Part 4 (2/2)

Apparently twitched a little too violently. The slender teenaged girl walking there jumped in reaction, startled eyes widening at him as she seemed to sink back into her skin. ”Sorry,” Kosta apologized, his face warming with embarra.s.sment. ”Didn't mean to startle you.”

” 'S okay,” she said, her expression still tight. Some of her long black hair had fallen across her cheek, and she reached a hand up nervously to brush it back over the shoulder of her white dress. A nervous, vulnerable type... which made Kosta feel all that much worse. ”No, really,” he insisted, feeling like a complete fool for the second time in less than an hour. A new personal record. ”I'm a little jumpy today, I guess. First time in a new place-you know how it is.”

Her face softened, just a little. ”Yeah. Guess I do.”

”Well... bye.” Awkwardly, he turned away and headed again for the distant exit.

He got maybe three steps. Then, to his surprise, she was back beside him. ”So, uh, so it's your first

time on Seraph, huh?” she asked hesitantly.

”Yes, it is,” he confirmed, frowning back at her. And instantly regretting it as she seemed to wince back from the expression. ”You?” he added, striving to look less threatening.

She shook her head, a jerky motion. ”No. I mean, I was here once before with my parents. But I was

only five, so I guess that doesn't count.”

He smiled. ”Probably not.” He glanced up at the people detouring around them. ”You know, we're probably blocking the road here.”

”Oh! I'm sorry,” she breathed guiltily. Hunching over a little, she started toward the exit again.

Taking a long stride, he caught up with her. ”I didn't mean we had to run,” he said.

She glanced at him, a somewhat sheepish smile on her face. ”Sorry,” she apologized again. ”I guess

I'm a little nervous today, too.”

”That's okay.” For a minute they walked in silence, as Kosta searched furiously for something else to say. ”So where exactly are you headed?” he asked at last.

”A little frontier town,” she told him. ”Safehaven. It's about four hundred kilometers from here.

You've probably never heard of it.”

”No, I haven't,” he admitted. ”What's out there? For you, I mean.”

”A new job. I'm going to be helping put in a new catalytic fusion generator.”

He c.o.c.ked an eyebrow at her. ”You seem a little young for that.”

”Oh, I won't be doing anything important,” she shook her head. ”Just some of the simple stuff. My

uncle runs the project, and my parents thought it would be good experience.”

She launched into a complicated and increasingly animated description of family connections... but Kosta wasn't really listening. They were almost to the exit now, and for the first time he saw that

each of the gla.s.s doors was flanked by a pair of uniformed police officers.Who were looking carefully at each person who pa.s.sed them.Relax, d.a.m.n it. It was certainly conceivable that they were looking for him, that his travel papers had caught a delayed flag. But the odds were far higher that all they wanted was their escaped stowaway.

The girl beside him had stopped talking, and belatedly he realized that she'd asked him a question. ”I'm sorry,” he apologized. ”Mind on other things. What'd you say?””I asked where you were going,” she said.”-Ow!””What?” Kosta asked as she stopped suddenly, hand groping for his shoulder.”Bent my ankle,” she said with a grimace. ”I twisted it two months ago and it sometimes still goes out. Always at the worst times.”

”That's usually how it works, isn't it?” Kosta craned his neck, trying to look over the crowd. ”Do you want me to try and find you one of those carts?”

”No, I'll be all right in a minute,” she said. ”If I could-I mean, just hold onto your arm...?”

”Sure,” he said, stepping close to her. Her hand groped unsuccessfully for a good grip on his elbow.

”Let's try this,” he offered. Bracing himself, he slipped his arm around her shoulders. ”Lean some of your weight on me.”

”Yes-that's good,” she said, putting her own arm around behind his back. ”Thank you.”

”No problem,” Kosta a.s.sured her. ”In step; let's go.”So; here we are, he thought as they set off, feeling a not entirely uncomfortable heat rising to his face. Not that he'd never been this cozy with a woman before, but there was something embarra.s.sing about holding onto a stranger like this right out in public view. Even when he was just being helpful.

Not that anyone else watching would know that. Her ankle must not have been all that bad; even when he concentrated on it he could hardly detect her slight limp. Anyone else would just a.s.sume they were being very, very friendly.

And yet, even as he fought against both the awkwardness and the guilty pleasure of her body pressing against his, he became aware that there was something poking insistently at the back of his mind. Wispy and unidentifiable, but at the same time triggering the skin on the back of his neck.

A breeze ruffled his hair, jerking him out of his concentration. To his mild surprise he found they were outside, with one of the gla.s.s doors turning just behind his back. Distracted by too many other things, he'd completely missed their obviously uneventful exit.

”Thank you again,” the girl said, deftly disengaging from his arm and giving his hand a quick

squeeze. ”I really appreciate it.”

”No problem,” Kosta said again, stumbling over his tongue a little. ”Can I-do you need help getting anywhere?”

”No, thank you,” she said. ”My ankle's fine now. Anyway, don't you have to go back in and get the

rest of your luggage?”

He blinked. ”Oh. Right. I guess I do.”

<script>