Alien vs. Alien

approved. It’s a small thing, but a large check in the column that matters to my superiors. And to your mother.”
    Jeff cocked his head. “I realize you’d prefer to do this back at Langley, but I know NASA Base is set up for this kind of testing.”
    Chuckie nodded. “That would work. And it would also be a logical cover story for why you, White, and I are down here.”
    “Hey, and we can visit Alliflash and Gigantagator while we’re at it.”
    Jeff shook his head. “Only my girl.”

    Yi

CHAPTER 8

    E VERYONE CALMED DOWN and lunch was eaten. Lucinda showed yet more personal growth by whipping up something special for Jeff while the rest of us snorked down as much of her meatloaf as possible.
    Jeff seemed both genuinely shocked and touched that his mother had a strip steak for him and that she hadn’t complained at all that he didn’t want meatloaf, which he loathed. Amy and Christopher moved so they were sitting right next to Lucinda, so the meal ended up a lot more cheerfully than it had started.
    The need for the HSAC test was explained to everyone, and reassurances were given by Tito, Melanie and Emily that the test was a no big deal kind of thing. Alfred confirmed that the proper personnel were v
    The Operations Team handled things like cleanup, maid service, providing supplies, cooking if you wanted it, and more. What I—and apparently whoever had set this team up in the first place—considered the dirty, boring jobs.
    Every official A-C facility was supported by the Operations Team. They were impressive to the extreme, and I’d tested their abilities all over the world and at thirty thousand feet in the air. But I’d never seen them.
    Christopher liked to explain how the Operations Team worked, but his explanations always sounded just this side of crazy. I thought of them as the A-C Elves, using magic to do their jobs quickly and invisibly. This was honestly a less crazy explanation than any Christopher had tried to pass to me.
    Lucinda was a wonderful cook, and it was something she loved to do, so she never had the Elves help out with food prep. I tried not to contemplate how much weight I’d probably put on while down here—on a daily basis we had three big meals, two snacks, and munchies available at all times. All homemade, all delicious. While getting home sounded great, I was definitely going to miss the food.
    But even though the Elves didn’t have to cook at Martini Manor, they certainly did everything else, as packed suitcases sitting in our room easily proved.
    “Does Jamie stay here or does she need to take this test, too?” I asked Jeff as I pulled the salacious pictures out of my purse and shoved them into my suitcase.
    “She’s still a tiny baby, she stays here.”
    “Hey, just checking. Are you sure this is an easy test to pass?”
    Jeff sighed. “It was easy for me, baby. I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”
    “Can I take my iPod?”
    “If I tell you no, will you actually leave it here?”
    “Only if you tell me whoever’s running the test will confiscate it.”
    “They’ll only confiscate it if they can find it. Since you’ll have it in that black hole you call a purse, I doubt anyone will find any of your stuff, even if they use x-rays.”
    I contemplated my options. “If they confiscate it, will they give it back?”
    “I’m sure they will. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to steal your things while you’re taking this test.”
    “What if they don’t let me take my purse in at all?”
    Jeff sighed. “I’ll be there. I’ll take care of your purse, baby.”
    “Works for me.”
    We took Jamie back to Lucinda and Alfred, who were, understandably, less excited about our going back to D.C. than everyone else. “Be good, Jamie-Kat,” I said as I gave her a big kiss. “Mommy and Daddy will be back soon.”
    Jamie didn’t seem happy about {m hShe us leaving, if her clinging to Jeff and starting to cry was any indication. “Should I stay here?” he asked.
    “I think she’s just being like this because she missed you so much.” I’d certainly missed Jeff a ton, and if he were leaving right now, I’d probably also be clinging to him and making a fuss about it, so I couldn’t blame our daughter for feeling the same way. “Maybe you
should
stay.” I didn’t want him to, but I was willing to take one for my daughter and let her have some alone time with her daddy.
    Melanie shook her head and took Jamie from Jeff. “No. Emily, Tito, and I are