When Liz turned, Bonnie dashed back into the private exam room and hopped back on the table. The cameras probably had caught her, but Bonnie didn’t care. That girl was a prisoner, not roaming free like Bonnie’s alien men. They could all go on and on about their noble goals and peaceful intentions, but Dreamland powers, namely her dad, would use force and confinement when it suited them.
Liz walked in and looked as pleasant and relaxed as ever. “Sorry about that. Things get busy when those ships come close.”
“I’m sure,” Bonnie replied.
“Well, we’ve put in a request for our expert in repressed memories to come in and spend time with you. It might take a day or two to get him here. He’s been up in Alaska on a big job. I promise it won’t hurt. One of my guys went through it to recover some memories of when his ship crashed to Earth.”
“He repressed memories?” Bonnie hoped there wasn’t anything locked up in her mind she couldn’t access.
“Yes, the Keelons were chasing them, and he was so terrified of going back that he blocked it. Unfortunately, that triggered night terrors and stress. Once he knew what was real and what wasn’t, he could put it behind him. If anything is locked up from your missing night, we’ll get at it.”
“Thanks.” Bonnie wasn’t sure they’d tell her the truth about what she said under the influence, but her guys would be there watching the whole thing or she’d never agree to it.
“One last thing. Security sent over a cell phone for you. It’ll let me, your dad or your men contact you. Also, you can use it to get anything you need from the stores, food courts or recreation areas.” Liz handed over the lightweight device and showed her how to use it.
“And it lets you track me.” Bonnie smiled thinly.
“It’s Dreamland. If they want to see you and you’ve ditched the phone, they’ll pull up your picture and run it through the facial recognition programs. The computers will find you on the live feeds. There’s nothing out there that we don’t have. So, you’re not alone. Plus, there’s a map on the phone so you can navigate without getting lost or asking directions. If an area is off limits, it’ll inform you with plenty of warning.” Liz handed her ear buds, a charger and a belt clip.
“No ID badge? Guest badge?” Bonnie laughed.
“No, that’s more for employees. You’re still on VIP guest status. The phone is your ID really. It allows you access to what you need. So, you’re free to go. Take in a movie, read or take a nap.” Liz patted Bonnie’s shoulder.
“Great. Thanks.” Bonnie tapped the screen and found the map. Her dad had some explaining to do about the familiar female prisoner she’d seen.
Chapter Four
Zane sat with the guys in Hastings’ office waiting for their meeting. Being called into the office was rare, and Zane had a bad feeling about this one.
When Hastings huffed in and sat without a greeting, Zane knew it wouldn’t be good. Officially, they were more men-in-black than military men, no uniforms or salutes, but they all reported to Hastings.
Zane forced himself to relax even as Hastings gave them the evil eye.
“You three didn’t spend the night in your quarters,” Hastings said with a cold edge to his voice.
“Sir—” Pierce began.
“Shut up! I know where you spent the night.” Hastings shook his head. “You’re not on vacation. I won’t have this.”
“Sir, your daughter is an adult,” Zane said.
“I know. One day, I hope to be grandfather to nice human children when she’s married and out of her hippie phase. Hell. I thought she didn’t have a serious boyfriend in college because she was too smart to settle down. Working on her photography. Bonnie was always independent.”
“She was very independent and studious in college,” Adonis added.
Raised voices from outside grew louder, and the door flew open with Bonnie kicking off security. “He’s my father!”
“Let her in. Always let her in,” Hastings ordered.
The security guard nodded. “Yes, Sir. You said no interruptions for this meeting, Sir.”
Hastings waved him off. “Right, right. Go.”
“What’s going on here?” she asked.
“I’m forbidding you from entertaining men in your quarters. They were completely out of line.” Hastings pointed to them.
“Like it’s the first time.” She rolled her eyes. “They made college a lot more fun.”
Zane could almost see Hastings’ blood pressure rise as he glared at the men. “I sent you three to the same college as my daughter to add to your human experience as well as protect her—not to have an orgy.”
“You sent them?” Bonnie snapped. “Well thanks, because they’re great in bed and out.”
“Don’t talk like that.” Hastings closed his eyes. “It’s over.”
“The hell it is. You don’t decide who I sleep with. Why did I need protection in college anyway? I knew so little about what you did, it’s not like I’d say anything. You worked on a military base. That’s all I ever told anyone. It made career day really sucky when I was a little kid.”
Zane jumped in. “The children of high-ranking military officials are always in danger. Kidnapping you would make your father vulnerable.”
Bonnie stared at the men. “And you didn’t tell me? You let me think you liked me for me.”
“We did. We
do
love you for you. That wasn’t part of the assignment. We needed more direct human experience, outside of the military, and you needed protection. The rest just happened.” Adonis reached for her hand.
“Right. Well, ignore him. You’re sleeping with me if you mean that.” She folded her arms and turned her fury on her father. “You don’t tell me who to sleep with or how many.”
Zane tried not to smile. He loved her spirit and fire. What made most people hate or fear Commander Hastings was exactly why they loved his daughter so much. Loyalty, devotion, and true conviction in her beliefs.
“That isn’t why you burst in here. What’s wrong?” Hastings asked.
“I was in the lab area talking to the doctor and saw someone being put into a pod thing. You keep people prisoner here?” She stomped her foot.
“Is everything okay? Are you safe?” Hastings asked seriously.
“I’m fine. Didn’t you read the report? No trauma, no alien sex, and no pregnancy. Before you ask, no, I haven’t remembered anything more.”
“Thank God! I have a million reports every day. I’ll have to wade through to find yours and nothing is going as planned today. We’ll get someone in to help with your memory, but most people don’t recover anything useful.”
“The doctor already gave me the speech. She also said she has four men. So, you can forget trying to police my bed. Any alien sex I’ve had started back when I was a freshman.” She flashed the guys a smile. “Now about this prisoner.”
“That’s classified.” Hastings held up his hand.
“I know her. I went to college with her. Did you send me to an alien college or something?” she demanded.
“You saw her? Damn.” Hastings leaned back.
“Yeah, I saw her. I’m nosy, and I’m not afraid of stuff. Was something done to our college class? She wasn’t my best friend or anything, I can’t remember her name, but I know her face.” She leaned over her father’s desk. “Were we your guinea pigs? Did you do this to me before, and this time they dropped me here instead of my bed so you’d have to deal with it?”
Zane wanted to reach out and pull her back. If only they could soothe her somehow and take away the pain. She had a lot to learn and deal with that was stressful. She was more than capable of handling it.
“No, you think I tell the aliens what they can and can’t do? That’s the problem with all the conspiracy nuts out there. They think we’re in cahoots with little green men and covering it all up. We don’t know why they took you. Though now that I know you were screwing three aliens in college, I think maybe that had something to do with it.” He stood and mirrored Bonnie’s body language.
“I didn’t know they were aliens!” Her voice edged up.
Pierce stood. “The important thing is you’re safe, Bonnie. We’ll keep you safe.”
“The hell you will. You’re not to see her again,” Hastings ordered.
“You can’t stop that. I’ll break every rule you have to get to them. We both know I’ll cause all sorts of hell!” Bonnie hugged Pierce.
“Sir, I promise you that no one will keep Bonnie safer than the three of us will.” Zane moved to stand behind Bonnie.
“Yes, we love her, but her safety is more important than any carnal pleasure we indulge in,” Adonis added.
“That’s very nice, and if one human man were saying it, I’d feel much better.” Hastings paced behind his desk.
“You let that doctor sleep with her four alien guys. I’m sure there must be more groups. What’s the difference?” Bonnie asked.
“You’re my daughter.” Hastings sighed. “Fine, you men are dismissed. Out.”
“No, don’t go.” Bonnie held onto Pierce.
“Out. I want a word alone with my daughter. Is that too much to ask?” Hastings glared at them.
“We’ll see you later.” Zane kissed her cheek and nodded to Adonis.
“No, I don’t want you to go.” Bonnie tried to hang on to Pierce’s jacket, but they left.
Zane stared at the closed door behind them. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
Pierce led the group down the hall. “It’ll be fine. She’s strong, and we’re not giving her up. We deserve to have private talks with her and so does her family. She’s just being stubborn to piss him off.”
“I love her sass.” Adonis smiled.
“Me, too.” Zane had missed her. If they lost her again, it’d be much harder this time. College kids didn’t normally get married and settle down right away, but even with a few years behind them, it was still the right relationship.
Shouting came from the office, and Zane tried to tune it out. Damn sensitive alien hearing! He wanted to keep peace in the group and hated Bonnie being in pain and confusion.
* * * *
“Of all the controlling and manipulative things. Seriously, Dad!” Bonnie shouted.
“I’m sorry, are you mad that I sent the aliens or not? Seems you rather had fun with your free-love ideals,” he replied.
“I’m talking about here and now. Telling them to stop seeing me? Going behind my back and ruling my sex life? No way.” The nerve of him! Bonnie wanted to throw something, but that’d probably bring the security guards as well.
“I need those men focused on protecting you, not getting in your pants. I know you’re an adult, but this isn’t normal. It’s not what I want for you. It’s not what you mother wants.”
“Does she even know? Does Mom know you sent me three men in college? Maybe she’s been abducted, and
you
don’t know about it?” Bonnie hated the idea that her mother could be in danger from what her father did. Mom had always defended and protected him when he couldn’t be home for holidays or make it to planned vacations.
“Your mother knows enough to trust me. I wish you’d do the same.” He shook his head.
“Then why don’t you trust me? It’s not just random sex. I had a relationship with them. If they hadn’t been forced into service here, the relationship would’ve continued. I didn’t want it to end! I thought it was progressive, but it’s normal for them. I’m not going to stop so don’t punish them for what’s my personal life. You control this base, but not who sleeps with whom. There are too many people to track.”
“Fine, I won’t retaliate on them—if you cooperate with the memory recovery and try to be reasonable.”
“I’m very reasonable. Now why is that woman in a pod in a lab? Area 51 doesn’t have a better prison?” she asked.
“Dreamland has many holding facilities. She’s there for her health and observation.”
“Health? She’s sick? She didn’t look sick. She had guys around her. Probably more alien guards. How many groups of aliens are there working for you?”
He smiled. “Enough. A ship of young boys crashed years ago. Some of the brass wanted to destroy them.”
“But you wanted to study them,” she replied.
“I saw the value in learning what they could do. Children aren’t the threat that adults are. They were in the very early stages of training. Now, they have my full trust. The woman in isolation is in a different situation.”
“She’s an alien, isn’t she? All the ones I’ve heard about so far here are men. The guys said women are rare. You’re not trying to make her their mate to get me out of this? I won’t give them up.” She tensed for a fight.
“No, that’s not it. We’re not trying to breed aliens. There’s a worry among some humans that the aliens are trying to take our women, which is why you had all those tests to see if they sampled your eggs or tried to implant anything. I’m not convinced that’s the whole story, but it’s our theory.”
“So why is she isolated?” Bonnie asked.
He shook his head.
“What? You don’t trust me. Or I won’t approve? My imagination is way worse than anything you’ll tell me. I bet she is an alien, and you’re going to dissect her to see how her reproductive organs work.”
“No,” he answered.
“Okay, maybe you’re going to try and breed her for more alien babies. Grow your own army of stronger and more adaptable soldiers?” Bonnie pressed.