Page 25 of Tis the Season for Tentacles
“I’m just getting to know your new friends.” Her brow furrows. “Are you seriously in outer space right now?”
“We’re on our way to Glacius Major,” Najar interjects matter-of-factly.
Rambo beeps several times. “To infinity and beyond!”
I need to regain control of this conversation. “It’s wild and out of this world—pun intended—but I really am.”
Worry flashes in Gemma’s blue eyes as she surveys the crew. “You all aren’t trying to use my brother for some kind of weird medical research or experimentation, are you?”
“No, beautiful,” Luna says with a chuckle. “We don’t even have a scientist or medical officer on the ship. Besides, we’re more interested in human movies than human physiology.” She eyes Gemma with a grin. “Although, I’d like to explore your body if you’re interested.”
“Gah!” I cry. “Will you two stop flirting in front of me? It’s weirding me out.”
Also, it’s seriously unfair that my sister is hitting it off with a tentacled alien when I’ve struck out with Najar.
Gemma perks up, a curious twinkle in her eyes. “You don’t have a medical officer on the ship?”
Uh-oh. I have a bad feeling about this.
“Gemsy,” I warn.
She ignores me. “I just so happen to be an MD.”
Luna’s practically vibrating, and her tentacles start undulating. “You don’t say?”
“Nope. Gemma, you’re staying out of this,” I say, putting my foot down.
My sister keeps her gaze trained on Luna, and I swear she has hearts in her eyes. “I hope I’ll get to thank you in person for taking care of my brother when you bring him back to Earth.”
“Oh, I’ll make sure of it. We’ll give you our desert landing coordinates to come and meet us. After all, he’ll probably need you to pick him up anyway.”
“Perfect!” Gemma says before turning to me with a pout. “I suppose it’s a good thing I’m scheduled to work at the hospital over Christmas, or I’d be spending it all alone.”
My heart twinges at her words. “I’ll miss you, kiddo.”
She crosses her arms over her buxom chest. “You do know I’m an adult now and have been for a long time, right?”
“You’ll always be my kid sister.”
“And you’ll always be my annoying older brother.”
“I’m sorry we have taken your brother away from you during this most wonderful of holiday seasons,” Khephren says. “But we will return him to you safely. Right now, we’re on course to visit several planets to experience their cultures.”
“It’s a shame you weren’t out in the desert with your brother when he discovered us. We could have brought you along as well,” Luna adds.
“Over my dead body,” I growl.
Gemma blushes again. “I’ll just have to look forward to meeting you in a few weeks.”
“It’s a date,” Luna says.
Rambo does a little twirl accompanied by several beeps. “You had me at hello.”
“Aww! Your robot is so cute,” Gemma coos.
Luna beams, pride written all over her face. “He’s my droid. I programmed him myself.”
To my surprise and relief, Najar returns us to the more pressing matter at hand. “If I may interrupt again, Gemma, I’m Najar and in charge of security on the ship. Felix has sworn anoath to keep our existence a secret. He has also promised that you will keep what you have learned to yourself.” His expression goes steely. “Failure to stay quiet will result in having your memories wiped.”
