Then, just as Xairn was beginning to trust him, beginning to think that this time his father truly cared, he would do something vicious and cruel, something Xairn could never have expected. This time they had been walking by the urlich kennels while the AllFather lectured him about the proper way to train the modified animals. Then, with no warning at all, his bony, scabrous hands had closed on Xairn’s arms and he had flung him into the deepest tank.
“Father, please!” Xairn flailed wildly at the viscous black ooze that surrounded him. “Please, I can’t swim!”
“I know you cannot, my ssson.” The AllFather could barely stop laughing long enough to speak. “But you ssshall learn. Or like the weakest urlich, you ssshall die. Remember, only the ssstrong are fit to sssurvive.”
“Father, help! I’m scared! I can’t—” He went under, his mouth filled with the noxious slime. Fighting his way to the surface, he spat it out. His arms and legs were getting tired—it was like swimming in glue. But he knew if he didn’t make it out on his own, he would die in the tank. Die and sink to the bottom to join the bones below. Summoning the last of his strength, he somehow made his way to the side of the tank. To his immense relief, the AllFather reached down and offered him a hand.
“Come, my ssson.” His soft, hissing voice was almost soothing. “You have proved yourssself. Well done.”
“Thank you, Father.” Xairn took the offered hand gratefully and allowed himself to be dragged out of the tank. He lay on his side on the cold metal floor, choking and gasping, trying to get his breath. Over, it was over now. He’d proven to his father that he could survive the tanks. Maybe now he would be loved…
And that was when those same, bony, horribly strong hands picked him up and threw him in again.
Xairn forced himself to look away from the window which framed the cool, lapping blue waters of the pool. It was nothing like the slimy black ooze of the drowning tanks aboard the Fathership, but the thought of immersing himself in any kind of deep water still made his flesh crawl.
He’d lost count of how many times his father threw him into the tanks before he finally let Xairn come out for good. True, he had learned to swim, but it had almost cost him his life. He had been ill for days in the small, lying in the small, bare cot he’d claimed for himself in a hidden corner of the vast Fathership. He’d been half delirious with fear and loneliness as he choked the black slime of the tanks from his lungs.
Visions of his mother, she of the beautiful green eyes, had danced in his head. Xairn knew she couldn’t come to him no matter how much he longed for her—but his father could. Just one kind word, one gentle touch would have healed not only his body, but his wounded young soul as well. But though he had cried out for him, the tears sliding down his cheeks and wetting his flat, thin pillow, his father hadn’t come to see him. Not once.
Xairn forced himself to stop remembering. He was surprised at the tightness in his chest and the stinging in his eyes. Why get upset about something that was in the distant past? It’s over, he told himself harshly, turning to pace the rest of the small living space. Why let it affect me now?
Walking back to the living area, he sank down on the small couch and picked up the remote control for Lauren’s flatscreen. The humans used such devices for entertainment—projecting programs about everything from sporting events to cooking techniques to fictional stories with idealized endings. Xairn didn’t have much interest in any of it but there was nothing else to do. He pointed the remote and clicked.
“…local girl disappeared from a famous Sarasota landmark just last week,” a human male with perfectly coiffed hair and brilliantly white teeth was saying.
Xairn frowned as a picture flashed on the flatscreen. A human female who looked to be about Lauren’s age was smiling in the picture. At first, he almost thought she was Lauren. The bone structure of her face was a similar pattern to Lauren’s and she had lovely, creamy brown skin in the exact same shade as Lauren’s too. The eyes were wrong, though. Instead of Lauren’s arresting amber they were a dark brown and her hair was much curlier than Lauren’s long black waterfall. Still, she looked enough like the female he loved for Xairn to find the resemblance disturbing.
He watched the report awhile longer and heard more about the girl’s disappearance. “Found only her clothes,” the human male was saying. “Her friends said she was with them one moment and the next…she mysteriously vanished.”
Xairn jumped to his feet. Could it be? Could his father be taking females that looked like Lauren to send him a message? He ran a hand though his hair. Surely not. He has no idea where we are and no way to link to our location. I would have felt him in my mind. It must be a coincidence. Another human must have taken her and left her clothes behind. Right?
He wasn’t sure if he believed it or not but one thing was certain: he couldn’t sit here idle while Lauren was out by herself in the dim early morning light, alone and unprotected. What if something happened to her? Even if his father wasn’t involved in the other human female’s abduction, it proved that there was danger on this tiny blue planet. Danger that could neither be discounted or ignored.
Xairn had never been to Lauren’s place of work, but he knew where it was located. She had pointed it out to him when they drove through the circular shopping district near her home. It shouldn’t be hard to find—especially with her sweet scent still lingering in the air to guide him.
Quickly he pulled on some of his new clothing and started for the door. He would be damned if he’s sit around the living area doing nothing for one minute more. He was going to protect the female he loved whether she wanted him to or not.
Chapter Twenty-four
“It’s you again.” Detective Rast didn’t seem particularly happy to see her. “What do you want?”
Nadiah took a deep breath. “I came all the way down from the Mother ship to talk to you. The least you can do is act like a civilized male.”
“And I came all the way over to the damn HKR building because they called and told me it was urgent,” he growled, crossing his arms over his broad chest and glaring down at her. “So I repeat—what do you want? I thought you’d had enough of me and my attitude—why are you even here?”
“I’m not here because I wanted to see you,” Nadiah snapped.
“That makes two of us, sweetheart because I’m not interested in seeing you either.” He frowned at her. “Talk fast or I’m leaving.”
All the way down in the shuttle from the Mother ship Nadiah had prepared her speech. It was calm and collected and designed to convince him that what she had to say was true. But when she opened her mouth, all that came out was, “He’s going to take another one.”
“Another one?” Rast raised one eyebrow at her. “Another girl?”
“Yes. The AllFather is going to snatch her from a dark place.”
He nodded. “Uh-huh and what else can you tell me?”
Nadiah frowned and looked down at the scuffed gray carpeting. “That’s all I got this time—I couldn’t even see her face. Sophia woke me up when she heard me, uh, screaming.”
For a moment, Rast’s icy veneer almost seemed to melt. “Screaming, huh?” he said softly. “Must have been some nightmare.”
Nadiah looked up at him earnestly, her anger melting away when she remembered the terror of her dream. “I felt her fear. Her pain. He’s going to take her very soon—I’m sure of it.”
Rast let out a frustrated sigh and shook his head. “Look Nadiah, I believe that you believe what you’re telling me—honestly I do. But I think maybe you should let it go now.”
“Let it go?” Nadiah frowned at him. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that what you claim to be able to do just can’t be done. And the bad dream you had—maybe it was just that—a bad dream. Maybe it was caused by the bump you took on the head.” His warm fingertips brushed over the tiny mark on her forehead, causing Nadiah’s heart to jump. “Thought I told you to get that looked at.”
&n
bsp; “Don’t try to change the subject.” Nadiah took a step back and put a hand on her hip. “Are you saying you think I’m crazy? That I made everything that I saw up?”
Rast frowned. “Not on purpose, maybe. But yeah, something like that.”
“How dare you say that to me? How can you refute what I saw so easily?” Nadiah demanded. “You even asked for my help. You asked me to touch her clothes and try to find her.”
Rast threw up his hands. “Call it temporary insanity on my part. I was desperate, all right? And besides, what did you see—that she was dead, right? Anyone could have predicted that.”
Nadiah was getting angrier and angrier. “What about the giants I saw in my vision—the statue? That turned out to be true.”
Rast shrugged. “I don’t know—the statue is a famous local landmark. Maybe you were reading about Sarasota or talking about it with one of your friends. Haven’t Sophia and Olivia both been there at one time or another?”
“I have no idea,” Nadiah said coldly. “And I also have no idea why you’re so anxious to discount what I’m telling you. I saw the first girl taken and she was. I have seen the second girl as well and she’s going to be taken too. Why won’t you listen to me?”
“Fine, I’m listening.” Rast took a step forward, frowning down at her. “Let’s review the facts, shall we? You said the AllFather took the first girl—Tabitha Grady—up to his ship, correct?”
Nadiah nodded. “Yes.”
“He transported her, tortured her, and killed her there—up on the Fathership, right?”
“Yes, of course.”
“So she should still be missing, right?”
“Well…yes.” Nadiah frowned. “Why?”
Rast leaned toward her. “Because we found her.” He frowned. “Found her body, anyway. So you see, Nadiah, these fantasies you’re having can’t be true. Tabitha was taken here on Earth and someone here on Earth killed her. They left her body for us to find, right on the same spot where she was snatched. End of story.”
“What?” Nadiah could barely believe what she was hearing. “But…but it still could have been the AllFather. He could have transported the body back to where he took her from using the molecular transport beam.”
He frowned. “I’ve been looking into the whole ‘transport beam’ theory. I thought it could only transport living flesh.”
“I don’t know.” Nadiah threw up her hands. “Maybe he modified it somehow to send nonliving flesh too.”
“Why would he bother?” snapped Rast. “What is he trying to prove? All this time we’ve been at war with the Scourge, they’ve never pulled a stunt like this. Why start now?”
“But Detective—”
“No more!” His words were almost a shout and Nadiah jumped at his angry tone. “Look, I’m sorry.” Rast stepped back and pinched the bridge of his nose, as though trying to drive back a headache. “I’m sorry but I don’t have any more time to indulge your fantasies.”
“My fantasies?” Nadiah stared at him in disbelief. “You think I like seeing the things I’ve seen lately? You think I enjoy knowing that he’s going to kill again and the only male who might possibly be able to help won’t listen to me?”
“You do need help.” Rast gave her a pitying look. “But not the kind I can give you. Go home, Nadiah. Back to the Mother ship or wherever.”
Nadiah crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not leaving until you listen to me.”
“I’ve listened as much as I have time for.” Rast looked suddenly drained. “Now I have to go tell Tabitha’s parents that she’s never coming home. That she’s dead. All right?”
Nadiah wanted to say more but it was clear he wasn’t going to listen. Inside she seethed with impatience and irritation. How could he be so dense? Why was he so set against believing anything she saw with her gift? But as angry as she was, she refused to lower herself any further. Slapping him last time had been a mistake—it only dragged her down to his level. “Fine,” she said tightly. “I’m leaving. Call me when the next girl is taken. Maybe then you’ll believe me.”
Rast gave her a long look and then shook his head. “You’re fucking gorgeous, you know? It’s too damn bad all that pretty has to come with crazy attached to it.”
“Why, you—” Nadiah couldn’t think of anything bad enough to call him—not in English, anyway. She let loose a string of curse words in her native language that made his piercing green eyes widen in surprise.
“I’m guessing that wasn’t a blessing,” he said dryly. “Unfortunately, I don’t have time to stick around for the translation. Goodbye, Nadiah. Take care of yourself.”
Filled with helpless rage, Nadiah watched him walk out the door of the HKR building. Damn him, why was he so willfully blind? So determined not to believe?
Her hands curled into fists at her sides. Well, he was gone. Now there was nothing she could do but wait for the prophecy to come true and pray for the AllFather’s next victim.
Chapter Twenty-five
Luckily for Lauren, her condo at Pelican Point was located less than a mile from Saint Armand’s Circle. The weather was nice—in the mid seventies—so Lauren decided to walk.
By the time she got to the Sweet Spot and let herself in, she was almost regretting the decision. Even in the so called “winter” the humidity in Florida was nothing to sneeze at and she was overheated from her short trek from the condo to the shop.
Since it was still fairly early in the morning, the Circle was mostly deserted with only a few shops occupied by their respective salespeople. Despite herself, Lauren shivered as she let herself into the darkened building. It was too much like the day she’d been abducted by the AllFather for her liking. Maybe she shouldn’t have left Xairn behind, after all. But if she’d let him come with her, the day would have been one long endless stretch of sexual frustration for both of them, and Lauren needed a breather from all that tension.
Get over it, girl, she told herself sternly. Just do what you have to do. This shop isn’t going to run itself.
To prove to herself that she wasn’t afraid and everything was all right, she went straight to the employee bathroom. “See?” she told her reflection as she stood in the exact same spot she’d been abducted from. “Everything is just fine.”
Suddenly a face appeared beside her own in the mirror. “Sure it is,” someone growled in her ear and then she was grabbed from behind.
* * * * *
Xairn wished he hadn’t waited so long before deciding to follow her. After learning about the missing girl who looked disturbingly like Lauren, even the quiet, affluent streets leading up to the shopping area where she worked looked dark and menacing. Though she’d left well before him, he could still smell her sweet, fresh scent lingering in the air. He followed it easily, telling himself not to worry, that everything was fine. But still, he couldn’t shake the sense of unease that had settled over him.
“Never should have let her go to work without me in the first place,” he growled to himself, walking a little faster. “It’s the male’s place to provide for his female, not the other way around.” Not that he minded her working, but he ought to help in any way he could. From the moment they’d come to Lauren’s home planet all he had done was take from her. That was wrong. He needed to give back, to repay her generosity. To—
A muffled scream reached his ears.
Lauren! He would know her voice anywhere. But her shop was still far away. Gods, let me get to her in time! Please!
Xairn put his head down and ran.
* * * * *
Lauren went crazy.
Kicking and screaming, she fought for her life, trying her damndest to get away from her assailant. All she could think was that the AllFather had sent someone after her. He might not be able to transport her with his molecular beam because of her altered DNA, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t get someone else to grab her and take her back to his horrible ship.
“I’m not going back!” she shouted, flailing
wildly. “You hear me? Never!”
As suddenly as they had grabbed her, the arms released her. “Jesus, Lauren, take it easy!” said a vaguely familiar voice. “It’s just me.”
“What…? Who…?” Lauren was panting with exertion, her eyes filled with tears of rage and fear.
“It’s me, babe. Lorenzo.”
She turned to see her old assistant standing there, hands up in a “don’t shoot” gesture. It seemed like a lifetime ago that she’d seen him but he still looked the same. With his sleek blond hair and tan good looks he could easily have been a model. He stood around six foot one and Lauren had used to consider him quite tall before she met Xairn. Now he looked puny by comparison.
“God, Lorenzo!” She blotted her eyes hastily on her sleeve and tried to pull herself together. “Why did you grab me like that? Didn’t you know I was abducted?”
“Yeah, your mom said something like that when she stopped by. The police asked me some questions too.” He shrugged. “It’s a good thing for me I got lucky the night before. The girl I brought home from The Green Iguana was still with me in my apartment when you got snatched. So don’t worry, it’s all good.”
Lauren stared at him in disbelief. “No it is not ‘all good.’ You have no idea what I went though, how frightened I was. You can’t go grabbing someone from behind like that—especially someone who went through what I did.”
“Sorry,” he said, looking completely unrepentant. “But you’re back now, right? So all’s well that ends well and all that shit.”
“Fine.” Lauren ran a hand though her hair. Obviously she wasn’t getting through to him. “I guess so, if you want to look at it that way. Why are you here, though? Did my mom tell you I was back?”
“Nope.” He shrugged. “I’m just here for my regular shift. I’ve been coming in every day, turning on the lights and the AC, making sure everybody knows we’re still open.” He grinned. “Aren’t you glad I was here to hold down the fort while you were gone?”