Don't Feed the Fairies - ABNA entry

She managed a smile. "Think nothing of it. I love babies." It was true. She did love babies, they were so succulent and tender and delicious.

Kissing or even touching an adult human gave her a shot of energy. Children were a special treat, fizzing with life. That little boy had been bursting with vitality. He should have been delicious, but right now, he tasted like chalk.

She wandered round San Diego in a daze, grappling with the notion that she was alone. She had never been on her own before. It was terrifying.

She had no idea how far she had walked when the terror began to clear, and anger took its place. She had done everything she had been asked and more. One minor misinterpretation of the data did not merit exile. How dare Neelie do this to her?

She was not going to stay here like a discarded eggshell. Earth, with all its water, was a popular stopping point on long journeys and humans were a delicacy that were always in demand.

Cytolene was going to hitch a lift on the first passing space ship. Somehow, she was going to get home.

It was just a matter of being in the right place at the right time.

Four hours later, she was driving a hired car along a back road, heading for the mountains.

She was hungry and considering her snacking options when she bounced over a particularly rough stretch of road and almost hit the blue sports car pulled in at the side. A big man bent over it cursing.

She pulled over. "Can I help?"

Close up, he was breathtaking, a magnificent animal, but what really caught her attention was the rage and frustration pouring off him.

"Useless overpriced piece of junk," he growled. "A broken axle and I've only got an hour to get to Pennine."

"Hop in, I'm going that way," she said. Her mouth was watering. This guy was an all-you-can-eat buffet with free refills. He'd keep her going for ages.

She drove off while he was still fiddling with his seat belt and grumbling about shoddy engineering. Then he took his first proper look at her.

"Are you nuts?" he demanded. She blinked at him.

"What are you doing giving rides to strange men? Don't you know how dangerous that is?"

"What?" She was lost for words. She was going to eat him and he was lecturing her about her safety?

He shoved back his shirtsleeve and held up his arm beside hers. His forearm was striated with muscle and thick veins rose prominently beneath his tanned skin. In comparison, hers was white and fragile, almost childlike.

"I can bench press 395 lb. I could break you in half. I detest the Concealed Carry laws but I almost hope you've got a gun." His blue eyes blazed. All that passion was now focused on her.

"At least tell me you have a badge."

She looked down at herself. "No, but I've got some buttons."

He stared at her and she knew she'd said something wrong. She spoke perfect English but half the time she hadn't a clue what humans meant.

Then he laughed. "Sorry, I'm overreacting, right?"

She nodded. He looked at her more closely, hesitated. “I don't want to be nosy, but are you okay? You look a bit shell-shocked.”

Cytolene thought she had herself under control but still felt so raw that unexpected sympathy brought everything to the surface.

“She left me here,” she burst out. “She just went home and left me here on my own.”