Volunteer (Selected Book 3)

by Robin Roseau

  My head was pounding.

  "What did you give me?" I gestured with my nose to the needle.

  "Counteragent," she said. "But don't worry. We have other cocktails waiting if they're needed."

  "I see we don't believe in the Constitution around here. Are you really government agents, or do you work for some anti-ET militia?"

  "We're asking the questions," Koby said. He even sneered. Could he be any more of an ugly cliché?

  "I want my lawyer."

  "Excuse me?"

  "I want my lawyer. I'm not answering your questions without my lawyer."

  "What kind of human consorts with those freaks?" Koby said.

  "What kind of dickwad kidnaps 19-year-old girls? Did you have fun fondling my body, dickwad?"

  He leaned forward and slapped me, hard. My head rocked back, and a moment later, I tasted blood.

  "You don't have to do that!" Anita said.

  "People like her disgust me," Koby said. "She sold herself like a whore."

  "God, you're a xenophobic idiot," I said. That earned me a slap on the other side, this one nearly knocking me from the chair. I cried out and slumped for a moment, then straightened. "I assume when you're done with me, you're going to kill me. I also assume you're going to torture the crap out of me, because no matter what I say, you're going to assume I'm either lying or hiding something."

  He reached back to hit me again, but Anita grabbed his arm. "Knock it off!" she yelled. "God, you're a fucking asshole. Go cool down. She's not going anywhere. You can come beat up the helpless woman later if you have to."

  "Fuck you, Anita," he said. He yanked his arm free and shoved his chair back, leaning forward on the table to loom over me. "Whore."

  He turned for the door. Just as his hand reached it, I called out, "Mr. King, or whatever your name is."

  He turned back.

  "If I thought the aliens were acting against our interests, then I'd agree with your assessment of me. If in private they talked about whatever it is you think they talk about, I'd agree with you. But I've never seen a single sign they're here for the kinds of things you're afraid about. They told us they came in peace, and I haven't seen any reason to suspect any hidden motives. That makes them our friends, and particularly good friends at that, kind of like the French, but with way cooler technology. Would you be calling me those words if I were sleeping with a French woman?"

  He didn't answer, but he slammed the door open and then closed as he exited the room.

  I turned to Anita and slumped. I'd used up my bravado, and as I looked at my hands bound to the table and contemplated the situation, I knew I was screwed. I slumped and began crying, slowly at first, tears crawling down my cheeks.

  "How's your face?" she asked gently.

  "You did this to me," I said. "You may as well have hit me yourself."

  "Koby is scared," she said. "I'd recommend you don't intentionally antagonize him any further."

  "Koby is a fucking bigot, and I suspect I have at least three strikes against me."

  "Oh?"

  "Woman. Lesbian. Friends with the aliens." I looked up. "I wasn't remotely interested in his charm, and he's probably not used to that, either."

  "You might be right. He doesn't much like me for the first two reasons." She leaned forward across the table and used a finger against my chin to turn my face back and forth. "He didn't break the skin, but you're going to hurt for a day or two."

  She released me, and, tears still crawling down my cheeks, I stared at my hands. "What are you going to do with me?"

  "Your situation isn't as dire as you suggested. You're going to answer our questions, and then you're going to agree to help us."

  "And if I don't, is my situation just as dire as I suggested?"

  "It's not going to come to that, is it, Skye?"

  "So that's a yes? Are you going to make me disappear? Or just kill me?"

  "You're going to answer our questions."

  "And then when you don't believe the answers, you're going to torture me? Will it start with a beating, or will you be more subtle?"

  "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. No one here wants to hurt you."

  "Koby does. He has a target for his fear, and she's sitting here helpless. And you wouldn't have brought me here if you weren't willing to hurt me."

  "I'm willing to hurt you, but that doesn't mean I want to."

  "I want my lawyer."

  "You know that's not how this is going to work. When did you meet your first alien?"

  "You have a file on me somewhere," I said. "You already know the answer to that."

  "Tell me anyway, Skye."

  I tried to answer. I opened my mouth and was going to answer. But I couldn't. I began crying in earnest, because I couldn't even answer harmless questions. Then I tried telling her I couldn't answer, and I couldn't tell her that, either.

  "It's not a difficult question, Skye. When did you meet your first alien?"

  I couldn't answer. And I couldn't answer her next question or her next. Instead, I sat and cried, my heart filled with dread. And the more questions she asked, the harder it became to answer any questions at all.

  Finally, looking quite pissed off, she stood. "I'm going to let you think for a while. I strongly encourage you to become far more cooperative when I return."

  As she left, I slumped, my head against my arms, and cried.

  * * * *

  They left me alone. My body began to ache. The chair was plain metal and cold. I cried myself out, but I couldn't clean myself up any better than brushing the tears away against the short sleeve of the hospital gown.

  Then the door opened, and I turned to look. Anita stepped in, and I began wailing and keening, able to say nothing more than, "No, no, no." I began to struggle with the shackles, which wasn't going to do me the slightest bit of good.

  Then, from behind Anita, Azalea stepped in, and behind her, Amaryllis. Then an older woman I didn't know, and she looked almost as scared as I was.

  Azalea hurried to me and held me as I sobbed and sobbed.

  "Honey," she whispered. "Did they hurt you?"

  "Drugged me," I managed to say. "And the other one hit me."

  "Did you answer their questions?"

  I pulled her ear to mine and said quietly, "I couldn't. And I'm glad I couldn't."

  Azalea shifted so she was on my other side. "Unlock her. Now!" She screamed the last word.

  It was Anita that stepped forward. She did my legs first, then my wrists. I pulled inward then turned to Azalea and clung to her.

  "Did she answer your questions?" Amaryllis asked. Her tone was cold.

  "I don't answer to you," said Anita.

  "No, but you do answer to me," said the older woman. "Did she?"

  "No."

  "Did she answer any of your questions?"

  "A few earlier. None once we got here."

  "Do you want to know why she didn't answer?" Amaryllis asked. "Because. She. Can't. First, she doesn't know anything everyone in this room doesn't already know. But she knows things the general public doesn't know, and she literally can't talk about them. You humans are so arrogant and so amazingly stupid! If you want to know something, ask me. I'll probably answer you."

  I looked over and she was looming over both the woman I didn't know and Anita. "You will never do something like this again, or my response will not be so restrained."

  "I want my clothes," I said. "I want my purse and my glasses." Then I stood up and screamed. "And I am fucking pressing charges."

  "There will be a full investigation," said the woman.

  I pushed away from Azalea. "I don't know who the fuck you are, but I bet you're the bitch who ordered this. They kidnapped an American citizen. You swore an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States from all enemies, foreign and domestic." I advanced on her. "I am not an enemy. The Constitution does not need defending from me. But apparently it does from you. I am pressing charges! I want everyone who was here
arrested. And I want my god damned clothes!"

  "Ms. Andrews-"

  "Do not Ms. Andrews me!" I screamed. "I know my god damned rights, and this was illegal as all hell. I am pressing charges against everyone involved, starting with that bitch." I pointed at Anita. "And find that dickwad xenophobic asshole who likes to hit helpless girls."

  "The Patriot Act-"

  "Is for terrorists, and it hasn't seen a proper challenge before the Supreme Court. Am I a terrorism suspect, Mrs. Whoever-the-fuck-you-are? Do you want this case to be the precedent that goes before SCOTUS?"

  "Skye," said Amaryllis, stepping up to me and turning me to face her, hands on my shoulders. "I am calling in my favor."

  "What?"

  "I want you to ask me to handle this and to accept my judgment. You owe me a favor. This is what I want."

  "You're not going to let them get away with this, are you?"

  "You will accept my judgment, little human."

  I looked into her eyes. "But I want my clothes. And my things. And I want to know they won't do it again."

  Without looking away from me, Amaryllis spoke. I didn't recognize the language, but there was a gruff answer from outside the room. Then Amaryllis knelt down so our eyes were closer to the same answer. She opened her arms, and I moved into them. We hugged, we hugged tightly, and then Azalea was there, hugging me from behind.

  "I was so afraid you wouldn't find me," I said. "I knew they'd never believe me."

  "Of course we found you," Amaryllis whispered back. "You were never lost. But we didn't think coming in like a scene from a human action movie would have the best result."

  They held me for a minute or two, then there was noise, and I looked over at the door.

  The biggest alien I'd ever seen in person was standing there. He wasn't as tall as Amaryllis, but he had to be four hundred pounds, and there was no mistaking one simple fact: he was a warrior, through and through. He was holding two clear, plastic bags about the size of a messenger bag. I could see my purse and its contents in one and my clothes in the other.

  Azalea and Amaryllis released me. The warrior spoke in the gruff language. Amaryllis paused a moment then said in English, "Give them to her and let her decide."

  He stepped fully into the room. Anita and Mrs. Whats-her-name quickly moved away from him, but I simply held out my hands and took both bags.

  "Thank you," I said. I switched to Catseye. "Do you speak this language?"

  He offered a toothy smile and said in Catseye, "Poorly." I could barely understand.

  So I nodded. "Thank you for your help." I said it very slowly.

  "You are welcome."

  Then he stepped back out into the hallway.

  I took the bags and stepped over to the table. I dumped my clothes onto the table and sighed. The clothes had been destroyed. They'd torn the shoes apart and gone after every seam in the dress. They'd even attacked the undies and bra.

  I spun to face Anita. "This was a new dress, and the shoes were my favorite casual pair. Thanks a lot." I threw them at her. She ducked from one of the shoes, but she let the rest hit her, not saying a word.

  Then I turned to the other bag, dreading what I would find. The purse itself had been treated as poorly as my clothing, and the clutch with my money and credit cards had fared the same. My money, credit cards, and student ID were there, but my UN ID and drivers license were both gone. And I couldn't find the glasses.

  "Things are missing," I said. Then I glared at Anita. "And this was my favorite purse. My grandmother gave me this purse for Christmas several years ago. My now deceased grandmother, you bitch!"

  "I had nothing to do with that," she said.

  "Fuck you," I said. "I want the rest of my things."

  "Koby-"

  "Yeah, blame someone else," I said. "You swore an oath, too, and kidnapping innocent humans isn't covered."

  "Little human, I will handle this."

  "Yes, Amaryllis," I said instantly.

  Amaryllis spoke. I ignored what was going on, but I collected my things and shoved them into the bag. I stared at everything else. Azalea stepped over. "Look. Look what they did to Grandmother's purse. I can't replace this, Azalea."

  "I know, but they didn't get a chance to do the same thing to you, honey. That's what matters."

  "They have-"

  "I know," she said. "It's fine."

  I turned to her and let her hold me, but now I just wanted my stuff and to get the hell out of here.

  There was a scuffle, and the large warrior stepped into the room, pushing Koby in front of him. His arms were latched behind his back, and his eyes were a little wild.

  Amaryllis turned to him but asked, "Is this the one that hit you?"

  "Yes."

  "Ms. Andrews is missing several pieces of property. Where are they?"

  He looked around the room wildly, his eyes settling on Mrs. Whats-her-name. "It's alien tech! We scanned everything she had."

  "If you could scan everything, why did you have to destroy my things?" I threw the purse at him. Yeah, it was juvenile, but I didn't care. I still don't care. But Azalea pulled me back into her arms, and I didn't fight her. Amaryllis looked over her shoulder, saw that Azalea was managing me, and turned back to Koby.

  "You are going to lead Mr. -" Then she spoke a word I was sure I couldn't pronounce. "-to retrieve Ms. Andrews' things."

  "They aren't here."

  "Do you honestly believe we don't know where they are?" Amaryllis asked, her tone icy.

  "There's nothing that can't be replaced," Azalea said. "Ambassador, I'd like to get Skye out of here."

  "Of course."

  I went docilely, grabbing the bag holding my things but leaving everything else behind.

  As soon as we stepped out of the room, I brought us to a stop. The corridor was filled with more of the huge aliens.

  "They won't hurt you," Azalea said.

  "I know." But I pulled away and went back into the interrogation room. Every pair of eyes followed me. I approached the large warrior. "Are you the head of the team out in the hallway?"

  "Yes, ma'am," he said.

  I saw Amaryllis step forward and take command of Koby. The warrior glanced at her and nodded, then turned his attention back to me.

  "Do you have a name my human throat can pronounce?"

  "No, ma'am," he said. "But maybe you'll pick one for me."

  "I'd have to think about that," I said. "Maybe we can pick something together the next time I see you."

  "I'd like that, ma'am."

  "Does your species hug?"

  "Yes, ma'am, we do."

  I moved forward. He knelt down and wrapped his arms around me. Mine went around his neck, and then he stood, picking me up. He was insanely strong, but he held me as gently as he could. In turn, I clung tightly.

  "Thank you," I whispered. "Thank your team, too."

  "Yes, ma'am."

  "My name is Skye. I hope you'll use it."

  "I'm glad you're safe, Skye."

  Then he set me down, and I turned for the exit.

  * * * *

  I was surprised we had to use a jumper to go home, although it was a short ride. Posey and Violet met us when we landed, and Violet didn't wait for me to exit but ran up the ramp and had me in her arms -- and tentacles -- as soon as the chair released me.

  We clung to each other, not saying a word. We clung to each other, and then she picked me up. I didn't complain but let her carry me from the ship.

  And then Posey was there. She wrapped around me, too, Violet still carrying me. "Is this a new fashion statement, Skye?" Posey asked.

  "They destroyed my clothes," I said. Then I started crying again.

  I don't remember the walk to the apartment. Violet carried me. That's all I remember. She carried me to the bathroom, and there was a hot tub of water waiting for us. She stepped right in with me, settled me in, then pulled off her wet clothes and threw them aside. Then she moved to me, pulling me back into her arms
.

  We stayed like that for a long time.

  Posey came in after a while. She was carrying drinks, and I smiled at the sight. All those tentacles really came in handy sometimes.

  "May I stay?" she asked.

  I nodded. So she sat down beside the tub and offered me a drink. "There's alcohol in it," she said. "I got it from one of the humans."

  "Thank you." It was light and frothy and, I decided, really strong.

  I sipped from the drink and set it aside. Posey slipped two tentacles over the edge of the tub. They searched around until they found a place they could safely latch to my skin. I leaned my head against one for a while.

  Then Bluebell was there, too. Without a word, she sat down beside Posey. Two more tentacles slipped over the tub, and I was running out of bare skin.

  It didn't even bother me I was entirely nude while in the tub. The frothy water largely hid me, anyway, and Violet's tentacles were wrapped practically everywhere besides.

  Ten minutes later, Azalea entered. "Amaryllis is ten minutes away. She wants to see you, Skye. Should I send her away?"

  "No," I said. "Everyone out so I can get out of the water."

  Violet knew that order didn't mean her. A minute later she was helping me to dry, then, wrapped in several towels, she pulled me to my bedroom. "Pick something," I told her. "I want my back bare, and if it's not covered in marks by bedtime, I'll cry."

  She smiled. I let her dress me. It was simple and casual, but comfortable. And then she wrapped me in tentacles and led me from the room.

  I received proper hugs from everyone, and then we collected in the foyer, barely in time.

  There was no ceremony this time. Amaryllis arrived alone. Posey let her in, and she came to a stop facing all of us.

  "Thank you," I told her.

  "You're welcome. I'm sorry we weren't faster. I decided forceful diplomacy was better than a raid on American soil."

  "I understand. What happens now?"

  At that, she smiled. I didn't know if BPs smiled naturally or if it was learned behavior for the humans. But she smiled, and then she said, "Everyone directly involved is on their way for a stay with Jasmine."

  "What's she going to do to them?"

  "Question them," she said. "And then we'll work up the chain. I sincerely hope it stops short of the president."