Ajos: The Restitution - A Sci-fi Alien Romance, Book 1, стр. 21
“I’ve only seen that look on the faces of women I work with.” Constance’s face fell. “Worked with,” she corrected herself. “I was a therapist.”
“Well, maybe you’ll have a job here too. So much shit has happened, I’m sure we’ll all need therapists,” Kerena joked and Constance smiled a little.
Kerena looked around. None of those women were there now. Athena was the only one she could see of the four, and she was in deep conversation with the bull-alien by that door with the strange female inside.
Kerena's eyes narrowed.
"Did they say anything else? Like anything about more females being rescued before us?"
Alaina frowned slightly. "No, why? Are there more of us?"
Kerena looked toward that room that held the strange woman.
"I'm not sure. I just… There's a woman in that room. I don't remember seeing her before or after the bombs went off."
Alaina's voice dropped to a whisper.
“So you saw her too?” Alaina asked. “I glimpsed her when I was brought in here. She looks…strange.”
Kerena let out a breath. She was glad she wasn’t the only one who’d seen the woman.
“It is strange,” she agreed.
“Do you think…” There was a note of apprehension in Alaina’s voice, and when Kerena met her gaze once more, the unease was evident in the woman’s eyes. “Do you think something strange is going on here?” Her voice dropped even lower. “The bombs, that woman… What if this is all an elaborate plan to get us thinking they’re the good guys?”
Kerena took a moment to think about it, and her eyes found Ajos once more.
He was helping the doctor with one woman, lifting her effortlessly as the doctor directed him where to bring her.
Alaina could be right, but she wasn’t sure.
The aliens seemed genuine.
Ajos seemed genuine, even if he was a bit strange.
Furthermore, why would the aliens’ plan involve killing so many of their own?
The bombs hadn’t been planned.
She doubted it.
“We have to be careful. We don’t know anything yet,” Alaina whispered. “This is like the best thing that’s ever happened to me and I get overexcited about things but, yea, we need to be careful.”
Kerena nodded and agreed.
Until she knew more about this new world, she had to remain smart and alert.
It was probably also best to stay out of the aliens’ way and keep a low profile.
As the thought crossed her mind, Ajos turned and looked directly at her, as if he’d heard the words in her head.
Their gazes locked and neither of them looked away.
Biting the inside of her lip, Kerena considered the alien.
Something told her that keeping a low profile was going to be harder than she thought.
8
Three days later
Kerena’s head lolled backward, and she caught herself, jerking upright from her position against the wall.
She’d slipped to the floor to rest, not wanting to use up a gurney that might be needed.
Apparently, there was another side to the medical center where they’d placed the aliens that had been injured in the blast—a precaution so they didn’t traumatize the injured humans even more—and resources were stretched.
For days, the doctors had been busy tending to the injured, and now, the med bay was finally quiet and the lights were low.
Most of the females were asleep, and some were resting, but the shock of the bombing had mostly worn off.
After she’d spoken with Alaina that first day, she’d gone off to assist the fly-like doctors as much as she could.
It turned out that most of them were interns and that the main one was called Aker.
Taiq'uds, they were called, from a planet that was caught in the middle of a war between the Tasqals and another more dominant race.
They’d fled with the help of the Restitution on a ship that had almost crashed, and they ended up on the base.
Back on their planet, Aker was a renowned medical expert and as thanks to the Restitution, he was contributing his skills to healing the wounded the rebels brought in.
From what she’d learned, it seemed to be that way for most of the aliens on the base.
In whatever way they could contribute, they were a collective force that fought against the beings that had taken her away from Earth.
So, instead of standing around, she’d hopped right in.
For three days, she’d worked non-stop, helping in the clinic, not taking a break.
Part of it was guilt that she’d been unscathed, another part was the fact she knew this was tough on everyone included.
The work was good, though. It took her mind off things and she could almost imagine she was back on Earth, working tirelessly at the lab.
The only thing was, at night, she didn’t get to go home and cuddle with Cindy.
Instead, she found a quiet corner and settled in with a blanket.
As her head lolled back again, strong arms grasped her, and she was suddenly being lifted.
The scent of fresh winter air filled her nose, and she knew who it was but she was so tired, she could hardly even open her eyes.
She’d overworked herself. Again.
“I can walk,” she murmured.
“Nonsense.” Ajos’ voice reached her ear, and she noted he sounded a bit pissed.
For the three days, he’d hovered around, and whenever she’d caught his gaze, he’d been frowning in her direction.
They began moving and Kerena opened one eye halfway to see where they were going.
They were heading toward the door.
That confused her a bit.
She’d heard earlier that the accommodation they’d prepared for the rescued humans had been destroyed in the bombs and that they would keep them in the medical center till they could figure out what to do.
Most of the humans didn’t want to live in the bomb zone anyway.
Kerena included.
It reeked of death and destruction, and the memory of what happened was too rich.
“Did they fix the homes?” Her voice sounded tired.
“No,” Ajos said. “I am taking you to mine.”
Kerena's eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to protest.
Ajos cut her off. “It is much more suitable than the med bay floor.