“Adam?”
“He’s the lead agent. Been one for about twenty-five years. Gung-ho and all that. Agent Adam Richards.” He snickered. “He thinks you’re an alien from another planet. Can you believe the guy? I think he might be doing drugs on the side.”
“He told you he thinks I’m an alien?”
“Not in so many words, but on the way down here, he told us that was what our mission was about. To make sure you weren’t an alien. Crazy, I know.”
“Yeah, crazy.”
“So, what do you lift?”
Why did everyone wonder what he could lift? “Anything I want.” It seemed to satisfy the guys he’d played flag football with that day.
“Yeah, I kind of figured that. I’m not much for weights, but I’m a fast runner.”
And for the next hour, Agent Jack talked about running, working out, and what it meant to be an agent, and how proud his family was of him. Kristor had a feeling he could talk long enough that a prisoner would be willing to give away all his country’s secrets just so Jack would shut up.
Kristor’s eyes narrowed on the man sitting in the front seat as Jack droned on. The lead agent. Adam Richards knew Kristor was an alien. Kristor had seen it in the man’s eyes when he saw Kristor’s birthmark.
The other two thought their leader was a little crazy to think aliens might exist. He’d seen that in their body language, and the way they’d cast knowing looks at each other. But that knowledge would do Kristor no good. They obeyed their leader, and would follow his command. He respected them for that, but it didn’t help his situation.
With his wrists bound by metal shackles, it was too late for him to shift. His only hope was Rianna. But could she set him free before they found out the truth? She’d been more distraught than determined when they shoved him into the back of the van, and pulled away from her house.
There was always her father. He had come across as an intelligent man. She might be able to enlist her father’s help. He would know what to do. As they left town, Kristor knew it would be impossible if they didn’t know where he was being taken.
The glass that separated him from the front slid open and Adam shifted in his seat. His grin was mocking. “You two nice and cozy?”
“It’s hotter than Hades back here,” Jack said.
“Where are you taking me?” Kristor asked, before the other man could say anything to Jack.
Adam looked at him. “Somewhere we can question you properly. We don’t want any of those country yokels interfering with our interrogation.”
“You don’t have to scare him, Adam,” Jack said.
Adam glared at the other man. “Yeah, well we don’t know exactly what he is, now do we? I’ve been in this business a lot longer than you, boy, and I’ve seen things that would make you think twice about whether aliens exist or not.”
The man stiffened. “My name is Jack, not ‘boy,’ if you don’t mind.”
“Whatever.” Adam slid the glass closed and turned around in his seat, facing front again.
“Might as well make yourself comfortable. It’s going to be a long ride,” Jack said.
Kristor didn’t like the sound of that. There was no way Rianna would ever find him, even if she could help. His mission was in jeopardy of completely failing and his identity becoming known.
Or it could be worse. He’d heard of the secret testing they did. It was whispered throughout the galaxy that aliens from other planets had been captured and no one ever saw them again. He had thought the rumors false, a way to scare children into completing their daily tasks.
His mother had told him more than once that people from Earth would come get him if he didn’t clean his room. When he was young, he’d believed her but, of course, as he’d gotten older, he realized Earth wasn’t nearly as advanced as New Symtaria.
But now he began to wonder. Maybe Adam was the monster from his childhood after all.
Chapter 28
“Oh, Ria!” Carly ran to her friend and threw her arms around her neck and sobbed.
Heath cleared his throat. “Maggie, Ron, you know they have some pretty decent doctors in Dallas who can help your girl. John Ratcliff took his son over there, you know. The one that’s a little touched and would throw things all the time. He’s a lot calmer now. They said the doctors were a blessing. I bet they could help Ria.”
Maggie squared her shoulders. “I beg your pardon, Heath, but our daughter is not touched. She’s only part alien. It’s not even close to being the same thing.”
“Mom, we can’t blame them for not believing.” Ria untangled herself from Carly, who then threw herself into Neil’s arms. A much better fit, Ria thought. “I don’t have time to go into a lengthy explanation. I need to follow them to see where they’re taking Kristor.”
“Are you sure, baby girl?” her father asked.
She nodded. “I’ve never been so sure about anything in my life.” Then she silently prayed she could follow through with her bold statement.
Ria ignored Shintara for now. If she hurried, and didn’t think about what she was about to do, then she might not get scared and back out at the last second.
She took a deep breath and stepped away from everyone. “Okay, you’ll see a thick fog. Don’t worry about it. Then, if everything works out right, I’ll shift into a hawk.”
“Oh, Ria.” Carly raised her head from Neil’s shoulder and sniffed loudly.
Neil pulled a hankie out of his back pocket and handed it to Carly. She wiped her eyes, then delicately blew her nose.
“Quiet. I need to concentrate.” Ria looked at each one of them, registering their expressions. Heath looked as though he was ready to call for the men in white coats. Neil looked confused. Her mother looked worried, her father full of pride that she was facing her fears, and Carly was just plain old scared. When Ria saw her reflection in the mirror over the sofa, she saw determination.
Yeah, well, she might be determined, but she was also scared silly.
That was exactly why Ria was afraid. But Shintara was right. Ria was Kristor’s only hope, and she wouldn’t fail him now.
Ria closed her eyes tight.
She swallowed past the sick feeling at the back of her throat.
Something was starting to happen. She grit her teeth.
“What is that?” Carly asked.
“Just the fog, dear,” Ria’s mother explained. “Remember, she told everyone there would be a fog.”
Ria heard their words as if from a distance as the burning pain grabbed hold. She groaned, slipping to the floor.
“Think hawk,” she murmured.
“Ria, where are you?” Heath’s voice bounced off the walls.
“I don’t think she can hear you. She’s too busy shifting into a hawk,” Ria’s mother told him. “I’ve always told everyone that our daughter was special. And she is. Certainly better than Vickie Jo’s daughter who is just a pharmacist. Ria’s a shapeshifting alien. Just watch and see.”
The voices faded. Ria stretched her arms and feet out. They drew back as the shift began. Beak, talons, and feathers replaced her human form.
