Devotion (Chosen by the Karal #5)(5)
He had been somewhat disgruntled at not being able to make a short visit to the planet itself. But Lytril was adamant that no human male would ever be welcome on Karal. The President had to be content with a gift of food: fresh fruit was delivered to his house each time a lottery draw took place.
Okil was sure the food was never distributed amongst the people, not even his staff. Humans could be selfish in so many ways. And then he thought of Tikki, and his love for humans returned. The ordinary people of Earth were the reason he worked tirelessly to help the human race survive.
Chapter Four – Tikki
Tikki walked to fetch Charlie from the family who had agreed to look after him while she worked. It cost a third of her small wage, making things even tighter for her budget, but there was no alternative. She couldn’t carry on like this, though; in two months time she wouldn’t be able to make her rent, and she couldn’t afford to be evicted.
Her mind wandered off to Okil and everything they had planned, the places he had told her about on Karal, places he intended to take her. They had dreamed of sharing a life together on his planet for months. Ever since he had visited her after Elissa had won the lottery, when he brought her some fresh food and had given her news of her sister’s happiness.
He had been so warm, so intrigued by her humanness, and she had fallen for him. His soft eyes, the way a burst of blue shot across his face when he laughed. Her throat contracted as tears welled in her eyes. There was no point dwelling on the past. And right now, Okil belonged firmly in the past.
Instead, she switched her thoughts to Charlie. He was such a sweet kid, but Mrs. Drummond, the mother who looked after him, had voiced her concern at how little he spoke. Tikki hadn’t realised it, not until she saw him next to Bobbi Drummond, who was a child of similar age. It had set her thinking. Was there something was wrong with Charlie? And that had turned to worry about med bills if he needed drugs or stims of some kind. However, within the short time he had spent with Tikki, and with the Drummonds, his vocabulary and confidence had grown. It all made Tikki wonder about the life he’d led with his mom Sienna.
Nearly at the Drummond’s house, she crossed the street, her eye drawn to the StreamScreen above her head. It was advertising the lottery—not that they needed to, enough women entered it anyway. Tikki put her hand on her neck, feeling for the tag there. It was buried under her skin, so of course she couldn’t feel it, but it reminded her of how excited she had been, knowing she was old enough to enter the lottery and to be Okil’s mate. All that was gone. Thanks to an old friend and a small child.
And that small child, clutching his teddy in its usual place under his arm, was waiting for her at the door, holding hands with Mrs. Drummond and looking down the street. He smiled, his little teeth white against red lips, his skin pale. Her heart had a weird fluttering it did when she saw him, a kind of love that was different to that she felt for Okil. She never thought she would have a maternal side, but Charlie bought it out in her; she would do anything to keep him safe and happy. She would also do anything to protect him.
It made her sad to think she would never experience the same emotions with her own child, because she had already realised that after being with Okil, there would never be another man for her. He was her world, and Charlie had shattered it.
“Hi there, Charlie boy,” she said waving.
“Tikki Mommy,” he said, lifting his arms for her to pick him up. She did, lifting him up and tickling him. He giggled beautifully, the sound making her laugh; even Mrs. Drummond smiled, not a thing that happened very often. With four children under eight, things were very tight in the Drummond household, which was the only reason she had offered to look after Charlie; they needed the money.
“Thank you, Mrs. Drummond, same time on Friday?” Tikki asked, resting Charlie on her hip.
“Same time. And if you are this late again, I will have to charge you for another hour.”
“I’m only …” She was going to say she was only five minutes late, and that was because the street down to the canal had been closed—some fool had gone walkabout down there in the night and fallen in. A common occurrence in the last few weeks. No, don’t think of Sienna’s bloated body, of seeing her lying there cold and lifeless on a slab. “I’m only sorry I couldn’t get here on time,” Tikki said in the end, knowing that she could not afford to lose Mrs. Drummond as a babysitter.
“Hmm, well, next time it will cost you five extra coins.” With that she went inside and slammed the door shut.
“A good day to you too,” Tikki said. Charlie just laughed.
“Good day,” he mimicked. “Good day, Tikki Mommy.”
“You know, you could just call me Tikki,” she said to him, putting him down on the ground and holding his small hand in hers. Tikki often wondered if Charlie found it as comforting as she did to hold hands.
“I like Tikki Mommy,” Charlie said firmly.
“I know you do. But it is a little long and I am not your mommy.” They had had the same conversation many times, but he always carried on saying it. She ought to get used to it. But although she loved him, she didn’t feel ready to be a Mommy. Couldn’t she just pretend to be his big sister instead?
“I like it,” he said and that seemed to be the end to it.
“Let’s go home and get some dinner,” she said, glancing at the big screen once more. Charlie looked up too; he was always fascinated by the colours. Only this time he stopped on the street, staring up at the screen.