Page 18 of Berserkr
An hour later,I was warm again, dressed in the hotel's white bathrobe and ready to talk to my boss again. Jenna had been very efficient, ordering some food while I was warming up in the shower. I nibbled on some crisps. They tasted bland compared to the food on the spaceship. I'd tried as many of the alien dishes as I'd could, amazed at the intensity of the flavour. Even the human meals Rune had ordered had tasted more intense.
What was Rune doing now? Had someone told him yet that I'd left? Was he upset?
I pushed away the guilt and reached for the phone. Nicole answered at the first ring.
"Finally. Are you at the hotel? And how's your foot? Your text made it sound like it may have been broken."
"Put her on speaker," Jenna whispered. I indulged her; after all, it was thanks to the intern that I was now warm and comfortable.
I took a deep breath before telling them my story. Jenna laughed when I mentioned aliens for the first time, but when I didn't smile, her expression fell.
"Wait a moment," Nicole interrupted me halfway through. "I don't have time for this. It's not April Fool's Day yet, right? So stop making up fairy tales and tell us what actually happened."
"I am. It's all true."
My boss snorted. "Yeah, sure. And Father Christmas is coming for dinner. Are you sure you didn't hit your head? Maybe Jenna should take you to the nearest A&E for a scan."
"My head is fine. So is my ankle. They healed it with their medical coffin."
Alright, even I realised how silly that sounded.
Jenna stared at me as if she wasn't sure what to believe. At least that didn't mean she thought that I was lying.
"I can prove it," I said. "My shoes were made by the spaceship. I'm sure that if we send them to a lab, they'll find some alien elements in it."
Nicole chuckled. "Shoes? You want me to pay for a lab test on shoes? Do you have any idea of how constrained our budget is? If that's all, then-"
"No. There's a place in the Highlands were some of the aliens are staying. If we go there, we can get some photographic evidence."
"Are you saying that they've invaded the planet now? Geez, you really need a CT scan."
"Not invaded. Steff said they were staying there while they only had the one spaceship. They have two now, but some of the aliens liked it so much that they continued to live in the Highlands until their matches are found."
"Do you have any idea how crazy you sound? I should fire you for this. In fact, I might."
I hadn't realised just how difficult it would be to convince my boss of the truth. Jenna stared at me thoughtfully, her hands mindlessly twisting her dark curls.
"Where is it?" the intern asked.
"Near Kingussie in the Cairngorms. According to Steff, it's a huge house that was once used by the military. It shouldn't be hard to find."
Nicole sighed deeply. "I don't know why I'm even considering letting you do this. Alright. Tomorrow, the two of you drive to Kingussie. If you don't send me pictures of aliens by the time I leave the office, you're fired."
She ended the call before I could say anything else. Ugh. Not the triumphant return I'd imagined.
For the restof the evening, Jenna and I planned our route for tomorrow. We'd have to stop at some shops first since my suitcase was still on the spaceship and I needed a phone, clothes and other essentials. Jenna had come up by train, so we reserved a rental car via the hotel. We used satellite images to pinpoint two potential buildings that the Vikingar might be using. I really hoped we'd find them. If not, my career was over, and I'd dragged Jenna down with me.
The intern was as helpful as I could have hoped for, but it was clear she only half believed my story. I assumed it was mostly curiosity driving her. And if Nicole fired me, she might be able to get my job.
While listening to Jenna's soft snoring - we shared the twin room she'd booked because I highly doubted our boss would be willing to pay for a second room - I wondered what Rune was doing. I tried to get him out of my mind, but it was impossible. The blue alien sat there like a parasite, reminding me of what I'd done.
I'd broken his heart. I knew that. He'd accepted from the start that I was his soulmate.Would he find someone else? More worryingly, would he accept someone else? They'd been quite clear in that intro video that Vikingar mated for life. It wasn't just a fling for him. It wasn't an experiment. It was real. He'd thought he'd get to spend the rest of his life with me. And then I'd run.
I hated myself for it. When I'd accepted this job, I'd thought I'd be saving lives by infiltrating the dating agency. Breaking a heart or two was worth that. But now that I knew the truth, that all the missing women were not only alive, but happy, could I really say the story was worth breaking Rune's heart?
I wanted to say yes. I wanted to believe that it was all part of the job. That I had to be selfish and ruthless. I'd never make it otherwise. But then I saw his face again, the arctic blue eyes that could smoulder like burning embers, the purplish lips turned into a smile, the fear painted across his angular face when he'd thought I was seriously hurt. That comical moment when he'd turned a simple meal into an all-you-can-eat buffet. He'd cradled me in his arms like I was precious. Like I meant something to him, even though we'd only just met.
And I'd thrown it all away.
