Touched by an Alien

to kill Christopher until we were through the gate, though.”
    Wonderful. I didn’t want them dead. “Okay. I’m, uh, going in.”
    “Take a gun from the back,” Reader suggested.
    “Got my mom’s Glock.”
    “Good. Aim for the thigh. It’ll hurt but not maim.” He was serious. Oh, this was going to suck.
    “I’m hoping not to shoot either one of them.” No sooner did I say this than they tumbled out of the car. It was hard to see because they were moving so fast, but I got the impression they were trying to beat the living crap out of each other. “Real fast, how did Christopher’s mother die?” I wanted their version, not just White’s.
    “She went on a trip and got some disease. No one could explain it. Killed her within a week.” Claudia handed me a walkie. “You’ll want this.” I dropped it into my purse.
    “Before or after Mephistopheles had first appeared?”
    “Right after,” Lorraine supplied. “How will we know to come and back you?”
    “If I’m running toward you yelling, ‘Start the car and open the door,’ you’ll know. Otherwise, I think I can stop them.” This was a whopping lie, but I figured only Reader would guess that.
    I steeled myself and got out of the car. Reader slipped into the driver’s seat. “Try telling them you’re actually in love with me. Might shock them into stopping.”
    “I’d be in love with you, but you’re already married.”
    He grinned. “If I were straight, you’d be my girl.”
    “Something to contemplate. If this goes poorly, maybe you and Paul can consider the benefits of being bi. I’m open to sharing.”
    I put my purse over my neck and started off. They were still fighting. I could tell because Martini had thrown Christopher against the side of the SUV.
    “Jeff, stop it!”
    He turned to me. “I’ll deal with you later.”
    That didn’t sound good.
    “Back off, Kitty, this doesn’t concern you.” Christopher swung a punch that landed, mostly because Martini had been looking at me. They were away from the car now, lunging for each other.
    “I think it totally concerns me. Both of you, cut it out. If you kill each other, you let the big fugly win!”
    “Don’t care, thanks for asking,” Martini shouted as he grabbed Christopher again and flung him around
    “You always have to push it,” Christopher snarled, leaping from the ground to tackle Martini at the knees. “It’s always all or nothing with you.”
    “Like you’re some saint and I’ve missed it all this time?” They were rolling around on the ground, again beating the crap out of each other.
    They weren’t going to stop. Okay. I had the Big Gun. I was prepared to use it. “Mephistopheles killed your mother and aunt.”
    I said it quietly, but they both heard it. I walked closer to them. “She was a diplomat, and she was his daughter-in-law. She didn’t know Yates was the parasitic host, right, because you all didn’t make that connection until recently. But an in-control superbeing had created. I’ll bet she went to Yates to ask him to help her, help all of you. He infected her, or turned into Mephistopheles and infected her. I’ll bet he did to her what he wants to do to me, maybe what he’s already done to me. But she was an A-C, and it killed her.”
    I reached my hands down to them. “Get up.”
    Christopher took my hand and let me pull him up. Martini ignored it and got to his feet. “Big boy, already a mess.” But he wasn’t smiling.
    I leaned against the SUV. “She was an empath, and I’ve learned that’s rare in your women. Jeff’s the highest level empath you have. What about you?” I asked Christopher. “What level imageer are you?”
    “He’s the best,” Martini spat out. “At everything, from what I’ve heard.”
    I ignored that one. “Mephistopheles wants to rule the Earth. And Yates wants to destroy it. And to do that, they both know one thing: They have to stop the two of you. Now, why would that be?”
    “No idea.” Martini brushed himself off. He looked like a big angry cat to me.
    “Because if you procreate, the likelihood of your children being even more powerful is high. It’s called genetics. And evolution.”
    Christopher’s eyes narrowed. “So, why would he kill my mother?”
    “Because she was so powerful. If he couldn’t use her, and I’m sure he couldn’t, he had to destroy her. Before she had any other powerful children or trained her powerful nephew any further. She was an empath—she must