Taken (Selected Book 2)

by Robin Roseau

  This is a matter of life and death, Sapphire.

  This visor is the best we have for humans. It includes twenty petabytes of information and room to hold up to fifty. As such, it doesn't contain the entire sum of human knowledge, but it comes quite near to it. It is fully capable of accessing human computer networks, both current networks and the ones we anticipate in development. It may be it would require a small upgrade to support future enhancement, but that won't be for years. And, of course, it can connect to any of our networks as allowed by the manager of the network in question, although mine is the only network you can currently reach.

  You may tell anyone you want whatever you want. You may bring your lawyer, if you want, or your sister. I'd love to meet her.

  No strings, Sapphire. One conversation. Two or three days. This is a priceless artifact, and it can be yours.

  Imagine my desperation.

  Your friend,

  Jasmine Brighteyes

  I read it through twice then looked up. The agents hadn't moved.

  "Ma'am," said Agent Swain. "We are instructed to offer you transportation. If you accept, you should bring the package with you. If you decline, then we must leave with the package, but you will remain unharmed."

  I stared at them. I glanced at the visor, gleaming seductively. "Shut up," I told it.

  "Ma'am?"

  "Not you," I said. "That." I pointed to it. "Manipulative bitch! Not you."

  That was when I heard my kitchen door.

  "Liz!" I screamed. "Run!"

  She never does what I tell her. She stepped into the living room and looked at the tableau. "Oh good. You haven't left yet."

  "What?"

  Liz crossed the room to me. She saw the shotgun waiting. "When did you buy that?"

  "Liz-"

  She put her arms around me, kissed my cheek, and then whispered into my ear, "I know the truth. I know someone named Moirai wanted you to become her mate. I know that was the job you went on. I know she lied to you. I don't know what she lied about. I know you can only talk about it with people who know."

  She backed away, and I stared at her, dumbfounded. "How long?"

  "Last week. Someone named Iris Intense Look met with me."

  "They don't know," I said, gesturing towards the handcuffed agents. "I can't say a word to them. I couldn't tell you, either."

  "I know." She looked down at the box then carefully pulled out the visor. "This is one of the visors?"

  "Yeah. Apparently, top of the line. It's a bribe."

  "I know. I received a phone call a half hour ago. So, what have you decided?"

  "I haven't."

  She looked at the visor. "This is an alien device."

  "Yes."

  "Decades, perhaps centuries ahead of anything we can make."

  "Yeah. I don't know about centuries. Certainly years." I thought about it. "A lot of years."

  I let her read both notes. When she was done, she looked up and smiled. "I already packed a bag."

  "I'm not going."

  "Sapphire, you have to go."

  "It's not worth it. They get into your head..."

  "Ma'am," said Agent Swain. I looked past Liz to the waiting agents. "We believe this is your sister, Elisabeth Fletcher. Is that correct?"

  "Yes, this is my sister. Move one muscle towards her, and you'll all eating buckshot."

  "We wouldn't think of it. But we have another package."

  "We have to ID her," Johnson said.

  "Shut the fuck up, Johnson," Swain said. "And give the sister the package."

  Liz tossed a smile and walked casually to the agents.

  "Stay away from them!"

  She ignored me and collected her own letter and package. She returned to me, used Agent Swain's letter envelope, and opened her letter. She began to smile, and then she tore into her own package. Soon she was holding another visor.

  "No fucking way," I said. "That woman is desperate."

  "Please," Liz said. "Please, please, please. I get to keep it if we both go."

  "Damn it!" I screamed. "We can't trust them."

  "Come on," she said. "They promise to send us both home."

  "They lie."

  "They sent you home."

  "And look at me now."

  "Come on, Sapphire. Look. It's shiny!" She lifted it towards her eyes, but I leaned forward and snatched it from her.

  "You don't know what they can do with these things."

  "Come on, I want to live dangerously. You went all the way out to Saturn. I just want to try the visor. You're going to begrudge me one little peek?"

  I stared at her. "This is a bad idea."

  She took the visor and moved it over her eyes. A moment later, I got to see what it looked like when someone else puts one on. She turned to me and began smiling even more widely.

  "Oh, wow," she said. "Oh. It's asking if I want to do the tutorial. Look. You go pack something. I'm going to sit here and do the tutorial." She held out a hand, and I guided her to the sofa.

  "Liz-"

  "Go on. Go pack. You know we're going. There's no way you're taking this thing away from me. Oh my god, this is the Christmas present I always wanted."

  I looked up at the agents, watching me carefully. "The last time we did this, you took me in my pajamas."

  "You can pack a bag, ma'am," Swain said. "May we unlock ourselves now?"

  I picked up the shotgun, worked the slide, and expelled the shells. "This is a bad idea."

  Explanation

  Liz was definitely a kid at Christmas with the visor. She insisted I put on my own. "I want to play some of these games. I'm going to kick your ass."

  "Bad idea."

  It sure felt good to put it on.

  * * * *

  It was full day when we landed at the center in Africa. Liz and I got some sleep, but to both of us, it felt like the middle of the night, and I was beat.

  Jasmine met us at the door of the lander, pulling me into a fierce hug. "I expect a proper Catseye greeting."

  "In private," she whispered back.

  I introduced her to Liz, who immediately began gushing.

  "I really get to keep it?"

  "You got her here. As long as she listens to what I have to say, then it's yours."

  "We're here, Sis, so you're going to listen to anything she wants to tell you."

  "Fine, fine," I said. "But when she uses that thing to snare your mind, don't say I didn't warn you. She's going to try to marry you off to something horrible."

  And so Jasmine hooked each of us by an arm, and she led us into the facility, pulling us both to one of the conference rooms. Once there, I had my blouse unbuttoned about as quickly as Jasmine did.

  "Whoa," said Liz. "What's going on?"

  "Liz, this is a Catseye. I did not receive a proper greeting, and I want one now."

  Jasmine and I hugged again, but this time, I got the full experience, including a tentacle across my face. When I offered a small kiss, the tentacle tip invaded, and in my ear, Jasmine moaned her pleasure.

  "I never get to do this. Humans taste so good."

  I mumbled at her, her tentacle filling my mouth. Jasmine withdrew slowly, and we both sighed.

  "What the hell?" Liz said.

  "Welcome to the land of the space aliens," I said. "That's a standard Catseye greeting."

  Liz cocked her head. "So, where's mine? Or is it only between friends?"

  Jasmine paused. Then she didn't just turn to Liz. She removed her blouse entirely, shrugging it from her shoulders and letting it fall to the floor. The tentacles waved about her.

  Liz stared. "That is so cool!" she said. "Are those tentacles? You're like an octopus."

  "They get that a lot," I said.

  "Does it hurt?"

  "You get a ton of hickies," I said. "She sucks."

  "Are you sure you want a Catseye greeting, Ms. Fletcher?" Jasmine asked.

  "Only if you call me Liz. What do I do? Do I have to take off my
shirt?"

  "Just unbutton," I said. "And maybe pull it from your jeans."

  I was jealous. Liz's hug was a lot longer than mine had been. And she got the tentacle in the mouth treatment, too.

  "No offense intended," she said after buttoning up. "But you taste funny, Jasmine."

  "But not unpleasantly funny?"

  "It's an acquired taste," I suggested.

  "So, was this Moirai lying bitch a Catseye, too?"

  "Temier," I said. "Think huge tiger. But she turned herself into an Amazonian woman. God, she was spectacular."

  "So, no tentacles?"

  "No, no tentacles."

  "I think I'd want tentacles," Liz said with a grin.

  "Last I checked, you were straight," I said. "And Catseye only come in one gender."

  "Hmm. Well, that's something to discuss another day." She turned back to Jasmine. "You may hug me like that any time you want."

  Jasmine smiled. "Thank you, Liz. I enjoyed it. Now I have two humans who let me taste them, sisters both."

  "Taste?"

  "I warned you she sucks," I told Liz.

  "You tasted me?" She asked Jasmine.

  "It's like a lick," I said. "Which is what the Temier do."

  "Oh. Sure. That's all right, then."

  Everyone reassembled her clothing. And then Jasmine asked Liz if she'd like to see her quarters for our stay.

  "That would be great. Sis, talk to me before you turn down whatever it is she wants. I'm going to take a nap. Can this thing give me good dreams?"

  "I'll see to them myself," Jasmine said. "I have something special for you."

  "Bad idea, sis," I said. "I'd take it off before bed."

  "No way. This is so cool!"

  * * * *

  Jasmine escorted Liz herself and was gone fifteen minutes. I prowled the conference room, growing increasingly crabby by the time the Catseye returned. I spun to face her.

  "So, what do you want?"

  "Sit," she said with a gesture. "Something to drink?"

  "I'm fine. What do you want, Jasmine?"

  But I let her guide me to a seat, and she took one kitty corner. When she took my hands in hers, I didn't pull away.

  "Do you like my bribe?"

  "That's not what you brought me here to talk about."

  "Yes, but I'm afraid you'll turn me down, and I'm trying to work my way onto your good side."

  "I get to keep it?"

  "Yes."

  "Free from interference in my dreams?"

  "Yes."

  "Free from any interference at all?"

  "Yes. As long as you really listen to me and let me show you something. Then we'll have a longer conversation. After that, you can nap if you like. We'll talk once more tomorrow, at which point I'll pull out all the stops to try to convince you to help me. If you decide to leave, you may both leave."

  I sighed. "Do you know what I go through to sleep? Do you know how miserable I am? You did this to me."

  "I know."

  "Do you know why I left... my job? Fuck! I can't even talk to you about it."

  "Sapphire, I know the truth. I know Moirai of the Temier wanted you for her mate."

  And like that, I could talk to her.

  "Yes, I know why you left."

  "Why did you tell me what you told me?"

  "Because I thought she'd tell you herself, but I thought she'd wait. I thought you should know. I knew you would be mad if you spent a few months under the influence, and then she told you. But if you already knew, then when she finally confessed, you would know you could trust her."

  "But she didn't confess until I presented her with too much evidence to continue lying to me."

  "I know. So, are you sleeping?"

  "No."

  "Happy?"

  "Hell, no!"

  "Wish she'd told you from the beginning?"

  "Yes!" I screamed. "I can't stop thinking about her. I can't stop loving her. I've tried. I can't even think of another woman. If I see someone attractive, I think about sharing her with Moirai, but I can't even think of touching someone otherwise. I can't sleep. I'm barely eating. I've lost weight, more weight than was safe. It's a hell of a diet, but it's going on too long."

  I hung my head. "I would have stayed, if only I could trust her."

  "I thought so. I'm not usually wrong."

  I sighed.

  "Why am I here, Jasmine? You said life and death. I'm miserable, but I'm not dying, so you don't mean mine. If she's miserable, too, well. Good. She should be."

  "I want you to see something," she said. "And then we're coming back here to talk. You'll listen to everything I have to say."

  "Fine."

  We both stood, and I followed her through the complex. When we arrived at the cellblocks, I balked. "I'm not going in there."

  "I'm not going to shove you into one, Sapphire. You've come all this way. Can't you come another forty steps?"

  "Fine, but I've got my eye on you, Catseye."

  She didn't respond to that. I noticed that the cells around me had their windows darkened. I didn't ask about that.

  But we stopped in front of one and turned.

  Inside, Moirai sat on the bed, staring straight ahead. I ran to the glass and slammed against it.

  "Bronze!" I screamed.

  She looked like shit. Her hair hung in limp clumps from her head. She had lost weight as well, a lot more than I had, and she looked gaunt.

  "She's dying," Jasmine said. "She hasn't eaten in weeks. She's committing slow suicide."

  "Make her eat."

  "That would be a violation."

  "You didn't seem to have any trouble violating me."

  "So we should force her to live?" she asked. "If she could recover from this, we'd see her through it. But she's given up, and she won't even respond to us. I had her brought here, and she didn't even notice. She sits there, staring ahead. She hasn't moved in three days."

  I spun to face Jasmine.

  "This is a trick."

  "Does that look like a trick?" she asked, pointing. "Get a good look."

  "I am not going to feel guilty for this!" But I spun to look at her, and I began to cry. "You can't let her die, Jasmine. Save her!"

  "I'm trying, Sapphire. I'm trying." She stepped up beside me and set an arm around my shoulders. "I'm trying," she repeated.

  Then she pulled me from the glass, and as I sobbed, we slowly walked away.

  She didn't take me back to the conference room. Instead she took me into the living areas. We entered a room, and she said, "This is my home. Be welcome."

  She led me to a sofa, gave me a box of tissues, and then held me while I cried.

  * * * *

  "Please don't let her die."

  "I won't force her to live. I can't. If she wants to die, she's going to die."

  "This isn't my fault."

  "I am not here to assign fault. I'm trying to save her. I'm trying to save both of you."

  "I'm fine."

  "Are you?"

  "What do you want?"

  "I want you to listen. I'm going to tell you something very simple. She didn't tell you because she was terrified. At first, she was terrified if you knew, you wouldn't get near her. And then she was terrified that if she told you, you would be too mad to forgive her."

  I stared straight ahead, not responding.

  "You love her," Jasmine said. "Don't you?"

  "Yes," I whispered.

  "You want her."

  "Yes."

  "You liked the station. You'd rather be here, but you could live there and be happy."

  "Yes."

  "You liked your friends."

  "Yes."

  "You liked how Bronze feels."

  "Yes," I whispered.

  "You want a reason to forgive her. You want some way to forgive her."

  I said nothing.

  "Don't you?"

  "Yes." I wasn't sure she'd hear me, but she did.

  "So forgive her. Sh
e made a mistake. She didn't do it to hurt you. She did it because she was afraid. It was a mistake, a fairly big mistake, but she would do anything for you, Sapphire."

  "I can't."

  "Of course you can. You just decide to forgive her a mistake. You realize that people make mistakes. And if you love them, you stand up straight, forgive, and move on. Because you know what happens otherwise?"

  I didn't answer.

  "In this case, she dies. You will feel guilty for the rest of your life, and I bet you don't make it another year before you follow her."

  "You did this to me!"

  "Yes, I did. But tell me something. Were you happy before we collected you?"

  "What? Of course I was."

  "Were you? You were confident at work but socially withdrawn, and it wore at you."

  I sighed and didn't answer. Instead I latched onto something else. "You did this to me. All of you did this to me. She did this to me. You took me. You kidnapped me and brought me here. You did all this to me. She said everything she did was for me, but it was all for her."

  I turned fully towards her. "Why couldn't you just have asked? Why couldn't she have come to Earth and invited me to visit? We could have gotten to know each other. She could have stayed Temier. I would have loved to have seen her like that. We could have gotten to know each other. She could have talked me into all this. If she needed a challenge, I could have given her the challenges. She told me she needs to win a challenge, but she didn't need that other shit they told me some of the species require."

  She studied me. "I'm going to tell you the very last thing you don't know. We did it the way you wanted us to."

  "Oh, I don't think so."

  "You gave us two days to test you. Once you climbed into the chair with the visor on, we began testing. You won't remember anything but brief flickers. It was funny. You showed not an ounce of xenophobia with the dolphins and again with Moirai. You confused us. We always start with the xenophobia testing, and we were expecting yours to be low by then. Instead, you were almost frantically xenophobic, and we didn't understand."

  "That doesn't sound like me."

  "The only species that didn't freak you out were Catseye and Temier."

  I studied her carefully. "I've met a variety of other species. I'm fine with all of them."

  "Yes, well, what do the Catseye and Temier have in common?"

  I wasn't ready for her puzzles. Finally she answered for me. "There are no male Catseye, and we didn't test you against a male Temier."