started.
Too late now.
4
Alien Mate 2
Eve Langlais
Chapter Two
“. . . George, who heard it from his cousin Juanita on the base, swears this time, it’s real. Aliens have landed, and they’re not friendly.” The word “alien” caught her attention. Maya turned to the petite Latina woman who spoke. “What’s going on at the base?” Eager to tell her story again to a new avid listener, Marcia spoke quickly.
“Apparently their radars didn’t catch it, but this object, unknown object,” she said with a wide-eyed whisper, “landed by the white sands. My cousin says the military sent out a detachment, and they found a circle like the ones you see in them crops. The dog unit was called in, and last I heard, they were chasing some giant alien, and he’s heading towards us!” Several of the listeners crossed themselves, and excited babble broke out.
Maya shook her head. She knew better than to listen to gossip. How often had so-and-so’s cousin, sister, or uncle made the same claim, when the truth usually ended up being something benign. The last false alarm had been caused by drug runners whose plane had run out of gas and done an emergency landing. That night had also involved a chase, and aliens had been caught, but they were of the illegal immigrant type, not extraterrestrial. But Maya couldn’t help listening to the stories, nor stop that little flutter of hope that maybe this time it would be for real. Her parents had, after all, raised her to believe.
Seeing the bulky form of Andre, the night-shift manager, waddling into the room, Maya slammed her locker shut and hightailed it out of there using the back door before he snagged her to do one more thing. Alamogordo’s stupid yearly balloon festival had almost arrived and, with it, hordes of tourists who for some reason always ended up with an urgent need for food or cleaning at three in the morning. She knew she should be thankful she had a job—especially one with awesome benefits like hers—but right now, tired, her feet aching, and with a headache pulsing behind her eyes, she just wanted to crawl under the covers of her bed and pray she won the lottery.
Yeah right, I’m more likely to run into a hot alien who wants me for my body. Maya snorted at the ridiculous thought.
Sneaking through a service entrance, she took the shortcut past the pool deck, a copy of the key that unlocked the gate on the other side—without the hotel’s knowledge, of course—a quick route to the employee parking lot and the piece of crap known as her car.
The dawn hadn’t yet started lighting the gloom, but even in the dark, she heard the rattle of the fence as if someone climbed it and then, a moment 5
Alien Mate 2
Eve Langlais
later, the distinctive sound of someone or something hitting the surface of the pool with a splash. Keep on walking , she told herself. Don’t get involved . The early morning swimmer was probably a drunk on his way back from a night of debauchery, but, if whatever was in the pool ended up being human and drowning, then she’d have a hell of a bigger headache, especially if the cops got involved. No one ever believed the Hispanic girl. Stupid gringos.
Sighing, Maya headed towards the deep end, where she’d heard the sound. Peering at the dark, lapping water, she almost wondered if she’d imagined it, but then a series of bubbles rose to the surface, and with a curse, she kicked off her shoes and dove in. With sure strokes she’d learned from years of swim lessons, she arrowed down to the bottom of the pool and waved her arms around in the sightless murk, encountering nothing. Her chest grew tight and she prepared to go up for air when a flailing limb touched her. Grabbing it, she kicked up, dragging a form that had grown limp, her lungs screaming at the added strain. She broke the surface with a pained gasp. Treading water, she pulled at the body she’d found ’til it bobbed up beside her. Wrapping an arm around his upper
Too late now.
4
Alien Mate 2
Eve Langlais
Chapter Two
“. . . George, who heard it from his cousin Juanita on the base, swears this time, it’s real. Aliens have landed, and they’re not friendly.” The word “alien” caught her attention. Maya turned to the petite Latina woman who spoke. “What’s going on at the base?” Eager to tell her story again to a new avid listener, Marcia spoke quickly.
“Apparently their radars didn’t catch it, but this object, unknown object,” she said with a wide-eyed whisper, “landed by the white sands. My cousin says the military sent out a detachment, and they found a circle like the ones you see in them crops. The dog unit was called in, and last I heard, they were chasing some giant alien, and he’s heading towards us!” Several of the listeners crossed themselves, and excited babble broke out.
Maya shook her head. She knew better than to listen to gossip. How often had so-and-so’s cousin, sister, or uncle made the same claim, when the truth usually ended up being something benign. The last false alarm had been caused by drug runners whose plane had run out of gas and done an emergency landing. That night had also involved a chase, and aliens had been caught, but they were of the illegal immigrant type, not extraterrestrial. But Maya couldn’t help listening to the stories, nor stop that little flutter of hope that maybe this time it would be for real. Her parents had, after all, raised her to believe.
Seeing the bulky form of Andre, the night-shift manager, waddling into the room, Maya slammed her locker shut and hightailed it out of there using the back door before he snagged her to do one more thing. Alamogordo’s stupid yearly balloon festival had almost arrived and, with it, hordes of tourists who for some reason always ended up with an urgent need for food or cleaning at three in the morning. She knew she should be thankful she had a job—especially one with awesome benefits like hers—but right now, tired, her feet aching, and with a headache pulsing behind her eyes, she just wanted to crawl under the covers of her bed and pray she won the lottery.
Yeah right, I’m more likely to run into a hot alien who wants me for my body. Maya snorted at the ridiculous thought.
Sneaking through a service entrance, she took the shortcut past the pool deck, a copy of the key that unlocked the gate on the other side—without the hotel’s knowledge, of course—a quick route to the employee parking lot and the piece of crap known as her car.
The dawn hadn’t yet started lighting the gloom, but even in the dark, she heard the rattle of the fence as if someone climbed it and then, a moment 5
Alien Mate 2
Eve Langlais
later, the distinctive sound of someone or something hitting the surface of the pool with a splash. Keep on walking , she told herself. Don’t get involved . The early morning swimmer was probably a drunk on his way back from a night of debauchery, but, if whatever was in the pool ended up being human and drowning, then she’d have a hell of a bigger headache, especially if the cops got involved. No one ever believed the Hispanic girl. Stupid gringos.
Sighing, Maya headed towards the deep end, where she’d heard the sound. Peering at the dark, lapping water, she almost wondered if she’d imagined it, but then a series of bubbles rose to the surface, and with a curse, she kicked off her shoes and dove in. With sure strokes she’d learned from years of swim lessons, she arrowed down to the bottom of the pool and waved her arms around in the sightless murk, encountering nothing. Her chest grew tight and she prepared to go up for air when a flailing limb touched her. Grabbing it, she kicked up, dragging a form that had grown limp, her lungs screaming at the added strain. She broke the surface with a pained gasp. Treading water, she pulled at the body she’d found ’til it bobbed up beside her. Wrapping an arm around his upper
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