“Rae?” Layla’s soft voice invaded my room.
“And hide the files as you work, only appear at my command.” More English letters supplanted the symbols. The footsteps grew louder and faster, echoing the rampage of my heartbeat. “Now would be a good time.”
The screen blanked and my shoulders slumped in relief. Oh thank God.
Layla stomped around the corner. Her hands bulged against the pockets of her pink lab coat. “Didn’t you get my message?”
“Yes. Yes.” My hands shook as I slipped the Smartphone into my breast pocket. “Minor told me a few minutes ago.”
Layla’s gaze sharpened on the cell. “Did you receive a message?”
“Um, no.” Liar. I slapped my conscience into silence. I needed to be sure who to trust before I spilled my guts. I blinked before casting my eyes onto the blanket. Slowly, I eased my legs to the side of the bed and scooted off.
“Then what were you doing?”
If I had to lie, I needed to be convincing. For all I knew my life depended on it. I inhaled a breath for courage and stared into Layla’s eyes. Fortunately, I’d had a bit of practice in deception. “I’d almost fallen the last time I tried to get up.” Which was true. “So I thought I’d give it a minute to see if I regained a bit of my strength before trying again.”
Which was a bald faced lie. I felt stronger than I could remember. Not that I could tell her that. I forced my gaze not to waver so I wouldn’t betray my cover story.
Layla muttered under her breath and scratched her head. “Why didn’t you tell Minor when he came to talk to you?”
Why? Geez, what was this the Spanish Inquisition? Setting both feet on the floor, I made a great show of boosting myself up with my arms.
Layla tapped her foot on the floor.
Right, the good doctor wanted an answer. “Pride, I guess.”
And fear. I wanted to trust her, Minor and Kuma. I wanted to trust them all. But too much was at stake and I had the most to lose.
Shaking her head, Layla strode forward, wrapped her arm around my waist and lifted me all the way to my feet. “That’s foolish. You’ve been through a lot. No one expects you to recover from fifteen minutes of hibernation in two hours.”
I leaned against her, allowing her to carry some of my weight as we walked to the door. Guilt wormed under my skin. I ignored it and stuck with my story, skirting the lies for truth. “You all have important jobs to do. I should be able to walk to your lab without taking up your precious time.”
Despite her age, solid muscle pushed back against me. “Rae, your job is just as important as ours. You know where all the protected aliens on the planet are.”
“That’s me—a walking, talking alien
Who’s Who on Planet Earth
.” While we walked down the hallway, cold from the linoleum floor leached through my socks and seeped into my bones.
Layla squeezed my waist while guiding me into the laboratory. “The APres Guarda would do practically anything to get their hands on all that information.”
Exactly. And I would die to keep it out of their greedy mitts. I shuffled to the bed in the center of the rectangular room. “Besides feeding me are you going to do any other tests?”
“Just a few.” The doctor set her hand on my back as I climbed onto the mattress. “The colonel wanted to make certain you are healthy enough to be released for today’s mission.”
Warmth spiraled through me. Tobias had kept his word and I hoped to have something of value before he returned. I wiggled my chilled toes under the blanket. “They won’t take you away from doing your inventory, will they?”
I nodded to the stacks of silver suitcases standing near the bank of cabinets lining the long wall opposite the door.
Layla strode over to the sole cart in the room and grabbed the yellow Funyuns bag. “Not a bit.”
“It doesn’t involve needles, does it?” When I laid down, a lumpy spring poked my spine. I wiggled to the side and hit another. Great. I have to break in a new bed. “I’m not fond of shots.”
“No needles. I promise. The sensors are in the bed and will relay your results to my e-tablet to compare against your earlier readings.” Smiling, she handed me the bag. “I’m sure you just need more salts and water.”
Salt. Yum. Licking my lips, I took the bag and dipped my hand inside. “Can I have soda instead of water?”
I shuddered at the gallons that I’d been forced to drink earlier.
Layla opened a cabinet and removed a bottle of spring water. “Water is best until I can tell which salts your body is low on.”
“I suppose.” My fingers brushed the bottom of the bag until they hooked a partial ring. Pulling it out, I quickly stuck it into my mouth then licked the crumbs off my skin.
“You don’t like water?” The doctor twisted the lid, breaking the seal before handing me the bottle.
“When I was sick, my mom used to make me drink water until I threw up.” I quickly took a sip while I still had the taste of toasted onions in my mouth.
Layla wrinkled her nose. “Yes, I could see where the association would become rather unpleasant.” She reached into the bag, frowned then took it from me. A blush stole up her neck to suffuse her face. “I seem to have eaten them all.”
“Maybe you could call Tobias and have him pick up a few more while he’s out.”
“The colonel went out?” Foil crinkled when the doctor balled up the bag.
“Yes, to check on some leads.” I wiped the droplets from my lips. Surely, I hadn’t betrayed Tobias by telling her that. He had to have told someone. Going into the field without letting someone know was suicidal.
“Then he must be on to something.” Layla’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. White topped the knuckles of the hand where she clenched the bag. “Well, let’s get you cleared for duty.”
With her heels tapping loudly on the floor, she stormed to the farthest cabinet and threw it open.
The Smartphone in my pocket vibrated and I jumped. Crap on a cracker! I screwed the cap on the bottle to stop from reaching for the cell. Had the CeeBees finished decoding the cryptogram? Or had Tobias called? Should I look?
“Is something the matter?” Layla tugged a square, metal tray from the cabinet and wheeled it over to me.
“No.” I tucked the water bottle against my leg so I didn’t have to look at the doctor. Maintaining eye contact while lying wasn’t easy despite my years of practice. “Just worried you’ll find something wrong with me.”
“I’m sure you’re perfectly healthy.” Layla bumped the table against the bed. After retrieving her electronic tablet from the cart, she tapped the screen. “After all, you have the CeeBees looking after you.”
A soft hum filled the air around me then the monitor above my head flared to life. Lights and lines zinged in rhythmic splendor. I eased the bed back to get a better look. I wouldn’t have understood it any better if it had been Greek. “What’s it say?”
“Your electrolytes are low, but that’s to be expected from using the datapad. You’re mildly dehydrated as well, but again, that’s perfectly normal.” She frowned at her tablet then glanced up at the monitor. “Everything is perfectly normal. Are you still lightheaded?”
I twisted the cap off my water bottle. “Not when I’m lying down.”
Layla shrugged then looked around the room at the silver boxes then back at her tablet. “Rae?”
Finishing my water, I set the empty bottle on the metal tray. “Did you find something?”
“No, not really.” Layla set the computer pad on the table. “Since we’re out of food, what do you say you and I drive to the nearest consumables station and get something to eat?”
Consumables station? Store, my brain translated. Duh. “Sure, but I don’t know many places open at three in the morning.”
Layla unbuttoned her lab coat. “Can’t you think of one place? I really don’t want to unpack. By the Creator, the first time I’ve been outside in months was when we bugged out.”
“Cabin fever, huh? I can relate.” I could also use the time to check my phone. What better way than being away from prying eyes. And there was food at stake. My stomach grumbled. “There might be a Wally World open close by.” I swung my legs over the side of the bed. My borrowed white socks caught my eye. “Do you have shoes I could borrow?”
“I might have something that will fit.” Beaming, Layla clapped her hands together and rose up on her toes. “I’ll be right back.”
Pushing off the bed, I waited for the dizziness to pass. We’d buy two bags of Funyuns—one for me and one for her. No sharing this time. Heck, maybe I’d purchase three and have one for a back-up. I shambled to the doorway. No one about. I pulled out my Smartphone. English words filled the screen.
Yes. I pumped the air with my arm then checked the corridor. Still empty. Guess the CeeBees know I’m smarter than the average Chimp now. I scrolled through the memo. As expected it was addressed to Rudd Torunn. The words ‘Operation Alien Scout’ caught my eye.
That didn’t sound too bad.
“Rae,” Layla hissed. “Come on.” She waved a pair of slip-on shoes at me from the corner. “Let’s go before the guys catch on.”
A trickle of unease slithered through me. Dropping my hand with the cell to my side, I glided over the floor to take the shoes from her. “You don’t want them know we’re gone?”
“I’ve been locked up with them for months.” She rolled her eyes. “I know there may not be a medical study to document it, but being in close quarters with testosterone laden males for days on end is not beneficial for women.”
I laughed, dropped the shoes onto the floor and toed into them. That hadn’t been the first time I’ve heard that. “Male overload.”
“Exactly.” Layla glanced behind her before looking at my chest. “Besides I thought you might like to get a little more feminine undergarments than the standard issue binding units.”
I resisted the urge to cover myself. “You can say that again.”
“Come on.” She snaked her arm through mine. “Let’s take a side door. Kuma’s unpacking his stuff in the front.”
The occasional clang reverberated down the hall as we tiptoed out the door. Layla giggled as we raced for an older model truck. “I haven’t done that in ages. I hope they didn’t spot us.”
Laughing, I opened the truck’s door and tumbled inside. “Don’t worry. I’ll take the blame if we get into trouble.”
Layla slammed the driver’s door behind her. Turning in her seat, she aimed a silver key fob at me. “You won’t be around to take the blame.”
She depressed the crimson opal in the center.
My back arched as electricity zapped my nervous system. Idiot. Despite knowing an enemy lurked amongst the team, I trusted her anyway. The datapad slipped from my fingers and clattered to the ground.
Tell Tobias where to find us
.
Layla started the engine then leaned over and pulled my door closed. “Ulla will be pleased to see you. And as a reward, she might even allow me to experiment on you. The CeeBees are my specialty.” She clucked me under the chin. “And you’re just full of them.”
My vision collapsed into darkness taking my consciousness with it.
“My son in exchange for the steward.”
Layla’s voice rattled the fringes of my awareness. I pushed through the fog of oblivion and opened my eyes. The truck’s headlights cut across a red brick building as we bumped the curb and pulled into the parking lot.
“Yes, of course, she’s alive.” Layla’s hazel eyes flit to me. Couching the phone between her shoulder and ear, she aimed her key fob in my direction.
Right. I was a prisoner. Again. Damn but I was beginning to feel like Daphne from the Scooby Doo movies. I raised my hands and clutched my head. Every vein in my skull pulsed noisily against my palms. What did she do to me?
Layla pulled around back of the two story building, parked against the curb and killed the engine. “And she’s loaded with CeeBees. I can help you decode them, but I need your assurance that my son is healthy and will be released on a neutral world.”
The female voice on the other end of the phone answered with a series of mumbles.
Layla turned slightly on the bench seat and partially leaned against the door. “That’s acceptable. We’re at the back door.”
The doctor snapped her phone closed and stared at me.
“Whatever deal you made, you’ve got to know Ulla Torunn won’t keep it.” My hands shook as I dropped them into my lap. What was a monster migraine when my life was at stake?
“I have to try.” Layla cleared her throat. “It’s my son.”
I shrugged. There was nothing I could say to that. Even my unconventional parents had done things against their principals for me. The engine ticked softly in the night. “You have to know that Tobias will have figured out you took me and you’ll be useless as a double agent.”
The words were bitter on my tongue. If those stupid CeeBees hadn’t tested me, I might have figured out the doctor’s duplicity earlier.
Wise up, Rae
. I knew there was a traitor and left the security of the office with her anyway.
“You think I’m worried about my job?” Layla strangled on a note of hysteria. “You’re not a parent.” She shook her head so vigorously her bun came loose and gray hair tumbled around her shoulders. “You can’t possibly understand.”
“I understand people in power.” Cops, social workers, principals, teachers and judges all liked to exercise their power over those weaker—to remove them from family and friends and force them to conform to rigid social norms. Ulla was all of them on steroids. “You’re not going to get your son back this way. Let Tobias and…” I groped for the names of the organizations. “And Special Forces handle it.”
“As you said, it’s too late.” Layla depressed the opal on her key fob and a line of light shot out of the silver tip.
I ducked down in my seat but the rainbow splattered my face, sealing my mouth. Son of a monkey’s butt! My fingers scratched at my tingling cheeks to no avail. That evil rainbow gag had seemingly fused with my skin.
With the key fob still trained on me, Layla yanked on the handle and backed out the open door. “Stay in the car until someone comes to get you. Understand?”
Understand, yes. Going to obey, no way. I planned to use my daily ration of stupid somewhere else today.