Rogue Alien's Escape: Alien Abduction Romance

Chapter Four

"We're not going to be able to avoid the guards," Xandr warned. It was just after dawn and the curfew was barely lifted, but she and Xandr were out and ready to make their break for the city walls. Though wall was a bit of a misnomer. Ixilta was huge, spread out over hundreds of kilometers, and the idea of building a physical wall around it was ludicrous, especially as the city had a nasty habit of expanding. So the outlands fell under heavier guard and drones patrolled the border, ready to execute any citizen fleeing the city.

"You mean I'm going to need to talk to the guards," Andie corrected. "If they talk to you, you're dead."

"Thank you for the reminder," Xandr said drolly.

She'd barely slept the night before and it appeared that Xandr was in the same position. They'd both emerged from their beds with heavy eyes and sour moods. It only got worse as they approached the edges of the city. Laying down had given Andie time to think about what she was doing, and the more time she spent out of Xandr's company, the more certain she grew that this was a terrible idea. Her life in the city was... okay. Not great, but not awful. There was no one waiting for her back on Earth, and most of her needs were seen to here. If she left, what would happen? More slavers could take her, and if they did, she wasn't likely to end up on a place like Ixilta. She'd been as lucky as she could be the first time, and luck like that didn't strike twice.

And maybe Xandr had been lying about his aversion to slavery. She had no reason to trust him. He could just be waiting for the right moment to sell her, or sell her out. If he needed leverage at the border, she might do.

If she'd woken up before him, Andie might have run away, might have tried to make it home and escape Xandr's grasp. Every step away from the center of the city only added to her fear and she was certain she wasn't going to make it out of this alive.

She didn't know what had fouled Xandr's mood and she wasn't about to ask. They were close to the end of their journey together, and though Andie regretted starting on it in the first place, she was determined to see it through.

Andie had never been this far out before and it wasn't what she'd expected. It was so... normal. The buildings weren't as tall, and it was a little less crowded than the city center, but otherwise she spotted people going about their days, eyes carefully averted from the guards. The citizens out here still smiled, they still yelled at their children, and the kids laughed and joked just as much as they did where she lived. Everyone seemed to ignore the border that was just out of sight, the illusion of freedom that must have haunted their dreams. She wondered if she would have grown so complacent if she'd been assigned quarters this far out. Maybe she wouldn't have let herself forget what home was like if things had gone differently.

"So what's the plan?" Andie asked as they made it to one of the quieter streets. Everything was quiet here, a reverent hush reminding them that the end of the city wasn't too far away. They only needed to make it a little longer and they'd be there, be free. But they weren't out of it yet, and though Andie could make out the vast rippling plain beyond the city border, she didn't fool herself into believing they could simply walk there. Every piece of land here was under constant surveillance and as soon as they got close to the border, guards would close in on them.

"My people should be waiting for me. We have a rendezvous point about three kilometers out."

"That seems awfully close." The plains around the city were as flat as could be. Even without binoculars or anything else to enhance vision, the guards could see something three kilometers away.

"It's far enough," Xandr assured her.

Andie wanted to demand an explanation, but they didn't have time for that. Soon someone might begin to question their presence, and they needed to be gone before then. "So how do we get that far out? As soon as we step past the border, our lives are forfeit, and it's sure to set off alarms."

Xandr was infuriatingly calm. "If you do your part correctly, we will be free within the hour. You must trust me."

Trust him? A murderous outlaw who'd kidnapped her from her place of work? Was Andie crazy?

One thing was certain, this thing had to end, and she didn't want to end up collateral damage. "What do you need me to do?"

"When the guards talk to you, take as much time as you can. You'll know when it's time to move."

"And then?" Could he be more cryptic?

"And when it's time, you run. I'll be there waiting."

That wasn't the kind of detail she wanted to work with, but a moment later Xandr took off and it was all Andie knew she was going to get. She let out a cry of frustration and kicked at the dirt on the road, sending up a cloud of the stuff. It would serve Xandr right if she sold him out at this point, if she told the guards exactly what she knew and prayed for leniency.

She trudged back to the main road with that thought in her mind, and when harsh fingers gripped her arm, she was ready to give Xandr a piece of her mind, but the dark blue uniform and the green skin of the man who held her told her that things had just gone from bad to worse.

An Ixiltan guard. Wonderful.

"Come with me," he commanded, pulling her along towards the shade between two buildings where another green skinned guard waited for him.

Andie tried not to show her fear. Two guards cornering her in an alleyway was not how she'd planned to leave this world, and the violent glints in their eyes told her that this wasn't going to end well for her. Why had she ever gone along with Xandr's plan? This close to the city border, home had never felt further away.

"Who was that you were talking to earlier?" the guard who'd grabbed her asked, shoving her against the wall and thankfully letting go of her.

This was her chance, Andie could reveal all and hope these two wanted the glory of returning an escaped prisoner more than they wanted to rough up a helpless citizen. She didn't think Xandr would expect her to turn on him, he'd never see them coming.

But she remembered that blue sky gaze and the way he'd looked at her a few times when he hadn't realized she was paying attention. There was a hidden softness to him, something that his years as an outlaw and his months in prison hadn't been able to harden. It was something she'd want to explore more if she had the time, something she didn't want to see deadened by the harshness of Ixilta.

So when she opened her mouth and began speaking, it wasn't Xandr she spoke of. And several minutes later when the bombs started going off and the guards left her alone in the alley, she ran as fast as she could for the border and for freedom, hoping Xandr was as good as his word and they were both about to escape to something better than this place had to offer.