Alien Genes 1: Daughter of Atuk Page 4

  Tell her what you are. See how she responds.

  Eqin glanced at Cathy but said nothing. A pulse beat at his temple. There was a long silence and Cathy wished they would talk. Then Hasan turned towards her. She could sense the evil in him, and tried to back away, but Eqin held her tightly.

  Hasan smiled wickedly, and spoke aloud. “Let me tell her then.” He stared into her face. “We are aliens, and Eqin will be sent back home for his non-compliance."

  In complete disbelief, Cathy looked first at Hasan and then at Eqin. Aliens? They're aliens? No! Impossible! It was a joke, surely.

  But somehow she knew Hasan was telling the truth. Horror-struck, she let go of Eqin's hand, suddenly repulsed, and backed away from both of them.

  Eqin reached out towards her, but she edged further away. There was victory in Hasan's eyes, and it was clear he'd already succeeded partially in what he wanted to achieve.

  “Cathy, please. I can explain,” Eqin said to her. “Just trust me."

  Cathy hesitated for a moment. She knew instinctively that he was being sincere, but she was scared. Before she could react, Hasan lifted his hand and shot out a blast of energy, flinging Eqin across the immaculately-kept suburban lawn. She gasped in horror. She could see that Eqin was hurt and desperately wanted to help him, but Hasan was already heading her way.

  Her glance darted between Eqin and Hasan while she backed away from the old man until she felt the trunk of the old oak tree behind her. There was nowhere to go. She was trapped.

  There was darkness in the old man's eyes, and petrified she watched as he stretched out his arm. The touch of his cold hand on her head caused a blinding flash of pain, sweeping through her body. She drew in her breath, trying to fight the darkness threatening to engulf her—but she didn't succeed. Still clutching the gift Eqin had given her, she slumped onto the grass; unaware that Hasan was standing grinning over her limp body.

  Eqin stood up unsteadily, trying to shake off the light-headedness. He rushed over to Cathy, squatted and checked her pulse.

  Thank God, she's alright. He looked up, and shot his thoughts out at Hasan, Was this really necessary? You could have killed her.

  She would have been a danger to us, Hasan responded coolly.

  Eqin stood up, facing Hasan directly.

  Why? She knew nothing. You have become obsessed with our mission.

  Hasan wasn't to be contradicted.

  You do not know what you are talking about, he shot back. He looked up at the night sky.

  It is time for you to go.

  Eqin eyed him balefully.

  I'll be back, Hasan.

  You are underestimating your power, Son of Erique. You will never return to Earth, and you will never see her again.

  Don't be so sure of yourself, Hasan. All power has limits—even yours.

  The men's gazes locked and for a few moments, they stood motionless, facing each other. Then there was a sudden burst of energy and Hasan was left standing alone in the moonlit garden. He looked down at Cathy's unconscious body and then returned to the shadows from where he had come.

  * * * *

  The next morning, Cathy's mother stood at the foot of her daughter's bed, a concerned expression on her face.

  “Are you sure she's alright?” she asked the doctor.

  “A case of sleepwalking, I'm afraid. Probably due to the stress of the exams."

  The doctor put his stethoscope back in his bag. “I wouldn't worry if I were you. Keep her a few days in bed to make sure. I'll prescribe some tranquillizers."

  “She kept on mumbling something about Eqin being gone,” Cathy's mother added.

  The doctor looked up interested. “Eqin?” he asked.

  “A young man she's just met,” Cathy's mother explained.

  The doctor thought a few moments.

  “Mmm. Maybe you should call him,” he suggested.

  Cathy's mother nodded. “I'll do that."

  Her husband walked into the room and she caught his eye.

  “Dr. Marshall suggests we contact Dr. O'Connor about Cathy."

  “I'm afraid that won't be possible,” he replied somberly. “Apparently Dr. O'Connor was killed in a car crash last night."

  * * *

  Chapter 3

  Six years later

  Cathy closed her office door behind her. What a meeting—another endless debate on issues that hardly concerned her. How did she ever land herself in this job? She flopped down in her chair and switched on her computer. On the bottom right of the screen a little envelope flashed. She had e-mail.

  The message was from Professor Al-Abud, and she smiled wryly. The world was a small place. As she read the message, her interest was grudgingly kindled. He was inviting her and a colleague of hers, Robert, to an excavation—a dig in the Middle East.

  Cathy sat back in her chair. She'd have to think about that. For some inexplicable reason she felt reluctant to accept the invitation. It was as if something was warning her to stay away from the old man. Nevertheless, it was tempting.

  There was a knock at her door and her colleague, Robert, walked in. He was a muscular, athletic man although he was slightly shorter than Cathy.

  “Did you see the e-mail?” he asked.

  “The one from Professor Al-Abud?” Cathy nodded. “Yes, I did."

  Robert raised his eyebrows questioningly. “Well?"

  Holding herself dumb, Cathy said, “Well, what?"

  “Are you going?"

  “Maybe. I'll think about it."

  Robert looked at her, dismayed. “How can you even say that? He's renowned in his field. It would be a privilege to join his team."

  “Yes, but there's nothing that's stopping you from going. You can represent our department. I don't mind."

  Her voice lacked enthusiasm, and Robert seemed surprised at her lack of interest. “I thought you would love to go,” he said in a tone bordering on disappointment.

  “Yes, I would. Just not with Professor Al-Abud."

  She saw Robert's gaze searching her face, but she kept her expression blank. He didn't need to know why she was reluctant to take up the invitation. She wasn't even sure herself.

  Robert knitted his eyebrows. “What have you got against him?"

  “Nothing. I'm just not interested.” She could see by his expression that he almost believed her, but she knew he wasn't a fool.

  He smiled. “Wait a minute, didn't the Professor visit the country when you were a student? Did you meet him?"

  “Yes, I did,” she admitted, wondering where he was heading with the question.

  “Aha! And you took an instant dislike to him,” Robert concluded. He sat down at her table, as if settling in for a long chat.

  Cathy shook her head. “Not at all. I found him an absolutely charming man."

  “So? Why don't you want to join his team?"

  Cathy swivelled her chair away from Robert. She didn't want him to read more on her face than he needed to know. Since the incident with Darren, she'd become increasingly private. “I'd rather not discuss it."

  But Robert was a persistent man and he was nosy. “Did he make a pass at you?"

  The insinuation annoyed Cathy and she frowned, swivelling back towards him. “You've got to be kidding. Do you know how old he is?"

  Robert shrugged his shoulders. “I've seen a picture of him. He looks good for his age, and some young women like older men. They say it's all about financial security, and an old guy like that would have heaps of it."

  Cathy was unimpressed by his comment. He really didn't know when to quit. Her response was sharp, “Just drop it, okay? You're being disgusting. I have work to do."

  “Be like that,” Robert said and turned to leave her office. On his way out, he stopped and looked at her. “By the way, your friend phoned and left a message."

  She looked up. “Who?"

  “Some woman named Sue. She said she wanted to invite you out for lunch on the 26th."

  “Oh,” Cathy replied,
not knowing what else to say. “Thanks."

  After Robert had left the office, she sat a while staring out the window.

  How long has it been now? Six years?

  She tried not to think about it, but it was always there in the background. She could remember very little of those few days, and the harder she tried, the more the memories escaped her, but the feelings were still there as if it had happened the day before.

  Firstly, there was Darren ... Those memories came flooding back soon after her so-called breakdown, and it took her a long time to get those memories out of her head ... Even now, she avoided the building where they'd found him.

  Then there was Eqin. Most of what she knew about him, her friends and parents had told her. They also told her he'd died in a car accident the same night she was found in the garden. It took her a long time to put together bits and pieces of what had happened that day, and it still made little sense.

  A very vivid memory she had of that time, though, was Professor Al-Abud. For some reason his face was burned into her memory. She recalled feeling an inexplicable, overwhelming anger towards him. Even then, it struck her as odd that she would feel so strongly about a person she'd met only in passing. Before he left the country, the Professor had briefly stopped by their house. She could never figure out why, but she remembered having to leave the room because of a tremendous urge to attack him.

  It often bothered her that she couldn't recall anything that had happened that night. Her parents told her she'd been sleepwalking and that they'd found her unconscious in the garden. They blamed it on the stress of writing her finals, but she knew it wasn't the reason. Something else had happened that night.

  If only I could remember.

  She sighed, and looked down at her pendant. Her mother told her that when they found her, she was clutching the pendant and kept mumbling that Eqin was gone. She'd never seen the pendant before, and couldn't explain where she'd found it. To her, the necklace was proof something had happened that night, but she soon stopped asking questions.

  There was something peculiar about the necklace. Once she'd put it on, she found it difficult to take it off. It was as if it was part of her—as if it had always been.

  She opened the e-mail again, and read it attentively. Apparently, Professor Al-Abud was compiling a special team to excavate an isolated area in the desert he believed held the clue to ‘limitless wealth'. He didn't specify, leaving it open to interpretation, but there was a clear promise of achievement.

  Robert was right. It was time she put the past behind her.

  Perhaps I should take up the invitation.

  Staring out the window at the sky, she was embracing the pendant with her right hand when she heard his voice.

  Cathy...

  A cold shudder ran down her spine. It was unmistakably Eqin's voice in her head. She tried to suppress the rising panic.

  She'd forgotten about the voices. At the time, she'd come to the conclusion that they'd been in her imagination and part of her all-too-real dreams. The thought that they hadn't been figments of her imagination was one she preferred not to entertain. She recalled once mentioning the voices to the therapist she was seeing. Although he never said so directly, she knew he thought she was mentally disturbed. Why else would she be hearing voices?

  The work pressure had to have brought it on. That, together with the memories Robert had stirred inside her. She had to stop thinking about what happened all those years ago. Maybe a change in scenery would do her good. Yes, she would accept Professor Al-Abud's invitation. She clicked the reply button, and typed:

  Dear Professor Al-Abud, thank you for your invitation. I will gladly accept. Regards, Cathy McNeal (Dr.).

  She attached her signature and clicked the ‘send’ button. In a split second, the message was sent off across the globe, and she smiled. She loved this technology—to be able to send messages across the world in an instant.

  At that precise moment, there was a knock at her door. Slightly irritated at being disturbed she looked up. “Come in!"

  The door opened slowly, and a face peeked furtively around the door. Cathy's eyes widened as she recognised it.

  “Mrs. Crawford!” she exclaimed, and got up from her chair to walk around the desk. “What are you doing here?"

  Miriam Crawford smiled apologetically. She was clearly not well, and Cathy ushered the frail woman to a chair. “Please sit."

  She struggled to hide her shock at how much Darren's mother had changed, and pulled out another chair to sit opposite the older woman. She hadn't seen Miriam since Darren's funeral. Although she got along very well with the other woman, she never felt free to approach her after Darren's death.

  “What brings you here, Mrs. Crawford?” she asked, but what she actually wanted to say, was, Why now?

  “I ... don't quite know where to start...” Miriam paused a moment. Her voice was trembling, “My daughter...” She took a deep breath. “This is very difficult for me..."

  “Please, tell me what's on your mind."

  Darren's mother had always been a proud woman; tall, slender and well-spoken. To see the woman beseeching like that broke Cathy's heart.

  “Please, Mrs. Crawford, go ahead,” she urged.

  “I ... I just don't know how to say this. It's been such a long time..."

  Miriam's voice died away. Her eyes closed as if to banish the thoughts that were going through her head.

  Cathy remained still, waiting patiently for Miriam to gather her thoughts.

  “Darren would have...” Miriam took another deep breath. Her voice was suddenly stronger. “That's not why I am here.” Her faded blue eyes caught Cathy's. “I know that I'm intruding ... but Professor Al-Abud said if I ever had a problem I should come to you."

  Her words astonished Cathy.

  “I beg your pardon?"

  “Shortly after Darren's death he—the Professor—and his assistant ... what was his name again...?” Miriam asked, seemingly confused.

  “Doctor O'Connor,” Cathy answered quietly.

  “Yes, that's him. Well ... they came to our house to pay their respects. It was then that Professor Al-Abud said that if I ever needed help I should come and see you. He said you would understand,” Miriam said.

  Cathy was caught off guard. “They came to your house?"

  “Yes. They said they had met Darren at a lecture."

  “Really?” Cathy leaned back in her chair, avoiding the older woman's gaze. “I didn't know that."

  She was cautious not to say too much. This was news to her.

  “Yes, they did.” Miriam swallowed obviously before going on. “He ... he seemed to understand why Darren had committed suicide."

  “Because of stress?” Cathy asked evenly.

  For a moment, there was a silence. Miriam fiddled uncomfortably with her hands, staring down at them.

  “No. That wasn't the reason."

  “Mrs. Crawford, I'm sorry but I'm not following you. What does this all have to do with me? Why did you come to see me?” Cathy said, growing somewhat impatient.

  “He ... he said you would understand."

  “Who? Professor Al-Abud?"

  “Yes, and his assistant."

  Cathy looked at Miriam sceptically. The situation and the story the woman was telling struck her as extremely peculiar. She never knew that Eqin had met Darren. Surely someone would have mentioned that to her? Her gut instinct told her that there was something fishy going on, but she wasn't sure what it was ... yet.

  Miriam had to have noticed that Cathy wasn't convinced of her story, and her face reddened.

  “I didn't expect you to ... understand. Especially not after all these years,” she said.

  Miriam's words hit a chord in Cathy's heart, but she pushed the guilt aside. Darren had been a good friend, but was it really her responsibility to keep in touch with his family?

  Miriam had picked up her bag and opened it, seemingly searching for something. After some hunting, she took out
a small jewellery box and held it out to Cathy.

  “Dr. O'Connor asked me to give you this..."

  Cathy took the box hesitantly. She was finding it increasingly difficult to keep an open mind. Why would Miriam have kept the thing from her for six years? Surely, she could have given it to her earlier? She was developing an uneasy feeling, and was starting to wish Miriam had never walked into her office.

  Miriam was clearly keen on her opening the box and as a courtesy, Cathy did so. She paled instantly at the sight of its contents. She'd seen it before—many times in fact—in her nightmares.

  “He said you would know what it means."

  Disturbed, Cathy closed the box again, trying to regain control over her emotions. She tried to hand the box back to Miriam, but Darren's mother shook her head and gestured. “No. No, keep it. It was meant for you."

  Cathy placed the box on her desk and turned back to the older woman. “I'm sorry, Mrs. Crawford, I'm at a total loss. Why exactly did you come here?"

  “It's my daughter. I'm concerned about her."

  Cathy looked at her sharply. The fragile, pathetic woman suddenly seemed much more in control. The difference was almost tangible, and Cathy frowned.

  “I don't see where I can help."

  “Darren didn't commit suicide. He was killed,” Miriam stated bluntly.

  “That's not what the police found."

  “They wouldn't have. How could they? No-one would believe the truth."

  “What is the truth, Mrs. Crawford?” asked Cathy, feeling increasingly tense. The conversation had become emotionally tiring. She had a sense that Miriam's motives for being in her office were not above board.

  Why choose a day almost to the day when Darren died? After six years?

  “Darren was forced to kill himself. They made him do it,” Miriam said.

  Cathy shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

  “Who?” she asked, against her better judgement.

  “The aliens."

  Miriam's eyes were focused on her hands in her lap, and then she started talking about everything that happened at the time of Darren's death. At first, the words came haltingly, but as the story unfolded, the words flowed easier as if the mother found relief in talking. Unable to intervene, Cathy was forced to listen.