Midnight Sun, page 17
part #1 of Mortal Heat Series
A few steps down the hall and Mick turned me abruptly to the right. I faced a plain wooden door and didn’t have time to get nervous before he knocked and pushed the door in.
As the door swung open, I heard a deep voice abruptly stop speaking, and several people stood to face us. The first person I noticed was a statuesque young woman with long, silvery blonde hair and bright aquamarine eyes. The man next to her appeared similar in age, with short coppery hair and vivid green eyes. The set of his jaw and his appraising glance warned me he was unhappy about something.
Behind them were another man and woman. They appeared slightly older, although I probably wouldn’t have guessed they were old enough to be parents of the other two. The woman had flowing golden locks and bright blue eyes, while the man had short, curly chestnut hair and tawny eyes. They were all dressed in muted whites and grays that seemed to match the crystalline walls.
Every eye in the room flashed to Mick as he spoke a short, melodic greeting, then to me with evident surprise. Their sharp gaze took in our grasped hands and my slightly stupefied expression, then returned to Mick in confusion. He responded to their questioning expressions with a few more lines in his native language, then switched to English for my benefit.
“Lucy, this is my sister Shanii, her mate Drake, my mother Shaline, and my father Benjamin.
Family, this is Lucy.”
Drake’s expression did not change, but the rest of them did. Shanii looked simply curious and Benjamin more confused.
Shaline, however, appeared excited. She bustled forward, holding out her hand in greeting. “Welcome, Lucy, it is such a pleasure to meet you!” Her English was very good, only slightly accented with British intonations. She gave my hand a firm, warm shake, then stepped aside to allow the others to come forward.
Shanii was next and equally warm in her greeting and handshake. Following her, Benjamin approached, greeting me in a deep baritone voice. Drake was the last, but he appeared to have withheld his judgment for now and approached me with caution.
For my part I attempted to be friendly, remembering I was supposed to be playing the victim of alien mojo. I clung to Mick’s arm, shaking hands with his family enthusiastically before pressing myself against him once more. Mick continued to grip my hand tightly and smiled at me in what I hoped was an approving manner.
Shaline gestured that we should follow them into the sitting area, and we walked in step to a light grey, modern couch. When we sat, I arranged myself to be in close contact with Mick. The others resumed their seats in the varied matching chairs and loveseat that they had occupied before we entered. I glanced swiftly around the room, taking in the white fur rug, pale wooden coffee table, and intricately carved fireplace. It was the definition of chic, European interior décor. I would expect to see similar furniture in an IKEA catalog. Nothing about it said ‘alien’, aside from the fact that we were in a secret, underground salt cavern.
Benjamin’s deep voice rang out in the same lilting language as before. Shaline gave him a curt glance, then replied in careful English. “Ben, English, please, so Lucy can understand. It’s rude to speak a language around someone who doesn’t know it.”
Benjamin’s face flushed, and he was immediately contrite, recognizing his error. “I’m sorry, Lucy,” he apologized earnestly. “This is somewhat of a shock to us, please forgive me.” He gestured to Mick and me, indicating what he meant by ‘this’.
“I understand, no need to apologize,” I assured him.
Benjamin nodded, then continued in English for my benefit. “What do you mean, Todd intends to pair with a human?”
Mick responded, “Exactly what I said: He is in love with Lucy’s best friend, Emily, and has declared his intention to pair. They have been in contact with Todd’s parents and we are waiting for word they will consent to travel here, hoping we may be able to help them.”
Drake’s voice, higher than Benjamin’s but still deeper than Mick’s, was abrupt. “We can’t help them,” he argued. “The pairing will kill the girl, and then Todd will die from her loss, the idiot. We all know how it will end, we’ve known it for centuries.” He picked up a cup and saucer from the table next to him and sipped the steaming beverage noisily.
“It doesn’t have to be that way,” Mick answered. “We’ve never known an instance in which one of our kind attempted to truly pair with a human. We don’t understand the significance of his ability to connect with her. What if this is a different circumstance than what we know?”
Drake snorted. “How could it possibly be different? Their genetics haven’t changed. They are still too primitive to handle the complexity of our genetic material.”
Shaline’s soft voice interceded, drawing an immediate reaction from Drake, who turned to listen to her. “Mick, you have a point; The previous… examples we have were not attempts at pairing. Todd’s ability to form the connection needed to pair demonstrates a shift in our relationship to humankind. But how do you intend to help them?”
Mick’s response was clear, although his tightened grip on my hand showed he was not as calm as he appeared. “I wish to access the records on the ship, to see if any of our kind has ever paired with a member of another species before.”
Shaline and Shanii exchanged silent glances. Benjamin looked more confused, his gaze straying to Shaline for answers. Drake, however, glared at both Mick and me as his expression shifted from unhappy to angry.
“That’s ridiculous. No one has paired outside our species, why would they? Until we had to abandon home, there was never a need to seek pairing outside our own kind.” He snorted in derision. “Just because one isolated, crazy vimpiri has given up on life and wants to kill himself is no reason to disturb…” A sharp glance from Shanii cut him off from whatever he was going to say, and he redirected quickly. “What I want to know is, why is SHE here? It’s bad enough to have one human involved in this mess, whose bright idea was it to bring in another one?”
Mick answered in a low, confident voice. “Because it is not one isolated, crazy vimpiri.” Shaline and Shanii exchanged glances again, and Mick continued. “I intend to pair with Lucy. Mother, Shanii, I am asking your permission to seek the answers I need to save myself and my mate.”
MATES
EVEN THOUGH I knew it was part of our cover story, my heart rate still picked up, charging in double time against my rib cage to hear him refer to me as his mate. I smiled up at him with what I hoped was a sincere enough, sappy expression, and his answering smile was like the sunshine breaking through the clouds. Warmth poured over me like honey, settling in my belly with the butterflies that had recently taken up residence there.
I didn’t miss that Mick had asked his mother and sister, specifically, for permission. As I glanced around the room, I realized that they appeared to be having a non-verbal conversation everyone else was watching, waiting for the answer. The two women’s eyes were locked, their figures completely still. Drake had paused in the act of taking a sip and now held his cup to his lips in an almost-comical depiction of a statue mid-drink. Benjamin leaned back in his seat, his head resting on one hand, as he waited.
I glanced back at Mick to find his eyes still on me. He didn’t appear to have moved, just watched as I observed the rest of the room. When my eyes met his, they began the liquid-smoke-fire dance of teal and gold flickering through his irises, and I was once-again hypnotized. I wondered if it would be rude for us to kiss here in this room with his whole family present, or if they would consider it forgivable given our supposed pairing status and my ‘primitive,’ hormonal body.
Just as I’d decided I didn’t give a crap what they thought and leaned in to kiss Mick, a low cough alerted me to a change in the room. Mick’s eyes darkened, and he looked away, releasing me from his hypnotic gaze and allowing me to realize every other person in the room was watching us.
Heat crept up my cheeks, and I leaned closer to Mick for protection. Shanii was looking away with a small smile resting on her lips, while Benjamin and Drake both stared at us with open confusion. Shaline smiled warmly. “Well, that certainly clears up any questions I have. Shanii?”
Shanii shook her head, her brilliant aquamarine eyes meeting mine as a conspiratorial smile spread across her cheeks. “No, Mother, I agree.”
“Very well,” Shaline continued, “You will contact Todd’s parents to find out if they have received word about his status. Once we have that answer, Shanii and I will assist you with consulting The Records to determine if any of our kind has ever successfully paired with a different species. Is that an acceptable answer to your request?” The way she said ‘The Records’ made it sound more formal than I had imagined. Was it really that big of a deal to check some books?
“Yes, thank you,” Mick replied. “We will go back to my flat and communicate with Todd’s parents.”
“Very well,” Shaline said again. “We will contact you when we are prepared to consult The Records.” She rose and crossed the room, everyone else jumping to their feet in response. I expected her to stop in front of her son, but it was me she addressed first. “I know in America you shake hands, but here we fait les bises, or kisses.” She leaned forward and gently touched her cheek to mine, making a kissing noise, then repeated the process on the other side. “I’m very pleased to have met you, Lucy. We will see each other again soon.” Her smile was radiant, and her eyes shone with matching emotion. She moved to Mick after me, treating him to the same gesture of goodbye.
“Thank you so much,” I answered, slightly overwhelmed. The rest of Mick’s family, beginning with Shanii, approached and bid us farewell in the same manner. Everyone approached me first, then Mick, taking their cue from Shaline.
After saying goodbye we exited the chamber and made our way back down the hallway into the giant, ornate room silently. After passing through the room and back up the secret tunnel to the apartment on floor 35, I finally summoned my thoughts to speak.
“So,” I began while we waited for the elevator to Mick’s apartment, “Is your mom, like, in charge?”
“Yes,” Mick answered simply.
“Of what?”
“Everything.” The elevator arrived and after we stepped inside, Mick pressed the button for his floor.
“What do you mean everything?”
“Everything. She is in charge of our people. My sister, being her daughter, is also in charge now, like a second in command. They consult each other on decisions, but ultimately Mother is in charge.”
“That explains a lot. I expected that your dad was in charge, so when it seemed like everyone was turning to your mom for answers, I was confused.”
“An easy mistake to make. Here you are familiar with patriarchal society, so that is what you expect. We have always been a matriarchal people. It is why so few of our females survived,” Mick said softly. “They died trying to save the rest of us.”
“I’m sorry,” I replied, stunned at this new information. “I know it’s small consolation, but at least your mom and sister survived.”
“Yes. But I had another sister that didn’t,” his voice was disturbingly flat, almost robotic.
My heart ached for him. “I’m sorry,” I said again, my voice small. “I know how that feels. I had an older sister that died, and I was never the same after.”
Mick turned to me, a wave of emotion crossing his face. “Really?”
“Yes. Mary was my big sister and my best friend.” A lump in my throat betrayed the emotion I was trying to contain. “She died in a car accident when I was a freshman in high school. She was a senior, and the most popular girl at school; I was a dorky, awkward kid. She included me with her friends, always looked out for me. I was cool by association.” I half-smiled, remembering. “She was on her way home from prom and was hit by a drunk driver. It was bad.”
The elevator stopped and the doors opened, revealing the door to Mick’s apartment. We moved forward silently and he let us in, removing my coat and steering me to the couch in front of the fireplace. His voice was gentle when he spoke. “I’m sure that was difficult for you, to lose her when you were so young.” His hand slid into mine, twining his fingers through mine and squeezing gently.
I nodded, trying to ignore the prickling sensation on my inner eyes as I stared at the floor. “It was. I didn’t make any friends for the rest of high school, just kept to myself. My parents tried to move on, but I don’t think it worked. After I left for college they got divorced; I suspect they stayed together as long as they did for my sake.” A deep breath filled my lungs, and I released it slowly to hold back the threatening tears.
“Anyway, Em was my roommate during my freshman year of college, and she reminded me so much of Mary at first it was a shock. Mary had that same… joie de vivre. She was so happy to be alive, and everything just worked out for her. It was almost like Mary had just gone away for a few years or was reincarnated in Em. She seemed to feel protective of me in the same way Mary had, and it was as if I had Mary back. We’ve been together ever since.” I looked up to meet Mick’s eyes. He was watching me intently, a sad smile curving his perfectly imbalanced lips.
“I wondered at the strength of your attachment to her. It made little sense to me how desperate you were to save her. Now I understand.” Mick’s hand released mine and his arm stretched across the back of the couch, encouraging me to move into the warm nook his body created.
My own body responded willingly, leaning in and resting against his side. Mick’s arm closed around my shoulder and his fingers drew small, warm circles on my arm. It felt traitorous, but his proximity pushed all thoughts of Mary and Emily from my mind. My heart rate picked up, and I was suddenly electrically aware of every inch of my body that was touching him. The soft flesh of my hip and thigh pressed against his denim-clad, muscular leg. Where his ribcage met mine felt like a warm, marble statue of David sat by my side. My body seemed to mold around him, so much softer than his. For a brief moment, I was self-conscious of that fact, but it occurred to me it would be uncomfortable if we were both rock-hard muscle and besides, he didn’t seem to mind. He was breathing deeply, still tracing circles on my arm, and I felt his chin press into the top of my head. Unsure of what to do with my hands I clasped them in my lap. We sat there silently, staring at the unlit fireplace.
At that moment his leg began to vibrate. The movement startled me, focused as I was on Mick’s solid body, and I jumped. His chin lifted from my head and his arm released me, dropping to reach in his pocket and withdraw the cellphone that was buzzing. I leaned away, realizing the source of my scare was a totally normal piece of technology and not some freaky alien thing.
Mick glanced at the screen of the phone, read the message he had received, then rapidly tapped out a response. He took in my confused expression before asking, “What?”
“Your phone works here?”
“Sure, why wouldn’t it?”
“I dunno,” I answered honestly. “I guess it didn’t occur to me to check for cell signal in a tiny village in the Alps.”
A deep, resonating laugh burst from Mick’s lips. “Lucy I think you’re forgetting who you’re with. If any place in the Alps will have a good signal, it’ll be us. Aliens, remember?” He grinned roguishly and winked.
“I suppose…” I looked up at him thoughtfully. “Is that some of the technology you guys sold? Cell phones?”
“Sure, let’s go with that,” he winked again. “Okay, Todd’s mom said Todd and Emily are coming tomorrow, so we will consult The Records tomorrow night.”
“Wait, how did you find that out?”
Mick raised one eyebrow in a perfect, ‘Are you serious?’ expression of incredulity. “Do you have short-term memory loss? I just got a text.” He waved the phone at me for good measure.
“Yeah, I just… I guess I didn’t think you were texting Todd’s parents, that’s all.” Heat spread across my cheeks, alerting me that my face was probably bright red.
“How did you think I was talking to them?” Mick sounded genuinely curious, even with his slightly sarcastic tone.
“I didn’t know,” I answered defensively, “You kept saying ‘communicate’, ‘I can communicate’, ‘we have a way to communicate’. It made it sound as if it was something other than a standard cell phone. Why wouldn’t you just say you were going to text them if it were that simple?”
“To be honest, I hadn’t realized I was doing that. I apologize, it’s most similar to how I would say it in Vimpiri, so I thought nothing of it.”
“I suppose that makes sense,” I grumbled, embarrassed. Leave it to me to imagine some fancy alien communicator like Star Trek instead of the fact that they were just texting.
Mick checked his phone again, then glanced back at the dark wall of windows behind us. “It’s almost dawn. Are you hungry? We should rest to prepare for tonight, but we have time for a meal if you need to eat again.”
I shook my head. “No, I had plenty between the dinner you cooked and wandering around in town.” A yawn forced its way from my mouth and I suddenly felt the lateness of the hour. “I didn’t realize how late it was until you mentioned it, but I think I’m ready to go to bed.”
Mick stood, stretching. “Okay, then let’s get some sleep. Todd and Emily will arrive during the day as we did, and tonight we will consult The Records and hopefully find the answers we seek.” Mick smiled warmly at me, his eyes faintly glowing. Grasping my hand he pulled me from the couch and led me toward the hallway and my bedroom. The rough crystal walls lit as we passed, although they didn’t seem as bright as I remembered from earlier in the evening. The result was a soft, ambient light that created a moonlit appearance on Mick’s features, softening the hard planes of his face and accentuating his mysterious eyes.
When we reached my door he paused, his warm hand still firmly grasping mine. Mick gazed at me gently, and my heart hammered in response to a feeling I couldn’t identify. His free hand rose and cupped my cheek. When his thumb traced a warm trail across my cheekbone I sighed, my eyes closing as I leaned into his palm. My skin tingled where it touched his, sending a shiver down my spine. When my eyes opened, they found Mick observing me with a ferocious intensity. A thick, warm feeling stirred in my gut as his face drew closer to mine, his breath coming rapidly.
