Was he really ready to read his wife’s innermost thoughts? Was he ready to hear she was in danger, or to believe the letters were his last tangible link to her? She was still alive. He had to believe that.
So what was it she wanted to say in a letter that she couldn’t in person?
Bill turned onto his side and hugged the letters close to him. The tears fell as his eyes drooped closed from the effort of keeping them open.
He needed to rest. He was tired of fighting.
But he knew the fight was only just beginning.
47
Anton woke to the uncomfortable sound of electricity buzzing close by. He sat up and wiggled a finger in each ear to clear the persistent noise. The lump on the back of his head was fresh. He remembered them jabbing his arm with something just before he passed out. He’d probably hit his head on the floor, which was probably how he got the lump. He was naked except for a pair of loose-legged trousers.
He crawled forwards and got to his feet.
There was an obvious route out of the room—an open gap—but something nipped at his skin. The closer he got to the exit the slower he seemed to move. By the time he reached the opening it felt as if he were treading water. His fingers barely grazed the space before the electrical current rooted him to the spot.
The old human with the watery gaze came into view outside the opening. He was whistling a tune.
‘Let me out of here,’ said Anton, his words coming thick and slow. He was breathing too hard. His device! He rolled his tongue over the back of his throat.
‘I’d like to, dear boy, but you’re far too valuable to me.’
Anton shuffled backwards until he was far enough away from the electrically charged gap to be able to move freely again. His tongue found the device in the back of his throat. His hands broke free from the electrical binds and he checked each nostril. He released a quick breath. It was only panic causing him to breathe hard.
‘You’ve seen what I can do,’ said Anton. ‘Yet you want someone as dangerous as me around? That doesn’t make any sense.’
The old human laughed loud. ‘I’m quite sure I’m safe. I just saw how effective you were when you tried to breach this room.’ He swirled one finger in the air. ‘That low buzzing noise is an irritation, even to my ordinary ears.’ He brought his hands behind his back and a strange smile settled into place. ‘It’s clear to me you don’t understand why you’re here yet. The others don’t, either.’
Anton slowed his breathing until the fog in his mind had lifted and he could think a little clearer. They had drugged him. He could feel his body attacking the new substance; it would only be a matter of time before his immune system counteracted its effects. ‘My friends, they’re coming for me,’ he said.
The male who called himself Charles dropped his overly friendly disposition and his shoulders tensed. ‘Who is coming for you? Are there more of you on the way?’
Anton considered telling his captor about Stephen, to buy himself time. But that would be suicide for both of them.
‘Yes, that’s what I thought,’ said the male, seeming to relax. ‘You’ve come alone. Or maybe you haven’t. It doesn’t really matter. I only need one of you, anyway.’
Anton slid to the floor and wrapped his arms around his knees. His bare skin was pressed against the cool rock. It felt familiar and comfortable, like District Three. He stared at his captor, trying to read his thoughts, but the old human seemed to carry a technology with him that blocked Anton’s abilities. Either that, or it was the electricity, or the drugs. He shook his head to clear it.
Would Stephen send for help? Would he live out his days as a prisoner? Not if he could help it. But how could he fight against both the drugs and the electricity?
He sighed, a part of him resigned to his capture. ‘So, what do you need me for, anyway?’
The old human’s eyes brightened for a moment, but he turned and walked away. Anton heard a door open.
‘To help keep me alive,’ the male called out, his voice echoing in the open space some distance away.
The door shut.
Keep me alive? The three words tripped and tumbled about in Anton’s mind. The faint thread of a thought danced before him, and he pulled on it.
The old human needed Anton for something. That meant he had a chance.
48
The door to Laura’s bedroom creaked more than she had expected. She sucked in a breath, only releasing it when the door had opened wide enough for her to step inside. Bill and Stephen had been in her apartment for an hour, and Stephen was getting jittery about being there; he needed to leave for Exilon 5 to warn his people. But Laura was feeling jittery, too; she wanted Stephen out of the apartment in case the two officers returned and caught her out in her lie.
She found Bill lying on top of her bedclothes, the letters from his wife unopened and cradled in his arms. She gnawed on her thumb as she contemplated leaving him to sleep longer. But Stephen couldn’t get home on his own, and she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if he was captured because they had been too slow to help.
Laura perched on the edge of the bed and put a hand on Bill’s shoulder.
‘Hey,’ she said. Bill didn’t move, so she shook him gently. ‘Time to go.’
Bill’s eyes opened a little, then widened. He grabbed her wrist. ‘What the hell are you doing?’
Laura jerked her arm away, but he had a firm hold on her. Her chest tightened with fear. ‘We have to go. Stephen needs to leave. I’m sorry. I had to wake you.’
Bill stared down at her wrist, then loosened his grip, giving her the opportunity to pull back. He looked away and stuffed the unopened letters into the inside pocket of his jacket. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. ‘You shouldn’t have allowed me to sleep so long.’
Laura moved to the door, relieved to be beyond his reach. ‘You were dead on your feet and you needed it. I’ll be outside.’ She pulled the door closed behind her.
When Bill emerged a few minutes later Stephen was already by the front door, his navy-blue suit wrinkle-free and fully buttoned, his black Stetson in one hand.
‘Are you sure you can get me safe passage off Earth?’ he said to Bill, fitting his hat on his head.
Bill rubbed his eyes again. ‘I’ll make damn sure it happens. I just need to make a quick call first. One of my contacts off the grid.’ He narrowed his gaze at Stephen. ‘I don’t want to see you here again. You understand?’
Stephen’s smile was fleeting. ‘If I’m here it means I’m not safe.’
Bill dug his communication device out of his pocket and stuck the earpiece in his ear. Laura listened as he barked instructions to someone on the other end of the line.
‘Are you sure it will work?... Yeah, yeah. Colin Stipple... It’s a hot name right now. People are probably looking for him.’ Bill looked at Stephen, then shot his gaze away. ‘Yeah, something like that... Cheers, I owe you one.’
Laura pulled on her jacket and wrapped a scarf around her neck and head, making it into a hood of sorts.
Taking out his earpiece, Bill turned around. He took in Laura’s appearance. ‘And where the hell do you think you’re going?’
She frowned at him. ‘I’m coming with you.’
‘I won’t be responsible for another person going missing,’ said Bill. Laura could see he was deadly serious.
‘He’s right, Laura,’ said Stephen. ‘I don’t want you risking your life for me. It was Bill Taggart I needed to find and now I have.’
‘Yeah?’ She turned the collar up on her coat and felt around for the gel mask in her pocket. ‘Well, the last time I checked, neither of you were responsible for me. If I hadn’t seen the information on the micro file, you two wouldn’t have learned as much as you have done. And since you’re both standing in my apartment, I’d say I’m very much involved.’
She didn’t wait for a reply. She opened the door and walked out into the communal hall.
They didn’t follow. She turned back.
/>
‘Well, are you coming or not?’
Bill shook his head and flashed a smile at her. ‘You’re one stubborn lady,’ he said, walking past.
‘You have no idea just how stubborn, Bill Taggart.’
She pulled the door closed behind Stephen and put on her gel mask. ‘Now, let’s get Stephen home.’
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Acknowledgements
If there was ever a story I needed to tell, it was the one between the humans and the Indigenes. Becoming Human started out life as a short story in 2009. I was so excited by the idea I spent a year putting it together and a couple more changing it around. As I wrote beyond this book, the Indigenes’ story took on a life of its own. But this story, Becoming Human, is about the humans and their willingness to put all their trust in leaders they never see. And when they discover some of the decisions being made in their name, they must decide whether to maintain the status quo or fight. This is not unlike modern day society where we vote and take a leap of faith that our new leaders will do what’s right.
I would like to dedicate this self-published book to the hard working self-published authors I know who write brilliantly and produce books for their readers that are indistinguishable from traditionally published books. We compete in a noisy book market by producing our best work possible.
Thanks to Averill Buchanan, for editing this book in its original entirety. And thanks to Andrew Lowe for helping me to update it and give it a shinier, sharper look for 2017.
Thank you to Andrew and Rebecca from Design for Writers for the really cool cover. I still get great comments about the design.
To my sci-fi-loving best friend who cuts through the crappy first draft ideas so my second draft reads a little more like it should. Your brutal honesty about my work was tough to take at first, but would you believe I’m getting used to it? I just make sure to drink lots of wine beforehand!
Reviews are crucial in this business, so if you enjoyed this book you might consider leaving a review where you bought it. It can be a short one liner, or an epic read—whatever works for you. Reviews can be tough to write so if you take the time to leave one, know that you’re helping others to discover my work.
About the Author
Eliza Green tried her hand at fashion designing, massage, painting, and even ghost hunting, before finding her love of writing. She often wonders if her desire to change the ending of a particular glittery vampire story steered her in that direction (it did). After earning her degree in marketing, Eliza went on to work in everything but marketing, but swears she uses it in everyday life, or so she tells her bank manager.
Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, she lives there with her sci-fi loving, evil genius best friend. When not working on her next amazing science fiction adventure, you can find her reading, indulging in new food at an amazing restaurant or simply singing along to something with a half decent beat.
Connect with Eliza Green online
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Table of Contents
Prologue
1
2
3
4
5
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48
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Acknowledgements
About the Author
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