Your Planet or Mine? (17 page)

“Stay,” Cavin ordered. He was on his feet with his gun in his hand before Jana had a chance to reach for her pajama pants. By the time she yanked them to her waist, he was already peering around the curtains at the window, his gun at the ready. With lips rosy from kissing, his shirt wrinkled and his pants unbuttoned, and a gun dangling from his hand, Cavin looked like a cowboy wrested from the saloon girl’s bed. Outside, orange light flickered. Something was on fire. In the distance, police sirens wailed.

“What happened?” Jana’s need to scream her head off alternated with an almost overwhelming urge to barf. “What was that?” Or was it overconfident to be asking questions in the past tense?

Cavin turned back to her, his soldier’s face taut. “Your sister’s car blew up.”

A
FTER THE FIRE TRUCKS LEFT
, police festooned the charred remains of Evie’s car with a ring of yellow crime-scene ribbon. The few larger pieces of the Honda that had survived were loaded in a truck and hauled away. Everything else was swept into boxes, including the powdery remains of Cavin’s armor and boots.

Staring out the window, Jana pressed a fist to her stomach to stifle a wave of fear. “They’re going to run tests on everything they find. They’ll see the bits of armor. Your gear isn’t made of stuff we have on Earth. The men in black will come looking for my sister. She won’t be very happy about that, I can tell you.” Unless, of course, the agents were male and cute. And available. Evie was, after all, single and looking. Still, it was a situation Jana wanted to avoid at all costs.

Cavin guided her backward to lean against his chest, slinging a protective arm around her. “There is no danger to your sister. The armor has already broken down into benign, commonly found compounds. It’s a security precaution to keep our technology from falling into Drakken claws.”

“They have claws?” A sinister image filled her mind, something straight out of an old, dubbed Godzilla movie.

He shook his head. “Sorry. It was a figure of speech provided by my translator. Their DNA is no different from your people, or mine.” Darkly, he added, “But, somewhere along the way, they seem to have lost their humanity.”

“Like the REEF?”

“Yes.”

Jana shuddered as she peered down from the room window to the scene below. Only one patrol car was left. A couple of cops were busy filling out paperwork for the hotel guests whose cars had been damaged in the explosion. Explosive Passion! Senator Steals Sister’s Car For Secret Rendezvous With Alien Lover.

Jana stopped breathing for a moment. Her imagined headlines were starting to sound awfully close to ones that might actually make it to print.
“No making headlines for anything but the bills you pass.”
In her mind, she saw Grandpa wagging a finger at her.

“Yenflarg.”
Jana ground her fingertips into her temples. “What else can possibly go wrong?”

“I’ve been asking myself the same question since I arrived here,” Cavin replied dryly.

“It feels wrong not to confess it was our car. Dishonest.”

“No, Jana. Safe. We can’t take the chance of going outside and revealing our connection to the vehicle.”

“They’ll figure out the connection. I saw at least one license plate that was recognizable.”

“They’ll call your sister, not you. And as we discussed, she will pretend it was stolen from her dwelling.”

More lies, Jana thought gloomily. Why suffer alone when she could drag the rest of the Jasper family down into the deep, dank pit of notoriety with her? And she wasn’t looking forward to the call she’d have to give her sister, either. “Wait until Evie finds out an assassin from outer space wrecked Godiva.”

“Godiva?”

“The Honda was her college car. She named it Godiva. In those days it was chocolate-brown. Her ex-husband repainted it blue. It was the beginning of the end for them, I think.”

“I’m not convinced it was the assassin who destroyed your sister’s vehicle. It’s not his style.”

“This one ever pursue you before?”

“This REEF. Why, no, but—”

“Then you don’t know his style. This one may be different. You said yourself he was damaged in the crash.”

Cavin rubbed a hand over his face as he pondered that. “Possibly.” He didn’t look convinced, though.

But who else could it be? Who would do something like this to her on purpose?
Or break into your apartment, stealing nothing but going through your old files?
A chill washed over her. The incidents were related; they had to be, but how would the REEF or anyone else know to attack Evie’s car unless they’d followed her from Evie’s house to here? And if they had, now they knew about Cavin.

Jana opened her cell phone. “I hope my sister has her cell shut off. I’d rather not have to tell her this in person.” She punched in the number and hit Send.

After several rings, Evie answered in a sleepy voice. “Jana. It’s one-fifty-three in the morning.”

“Fifty-four. Are you sitting down?”

“I’m in bed,” Evie croaked. “I was sleeping. Normal people do that in the middle of the night, you know. Families do that when on vacation—”

“Sorry, I’m so sorry. It’s an emergency, or I wouldn’t be bothering you. No one’s hurt. No one’s sick. I wrecked Godiva.”

“Jana! Oh, baby. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I wasn’t even in the car.”

“I’m confused.”

“It blew up, but—”

“Godiva blew up? How bad is the garage? Are the animals okay?” Evie yelled.

“Yes! Your house is fine. Godiva blew up in the parking lot of the Garden Inn. Evie, please, let me explain—”

“What are you doing in a motel? I thought you were staying at my place.” Jana heard noises from the other end, Evie telling the kids: “It’s Aunt Jana. Shush, go back to sleep. I don’t know. No. I’m sure the man is off the roof by now.” More rustling noises and Evie’s voice changed to a loud whisper. “I’m in the bathroom now. Tell me what the hell is going on. How did my car explode?”

“I borrowed your car and went to a motel because I thought someone might be following me. It turns out I was probably right. Don’t freak out, but he might be trying to kill me.”

Evie muffled what sounded like a shriek. “Why would someone want to kill you? You’re not exactly controversial.”

In other words, even her sister thought she was boring. Well, not for long. That was all about to change. “He’s not exactly after me. He wants to kill the man I’m with.”

Silence. “The man on my roof?”

“Yeah. That one.”

“The, uh, Peter guy.”

Jana met Cavin’s vivid green eyes. His concerned gaze softened as his fingers brushed down her cheek. “Yes,” she said quietly. “Peter.”

“But are you alone now, Jana? Is he with you?”

“Yes.”

“I think you need to get away from him. He’s brainwashed you, baby. He’s not the boy from that summer. That boy was imaginary. Made up. I’m coming home, Jana. You need help.”

Evie’s concern hit a sensitive spot.
I want to be normal. To be like everyone else
. Jana braced against the old insecurities. “Evie, listen to me. I’m safer in his company that I’d be alone. There’s a lot more going on than you can even imagine, and, no, I’m not going to discuss it over the phone, especially a cell phone where people can listen in.”

“I’m coming home tomorrow. Dad asked me to stay over spring break and look after Grandpa. Meet me at the ranch tomorrow night. I want to talk to you.”

How could she refuse Evie after borrowing her house and blowing up her car? “Sure,” Jana said, trying hard to infuse enthusiasm into her voice. She had no choice but to bring Cavin with her. A nightmarish image of introducing him to Grandpa plunged through her mind.
Keep an eye on him, Jana
, her father had said.
Keep him steady
. What she intended to tell her grandfather would do anything but keep him calm. But she needed his help. He knew General Mahoney, who knew about Area 51. Deranged Legislator Woos Two Elderly Retirees Into Alien Caper.

Jana squeezed her eyes shut to stave off a headache that badly wanted to happen. “Last thing, Evie. Listen carefully. It’s important and may save my life.”

“Go ahead,” Evie said. Her tone was all at once disapproving, angry and frightened.

“The police will probably call you about the Honda. They have a license plate—it’s pretty much all that was left. They’ll be able to get your contact information from it. When they call, pretend you never heard from me tonight. You have an alibi—you were on vacation. Someone must have stolen the car, and torched it for kicks. Tell them that.”

“No one would steal Godiva, Jana.” Evie’s voice was dry.

“Steal it, no. Bomb it, yes. It was really ugly, Evie. Especially after Reese painted it.”

“It was my Godiva,” Evie wailed. “And don’t mention that sonofabitch. I’ve been having a good year.”

“I’m truly sorry, Evie. I’ll make it up to you. I’ll make everything up to you. I promise.” Guilt sickened Jana when she thought of all that Evie didn’t know. The impending invasion for starters. “Remember, don’t connect my name to the Honda when the police call. You were in Disneyland—”

“And some crazy people stole my car. Yeah, yeah, I know the drill.” Her voice softened. “I won’t do anything to get you killed, baby. I won’t.”

“Love you, big sister,” Jana whispered and hung up.

She sat on the edge of the bed, gnawing her knuckle. “She’s been briefed,” she told Cavin when she’d gotten a hold of herself. “Now, us. I have to be at work too early for us to get a rental car. Nothing will be open yet.” Steve or Nona would give her a ride, but then there was the problem of Cavin. She didn’t want to risk calling attention to him too early. “We’ll take the light-rail. I voted for the expansion of the system so might as well take a train sometimes.” Jana rubbed her eyes. “I’m exhausted. How about we try to get some sleep?”

He glanced at the rumpled bed and back to her. “I will prepare a sleeping place on the floor.”

“I’d feel safer with you next to me.”

“Temptation,” he warned. “Whether it was the REEF or another party who destroyed the vehicle, it means danger. I don’t want to lose my ability to protect you if we were to be focused too much on each other and not on what is going on around us. Distraction kills.”

“Distraction. Like fooling around.”

“Fooling around.” His brows drew together. “It is an alternate definition for sexual activity, yes?”

She smiled. “And foreplay. Making out. Making love, it’s all included. Any of those are better definitions. Sexual activity makes it sound cold and clinical.”

“Trust me, Squee. Nothing I do with you or to you will ever be cold and clinical.” He ran his hand over her hair, touching her as if she were something precious to him. It made her chest squeeze tight. And other things…

She knew he was right about fighting their attraction in the face of the serious danger they were in, but how many more times was the REEF going to interrupt before she could have a piece of Cavin? She wanted to yowl like a cat in heat. Apparently Healthy Young Woman Found Dead In Motel Room. Sexual Denial To Blame.

“Then we’ll just sleep, which we both need anyway. No fooling around. Come on. We’re focused, disciplined adults. Look at all we’ve achieved in our lives. We can do this.” She patted the mattress, wiggled her pristine, nunlike toes.

Cavin pulled the curtains closed. “Not before we talk.”

“Sure. What about?”

Did she detect guilt in the sigh he heaved? “Jana, I meant to tell you sooner, I just didn’t know how. But it’s only fair that you know everything about me before we grow closer. Before we ultimately make love,” he added.

“Earth guys usually wait until
after
you do it to drop the big bombshell. I knew there was something about aliens I liked.”

Tension visibly tightened his facial muscles. Her stomach suddenly swarmed with butterflies. “Whoa. Is it that bad?”

“I have not been entirely honest with you.”

“I knew it. You’re married.”

“I am not married.”

“Engaged.”

He rolled his eyes.

“Pregnant? Sterile?” She crossed herself. “
Impotent?
”

Cavin slapped his palm to his forehead. “Jana, no. I’m a Coalition military officer. Not an enlisted man.”

“So? That’s wonderful.”

“A high-ranking officer.”

“Um, that’s even better, right?” She was trying hard to see why this was a problem.

“Very high, Jana.”

At his grave tone, a wriggle of concern sprang to life in her stomach. “How high?”

“To be exact, I am the sixteenth highest ranking officer in the Coalition military of three billion soldiers.”

“That’s high,” she whispered.

“Shortly before coming to Earth I received a promotion to Galactic Prime-major. There are fourteen prime-majors, total. Above us are only the Supreme Commander and the Supreme Second. Above them are the Prime Minister and the Queen. Jana?” he asked when she didn’t say anything.

“Keep going.” She waved her hand, which seemed to be the only part of her not frozen. “I’m absorbing.”

“At heart, my needs are simple. I don’t require much, and certainly not power. I would have been happy as a grunt, a ground soldier, but after a few years, I won a slot to the officer academy, and I excelled. As a young officer, I never rested, I rarely took leave. I volunteered for the most difficult assignments, the so-called impossible tasks, and made them work. I soared up through the ranks.

“Why? One reason. A high position was the only way I’d be privy to planetary acquisition plans. I wanted to know the moment Earth advanced to the top of the list, so that when it did, I could take action. It wasn’t only to keep you safe. To do that, I could have flown back and taken you and your family back with me, could have rescued only you and your loved ones.”

“But you want to save the entire planet.”

“Your home is here. I saw your love of it, your attachment to the land. I never had a real home of my own, and I wanted you to be able to keep yours.”

His forthright expression spun her back to a summer night, twenty-three years ago: a boy’s frank, open face as he returned her pet potbellied pig.
Here.
Then it was a pig. Tonight it was an entire world. Though the stakes were much different, when it came to giving without expecting anything in return, Cavin had changed little since Peter.

How could she be worried about covering her butt when Cavin was risking his for over six billion butts? The entire population of planet Earth! He’d given up his identity, his achievements, his future, everything a man could give, and almost his life, and all she could think of was her personal insecurities, of eliminating any doubts that she belonged to the Jaspers, of wanting to be seen as “normal.” A storm of emotions seethed inside her, shame principal amongst them.

“
You have so much heart
,” Grandpa told her when she was small.
“Heart is what’ll take you to the top. It’s what this country needs. Heart and the smarts to go with it. You’re going to go far, Jana Jasper, mind this old man’s words. The highest office of this country is not beyond your abilities.”