Chapter 38: Chapter 38: Purchasing Protection

CARTER

After he dropped Allison off at work and returned home, his pain remained noticeable, but manageable. It helped that Allison had assured him it wasn’t anything that could hurt him... at least, no worse than it was already hurting him. It was easier to tolerate constant pain when he didn’t also have the additional worry that something was seriously wrong with him.

If all went well, he’d start a course of illicit antibiotics tonight, and whatever infection he had would clear up on its own. As for Tommy... the man remained a problem. The fact that he was still out there in town, being all homicidal, was almost as intimidating a problem as figuring out how they were going to free Allison’s sister from Tharon jail.

And with a whole day off work, Carter decided he’d take the time to figure out how he could deal with these two problems.

Tommy and whatever flunkies he had running with him was, strangely enough, the more mundane of their two problems, so he’d start there. This town was so small that the chances of running into Tommy or his friends while out and about remained higher than he liked. Therefore, he and Allison would need to be vigilant in public.

Given Tommy currently had no idea where they lived, the easier solution would simply be to hide Allison away in his apartment, just like Ryan had done. Given how amazing (and almost fatal) their last date had been, a sane man might decide to do just that.

It took Carter almost no time to discard that idea. The whole reason Allison had come to Earth was to experience Earth. Its culture. Its people. She’d experience none of that if she remained hidden in his apartment when she wasn’t at work, and while he loved that she loved her time with him, he wanted to give her more. A life. A human one.

He wanted to give her more time to get to know Izzy, and maybe even some time where she and Allison could just go off and do girl stuff together. More trips to the mall. More clothes, and what about movies? Had she ever even been to a theater?

It would likely seem incredibly primitive to her, given how far her technology outpaced everything on Earth, but it was still an experience. With popcorn. And if the theater was empty enough, they could probably have a little fun on the side. She’d love that.

Until he’d gone and got himself stabbed, Allison had told him that their day and date had been the best time she’d had since she arrived on Earth. He had no doubt she was telling the truth, which was both wonderful and a little heartbreaking. That shouldn’t have been her best day on Earth. She deserved so much better than what she’d been getting.

He was her partner now, and that left him determined to take as good care of her as she took care of him. Tharons or no, he couldn’t give her the life she deserved by stashing her away in his apartment all the time. So they’d go out again soon, and this time, they’d stick to public areas where they wouldn’t be so easy to attack.

Moreover, Carter would get a knife of his own. He couldn’t buy a handgun with his warrant and wouldn’t feel comfortable toting one around anyway, and while he’d grown up shooting rifles and actually enjoyed it, he couldn’t just carry a rifle around town. He wasn’t even sure where he’d fit one in his tiny car, other than the trunk.

That didn’t even consider that most rifles cost more than he could afford, probably required a background check, and that, if he did end up shooting one, he’d have to flee the apartment anyway. The sound of bullets popping off would ensure someone called the cops. Finally, he wasn’t sure he could just... shoot a person. Not unless he had no other choice.

But if worst came to worst, like Tommy and his boys coming after them in this apartment, he should have something to defend them. A baseball bat would do for now. He could afford it, he wouldn’t need ammo, and he could probably crack Tommy’s skull without actually killing him. Finally, it wouldn’t make near as much noise.

Allison had shown him she could knock folks out with her mind powers, but what if she was asleep or otherwise out of commission? He’d have to be ready. So... that was how he’d handle Tommy. He’d stay alert, he’d carry a knife, and he’d get a bat to keep by his door. He could do his part to protect them both. Now, there was that other problem.

Larika. Allison’s imprisoned twin sister.

How in the hell were they going to rescue her from a whole squad of Tharon bounty hunters? Those aliens could apparently make people perceive them as anything, they could use mind blasts just as powerful as Allison’s, and while they couldn’t sense her telepathically, they could if they touched her. They’d certainly touch anyone who tried to enter their home base.

And that set aside the whole problem of even finding their base in the first place.

Carter flipped on the TV and turned it to the cooking channel. He didn’t actually do much cooking—though he was determined to do more with Allison here—and he actually had no intention of watching it. It just helped to have background noise while he thought.

Despite his intent to leave the show in the background, he actually starting paying attention when the lady on TV started making a mix involving taco shells, meat, cheese, and a bunch of chopped veggies. He had just risen to write down the recipe when he remembered something he hadn’t thought about since he and Allison met Agent Holloway nights ago.

Before he left, that asshole had given Carter his business card.

“After you two finish closing up your shop, go straight home,” Holloway said firmly. “Do not stop to pick up hitchhikers and do not speak to anyone you encounter on the street. Should you see anyone suspicious, do not call the police. Call me. Do you understand?”

In retrospect, Holloway’s words told him a lot more than the alien might have intended. First, it suggested the Tharon bounty hunters probably weren’t working with the actual police. Given the pain involved in faking federal credentials, they’d probably decided the difficulty and risk of being found out was too great. So they were working on their own.

If the Tharons weren’t actually working with the police, that meant they were doing everything on their own. Stake outs. Investigation. Surveillance. And given the aliens, too, were working against a deadline—Allison had told him their contract included both syrens—that meant they’d go increasingly desperate for leads as days passed without her.

He hopped up a bit too fast and hissed as his middle complained, but pushed through the pain. He went into his bedroom and then popped open his hamper, where he’d tossed the second of his two pairs of uniform slacks. Thank God he hadn’t done laundry yet.

He pulled out his slacks and reached one hip pocket, then the other. That rewarded him with the same small business card he’d mindlessly pocketed nights ago after an alien who he didn’t know was an alien handed it to him. He flipped it over and took a good look.

Agent Holloway

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Did FBI agents actually put the word “Agent” on their cards? The seal certainly looked official, but the most important element was the phone number. It had an actual area code on it, and though it wasn’t an area code Carter recognized, it wasn’t a 1-800 number.

This might, in fact, be Agent Holloway’s personal phone number. That meant Carter’s dangerous but possibly clever idea could work. He might just have a way to get himself and Allison their first lead on where the Tharons were keeping Larika.

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Carter glanced at the clock. Just past 10 in the morning. He knew this was a good idea, but he wasn’t about to tackle it without first getting Allison’s opinion on it. The problem was, now that he had an actual idea on how to help Allison free her sister, he was excited.

He needed to do something to pass the hours until lunch, and working out wasn’t an option given how badly his middle still hurt. So TV? It was all random soaps and infomercials. Nothing that would keep his mind on task.

He glanced at the long neglected computer in the corner of his bedroom. He’d never used computers much growing up, other than when required to do for classes in school, but the cable package Uncle Eli had purchased for him included Internet access and a modem. Could he do anything with that?

Several of his friends back home had told him you could pop a computer on the Internet and look up all sorts of stuff, including porn, but he had absolutely no idea how to do that. He’d messed with the machine a little in the month after he arrived and learned to use “e-mail”, but he didn’t see what it’d do other than tying up his phone line. He mainly used it to play Solitaire.

He’d just head out to the mall. He needed to do some shopping anyway, and while buying some protection would put him dangerously low on funds, his next paycheck was coming at the end of this week. Allison’s would come soon after.

If he got real desperate, he could make himself some free sandwiches. It was technically stealing, but Rick did that all the time. Carter was surprised Subway John hadn’t noticed yet... or maybe he had and just let Rick get away with it, like Rick got away with everything.

Getting on the road and making sure he drove with absolutely no mistakes kept his mind busy. Once he arrived at the mall, the pain in his middle was about the same as it had been, which was good. It wasn’t getting worse, and it wasn’t near as bad as it had been after Rick clocked him in the stomach last night. He’d just have to avoid taking any hits.

Despite his determination to “play through it”, Carter walked slow as he left the car and headed for the mall. It was tempting to pop into Two Times Around and surprise Allison, but he’d see her at lunch and had no idea how Miss Ellen would react to the distraction. Besides, he had some weapons to buy.

The mall had a sporting goods store, so Carter headed there first. The bat was easy—he found a solid wooden one—but all of the good knives were out of his price range unless he gave up on the bat. He mentally debated before putting back the bat and getting a good pocket knife instead.

He’d briefly debated getting a hunting knife instead, but those were harder to conceal and would inspire questions from cops. A pocket knife, by comparison, likely wouldn’t get him in trouble if a cop saw it, but the blade was more than long enough to hurt. It even had a number of extra implements that might be useful. He could also sharpen the knife at home.

The problem was where to carry the damn thing. One downside of tight jeans was that anything in his pockets left a noticeable outline, and his pockets were also tight enough he couldn’t easily dig the knife out in a pinch. He didn’t like how difficult that was.

After paying for the knife and heading outside with his purchase, he debated before walking back into the store and spending the last of his protection money on a sheath with a hook. That allowed him to tuck the knife into the back of his pants, under his shirt.

The sheath both concealed the knife from view and would allow him to get it out quickly if he needed it. He also wouldn’t have to worry about it falling out if he ran, though he doubted he’d be doing any running any time soon. Even so, this felt better.

The bat would have to wait for his next paycheck. On the bright side, his drive, his slow pace once he arrived, and all his debating about what to purchase had at least burned off the rest of the time before lunch. He headed for the food court ahead of time, grabbed a chair, and sat down to gauge how the knife felt against his back. He barely noticed it. Good.

He was sitting comfortably and lost in his plans when Allison arrived. She spotted him and beamed as she hurried over. This was the second time they’d eaten in this mall food court together in a few days, so if there was a Tharon watching, he might notice. Then again, the fact that they did this regularly might make it seem normal.

Allison stopped beside his chair and pressed her fingers to his cheek. She leaned down, eased his face up, and drew him into a long and very passionate kiss. Carter loved it, but which he also suspected was drawing a lot of stares.

Let them look. He wasn’t about to complain. He also didn’t fail to notice that all remaining pain in his midsection vanished the moment Allison spotted him.

Once she made sure he knew how much she’d missed him today, she settled into a chair and scooted it over beside him. “What shall we eat today?”

“You said you like pizza. I’m fine with pizza.”

“It will not be too expensive?”

“It’s about the same as everything else.” He leaned in and lowered his voice. “But before we get our food, I need your opinion on something. An idea I had today.”

“Oh?” Allison’s gaze turned positively lecherous. “What position does it involve?”

Carter couldn’t help but chuckle. “Plenty of time for that when you get home tonight. This idea is actually...” He leaned in close. “It’s about Agent Holloway.”

Only Allison’s audible intake of breath clued him in that he’d just focused her back on the task at hand. She watched him intently. “What is it?”

He reached into his pocket and fished out the card, then slid it onto the table. As Allison glanced at it, her eyes narrowed. She looked back to him. She waited for him to explain.

“First question’s first,” Carter said. “I need to know everything about your spaceship.”

 

Next Week: UFOs, mind play, and a hike in the woods.

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