by Cook, M. L.
Holding her hands in the air, Jannette got out of the car. “One too many times, huh?” She knew that last bump was the tipping point, so to speak.
“Something like that,” Stacy said as she got in behind the wheel.
Jannette smiled and waved at the line of cars behind them. Then after cupping a hand around her mouth, she yelled, “Everything’s fine. Stacy just likes to be in control.” When she came even with the hood, she was shocked when the car jerked forward several inches. Rubbing her hip, she groaned and walked back to the door that was still open. Sliding into the seat, she slammed the door, then turned to face the other woman, who was still fuming. Amused at the whole situation, she smiled at Stacy, then said, “Sorry, I’ve been accused more than once of having no filter.”
As they pulled onto the highway, Stacy laughed. Holding up her hand for a high five, she responded, “Right there with you, sister.” Then her face lost all humor. Without looking away from the road, she murmured, “Look, I don’t know what happened to you… to make you so bitter.”
Jannette crossed her arms and glared out at the highway in front of their slow-moving car. So, the woman wanted to know what had happened to make her so bitter, huh? Plenty. More than a lifetime of shit came together to make Jannette who she was. But she wasn’t about to go into that right now, much less so with 3 people she didn’t know jack squat about watching on.
Glancing at the rearview mirror, Jannette thought, for just a moment, about adjusting it so she could see the backseat. Then she saw Stacy arch a brow, while flicking her gaze toward the mirror. And judging by the look on her face, the other woman knew exactly what Jannette was thinking. Sighing, she looked down at her lap. Then while twisting her hands, she attempted to organize her thoughts.
Stacy’s voice softened, “Just spit it out.”
Jannette looked at the other woman, smirked, then announced, “I like you.”
Stacy continued to stare at the road, but with a slight curve of her lips she countered, “The jury’s still out.”
Chapter Two
Jannette nodded, then poured out every thought she’d been keeping inside. “After they took us… at first we were just walking from house to house. While one or two of the lizards went inside, some stayed back to guard us.” The memory played out in Jannette’s mind as she recounted the events, “It was always the same ones that went in…,” shaking her head, she continued. “After a while, the ones that’d been left behind began complaining that they were missing out on all the fun. So, they started hauling all of us inside.” Jannette stopped for a moment to let the overwhelming feelings pass before she continued. “I couldn’t believe what they were doing. If there was a man, a boy, or a young girl, they just killed them, outright.” Jannette couldn’t hold back the tears brought on by the horrors she’d just relived. Whispering, she added, “The worst were the youngest… well and the pregnant women.” Then she added, “They weren’t just taking the women.” Furrowing her brows while staring down at her hands, she hissed, “Nearly every one of them were raped before they…”
Stacy’s soft voice only fueled Jannette’s anger, “Were you…?”
Jannette bit down on the sob that tried to break free and turned toward the passenger window. While watching the passing scenery, yet not seeing, she only offered a single quick nod.
She heard a loud gasp from behind her. Twisting in her seat, she noticed Tiana was holding her own swollen belly. Tiana’s horrified stare was centered on Jannette, before turning to Travis. Then in a tearful voice, she whispered, “I had no idea…” Unable to go on, she dropped her face into her hands and wept. Travis pulled her into his arms and held her while she cried, her shoulders shaking with the force of her sobs.
Mouth gaping, Jannette stared at the dark female in the back seat. The sun had begun its descent, casting the world in shadow. In the fading light, the pregnant female almost looked human. Almost. It was hard to tell if her skin was dark green or brown. But upon closer inspection, it was the leathery scales that really separated their species. Well, scales and the fact that they didn’t have a single hair on their bodies. Cocking her head, she tried to decide whether she felt bad for her or not. Grunting, she shook her head, deciding she really didn’t. When she looked forward again, Stacy had gone against the very reason she’d taken over driving, by staring daggers at Jannette.
While continuing her stare, she asked between clenched teeth, “Well, are you happy now?”
Jannette glanced at the road just in time to see a huge section of pavement standing on end, exposing a gaping hole where the road had once been. Before she could react, Stacy navigated away from it.
Jannette’s mouth hung open for a second before she snapped back at the other woman, “Why should I feel bad talking about what her people did to ours? Nobody asked for this—”
Stacy interrupted her, “Well, technically we did…”
Jannette gritted her teeth, then said, “That’s altogether different, and you know it. No matter what the idiots in the government did. Nobody expected for a race of vicious aliens to attack Earth and kill most of its inhabitants.”
“You do know how wrong it is to hold an entire race accountable for what only a few of them did?” Knocking her head toward the back seat, she added, “Especially since there are some who had no part of it.” Stacy went on, “Not only that but holding onto that kind of anger only hurts you,” Stacy said while splitting her attention between Jannette and the road.
Shocked beyond reason, Jannette sputtered, then queried, “Did you even see what they did to our people?”
Jannette watched while Stacy’s face paled. Which was at once followed by a bright red blush that began spreading across the woman’s face and down her neck. She wasn’t sure if the woman was embarrassed or enraged. In the short time since they’d met, she was pretty sure it was the latter. Not only that, but she had a feeling she was about to get an earful of something she didn’t want to hear.
Stacy opened her mouth, shook her head, then closed it. She briefly glanced at Jannette, then nodded and said, “You don’t know.”
Jannette shook her head, “Know what?”
Stacy was quiet a moment, then muttered, “Yes, I was with Dante’s group. So, I’m more than aware of the terrible things the Terrapians have done to humans. Not only that, but I also am completely aware of what their plans were for the captives.”
Jannette winced, then said, “I’m sorry. I heard about Bea. Were you there for that?”
Stacy’s lips pressed together in a thin frown. A second later, she whispered, “I was there for a lot of things. Not all of the women were killed right away.” She was silent for a long moment, then added, “So, you see, if anyone has a reason to hate them… it’s me. But on the same token, I’m not about to hold what a few of them did, against all of them. “They were coming to a small cluster of trees on the right. Jannette sat up, looked around, then mumbled, “I think this is…” Nodding to herself, she muttered, “Yep, that’s it.” She pointed toward a curve in the road and announced, “Not quite a half mile up, there’s a church on your right, that’s where you’ll need to turn.”
As the car nosed past the trees, Stacy slammed on the brake and veered toward the shoulder. Behind them Jannette could hear squealing tires as cars swerved to avoid the eminent collision.
The moment they came to a stop, Stacy threw the door open and nearly fell out of the car. Jannette and Travis slipped out right behind her and silently waited for her to explain. Surprise lit Travis’s features a second before he ducked back down and leaned inside. Jannette could hear his softly spoken words before he stepped out again and eased the door shut. Stacy’s pale face and rounded eyes said more than words could. Stacy glanced toward the church, then back to Jannette. Then, without looking back, Stacy crouched and ran toward the idling cars. Jannette watched her friend’s departing figure, then the alarm that spread through the group.
Looking back at Travis, Jannette knocked her head
toward the church. Running down the embankment, they slipped into the small clump of trees. After kneeling behind a thick maple, they silently watched what was happening across the street.
Deep gouges that marred the carefully manicured lawn led to one of the familiar silver ships. Behind it, half a sign announced the annual white elephant exchange, along with a pitch-in dinner that was planned for Saturday night. Now whichever Saturday night that was, was anybody’s guess. But Jannette knew with absolute certainty it wouldn’t be this week.
As she watched one of the scaley bastards move from church to the ship and back, she whispered, “They’re like roaches. If you see one, you can bet there’s a whole lot more hiding in the walls.”
Whispered words tickled her ear, “Unless they’re leaving.”
Startled, Jannette whipped around to find a woman, who was much too close, watching the goings on across the street.
Studying her, Jannette was shocked to see that even though the other woman was kneeling, she was still taller than Jannette. Nodding, she mumbled, “Damn you’re tall.”
Reaching for her gun, Jannette turned back toward the ship. But before she could get off her first shot, the gun was yanked away. Spinning around, she glared up at the only man in their group, then snapped, “That’s a good way to get shot.”
He nodded toward the church and said, “Your idea is the best way to get all of us killed.”
She looked back just in time to see several other Terrapians walking out from behind the church.
Travis handed her gun back, then added, “Just because there’s only one ship in the front, doesn’t mean there aren’t more in the back. You wait here and I’ll go check it out. It shouldn’t take more than fifteen to thirty minutes, depending.”
Jannette stared back at him and asked, “Depending on what?”
Travis glanced at the Terrapian female, then back to Jannette. With a grin, he said, “It depends on how hard it is to sneak around back.” He winked then added, “That and whether or not they catch me.” Returning to the car, he retrieved a set of binoculars, then leaned in and spoke to the Terrapian. A moment later he was gone. She had to hand it to him, Travis was certainly stealthy. After slinking away, it didn’t matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t find him.
Following Travis’s lead, Jannette retrieved two sets of binoculars. While jogging toward the trees, she tossed one set at the other woman. She didn’t get far before she felt someone grab her arm and twist her around. After regaining her balance, Jannette glared up at the taller woman, “Damn those long legs. Why’d you stop me?”
The woman glared down at Jannette, then snapped, “You do know nobody else knows where you live?” Narrowing her eyes, she quipped, “You know, should you decide to go and get yourself killed.”
Sighing, Jannette leaned against a tree and scanned the area.
Stacy leaned against the other side, then asked, “See anything yet?”
Jannette tried, unsuccessfully to hide her surprise to see that Stacy had rejoined them. Shaking her head, she blushed, then replied, “Not yet. I’ll give Travis one thing. He’s good. Unless, of course, he was just bullshitting us.” She felt Stacy’s harsh stare. Pulling the glasses away, she shrugged, “What?”
Shaking her head, Stacy queried, “Do you trust anyone?”
Jannette resumed her vigil while muttering, “Not really.”
After fifteen minutes she walked back to the car and tossed the glasses inside. Then with a loud harumph, she resumed her seat.
The driver’s side door closed as Stacy joined her. “It’s getting late. I don’t know about you, but that snack we got back in Anderson is long gone.”
Jannette grabbed the mirror and adjusted it so she could see their passenger. Staring at the dark green woman, she asked, “Hey. Are you hungry, too?”
Tiana nodded, “Our race requires more food when pregnant.”
Stacy turned in her seat and smiled at the green skinned beauty, “Hey, sister, I hate to tell you this, but that’s universal. We even tease our women by saying that they’re eating for two.”
Tiana gasped. Her gaze shifted from one woman to the other, and she exclaimed, “You mean that your females require twice as much food?” Her face paled before asking, “What happens when they’re going to have twins?”
Before she could stop herself, Jannette barked out a laugh. After slapping a hand across her mouth, she gave Stacy a sheepish grin.
Stacy winked and smiled, “You know it’s okay to laugh.” She then turned back to the female and said, “No, hon. It’s just as saying. They eat more, but not nearly that much.”
Giving a nervous laugh, Tiana said, “It’s good to hear that we’re not that different.”
Jannette pushed her door open and stalked back toward the trees. She was muttering to herself about their major differences when she ran into Travis.
He looked down at her and queried, “What’s that?”
Caught unaware, Jannette glared up at him and retorted, “Nothing. What did you find out?”
He stared at her a moment, then motioned for her to follow him back to the car. As they stepped out of the trees, he noticed all the women from the other cars were walking toward him, including Tiana. He studied her a moment, then shrugged and began telling them what he found.
“It’s exactly like what…” He looked at the woman who was nearly as tall as he was and waited.”
“Roni,” she supplied.
He nodded then continued, “Roni was correct. By the time I got there, there was only one ship left in the back. I stayed where I was and watched him climb in and close the door.”
To emphasize the point, they heard the rumbling roar of one of the alien ships. A moment later it flew past them, with another on its tail.
Jannette looked back and watched the twin ships soar overhead. Then she looked back at Travis and asked, “Was that it?”
He jerked a quick nod, then said, “Before we go in, I need to talk to you.”
She followed him back toward the trees and waited.
“You’ve seen movies about the world ending?” He waited for her nod, then continued, “You know how, in the movies, hordes of people flock to their churches to pray?”
Chapter Three
The cars pulled in behind the church, while getting as close to the building as they could. They’d reasoned that if they couldn’t be seen from the road, they should be safe. The next hour was spent ripping limbs from trees and bushes to cover their cars. It wasn’t only important to stay hidden from the road, but from the skies as well.
Jannette stopped in front of the doors and looked into each person’s eyes. After silently watching them for a few minutes she said, “If you’re under…oh…eighteen?” Travis nodded, “You stay out here.”
Macie grumbled her displeasure while Lacey harshly whispered in her ear.
Jannette laughed, “I don’t care how tough you think you are.” She stared at the young girl who believed herself to be a lot stronger than Jannette knew her to be. She then looked at the other women.
Then her gaze landed on Roni. There was something about this woman that made her uneasy. As she studied her, she realized what it was. She was weak, scared. It was people like her, afraid of their own shadows, who didn’t fare so well in life-or-death situations. She decided that if this woman survived a week, it would be a miracle. Roni was the type of person who, through no fault of her own, could get them all killed.
Before she could say more, Travis turned to address the group, “If anyone is squeamish, you also might want to stay out here. I’m not going to lie to you, what you’re going to find inside is going to be shocking. I was able to peek into a few of the windows…” Allowing the statement to hang, he sighed and shook his head.
To everyone’s surprise, Roni scoffed, pushed past them, and stepped through the double doors. As they followed her in, Jannette noticed some of the ones she’d thought would go inside, had decided to hang back. Stacy was among the g
roup who chose to wait outside.
Jannette stepped into the room as Roni was pointing toward the front doors while struggling with the body of a young man who couldn’t have been much over the age of sixteen. She stared at the boy as tears filled her eyes. It was such a shame. He’d not lived long enough to even get his full beard.
When Roni saw Jannette standing there, she dropped the boy and walked over to her.
Jannette winced as his head slammed against the polished hard wood floor. From a small hole in the back of his head, a narrow stream of blood inched its way closer to the beige carpet. Without conscious thought, Jannette took a step back.
The morbid sight was blocked when Roni stepped between her and the boy. After glancing over her shoulder, she turned back to Jannette and stated, “Dead is dead. He’s not there anymore. I don’t feel anything toward him one way or the other.”
Jannette tried to push past her, but Roni just stepped in her way again.
Leaning closer, with hands on hips, Roni demanded, “You need to leave.”
Jannette’s mouth gaped open. When she regained her composure, she seethed, “Excuse me?”
Roni shook her head. That’s when Jannette realized the mousy young woman from before was replaced by a drill sergeant. She crossed her arms and blocked Jannette from seeing anything other than the front of her shirt. Getting in her face, she lowered her voice and growled, “You’re unstable enough as it is. Go outside with the others. Next time, know your limits.” Satisfied her demands would be met, she turned to walk away.
But Jannette grabbed her arm before she could take more than a few steps. Roni flipped around and glared down at Jannette’s five-foot frame. She must have seen the unasked questions on Jannette’s face. Sighing, she stood back and explained, “Look, most people misjudge me.” She shrugged, “I worked in a mortuary. You wouldn’t believe some of the things I’ve seen. This…” She waved her arms around the room, “This is nothing. All these people are recently deceased. Plus, most of them were just shot.” She glanced at a pew behind her and mumbled, “Most.”