Chapter Three
Aelyx watched the L’eihr ambassador sweep a wrinkled hand across the surface of the dining room table, knocking the newspaper to the floor. It landed face-up and revealed a mocking headline: HALO Denies Attack on L’eihr Youth.
“Humans Against L’eihr Occupation,” Stepha said through clenched teeth while he glared at Director-General Kendrick. “On my planet, we would have terminated those savages after their first rebellion—rooted them out like the cancer they are.” In a rare display of emotion, he slapped both palms on the glossy mahogany. “How many of our young must die before you assume control of your people? Or perhaps this alliance isn’t a priority for you. In which case, we’ll return to L’eihr on the next transport.”
The ambassador’s final words chilled Aelyx to the core. Without L’eihr technology to decontaminate Earth’s water supply, the planet would cease to sustain life within a decade. But the release of that technology hinged on the alliance, and everyone in the room knew it. Even Syrine looked nervous, and she despised humans.
“I can assure you,” Kendrick said, shifting in his seat, “there’s nothing’s more important to the World Trade Organization than this alliance. We’ve partnered with the milit—”
“Whatever you’re doing, it is ineffective.” Stepha sat back in his chair and folded his hands, resuming his usual monotone. “Negotiations cannot continue while our safety is threatened.”
Kendrick scratched the back of his neck, then splayed both hands in a gesture of helplessness. “Ambassador, there’s nothing to negotiate. The world’s leaders have voted unanimously—they’ll agree to an alliance on your terms.”
In other words, We’re at your mercy. Aelyx didn’t want to take pleasure in the supplication of humanity, but a smooth negotiation process meant he could return home to Cara. He couldn’t deny feeling a rush of excitement at the news.
Stepha considered the director-general’s words, then slowly stood from the table and collected his com-sphere. “Before we can proceed, I must confer with The Way.”
Kendrick stood, too, nodding in assent as Stepha made his way to the master suite in sluggish, labored strides. Aelyx considered offering the director-general a cup of coffee, but the man’s dewy forehead and labored breathing said he was anxious enough without the aid of a caffeinated beverage.
“Can I get you some water?” he asked instead.
“No, thanks.” Kendrick used his phone to point toward the foyer. “I need to make a few calls myself. Think I’ll step outside for a minute.”
“I’ll walk you to the door,” Aelyx offered, since Syrine had chosen to remain seated and ignore the man.
The two strode to the front entrance, and when Aelyx opened the door, a pair of familiar faces greeted him—Colonel Rutter, head of the L’eihr security detail, and David, who waved a friendly hello. Kendrick scooted past the soldiers, and Aelyx stepped aside to let them in.
Colonel Rutter nodded his gray head and greeted Aelyx with a curt, “’Mornin’.” He removed his camouflage winter hat, and David did the same, revealing a crop of shorn blond hair. Rutter glanced around the open living area, acknowledging Syrine with a dip of his head. “Is the ambassador here?” he asked. “I need to talk to all three of you.”
“He’s in a conference, but you’re free to wait.” Aelyx led the way to the living room and gestured for his guests to sit on the sofa. He noticed that while Rutter wasted no time in making himself comfortable, David remained standing, one arm folded against his lower back, brown eyes scanning the room to take in every detail. Aelyx had never met a human youth so dedicated to duty.
“How’s the shoulder?” Aelyx asked him.
“What?” David asked with a smile, pointing to his upper arm. “This mosquito bite? I’ll be fine once the stitches come out. It takes more than a .22 to bring me down. Your shooter didn’t know squat about guns, otherwise he’d have used a .45 to double-tap it. That’s how a real man gets the job done.”
Syrine made a disgusted noise and launched up from her dining room chair. She stomped over to David and jabbed her finger toward his nose. “You deserve the extinction you’ve brought upon yourselves. Look at what happened to Eron. ‘Real men’ tortured him for hours before they allowed him to die.” She raked her gaze over David’s uniform, glaring at the pistol holstered to his waist. “Violence is what feeds you. Your kind isn’t worth saving.”
Aelyx caught Syrine’s gaze and chided her. David risked his life for me. If he were extinct, I would be dead. Not all of them are dangerous or—
She squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to hear him.
“I’m sorry about your friend,” David said quietly. “It wasn’t right, what happened to him. We’re trying really hard to find the guys who did it.”
A single tear rolled down Syrine’s cheek. She scrubbed it away with her fist and kept her gaze trained on the carpet. “Thank you for protecting Aelyx,” she whispered. Then she turned and padded quickly to her bedroom.
Aelyx and David shared an awkward glance while Colonel Rutter buried his face in the newspaper.
“Well,” David said. “Now I feel like an asshole.”
The colonel muttered, “She’s not gonna like what we came here to tell her.”
“Which is…?” Aelyx asked.
Colonel Rutter tossed his newspaper onto the coffee table. “I’m assigning Private Sharpe as your personal bodyguard.” He pointed in the direction of Syrine’s bedroom. “For both of you. I’d like him to move in, maybe sleep in the guest room. That way you’ll have around-the-clock protection with another half dozen guards patrolling the outside hallway.”
“Surprise,” David said with a smile. “I’m your new best friend.”
The casual term didn’t sit well with Aelyx. His best friend was Eron, whose ruined body lay in a cold storage unit as he awaited his final journey home. But Aelyx forced himself to return the smile. “I’ll talk to Syrine. Don’t worry; she’ll get used to you.”
He’d just begun to lead David to the guest suite when his com-sphere buzzed to life in the signature frequency that told him Cara was calling. In that moment, the outside world ceased to exist. Aelyx rushed to his bedroom and locked the door behind him. He knelt beside his expansive king-size bed and spoke his passkey, then rested the sphere atop his comforter.
That first glimpse of her face warmed his blood and made his heart swell. She sat cross-legged atop her cot in the Aegis, her fiery orange hair gathered in a low braid, her blue eyes bright with excitement to see him. If he leaned in close, he could barely detect the adorable freckles that dotted her nose.
Sacred Mother, he missed her so fiercely he ached.
“Elire.” Or beautiful warrior, as he’d nicknamed her. An automatic smile spread over his lips. “How did you know I needed you today?” He hadn’t even realized it himself.
She shrugged, then winced and rubbed her arm. “We’re on the same frequency, I guess.” Then she rotated her shoulder, clearly in pain.
Aelyx tried to check her for injury. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
“You could say that. I feel like I’ve been stuffed in a pillowcase and trampled by elephants.” When he waited for her to go on, she rolled her head to the side in a tentative stretch. “I started your sadistic alien PE classes this week. I barfed twice today on the novice course, and that was an improvement over yesterday. Maybe by next week I’ll upgrade to dry heaving.”
Aelyx tried not to laugh. He supposed the calisthenics routine would seem rigorous to a human unaccustomed to high-intensity interval training. “Ask Elle to grind some h’esha root for your tea,” he said. “And soak in a hot jetted bath. It’ll help diffuse the lactic acid in your muscles.”
“Maybe you missed the part about me being trampled by elephants.”
“Well, I know something that’ll make you feel better.” Aelyx stopped himself and glanced at Cara’s hologram, making sure she was alone. “Is anyone with you?”
“No, Elle’s still at supper.”
He lowered his voice and told her the newest development in the alliance negotiations. “Stepha’s talking with The Way now. With any luck, I could be home before you graduate to vomiting on the intermediate course.”
“Really?” Her face lit up. “Fingers cross—” The hiss of her door interrupted her, and Cara’s gaze darted to the front of her room. She lowered her auburn brows and shouted, “Get out! Go on! You’d better hope I never catch you!”
What was that all about?
When she returned her attention to him, she huffed an angry sigh. “That was Vero. The little monster’s been sneaking in here to pee on my pillow. He hates me.”
Vero. Aelyx released a sigh of his own. He missed his house pet, a fiercely loyal animal, though certainly not without quirks. “Vero’s breed is territorial,” Aelyx explained. “Once he identifies you as part of the pack, he’ll stop marking your bedding.” But in order for that to happen, the clones in the Aegis would need to accept Cara as one of their own. “Better tell the house caretaker to change the settings on your touchpad so Vero can’t get inside.”