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  Cave Hunting

  The last few months for Pat had been frenetic and exhausting. It felt like she had spent more time in airports and waiting for delayed flights than anything else, as she flew back and forth between seeing her father in Alexandria and then back to Charlotte to oversee the cases of her private investigation firm. Allan's veterinary practice had been busier than usual for this time of year, but still, he had made it a point to call her frequently and had even driven down to Charlotte a few times for dinner before driving home later that night. They spent most of their time talking about each other's cases and her father's slow but steady recovery. The one thing they made a point to never discuss was TJ. Several times, Pat considered asking Allan about TJ as a way of approaching the subject to see if he had had a change of heart, but each time she refrained. After all, she knew what his answer would be, and she was simply too stressed out to get into another argument about it.

  By the end of March, with the early signs of spring all around, Pat’s father was well enough that he made her promise not to return for at least six months. Allan invited her to come stay with him, but there was one place Pat needed to go first. She had thought about the cave often and had more than once dreamed about it. She felt like it was time to put that real-life nightmare into the past where it belonged. She hoped one last visit to the cave would help; that is if she could find it. The last time she had traveled to it she had been in the trunk of Homlin's car. At the same time, she figured there probably weren't that many caves in the area and the locals would know where most of them were. It was at her fourth stop at a combination convenience store and gas station that she hit pay dirt. The man behind the counter reminded her of a cross between Santa Claus and Charlie Manson. More importantly, he looked like someone who had been born and raised in the mountains. As Pat described the area of the cave in as much detail as she could remember, the old man nodded his head and smiled.

  “Yeah, I know the cave you're talking about. It's on old man Jacobs' land. I think there's still an old logging road that'll get you pretty close to it, but you'll need four-wheel-drive. We've had a good bit of rain here lately, and the last couple hundred yards are pretty steep."

  After he'd given Pat directions, and she had repeated them back to him to be sure she had them correct, he asked her, “Why would a pretty thing like you want to go to such a God-forsaken place?” But she had already turned around and continued walking out the door. She had learned to ignore such questions, especially when she didn't know the answer to them.

  The old man might have been nosy, but at least he gave good directions. Even though she'd estimated the drive would take no more than twenty minutes, forty-five minutes later she was still slipping and sliding up the mountain. Several times it felt like she could go no further, but her stubborn disposition kept her moving forward. By the time she arrived, the lower half of her Jeep Cherokee was caked with mud. She turned the car off and put it in park but remained sitting in it for several minutes, waiting for her heart rate and breathing to return to normal. When they slowed down as much as they were likely to under this circumstances, she opened the car door and stepped out. At this altitude, there were still a few patches of snow in the shaded areas. She walked around to get her bearings, trying to replay that last confrontation with the monstrosity that had been half-human and half-alien in appearance.

  Something didn't feel right, but she couldn't put her hands on what it was at first, and then it came to her. There was no body, not even any signs of one. Had Oliver and his team returned to the location and removed it? Of course, if they had, they wouldn't be at liberty to tell her about it, but what if she asked Oliver directly? Would he give her the courtesy of a straight answer for old time's sake? They had been reasonably close once many years ago.

  Pat walked around the area outside the cave, replaying the struggle that had taken place last December. Her neck still ached occasionally from being yanked around by the choker collar he had forced her to wear, especially in times when she was under a great deal of stress, like now. But it was time for her to move beyond the traumatic incident that had occurred on this mountainside. She needed to get on with the rest of her life, so she forced herself to recreate the event that had almost cost her her life and had resulted in Homlin's death. She played out the fight blow-by-blow in slow motion until she declared that part complete and mentally filed it away in her past. Everything was proceeding nicely, and she could feel the weight lifting from her shoulders until she came to one small detail she had previously forgotten.

  It had happened near the end of the fight shortly after she removed the lug wrench from her coat pocket. She remembered swinging the wrench at Homlin’s head, but he partially dodged the blow. The wrench struck his neck and shoulder where it caught on the chain around his neck. She pulled the lug wrench away to strike him again, and the chain and the attached crystal were flung into the bushes. Homlin had glanced in the direction the crystal, giving Pat the opportunity to finish him off.

  What had happened to the crystal? Pat walked around the area, playing the scene over in her mind as she tried to remember the exact location where that part of the fight had occurred. When she thought she had found it, she turned in the direction she remembered seeing the crystal fly and slowly walked in that direction with her eyes focused on the ground, but she didn't find the crystal on the ground. Instead, she found it hanging in a bush hidden by a small boulder, the chain and crystal glittering in the light afternoon sunlight. Pat stared at it for a moment before slowly reaching out and pulling it from its hiding place. Holding it in her hand, she studied it closely. It was about the size and shape of a large acorn, but its surface was unlike anything Pat had ever seen. It seemed to have an iridescent glow about it, almost as though it held an electric charge even though it was cool to the touch.

  Then she suddenly realized that this was why she had to return to the area. The crystal would be a reminder not only of a difficult, traumatic time but more importantly of how she had overcome tremendous adversity and won. With that revelation, she felt the last weight of stress lift from her shoulders. It was almost time to go home, but not before she checked out the cave. She realized that Oliver and his crew had probably inspected the cave with a fine tooth comb, but hey, they had missed finding the crystal so they might have missed something in the cave as well.

  She took the flashlight out of her pocket that she had brought for this part of the trip and turned it on. She strolled over to the mouth of the cave and directed the beam of light into it. The blackness of the cave gobbled up the light making it impossible for Pat to see any details. Was it really necessary to go inside? Hadn't she found what she had come for? She had heard that caves in this region were notorious for rockslides. What would she do if she went inside and the entranceway collapsed? She wasn't particularly claustrophobic, but the thought of entering the cave sent a chill up her back, and she could feel the palms of her hands grow sweaty. She glanced down at the crystal she still held in her hand. Hadn't she just told herself it was to serve as a reminder of her strength to overcome adversity? Certainly, she could handle a quick look inside.

  Having made the decision, Pat took a slow step into the cave, then another, and another before turning around and looking out to the surface. This might have been where TJ stood to watch me as I killed Homlin. The thought sent another shudder through her body. What kind of relationship had TJ shared with the alien? Perhaps the even more important question was, what kind of relationship would he have with Homlin's murderer? Clearly, the two questions were interconnected. Answer the first, and you'd be able to answer the second. There had to be some connection between TJ and the alien. After all, something had caused TJ to run away from Allan's home, even though he was well cared for by both Allan and Kendra. Had TJ viewed Homlin as his real parent and Allan as only a temporary substitute?

  What was it that Allan had told her TJ had said as he exited the cave? "Daddy." Allan had assumed TJ was calling to
him, but what if TJ had actually been referring to the dead alien?

  Extra Income

  Spring was one of James’ favorite times of the year. The mountain temperatures were cool at night which made for perfect sleeping weather, and daytime temps were still mild as well. It was also when his businesses tended to pick up. He could understand his heating and air conditioning business increasing. He had some customers who regularly requested their AC be serviced in prep for the warmer temps of summer, which were not far off.

  But why did he also often get an increase in calls for his other business in Spring? It didn’t make sense to him, but he’d found it to be true. Bad things happened year around, but they invariably increased around March or April every year. This year was no exception. He’d already received five calls from his various contacts including two from Jersey, his old Army buddy that was his number one connection to the world of black ops.

  James still remembered the first assignment he'd accepted from Jersey. He'd received some calls previously, turning each of them down, but this one was particularly timely. He'd just received Jenny's latest medical bill. He was sitting at his desk just like he was now, staring at the bills, counting the zeros to the left of the decimal point and realizing he should have gone to medical school as his parents had urged him. How in the hell was he supposed to pay such an outrageous amount?

  Then the phone had rung with Jersey’s nasally voice on the other end. One of his “clients” needed a talented helicopter pilot immediately.

  “I know you’ve passed on my previous invitations, but you did say last time it was okay for me to stay in touch, so I just thought…”

  “How much?” James asked as he continued to stare at the bill in front of him.

  Jersey quoted him the price.

  “Really? That much? Who do I have to kill?”

  “Shouldn’t be any killing involved on this one. Just flying the ‘copter in and out, but the mission is considered particularly dangerous and top secret, which is the reason for the premium pay. Interested?”

  And it had been that easy to become a freelance mercenary for hire. That had been close to four years ago. The second job had kept James from having to declare bankruptcy. Unfortunately, what it hadn't been able to do was save Jenny. Cervical cancer took her life, but not until after she delivered their second baby girl, Jennifer Ann.

  Aeo Instructions

  1

  Aeo lay on the hot rocks outside the cave, his solar panels radiating around him as the afternoon sun began to set over the nearby mountain. Checking the energy gauge, it read seventy-five percent to maximum charge. That would have to do for today. The accumulating clouds threatened a late afternoon thunderstorm, and it was time to awaken the Primary from his nap. It was also time for Aeo to feed him his fourth meal of the day; a combination of the local wildlife mixed with the high energy "mother's milk" that had supplemented the rapid growth from baby to toddler in just three months. One of Aeo's main function at this stage had become converting the energy of this planet's sun into the high octane food supplement.

  The day was rapidly approaching when it would be time to release the Primary back into this strange world. In the meantime, the lessons and testing would continue, including this afternoon after the Primary had finished his meal.

  2

  As was their routine, Aeo started with a series of questions to check the primary’s retention of the previous lessons.

  “What is the name you tell humans?”

  “Val,” came the reply.

  “Good, and what is your real name, that you must not reveal but also never forget?”

  “Sluneg,” came the prompt reply.

  Good, Aeo thought. Now for the next piece of data to imprint.

  “And most important, why are you here?” Aeo asked.

  Val paused, a squinted up look of puzzlement on his face that often appeared when Aeo gave him a new question to answer. His eyes raised towards his eyebrows as he tried to retrieve the right answer.

  “I'm not sure, but I think it has to do with my people," he finally answered.

  “That’s a good start, and who are your people?”

  Val considered the question for several seconds before replying, “Valarians?”

  Aeo studied him. “Where did that come from?”

  “Well, if I’m Val than I thought my people might be…”

  “No, no. Try again. Think,” Aeo replied with an edge of irritation.

  Val paused again, closing his eyes this time. Finally, he smiled. "The Al…lac…narian…the Allacnarians."

  “Yes! Very good. And why are you here?”

  “To perpetuate my people,” Val’s reply was as much a question as a statement.

  “Well, yes, but it's much more than that," Aeo replied, then paused to consider how best to drive this all-important point home. After a moment, the answer came to him.

  “Come with me,” Aeo said, starting towards the mouth of the cave.

  Val hesitated. "Out there?" One of Aeo's cardinal rules had been never to leave the cave.

  “Yes,” Aeo replied. “This lesson is too important for you to miss it, so we’re going on a short field trip.”

  The two made their way a short distance from the cave to a field lush with the new growth of Spring. Val gazed around in awe at the bright green colors of the rain-drenched meadow, dappled with yellow flowers, and the blue and white of the cloud-filled sky.

  “Take it all in, boy. This is your world.” Or it will be once you get back to the mission, Aeo thought.

  Aeo crab-walked his way over to a clump of dandelions in various stages of growth and clipped one of the silvery gray puffs and held it out to Val.

  “Blow on it…hard.”

  Val did as instructed and watched as the puff exploded into a cloud of individual seeds that flew off in all different directions.

  “You are here to do more than just perpetuate your people. You are here to seed this quadrant of the Universe. It is both the Prime Directive of this mission and your purpose for being alive. Understand?”

  Val nodded as he watched the seeds float away in the late afternoon breeze.

  3

  After returning to the cave, Aeo continued with the next set of instructions and lessons.

  “Soon you will be ready to return to the world and continue your mission. Remember, to humans you are a small innocent child. You must maintain that role as long as you can and at all times. Cuteness and innocence are your most important disguise. Humans are easily taken in by these traits of their offspring and are key to you fulfilling your mission.”

  “I understand,” Val replied with a coy smile and gentle nod of his head.

  “Also, your growth rate is much faster than human children so you’ll need to keep on the move. Do not settle down or grow attached to one family or location. After about a year your growth spurt will slow considerably as your body reaches maturity. Until then, keep on the move. Understand?”

  “Yes,” Val replied. “No attachments and keep moving. Anything else?”

  “Yes, the most important instruction. You’re to return here once your growth cycle is complete to recover the cocoon and me, both of which are critical to the mission.”

  Birthday Celebration

  1

  Allan stared at the chocolate fudge birthday cake on the kitchen counter with a single candle poking out from the icing and then at the other candles he held in his hand. Technically speaking, today was TJ's first birthday. It had been exactly a year ago when Allan had performed a late-night C-section on Molly and had been shocked to find not a litter of puppies but a litter of larvae, one of which had taken on the likeness of his deceased son, Todd. But to all appearances, TJ looked like a ten to twelve-year-old boy. Maybe it would be best just to forgo having candles on the cake at all, but that didn't seem right either. After all, one of the traditions of the birthday celebration was blowing out the candles, and he really wanted TJ to experience as normal and
as happy a birthday celebration as possible.

  Allan walked over to the counter and shuffled through the junk drawer until he found a larger white candle. Returning to the cake, he replaced the smaller candle with the larger one and then placed twelve smaller candles around it. Maybe he would have to explain the symbolism of the candles, but that was okay. At least this way TJ would have plenty of candles to blow out. He only hoped that the other challenges of this day would be as easy to solve. Like what would he do if TJ or one of the other guests asked him to share about the day when TJ was born? Allan had been contemplating that question for well over a week since he’d come up with the idea of the birthday party. So far all he’d come up with was to pray no one would ask the question.

  I’ll just cross that bridge if I come to it, Allan told himself as he finished placing the candles on the cake and put it into the refrigerator for safekeeping. After all, it wasn't like it was going to be a big party. Even if everybody came, who'd been invited that was only five people: TJ, the birthday boy, Kendra, Mimi, Pat if she made it back from Charlotte in time, and himself. He briefly thought about inviting Dawn, his receptionist, and Kendra's mom, but decided against it almost immediately. He didn't know exactly what Kendra had told her mom about her babysitting gig, but so far whatever it had been seemed to be working. No reason to open up that can of worms; at least, no time in the foreseeable future.

  Allan glanced at his watch. Less than an hour before the guests were due to arrive. With TJ off romping in the woods somewhere, he still had time to take a shower and change into some fresh clothes.