41Larvis Vore, the man who'd abducted Scott and Cairn thirteen years ago on Tack, spread his arms wide. "Your next assignment? Get out of that damn armor and get over here for a nice group hug with Scotty and Uncle Larvis."
As Vore kept coming toward him, Scott backed away. His mind raced as he tried to make sense of what was happening. "What's he doing here?" he shouted at Cairn.
But Cairn didn't answer. He just stood there in his civilian armor and hung his head.
Meanwhile, Vore grinned at Scott. "Hey there, buddy." Vore said it with exaggerated sweetness in his rumbling bass voice. "Who's my favorite little boy in the whole, wild world?"
Scott felt like he was trapped in a nightmare. He shook his head hard, trying to clear it, but couldn't.
"Isn't this cool, you guys?" Vo
