Starseed (12 page)

“
I'm sorry, honey. He didn't make it.”  He pushed his Stetson back on his head. “The firemen found him huddled in a corner of his basement. Smoke inhalation got him.”

“
Oh, Dad.”  She ran into his open arms. “He didn't deserve this. What caused the fire?” she asked as he held her tight.

“
No, honey, he didn't. We'll get to the bottom of it.”  He patted her back for a moment and then held her at arm’s length. “An arson team will be coming from Denver to help the chief determine the cause of the fire. They suspect it could've been spontaneous combustion from oily paint rags he left lying around. As you know, Herman was never the neatest person.”

“
I don’t believe that. He took good care of his paintings. When he showed Sara and me his home everything was orderly, the paintings neatly stacked against the walls and there weren't any rags or anything like that scattered around.”  She sniffled. “His house was clean.”

He handed her his handkerchief
. She took it and wiped at her eyes. “He told me someone was in his house. That's who started the fire.”

“
We'll check out everything. But you know how Herman went downhill the last few months. His mind was slipping. The man was obsessed with aliens. Why, he had his whole basement covered in tin foil.”  He shook his head. “He died by smoke inhalation. The basement didn’t burn. And he didn't suffer.”

“
Oh, Dad, that’s horrible.”  Remembering how she had felt like she was inside a cooking TV dinner and gasping for breath in the car earlier, she shivered.

Kole shook his head
. “The man was scared to come out of his basement. He preferred to die rather than face the alien he thought was in his house. That’s not right.” 

“
Oh, Kole. It's so sad.”  Elle turned from her father.

“
We have to find out who did this.”  If it was the last thing she ever did, she’d find out who killed Herman.

As Elle moved away from his side, the Sheriff said,
“Kole, I need to speak with you for a minute.”  The two men moved over to the side of the building that was still smoldering and spoke for a few minutes. Kole glanced in her direction and they walked back to her. I’m going to be here for a long time so Kole is going to take you home in my car,” her dad said.

“
Oh, okay, I guess.”  It was obvious her dad wanted her out of the way before they removed Herman’s body. “But isn't there anything I can do to help?”  She hated the helpless feeling she was experiencing in this situation.

“
No, nobody can do anything right now.”  He sighed in Defeat. “After we secure the scene, it's pretty much in the arson team's hands, but I want to be here to talk to the commander after they’re done.”

“
Come on, Elle. You need to take a break,” Kole said and reached for her hand. “You've been through a lot in the past twenty-four hours.” 

Even with their differences, she was lucky to have this man in her corner
. She appreciated a blessing when she saw one. Taking a deep breath, she sighed and accepted his hand. “Yeah, you're right. I'm tired. I'll see you later, Dad.”  She stood beside Kole and felt as if her feet carried heavy lead weights attached to them. “I want to put this day behind me.”

“
Good idea.”  Kole took the keys from the sheriff. I'll see that she gets home safely and bring your car back.”

“
Thanks, Kole. We'll finish our talk when you get back.”

“
Yes, sir.”  Kole opened the car door for Elle.

She slid in
the seat and wondered what her father and Kole were up to. But with or without their help, she’d get to the bottom of who killed Herman. She owed him that much.

Chapter Ten

Early morning customers in the diner were subdued, matching Elle’s mood, as she sipped her coffee and studied Kole
. “So you knew Herman.”  She patiently waited to hear what he had to say. When it came to Kole, her sixth sense or intuition was on a leave of absence. She knew next to nothing about him. She shook her head and tried to clear the cobwebs. He flew experimental planes and now told her he was an undercover government agent. Who was this man sitting beside her?

“
Yeah, we met a couple of times out at his place.”  He stirred his coffee and his gaze caught hers. “Herman told me things, and we agreed not to acknowledge each other in public. We thought that was the best way to handle it.”  He ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe we were wrong, but he was paranoid and afraid for his life, so I agreed to do it his way.”

Elle’s stomach knotted
. She recognized the truth when she heard it. “I guess that's enough to make anyone keep a secret. But what did he tell you?”  Poor Herman. He wasn’t crazy and he didn’t deserve to die. Tears welled, but she blinked them back.

“
Probably, the same thing he shared with you and Sara. But it was what he showed me that caught my attention.”

“
Like what?”  Now he had her interest. Herman had stumbled onto something important. That was why he was killed. She knew it. That made sense.

“
In the evening, if you go into Red Rock Canyon and look to the west, there's a glow coming from one of the caves. And it’s not the same thing we saw. This is different.”

“
What do you mean?”  She tilted her head, intent on his answer. “What's causing it?”

“
I don’t know. It’s as if the backside of the mountain is being used for something else. I know it is fenced government land, but I get the sense that whatever is going on in there isn’t military.”  He sighed. “I’ve been kept at a distance, but I’ve watched a white cargo van going in and out of that area quite frequently. They’re taking something out of there.”

“
But you're a government agent. Won't they let you in?”  She wanted to get to the bottom of this.

He looked away, avoiding her stare
.

What is that about
? Is he hiding something?

He gazed into his coffee cup
. “First, they don't know I'm an agent. Second, I can't tell them because they might be involved in some kind of cover-up. I never know who to believe in my line of work.”

“
But you told Dad and me.”  She smiled, releasing some of her pent-up emotion. At least he was sharing this information with her. “Does that mean you trust us?”

“
Yes absolutely.”  He nodded and once again she could read the truth in his eyes. He might not be telling her everything, but he trusted her and that meant a lot. “Then let me help you. Let me come with you to the caves.”  This was her chance to learn if it was aliens or fake aliens or something else.

“
Why is this so important to you?”  A deep frown crossed his forehead.

Elle sighed, resigned to the idea of sharing more of her past with Kole
. “You told me your secret and trusted me. Now I have one to tell you.”  She took a deep breath and waited for an instant, then continued. “You said you trusted me. Well, I. . . I trust you.” 
Here goes
. “You might not know, but my father adopted me when I was three years old.”

“
I didn't know, but what does that have to do with any of this?”

She took a deep breath
. “Nothing or maybe everything. It's like this.”  She paused and worried her bottom lip over her teeth. “I was found by Herman and my stepfather sleeping on a huge rock in Red Rock Canyon. Nobody came forward to claim me.”  She sighed and remembered the many times she’d been called an alien freak as a child.

“
At the time, there were tons of sightings and the story goes around town that the aliens left me there.”

“
That doesn't mean you're an alien.”  He reached for her hand. “You were a lost child.”

“
Then why didn't anyone come to look for me?”  She held his hand as if it were a lifeline and stared down into her coffee cup searching for answers. “I don't know who or what I am. All through school the kids teased me by calling me mean names.”

“
Elle.”  He squeezed her hand for a moment more and released it. “I'm sorry you had to go through that. Kids can be ruthless.”

It seemed crazy, but she missed his touch already
. He was good at giving her comfort with a gentle touch or a certain look and she had grown to like it. He wasn’t the kind of man she was ordinarily drawn to, and yet, small tickles chased across her heart when she was with him.

“
It wasn’t all bad.”  She sighed. “Luckily, I met Sara and she was kind to me. I've dealt with the veiled taunts behind my back all my life. I'm used to it. Every time there's a sighting or an animal killed mysteriously, it's all dug up again and rehashed.”  A chill passed through her body. “I don't have to be psychic to know what the people in this town think about me.”

“
Once again, that doesn't make you an alien, especially the kind you're talking about.”  He looked at her as if he knew something she didn’t and quirked an eyebrow. “If it’s so hard living around here, why haven’t you moved?”  

“
This is my home for better or worse. My dad is getting up in years and he’s all I have.”  He’s always been there for me and I want to be there for him if he ever needs me. She pushed a strand of hair back from her face and sighed deeply. “I have to admit I’ve thought about it, but it’s usually pretty good around here. It only gets bad when sightings happen.”  And it wasn’t just her dad. She couldn’t leave Sweetwater until she knew the truth about her origins. “I've always been different from everyone else. And like I told you, I have these visions about things.”  She pushed her plate away. The last thing she wanted was food. “I'm ju . . . just strange, a stranger among us, that's me.”  Her voice dropped to a low whisper. “I’m someone the rest of the town wonders about. I don’t know the truth and it's driving me crazy. I need your help.”  She peered into the depth of his blue gaze and searched for answers.

“
Okay. I'm not sure how I can help, but I’ll let you know what I discover about this whole Herman thing and the caves. But what does it have to do with you” 

“
Herman was the one who found me. He was afraid to touch me and called Dad. He always thought I was one of them . . . the aliens. Maybe, he was right.”  She swallowed the huge lump in her throat. “I've always been drawn to that area, to the caves, where the markings are on the stones. Maybe, they were there doing something and left me by mistake. The stars have always called to me. I know there's other life out there.”

He saw Sara come through the door and bit back a curse
. They needed more time. “We'll talk about this later, and more in depth.”  She believed in other life. He could tell her about himself and his mission. When he’d seen how frightened she was the night he viewed her from the starship, he had made a vow not to take her against her will. Maybe now, she’d be ready and willing to go with him. She did resemble the Star People west of his galaxy—the healers belonging to the Dropa Circle.

Sara pulled up a chair
. “I heard about Herman.”

Elle sighed
. “Yes, poor old Herman is gone.”

“
I heard you and Kole were there with your dad.”

“
Yeah, for what good it did. As much as I wanted to, I wasn't able to help him.”

“
I'm sure you did everything possible.”

“
She did. There was nothing that could be done by anybody.”  Kole reached for Elle's hand. If he let himself he could feel an essence of her pain leftover from when he had held her in his arms, preventing her from rushing into the blaze.

“
By the time we arrived it was too late for anyone to try to rescue him,” Elle said.

“
I heard Herman's brother is having his remains shipped back to New York,” Sara said.

“
Yeah, that's what Dad told me.”  Elle sniffed and reached for her coffee. “Of course, we'll send flowers,” she said.

“
Yes, and remember the good things about him.”  Sara pulled closer to the table with a look of concern crossing her sad face. “He cared about people.”

Dotty poured more coffee for Kole and a fresh cup for Sara
. “Hey ladies, don't look so sad. Sure, we'll miss Herman, but life goes on. Did you know Herman had prostrate cancer? Maybe this was a blessing in disguise.”

“
No, where did you hear that?” Elle asked.
How could I not pick up on that?

“
Bill told me. Herman had mentioned it to him when he was out at the High Mountain Array doing some plumbing work last summer.”  She stopped warming their coffee. “It was in remission, but you know that cancer could've eaten into his brain. Maybe, that was why he thought he was always seeing little gray men.”

“
I guess, we'll never know. Here's to Herman.”  Elle lifted her coffee cup. “May he rest in peace.”

“
Amen to that. Herman was a strange bird, but he never hurt anybody,” Dotty said and took off to the kitchen with tears glittering in her eyes.

 
“Where do we go from here?”  Elle watched Kole closely.

“
I don't know what you guys have planned, but I'm done. I'm out of this little adventure.”  Sara paused. “Elle, you're my best friend in the whole world. I'd do anything for you, but I can't face those aliens.”  She started to shake. “They killed Herman. They could've done the same to us.”

Elle moved to her side and the shaking subsided
. “Come on, now. It's all right. I don't particularly want to confront them either, but it has to be done.”

Sara dabbed at her eyes
. “I know you feel that way, but after the other night, it makes me wonder who's really in charge. These things can come into our lives anytime they want. Where can we go to be safe? There's no escape from them.”  She swallowed. “They got Herman during the day. I'm afraid.”

“
It wasn't aliens that killed Herman or took us. I know that for certain, without a doubt.”  Elle took a deep breath. “I understand what you're saying and I respect your feelings. I won't drag you along on any more of my craziness. Kole has agreed to help me with my adventures.”

Sara glanced at Kole
. “Is this true?”  She sighed deeply. “Now, I have the two of you to worry about.”  She brushed imaginary crumbs from the table. “Why can't you turn it over to the authorities? Let them solve it.”  She glanced back to Elle. “There's a death involved. This is dangerous. And I know your dad will get to the bottom of it.”

“
Dad's on top of it, but other things are happening. Something is going on at the High Mountain Array  I just know it.”  From the way Benny had stared at them on the tour, Elle knew he was somehow involved. “When we were out there, two of the people in the clean room had red clay mud on their shoes. They had to be down in the caves near the river to get into that kind of dirt.”  She pushed a lock of hair from her face. “I ask you. What were those scientists doing in the caves?”

“
I don't have any idea, but I want no part of it. If you go out there looking for trouble, you're going to find it.”  Sara sniffled.

“
Sara, you're part of this mission whether you want to be or not.”  Kole handed her a napkin. “It involves you, too. We need you to be our contact in town. You can keep your ears and eyes open so if you hear or see anything unusual then you can warn us.”

“
I . . . I could do that.”  She blew her nose.

“
Then it's settled. When we do this, you’re the one to stay in town.” 

She glanced at Kole
. “When are you going out there?”

“
I was thinking at about dusk when they make the shift change.”  His eyes caught Elle's.

“
Maybe we could sneak in without being seen.”

“
Tonight? That's great.”  Excitement glittered in Elle’s big green eyes. “The sooner, the better. I want to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible.”

“
Okay, Sara you have both our phone numbers.”  Kole smiled at her and read her inner thoughts. She would cooperate. “We'll check in with you every few hours. If we don't contact you by morning, I want you to call Sheriff Thomas and tell him where we’ve gone. You're a very important part of this mission.”  He took a bite of apple pie and savored every morsel. When it would be time to leave planet Earth, he was going to miss Dotty’s apple pie. He grinned at Sara and put her further at ease. “You're our safety net. We're counting on you.”

“
I'm there for you.”  Sara reached out and held both their hands.

“
What do we have going on here?”  Liz stood next to their table. “Looks like a cozy threesome. Is there something you should tell me?”  She looked pointedly at Elle. “Are the aliens landing?” she said sarcastically.