Alien Breed

“You idiot. He cannot die,” Turin states. “Zakar is playing with you. He will have followed you here.”

Halloway catches his breath, looking inward. “What have I done?”

We should leave this place. Logically, he could be anywhere. This starship was built to house a lot more crew members. It’s massive.

“We have to get out of here,” Turin says.

Of course he’s right, but my stubbornness for control is too much for me to hold back. We need the fuel, and the cargo bay is just a few corridors away.

“No. I’m not leaving without that fuel,” I say.

Turin steps in front of me and lays his hand around my ribs. I pull away. “We’re not going to keep running,” I say. “We’ve risked our lives for a lot less. We’re getting that fuel whether you like it or not.”

“The barrels are big,” he argues.

I smirk. “Well, it’s a good thing you have strong arms.”

He can groan all he wants. In less than twenty-four hours, he’ll be thanking me for this.

As we stand and argue, I eventually notice that the captain is missing. “Wait,” I say, holding off the dispute. “Where did he go?”

Turin clenches his fists, skin turning a deep shade of red. I’ve never seen him like this before, furious to the point of breaking into a panic.

“Don’t,” I say. “He’s a good man.”

“He will betray us,” he cries.

“Look, we’ll just check out the cargo hold. He’s probably near the fuel barrels,” I reason.

The truth is that his appearance does worry me, but all of this worries me. I don’t believe the captain has it in him to betray his crew. He doesn’t have the wits, for one. Two, he’s just on that kind of a guy.

“Come on. We’ll check it out,” I say, taking hold of Turin’s large index finger.

He doesn’t move. His eyes share the deep inner workings of his mind. “Wait,” he says.

“I thought you said we don’t have time,” I say.

“We have time for this,” he says.

Turin reveals a photograph. It’s the one I dropped.

I open my mouth, but I’m stunned. “I don’t know what to say,” I whisper.

“Take it. You don’t need to forget these memories,” he says.

I grab the edges, half afraid I might drop it again. Usually, when I look at this photograph, I feel a deep pain resonate through my heart. This time, however, it’s almost like I can feel them watching me.

If they were still alive, they’d be proud of her. If her sister was by her side, maybe things would be different.

But that’s how life works. The unbelievable happens, and you’re sent on a trajectory through space and time.

These events shaped who I am today, and they led me to Avalon and Turin. I can’t be one hundred percent certain that it’s a good thing, but I have to believe that things will go my way.

“They were good people,” I say. “Decent people. People you could depend on.”

Turin holds her. “You are lucky to have had them.”

I might’ve once resented a comment like that, but it’s true. I was lucky. I am lucky.