Scotty spotted Echo in a huddle with the posse. He sat down on the floor with them while everyone tried to calm down.
“Did you talk to that tiger, girl?”
Echo’s eyes spun brightly with fragmented colors. “Yes, Brother Scotty.”
“Well, what did you talk about?”
“He asked me a question.”
“Well, what was the question?” Talking to Echo could drive you crazy sometimes.
“He wanted to know if I concurred.”
“Concurred with what, Echo?” Scotty sighed with exasperation.
“That you are The One.”
“Me? The one, what?”
“I can’t explain it, Brother Scotty. I just know.”
“Know what?”
“That you are The One.”
Oh, my God. I don’t have the strength. Taking a deep breath, he tried again.
“Can you tell me anything about the tiger?”
“His name is Caesar.”
“Caesar?” Scotty looked confused.
“Yes, Brother. Are your ears not working?”
“Don’t be a comedian, smarty.” Scotty reached out and tweaked Echo’s belly, making her fall flat on her rump, withdrawing the rainbows from his mind. Barney hurried over to drench her with his sloppy affection. Looking up, he saw Abby watching them. She looked worried.
“What the heck is going on with that tiger? Echo tell you anything?” She waved to Cobby who needed to return to the wheel and check the electronics. She flopped down on the floor with Scotty.
“What the heck was that scene with you and Cobby?” He could hear the anger in his voice. She shrugged with exasperation.
“What are you talking about? Don’t be an idiot.” She dismissed the question, her expression giving nothing away.
“Okay, Ab, play it your way.” He moodily picked at his smelly wet sneakers. Didn’t matter much. They were all a little smelly by now.
“So give. What did Echo say?” He pushed his feet away, his long legs stretched in front of him.
“She said Caesar wanted to know if I was the one.”
“Caesar? You’re on a first name basis now?”
“Echo told me his name.” Abby looked skeptical but pressed him for more.
“So what do you mean, ‘the one’?”
“I don’t know what it means. Echo confused me. You know how she can be. I don’t mean to change the subject, but do you know what you’re doing here?” He glanced up, nodding his head toward the rest of the dispirited refugees in the room. “I don’t think they can take much more.”
Abby scanned the room, assessing their condition. “Can’t be helped.” She suddenly dropped her head into her hands, lifting them to each side of her temples, squeezing tightly. She raised her head as if nothing had happened. “It could get worse, kiddo. I need you to be strong. I think Jose needs some time before I can count on him.”
“Are you kidding me? These people cannot take any more. What is wrong with you?”
Her expressionless eyes dismissed him. “Kane, maybe you could check on Jose and Chloe for me. I’d like to give him more time for his reunion, but we need him out here, now.”
Giving Scotty her signature stink eye, she trudged up the stairs to cautiously check on the wildlife.
“I’ll go get Jose and Chloe. You stay and relax.” He wanted to allow Kane some time with Kenya. Let her cast her net on him for a while. He’ll enjoy it. He tried not to stare as he crossed to the hallway in front of Ginger Mae and Daisy. Something bad had happened there. Maybe Abby knew the story. He’d have to remember to corner her again. Peter isn’t behaving much like a boyfriend, if you ask me. Outrageously missing in action.
Disappearing into the hallway, he tried to slick back his bright hair with his hands. His clothes, still caked with the dust and battle scars from the rescue, could probably stand up on their own. And how attractive could a tiger-urine smelling boyfriend be?
He paused in front of the fiberglass door to the cabin which housed a fragile Jose and a devastated Chloe. Feeling inept and out of his league, he could see how easily his budding romance might get scratched right out of the gate if Chloe sank into a depression or blossomed with an identity crisis. Who could blame her? She was a young girl, still grieving for her mother. How would she handle the ramifications of seeing the man she knew as her father die at the hands of her uncle, who was then murdered by an alien from outer space? And he’d forgotten to factor in her kidnapping and the betrayal. You just can’t write this stuff.
His heart ached for her but he questioned the validity of his ability to help her. Trying to juggle his own catastrophic body changes, sudden wealth and the constant struggle to cloak his mind-bending secret, was enough to wear anyone down. Romancing a first girlfriend was hard enough in the routine of a normal life. He laughed cynically at the notion that he controlled any part of his own life.
He knocked softly at the door. Jose’s sober face met his as the door squeaked open.
“How are you guys making out?” Haltingly, he slipped into the room. “Take a break, Bro, I need to see her for a while.” Jose just nodded, his red-rimmed eyes indicating he clearly still felt overwhelmed. His hand reached out, tightly grasping at Scotty’s arm as if to speak silently of the need for kid gloves.
“I know, Bro, I know. I’ll be careful with her. Abby asked me to let you know we’ll be nearing the harbor soon. I’m going to try to coax her out with me, so I’ll see you topside.” He carefully closed the door, pausing briefly to rest his head against the wall, collecting his composure. Turning, he put on his game face.
“Hi, Chloe.” He spoke softly, mindful of disturbing any progress engendered by Jose. She lay prone, face down, Teddy curled like a hairy donut on her back. She looked up at him from the bed, her face blotchy and gray. No sign of happiness to see him. She slowly rolled over to face him, knocking Teddy off her back. Undaunted, the minx scratched at Chloe’s blanket until he created an escape route underneath.
Scotty sat on the edge of the bed, just smiling down at her. He didn’t feel the need to speak. She looked up, silent, her expression unreadable. A lonely tear slipped forlornly from the tip of an eyelash. Reaching out to stroke her tangled hair, he decided her silence was normal. Chloe had received a shock so great she would doubt everything for quite some time. The answer was to be her friend, reliable and caring, until she healed, ready to come back to him emotionally. It would also give him the time he needed to solve the Caesar mystery and try to help Abby get them through this damnable rush to safety. He continued stroking her hair until he was rewarded with her cold hand sliding into his.
Being teenagers had its advantages. They were resilient. Time ticked on their side. Yes, he could be patient. After all, wasn’t he The One?
THE END
Introduction to
Alien Species Intervention
Book 4
HIVE
Synopsis for Hive:
In the rush to Tampa Airport, Abby meets a small group of elephants from the famous Elizabeth Siggins Wildlife Foundation, fleeing the political horrors of Africa. Putting them under her protection and that of the Hive, she meets Tobi, the elderly matriarch of the small herd who sacrifices herself to save a human and, in return, is rewarded with the ultimate gift from the Womb.
As the bedraggled group race to the Hive for protection, saving a few desperate souls as they go, the first bomb arrives. As the survivors and the wildlife struggle to adjust to the new pecking order in the Hive and the revelations of their own origins, a woman and her two grandchildren live through the hellish horror and complete breakdown of civilization aboveground as they struggle to reach the Hive where her husband awaits.
Horror visits the struggling survivors as they learn the Earth will not support habitation for at least another hundred years. But the biggest shock comes from the Womb as it extracts a huge penalty from the hapless people, tolling the demise of the human race.
Chapter 1
Abby a
nd Captain Cobby stood shoulder to shoulder at the helm of the luxury yacht as it swayed with the waves, staring down the approach into Tampa Bay. Abby’s heart thudded, the timbre of its pace increasing as she scanned the bay, noting the positions of other nearby craft. She knew, sooner or later, another boat would spot the unusual nature of the occupants spread around the deck of the Lucky Lady. She hoped to avoid that as long as possible.
“Cob, I’m getting scared. How in the world are we going to pull this off?” She began to tremble as Cobby gripped her shoulders, turning her to face him. He removed her sunglasses, braving the mesmerizing effects of her shining golden eyes to look deeper into her soul. His deeply tanned, overtly handsome masculinity blended well with all of Abby’s golden fragile beauty, the contrast of their ages belying any assumption they might be lovers.
“My dear, you’ve gotten us this far. You can’t fall apart now. Too many rely on you. We have a child and a pregnant woman onboard. They need protection and confidence from you. They can’t see you waver. The rest of us know we can depend on you. I might not understand why we must do this, but I have no doubts whatsoever that this is the right thing to do. I know it’s our only hope.” He pulled her close, his lips brushing the golden hairs at the bridge of her noble forehead. “I’m here for you, we’ll get through this. As soon as you give me the word, I’ll cross the bay to the industrial docks. The trucks are all in order?”
“Yeah, they’re just waiting for us.” She removed her sunglasses from Cobby’s hands, sliding them back into place as they heard the clatter of water buckets from the deck below.
Leaning out from under their protection from the sun, they observed poor Peter attempting to distribute water to the wildlife. Sweat dripped copiously down his red face and neck, saturating his once fresh Oxford shirt. His glasses sat askew on his red nose as his body shook from fright, warring with his implant’s directions and his own fight or flight response to the threat perceived from the wild beasts.
“He sure looks pathetic. How’s he holding up?” Cobby turned to Abby assessing the strain in her hands as they beat slowly against her thighs. Personally, he thought Peter hovered on the very edge of madness. The fact that his lady love had turned out to be a calculating prostitute attached to a psychotic murderer had already pushed him to the precipice of sanity. And Cobby thought the guy might be strung a bit too tight to begin with. The implant Abby had used to keep him calm and do her bidding might just be enough to push him off the ledge to insanity.
“I’m not really sure about him.” Abby’s voice faltered. “I need him to hold up. I trust him. If something goes wrong before we get back home, I can rely on him. If I remove the implant now, I know he’ll freak. I think Ginger Mae might be the first girl he’s ever had sex with. Once we’re safe and I remove the implant, he’ll still have to deal with her betrayal.” Turning to Cobby, she placed a hand on his chest, her face tilted admiringly to the captain. “You’re the one I thank God for.”
Cobby’s large callused hand enveloped her own. “Abby, I—oh, hi.” He calmly dropped his hand from Abby’s as Jose’s head, then his body appeared on the stairs from the deck below. His thick tawny tail flicked in a sultry fashion as if to deliberately draw attention, apparently indifferent to the sensibilities of those in the salon still reeling from the shock over the big disclosure Abby had made regarding Echo and the changes to their bodies.
“Captain, do you mind? I’d like some privacy please.”
Cobby felt the soft pressure of Abby’s restraining hand on his arm. Backing up slowly, he returned to the helm, making himself comfortable in the captain’s chair. If there was going to be fireworks, he didn’t want to be in the line of fire. He enjoyed Jose’s company, but was well aware of the sidelong glances he had been sending toward Abby and him since he returned from his trip. Given half a chance, he thought Abby might consider him as a lover, but for now they needed to be fully engaged in their tasks at hand. Another emotionally fragile jilted young man in their entourage could spell catastrophe. He didn’t yet know the complete story of Scotty and his traumatized girlfriend, Chloe. Maybe Kane could clue him in. The kids all seemed to be thick as thieves. Guess that beats their readiness to rip out each other’s throats a month ago.
“Abby, do you mind telling me what the fuck is going on? I think I’ve been patient enough, and now you have me scared shitless. And who are those people downstairs? And why is that poor disfigured women with the screaming child with Peter? When did he find time to get a girlfriend?” Cobby could sense Jose working up to an explosion, but he refused to be drawn in. It was Abby’s baby now.
He watched as Abby made shushing sounds at Jose, wrapping her arms around him and murmuring in his ear.
“Babe, you have to trust me. There’s just no time. I’m doing this because Netty and Echo have asked me too.”
“Netty? Who’s Netty? Does this involve Echo’s mission?”
“Yeah, it does have something to do with his mission. And with saving our lives. We must bring these animals, and the ones from the zoo, to Echo’s hive. They claim we’ll be safe there. But they insist these animals be saved. You’ll meet Netty soon enough.”
“What zoo? What zoo are you talking about?”
“There’s a large zoo not far from Newark Airport. I have trucks meeting us there. I’ll send everyone on to Sussex County, except Scotty and Echo. They need to help me. If you could direct everyone else to the place you met Echo, you can wait for me there.”
“But what about all of these animals? How the hell am I going to make them go with me into the woods?” Jose’s tone of voice gave away the skepticism he felt toward Abby’s plan. “Wait just a gosh darn minute. Are you talking about the Bronx Zoo? Is that the zoo?”
“Yes, that’s the zoo.”
“Are you out of your ever-loving mind? Do you know how many animals are there?”
“Please, Jose. Everything is all set to go. Just take everyone to the Hive,” Abby beseeched him, glancing at her watch. “I need you to let everyone know we’re headed into the bay and will be docking within an hour. That about right, Cobby?”
“Yes. We need to be ready to roll. The cops will be called as soon as the harbor master is informed by a snoop about our cargo. I think we have a window of about forty five minutes before we get hassled. If the trucks have their doors open and the ramps in place, we can get the cats and the bears loaded before trouble starts. The rest should be a cinch.”
“Okay.” Abby’s bright voice suggested the subject was closed. She leaned out over the bridge and hollered down to Peter, waving him to join them. Turning back to Jose, she begged him again. “Can you please just do this for me? We have our whole lives to sort this out. First, we just need to survive.” Her voice softened. Wordlessly, Jose turned to the stairs, ignoring Peter as he stepped aside to let him pass.
“Abby, you wanted to see me?” Cobby eyed the man confronting Abby. His round moon face dripped with sweat. His clothes appeared to have been slept in for the last week, yet Cobby knew Peter to be a fastidious dresser. His eyes stared at Abby, unblinking, his face slack-jawed. Cobby’s head snapped back as he got a whiff of the odor rolling off Peter: acrid, sweet, organic and foul. It couldn’t all be the result of his exposure to the animals. Was it the smell of fear? He glanced at Abby for her reaction, but she apparently didn’t notice. Her hand rested on Peter’s arm.
“Are you alright, Peter?”
“No, Abby, I’m not alright. My girlfriend is a professional whore. I abetted the murder of a psycho who held a gun on me for two days. I just finished watering some cats that weigh three times what I do, and they know it. A camel spit in my face, then shat on my feet. My boss, who I cared for, just turned out to be some kind of alien freak, and we seem to be running for our lives with a boatful of hungry, dangerous, smelly creatures. And it’s hot.” He spoke calmly and precisely, his face expressionless, belying the drama of his words.
“You think I’m an alien freak?”
/> “I don’t know what you are.” He stared at Abby, his eyes unblinking and unwavering, his face subjugated and beaten. As Abby gently took him into her arms, Cobby watched carefully. He knew a close eye on this character would be a necessity. He appeared ready to go postal, and as captain, he needed to get this vessel to shore. Maybe Abby would let him dump Peter in the rush to load the animals. He planned to vote long and hard on leaving this guy behind.
“Abby, I’m ready to cross the bay. Why don’t you take Peter below and make sure everyone is packed up and ready to disembark? Push those monkeys and the birds up on deck.”
“Aye, aye, Captain. Come on, Peter, why don’t we go down together? I still need your help with Ginger Mae and Daisy.”
As she guided Peter back to the stairs, she turned to meet Cobby’s steely gaze and his imperceptible nod in Peter’s direction. She slipped him a quick thumb’s up, then disappeared down the stairs.
Chapter 2
Scotty sat with Chloe in the once elegant salon of the family yacht, the air conditioning failing to suppress the cacophony of animal odors mixing with the smells of human sweat.
They sat watching Kenya try to convince Kane and Ginger Mae to bolt from the yacht as soon as it hit the dock in Tampa. She paced madly, one hand on her big belly and the other gesticulating wildly as she tried to sell the idea to an indifferent Kane and a numb Ginger Mae, her swollen face and grotesquely stitched lip refusing to allow her a moment’s peace.
Chloe sat unmoving and silent, unless Scotty happened to shift his weight. She then clutched at him convulsively, refusing to relinquish her anchor to sanity.
As Kenya continued to rant, she failed to notice Abby and Peter as they descended into the salon from above. Peter selected an upholstered chair nearest the stairs, collapsing like a deflated blow-up doll, smelly and wrinkled with a wicked sunburn. Abby quietly stood behind Kenya as she railed at Kane, reaching hysterical proportions, refusing to concede a losing battle.
Alien Species Intervention: Books 1-3: An Alien Apocalyptic Saga (Species Intervention #6609) Page 54
