Chapter 24 #2
And now Twink, Powerbottom, Eric, and I settled on a circular sofa with Eric assessing the different tentacle rests.
Kryton had an impressive ship—far more spacious than mine, less exposed equipment, more furnishings for comfort.
Justice officers tended to have nicer ships, as they were considered higher ranking than members of our exploratory council.
“Very tiny, cute guy,” Twink said, rubbing noses with the Chihuahua. “Think I’ll call him Pluto.”
Pluto must’ve sensed I was uncomfortable with Twink naming him because he growled at me, as if to silence any objection.
“She’s in a chamber now,” Kryton said as he rejoined us. In the time he’d taken to get there and back, he’d already transformed into his human body, same as me, and he’d thrown on a pair of white shorts that barely covered much of anything. He handed me a pair of pants.
“Thank you,” I said, pushing to my feet.
“It’s no problem,” he said. “Consider them a gift, from one Furker to another.”
He used the name I’d provided Twink with for our species, so I figured Twink must’ve shared this at some point during their rescue.
I still held Twink’s hand, and I didn’t want to release it, even to put on pants, not after everything that happened.
Not when I’d almost lost him. But I forced myself to release Twink’s hold so I could get dressed.
Not that I was particularly bothered, but it was apparent that Powerbottom and Eric were struggling to look anywhere other than my crotch.
As I slipped them on, Kryton’s gaze met Powerbottom’s, and he winked.
“Um…I think we need some answers,” Powerbottom said.
“Powerbottom is right,” I added. “There are a lot of details we have to cover.”
“Powerbottom?” Eric asked.
“Powerbottom?” Kryton followed, a broad grin stretching across his face.
I was annoyed by this distraction. I had too much to think about other than some horny Furker’s mating impulses. “There will be surveillance footage of what happened in a Tier 5 territory.”
“Already taken care of. Before the attack, I used our tech so all recording devices displayed a wolf in a dress performing a more plausible scenario, and when I joined our trio of humans, the recordings will show us simply running into the parking garage across the street.”
“People were there,” Eric chimed in. “They’ll tell others what they saw.”
“A mass delusion. Not uncommon among your species, and by the time word gets around, there will be so many conflicting accounts, no one will know what to believe. But none of you will have any footage of what happened, so if you are interviewed, simply say that you hid in the parking garage until the event came to an end.”
“Thank you,” Twink said.
“I’m sure the feds will still be suspicious. There’s already been enough activity on this planet that they’ve got an ear to the ground for us, but at least they won’t have any evidence linked to us specifically.”
“And they’ll leave Twink alone?” I pressed.
“From what transpired, I doubt they’ll think much other than he was a lucky individual in the mix, so as long as we can prevent any other instances from arising, we should be fine.”
That likely wouldn’t be an issue, especially with Sheila captured.
“Oh, yes,” Kryton added before playing with his arm cuff. The drone appeared at his side, opening, and he pulled a syringe from it. “I believe this belongs to you. Don’t need a human coming across alien tech, violating intergalactic law.”
He handed me the syringe, which I returned to Twink’s backpack as I asked one of the more pressing questions weighing on my mind. “So how did you know what was going on?”
“The Justice Department received two signals—one for distress and the other alerting of illegal alien activity.”
So, I had effectively repaired my communications panel.
“It was from a Furker,” he went on, “so I began tracking as soon as I received my orders, and my tech helped me detect the alien activity, leading me to the café.”
“So you were already on Earth,” I observed. “Why?”
He glared at me. “You know I’m not allowed to reveal the reason behind my time here. It’s confidential, and I’ve said just about as much as I can on that.”
The Justice Department had emissaries throughout the universe for various reasons, and I imagined his presence here wasn’t just to keep an eye on a Tier 5 planet, though I was curious to know what exactly his mission might’ve been.
Kryton took down an official report of my incident.
I described my purpose, as well as my relationship with Sheila and how I wound up on Earth.
During all this, Powerbottom kept shooting dirty looks at Twink, whose uneasiness intensified throughout, which Pluto seemed to be trying to soothe with licks.
He was already incredibly fond of my boyfriend.
Seemed he was a good judge of character.
Once I finished my report, Kryton said, “That should be enough. Now, I intend to cryofreeze Sheila for transport. She’s likely coming to from the sedative you pumped her with, if you wanted to swing by and have a chat with her first.”
I hesitated, looking to Twink as I considered if I should just let it go. But I couldn’t deny that a part of me wanted one last conversation.
Our last conversation before today, I lied to her so I could make my getaway. Apparently, she’d been deceiving me too, in that she’d known I was trying to escape and had tampered with my ship so I would crash-land on this planet. It was time for us to be honest with one another.
“Go on,” Twink said, taking my hand. It was as though he was learning to read me the way I read him.
I cupped my free hand against the back of his head and drew him in for a kiss.
I’d intended for it to be quick, but between being a Furker and this relief in knowing he was okay, I definitely lingered longer than I should have, something that earned barks from Pluto and an eye roll from Eric as I pulled away.
Kryton led me back to the chamber where he was keeping her—behind glass strong enough to contain her, but still bound against the floor as well.
“Sheila?”
Lying on her side, her dark flesh shimmered under the overhead lights. She was quiet, the way she might have been when we would get into one of our fights, especially in those times where I would demand she release me.
“You left me.” Even though the words were still shrill, especially to my human ears, they were gentler than usual, I figured because her body was still dealing with the effects of the tranquilizer.
She stirred, getting onto her knees and moving closer to the glass, though she wouldn’t make eye contact.
Seeing her in this vulnerable state warmed my heart, reminded me of the side of her I’d first fallen in love with.
Or at least, that’s what I’d thought it was.
“I knew you would eventually,” she revealed. “I only wanted a little more time. A few more babies. Maybe fifty thousand or so.”
“You know that would have never been enough.”
She growled. “I don’t know how you can bear to touch that thing.”
Now wasn’t the time to tell her that he would likely feel the same about her.
“But you love him?”
I hadn’t used those words to express it, but given what I’d experienced today and what had only intensified since we’d come to know one another, I had to admit, “I do.”
“Then I have lost.” She tucked her head low.
“It’s not a competition,” I said, though I knew that wasn’t something her species could really understand.
“And now I’m going to be in prison.”
“Yes. There will be several charges for invading a Tier 5 planet, for putting Tier 5 species at risk of imminent danger, assault against an officer of the Justice Department…”
“Okay, you don’t have to name them all,” she insisted, finally making eye contact, and that sweet smile slipped across her face—well, at least as much as a Vorcon could smile.
“You should go,” she whispered. I nodded and turned to head off when she said, “But one more thing. I will get my revenge.”
Fear coursed through me because I could tell she meant it, but also, she wouldn’t have been a Vorcon if she hadn’t threatened me.
“Goodbye, Sheila.”