her head as she emerged from the rocky crevice. “How do you do that?”
His brow furrowed. “Do what?”
She motioned to him. “Come off of months of torture and still look freaking hot.”
It took a moment for her words to translate. Or mostly translate, she supposed. Then he grinned. Releasing his weapon, he reached out and brushed her shoulder.
Ava looked down. Cobwebs coated it. She glanced at the other shoulder and found a fairly large, yellow-and-white spider eyeballing her. Yelping, she hastily brushed it off and began to swipe at her hair. “Are there any more?” She didn’t fear insects in general. But she had no idea if the colorful alien arachnids were poisonous and would rather not test the limits of her newly acquired regenerative capabilities.
Jak’ri continued to brush at her shoulder and back. “Just one. The rest is empty web.”
One of the leapers scurried over, grabbed the spiders she and Jak’ri had dislodged, and stuffed them into its mouth.
Ava watched its cheeks plump as it chewed. “I’m hoping that means the spiders aren’t poisonous.”
Jak’ri grunted, his attention now centered on her hair.
She smiled and closed her eyes as he tugged the tie off her ponytail and slid his fingers through it. Being coated with cobwebs was totally worth it if it meant she could enjoy him finger-combing her hair. “Are there a lot of webs?”
“No.”
Opening her eyes, she glanced up at him.
His lips turned up in a half-smile. “I just like your hair. It’s so beautiful and soft. And I noticed in the pod that under brighter light it carries hints of red.”
Pleasure trickled through her. “It’s all still there though, right? I’m pretty sure the little guy who rode on my pack was chewing on it.”
“It’s all still there,” he said on a laugh and glanced toward the dark passage. “Shall we see if I can fit?”
Ava nodded. “If you can’t, we’ll have to look for another one.” And she really did want to be settled before dark.
Though Jak’ri seemed to think himself too skinny, he still had to turn sideways to fit through the passage. And the rocks left streaks of dirt on his chest and back.
Ava followed him inside and watched him explore the cave.
“You’re right,” he pronounced. “Nothing appears to be using this as a den. I think this would be a good place for us to shelter.”
Ava agreed. Getting the packs into the cave ended up being pretty annoying. Both were on the bulky side, and Jak’ri could barely fit as it was. So he pulled them through while Ava pushed them from behind.
Surprisingly, their little furry buddies didn’t follow them in.
Maybe they could smell whatever beasts had used this cave in the past and were leery.
The ore that streaked the walls of the cave continued to glow, providing ambient light while she and Jak’ri used their hands and feet to sweep some of the debris left behind by previous occupants to the side so they could have a somewhat smooth place to bed down.
Once done, Jak’ri stared down at the rocky dirt they’d bared, his hands on his hips.
“What’s on your mind?” she asked.
“I was thinking about the leaves on those trees outside.”
She guessed the ones he referred to: the huge fronds that looked like elephant ears and were about ten feet long and six feet wide. “What about them?”
He glanced over at her. “I was thinking they’d make a far more comfortable bed.”
She swallowed as an ember of excitement flared to life in her stomach. Clearly sleep wasn’t all he had in mind.
Ava was so on board with that. “I’ll go climb a tree and cut us some.” Her mind fixed on all the ways they could use that leafy bed, she left the cave and strode toward one of the trees.
“Wait.” Jak’ri caught up with her just as she reached the trunk, which was so thick you could carve a freaking house out of it. “I’ll climb. You catch.”
Halting, she smiled up at him. “Catch you or the leaf?”
He grinned. “Hopefully, the latter.”
How she loved to see him smile. “I can climb it, Jak’ri. I’m stronger and faster now. Remember?”
But he shook his head. “The bark is rough. And you’ll have to grip it with your feet. I don’t want you to reopen your wound.”
Oh. Good point. Her foot throbbed constantly now that the cold from the stream had worn off, and she was kind of dreading looking at the bottom of it. “Okay.” He’d spent so much time rock climbing that he would be far more adept at scaling the tree anyway.
Tilting her head back, she stared at the canopy. “It’s a long way up,” she commented anxiously and cursed the tiny part of herself that was relieved she wouldn’t have to make the climb herself.
He shrugged. “Heights don’t bother me.”