Page 28 of Salvation
Chapter Nine
Nick drummed his fingers on the conference table. Today was day fifteen since A’paz’s death and neither he nor Sakura had been able to trace the disease killing the dissenters. All of the samples they took showed the same thing A’paz’s had: no abnormalities at all. It was completely unnatural. Diseases didn’t behave this way, not in his experience. They ravaged and destroyed, leaving clear and undisputable evidence of their existence.
Two more had died yesterday in North, bringing the count to ninety-six deaths. Fuck. What were they missing? He pushed away from the large table and opened the conference room door. Sakura hadn’t moved from her spot on one of the living room sofas, exactly where she’d been when he’d locked himself in the conference room to think uninterrupted, but now K’rona had joined her. Even sitting cross-legged on the floor, the Anferthian woman was still a hand-width—an Anferthian hand-width—taller than Sakura.
“Finally,” Sakura grinned. “You will do the dishes next, yes?”
Rats. The breakfast dishes still sat on the dining room table. Some small part of him had hoped Sakura would have taken care of them while he was meditating. But, in all fairness, shehadcooked. And man, could she cook. He’d lay money that the girl could make a seven-course gourmet meal over a candle flame.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” He waved one hand in the general direction of the table. “I’ll get to it. Good morning, K’rona.”
“Gode morn-neg, Nicholaus,” she responded in English. Even though she still wore her translator, she kept it off most of the time. She was that determined to learn English properly, which was amusing in a way since neither of her teachers had finished high school, and one of them had learned English as a second language.
“You know, calling me Nick would be easier.” He passed the table of dirty dishes, going directly for the green reference book of Anferthian health on the bookshelf. Sakura had dubbed it their green bible.
Faint furrows appeared between K’rona’s brows as though she was translating his words in her head. Then she nodded. “No.”
Nick grinned and gave his shoulders a shrug. “Up to you.”
“What are you doing?” Sakura tipped her head to one side, her expression openly curious.
Hefting the book into his arms, he turned. “Refresher course.” He set the green bible on its spine at the clean end of the dining room table.
The book pages parted to…. “Oh, so we’re back to this again.”
The full size drawing of the male Anferthian and all his parts remained silent, pretending to be oblivious to the awkward history they shared. Nick frowned. He and Sakura had covered every bit of physiology, except reproduction. “I wonder.” His gaze moved to the top of the next page and he began reading.
“Anferthian males are endowed with tiny receptors in the shell of their fan-shaped ears. When these receptors are stimulated—usually by the touch of their lover—the male will be aroused into a wild state known as The Frenzy. There are only a few ways to alleviate this passionate state, the most preferred being sexual egress with the male’s partner. During the consummation, a male will ejaculate….”
“Holy shit!” Nick whirl around and fixed K’rona with an incredulous look. “Three times?”
She furrowed her brow, then she tapped her translator to turn it on. “Again, please, Nicholaus.”
“An Anferthian male can climax three times in one sexual encounter?”
Sakura’s entire face turn beet-red and she looked down at her hands in her lap. K’rona just gave him a smug look. “During the frenzy, yes.”
“Oh, man, some guys have all the luck.”
K’rona’s expression darkened. “If you consider how easily Anferthian men can be raped lucky, I suppose so.”
Well, that might have been the wrong thing for him to say. Sakura kept staring down. Could she be embarrassed for him? He spread his hands, palms up, and bowed his head in the Anferthian manner of apology. “I regret if I’ve offended you.”
K’rona studied him for a moment. “You meant no offense, Nicholaus.”
“No, I didn’t, but my words were poorly chosen. As the Profeta’s brother, I know the dangers of speaking without thinking. Out of medical curiosity, though, may I ask you a few questions?”
“Of course,” K’rona replied graciously.
Nick moved to sit in the chair next to Sakura, putting him at eye-level with the Anferthian woman. This seemed to be the manner the Anferthians preferred to use while conversing with them. “How is it the sanctuary is not experiencing an over-population crisis?” After nearly eight years in this place, there should at least be a few children. He had yet to see a single one.
Again she studied him, this time as if giving him the information would somehow compromise intergalactic security. He gave her a reassuring smile. “Both Sakura and I have gamma level security clearance. We had to in order to come here to help the dissenters.”
K’rona relaxed somewhat. “Atolce.”
“Atolce? What’s that?”
“Anferthian contraception,” she replied. “Both males and females get a shot annually. Sadly, it is difficult to get here, but the Matiran government does not want us procreating on their soil, so they make sure we have a generous supply, no matter what the cost.”
