by Anna Zaires
Emily let out a breath she’d been holding and lowered still-purring George to her lap. She felt strangely relieved. Up until this moment, some part of her had feared that Zaron had just been trying to pacify her with promises of peaceful settlement. But he’d told her the truth—or at least the same truth that the Krinar had communicated to the developed nations’ leaders. The visitors’ real intentions had yet to be determined, especially in light of their secret blood-drinking tendencies, but Emily felt better nonetheless.
Next to her, Amber was watching the news with an expression of stunned disbelief.
“Aliens?” She turned to face Emily. “They’re kidding about this, right? It’s some kind of super-early Halloween trick?”
“I don’t think so,” Emily said. Amber was her best friend—they’d been inseparable since freshman year of college—but for some reason, Emily was reluctant to discuss Zaron with her. She wanted to think it was because she was bone-tired from the trip, but deep inside, she knew the truth.
She didn’t want to talk to her best friend about her captivity because she felt raw and shredded, torn up by the knowledge that she’d never see Zaron again. Going over the whole story would be like ripping stitches out of a still-bleeding wound, and Emily didn’t know if she could bear it—not yet, at least.
“Oh, come on. Aliens?” Amber jumped up and began to pace. “Fucking aliens? There’s no way, just no way. It has to be a prank—or maybe they’re confused, and it’s really the North Koreans or the Chinese trying some kind of new weapon. Or maybe it’s one of those hacktivist groups. Maybe they got into NASA’s computers and are making them think they’re seeing aliens. Or maybe…” She went on and on, coming up with ever more creative alternatives while Emily petted George and listened, too tired and dispirited to do anything else.
Finally, after what seemed like a half hour, Amber realized Emily didn’t share her shock and disbelief.
“You don’t seem surprised by this,” she said, her auburn eyebrows drawing together as she stopped in front of Emily. “Why is that? Did you hear something on the way?”
“I…” As much as Emily didn’t want to talk about her trip, she didn’t want to lie either. “Sort of,” she hedged, stroking George’s soft fur.
“Sort of? What does that mean?”
Emily let out a sigh. She should’ve known Amber wouldn’t just let it drop. With her often-dreamy gaze and bohemian sense of style, Emily’s friend might’ve looked like an absentminded artist, but she was as sharp as any detective. It never paid to underestimate Amber—especially since she knew Emily so well.
“Can we talk about it tomorrow?” Emily asked, though she knew the futility of her request. “I’m really tired after the trip and—”
“What? No, of course not! You disappear in Costa Rica for two weeks; then you come back, and there’s a freaking alien invasion that you don’t seem surprised by?” Amber sat down and folded her arms across her chest. “Spill. Now. You don’t have a job, so you can sleep in tomorrow.”
“Okay, fine.” It had been worth a try. Taking a deep breath, Emily launched into her story, beginning with her fall in the jungle. Amber listened in open-mouthed shock, her hazel gaze trained on Emily’s face in horrified fascination. As Emily got to the part where she met Zaron for the first time, the TV began broadcasting just-released images of the Krinar ambassador—a tall, dark-haired man who was as strikingly beautiful as her captor. According to the government officials, he went by the name of Arus.
Amber’s attention shifted to the TV. “Holy fuck,” she breathed, staring at the photographs on the screen. “Did your Zaron look like this Arus?”
Emily nodded. “Pretty much.” Zaron’s face was a little leaner, his lips fuller and more sensuous than the ambassador’s, but the flawless symmetry of his bone structure and the bronze smoothness of his skin were the same. “I met a Krinar woman too, and she had a similar darker coloring.”
“You met two aliens?” Amber forgot about the broadcast, all her focus on Emily again. “Oh my God, tell me more!”
Rubbing George behind the ears, Emily continued with her story. She told Amber how Zaron had detained her for seventeen days and how intelligent all of their technology seemed to be. She described his physical appearance and incredible strength, detailed some of their conversations about Krina, and even touched on Zaron’s tragic loss of his mate. The only thing she couldn’t bring herself to say was how close she’d gotten to her captor during those seventeen days, but as it turned out, she didn’t need to.
“You fucked him, didn’t you?” Amber said when Emily stopped to catch her breath. Her voice was flat. “You had sex with that alien.”
Emily felt heat creep up her neck. To cover up her discomfort, she lifted George to her chest and cuddled him closer. “Why do you say that?” she asked, hoping she didn’t look as flushed as she felt.
Amber cocked her head to the side. “Because I’m not an idiot, that’s why. The way you talk about him, the way you practically glow as you describe him… I’ve never seen you like that, not even when you were first dating Jason. You’re a beautiful girl, and if these Krinar are indeed as human-like as you describe, it’s not a stretch to imagine that two attractive people—well, one human and one not-quite-human—might hook up when forced to live in close proximity.”
Emily didn’t say anything, so Amber reached over and took George from her, placing the cat on her own lap. “You know I’m not going to drop this, so tell me. Did you sleep with this Zaron?”
George let out an unhappy meow and jumped off Amber’s lap. Distracted, Emily bent down to retrieve her cat, but he stalked off toward the kitchen, tail raised, apparently displeased with all humans.
“Emily…” Amber’s tone held a warning note.
“All right, all right.” A determined Amber was hard to resist under normal circumstances, but when Emily was exhausted and heartsick, it was all but impossible. “Yes, we slept together, and before you ask, yes, he has all the same equipment as a human male. Happy now?” Despite her attempt to maintain her composure, Emily’s voice sounded brittle, like she was on the verge of crying.
“Emily, hon, that’s not why I brought it up.” Amber was frowning now. “I mean, yes, I’m obviously curious, but I asked because I’m worried about you. Nobody knows anything about these visitors, and this man—this alien who held you captive—healed you with their technology, and then you entered into a sexual relationship with him. You understand how crazy and dangerous that is, right? At the very least, you should get yourself checked out by a doctor, or—”
“No.” Emily jumped up, horrified. “That’s the last thing I need. They’d want to study me, and—no. Just no.”
“But—”
“No. No way. Amber…” Emily gave her friend an imploring look. “You can’t tell anyone what I just told you, okay? I don’t want people knowing what happened to me.”
“Well, obviously, I’m not going to go running to the media.” Amber rose to her feet. She was two inches shorter than Emily and had a thinner build, but her outsized personality always made her seem bigger. “What do you think I am, a complete idiot?”
“No, of course not.” Emily ran a weary hand through her hair. “But I don’t want anyone to know, not even your parents or your sister. Can you do that for me?” When Amber hesitated, she added, “Please. It’s really important.”
“Okay.” Amber blew out an audible breath. “I won’t tell anyone. But can you please promise me something?” Her hazel eyes were somber. “Go see a doctor, just for a regular checkup. You don’t need to say anything if you don’t want to, but at least this way, you’ll know if you’re okay—physically, I mean.”
“Amber…” Emily sighed. “If he’d wanted to harm me, he wouldn’t have healed me. I’m perfectly fine—healthier than ever, actually.”
“He might not have harmed you on purpose, but what if you picked up something that could make you sick later, or cause you to infect others?” Amb
er said, and Emily realized that her friend was purposefully maintaining some extra distance between them. “Europeans all but wiped out Native Americans with their diseases. Even if the Krinar don’t plan to kill us, their germs could. Our immune systems aren’t equipped to deal with extraterrestrial flu, you know.”
Emily stared at her, struck by the thought. Then her brain started working, and she shook her head. “No,” she said. “That’s a valid concern, but I don’t think Zaron’s people would’ve come here if there was any danger of infecting us. They’ve been visiting Earth and walking among us for thousands of years. If we were going to catch something from them, it would’ve happened already. I think their medical technology is such that they can prevent this from happening.”
“Okay, that may be true,” Amber conceded, looking marginally relieved. “But I’m still worried about you, Emily. Are you really okay? I mean, after that fall and everything…”
“Yes, of course.” Emily forced herself to smile. “I’m just tired from the trip. I think it’s best if I grab George and go home. It’s getting late, and I have to stop by a grocery store so I have breakfast tomorrow.”
“Are you sure? Because you’re welcome to crash here. I have that futon—”
“What?” Emily laughed. “No, thank you. I can walk five blocks to my own place. I’m not that tired.”
“Okay,” Amber said. “But call me when you get home, all right?”
“I will—if I can get through.” Emily went into the kitchen, with Amber following her. She found George on the windowsill, his tail swishing as he stared at the street below. Emily picked up the cat and carried him back into the living room to put him in his crate. Then she grabbed her backpack and headed toward the door.
“Emily, wait,” Amber said when Emily was about to step out of the apartment.
Emily turned to face her. “What is it?”
“Do you think…” Amber’s voice wavered. “Do you think it’s true what they said on the news about their intentions? Are they peaceful people?”
Emily froze. When she’d described Zaron to her friend, she’d purposefully omitted any mention of his predatory traits and the Krinar’s possible vampirism. There was no need to scare Amber when all she had were her suspicions. Besides, even if the Krinar drank human blood, that didn’t mean they were out to destroy humanity—or so Emily hoped.
“I think what they said on the news is true,” she said after a moment. “At least it dovetails with what Zaron told me. If they’re lying, they’re consistent about it, but I don’t know why they would want to deceive us. I don’t know much about their weapons, but judging by everything I’ve seen in Zaron’s house, I don’t think we’d stand much of a chance if they decided to destroy us. And if they did decide that, I don’t know why they’d bother with this ambassador charade.” Unless it was to keep humans calm while they set up their blood farms—but Emily kept that possibility to herself.
“Right, that makes sense,” Amber said, though she looked pale again. “But do you think, just in case, we should get out of the city? Maybe go to my parents in Connecticut? In the movies, they always hit the major cities first, and here we are, smack dab in the center of Manhattan.”
Emily chewed on her lip. How could she reassure Amber when she felt so uneasy herself? “Look, if you’re worried,” she said, “you should probably leave. I’m sure your parents would love to see you.”
Amber frowned. “What about you?”
“I’ll be fine,” Emily said. “I just got back, and I really don’t want to go anywhere again. The traffic must be insane. Besides, if the Krinar plan to level Manhattan, we’ve got bigger problems.”
“All right, it’s your call,” Amber said. “I’m going to try to reach my parents and see how they’re doing. Let me know if you change your mind and want to come home with me.”
“I will,” Emily said. “It’ll be okay, though. Like the President said, we just need to stay calm, and everything will be fine.”
Gripping George’s carrier tighter, she opened the door and headed out.
* * *
Everything wasn’t fine, though—something Emily realized as soon as she left Amber’s apartment. The panic on the streets was tangible, the pedestrians and bicyclists frantically rushing about while the cars stood bumper to bumper. The drivers were honking and cursing, and a few frazzled-looking policemen were blowing their whistles in a futile attempt to clear the congestion. The usual noise of the city had been amplified tenfold, and Emily’s head pounded with agony as she made her way through the crowded sidewalks.
“Just one more block,” she told George, whose displeased meows were adding to the cacophony. “We’re almost home.”
Finally, she got to her building. Like Amber’s, it was old and rundown, with no elevator in sight. Though Emily had been able to afford a studio in one of the newer high-rises, she’d been focused on saving money and investing it for retirement—a goal that seemed laughable at the moment.
At least her studio was on the second floor, not fourth.
“Here you go, Georgie,” she crooned when she got into her apartment. Putting down her backpack, she opened the crate and let the cat jump out. “Home, sweet home.”
Tail swishing, George stalked off to inspect his territory, and Emily plopped down on the plush armchair that was her studio’s equivalent of a couch. She felt so drained she could barely think, but she knew she had to get food for tomorrow. Forcing herself to get up, she grabbed her keys and wallet from the backpack, slipped them into the back pocket of her shorts, and went down to the small grocery store on the next block over.
The owner was already locking up when she got there.
“Wait, please,” Emily begged, grabbing the door handle just as he started to pull down the metal shutters. “Please, I just need to buy a few things. I’ll be quick, I promise.”
The white-haired man hesitated for a moment, then slid up the shutters and unlocked the glass door. “Fine, but hurry,” he said gruffly, pushing the door open. “I have to get home to Queens, and it’s madness out there.”
“No problem, thank you!” Emily was already running down the aisles with a basket, throwing in all the necessities, plus extra food for George. It took her less than five minutes to get everything, but by the time she unloaded her haul at the counter, the store owner was looking impatient.
“I said to hurry,” he grumbled as he rang up her purchases.
Pushing her tiredness aside, Emily gave him her brightest smile. “Thank you so much. I really appreciate this. Have a safe trip home!”
Grabbing her purchases, she hurried out of the store, but before she made it half a block, something heavy plowed into her, knocking her down and sending her bags flying. She landed on her hands and knees, the hard asphalt scraping the skin off her palms as she slid forward, and in the next moment, she felt something tugging at her back pocket.
“Hey!” she yelled, jumping up and turning, but the teenage boy was already sprinting away, her wallet clutched in his hand.
“Stop him!” Emily started to run after the thief, but he’d already disappeared into the crowd and no one was paying attention to her, not even the cops blowing their whistles at the traffic.
Shaking, Emily stopped and headed back to pick up her purchases. The rushing pedestrians had already stepped on some of her food, so she scrambled to recover as much as she could, stuffing the groceries back into the bags with shaking hands. Luckily, she hadn’t bought anything in a glass jar, so most of the products had survived. Emily herself, however, felt like she might shatter at any moment. Her scraped palms were stinging and bleeding, and her heart was pounding in her throat, the excess of adrenaline combining with her headache to make her feel physically ill.
She didn’t know how she made it back to her apartment, but somehow she found herself by her door, keys in hand. She wondered vaguely how they’d managed to stay in her pocket, but she had them, and that was all that mattered.
E
ntering the apartment, Emily locked the door, washed her bloodied hands, put the groceries away, and poured dry cat foot into George’s bowl. She held it together until she stepped into the shower, but the moment she felt the hot water spray on her skin, all remnants of strength deserted her.
Sinking down to the floor, Emily wrapped her arms around her knees and cried.
Chapter Thirty-Four
“Good evening, folks. Our show tonight marks the seven-week anniversary of K-Day, and amazingly enough, we haven’t been vaporized yet,” the late-night TV talk show host said as Emily stared listlessly at the screen. “For those of you who have been living under a rock, seven weeks ago today, the Krinar—or the Ks, as they’re colloquially known—arrived and turned our world upside down. To celebrate that momentous occasion, today we have a special guest, Dr. Edmonds, who’s here to tell us the latest theories on the visitors’ biology.”
“Thank you, James,” the guest said, sitting up straighter as the camera swung toward him. “Glad to be here, and glad to see so many of you stayed in the city and came out to the studio today. You’re all very brave—or very stupid.”
The audience laughed and clapped in response.
“Now,” Edmonds continued, “as all of you know, it is suspected that the Krinar may have a significantly longer lifespan, as well as greater speed and strength. James, if you don’t mind putting on that video…”
The image changed to show a grainy smartphone recording of a blurringly fast fight punctuated by flashes of gunfire and explosions. Without slowing the recording, it was impossible to figure out what was going on, but Emily, like everyone in the audience, already knew what the video was about.
The recording was of a dark alley in Riyadh where a band of thirty-three Saudis, armed with grenades and automatic assault rifles, had attacked a small Krinar delegation some two weeks earlier. They’d managed to injure the six unarmed Ks, and that’s when things had gotten hairy. The wounds hadn’t prevented the visitors from ripping the Saudis to pieces—literally in some cases. The blurring speed with which they’d moved and their incredible strength—one K had thrown two men sixty feet into the air, one with each hand—had stunned the human population, as did the sheer savagery of the fight.