Only Human (Themis Files #3)(20)

—You should try to—

—I’ve never bought her clothes.

—What?

—Eva. I’ve never bought her clothes. I’ve never bought her a toy, a stick of gum. I never took her out for pancakes on Sunday, haven’t helped her with homework.

—Those are all things you haven’t done. Are you sure this is about her?

—Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m being selfish. I want her to have … I want to give her some semblance of normalcy. I want that to be my gift to her. I think she deserves it. Besides, you’re talking about staying here as if it were just another option, like moving to France or something. It’s not. She won’t be going to the prom with a bunch of her alien girlfriends. It’s not safe here, Rose. It’s not safe for us, and it’s not safe for her. You’re like a volcanologist staring down the crater of an active volcano. It’s cool and all, but I’m not raising my daughter on the edge of it just to satisfy your scientific curiosity.





FILE NO. EE027—PERSONAL FILE FROM ESAT EKT


Personal Journal Entry—Dr. Rose Franklin


Location: Assigned residence, Etyakt region


I think I just tried to pet a rat. I was playing with the sand on the pathway outside the house I’m staying in. I thought it was ground volcanic rock—I guess it could be—but there’s a lot of metal in it. It’s insanely heavy, it won’t move at all when I blow on it. This … thing, about the size of my hand came out of nowhere. A red fuzzy fur ball. Something like a large hamster, but red. And I mean red. When I was a kid, my favorite crayon was called Torch Red. That red. The little thing didn’t have a tail, you could barely see its eyes. Just a red ball zipping across the path. It stopped dead in its tracks when it saw me. I tried calling it, slowly moved my hand towards it. That’s when a … security person showed up. She screamed, at me or the animal, I’ll never know. She said something else while she whooshed away my little friend. The whooshing part I understood. Red ball certainly got the message. I don’t think I was in any danger, but the guard looked at me like my mother did if I ate an earthworm on a dare, or chewed on a piece of gum I’d found on the car’s floor. I take it red ball isn’t the most beloved animal on this world.

In many ways, this place is a lot like Earth. Gravity is roughly the same. There’s just no way to measure that with what we have. Atmosphere is obviously similar to ours, but the air feels a bit thicker. Atmospheric pressure might be a bit higher. That, or the air is just drier. It also smells different. The air is … sweet. Sugary.

Vincent said Enatast told him we didn’t need to worry about diseases. I wonder why. I don’t want their entire species gone because of something like a cold sore. I guess the people doing the space travel probably know more about the dangers of space travel than I do. We didn’t understand a lot of what was going on when we first arrived, but I assume some of what they did was meant to prevent the cold-sore apocalypse. Hopefully, we won’t die of alien gum disease either.

I know there are more important things to worry about, like dying, but I can’t stop thinking about that little red ball. I wonder if it’s considered a pest for practical reasons—maybe it eats crops, or carries diseases—or if it’s just cultural. Maybe red ball is mean as hell and would have ripped my finger off, but it seemed kind of friendly. It’s completely stupid and crazy—and I won’t do it, I swear I won’t do it—but part of me really wants to try and tame one, bring it inside the house. I have a feeling this is the kind of thing four-year-olds get scolded for around here.

We might as well be four years old. We’re children here. Ignorant and na?ve beyond belief. We’re in awe at the simplest and most insignificant things, playfully swimming in the unknown, gobbling information faster than we can process it. I am, anyway. Everything is science. Everything is discovery. Needless to say, I’m happy.

I wish Vincent and Eugene were that happy. All they can talk about is going home. I understand. Or I want to understand. Eugene is suspicious of everything and everyone. He doesn’t trust a word out of Enatast’s mouth. I don’t think he ever will. Vincent just wants to keep his daughter safe. That part I really get. I just wish … I wish they’d make the best of whatever time we have here. We all see the same things, but I wish they could see them as I do. I feel like I’m enjoying a movie no one else in the room is paying attention to. It’s a selfish feeling. I really just want someone to share the wonder with.

I don’t know how long we have, but I don’t want this to end. I’m so curious about everything, I can’t sit still. I’m not the only one who’s curious. We all stick out like sore thumbs here. Vincent and I, especially. We’re both freakishly pink. We’re also the only ones I’ve seen with long hair. Either theirs doesn’t grow long or they keep it short on purpose. I see more people walking in our neighborhood every day, no doubt hoping they’ll “accidentally” bump into us. I help with that as much as I can. I love the look on people’s faces.

I should get ready. We’re going to the market today.





FILE NO. 2116 (CONTINUED)


INTERVIEW BETWEEN MAJOR KATHERINE LEBEDEV, RUSSIAN MAIN INTELLIGENCE AGENCY (GRU), AND VINCENT COUTURE