Silence of Stars

by Holly J. Wood

I bit my lip as I thought about the possibility of training as a pilot, then shook my head. “This is too good to be true. I can’t wait to see Mom and Reagan again—and to see how quickly our society improves without the influence of the Lilthe. Once our records are restored, I’m confident the Council will take Earth off the Liability list.”

  “There’s that hope again.” Gideon winked and squeezed my hand. “And you’re right. The Council will have to remove Earth from the list, especially when it was condemned under false pretenses. Your world is safe.”

  “Safe,” I repeated as tears filled my eyes. I reached for him and pulled his lips to mine. In that case, I don’t care where we go, as long as we’re together.

  He shivered and I traced the goose bumps along the back of his neck.

  Together, he breathed.

  After a few minutes, the heart monitors went off again.

  CHAPTER

  Forty-Two

  A knock sounded at my door. I sat up in the hospital bed. Gideon, is that you?

  The door slid open and Professor Atwood stepped in. He raised bushy gray eyebrows. “May I have a word?”

  I leaned back and smiled. “It would be a welcome distraction.” The healers had kicked Gideon out a few hours ago after my traitorous monitors kept going off, and I was going crazy. I hated being separated from him, and hated the fact that I was contained in the Infirmary when there was a gigantic airship to explore.

  Atwood chuckled. “Your Match is waiting impatiently outside the room.”

  “He is?” I sat up again, straining to see Gideon as the door slid closed, but with no luck.

  Atwood limped to the empty chair beside my bed and settled into it with a huff. “I overheard the healer on duty say that she would be taking a break in about fifteen minutes, so I passed the information along to Cadet North.” He winked.

  I touched his weathered hand. “Thanks, Professor. Once again, I’m in your debt.” I swallowed and shook my head. “I’ll never be able to repay you for what you’ve done for me—for us. Making it possible for me to Claim Gideon.”

  He waved the thanks off. “That’s what I’m here to talk to you about.” He removed a handkerchief from his pocket and coughed into it once before replacing it. “The time has come for you to know the truth about who you are.”

  “Who I am?” I tilted my head.

  He leaned forward, his eyes boring into mine. “Miss Taylor, there is a reason you were able to Claim Cadet North, and it had nothing to do with our session.”

  My breathing shallowed. “What do you mean? How else could I have done it?”

  He looked down at his hands and then back at me, his voice dropping to a whisper, “Your father was not from Earth. He was one of us—from Lior.”

  My mouth opened, but no words came. I huffed a laugh. “I’m sorry, but that’s insane.”

  He smiled. “You of all people should know that just because something sounds crazy, it doesn’t mean it’s not true.”

  I stared at him and slowly shook my head. “I think I would have noticed if my own father was an alien.”

  His eyes tightened. “Not if he hid the fact from you—from everyone—to protect you and your mother.” Atwood retrieved a stone from his pocket as I stared at him in disbelief. Why was he doing this? Was he really crazy after all?

  He pressed the sides of the stone and a hologram spilled out above it. The air rushed from my lungs as I saw a younger version of my father with his arm around a younger but still aged Professor Atwood.

  “I don’t believe this,” I breathed, moving to get a better look at the image. “That’s—my dad.” I turned to Atwood, my face twisted in confusion.

  He closed the hologram and cleared his throat. “Your father was a Freedom Fighter—one of the best pilots the Academy has ever known. I had the privilege of teaching him in my class.”

  I put a hand to my chest, trying to make sense of the impossible. “So . . . you’re telling me I’m part alien?”

  He nodded.

  I dropped my hand, my mind racing. “What about my mom? Is she from Earth? How did they meet?” I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. “None of this makes sense.” The heart monitor began beeping and Professor Atwood turned the machine off.

  “Try taking some deep breaths,” he cautioned.

  I nodded and breathed in through my nose. The last thing I wanted was to have the Professor kicked out too—not after dropping that kind of bomb. I needed answers. “Tell me everything, and start at the beginning,” I said.

  Atwood sank back into his chair and steepled his fingers. “To answer your last question, yes, your mother is from Earth.” His eyes took on a faraway look. “Your father was sent on a scouting mission to a planet near Earth’s solar system when he had trouble with his airship. He had to make an emergency landing and ended up on Earth. He needed a remote location to hide his ship, and found himself in a place called,” his lips pressed together, “mm—Kalispell, I believe it was.”

  Chills covered my arms. “That’s where my mom is from.”

  His eyes twinkled. “Excellent! That means my memory isn’t as bad as I’d feared.” He folded his hands across his stomach. “Your father ventured into Kalispell to try to find parts for his airship. He found a mechanic’s shop and the necessary tools, but it was the mechanic’s beautiful daughter who caught his eye.”

  My face softened. I’d heard the story of how my parents had met hundreds of times—minus the spaceship part. And all this time they’d had a love like mine and Gideon’s? Forbidden, star-crossed lovers. I touched the Professor’s arm. “Did he Claim her?”

  “Almost immediately.” Atwood shook his head. “He couldn’t help it—it happened as soon as she spoke to him.” He swallowed and looked down.

  I knew he was thinking about his own lost love and gave his arm a comforting squeeze. “I’m sorry.”

  He patted my hand. “It’s alright. That’s all in the past now.” He cleared his throat. “Your father knew of my research into Mindspeak. He contacted me and told me he’d met his Match. Knowing he would be sent to prison for marrying your mother, he planned to destroy his airship and fake his own death in order to hide their relationship from the Council. But before he destroyed the ship, I had several training sessions with your mother to help her unlock Mindspeak.”

  I sucked in a breath. “Did it work?”

  His eyes crinkled at the corners. “Yes.”

  I stared at him. “My mom and dad—an Earthling and Liorite—Claimed each other?” I shook my head. “But if they were Claimed, why did they still have to hide? That’s one of the reasons Gideon and I were pardoned, wasn’t it?”

  “Aha.” Atwood leaned forward. I’m going to use Mindspeak now because of the sensitive nature of what I’m about to tell you.

  A shiver ran down my spine. I swallowed and nodded.

  Your father continued to hide from the Council because he’d made a discovery during his travels . . . a discovery which threatened to expose a secret the Council tried desperately to hide.

  He pulled a leather cord from around his neck that was hidden by his tunic. At the end of the cord was a silver drive. All of the information is here. Take this, and view it as soon as you have time.

  I took the drive from him and slipped it over my head, hiding it under my dressing gown. “I’ll keep it safe.”

  He nodded, his eyes suddenly tight. “Miss Taylor, there is one last thing I must tell you.” He paused and looked at the floor before meeting my eyes. “Your father’s accident was no accident. The Council took his life.”

  My mind blanked in disbelief. “No,” the word came out in a rush of air.

  Atwood squeezed my hand. “You must be extremely careful. I would not share this information with you if I didn’t know you were Chosen to take down the Council. You were meant for this, Lark.”

  “No!” I shouted, yanking off the monitor chords as I jumped out of bed. I shov
ed a tray over and it clanged on the floor.

  Gideon rushed into the room. “Lark, what’s wrong?”

  I moved instinctively to him and he gathered me in his arms. I buried my face in his chest, too upset to speak.

  “What’s going on?” he demanded, staring at Atwood.

  A loud bell sounded. The airship shuddered and stalled. Gideon and I swayed with the abrupt change in motion as a voice carried over the intercoms.

  “Attention, passengers. We have reached our destination. Please gather your belongings and make your way to the loading dock.”

  I looked up at Gideon. He wore a deep frown. “We weren’t supposed to land for another twenty-five hours.”

  Professor Atwood shook his head. “That’s the other thing I was going to tell you.” He shuffled to the window and raised the shutter.

  Gideon and I moved to get a better look. My eyes narrowed in confusion. We were still in space.

  Gideon tensed beside me. His sapphire eyes flashed as he swung toward Atwood. “Why didn’t you warn us sooner?”

  The Professor lowered his head. “I was already in hiding. There was nothing I could do but sneak onboard and try to help.”

  I turned Gideon to face me. “What are you talking about? What’s happening?”

  He squared his shoulders and took my hands. “Lark, they’ve taken us to a space station.”

  I stepped back. “A space station?” I shook my head. “I don’t understand . . . why would they do that?”

  He glanced at Atwood and then back at me, his eyes tight. “Because they lied.” He blew out a breath and raked his hands through his hair. “This whole time they lied.”

  I stepped forward and gripped his sleeve. “Lied about what? Why are we stopping here?”

  “This isn’t a stop,” Atwood muttered.

  My heart pounded in my chest. Gideon placed his hands alongside my face, his eyes holding mine.

  Lark, we aren’t returning to Earth.

  About the Author

  Holly J. Wood is an avid reader and hopeless romantic. She attended Brigham Young University where she pursued a degree in Health Science. She has a passion for travel and has lived briefly in Israel and Mexico. Holly enjoys anything water-related and has a weakness for all things chocolate. She loves to write, but her favorite job is being a mom. She lives in Northern Utah with her husband and four young children.

  www.hollyjwood.com

  hollyjwoodauthor@gmail.com