Page 30 of Aliens Love Curves

Neither of us moves for long moments after the all-clear. The shaft is narrow, forcing us to stay intimately close. Not that I'm complaining.

"We need to get this evidence to the enforcement agency," Casey whispers finally.

"Too risky to transmit from here. They're probably monitoring all communications."

"Then we need a new plan." She shifts slightly, sending sparks through my body. "One that doesn't involve you manhandling me away from Harlan in front of everyone."

I growl softly. "He was touching you."

"That's kind of the point, remember? He's supposed to think he has a chance with me."

"Doesn't mean I have to like it."

She laughs quietly, the sound vibrating through both our bodies. "Jealous, partner?"

"Terrified," I admit, holding her closer. "These records... Casey, if anything happened to you..."

She kisses me again, soft and sweet. "Nothing's going to happen to me. We're going to stop them."

"How?"

"I have an idea." She grins against my mouth. "But you're really not going to like it."

Later, as we make our way carefully back to public areas, I can't shake the feeling that we're running out of time. The weight of the evidence on my tech-pad feels like a bomb waiting to go off.

And Casey's right – I really don't like her plan.

But watching her stride confidently back into the hangar, seamlessly rejoining Harlan as if nothing happened, I have to admit she's our best chance at bringing this operation down.

I just pray we can do it before she becomes another name in those missing persons files.

Another victim of Quickening Gliders' dangerous games.

BACK IN OUR APARTMENT, my tail lashes anxiously as Casey outlines her plan. The evening light streaming through the windows paints her in shades of gold and purple, making her look ethereal – and terrifyingly vulnerable.

"Let me get this straight," I growl, pacing the limited space. "You want to deliberately position yourself as their next test subject?"

Casey perches on the arm of the couch, watching me with those determined eyes I've come to both love and fear. "Think about it. They're looking for specific traits in their victims – exceptional pilots, unique physical characteristics..."

"And you match the profile perfectly." My claws flex involuntarily. "That's exactly why we need to get you out of here, not dangle you as bait."

"Bait catches fish," she says softly. "And we need to catch all of them, Stryker. Not just Harlan, but everyone involved in these experiments."

I stop pacing to face her. "Do you have any idea what they might do to you?"

"Actually, I do." She pulls out her own tech-pad, showing me notes she's taken. "I've been watching their medical transfers, noting patterns. They're not just looking for test pilots – they're specifically targeting beings with unique genetic markers. And as a human..."

"You're unique among their test subjects." The realization hits me like a physical blow. "That's why Harlan's been so focused on you. Your curves, your physical differences from Equanox females..."

"He's not just flirting," Casey confirms. "He's assessing me for compatibility with whatever enhancement program they're running."

I cross to her in two strides, cupping her face in my hands. "All the more reason to get you away from here. We have enough evidence to—"

"To what?" She covers my hands with hers. "Prove they're doing something suspicious? That pilots have disappeared? We need concrete evidence of the experiments themselves. And we need to find out if any of their victims are still alive."

"And your plan is to offer yourself up?" My voice roughens with emotion. "To let them take you into their labs and—"

"Not alone." She rises, pressing herself against me. "I'll have you watching my back. We'll set up emergency protocols, tracking devices, everything. And when they think they have me exactly where they want me..."