An Alien to Remember (Alienn Underground #1)

Prologue

Dark Matter Metal & Leather, Alienn, Arkansas

Luca Radbourne, undercover Alpha-Prime secret agent, stepped inside Dark Matter Metal & Leather in downtown Alienn, Arkansas, and smiled to himself. The information on the shop had been surprisingly accurate and it was exactly as he’d pictured.

Yes. This will do nicely.

He approached the man he was fairly certain was the sole proprietor, seated behind a wooden, countertop-high worktable next to an old-fashioned cash register.

He planned to inquire about the purchase of the man’s business.

It wasn’t officially for sale, but Luca had it on good authority that the owner planned to retire soon, if he could find the right person to take over his business.

Luca needed a base of operations on Earth for the foreseeable future and he planned to be the right person.

To that end, he had set in motion a silent offer through a proxy and been told what was needed in order to move forward with the purchase of this store. He was posing as Jake Jones, a human metal and leather craftsman looking for an established business to run here in Alienn, Arkansas.

Dwight “Dutch” Corley, as Luca had been informed of in advance, was a weathered, wizened old human of an unguessable age somewhere between sixty and infinity.

His wrinkled, tanned skin spoke more of a man who spent his time working in the sun to earn his living, but Luca had been told he liked to go fishing at sunup before coming to his shop to work.

Perhaps that’s where he’d acquired the leathery skin.

Dutch looked up and watched with an unreadable expression as Luca stopped in front of the worktable.

“Good morning,” Luca said.

“Morning.” The reply was civil enough but there was a bit of edge in his voice, as if he knew Luca—or rather, Jake Jones—wasn’t simply another customer in search of a souvenir from Alienn, Arkansas.

Tapping into the human’s thoughts, Luca heard, Who is this guy? Not a customer. What does he want?

Luca shaped his mouth into a relaxed smile. “I’m Jake Jones. I believe a friend of mine mentioned to you that I’m interested in purchasing this shop. I was told you’d like to retire and leave the store in good hands?”

Dutch’s eyes narrowed, then widened. Finally, a friendly smile replaced the suspicious look. “Right. You’re the guy from up north.”

Luca nodded. “Yes. That’s correct.” Even though he was, in fact, not from up north. He wasn’t even from this lush little planet.

Dutch stuck out his hand. “Dwight Corley, but you can call me Dutch. Everyone does.” In the old human’s head, Luca heard a combination of a happy and relieved jumble and not an ounce of doubt or suspicion. That was a relief.

“Good to meet you, Dutch.”

In the human fashion, Luca shook the man’s surprisingly strong hand.

Luca’s contact had assured him that Dutch wanted to retire well away from Alienn.

That worked in Luca’s favor, as he didn’t want the former owner checking in on him once the purchase of the business was complete.

He needed a fair amount of privacy to complete his clandestine mission and Dark Matter Metal & Leather seemed like the best bet to serve his unusual and specific needs.

Though it was a necessity for the sake of the mission, the ruse suited Luca down to the ground. He secretly loved working with metal and leather and looked forward to crafting unique items to sell here during his time in Alienn, Arkansas.

His job in the Alpha-Prime Command Secret Service was a demanding one. It didn’t allow him the free time to do metal- or leather-crafting much anymore. Or ever, really. This would be an exceptional opportunity for him to do his duty and bang out some metal trinkets and hone his leather skills.

It was a rare boon to be afforded such a long stint during a mission that allowed for any personal creativity beyond getting the job done. Again, he looked forward to it—if he could convince Dutch to sell the business to him.

“Did you bring samples of your work?” Dutch asked, appearing eager to get a look at a fellow craftsman’s pieces.

“I did.” Luca shrugged off the backpack he’d slung over one shoulder and placed it at his feet.

He retrieved several pieces he’d created long ago, a few that were crafted more recently and, finally, a couple of combined metal and leather pieces he’d turned out specifically for this meeting to ensure he’d retained a decent skill level to pull off his cover.

He was very happy with the results and hoped Dutch felt the same way.

“I couldn’t bring some of the larger pieces, obviously,” Luca said as he placed piece after piece on the worktable for Dutch’s interested perusal. “But I have a few pictures.”

Dutch shrugged. “That’s okay. I don’t sell too many big pieces. Usually, it’s only when something specific has been commissioned. You will still be doing commission work, right?” he asked, picking up each piece and studying Luca’s work with a practiced eye. Nice work, Luca heard in the man’s mind.

“Absolutely. I love doing specialty items, no matter the size.” Though the mission meant his time as a professional human craftsman would be limited, Luca looked forward to stretching his skills with special projects, big, small or anything in between.

“Excellent.” Dutch nodded as he inspected Luca’s samples.

“Your metalwork especially is top-notch, but your leatherwork is also very good. I think you’ll do well here, Jake.

Our artistic styles are not drastically different, though you certainly bring your own flair to the work.

I like it. I believe the customers will as well. ”

“Thank you,” Luca said, embarrassed to feel his face flush at the praise.

He felt like a raw recruit again, getting a nod of approval from a trainer.

He struggled to contain his delight. The appreciation of a professional craftsman wasn’t necessary to the reason he was buying this place, but Luca was proud of his artistic skills.

It was a warm feeling he hadn’t experienced since before he’d left home. Back then, his teacher hadn’t praised him nearly as much as this old human had in their short meeting. It was even more moving because Luca could hear in the man’s thoughts how much he truly liked Luca’s work.

The stipulation for the very loosely discussed business proposition had been that Dutch had to approve of Luca’s metal and leather “style” before he would even consider an offer. Hopefully, that was a done deal now that it seemed Jake’s style suited Dutch.

The only rogue variable in Luca’s plan had been that his style might not be appropriate for downtown Alienn, Arkansas, or the tourists who frequented the community. Thankfully, that did not seem to be the case.

The town’s bylaws meant he would need Dutch’s approval and recommendations from several other local business owners to complete the purchase of Dark Matter Metal & Leather and run it as a legitimate business for at least the next six months, perhaps longer.

He also needed that business to be quiet and require minimal attention so he was free to do what he was here to do.

His mission was to find whoever was selling classified information to the highest bidder—specifically, proof that aliens were living in plain sight on Earth. That had to stop.

No humans could ever learn that the picturesque Arkansas town was a major waystation on the galactic shipping and pleasure travel lanes for the citizens of Alpha-Prime and other planets.

With Dutch’s approval of Luca’s skill, all that remained was to negotiate the price of the business, file the appropriate paperwork and get himself situated as Alienn’s newest resident, if only a temporary one.

Luca’s Earther contact—one of the Alpha-Prime settlers in town—had told him the specific number Dutch was looking for to start his retirement in comfort.

Luca didn’t have time for a lengthy bargaining session.

He planned to offer just a bit over that number at the outset to ensure that the human felt like he was getting a good deal.

Though Luca’s duty meant he’d never had the chance to make a living from his artistic talent, he could imagine it would be difficult to ponder selling a business one had built over decades.

If he could, Luca planned to find a craftsman skilled enough to continue Dutch’s legacy in the community before the next mission demanded his attention.

When Luca told Dutch the offer he had in mind, the old man’s eyes widened in surprise. Quickly, he schooled his expression and waited for several long seconds before saying calmly, “Actually, that sounds like a very reasonable offer, Jake.”

“I appreciate that, Dutch. I don’t want you to feel like I’m low-balling you.

I wanted to offer a fair price for this place.

I’ve looked around here and there trying to find an established shop that I thought I could feel at home in, and Dark Matter Metal & Leather is the best place I’ve found.

I’m anxious to get started here in Alienn, Arkansas, as soon as possible. ”

Dutch nodded, his expression remote as his mind loudly—as far as Luca was concerned—weighed all the pros and cons of the offer. It was longer before he thought, I’ll never find a better offer and Jake is the first and only craftsman with a similar level of skill as me.

Abruptly, he reached out his hand and said, “Well, then, you have just bought yourself metal and leather goods store, my friend. I hope it brings you as much joy and satisfaction as it has me all these years.”

Luca grinned and they shook on the deal. “Thank you, Dutch. I’m certain I’ll be very happy here.”

Whew, Luca thought. One hurdle down, a thousand more to conquer before the real reason he was here presented itself and he could take care of his secret business once and for all.

The next thing on his list was to hire a full-time store manager.

A person he trusted who could handle all the necessary things to keep the day-to-day store functions running smoothly.

It was vital to Luca’s plan to free himself to spend as much time as possible “alone and creative” in the workroom at the back of the store—at least as far as anyone else knew.

He would have to make sure that the door to his workroom could always remain locked and that he had another exit besides the one at the front of the store or he’d have to remodel before he reopened Dark Matter Metal & Leather under its new ownership.

After taking a quick tour with Dutch, he was pleased to find the back room was perfect for his needs, no remodeling required.

This picture-perfect setup would allow him to hunt for the secret-seller at night while he casually let it be known that the new craftsman preferred to toil away in his workshop without distractions.

Once he located that person or persons in Alienn, Arkansas, he could take them into custody and remove them, if it were deemed warranted by the folks across the galaxy who were way above his paygrade.

After his mission was resolved, Jake Jones would have to disappear and Earth would most likely be off-limits for Luca Radbourne’s future career options. At least this area of the planet, which was one of only a very few where Alphas from Alpha-Prime could visit or live.

For the next six months, he would be just a regular human craftsman working in a metal and leather shop in a small town in southern Arkansas.

Not even the local Alphas in charge at the Big Bang Truck Stop had been informed that he would be working undercover here.

It wasn’t how he typically operated, but that decision was also way above his paygrade. Not his call to make.

Luca planned to enjoy his deep-cover mission as Jake Jones, human artisan, for as long as it lasted before Alpha-Prime Command Secret Services sent him on his next clandestine op.