“Indeed I do. But I wonder what the rest of my brethren will make of us sitting together?”
The thought had occurred to her late in the night as she lay awake replaying their moonlit kisses. Would her fellows in the Zxerah Brotherhood approve of her relationship—such as it was—with Grady Prime? Would the Patriarch approve? And if they didn’t, what should she do? She wanted this stolen time with him before she left on her mission the next morning. She wanted to feel this feeling for just a little while longer.
“I can handle it if you can. And I’ll be right by your side, Gina. Let them look all they want. Without emotion, they will never understand what draws us together. If we feel anything for them, it should be pity.” Grady squeezed her fingers reassuringly.
“Do you really pity those who can’t feel?” His response would tell her just how far he’d come from the emotionless Prime he’d been most of his life.
He sighed heavily as his steps slowed. “I pity myself for having spent so many years not feeling as I do now. I pity all beings who question but can never understand the answer, even when it’s staring them in the face.”
She gave his arm a final squeeze before letting go and opening the door to the communal mess. “You’re a good man, Grady Prime.”
He followed her inside and together they went to gather their meal.
“You make me a better man, Gina. Being around you inspires me to be better than I was yesterday. You’re a good influence.”
His words, spoken low so that only she could hear, made her feel warm inside. They spent the next few minutes gathering food from the cafeteria-style setup. Armed with full trays, they sought a place to sit at one of the long tables arranged in rows around the room. This early in the morning, only a few were occupied by early risers or those coming off night duty.
“After breakfast I must work on my investigation. I will probably be free to eat lunch around noon. Will you join me? Or can you spend some time with me later today?”
She loved the way he couldn’t quite hide his eagerness. He was so new to emotion, he had a kind of eager puppy quality to him. At the same time, she realized he was somewhat fragile. Lack of understanding could cause him to misinterpret and bruise his sensitive feelings. She had to remember that and be careful of him. Hurting this beautiful soul was the last thing in the world she wanted to do.
“I’ll meet you here for lunch,” she agreed, marveling at the grin that passed over his face. “And I can meet you for dinner as well. I should be through with my preparations by sundown. There isn’t much left to do here. I was expecting to leave, just not this soon.”
“Will you be gone long?”
She was glad to see he knew enough not to ask her where she was going. “A few weeks, if all goes well. Maybe longer. I don’t really know. As long as it takes to either accomplish my goal or fail utterly.”
He laughed at her graveyard humor, warming her with his easy camaraderie. She’d missed this kind of thing. Sure, the humans among the Zxerah were the next thing to siblings, but they’d all walked hard roads to become members of the Brotherhood. Grady Prime had been through hell too, but it seemed to affect him less. He appeared to revel in each newfound feeling and his delight in the simplest of things was contagious. It just plain felt good to be around him.
On more than one level. He made her feel feminine and almost…pretty. She hadn’t been supermodel material, even in her youth. She was short and sturdy. Muscled from her pursuit of Olympic gold and her need for survival ever since, she had an athlete’s body and a plain face. Neither ugly nor gorgeous, she was used to men admiring her martial arts skills, but not the kind of fascination she saw in Grady Prime’s eyes. He made her feel beautiful.
“Then your mission is like mine.” His words brought her back to the conversation as he scraped his plate with his fork. “It’ll take as long as it takes. Though I assume the Council will reel me in at some point if I don’t show results. Until then, I have some freedom.”
“What will they do with you?”
It suddenly occurred to her that he was an experimental subject. In all likelihood he’d been sprung for a mission and might have to go back to being a prisoner of the medical establishment after it was over. She didn’t want that for him. It made her realize that every moment away from the city and the doctors who wanted to study him like a lab rat was precious. He might never have this kind of freedom again.
“I’m not sure really. There was a small group of test subjects in my clinical trial. I suppose it depends on how well we do as a group. If the rest show the ability to live normally in Alvian society, perhaps we will be given some modicum of freedom.”
“What if they can’t adjust?”
“Then I suppose we will continue to be closely monitored. Perhaps for the rest of our lives.”
Gina sat back in her chair, raising her eyebrows as she pondered his words. “That’s no way to live, Grady.”
“I concur. Which is why I’m giving great consideration to the words of your Patriarch. If nothing changes, I have few options. If, however, other events prove the usefulness or necessity of expanding the experiment, the options for me and my group of test subjects could change drastically.”
“Oh, Grady, I hope you’re right. The Patriarch is the best of men, but he plays a deep game. None of us really knows for sure what his ultimate goals are. I can tell you that I believe he’s on the right path to help both your people and mine live together peacefully, once certain issues are settled. I don’t kid myself that it’ll be easy. In fact, I think this is going to be one of the hardest things either of our races has ever attempted. I believe in my heart that it’s worth it. Whatever the cost.”
Grady reached across the table and took her hand. She felt the stares of the Alvians seated closest to them as they touched. She knew they were hearing some kind of Hum, and she wished for a moment she could hear it too. She only felt the electric effect of his skin on hers, his emotions bleeding through her small empathic ability. He was worried, elated, hopeful and tense, just as she was.
“I’m grateful I met you, Gina, even though we’re both dedicated to other missions just now.”
“I could have wished for better timing, but I’m glad we met too. You’re the first Alvian I’ve ever met who can truly feel, and I hope you won’t be the last.” She kept her voice low so that only Grady Prime could hear her fervent hopes for the future.
He clutched her hand, his strong fingers applying light pressure to her knuckles and palm. “With any luck, I’m just the first of many, if not all. You give me hope for…many things, Gina. Hope for my people. Hope for yours. And hope for…us.”
“Us?”
“You and me, Gina. We could be mates. Don’t tell me that thought doesn’t intrigue you. Even now, every Alvian in here can hear us Humming when we touch.” His smile was temptation itself and meant just for her. His eyes drew her in until they were alone in the crowded room, the only air in the little bubble that surrounded them. At least that’s the way it felt to her.
A commotion at the door burst the intimate atmosphere. Mara Prime had arrived for breakfast with a contingent of his personal staff, and he was heading directly for them. Gina tugged on her hand, but Grady Prime seemed reluctant to let her go as he looked over to the door, his mouth hardening into a grim line as he saw the scientist drawing closer.
Mara Prime approached, his aides fanning out behind him like a cape. He was an old man—one of the few Alvians who actually looked old to Gina’s eyes. He regarded them with one eyebrow raised in mild inquiry.
Grady looked from the scientist to Gina, squeezing her hand once before letting go and turning his gaze back to Mara Prime. The elder’s eyes widened fractionally as the tingling that must have signified the Hum ceased.