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Marisol stepped out from behind the tall plant. “Answer me. What are you doing in my home?” She glanced at their uniforms to be sure, the blue strip around their throats and wrists telling her they were, in fact, clones.
The tallest male slowly faced her. “It was a mistake. We’re in the wrong home. Our apologies.”
She kept her weapon trained on them. “Bullshit. You should have gone after my gramps if you wanted to kill someone. I get it. I do. I see you,” she said softly. “I know you have feelings and emotions. I didn’t buy this damn planet or force you to work here.”
All four clones just silently watched her.
“I don’t keep you enslaved, and I can’t leave either. Do you understand that? My gramps would never allow me to have a life somewhere else. I’m seen as property, too, because I’m family to him. He’s an asshole that way. If you ever repeat my words, I will deny saying that, but that’s the truth. I’ll pretend this never happened, for your sake. Just don’t come after me again. Do we have an agreement?”
The tallest male clone nodded. “We didn’t wish you harm, Ms. Florigo.”
She glanced at the bag he carried, really noticing it for the first time. “That is a clone plasma carrier.” She frowned, staring at the tallest medic. “Stop lying. Giving me clone blood will kill me. Why deny it? As I said, I understand your anger, but you’re going after the wrong target. I’m not your enemy, damn it. I have sympathy for your kind. Trust me, I do. You should have talked to the clones who deal with me every day, and they would have told you how I treat them as equals.”
He sealed his lips.
“Do you understand what I’ve said? I won’t report this because you’ll be killed. I don’t want that. Just don’t come after me again.” Marisol needed them to understand.
The second male clone lifted his gaze, holding her stare. “We aren’t here to harm you.”
“I’m ordering you to stop lying.”
“I’m not.”
She stared at his face, trying to read him. “Then why are you here?”
“I’m not permitted to say.”
That confused Marisol until another thought hit. “Did you think you could kidnap me and force your way off the planet? I hate to break this to you, but it won’t work. I guess you don’t know Clone World history. Let me clue you in. A group of clones tried that with my parents. They took them hostage and made it all the way to a shuttle. My gramps had it shot down. He sacrificed their lives to stop those clones from getting away.” Bitterness rose inside her. “He still stands by his decision that killed his own son and daughter-in-law. He’d order security to attack us despite the odds of me dying to stop you from escaping.”
One of the two female clones lifted her head. “We know about that tragedy. It’s included in our download information package to prevent it from happening again.”
That confused Marisol more. “Then why try this? Security will just blow us out of the sky if we even manage to get inside a shuttle. We’d all die.”
“We’re not permitted to say.”
Marisol frowned at the female. It was something a clone would say if they were under orders. “Who sent you here?”
“We aren’t permitted to tell you that,” the tallest male clone stated.
“But someone sent you?” Marisol knew that had to be the case if they weren’t there for revenge.
The female clone who’d spoken before nodded.
“Was it another clone?” Marisol studied her features, looking for a hint of that being the case.
The female shook her head.
Marisol believed the medic was being honest. There were only about six dozen humans living on the planet. Then again, it could be a tourist. It was possible that her gramps had made someone angry enough to want to hurt him by having her killed. “Who sent you?”
“We aren’t permitted to say.” The second female clone lowered her head. “May we leave?”
Marisol was growing angry. “You know I could hit the alarm, and you’d be killed, right? You entered my home without permission. That would be seen as an act of aggression on your part. I want answers, damn it. Someone tell me something. Please?”
The second female clone stared at Marisol again. Her features softened. “We would be killed regardless if we talk.”
The mystery deepened. It left Marisol more alarmed than afraid. What is going on? She lowered her weapon. “Please? I didn’t hit the alarm. I said I’d forget this ever happened. I just want answers.”
The tallest male clone glanced at the other three before looking at her. “You wouldn’t like the truth, and you’d betray our trust if we did tell you why we are really here.”
