by Ines Johnson
“Shanti trusts them,” Beulah continued. “She said they’d get us home.”
They had to get home as soon as possible. She looked again at her sleeping daughter. It was Eva’s weekend with her father. If they didn’t turn the ship around soon, they’d miss his visitation with Eva.
Josiah often missed visitations with his daughter. He hadn’t made a scheduled date in over a month. Beulah always had Eva ready for him. Just in case he did show.
The divorce had been hard on Eva who thought the sun rose and set on her father. For the first few months of their separation, Eva had assumed her father was simply on business trips. Sleepover trips, Eva called them. But her six-year-old mind also knew that, in the past, business trips had never lasted more than a couple days.
By the second week, Eva began waking up with nightmares that her daddy was in danger. Beulah hadn’t known how to tell the poor girl that her daddy wasn’t in danger. He was in another woman’s bed. Beulah had stopped waking up in the middle of the night reaching for Josiah within the first year of their marriage. She was used to him having sleepovers elsewhere.
“We need to get out of here.” Esther went to the wall where Shanti had entered and exited.
Shanti had told them to stay in the room to be safe. Like they had a choice. There was no door on the wall. No way to open or close an exit.
Esther put her hands on the wall. “Let me out she shouted.”
An opening materialized. On the other side of the door stood another child-sized alien. This one had a staff in his hand and a frown on his face. He narrowed his eyes at Esther and clutched his long stick. Esther screamed.
Esther’s scream brought Eva to a screaming awakening. When the child awoke, the first word after her scream of fear was “Daddy.”
Beulah gathered her baby to her. Eva’s little body shook and heaved with sobs.
“I want my daddy. I want my daddy.”
Beulah looked out around the room helplessly. Her eyes caught her sister who cowered away in a corner. Then her eyes fell on the alien child who peered into the room.
It wasn’t the same boy as before. This one had darker skin. She noticed that these beings seemed to come in pairs. One dark, one light.
The dark brown boy had his eyes fixed on Eva. Eva turned her face and caught sight of the alien child. She screamed again and hid her face in her mother’s chest.
The alien boy looked at her in confusion. Beulah looked down at the weapon he held in his hands. The boy followed her gaze. Finally, he made the connection. He dropped the long staff as though it were poisoned.
“I didn’t mean to frighten her.” His words came out slowly, unpracticed. “I only meant to protect you.”
“Protect us,” Esther said. “Protect us from what?”
“Hsing-I and Pakua have neutralized the attacker. They are bringing the enemy on board, to try to come to an understanding.” The boy’s face crumpled in distaste. “It is a Yang concept. As a Yin, I do not understand it.”
Eva turned her head back to the boy. Her sobs slowed as she regarded him. She took in a deep breath, wiped away her tears, and then addressed the alien boy. “Your lips move funny.”
The boy rose a hand to his lips. And then, just as quickly, jerked the hand away. “I speak Eloh. Your inferior brain takes time to interpret my words into your confounding language.”
Eva pushed herself up in her mother’s lap. “That’s really rude.”
The boy bristled.
Eva hopped to her feet and took a step towards the boy. “Your whole family has been really rude to us. You took us without permission. You made us stay in this room like we’re on punishment. And you keep driving this boat too fast and making it shake. I want to go home. Now. My daddy’s taking me for ice cream today.”
All eyes stared at Eva.
Anger and shame and finally defeat warred on the boy’s expressive face. “We will take you home, as you desire. But you will have to have… ice…cream…” he pronounced the words slowly and carefully, as though they were new to him. “…on another day.”
“Why can’t I go today?” Eva asked.
“Because your planet has revolved…” He counted on his long, slender fingers, “… five times since we rescued you.”
“Five days,” cried Beulah. “That’s not possible!”
“Time moves differently in space.” The child shrugged, a very adolescent move of nonchalance. “By the time we turn around, it will already have been, perhaps, thirty revolutions.”
Thirty revolutions? That was a month. Even if Josiah had missed one or two weekends, he would notice if they’d been gone as long as a month. By the time they got back, he would have charged Beulah with child abduction and she would lose Eva for good.
No. This could not go on any longer. She had to get home now.
Chapter Four
Yehfe found Niao in the energy mines. The ship’s life-giving waters had been damaged by a blast that had come from a ship piloted by both their fathers; their marred fathers. But thanks to Shanti and the algae plants, the energy stores were revived.
Many cycles ago, the reptilian race, the Draconians, had descended upon their peaceful Eloh tribe. The Draconians had targeted the Yang brothers of the triads. Having had their non-aggressive twins so brutally separated from them, the Yin brothers turned on their families.
Niao’s Yin father, Ngai, had been tracking them across the universe since that fateful day. His end goal was to sever the remaining bond between father and sons.
Yehfe’s Yin father, Manu, had been a party to abducting the three human females now under protection aboard the Mothership. But Manu had gone to the next life by the hands of Ngai.
“May I sit with you, Niao?”
The youngling nodded his coned head.
“Your spirit is low. How can I help?”
“I tried to help the humans, but they rejected me. There was so much fear in their eyes. It made me sad.”
“Shanti was the same when she came on board; fearful, angry, without trust. It was you that helped bring her around. You helped to make her see that we meant her no harm. That took time, did it not?”
Niao twisted his lip and nodded his head.
Yehfe got the sense that that wasn’t the only thing bothering the young one.
“Did you see the little girl?” Niao said, his voice full of wonder.
Yehfe kept his chuckle to himself. Eloheem imprinted on mates at a young age. It was entirely possible that what the young one was experiencing was a very real connection, and a bond was imminent.
“I have never seen a little girl before,” the young one continued. “She is the most beautiful thing I have ever beheld. And she hates me.”
Yehfe recalled when the women came on board. They had been fearful, tearful. His hearts had ached to reach out to them all to offer them Zen, but he sensed that would be unwelcome at the time.
“She does not hate you,” Yehfe said. “She does not know you. When she comes to know you, I am certain you two will become the most kindred of spirits.”
“Do you truly believe that, Yehfe?”
Yehfe took a deep breath and then held it. He clasped his hands to his chest as he slowly exhaled. “I would not say so if I did not feel so. Give her time, compassion, and kindness.”
The youngling bowed his head at Yehfe’s words, as though they were a sacred sutra.
“I am going to take the humans a meal,” said Yehfe. “Will you accompany me?”
After gathering sustenance for the three females, the two made their way up to the women’s quarters. Yehfe saw that the door was open; a good sign. Perhaps they were more amenable to company, and perhaps would be accepting of his offer of Zen.
Upon closer inspection, his hope wavered. Nse’s staff lay on the floor outside the door. Yehfe heard raised voices inside.
Looking in the doorway, he saw one of the human females cowering in the corner. It was the younger one, the unattached one whose attention he w
as hoping to garner.
Her face was a thing of beauty. The light waves of hair that fell from her head matched her large, bright eyes. He wished she was smiling and still. Instead, her face was contorted with fright and her body shook and trembled. He ached to go to her, to offer her comfort. But he knew that rejection still lay on the horizon.
He turned his attention to the other female humans in the room. He knew the one with dark hair was the mother. Though her hair was darker than her sister’s, she had the same pale skin. Her light eyes were shaded with fear as well.
But she didn’t look frightened of Nse who stood in the middle of the room before the female youngling. The mother’s fear seemed focused inward. Yehfe assumed she was likely feeling the pain in her bond link with her mate due to their separation.
The girl child didn’t look at all fearful. She looked upset. Her small brown face focused on Nse. She was the same color as Niao, which was perhaps why Niao had taken an immediate liking to her.
“I want to go home to my daddy. He promised me ice cream. Mama, you said I’d get to have ice cream with daddy on Saturday.”
“I know sweetheart, I know.” The mother’s eyes looked lost, unfocused. But then they found the door. Then they found Yehfe. “We have to go home.”
Yehfe understood her words, mostly through tapping into Niao. Children’s brains were more adept at learning than the fully grown. Yehfe had learned much of the human language through the bond Hsing-I and Chen-Na shared with their mate. However, speaking the language aloud was still difficult.
“We will return you to your loved ones,” Yehfe spoke slowly, enunciating each word. “I give you my word. But we cannot return until it is safe.”
“The child said that would be a month,” said the mother. “Is that true?”
“I do not understand the word month?”
The woman pinched the skin between her eyes. “How long will it take? How much time will it take to get us back to Earth?”
Yehfe nodded in understanding. She wanted to understand how long she would be parted from her mate. “It will be safest to return after one complete revolution of your planet around its sun.”
The woman’s face crumbled. Her body followed suit. She was going to tumble to the floor.
Yehfe rushed to her aid. It was highly improper to touch a bonded female as a male grown. But Yehfe couldn’t allow her to harm herself. He reached out his hands and caught her falling body.
Her eyes opened on his. They looked forlorn. Images rushed into his head of a man frowning at her. Images of her in tears. Yehfe’s hearts broke at the rush of anguish. With his hands on her person, he was able to communicate his exact intentions to her.
“I will return you to your mate,” he said to her mind. “I give you my word.”
She reached a hand out and touched his lips. Yehfe held still as a flush of sensation crossed his mouth. He had the urge to take the tip of her fingers into his mouth.
He swallowed down that improper desire. He closed his mouth. He set her on her feet. Then he stepped away from her, but he did not let her hands go.
The woman steadied herself, but she did not let go of him. She held onto his hands, seeking his warmth and his strength. Yehfe gave her as much as she wanted to take until their connection crashed apart.
“Get away from my sister, you demon.”
The light-haired sister, Esther, reached out and struck Yehfe. The blow didn’t hurt him physically, but it was painful nonetheless.
Yehfe stepped back as Esther pulled her sister, and the young girl away.
“I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” Esther cried.
Yehfe didn’t understand her words, but he felt the venom in them. He turned away from them. He gathered Niao and Nse. He left the food, and the females, and any hope of acceptance as he turned out of the room.
Chapter Five
She was having the dream again. The dream of her wedding day. It had been a bright, sunny day. The forecast had called for thunderstorms, but they never showed up. At least not on that day.
In her dream, Beulah saw Josiah gazing into her eyes. His light blue eyes shined down on hers. His sandy-blonde hair was parted. His strong hands, hands as pale as her own, held hers as he promised her his protection and his fidelity for the rest of their lives. Then, predictably, the dream darkened into a nightmare.
Those clouds that were supposed to turn up on her wedding day moved in slowly over the first year of their life together. The clouds snuck up like thieves in the night, coming between Beulah and her husband and the promises he’d made to her on that bright and sunny day. Then the thunder struck.
Beulah jerked awake in the chair. Her brow was drenched as though she’d taken the stormy downpour from her dream into her reality. But no, this was a worse reality than she could’ve ever dreamed of than her divorce. She was in space, on an alien ship, held captive. At least the firing and chasing had stopped.
Beulah looked around. The aliens had left them food. It looked to her like lentils. Esther and Eva must’ve had some already. One and a half of the bowls were empty. She saw a clump beneath the sheets of the mattress. Esther and Eva must have bundled up and fallen asleep after the aliens scurried away from them.
Beulah cringed at the memory of the light purple man ushering the young boys out of the room. If she hadn’t believed it before, she believed it now. These beings truly meant them no harm.
When the purple man had touched her, she’d seen her life flash before her eyes. She’d seen Josiah frowning at her. She’d seen herself crying over him. That had been her life in a nutshell; crying while Josiah looked on with disgust.
Watching it through someone else’s eyes brought shame to her spirit. She’d been a doormat all her life. She didn’t know any other way to be.
Laying in the purple man’s embrace Beulah had felt safe, protected, cherished. She knew down in her soul that he would never hurt her. She understood he only wanted to give her peace. The word Zen bounced around in her head. He wanted to give her Zen and bring her back to her mate, back to Josiah.
What Beulah really wanted was another few moments of being held by someone stronger than herself. Being supported by someone who cared for her well-being. Looking into the eyes of someone who put her needs before theirs.
Her stomach grumbled as the scent of lentils reached her nose. She rose and went to the sideboard where the purple man had left the food. There was no spoon or other utensils. She used her fingers. The food was not much to look at but it tasted delicious.
With her stomach settled, Beulah turned her mind to the problem at hand. How were they going to get back home? If it was true, and a week had already passed since they’d been taken, then she was in serious trouble.
She would’ve missed two visitation dates with Josiah. True, Josiah often canceled at the last minute. Eva forgave him every time and looked forward to the next visit with the same bit of enthusiasm. Like mother like daughter, Beulah supposed.
Josiah had lied to her throughout their marriage, promising that each new woman would be the last affair. It never was. Each time Josiah came by to pick up Eva, Beulah hoped he’d see her and remember that he loved her. That this time, whatever woman he was with at the moment would truly be the last one, and he’d come home to his family. He never came home and rarely came by to see his child.
With over a week past, Josiah had to know that something was wrong. He would be looking for them. He’d be worried out of his mind. He’d be going mad and doing whatever he could to try to determine what had happened to them and how he could get them back. That is if he’d made either visit, which wasn’t entirely likely.
Beulah took a deep breath. It didn’t matter if he missed his visitations or not. She had to get back home. The purple man promised he’d get her back to her mate.
Though they hadn’t understood each other perfectly, the words he had spoken to her were full of compassion. His gaze had been so kind. His touch had been so tender. No demon wo
uld be so kind, so compassionate. Maybe they were angels after all.
Beulah shook herself from the memory as her sister emerged from beneath the covers. Beulah looked at the reshaped mass of covers expecting to catch a glimpse of Eva.
“Esther, Eva is with you. Isn’t she?”
Esther blinked from the grogginess of sleep. She patted the covers. The covers flattened. There was no smaller lump hidden in their depths.
Pure dread crept down Beulah’s spine.
The demons had taken her daughter.
Chapter Six
Yehfe sat on the floor, engrossed in the melodic tones of the little girl who belted out a chant about the sun coming out in a place called Tomorrow. Nse and Niao were rapt with attention. Niao stared with open adoration at little Eva. Nse kept his head down but would sneak a peek every once in a while. His eyes would hold on the girl and he’d cease to breathe.
Chang and Lung, a few revolutions older than Nse and Niao, also looked on at Eva. Their green gazes were appreciative, but the energy of their souls wasn’t reaching out in yearning for the little girl. At some point even Teng and Shiung came into the room, drawn by the melodic voice of the girl child.
When her song finished, Eva looked at the room’s occupants expectantly. She frowned and put her hands on her small hips. “You’re supposed to applaud,” she said.
The Eloheem looked at one another.
Finally, Niao spoke up. “We don’t understand that word; applaud.”
“When you like something,” said Eva, “you put your hands together and make a loud sound.”
The males all looked down at their hands, still in confusion as to how to make the loud sound she desired.
“Like this.” She brought her hands together forcefully.
The sound made the males wince. Nse was the first to try it, followed by Niao, and then everyone joined in until the room was loud with the applaud sound. Yehfe didn’t understand why anyone would want to receive praise in such a way, but the smile on the little girl’s face and her deep bows brought joy to them all.