Invasion

by Jon S. Lewis

  “I don’t know.”

  “What’s wrong with you?” Danielle said.

  “You’re sure this is the right house?”

  “Let’s see. There’s a string of pink and white balloons tied to the lights. Yeah, I think this is it.” The door was open, so Danielle walked inside, where she placed her gift on the front table with the others. Oz followed, but Colt was still having second thoughts. Most of the presents looked like they’d been wrapped professionally at a department store, and his pathetic gift bag definitely stood out.

  He was about to ask Oz for the keys so he could hide it in the Jeep when Lily walked into the foyer. “Hi, guys,” she said cheerfully. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

  Colt had to fight against his instincts to keep from staring. She was wearing a sleeveless dress with shimmering sequins that spilled down the front like falling stars. Her legs were toned like a dancer’s, but thin, and she wore elegant heels that sparkled with rhinestones.

  “You look amazing,” Danielle said.

  “So do you.”

  “Hey, what about me?” Oz asked, pretending to be hurt.

  “You look as handsome as ever,” Lily said. She turned back to Colt, who was trying to hide the gift behind his back. “What do you have there?”

  “It’s nothing.”

  “Can I open it?” Lily didn’t wait for Colt’s response before she grabbed the bag out of his hands. First she pulled out the square envelope and tore it open. There was a picture of Elvis Presley on the front of the card, and the caption read: It’s your birthday, and you can do anything . . .

  She opened it, and the foyer echoed with the sound of Elvis singing about his blue suede shoes. “I love singing cards,” she said with a wide smile. “Let’s see what else I got.” She reached inside the bag and pulled out a box of permanent markers.

  Colt felt his face flush. “Look, I have to be honest with you . . . I just found out that this was your adoption party, so I didn’t have a chance to buy you a real gift.”

  “What are you talking about?” Lily said. “I’ve always wanted my very own box of permanent markers.”

  “I figured you could use them to sign autographs for all your fans.”

  “You’re too sweet,” Lily said.

  Colt exhaled. It didn’t matter if she was just trying to make him feel better. It worked.

  “I hope you guys are hungry,” Lily said as she led everyone to the kitchen. “There’s more food than we know what to do with, so everyone needs to have seconds and probably thirds.”

  If anything, Lily had understated how much food there was. A local Italian restaurant had catered the party with heaping trays of fettuccini alfredo, mushroom ravioli, veal Parmesan, and angel-hair pasta with shrimp and scallops. And for dessert, there was tiramisu.

  Colt was in awe of Oz’s capacity to eat. He finished off no less than three full plates and was ready to go back for more. For as small as she was, Danielle ate a full plate and even went back for seconds of the fettucini.

  The guests were mostly family, with a few neighbors and some of Lily’s friends from school. Lily was busy walking from group to group ensuring that everyone was having a good time. With Oz and Danielle focused on each other, Colt was left to fend for himself. He was about to get something to drink when he felt someone’s hand on his shoulder.

  Colt spun around, ready to defend himself against one of the Cursed. Instead, he found Lily looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

  “Did I scare you?” she asked.

  “Sorry, I thought you were Oz,” Colt said as his mind raced for a believable excuse. “He likes to sneak up on me and try out new wrestling moves.”

  “You know, I could see him becoming a professional wrestler.”

  “He was born for it.”

  “Do you have a minute? I have something I want to show you.”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  Lily led Colt down a hallway off of the family room. “When the social worker brought me here for the first time, I felt like a princess in a fairy tale. I stayed up all night, hiding under my covers and praying that nobody would take me away.”

  When she turned on the light to her bedroom, Colt realized why. There was a king-size canopy bed draped in white linen, with a thick down comforter. The wood floor had a rich cherry finish, accented by an area rug that reminded Colt of dandelion fluff. She even had her own bathroom, not to mention a walk-in closet that looked bigger than Colt’s entire bedroom.

  Colt watched as she walked over to a dresser that was covered in framed pictures. “I lived in five foster homes before I turned six,” she said. “Every time the phone rang or a door opened, I thought it was my parents coming to rescue me.”

  “From what?” Colt asked, caught in her sorrow.

  Lily looked at him, her sweet face fraught with sadness. “Don’t get me wrong. Most of the foster families that I stayed with were wonderful, but . . .”

  Colt resisted the urge to reach out and hold her.

  “Let’s just say that some days were tougher than others,” Lily finally said, leaving Colt to paint the details between her words.

  Lily picked up one of the pictures and handed it to Colt. “These are my birth parents.”

  He took the frame, holding it gently in his hands. Lily wasn’t much more than a year old as she sat in her mother’s lap, clapping her hands while her father strummed a guitar.

  “You look just like your mom.”

  “Her name was Emma, and my dad’s name was Waylon,” Lily said, forcing a smile. “It’s weird, but this picture is the only memory I have of them.”

  “What happened?”

  “He was a disc jockey at a country station, and he’d been laid off. Jobs were hard to come by and times were getting tight, but something finally opened up in Albuquerque.” Lily paused while she looked at the picture. “I stayed at my grandma’s house so my mom could drive out with him for the interview, but their truck hit a patch of ice. My dad lost control. They ran into a semi and were killed.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Colt said.

  Lily stopped and looked into Colt’s eyes. Then she stretched on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. Her lips were warm, and Colt felt intoxicated.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  “For what?”

  “You’re the first person that I’ve been able to share that with.”

  “Really? Why?”

  “Because you’re the only person I’ve known who could understand.”

  Colt’s head was still swimming with a sense of euphoria when he watched Lily blow out her candles later that night. He could still feel her lips on his cheek and he didn’t want the sensation to fade. Not ever.

  That kiss wasn’t the only thing on his mind, though. While everyone ate cake and ice cream, he decided to slip into the backyard. Talking to Lily had brought back a flood of emotions about his parents. It was odd, but whenever he wasn’t depressed he felt guilty. It was as though any joy he felt was a slap in the face to the memory of his parents. He wanted to go back inside and ask Lily if time would make it any easier, but he didn’t know if he could handle the answer.

  “There you are,” he heard Danielle say as the sliding glass door opened behind him. “What are you doing out here?”

  Colt sighed. “I don’t know. I just needed some fresh air.”

  “Do you remember how everyone would be inside watching a movie or playing games, and you’d be outside in the hammock looking at the stars?”

  “I was a weird kid.”

  “You weren’t weird, just different. It’s part of your charm.”

  “I really wish I were up there right now,” Colt said, gazing at the stars. “When I was flying yesterday, it felt like all the problems in the world just melted away.”

  “They’ll be waiting for you when you come back down.”

  Colt sighed. “Tell me about it.”

  It was starting to get cooler at night, so Colt took off his jacket an
d wrapped it around Danielle’s shoulders. They sat together, listening to the sound of the automatic sprinklers in the fairway behind the Westcotts’ yard.

  “So what were you and Lily doing?” she asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Come on, Colt. Everyone saw you disappear together.”

  “When you say everyone, how many people are we talking about?”

  “Enough.”

  “Graham?”

  “I’m sure he’ll hear about it.”

  “Nothing happened.”

  “Okay, but . . .”

  “But what?”

  “What do you expect people to think when you disappear into her bedroom?”

  “It’s not like that,” Colt said. “She was . . . look, it doesn’t matter. People can say whatever they want.”

  “You don’t really believe that, do you?” Danielle asked. “Colt, you know I love you like a brother, but even if Lily was the one who asked you to go with her . . . and even if nothing happened . . . people are going to assume the worst. That’s just the way we’re wired. So if you really care about her like I think you do, you need to protect her.”

  “I guess you’re right.”

  “If it’s any consolation, Lily likes you too.”

  “Did she say something?”

  “She didn’t have to. You can see it in her eyes. But you have to give her time.”

  “Do I have a choice?” Colt said. He decided to change the subject. “By the way, what’s up with you and Oz?”

  Danielle frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “There’s nothing to be ashamed about,” Colt said, lowering his head to hide the smile. “I mean, think of all the girls at school who would do just about anything to be in your shoes right now.”

  “I think you’ve lost your mind.”

  “I see the way you two look at each other.”

  “If you say another word . . .”

  “Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”

  : : CHAPTER 40 : :

  Danielle refused to talk to Colt for the rest of the party, and from what Colt could see she’d decided to avoid Oz as well. Colt was convinced that her dramatic reaction proved his point. Oz, on the other hand, didn’t even seem to realize that he was getting the cold shoulder. He was locked in an unusually competitive game of charades with a group that included Lily’s grandparents, her little brother, and a girl named Bailey Anne who Colt recognized from his Spanish class.

  At the same time, Colt did his best to make sure that he was never in the same room with Graham. It wasn’t that he was scared of the all-state football star. Graham might have been nearly as big as Oz, but compared to shape-shifting aliens and mind-controlled assassins, he wasn’t much of a threat.

  Colt just didn’t want to face the guilt. Oz had told him—on multiple occasions no less—that all was fair in love and war. He also pointed out that Lily wasn’t wearing a ring on her finger, and as far as Oz was concerned that meant she was fair game. While Oz may have been technically right, Colt didn’t want to reduce Lily to some kind of a prize that went to the winner.

  The party started winding down around ten. Lily’s mom did her best to send food home with everyone. Some politely declined, while others took paper plates covered in tinfoil. Oz left with two large pans under his arms. He would have taken more if Danielle hadn’t stopped him.

  “You’re being a pig,” she said under her breath.

  Lily stood in the entryway as everyone left, but when Colt saw Graham hovering close by, he tried to slip out the front door unnoticed.

  “Where are you going?” he heard Lily call out.

  Colt closed his eyes and sighed before turning around with a fake smile. “Nowhere.”

  “You know, it’s rude not to say good-bye.”

  “Sorry,” Colt said. “I get kind of emotional whenever I say good-bye, and I didn’t want to make a scene.”

  Lily raised an eyebrow.

  “Okay, I’m still embarrassed about that stupid present.”

  “Don’t be,” Lily said. “I loved it.”

  “Anyway, I better get going. Oz and Danielle are waiting.”

  Lily raised her arms out as though she was expecting a hug. Colt looked around to make sure Graham wasn’t watching. Then he hurried over and wrapped Lily in an uncomfortable embrace. His forehead knocked into hers, and then his lips grazed her cheek before narrowly missing her mouth.

  “Are you okay?” she asked after he pulled away.

  Colt could see a red spot on her forehead. “Sure. How about you?”

  “I’m fine,” Lily said.

  They both started laughing.

  “Bye,” Colt said, his face still flushed as he turned to run down the front steps and across the yard. Oz had the Jeep running and the radio blaring. Danielle was in the backseat with her arms crossed. She looked angry, but Oz was too busy singing along to the music to notice as he pounded on the steering wheel like it was a snare drum.

  “Please tell me you weren’t doing damage in the bathroom,” he said as Colt slid into the passenger’s seat.

  “What?”

  “Then what took you so long?”

  “I was just saying good-bye to a few people, that’s all.”

  “Oh really?” Danielle said. “You spent most of the night by yourself in the backyard, so who exactly were you saying goodbye to?”

  “Do you even have to ask?” Oz said.

  “Is that all you guys think about?” Danielle asked as Oz put the Jeep in gear.

  “What?”

  “Girls?”

  Oz shrugged. “Pretty much.”

  Colt laughed. “He’s just messing with you.”

  “Wait, you thought I was serious?” Oz asked. “Because we talk about all kinds of stuff, like . . . I don’t know. What do we talk about, McAlister?”

  “Yesterday you showed me a sleeper hold.”

  “See?”

  “We also talk about stuff like movies and football,” Colt said. “Oh yeah, and this afternoon Oz told me about all the poetry he writes.”

  “Yeah . . . wait, what did you say?” Oz looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack.

  “Don’t you remember showing me your diary?” Colt asked, as he snuck a peak at Danielle.

  She turned away, trying to shield the fact that she was biting her top lip to keep from laughing.

  “I swear that isn’t true. I’ve never written a poem in my life,” Oz said. Then he looked at Colt and lowered his voice. “What are you doing?”

  At that point Danielle was laughing openly. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I believe you.”

  Oz exhaled. Then he eased onto the freeway to head back to the McAlister’ house and it wasn’t long before he was singing along to the music again.

  “Every time I see a full moon, it reminds me of the fight between the Phantom Flyer and Hitler’s Dog Soldiers,” Colt said. “Can you imagine sitting in a foxhole, knowing that the Germans were coming at you with everything they had?”

  “Was that the one with the Nazi K-9 units?” Oz asked.

  “Yeah, but instead of dogs, they had wolf men on the end of their leashes.”

  “Can we talk about something else?” Danielle asked.

  “You’re not scared, are you?” Oz said.

  “I just don’t want to talk about wolf men, that’s all.”

  “All right,” Oz said. “What should we talk about? Butterflies? Fairies? Unicorns?”

  “I think we should hack into Trident Biotech’s network,” Danielle said.

  Oz raised his eyebrows. “I knew there was a reason I liked hanging out with you.”

  “What about Basil?” Colt asked. “Shouldn’t we wait to see what he says?”

  “We don’t even know if he’s going to help us,” Danielle said, “and every day that we wait, we risk getting attacked again. I’m sick of being scared.”

  Colt couldn’t argue.

  “I want to find out how those
biochips work so we can shut them down,” Danielle said. “I doubt they’re going to hand over the schematics to us, so we’re just going to have to take them.”

  “I don’t know,” Colt said. “That seems like a big risk.”

  “All we need to do is get hold of the credentials from a Trident employee who has access to the files,” Danielle said. “Once I have that, I can upload a virus into their system that will allow me to make a new username and password.”

  “Won’t a cyber attack raise a red flag?” Colt asked.

  “We’ll be able to log in any time we want, and they won’t have a clue.”

  “So how do we get the credentials?” Oz asked.

  “I’m still working on that part.”

  “I don’t want anything to happen to you,” Colt said. “And if Trident Industries thinks that you’re snooping around—”

  “Dang it,” Oz said as he looked in the rearview mirror.

  Colt turned and caught sight of the red and blue lights flashing behind them.

  “How fast were you going?” Danielle asked.

  “Too fast.” Oz eased over to the shoulder and put his Jeep in park before reaching for his wallet. “Hey, McAlister, will you grab my registration out of the glove box?”

  “You better turn your radio off,” Danielle said. “You don’t want the officer to think you’re a punk.”

  Oz reached over to turn off the radio before placing both hands on the steering wheel. “My dad is going to kill me.”

  Moments later the patrol car pulled up behind them with a floodlight pointed at the Jeep. Colt watched the patrolman run Oz’s license plate through the system before he approached the Jeep.

  “Good evening,” he said, shining a flashlight inside the cab. “Do you know why I pulled you over tonight?”

  “Yes, sir,” Oz said. “I was driving a little fast.”

  “I guess you could say that,” the officer said. “I clocked you at twenty miles per hour over the speed limit. Where are you folks headed?”

  “Home, sir,” Oz said.

  “I’ll need your license and registration.”

  Oz handed them over, squinting in the beam of the flashlight.

  “I’ll be back in a minute.”

  Colt watched the patrolman walk back to the car, reading Oz’s license with the aid of his flashlight. Then he paused before looking back at the Jeep. “This isn’t good,” Colt said.