by S A Pavli
“I’ll join you.” I stood and gave Manera a reassuring smile.
“See, the male of the species,” said Christine didactically. “Are herd animals. Go to the watering hole together, pee together. Sure you don’t want to join them Derek?”
“Nah. I have iron control over me waterworks,” he smirked.
I followed Brian to the toilet. As we washed our hands he turned to me.
“This girl of yours Paul. Melissa.”
“Yes Brian. What’s the problem?”
“No problem. She’s gorgeous. Very exotic. And very nice. Looking at you two I think she may be the one right?”
“Very perceptive of you matey.”
“Well I am a detective. I noticed she was a female straight away.”
“Impressed.”
“Right. But….I also noticed a couple of odd things about her.”
“Odd? There’s nothing odd about her. She’s bloody perfect,” I protested.
“No don’t misunderstand, not odd in a bad way,” he said hastily. ”Just unusual.”
“Like what?” I asked.
“Well, her hands for a start. The fingers are the wrong length.” He held up his hand. “You see, men generally have the third finger bigger than the index and women often the other way around. But Melissa’s index is the longest, even longer than her middle finger. Never seen anyone like that before.”
“I guess it’s a minor genetic abnormality Brian.” I tried to be casual and unconcerned.
“Her facial bone structure is a little unusual,” he went on. “I’ve been trying to pin down her racial type.”
“Jesus Brian, that‘s a bit intrusive.” I was shocked and impressed by Brian’s powers of observation on the one hand but annoyed that he should be examining Manera so closely.
“Sorry Paul, it’s just professional curiosity.” He was clearly embarrassed. “Like I say, I’m a detective and we are trained to be observant. But hey, sorry if I have offended. I was just curious, but I can see now it was inappropriate.”
“Uh, it‘s okay, I’m impressed with your powers of observation. The only thing that counts is that to me, she’s gorgeous.”
“She certainly is and I’m happy that you have found the one at last.” Brian extended a hand and we shook, then had a hug for good measure. As we walked back he turned to me.
“Don’t tell Melissa, she may be upset.”
“No worries mate.” I nodded reassuringly. We returned to find the girls discussing art and design with Rita now doing the talking while Derek had gone to buy another round of drinks. Manera gave me a smile which said everything was okay.
The evening progressed without mishap. Manera had to pretend to be a vegetarian but that was not unusual since both Derek and Christine were also vegetarians. We parted outside the pub with hugs and kisses, all slightly drunk. They were catching an autocab while we were walking back to my apartment. I felt emotional, but promised myself that I would see my friends again.
Chapter 8
The next morning we arose early to prepare for our departure. Manera had her shoulder bag and I took a backpack with a change of clothes and a few essentials. Manera advised me to wear good walking boots. The train departed Paddington station at 10 am for Edinburgh. From there we would change for Aberdeen then catch an autocab and head out into the highlands to our pickup point.
The train was the latest high speed maglev which would take less than 2 hours to get to Edinburgh. We found a two seat alcove and settled down for the journey. Manera was intensely interested in everything that she saw.
“I love Earth,” she said as the train left the London suburbs and raced through thee green Hertfordshire countryside with its small villages and ancient churches. Manera had grown up on a Hanja ‘frontier’ world where there was nothing older than a few hundred years. An ancient stone church was something she may have only seen pictures of. “Everything is so beautiful.”
“Really?” I was surprised. What I had seen of her world had been stunning. “What is it that you like?”
“It is all so intimate. Small, full of character. Made by hand, imagine that. Built by people a brick at a time. Carved and decorated. How wonderful!”
“Well, all the modern stuff is not like that,” I said.
“Yes, but you have preserved all the old buildings, or re-built them in the same style.” I smiled at her enthusiasm.
The journey passed quickly and soon we were getting off at Edinburgh station. From there we caught the train to Aberdeen which was just an hour up the coast. The views along the Scottish coast were spectacular with the highlands to our left and the coast to our right. Our final destination was the Cairngorms National park, about 80 km from Aberdeen. This was a huge mountainous area popular with walkers, climbers, skiers and golfers. There were few roads into the park, and we would have to set off on foot into the wilderness to a remote location. From there, Manera would activate her transmitter to allow the waiting Peacekeeper aircraft to pick us up. I marvelled that Manera had made her way single handed from this remote location to London.
At the busy town of Aberdeen we bought some coffee and sandwiches. Manera seemed nervous, pausing to look around every now and again.
“Manera, anything wrong?” I asked her.
“There are a couple of men who got on the train in London and are still with us,” she replied. I looked around instinctively and she shook her head at me.
“One went that way,” she indicated behind us. “And the other has left the station.
“You think we are being followed?”
“Perhaps your apartment was bugged?”
“But we looked.” She shrugged.
“Sophisticated bugs hard to find.”
“Damn!” I swore under my breath. We should have expected it I thought. If we were being followed there was no way we could escape. We would have to catch an autocab. They were sophisticated computer driven electric cars, linked into the national network and as a result they would know exactly where we were going and could track us continuously.
“I think they won’t pick us up until they find where we are going,” said Manera. “I hope by then it will be too late.” We boarded an autocab from the station forecourt.
“Which address would you like to go to madam?” asked the computer.
“Take us to Inverey,” said Manera. The distance was 80 km and would take us about an hour. Once the car was under way I turned to Manera.
“How did you prepare for all this?” I asked her. “I mean, decide on where to land, how to travel to London?”
“We planted a small survey module in orbit which photographed the area in detail and recorded transmissions. It was picked up by a high speed flyby.” Another thought occurred to me.
“How did you know where I lived?”
“You told me. Do you remember?”
“Bloody hell yes!” I remembered a conversation with Manera in which I told her about London and where I lived. I had mentioned the address as a joke. “You remembered?”
“Of course silly. Photographic memory.”
“I’m amazed the Guardians agreed to such a crazy scheme.”
“I told them that if they didn’t I would just hire a starship and come to Earth and reveal myself.”
“Reveal yourself? That would have caused a sensation. I can see the headlines now. Alien beauty reveals all.”
“Down to the last detail.”
“Steady!”
The car was weaving along a beautiful twisting road, on each side there was rolling rugged countryside and in the distance snow capped mountains pointed at the sky.
“Why Inverey?” I asked her.
“It’s remote and we can head towards the Cairngorms mountains from there.”
“Are we going to climb a mountain?” I asked with alarm. “Only I didn’t bring me crampons… whatever they are.”
“No, once we are in the lee of the mountains the flyer can sneak in under cover and pick us up.”
“I think they are going to guess what we are up to and the sky will be teeming with military aircraft.”
“You have nothing that can catch a Peacekeeper flyer. It has AG and can hover like a helicopter and fusion ram jets to accelerate at 12 Gs.”
“I’m not sure my vitals can survive 12 Gs. And I’m quite attached to me vitals.”
“They are very nice vitals,” she agreed. “I would not want you to be detached from them.” The car was climbing up the side of a steep hill, the road winding around it. We were high up and far away beneath us we could see another car, a tiny insect in the distance. She nodded at it significantly. I pressed the interrupt button on the car dash.
“Autotaxi, can I ask you a question?”
“Yes sir.”
“That autotaxi on the road behind us. Did it leave Aberdeen soon after us?”
“Why do you ask sir?”
“We are expecting some friends to meet us at Inverey and they too are coming from Aberdeen.” There was a pause before the autotaxi replied.
“Information regarding that vehicle is restricted sir.”
“All right, thank you.” Manera gave me an inquiring look.
“Autotaxis are restricted when on official business.” I opened a window and stuck my head outside. Above the noise of the wind and tyres I could hear the faint chatter of helicopter blades in the distance.
“Yep, they are on our tail.” I turned to Manera and pulled her close. “Just like old times,” I whispered.
“Oh Paul, do you think they will shoot at us?”
“No baby. They want to take us alive. Particularly you. I’m sure they know who you are. They think I’m under your control in some way. All this secrecy will just confirm them in that belief.”
“Under my control?” she asked, her face questioning.
“Yeah, some evil alien influence that’s turned me into your slave.” I grinned at her. “They are quite right of course. But it is just love, nothing sinister.” She pulled my head down and gave me a tender kiss.
“Love you too, even more.”
“That’s sorted then. How are we getting out of this situation?”
“Head for the mountains. It will be dark soon and they will never catch us once the flyer gets here.”
“Manera, they probably have half a dozen fighter wings over the horizon. As soon as they sight the Peacekeeper flyer they will shoot it down. We won’t be given a chance to board it.” Her face showed her indecision. “There’s only one way. We separate. I have to lead them away from you.”
“Darling, I came here to be with you.”
“If they capture you then you will not be with me. You’ll be locked up and interrogated.” She buried her face in my chest, and I held her tight.
“Go back and tell the Guardians to just pre-empt the whole thing. Come here with a couple of starships and say hello Earth, here we are. What will they do? Start an interplanetary war?” She looked up and nodded reluctantly.
“I suppose, you are right. We mustn’t allow them to decide.”
“That’s my girl. Now, this is what we do. When we get to Inverey you get out and I carry on with the autotaxi. Get as far from Inverey as possible before they realise they have been duped. By then you should be away.”
“Oh Paul, I am so sorry.” She looked disconsolate and I felt wretched.
“Not your fault baby. I should have known they would bug my apartment. We had a good time though and I know we will meet again. Okay?” I looked hard at her, trying to transmit my strength and optimism.
“Okay.” We embraced and held each other and in a few minutes. The autotaxi slowed and stopped.
“We are at Inverey.” there was nothing at Inverey but rolling hills leading up to snow covered mountains, but there was a thick growth of trees marching up the hill towards the mountains and a pretty stream that wound its way between the hills. Manera put on a heavy hooded coat and I helped her put her shoulder bag across her shoulder. It was getting dusk and I could feel the damp cold seeping in from the open door of the taxi.
“Give me twenty minutes to get well away before you call your lift. Love you baby. I’ll see you.”
“I love you darling.” Her face was strained and I remembered the last time we had parted. She turned quickly and at a run she headed for the trees. I watched her and before she vanished into the trees she turned and waved. I closed the door to the autotaxi.
“Autotaxi, I want you to continue along this road until I tell you to stop.”
“Yes sir.” The car started up and was soon humming along at a good speed. We were climbing higher into the mountains now, the road winding and steep. Soon the forest where Manera had run into had disappeared. Suddenly I felt the loneliness. The vast expanse of empty countryside was now sinister, black clouds rolling in and the sun almost beneath the horizon. The autotaxi’s lights came on making twin pool on the road ahead. The autotaxi didn’t need the lighting, it could see just as well in the dark. It was for my convenience.
The road wound almost silently on and I checked my watch. Twenty minutes since Manera had left. I gave it another ten minutes before asking the autotaxi to stop
“Autotaxi, please stop. I wish to stretch my legs.”
“Yes sir,” said the faithful machine. I got out and headed up into the copse of trees on the hill above. So far so good. No sooner had the thought crossed my mind when I heard the helicopter. By the time the helicopter was overhead I was well into the trees. I turned the bend in the hill and almost slid down an embankment in the dark. I grabbed a tree branch just in time to save myself. Beneath me the river ran down from the mountain. I could see the glint of water sliding over rocks.
I followed the curve of the mountain, keeping above the river. It was hard work, there was no path and the trees were quite overgrown. I put the hood of my coat up to protect my face and soldiered on. There was no sign of the helicopter although I could still hear it. A few minutes later I turned another bend and I could see the road with my autotaxi a tiny toy car. The helicopter had landed next to it.
“Come and find me,” I said in a quiet taunting voice. Deeper into the forest I went, following the curve of the stream as it cascaded down the mountain. I found a place to climb down to the river and the going was much easier. I heard the sound of another helicopter , and then another. A couple of searchlights came on and they began to parse the landscape. They had a big area to search and it was dark. I was confident I could avoid them for long enough to allow Manera to get away. But when two more helicopters joined the search my confidence diminished.
I continued to scramble further up the mountain but I was getting tired and the going was getting steeper. When I turned a corner and found the steep wall of rock with the waters of the stream tumbling over it, I knew I could go no further. The setting was beautiful and at any other time I would have admired the view. I could see a picnic area on the other side of the river and a path leading down the mountain. This was clearly a local beauty spot. Could I wade through the river to the other side?
I took shoes and socks off and rolled up my trousers as high as they would go and stepped cautiously into the river. The water was freezing and I gasped with the shock. Half way across the water was up to my knees, The pebbles were painfully sharp on my feet and I was lurching like a drunk in an attempt to minimise the pain. I kept up a stream of colourful curses, mostly aimed at the innocent Scottish countryside. But the river became shallower and I made it to the other side. I found a picnic table and wooden bench and sat down. I searched my pockets and found a handkerchief to dry my feet and gratefully put my socks and shoes back on.
I headed down the path with relief. The helicopters were still parsing the landscape a few hundred meters down the mountain and I was feeling smugly triumphant when, with a roar of engines all three copters hurtled into the air, switched off their headlights and disappeared into the night. I was baffled for a moment before I realised what had happened.
�
��Peacekeepers are here!” I closed my eyes and prayed. I wasn’t a praying man, but at this point I wanted my lovely girl to be safe and anyone who could help was welcome. High up in the stratosphere I saw contrails and then heard explosions. Light blossomed in the dark sky. I had no idea what was happening and could only hope for the best.
The path was going downhill, clearly heading back to the road so I continued to follow it, managing to get up a tired jog. It took me a few minutes to get to the road and I guessed that I was higher up than the autotaxi so I walked downhill. Sure enough, after a couple of hundred meters I turned a bend and there was my faithful autotaxi still waiting for me.
I got to the autotaxi with relief. My feet hurt and I was exhausted. As I approached it the doors opened and two figures got out. They were pointing guns at me and I stopped and put my hands up.
“Captain Constantine, We’ve been waiting for you.”
Chapter 9
They took me back to London in a military jet under guard. We landed at a military base somewhere in the West country and I was taken by three uniformed young men in a secure limousine to the London HQ of the SES and put into a locked room. I didn’t know whether I was under arrest, detained without charge and about to quietly disappear. Do these things still happen? I asked myself.
Food and drink was brought to me. There was a bed and I slept, for how long I don’t know but there was daylight coming through the windows when I awoke. There was an attached bathroom and I carried out my ablutions. Some time later, a very decent breakfast appeared with a jug of coffee. At least I wasn’t going to starve!
My biggest enemy appeared to be boredom for the moment. I passed the time by doing my daily exercises and mentally rehearsing starship flight procedures. Would I ever fly a starship again? It seemed unlikely at this point. Lunch was a very agreeable grilled salmon with salad. I decided that I wasn’t about to be killed otherwise they would not be feeding me so well. Unless it was the condemned man’s last supper?