The Claiming Read Online Free PDF Page B

discovered she was in a ‘safe’ area, she’d collapsed and thrown up. This particular act had so terrified the only bystanders, who seemed certain she had some sort of deadly disease, that everyone had steered clear of her.
    It was dawn when she finally found someone willing to direct her to a disembarkation point and nearing dusk before she found it. By that time she was near to fainting from exhaustion as well as from a lack of food and water. She was also bruised, battered and filthy.
    The attendant looked at her with suspicion.
    Jana had not come this far, however, to be turned away. Resolutely, she gave the woman her code.
    The attendant checked the code and a transformation came over her. She smiled. “Your passage is secured. In what manner do you plan to travel?”
    Jana looked at her blankly. She hadn’t expected that she would have a choice and she had no idea what those choices might be. “Uh … I’m not sure. What would you do?”
    The attendant shrugged. “It really depends upon how fast you need to get there. You could use the particle transporter, if you’re in a rush. Or, if you have no particular time frame, you could travel the old fashioned way.”
    The woman might have been speaking a foreign tongue for all Jana understood of her speech. She no doubt looked as confused as she was.
    “The particle transporter would break you down to a molecular level and transport you to your destination in a matter of hours, but I know a lot of people are still a bit squeamish about it. It’s been years since we had any problems though.”
    “Well, I….”
    “Here. Just let me check…. Wait. No. That isn’t available to you for Orleans. I’m afraid you don’t have an option. You’ll have to go by ship.”
    “How long does the trip take that way?” Jana asked curiously, not that she cared as long as she was out of Marty’s reach. But then, if it was slow, might he catch her?
    “Hmmm. Let me see. We don’t get many travelers out that way. Oh! A month. Goodness that must be on the outer rim!”
    Jana couldn’t decide whether to be relieved or concerned that it would take so long. On the one hand, that meant it would be at least a month before she had to face the man who’d sent for her--but then, how was she to get by in the mean time? She had no credits. Could she starve in a month? “Would food and beverage be provided on the trip?”
    The attendant stared at her blankly for a moment, then started to laugh. “You don’t travel much, do you?” She shook her head. “You would be asleep. You’ll be fed and fully hydrated before that, but you won’t need anything for the trip.”
    “Oh, I see,” Jana said, blushing at her ignorance, for she didn’t see at all. “When would I be able to leave? I really need to go today.”
    The attendant nodded and consulted her computer once more. “Well, we’ve no direct flight. I’d have to rout you through several points … but, yes. Actually, there’s a flight leaving in just a few hours if you don’t mind taking a hauler. There isn’t a first class vessel leaving until day after tomorrow.”
    Jana readily agreed to take the hauler. She had no idea what a hauler was, but she rather thought Marty had a good chance of catching up with her if she had to wait. They must be aware by now that she’d gained the main part of the city. She’d be lucky if she even had hours.
    The hauler, she discovered, was a commercial vessel. It’s primary cargo was supplies, not passengers. The accommodations were rough, to say the least. Jana didn’t care. The ship’s personnel were falling over themselves in their haste to depart and that suited her just fine.
    A container of water and a stale meat and cheese sandwich were trust into her hands. She was told she had ten minutes to consume them before they took her to her sleep chamber.
    It took her less than five minutes to eat the sandwich … she had not eaten in more than a day and had lost the contents of her