Daughter of the Alien Warrior - Honey Phillips Page 0,12

didn’t tell you? My daughter was taken a year ago by another Vedeckian ship.”

He shook his head. “No, I haven’t spoken with him yet. He is still locked up with the other Vedeckians.”

“You locked him up? Isn’t he the one who led you here? You need to let him go right now,” she demanded.

“Don’t worry. We will. But it was necessary to maintain the illusion that he is simply another crew member so that he can continue his work.”

“Continue? You mean you think they’ll try again?”

“We hope not. But the ship that seized you was on its second visit.”

For the first time, she wondered how many others had been kidnapped along with her daughter. She thought she remembered a rumor about another woman and child going missing, but she had been too consumed by her own search to pay much attention.

“You said ‘second’ visit. Who was taken the first time? It wasn’t just my daughter, was it?”

The captain sighed, and his ears drooped.

“No, I’m afraid not. We know a female and her son were taken by this ship. We are going through the records now to find out if there were others. We do know that another ship we intercepted last year had two unaccompanied infants on board.”

“You found two babies last year?” Her heart started to pound. “Did you return them to Earth?”

“Who would we have returned them to? The records were not sufficiently detailed for us to be able to track down the location and we cannot appear on your world.”

“So you might have my daughter?”

Excitement coursed through her veins.

“It is possible, but I make no guarantees. Remember that the two were found on another ship.”

Unable to remain seated, she started pacing the room. “I want to see them. Where are they?”

“On a planet called Trevelor.” The captain clicked his claws thoughtfully on his desk. “Once we return the other females to Earth, we could take you there—if you do not wish to remain on Earth.”

“Of course I don’t want to stay on Earth without my daughter. How long will the trip take?”

“Approximately three of your weeks, perhaps four.”

She stared at him in dismay. Another month? When she was so close after such a long time?

“Is there another alternative? Can I hire a ship—”

She stopped abruptly as she realized she had nothing with which to make purchases. All of her wealth was back on Earth and did nothing for her now. The only thing she had of value was the slim gold Rolex around her wrist, and she doubted that aliens would be impressed by the Earth brand. Still, perhaps it would be worth something. She also had the jade ring her grandmother gave her on her twenty-first birthday. Although she hated to part with it, material goods mattered little in comparison to her daughter.

“That may not be necessary,” the captain said slowly. “Kwaret also communicated with the Cire settlement on Trevelor. I believe they are sending someone to take you there.”

“I don’t understand. If that’s true, why did you say you would return me to Earth?”

“It was a test,” he said. “To see which you valued more: your child or your planet.”

“You mean I have to choose? If I go after my daughter, does that mean I can never return to Earth?”

“That is the official position of the Patrol. Contact is always risky and must be limited.”

Jade stared at him. Of course she would not return home without her daughter, but once she found her, what would become of them? She thought about the grandmother for whom her daughter was named. The original Hana had come to the United States on her own, unable to speak a word of English. She had turned a small mending operation into an international clothing business by the time she retired in her 80s. If her grandmother could do it, so could she.

“Then I’ll stay.”

“You have no kin?”

Why did she feel the sudden urge to cry? Her parents died in a car crash when she was in her teens, but she had never been close to them, spending most of her time with her grandmother instead. She had loved her sobo fiercely, but she had died the year before her daughter was born. All of the people she had thought were friends had drifted away over the past year, unable to deal with her sorrow—or her relentless search for her daughter.

“No.” She shook her head. “No one is going to miss me.”

Except perhaps the stockholders. She suspected that her Board of