Chapter 11: Stand By Me》

"KATRIONA!" I HEARD SETH RUNNING AFTER THE ME. I continued to block him. "KATRIONA WAIT!" Fighting to keep myself together. I just want to go home and pretend all of this never happened. It's a big punch in the gut. "KATRIONA!"

"Go away Seth!" I shouted and started walking faster through the busy building to get away from him.

I felt someone arm grab my elbow and whirled me around.

"Seth let go!" "Kara, please let me explain." He pleaded. "No, let me go,"

I thrashed to get out of his hold but didn't work he was really strong. He pulled me into the janitors closet that is cracked open and put us in there. He closed the door and locked it and switched the light on. "Katriona just listen to me-" "I trusted you! The both of you!" I attempted to go around him but he stopped me and forced me to look at him again and cupped my face, "Kara just listen to me, please!" I sigh crossing my arms.

"You have every right to be mad, most our people are just as angry as you about about the invasion, they oppose of it as much as we do." Seth's voice was calm but filled with an urgency that I hadn't heard before. He told me everything - his parents solution on healing there world and their arrest which I found awful and felt a pang of guilt for yelling at him and Sara. "The experiment that we retrieved from the shack has all the proof that our planet can be saved and your planet can be spared."

"Why didn't you just tell me?" I asked, my voice softer now, laced with hurt and confusion.

"We thought it would be best to protect you from all of this."  He said. 

i pulled him into a hug. He hugged back instantly. "I'm scared Seth." I mumbled. "I know, me to." He tightened his hold. "I'm not going to let any harm come over you. This I promise you."

We seriously need to get there spaceship back.

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After apologizing to Sara which she accepted she understood because again, have every right to be distressed.

Right now the gang and I are following Alex to find Dr. Harlan who is a UFOlogist slash scientist and author who seems to have answers. "Well, hello, Dr. Friedman." A dorky looking guy who is running a book stand flirtatiously greeted her, "So you finally decided to accept my offer of a romantic Benihana dinner for two. Huzzah!"

"What?" Alex questioned clearly not interested. He clears his throat. "Uh.Three years ago, a screening of the Cooper footage. The fourth row, second seat, in a saucy flower print." "Sorry I keep my work and social life separate. I don't date." She clears her throat. "Colleagues." "Colleagues. Indeed." The guy faked bowed. "Listen, we need to see Harlan right away."

"Dr. Harlan," Another guy with a shaved head dressed in a suite appeared from in the stand. "Is presently unavailable for consultations. We're more qualified to answer questions-" "There is no time for that." Alex interjected, "It is a matter of life and death that we see Harlan now."

The bald man didn't take it seriously. "Life and death, oooh! Uber scary drama queen theatrics. What's the 411 stitch?"

Jack stepped in. "You're currently alive. Unless you take us to Harlan, you'll be dead."

They froze.

"Ok, let's go."

"We should....together if you want to. Right now."

Way to go Jack!

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Dorky guy rapped on the RV door that had Keep Out and No Soliciting on it with tin foil in all the windows.

"Go away! The book signing is not till four-thirty. Read the Brochure!" A muffled male voice exclaimed from inside.

"Harlan, it's Alex Friedman." Alex said.

Not even a second later the door is answered by a smiling elderly man with grey hair and a bald spot wearing a vest you see explorers wear in the movies. "Dr. Alex Friedman." He leans against the frame. "Quelle surprise."

We were all cramped up. This RV is so not made for five people to be in under one roof. We explained well....more like lied about our situation so we can get some answers and get the show on the road.

"So you're saying the four of you," Harlan points at us sitting at his desk filled with research stuff and two computers computer. It's very sciencey. "Witnessed this reported UFO crash."

Seth and Sara nodded.

"That's right," Jack said.

Alex spoke. "We were wondering if there was any intel amongst your sources."

"I hate lying," Harlan admitted, "I really don't like lying. I can tell when people are lying to me." Uh-oh. "But thankfully, your story checks out." Oh boy I thought we were going to be caught red handed for a moment there. "With all the reports I got from SETI and NORAD and NASA."

Seth got up to his face. "We have a reason to believe government-sponsored operatives have recovered the spacecraft." Making him a tad uncomfortable.

"Ok. Back up a little son.This is not spacecraft." I went up behind him and placed my hands on his shoulders and guided him back to the others. "You're very lucky, you two, that you didn't come face to face with the aliens who were in that craft. They're like deadly praying mantises. Probing brains and they eat your flesh."

I scoffed not liking how he just basically insulted them despite not knowing he's actually talking to real aliens and now that is not true since they cleared that up with Jack Bruno after we discovered who they are.

"Uh," Sara stumbled with what to say.

"Just roll with it Sara." I telepathically told her.

"Oh," Sara faked scared, "Yes, we are indeed, lucky kids, not to have had our flesh eaten and brain sucked out by the aliens."

"You got that right." Harlan agreed then turned to his computer and got down to business, We gathered around his chair to take a closer look."OK. Let's get to work here. I got an email from a source that sent me this sat-grab." He pulled up a map. "Where would they take the spaceship?" Alex asked him. "51? Nellis? Wright-Patterson? Vandenberg?" "Well from the size and scope of the crash, I would say there's only one possibility."

"Witch Mountain." We turned to Dorky guy and the bald man blurted in unison.

"What, are we a singing cappella group here? Let me talk please and thank you." Harlan clearly not pleased he was interrupted. Dorky guy and baldy apologized. "Let me see here." Getting back on topic. He typed more. "Here we go, California. About fifty miles from the border of Nevada and it's one of our top-secret facilities." Pulling up a picture of a rocky mountain. "I got a schematic here someplace." He turns to us. "If you're planning on visiting, don't." His tone changes. "When I say this place is fortified up to the yin-yang, I'm making an understatement. Hears the schematic." Hands Alex a large rolled up paper. "And do you have the book?" "Yes I do." Alex says. "All right, then, here's an aerial view." Hands her a folded up paper. She smiles. "Thank you, Harlan, for everything." As we were about to leave, "Whatever trouble you're in....trust no one." He warned us.

"Oh, that's the last thing on our list." I told him.

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We went back into the casino once again. People were shouting and cameras were flashing making me feel claustrophobic, I felt an arm drapes his arm around my shoulders and pull me into their side. Seth. He must've noticed my discomfort.

"Thank you," Jack and Alex stopped-mid walk and faced Sara, "All of you, Seth and I understand you don't have to go forward with us, and yet you chose to."

Touched by her words Alex said, "You're welcome. And don't worry. We're going to get you home. I promise." She moved to Jack. "I'm gonna grab my stuff. Let's meet upstairs in the convention, at my booth. Then we get your cab."

The adults walked away from us.

I gave Sara a hug. "I'm going to miss you guys. I wish this journey didn't have to end so soon."

Then the sun will come up and reality will set in.

She hugged back. "Same, we're going to miss you to. I'm so thankful to have a friend like you." I pulled back and smiled and corrected her. "Best friend." Even though Megan will always be my number one. I know she would want me to open another chapter.

Sara beamed and pulled me into another, "And I know Seth is very thankful to have you in his life." I pulled back and looked at her. "You're kidding." She shook her head. "Nope, he thinks you look really beautiful without those glasses on."

I felt my face heat it up. No boy ever complimented me like that before. Not even my ex.

A human girl and a gorgeous alien boy together.

No that can't be right it doesn't mix.

She probably meant that he's thankful to have me as a friend or just teasing me.

Alex walked away with Jack watching her. "She thinks you're very handsome." Sara told him. Jack looked at her surprised, "Really?" "And smarter than you think you are." "But she was thinking about me, huh?" "At least as much as you think about her."

'Jack and Alex sitting in a tree.' I sang in my head.

"So, she didn't happen to mention in her thoughts that I was uh," Jack was cut off by.

"IT'S SHOWTIME EVERYBODY!" A group people in costumes walked past us, "Space Expo Number Nine. It's upstairs. Come on."

"Should we go upstairs now?" Seth asked Jack whose eyes is still on Alex retreating figure.

"Yeah, yeah , let's go upstairs," Jack dreamily responded not thinking.

I turned to see them not there. Oh no. "Seth? Sara?" No response. "Guys!" I raised my voice.

This is not good.

"Jack!" I waved my hand in his face getting him out of la la land, "Jack, there gone."

"What," Inspecting the room. They were nowhere to be found. "SETH! SARA!" He looks at me panicked. "You check upstairs and I'll keep looking here."

"On it." I took off up the stairs and embarked searching each room and exhibits, "SETH! SARA! SETH! SARA!"

"FREEZE!" A booming voice stopped me. I turned and color drained from my face. It was the government trio with guns pointed at me, "STAY RIGHT THERE!"

I felt a steel hand roughly grab my shoulder it was one of the agents.

Wrong move.

Using all my strength I elbowed the guy hard in the stomach making him release me and then I swing my leg and kicked him hard in the family jewels and punched him and did an uppercut in the face. I'm glad mom put me in those defense classes. It sure came in handy.

I sprinted away pushing past people my mind set on getting away. As soon as I reached the stairs I scrambled down them. I knocked stuff off the booths and on to the floor for them to trip on, it worked on some though not all of them. I heard a bang and a sharp pain shooting throughout my left arm, I lost my balanced and tumbled down the stairs people moving out of the way. I groaned when I hit the bottom, my body throbbed in agony. I felt my arm and drew my hand back to see blood. I've been shot...

"RIGHT THERE!"

I forced myself up and continued running for my life. I saw a couple of people carrying a 3-D model of the Millennium Falcon and dropped on my knees and slid under it.

I kept going and going and going till I spotted the gang. Tons of slot machines were going off and people were going wild.

"GUYS!" Running up to them. Seth gasped seeing my blood covered arm before he could ask what happened. I collapsed in his waiting arms. "Let's get the hell out of here."