by Imogene Nix
Galan stopped. Still and silent, willing Joras to continue while his beleaguered mind whirred back to life.
“We could couch it as a gesture of goodwill.”
It wouldn’t be enough, he silently reminded himself, but better than the distance between them now. Once she was healed, he could once more refuse to deal with the humans unless Jessa was involved. That appealed to him, at least as a means of dulling the pain of separation. “Do it.”
After a silent bow, Joras headed to the door. But just as he reached for the palm screen, he stopped. “They might refuse.”
Galan had already come to that conclusion. “They could, but we can sweeten the deal a little. Improve the odds in our favour.”
Joras watched him silently until the awareness dawned on him. “Ahh, we could offer healing to some others. Some who are beyond the ability of their own healers?”
Galan inclined his head. Whatever it took to get Jessa back to him.
Then with a whoosh of the door, Joras was gone, leaving Galan by himself in his office. He sat heavily in the chair, waiting for the reply. It would take time, he knew, but he had to try everything now.
After what felt like horanas, he rose and headed to the door just as it cracked open. Joras stood on the other side, his face pale.
“What? What has happened?”
“They have agreed on certain conditions.” He waited quietly. Not answering the first, and to Galan’s mind, most important question of all.
“What conditions?” His body locked tight with anger. They had no right… He stopped his thoughts right there. Of course they did. They were the government of this continent. But he didn’t and wouldn’t like it. Not one bit.
“They have a number of inoperable tumour sufferers and some other diseases. One called something odd… I can’t remember the term.”
Galan urged him on in silence. Uncaring of the suffering of others for now, as his body and mind demanded answers. He just needed to know the status of Jessa and willed Joras to share the knowledge. But Joras continued to look at him, a strange and fearful expression on his face. “What?”
“She has been bodily damaged.”
The air was sucked out of his lungs. He reached blindly for the door jam. “Bodily damaged? How and where?” He heard his own voice, the rasp of his demand though the haze of devastated emotions.
“They won’t release details. Just that she is under a healer’s care and the injury will take a long time to mend. Longer than we have here.”
“Take them all. Whatever we must do. But get her back to us.” He stopped and gulped convulsively. “She is important to me.”
Joras nodded in silence and retreated.
* * * *
Jessa had just about had enough. Being locked in the small hospital room with her leg in a cast was not her idea of a great time. Of course, since she had been here, all sorts of government types had been and hounded her. How had she managed to make contact? What other species had they heard from? Each time her answers were the same. It wasn’t me, I didn’t do it. I can’t help you.
Each time felt worse than the last and she rubbed her chest without thought, before realising what she had done. Of course, it did no good. The pain continued and the doctors had been unable to find a medical reason for the constant ache.
Three quick raps sounded and Jessa cocked her head. Her parents had come and gone just this morning. She wasn’t expecting anyone, so who could it be? “Come in.”
The door swung open to admit the head of the hastily convened security service. “Miss Bankia? Jessa?” He smiled and Jessa could just about count his perfect teeth in the well-practiced look.
“Inspector Verdain, I presume? I have been over all this before.”
He held up a quick hand. “No. There has been a breakthrough.”
She sucked in a breath and held it. A breakthrough?
“The captain has offered the services of his healer. In exchange, we have managed to get some inoperable patients an opportunity for some help.”
“And?” Her voice was tense in the quiet room.
“Then you can return home.”
“Not good enough.” She nearly yelled and he winced. “I want back into the negotiations.”
He shook his head. “I’m sorry…”
“I don’t care about sorry. Just get me back there.”
“Look…I’m just here to let you know they have offered to heal you. Nothing more than that.”
Jessa stilled. Offered to heal her? He’d kissed her. Perhaps it meant… “Find out. I want to be involved.”
The man blushed and she was sure there was a fair dose of rage involved. Her parents had already told her she was too demanding. But she refused to be locked out now.
He moved away, dialled a number on his mobile phone and started talking to someone in low tones. Ones she couldn’t make out, but the slump in his shoulders at the end and the sigh knotted her stomach once more.
“All right. They have agreed to that.”
The questions ricocheted through her head. “Excellent.” Then his previous words impinged. “And?” She demanded, leaning forward towards the man before her. “How does this affect me?”
“He is insistent that you be seen by their healer. They seem to think they can somehow speed up the healing process.”
He’d done a deal…it didn’t matter why. Others would benefit, she reminded herself. “Okay. What do I need to do?”
“I’ll send in a nurse to ensure you are dressed. We’ll leave as soon as you are ready. They refuse to see any of our patients until you are there.”
“All right then.” The agent smiled again, and once more the man made her stomach pitch and churn. “Wait! Did they mention Seth?”
The agent smiled over his shoulder, reaching for the handle of the door. “Yes. He’ll be there too.” With that he heaved the door open and entered the corridor beyond. Jessa waited for the sound of his footsteps to die away as excitement mounted. The reality of his reasons came back to her with a rush.
They needed breeders.
But in the back of her mind, a little whisper irritated her. What if he wants something different from me? What if it’s just one part of his story? She snorted at the fanciful notion as the nurse sailed into the room.
“They told me you are being released into the care of the government. I’m not sure I like this.” The woman had muttered the words as she bustled around, raising the bed and dropping Jessa’s foot from the sling. “Normally we would keep you a little longer…”
Jessa let the woman mutter while she stripped out of the bed clothes, hauling on the blouse and skirt she had been wearing before. At least they weren’t jeans. The thought caught her off guard and she giggled.
The nurse looked up. “Are you okay?” Her tone and face suspicious and Jessa schooled herself back to her usual calm exterior.
Once dressed, the nurse gave her a crash course in how to use crutches, making her do circuits of the room before she declared herself satisfied. After everything was packed into the small overnight case her parents had brought with them, a wheelchair was brought in and Jessa settled into it. Her purple cast stuck out from under her light floral skirt.
The agent returned then trundled her down the hall and out to the waiting car. He and an orderly settled her into the front seat of the SUV. She reclined the seat after pushing it back all the way. He checked her seat belt was in place as they drove down the drive. Flashes of light caught Jessa off guard and she turned, noting the knot of bodies holding cameras and microphones. “What’s going on?”
“Everyone wants to know about Jessa Bankia. Why she was able to make first contact and what happened after a night on the spaceship.”
The drive through the streets was uneventful and soon they turned off to the access road. Another knot of people waited, but this time some carried placards with phrases such as ‘Aliens Don’t Believe In God’ and ‘Don’t Trust the Aliens. We Don’t Know Why They Are Here
’ emblazoned across them. Jessa gulped. “Have they been here long?”
The agent smothered a laugh. “Ever since your friend arrived.”
She squirmed in her seat looking beyond the shrubbery, now that they had cleared the security post. There. In the distance she could finally see the ship. Her chest loosened and the pain began to disappear.
A line of ambulances waited outside the building and they drove closer, slowly. “They wish to see you before they begin treatments. So we are going to take you into the building. You will be guarded at all times, so you have no reason to fear what will happen.”
Jessa wanted to scream that they hadn’t hurt her. That it was the humans, but the words stuck in her throat. So she nodded mutely.
He could hear a vehicle approaching. For the last hour he’d struggled to remember to use their terms, waiting impatiently for the appointed time to arrive. Joras has been calm and patient, something Galan had always considered himself to be. Except today.
The rumble of voices intruded on his internal ruminations. Was this her? Was she truly here? Each time he’d heard one of their land based vehicles he had stood, waiting only. Each time his hopes were dashed as another ailing and sickly human entered the room. The ache in his chest released a little more.
The door opened and there she stood. Pale, sweating and obviously in pain. He didn’t dash to her side, even though his body demanded it. He had to act nonchalant. Joras had hammered that home, and he knew, on a purely subconscious level, that was the advice he would have given to anyone in his position. But this time, he struggled to remain impassive.
He scanned her with his gaze, taking in the wooden aides under her arms. He checked her over, dipping to her breasts, full and high beneath her light top, and down to the skirt. Finally, he caught sight of the monstrosity on her leg. ‘Bodily damaged’, Joras had reported. Rage grew, contorting within him like an angry dragon ready to soar. With ruthless efficiency he chained it in.
Jessa hobbled her way towards a chair. He moved, dragging out a seat and watched as she settled into it with a grateful grunt. The agent at his side pulled another chair forward and slowly raised the leg to the padded surface. She hissed as if feeling a bone deep ache and he curled his fingers into the flesh of his palms. “Jessa? What happened to you?”
She turned and he could see the pain dazing her eyes. “Healer? Deal with Jessa first.” He bit the words out. Waiting as his medics came closer, scanning her body with a small portable device before shaking their head.
“Barbarians.” He could hear the healer’s comments and agreed inwardly with the sentiment. In a flash the man had crossed the room, sifting and sorting through his assortment of technology and herb based remedies. Satisfied, he came back and attempted to gain access to the leg. “How do you get to the flesh with this stuff all over it?”
Once more Galan watched as the medic hustled back to Jessa, the whole time fury bubbled below the surface. How could this have happened to my Jessa? He returned with a small sonic cutter and made a careful incision in the dried paste on her leg. Jessa winced and looked away and for the first time since she had returned to him, Galan could see the damage wrought on her body.
Once a small section of the material had been cut away and an access point created, he could see some purple and swollen flesh below. He retreated a little way, sure he would empty his stomach before her.
Her pain-filled whispers forced him to turn around, and he waited while his stomach clenched. The healer held a small bone regenerator against her skin. He reached out and she gripped his hand tight, squeezing. He accepted the pain, hoping to offer her some support during the process of her bone setting and regrowing around the obvious fracture. Finally, her grip loosened and her skin began to lose the white pinched look.
The man sighed. “How do we even get this thing off?”
The agent moved forward. One of Galan’s security detail stopped him.
With a small grunt the medic inspected the purple mass, retreated to his bag and hunted noisily. When he returned, he held a small cutter and made an incision, slicing carefully down the thing Jessa called a cast until he held the front section. Galan held his breath, watching him at work, knowing one slip and her skin would be cut too.
Then, with a gruff voice, the Hesparian demanded Jessa stand.
Jessa’s eyes caught his, and he could read the fear and trepidation in their depths. With an inhaled breath she reached for the aids, but the physician tut tutted and shook his head. “You won’t need them.”
Galan extended a hand and she stood, placing the injured leg on the floor. “Oh. My. God.” He smiled at the comment. “You fixed me!” She let go of Galan and flung both arms around the healer with a squeal.
He looked at Galan, horrified, and tried to disentangle himself while Galan guffawed at her reaction. “Come now, Jessa. Let the healer do his job.”
She looked at him and smiled, placing her fingers back in his. He savoured the strength of her grip and the connection between them. Her breath caught, her eyes sparkled and her cheeks regained a pink glow. It stopped him in his tracks as his mouth dried.
I won’t be able to let her go. Ever. The thought crashed into him as the agent stepped up to them.
Jessa took a step closer to Galan, the amazement at her recovery now overshadowed by anger in the face of the agent who stood before them. Not that she honestly thought that he would hurt her, but something deep and primal told her she needed to stay close to Galan.
The agent must have seen something in either her or Galan’s face—he stopped. The security officer waited, his shoulders hunched as if ready to act. Jessa slipped closer to Galan who wrapped an arm around her.
“Come. We have work to do.”
Jessa looked up at him in amazement. Here I am in the middle of the room, with people watching me. What am I doing? Immediately she pulled away and heard him snicker.
“This way.” He indicated through a small doorway where a table sat and there at the end was Seth.
He smiled broadly on seeing her. She grinned back and made her way to the empty seat beside him. It wouldn’t do to embarrass herself further, she thought ruefully.
Once they had taken their places, she noted Joras, Galan, herself and Seth were joined by two others. She looked at Seth.
He shrugged. “I don’t know who they are.”
A pen and pad waited on the table and she gratefully clutched them, cleared her throat and asked, “So, do we take minutes? And do we know everyone at the table? I don’t know these gentlemen.”
They both turned to stare at her. She wanted to shrink under their silent searching and slightly intimidating gazes.
The older man, wearing spectacles and suit, cleared his throat. “I’m here on behalf of the Prime Minister.”
Jessa waited, looking at him.
He stared back.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake. What is your name for the record?”
He leant back and made a steeple with his hands. “My name is Dr Lovejoy. And I am still unaware of how you came to be involved in these negotiations, Miss Bankia.” His haughty tone and steely gaze were no doubt, supposed to make her feel inferior, but a burble of laughter rose in her chest.
Jessa coughed to cover the snorting sound that escaped, forming a small fist with her hand. “Because I am. That’s all you need to know right now.” She grinned, satisfied at the shocked look on his face. “And the man next to you?” She settled once more, the fingers of her other hand cramping as she gripped the pen. She ran the nail of her thumb along the smooth surface.
“Rear Admiral Denton.”
Jessa nodded and jotted down the names. “Right, so where do we begin?”
Galan caught her eye and she noticed the furtive wink he sent her way. Seth kicked her foot under the table hard, and Jessa had to stop the ‘oww’ from escaping.
The meeting progressed slowly. The government pressed for the removal of Seth and Jessa from the working party, Galan block
ed it effectively, his voice firm each time it was raised. Joras said little as did Seth and Jessa in the first hours. The government wanted access to their medical systems. Galan smiled, making a sound of non-committal agreement and Jessa smothered a giggle at the dance of politics which continued around her.
They broke after three hours and the two suited men left. Galan released a breath and sat back down after escorting them to the door. “Now we can begin our discussions properly.”
Surprise filled Jessa as she whipped around. “What do you mean?”
“They were not here as members of the official discussion, Jessa. Didn’t they tell you anything while your healers attended to you?”
Jessa shook her head, the swish of hair forming a red curtain around her face. “No. What should I have known?”
“In order to continue the negotiations on this level, we offered to treat a finite number of patients for illnesses and diseases that your own healers had no treatment for.”
She touched her cheeks, feeling the flame. He’s done this for me? Then her skin cooled as she turned away from his face, her belly churning. What does he want from me? But she already knew. He wanted her body. To breed children and help repopulate his world. The thought, unbidden flashed through her mind. Bitter bile rose in her throat. Surely, he wants more from me? But she wouldn’t allow herself to be fooled into thinking that she was any more than a means to an end.
She’d already learnt that lesson once. And it had cost her, dearly.
“Fine. Then let’s get busy.” She kept her voice businesslike and firm, taking her seat once more and noted the frown on the faces of the men before her. Galan watched, clearly puzzled before he gave a short nod and sat down opposite her.
He watched. Somewhere between the two men leaving and them sitting down, he’d either done or said something that had changed her mind about him once again. For the life of him, though, he couldn’t work out what it had been and his temper frayed a little more around the edges. Now Jessa sat opposite him, focused on finding some kind of agreement where he could talk to their heads of state. The whole time, her persona was cold and remote once more. Frustration filled him, winding his nerves tighter.