There was a small vestibule next to the door where their clothes should be waiting. He hurried Isabel into the room, breathing a sigh of relief once the hall was behind them. Several robes hung from hooks to one side of the door, but he recognized the small markers that Varga had told him would indicate their disguises.
He urged Isabel to remove the bathing robe, quickly replacing it with a dark traveling robe. After fastening it around her, he showed her how to arrange the scarf so it would cover her dark curls and most of her face, hiding her distracting beauty. As soon as she was concealed, he fastened his belt around his waist, donned his own robe and arranged his scarf. Thank the gods that Varga had found a robe large enough to conceal him. His size would always make him visible, but the robe would help him blend in.
“Are you ready, my aria?”
All he could see were her eyes, but he could read both fear and determination. She gave a quick nod.
“All will be well,” he promised and opened the door.
Chapter Fourteen
Izzie blinked in shock at the sudden increase in light and noise. The door opened onto a pedestrian side street, but even here a wide variety of aliens scurried past, most of them dressed in some version of the robes she and Baralt were wearing. The hot, dry desert air rushed into the room, accompanied by the scent of spices and food and exotic perfumes. The buzz of a dozen different languages mingled with the sound of peddlers hawking their wares and excited comments from electronic devices transmitting the fight.
She was still staring when Baralt urged her gently outside. A faint scream alerted her to a merchant rushing by with trays of food stacked as high as his head. She jumped back only to be almost sideswiped by a three-legged alien on something that bore a strong resemblance to a tricycle, also balancing trays, these filled with shiny red cubes that looked like jeweled candies.
Baralt tugged on her hand, reminding her that she needed to concentrate on getting away rather than staring at her surroundings. She let him tuck her against his side as they braved the constant flow of traffic. They made it safely to the bottom of the street only to find the broad avenue even busier. Larger vehicles fought for passage, but even they were slowed by the overwhelming throng of people. Baralt eyed one, then shook his head.
“I thought that the speed of a hired vehicle might outweigh the risk of being tracked, but I do not believe they are moving any faster than we can.”
“How far is it?”
“I could do it in fifteen minutes under normal circumstances. I expect it will take twice as long—due to the crowd,” he added hastily.
“We won’t get there any faster by standing here talking about it. Let’s go.”
Together they waded into the mob of people. It only took her a few steps to realize that without Baralt, she wouldn’t have been able to make her way through the crowd at all. People surrounded them, drinking, eating, stopping to buy odd little tokens or to watch one of the many matches displayed on the screens that were everywhere. Baralt’s size tended to make people move out of his way, and if they didn’t, he moved them. Despite his size, she was relieved to see that there were other large aliens in the throng and he didn’t stand out. Except to her, perhaps. How was she ever going to be able to thank him for giving her the chance to be free again?
Under other circumstances, she thought she might have enjoyed the surrounding chaos. Despite the fascinating variety of life-forms, it reminded her of any large city during a holiday, and she would have been happy to have stopped at one of the little cafés to have a drink and watch the crowd. Instead, she kept a firm hold on Baralt’s arm and did her best to keep up. Several times they passed uniformed aliens, clearly some type of police, and she did her best not to cringe away from them. Each time she expected to hear whistles blowing and cuffs being placed on her wrists again. But no one gave them a second glance.
“Relax,” Baralt urged her. “I doubt Relkhei even knows that we are no longer in his rooms, and even when he discovers that you have left, I suspect that he would send his own personnel before turning to the government.”
“I’m sorry. I just keep expecting to look up and find him waiting for us.”
The crowd finally began to thin out as Baralt led them closer to the spaceport.
“There’s a ship waiting for us?” she asked as the noise lessened to the point where they could have a conversation without shouting.
“There had better be.” He shot her a quick glance. “It will not be a fancy vessel, and I suspect that the crew are not entirely legitimate, but Varga has assured me that the captain will honor our deal.”
“Why wouldn’t he?”
He hesitated for a fraction of a second. “Because you are valuable cargo, my aria. A dishonorable captain would almost certainly try and sell you. Or to keep you for his own. But I promise that you are safe with me.” He grinned at her, flashing his fangs, and she smiled back.
They resumed their walk, and with the less crowded sidewalks, Baralt picked up the pace. She suspected the same sense of urgency was driving him as well and didn’t complain even though once again she was almost running to keep up with him. They both gave a sigh of relief as they reached the spaceport.
The main terminal was surprisingly busy, but Baralt led them past it and down to a smaller commercial entrance. A few guards loitered by the doors, watching a match on a small device, and she
