by Karen Kelley
There was a noise behind him. Just the soft rustle of her robes as she approached. He didn’t turn around. Hell, he already knew what she was going to tell him. The connection between them was stronger the more they were around each other. She had said something about that happening between soul mates. But what would happen when she left?
The screen squeaked when she opened it.
“You found the cure.” It wasn’t a question.
“Yes. By using a combination of your medicine and Nerak’s chemicals, I have the solution that will heal the Elder.” There was sadness in her voice, but he knew it went far deeper than her words.
“Then you’re leaving this morning?” He braced himself for her answer.
“I have to.”
It didn’t help. The pain reached deep, tearing at his heart.
“I’d like to see Aasera and Lyraka before I leave,” she told him. “Is that possible?”
“I’ll make the call.” He started to go back into the other room, but when he was even with her, he stopped and wrapped her in his arms, pulling her tight against him. This was probably the hardest thing he’d ever had to do. He kissed her on top of her head before letting go.
He went inside to his room, retrieving his phone from the bedside table. He got the number of the colony from Information and called them, talking to Lyraka. Then he placed a call to Nick and told him they would be arriving in a few hours.
Everything was set in motion.
He went to the kitchen and got down the bag of chocolate bars he had bought last night. When he returned to the living room, Lara was bringing her suitcase out of the bedroom.
He held up the bag. “I thought you might want to take these back to Nerak. If you can get one of the Elders to try a chocolate bar”—he shrugged—“who knows what they’ll allow.”
Her smile trembled. “Maybe even slot machines?”
He chuckled. “Who knows?” He cleared his throat. “I guess you’ll be glad to get home.”
“I miss my home. It’s not in my DNA to travel. I like where I live, although Earth can be very exciting.”
She left her suitcase and went to the kitchen to gather her research, carefully putting one of the bottles into another bag. Apparently, this was the cure. She wistfully looked around the room. Her gaze stopped on the refrigerator.
“I wouldn’t introduce wine though.” When she looked at him, there was a mischievous smile on her face.
He relaxed for the first time that morning. “No, you’d better not introduce them to wine. I’d hate to be the cause of shorting out all the companion units.”
There was the sound of a car pulling up out front, ending their laughter. He went to the door, Lara with him.
Aasera and Lyraka.
Lara went outside to greet them. He watched, marveling at how much Lara had changed since her arrival. But she was still revered, and she definitely looked like royalty as Aasera and Lyraka bowed before her.
Just as suddenly, he realized she didn’t belong here. He finally understood what she meant. Earth wasn’t her home. She was as much a part of Nerak as Nerak was a part of her.
Lara turned and motioned for him. He stepped to the porch. Now what?
“They will travel with us. Aasera and Lyraka want to see Kia. Lyraka asked if you could please drive her car. She’s not accustomed to driving in a large city.”
His first thought was no. He didn’t want to share what precious little time he had left with her. Besides, Lara was acting pretty bossy again. Was she already trying to distance herself from him?
“Please.”
He softened. “Yeah, sure. Nick can bring me back to get the pickup.”
She smiled as she handed him the keys.
Going back inside, he grabbed the suitcase. Lara came inside, Lyraka with her, and they went to the kitchen for her satchel and the rest of her research equipment.
When he went back outside, Aasera gave him a look that would frost glass. What the hell had he done to her? He opened his mouth to ask what her problem was but then decided against it. She would have to learn to deal with it.
Maybe she did have something against men, but if she didn’t learn to get a handle on her anger and resentment, Aasera would become her own worst enemy.
Still, he’d never been one to leave well enough alone. “I didn’t hurt her.”
She stiffened as he walked past her.
“Didn’t you?”
He hit the button that popped the trunk and set the suitcase inside before turning back to her.
“You don’t think I’m hurting because she’s leaving? I don’t want her to go.”
“And if she stayed, what would you do? Promise to love her forever? She would give up everything for you if she stayed. Then, when things got rough, would you stay or leave her to fend for herself?”
“Is that what he did?”
Her face lost some of its color. “Who?”
He nodded toward the cabin. “Lyraka’s father.”
“Men are all alike. I wasn’t the only one it happened to. Many women who come to my colony are escaping men who’ve hurt them.”
“I would never hurt her.”
She didn’t look much like she believed him. He couldn’t change her mind. At least, not in the next couple of hours. Maybe the next time he came to the cabin, he would stop by, and they could talk or something.
Yeah, right, who was he fooling? He didn’t want to sever the connection with Lara, but going to see Aasera and Lyraka wouldn’t bring her back to him.
Lara came outside with Lyraka right behind her. Together, they carried all of Lara’s research equipment. He hurried to the porch and grabbed the biggest case, taking it to the trunk. Once everything was loaded, there wasn’t anything else to do except leave.
“I would like to speak with you on the drive to your sister’s,” Aasera said when Lara started to get in the front seat.
Lara hesitated, then gave a nod of her head and got in the back seat. Sam had to take a deep breath to keep from telling Aasera to go to hell, that Lara would ride up front with him. He wouldn’t play tug of war with her.
“I’ll lock the cabin, and we can get started,” he said.
Lara gave him a look of apology. He smiled to let her know it was okay.
He walked through the cabin, making sure there was nothing left out that could smell up the place. He’d come back next week and clean out the refrigerator.
Or not.
Suddenly, the cabin didn’t hold as much appeal as it once did. Maybe that would change over time.
He went to the back door but hesitated at the last minute when he caught a flash of something moving in the woods. The buck? He narrowed his eyes, trying to see past the thick stand of trees, but whatever was there had left. Maybe it had been the buck.
“See you next time,” he whispered.
He shut the door and locked it, then tested the knob before going to the front door and repeating the procedure. He met Lara’s gaze as he walked to the car, then she turned to Aasera, and they began to talk.
Had he already lost and didn’t want to face the truth? Maybe Kia could talk her sister into staying. And maybe it was just wishful thinking.
But he could feel her pain—it bl
ended with his.
Lara couldn’t look at Sam. Not when her heart felt as if it were breaking into a thousand tiny pieces.
“The Elders must hold you in very high esteem if they would take the chance of sending you down to Earth,” Aasera said.
Lara focused her attention. “I’m close to them, yes. I have great respect for my leaders.”
Aasera glanced pointedly at Sam as he started the car, then turned toward the road. “There are many dangerous distractions here.”
“But not all of them are bad.”
“You’re Nerakian. A healer. You must not forget that,” she warned. “The Elders would not like it if they discovered their trust was misplaced.”
Lara raised an eyebrow. “You question my loyalty to the Elders? To my planet?”
Aasera bowed her head slightly. “Of course not. Forgive me if I have made it seem as if I was.”
“I’ll return to Nerak,” she said.
She glanced out the window, ending their conversation. Why would Aasera even question whether she might leave? But maybe she knew the answer. She looked at Sam. He met her gaze in the small mirror.
Why had she agreed to sit back here? She didn’t want to be in the back seat. She wanted to sit beside Sam, to feel the heat of his body, to touch his hand and have him touch hers. That was the way it should’ve been.
A healer wanting someone to touch her? Is this what she’d been reduced to? Forgetting her place in life?
But it was exactly what she wanted.
End it now, a voice inside her screamed. Stop thinking about what might have been because it’s not meant to be. She was only delaying the inevitable. She clasped her hands together tightly in her lap. She didn’t want it to end, though.
Her gaze moved to the window as she tried to bring her thoughts back under control. Sam drove past a sign that said there was a station up the road. She would miss exploring all the small businesses that were alongside the road. There hadn’t been much time to see all she’d wanted to see. They all looked rather unusual and interesting.
Suddenly, she straightened. “Sam, please stop. I need to use the facilities.” She had gotten very good at talking like an Earth person.
He raised an eyebrow but took the next exit.
“I won’t be long,” she said after he parked. “When I return, I’ll sit in the front. A healer shouldn’t sit in the back. It’s not proper.”
She saw Sam smile before he quickly straightened and looked out the front window.
“Of course, Healer.”
Lyraka opened her door and got out as Lara hurried inside. People looked at her strangely as she went to the back of the store. She knew now it was because of the way she dressed. She couldn’t help that. She was who she was.
She stayed in the bathroom for what she thought was an appropriate amount of time, then came out, quite satisfied with her maneuver.
Sam winked at her as she came back outside and climbed in the car.
“Will you be glad to get back to Nerak?” Lyraka asked when Sam was driving down the road.
“There are many things I’ll miss about this planet.” She moved her hand across the seat. Sam met her halfway, taking her hand in his and squeezing it.
She was grateful he didn’t say anything. She reminded herself that on her planet, healers were above everyone except the royal family. They meditated, keeping everything in harmony. But Sam made her feel more alive than she’d ever felt her entire life.
She squeezed her eyes shut. How could she return to that life? Before, she hadn’t known there were other ways to live. But now that she’d experienced a different way of life, would her memories be enough to make her content?
“Things have a way of working out,” Sam said in a low voice. “Maybe someday, you’ll return.”
She wouldn’t. They both knew this would be the last time they saw each other.
“What’s your sister like?” Lyraka asked.
Lara smiled. At least this was a fairly safe topic. “On Nerak, she was a warrior code enforcer.”
They hadn’t visited that much. Kia and Mala had always been closer to each other. She’d always been on the outside.
Which was as it should be. Healers didn’t mingle as much as other Nerakians. The same could be said of the princesses. She’d never realized how lonely her life had been.
The time passed too swiftly, like the scenery outside the window. Soon, they were pulling into the parking area and getting out of the car.
Her hand trembled when she let go of Sam’s, and coldness clung to her even though the air was warm. The emotions going through her right now cut deep. She didn’t think she liked the feeling.
But she held her head high.
They traveled in the box that would take them to her sister’s floor. It stopped, and they got out. With each step she took, a chant repeated over and over in her head: don’t go, don’t go. How would she ever be able to tell Sam good-bye?
How would she be able to leave her sister forever, not knowing what was happening to her here on Earth? Never would she play another slot machine or eat chocolate. The bag of chocolate bars she was taking with her would not last forever. Then what was she supposed to do?
No, she would go back to taking food capsules that had no taste, only nutritional value.
They stopped outside the apartment door, and Sam pushed a button. The door opened seconds later.
“Healer,” Kia bowed.
“Oh, sister, what will I do?” She fell into her sister’s arms.
Chapter 25
“S am, what did you do to my sister?” Kia cast an accusing look in his direction.
He backed up a step. “No, I swear I didn’t do anything.” He looked at Nick, hoping he’d lend a hand, but his friend only shrugged his shoulders. A lot of help he was.
Kia looked behind him, her expression leery. “Who are they?”
Yeah, take the heat off him. “Your grandmother and her daughter.”
Lara moved out of her sister’s arms. Sam tugged her into his, brushing his lips across the top of her head.
“But…” Kia looked at them, then seemed to pull herself together. “Grandmother.” She bowed respectfully. “Daughter.”
“Kia, I remember when you were brought to our home. You were beautiful even at such a young age. And fierce. You were already showing your warrior qualities.”
“The Elders said you were killed on a mission.” Kia still looked like she was in shock. “Lara, how long have you known?”
“Not long. Sam told Nick.”
Kia planted her hands on her hips and glared at Nick. “And you didn’t think this was something I should know about?”
“I was going to drive you to the cabin to reunite, but after the research was finished. I swear.”
“You have a private place to talk?” Aasera broke in and then looked pointedly at the men.
“I was just going to the store,” Nick quickly supplied. “We’re out of chocolate—again. Sam, go with me.”
He didn’t want to go without Lara. They didn’t have much longer to spend together.
“Go. I won’t leave while you’re away. I need this time with them.”
&nbs
p; Sam reluctantly nodded. He didn’t like leaving her for one second, but he had to give her time to say good-bye to her family. It wasn’t as if he had exclusive rights on her or anything.
“I’ll be back soon.”
They went out the door and down to Nick’s car. He opened the passenger side door, noting that it still stuck just a little. And no wonder—Kia had opened it, then a car had knocked it clean off.
He remembered that morning—Kia had told him earlier she was an alien. He hadn’t believed her then. No, it had taken him longer than Nick to start believing.
He got in and fastened his seat belt. Instead of going to the store, Nick drove to the nearest bar just a couple of blocks from the apartment.
“I thought you might need a beer.”
“A case would be nice.” He scraped his fingers through his hair. “Do I look that messed up?”
“Yeah, as a matter of fact, you do.”
“I feel even worse.”
“I take it you and Lara like each other?”
“That’s an understatement.”
They didn’t talk again until they were seated across from each other with a beer in front of them.
Sam stared down into his mug. “She’s leaving.”
“Yeah, I talked to Kia,” Nick said. “She told me that as a healer, there’s no way she could stay.”
“How could I fall for her?” He started to take a drink but set his mug down and looked at Nick. “You saw how she was when we left your apartment to go to the cabin—all uppity and thinking she was better than everyone else.”
“I thought when you two left, you’d either kill her or come back and kill me.”
“I thought about it.” He grimaced. “Then I realized it wasn’t so much that she was uppity—she is that—but she just didn’t know any better most of the time. I thought maybe if I showed her what living on Earth was like, then maybe she’d at least have a little different outlook and all.”
