“I’m always nice,” Maria retorted, grinning. “That’s why you love me.” Coming up on tiptoes, she kissed Arman on the cheek, and Mia could almost see him melting on the spot, unable to withstand the potent force of the girl’s charm.
With a big grin on his own face, Arman turned his attention back to Mia and Korum. “She’s incorrigible,” he said, and there was such happiness in his voice that Mia could only gape at him in open-mouthed amazement. “Please ignore her and follow me. The dinner is all ready.”
They followed Arman into another room. In the middle of the room was another large floating plank, oval in shape, surrounded by four floating seats. Why all K furniture seemed to float, Mia had no idea. On the large plank – which Mia assumed functioned as a table – there were about twenty different dishes, ranging from familiar tropical fruits and vegetables to some exotic-looking salads, dips, and stew-like concoctions.
Sitting down on one of the chairs, Mia felt it adjusting to her body and smiled. All K inventions seemed to be designed with a focus on maximum comfort and convenience.
The dinner flew by, dominated by light conversation and amusing stories about the Costa Rican flora and fauna. Mia learned that Arman was an artist, and that he came to Earth to study human culture and the arts. He had met Maria shortly after his arrival. Her family used to own land in the area where the Ks had built their Center, and Arman had been one of the Krinar responsible for making sure that the displaced humans were appropriately compensated. Theirs seemed to be a love at first sight.
“From the moment I saw him, I knew I wanted him,” Maria confided, her dark eyes sparkling. “I didn’t care that he wasn’t human, or that everybody was scared of them. I knew he couldn’t be as bad as they said – he was far too nice for that.” And reaching out, she squeezed his hand, beaming at Arman with a megawatt smile.
Observing the two lovers, Mia felt a strange pressure in her chest that was very much like jealousy. They seemed to be genuinely in love, despite the obstacles Mia had always viewed as insurmountable. And Maria was far too happy for someone who had so few rights in the Krinar society. Clearly, her formal status as a charl had very little bearing on her relationship with Arman. If anything, it seemed that her K lover was quite content to let her take the lead in many things, his own laid-back personality complemented by her outgoing nature.
By the time the dinner ended, Mia found herself forgetting many of her concerns and simply enjoying the company of this likable couple. They were sweet and tender with each other, and Maria didn’t seem intimidated by either of the two Ks. She even reprimanded Korum again for not giving Mia a proper tour of the Center, for which Korum laughingly apologized. It could’ve been a regular double-date, except that two of the participants were from a different galaxy.
Finally, Mia reluctantly said goodbye to them and headed home with Korum, mulling over the strangeness of what she’d just seen, her heart filling with hope for things she rationally knew had to be impossible.
* * *
The Krinar replayed the results of his latest experiment, watching the recording over and over again.
Everything seemed to be working as he’d hoped. Soon, he would be able to implement the next part of his plan. It was unfortunate that the Keiths had failed, but it was ultimately just a minor setback.
Now he wanted to look at his enemy again . . . and that little charl of his.
> For some reason, he found those recordings to be particularly fascinating.
Chapter 8
On the short ride back, Mia couldn’t help thinking about the other couple. A human and a K, so happy together – it seemed to go against everything Mia had been told by the Resistance and everything she’d learned about the role of charl in Krinar society. How did they manage such a feat? And wasn’t Maria worried that she would ultimately lose Arman when her beauty faded and he remained the same?
Of course, Arman was as different from Korum as anyone she’d ever met. It was difficult to believe that he was a member of the same predatory species. He seemed far too kind and gentle to be a K, and Mia couldn’t imagine him holding Maria here against her will. Indeed, it seemed like Maria had been the one to initiate their relationship. Clearly, there were just as many varieties of personalities among Ks as there were among humans.
And Mia had managed to meet one who wouldn’t have been out of place in the primeval Krinar forests of billions of years ago.
Korum would’ve been a very successful hunter, Mia decided, with his blend of ruthlessness and sheer smarts. His ambition had propelled him to the top of the modern Krinar society, and she had no doubt he would’ve been successful in any type of environment – it was just the way he was. He knew exactly what he wanted, and he didn’t hesitate to go after it.
And for now, he wanted her.
Sighing, Mia looked at the floor as they landed in the clearing right next to Korum’s house. The ship touched the ground softly, and one of its walls immediately disintegrated, creating an opening for them.
Getting up, she exited the aircraft and followed Korum to the house. “Are we far from the beach?” she asked, remembering Maria mentioning it earlier.
“No, it’s actually walking distance,” Korum said as they entered the house. “I’ll show you the way tomorrow, if you’d like, so you don’t have to be cooped up in the house when I’m not around. Just don’t go into the ocean without me – the surf can be very strong here, and the currents are unpredictable.”
“I’m a good swimmer,” Mia told him. “You don’t have to worry about me.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Korum stopped and gave her a strict look. “You either promise me you won’t go into the water alone, or you don’t go to the beach without me at all.”
Mia mentally rolled her eyes. The dictator was back. “Fine. I won’t go into the water by myself.” Having grown up in Florida, she knew exactly what to watch out for in terms of rip currents and rogue waves, and the ocean didn’t scare her. Still, she didn’t want Korum preventing her from going to the beach, so she decided against arguing with him further.
“Good.” He sounded satisfied. “Then I’ll take you there tomorrow morning.”
“What about the trial?”
“It doesn’t start until eleven in the morning. If you wake up before then, we can take a walk to the beach, and I’ll show you some of the nearby sites. Later on, I’ll give you a more thorough tour.”
“That would be nice, thanks,” Mia said. “Can I observe the trial again tomorrow? It was really fascinating . . .”