Deeper than the Night - By Amanda Ashley Page 0,72

table when he came courting. . . letting him steal a kiss . . . promising to love him for as long as she lived . . .

AnnaMara . . . lying beside him, holding him in her arms.

AnnaMara . . . giving birth to their daughter . . .

Anguish, stronger and deeper than the pain of the flesh, roseup within him.

AnnaMara . . . holding AnTares in her arms . . . how many mornings had he sat beside her while she nursed their daughter . . . how many nights had he listened to her sing the soft lullabys of ErAdona?

AnnaMara . . . lying in a pool of her own blood . . . the life forever gone from her eyes. . .

"No!" He opened his eyes and the images dissolved in the brilliant light of the sun.

In an effort to avoid the light, Alex turned his head to the side, and saw Barrett staring down at him.

"I'm told sunlight bothers you," the doctor remarked. "Is that correct?"

Alex hesitated, wondering whether to tell the truth, or if a lie would serve him better.

"Well?"

"It bothers me," Alex said, thinking that "bothered" was an understatement at best.

"I'll arrange to have the skylight covered during the afternoon. Will that help?"

Alex nodded, disgusted with himself for feeling grateful to the man.

"She told me you've been here for two hundred years," Barrett remarked. "I want toknow everything. Every detail of how you got here, where you came from, how you survived."

Filled with nervous energy, the doctor paced the floor. "Your race has mastered space travel. Have you explored other planets? Found life there? Are there others of your kind here?"

He looked at Alex, waiting for answers that did not come.

Barrett's eyes narrowed. "You would be wise to tell me everything I want to know."

"And if I refuse?"

"You won't," Barrett replied, his expression smug. "The woman seems to care for you, and I'm guessing you also care for her. Unfortunately, she has become something of a liability, one I can't afford to keep around, if you know what I mean?"

"You can't just . . . just exterminate her!" Alex exclaimed, horrified by the casual way the doctor spoke of killing.

"I can. But don't worry, I promised her it would be quick. However, if you refuse to cooperate with me, I'll have to renege on that promise."

"Let her go, and I'll tell you whatever you what to know."

"I can't do that. You know as well as I do that she'll go running to the police the minute she's free. I can't allow that."

"Bring her to me. I have the power to make her forget everything."

Interest sparked in the doctor's eyes. "What power?" Barrett paused to check the IV dripping into the alien's vein. "What do you mean?"

"She carries my blood. We're connected. I can control her mind. I can make her forget everything. You, me, everything."

Barrett shook his head. "I don't believe you."

"I can prove it. Tell me something she can't possibly know, and I'll plant it in her mind." He shuddered convulsively as the sun's heat scorched his flesh. "But . . . not . . . now."

"Why not now?"

Alex closed his eyes. "Can't think. The sun . . ."

Barrett rubbed his jaw, his brow furrowed in thought. If what the alien said was true, there was more at stake here than money or fame. Much more.

Going to the door, Barrett called for Kelsey.

"Yeah, Doc?"

"From now on, I don't want the alien exposed to the sun for more than a couple of hours in the morning and late afternoon."

"Why? I thought you said the sun kept him weak."

Barrett nodded. "It does, but there's a chance too much might prove fatal. Let's cover it from twelve to four and see what happens."

"Right. You still want it covered at night?"

"Definitely. Tomorrow, I want the cover in place by, oh, say eleven. I want to try an experiment tomorrow night, so I'll need you and Handeland to be here at seven."

Kelsey glanced at Alex. "Right. Anything else?"

"No. I'll be in the lab if anyone needs me."

The tension drained out of Alex as the door closed behind the two men. As near as he could figure, it was a little after ten. That meant another two hours before they covered the skylight.

A long, shuddering sigh rippled through his body. Another two hours of feeling the sunlight on his skin, burning his eyes, leeching his strength, until it became an effort to breathe, to think. He comforted himself