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Chapter One
Outside Claude’s townhouse in Langley, Virginia, the icy winter wind howled and cried throughout the evening air. Inside, the room was dark, with flickering flames of a steady fire in the stone hearth casting dancing shadows against the deep reds and oranges of the mahogany paneling. The crackle of the fire with its woodsy scent brought subtle comfort to his weary mind.
He settled in his favorite leather recliner, feet up, with a glass of Hennessy cognac in his hand. It had been months since the attempted alien invasion ended. On the surface, things seemed to have returned to normal. Whatever normal meant anymore.
As he stared into his cognac, he couldn’t help but reminisce about its original purpose. He had high hopes when he bought it, that he’d be celebrating its smooth flavor with a loved one as a symbol of something momentous. He chuckled. That all seemed pretty hollow right about now. With a sigh, he closed his eyes and allowed the warmth of the fire and the aroma of the rich alcohol to envelop him.
Memories of his past crept into his thoughts. The people he used to know and the risks he’d taken for or with them. The hard decisions he made over the years that got him where he was now. And the heavy personal price he paid for them all.
Bottom line, he was tired. So tired.
This morning, he’d resigned from FEAR, the First Encounter Alien Resistance section he’d overseen at the CIA. He’d stayed on at the agency for the last six months to help Director Obsidian (aka Jazmi Tiamat) delete as much evidence of the alien invasion as possible. While conspiracy theories abounded, most of humanity ignored them and went about their daily lives, none the wiser.
Then, about four weeks ago, the director submitted her own resignation.
He guessed her pregnancy had something to do with it. But more than likely it had to do with her being half alien and wanting to work with those aliens from Akurn before they moved out of Transkip range of Earth.
The CIA offered him his own directorship, but he’d turned it down. His mind wasn’t in the game anymore. The thought of resuming his former life held little appeal. He sat back with a grunt. No, he was too busy pining over a woman he could never have. He closed his eyes and visualized the last time he’d seen her.
Amata. Pale, delicate skin, alabaster-white hair in a sassy cut that lovingly framed her jawline. Her intelligent, blue-green eyes belied her innocent-looking features. She appeared as if she was in her early to mid-twenties.
But he knew she was much, much older.
He’d asked her about her age once.
Her only response was a mysterious smile with a brief explanation of how her lifespan was connected to her planet’s orbit and not Earth’s. She then whispered, “Every woman has to have some secrets.”
“Honestly, Claude. I can’t believe you’re just sitting there mooning over a woman and not going after her.” A soft feminine chuckle. “That’s so unlike you.”
Everything within him stilled. He hadn’t had a dream about his late wife Barbara in a long time. After she’d died years ago of brain cancer, he used to dream about her all the time. If he was the romantic type, he’d give in to the notion her spirit visited him.
“Barbara. Where have you been?” He grabbed the plain gold wedding band around his left finger and rolled it. That nervous habit was hard to break. Was he reacting like this because Barbara was here, or because he hadn’t thought of her since meeting the enticing Amata?
“Oh, Claude.” She chuckled. “I haven’t gone anywhere. I’ve been with you this whole time.” Her head tilted, causing her fine, brown hair liberally doused with gray to swing over her shoulders. She’d started graying early in life and refused to cover it up, saying she earned every strand and refused to dye it. Her hazel eyes twinkled as her mouth lifted in a teasing smirk. “I have to tell you, Amata is quite beautiful.” She laughed. “I always told people you had good taste in women.”
That had been a running joke between them.
During college, Claude was the quintessential football jock, the campus darling.
Barbara ran in different circles, a classic example of nerdom. She was a serious student and rarely joined in the wild parties he’d been the star of.
It was a sheer twist of fate they ever met.
He’d been partying with his buds late into the night. Then those jerks got a wild hair up their butts and thought it’d be hilarious to leave him high and drunk on the side of a deserted road in the middle of bumfuck nowhere. Lucky for him, Barbara had been coming back from a late interview with a reclusive elderly lawyer.
Determined to become a lawyer herself, she insisted she needed the guy’s experience in her dissertation. On the way back to town, she’d suffered a flat tire, which caused her to end up on that lonely road later than she intended. Eyes groggy with fatigue, she’d almost run him over as he stumbled on the side of the road. She swerved away, missing him by a mere foot.
Later, she confessed because she didn’t know where he lived, she’d taken him back to her small apartment she shared with two roommates. With their help, she’d gotten his half-conscious body onto her bed.
When he woke up the next morning, his boots were off and a light blanket covered him. Sitting on a nightstand next to the bed was a glass of water and four aspirin, along with a curt note demanding he find someone to pick him up. The one thing the note didn’t say was the name of his rescuer. Staggering around the strange apartment with a hangover from hell, it took a moment for his foggy mind to realize no one was around. Of course, it was in the middle of a school day, so it shouldn’t be a surprise everyone was gone.
Using the kitchen phone, he called around until he found one of his so-called friends and ordered them to come and get him. Assholes joked only he would end up in some unknown girl’s bed instead of passing out in the dirt. He ignored their banter and refused to tell them who his savior was. Not that he had any idea what to tell them. Even if he wanted to.
Thoughts of the mysterious girl consumed Claude. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get her out of his mind. He went to extremes to find her—lurking around her apartment in the dark of night, and skipping his own classes to stalk her during the day. He spent days of waiting, and she finally appeared. But after one look at her, doubt filled Claude. How could someone as ordinary and unassuming have such power over him? It didn’t make any sense.
Heart pounding, he approached her, intent on making a good impression. Once his gaze met hers, something inside him shifted. Instead of a smooth approach, he opened his mouth and blabbed some ridiculous spiel about how he’d take her out and show her a good time ’cause she’d never had fun until she went out with him.
She didn’t hesitate to tell him she wanted nothing to do with him. Waving him away, she claimed she didn’t have time for his childish games. Instead of falling for his considerable charms, she told him to leave her alone and then walked away.
