Alien Love (5 page)

“Keep yourself safe.”

Kiele smiled, then slipped around the back of the house, taking a less traveled street out of the suburban neighborhood. There had to be a more accessible entrance to the underwater city, and he had a feeling he knew where it was.

No one gave him more than a brief glance when he boarded the public transport, which told him the local T’An made regular appearances aboveground. Walking into the planet’s famous spa would not be unusual, and exactly what he planned to do.

He strode past the artificial palm trees, admiring the workmanship. There were similar trees on his home planet, and at times like this, he missed them, missed spending more time there. Perhaps, when this was done, he could take Anji home, plan their future.

He knew, from the research their scientists and doctors had done since the T’An first encountered humans, that they were able to conceive. The few mixed couples he had known over the last few years proved this, the females of both species bearing healthy, strong, intelligent children.

Kiele had always wanted a family; now he wanted it with Anji. Her joy, and her good heart would make her a loving mother. An image of her, heavy with their child, filled his mind. She would be beautiful, more beautiful than she was now. He shook his head, a smile tugging at his mouth.

He was completely, hopelessly, in love with her.

The wide glass doors of the spa slid open at his approach and he walked inside, the scent of water surrounding him. A reptilian Karth stood at the reception desk, the overhead lights reflecting off her rich green scales.

“Welcome to Taurea Spa.” Her soft voice slid over his skin, and he was surprised that she spoke his language. “I am C’luthla.”

He nodded. “Kiele.”

“How may I serve you, Kiele?”

“I have an appointment in the city. I understand there is an entrance here.”

“Of course.” She stepped out from behind the counter and headed for a door on the far side of the massive lobby. “This way, please.”

He followed her, entered a hallway, and halted when the barrel of a pistol pressed into his back.

“Welcome, Commander Suun. We have been waiting for your return.”

“He did
what
?”
Anji stood on tiptoe to get in Orlen’s face, so scared and furious she wanted to punch something. Or someone. Orlen would do just fine. “How could you let him go on his own? Damn it—they’ll be waiting for him!”

She spun, headed for the front door. Pern stepped in her path, his right arm in a sling. “The Commander understood the risks. He is the only possible choice.”

“Why?”

Orlen moved to her. “Because by now, the leaders of the city here will have been informed by their faction, and will know who he is.”

She looked from one stubborn, closed face to the other. “And you’re not going to tell me.”

“It is his place—”

“Who the hell is he, Orlen?”

Orlen sighed, and scrubbed his face. “His family is one of the First.”

Anji sucked in her breath, staring at him. The First—holy shit. They were like royalty, the families who could trace their ancestors back to the evolution from air breather to water breather. The descendants of the First were rumored to have more of everything the T’An possessed—more healing ability, more strength, longer life. And more money. Hell, most of the money that ran the T’An empire belonged to the First.

That explained his fast recovery.

She slid her hand into the pocket of her borrowed trousers, gripping the laser screwdriver like a talisman. “They’ll use him,” she whispered. “To save their own necks.”

“Kiele knew that. He counted on them taking him down to those responsible for the lab.”

Dread wrapped around her heart. “Why?”

“Because Kiele knows Dr. Sonia, the scientist behind the experiments, and one of the leaders of the faction. She is Kiele’s aunt.”

***

Rell turned out
to be one of the six guards leading Kiele through the employee only corridors of the spa. He prodded Kiele forward, the butt of his laser rifle tapping Kiele’s scarred gills, and not gently. Kiele stopped and Rell nearly ran into him.

“If you expect me to swim down to see your superior, you had best stop poking at my gills.”

Rell snarled, and raised his rifle. Kiele waited for the blow, unable to stop it with his hands tied behind him.

“Touch him again, Rell, and your punishment will be more severe than you can imagine.” The T’An who had surprised Kiele in the spa stepped into sight, wearing a lab coat and still carrying the laser pistol. “Forgive the measures taken, Commander, but your reputation precedes you, and your aunt insisted we keep you restrained in her presence.”

“I understand. And you are?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Dr. Gara, your aunt’s associate.” He raised the laser pistol. “Thus the reason for my being armed. I know of your prejudice against these experiments, Commander.”

Kiele knew better than to say anything. He simply nodded, and Gara waved him and his guards forward. Sonia knew he was coming, which he expected. What he did not expect was such a well-armed and possibly hostile welcome.

She must have heard about him keeping his brother, Lian, in a cell, after he tried to sabotage Kiele’s ship. Part of Kiele believed she was the one who had goaded his brother into the attack, with her grand lies about progress, and the T’An being a superior race to the humans.

That was going to make her even less happy to see him than normal.

They reached an open room, with a huge pool, and stepped access to the water. Gara turned to face Kiele, the laser pistol aimed at his chest. “I am going to have Rell free you, but if you do so much as move, Commander, I will be forced to shoot you.”

“Understood.” He waited for Rell, not flinching as the edge of the knife that left a deep, painful cut on the side of his right hand. He let his arms fall to his sides, his gaze never leaving Gara. “I will follow your lead. I am only here to see Sonia.”

Gara retreated, until he obviously felt safe enough to turn his back. “I will go in first. Rell, you stay with Commander Suun, and the rest of you follow behind. Once we reach the city, I will take him to Dr. Sonia myself.”

Rell pushed past Kiele. “Dr. Gara—”

“Alone, Rell. Dr. Sonia is still unhappy with you, for more than one reason.” His dark eyes met Kiele’s. “Once I am out of sight, follow me. If you swim too close, I will be forced to harm you.”

Kiele nodded, and Gara looked satisfied with that. He turned to the pool, and climbed down into the water, tucking the pistol in his lab coat pocket before he made a shallow dive and disappeared.

Rell shoved at Kiele from behind. “You next, Commander.”

“Thank you for the reminder.” Snickering had Rell spinning toward his fellow guards, and Kiele used the distraction to step to the edge away from the steps and dive into the pool.

He saw the glow immediately, and headed for it, careful to keep Gara in sight. The scientist was twitchy, and being armed made him a danger to more than himself. Kiele planned to survive this impulsive meeting; he had too much waiting for him above.

By the time they reached the edge of the city, the cut on Kiele’s hand had closed. It would heal on its own now, and he could focus on what lay ahead. He followed Gara into a well-lit tunnel, and broke the surface of the water in an almost identical room. Gara was already out of the water, laser pistol in hand.

“The drying rooms are on the far wall, Commander.” He waved his pistol, and Kiele forced himself not to duck. “You will drop to your knees, forehead to the floor, while I use the room, then it will be your turn. I would skip them, but your aunt does not approve of water dripping in her pristine lab.”

“I imagine not. I will do as you request.”

And he did, lowering himself to the floor, feeling vulnerable and exposed with his forehead pressed to the cool blue tile. He heard Rell approach, and braced himself.

“How the high and mighty have fallen. On your knees, like a peasant. How does it feel,
Commander
?” He made Kiele’s title sound like a slur, and kicked his boot out.

But Kiele was waiting for it and twisted out of the way. Rell let out a surprised yelp and flew backward. The rest of the guards burst out laughing, taunting him as he climbed to his feet.

“You overblown son of a—”

“Touch him, Rell, and it will be the last act you perform.” The cold female voice echoed through the room, and every guard froze, silent. Rell backed off, sensible enough not to cross the woman who strode over to Kiele. “Please stand, nephew. I suppose Gara put you in that ridiculous position.” She raised her hand when Gara stumbled out of the drying room, sputtering an explanation. “I was simply stating fact.” When Kiele straightened, she moved to him, the jewel green eyes so like his own filled with fury. “I know what you have done with Lian. We will get to that violation, right after you tell me exactly why you have decided to target my life’s work.”

“You want me to tell you, in front of all these witnesses?” Kiele pointed behind her. While she was busy glaring at him, those who lived in the city had begun to gather at the entrances that lined the outer wall of the room. “I imagine not everyone here knows what you are doing above their heads.”

“You—” Her hand froze inches from Kiele’s arm, and she withdrew, lifting her chin. “Please meet my nephew, Commander Kiele Suun. He has surprised me with a visit while his ship is in repair.” Kiele raised his eyebrows, but he shouldn’t have been surprised. Sonia had always known everything going on around her. “Please, help me make him welcome, once we have had time to get reacquainted.”

This time she did take his arm, digging her fingers into his bicep with bruising force as she led him out one of the closest exits and across a square crowded with more locals. She was gracious and smiling, pausing to greet those she knew by name as they made their way to what looked like a mansion on the opposite side. The moment they stepped inside she dropped all pretense of courtesy.

“You will do two things for me, Kiele, if you do not want your precious humans destroyed. I know they are plotting a rebellion. Since I lost my most viable test subject, and learned she was free above, I knew they would return. She does know every inch of the lab, after spending most of a year in it.”

“What do you want from me, Sonia?”

“No sense of family honor, Kiele? Not even for your brother?”

“He tried to destroy a ship filled with innocents.” Kiele forced his temper down. The sound of water pouring in the enormous fountain behind her helped him calm, his voice more even when he spoke again. “I am assuming he is one of the two things you demand. What is the other?”

“Leave my lab alone and get the hell off my home.”

Kiele had been nonviolent up to this point, and that caught Sonia off guard—exactly as he intended. He grabbed her by the throat and pinned her against the nearest wall, using his extra two inches of height to loom over her.

“I will not leave your lab alone. It is an abomination, and the experiments will end. Today. As for my brother—Lian will have nothing more to do with you, or Gara, or your faction, ever. You have corrupted him in a way that will take me time to undo, if I even can.” He wanted to tighten his fingers, to scare her, but he was afraid he would not be able to stop himself. “You have disgraced us long enough, Sonia. It stops now. If I have to kill you to make that happen, I will.”

“Kiele—”

“We evolved into what we are to survive. We will evolve again, because that is what we do. Another species is not going to suffer so a minority of wealthy, self-indulgent fools can do so before everyone else. Am I making myself clear?”

She swallowed. “I will never give up my research. It is what I am—”

“Then that makes you a monster, Sonia. I will not abide monsters in my family.”

“I will be happy to take care of that for you.”

Pain burst in his left side. Kiele let her go and stumbled back, his hand closing over the small dagger in his side.

“What—” The pain escalated, and Kiele understood why she used such a small weapon. The blade had been poisoned. “Sonia—” He slammed into the wall, his knees already buckling under the effects of the poison.

She followed him down as he sank to the floor. “I told you, Kiele. I will never give up. Never. Not even for the nephew I once loved. For that love, I chose a fast-acting poison. You will not suffer long, I promise you.” Her cool fingers caressed his cheek, and he did not want to spare the energy to jerk away. “The effects of the poison will multiply in water, so do not attempt to drag yourself to my lovely fountain and take a dip. Unless you want to die faster. Remember this, as you die, nephew.” She leaned in and whispered against his ear. “I always win.”

He watched her stalk out of the room, waiting until she was out of sight to yank the dagger free. Air hit the small wound, and acted like accelerant on a flame. He clutched his side and caught himself on the floor, fighting to breathe. Sonia gave away her poison with her last words. All he had to do was get to the kitchen, and he could find the ingredients to stop it.

He forced himself to let go of the wound, and used the wall to inch up. Sweat poured down his face, glued his shirt to his torso by the time he stood. He pressed his hand to his side, sucked in a raw breath, and pushed off the wall. He managed to stagger halfway across the huge room before his legs gave under him and he slammed against the floor.

Endless minutes later, he gathered the strength to push up to his hands and knees, and started to crawl. Every breath became torture, every movement driving the pain deeper. An image of Anji filled his mind, and he held on to it, to her, waiting for him.

He would return to her.

This time, Sonia would not win.