Disclaimer: Please see Prologue
Part Nine: Voice Mail
The motel had one thing that came in handy when it came to a bunch of offworlders with temp jobs: it had voice mail.
When Harlan, Radu, and Rosie got back to the motel rooms, searched each one (finding nobody), locked all of the doors to the outside, and picked the locks on Rosie's manacles, Harlan noticed that the voice mail light on his phone (which had all of the voice mail for everyone on it and was accessible from all eight phones) was on. This is what his messages sounded like.
"Hello, this is Malok, looking for Harlan Band. Harlan, you didn't show up for your shift today. I'll need an explanation tomorrow, and it had better be good."
"Radu, this is Jale from work. You haven't shown up for two days, and your girlfriend wasn't here today either. Did you two skip town? Call me back, we need you."
"Seth, Teresa, I know you two are sleeping together but this is no time to play nookie hooky. You've got to call in if you're not going to show up! Get back to me or you're fired."
"Bova, this is Matty from the work crew. Where are you, man? I nearly got myself fried today doing the testing in a suit. You OK? I told the boss you were sick, what gives? Call me back."
"Catalina!!! Where are you! I have a million hyper kids on my hands and your little one isn't here to scream them into silence either! You've got to TELL me when you don't come in! Call me back, I really need some help here!"
[pic]
Radu, Rosie, and Harlan stared at the phone as the voice mail light blinked back on.
"They're all out of work," Rosie said. "Those people took them, didn't they."
"Yeah, Rosie... they did."
"We have to get them back."
"We will," said Harlan.
[pic]
"I want the one with the sparks," said Eithos, the Derezian with the good looks.
"No," said Xenia. "Not yet. We need the rest of them, the three that AREN'T in our possession!"
"I don't see why we can't kill them now, Xenia," said an attractive Malyb woman, Kyler. "Their friends will come for them whether they are dead or alive."
"That is NOT true," said Xenia. "That human with the brown skin must be a telepath. He *knew* I was not his friend, and I had the disguise down perfectly. Somehow, he knew. If he is a telepath then he will be able to tell that they are dead and he will not come. And then we will NEVER get off of this planet. We need to take the bodies of all of them and pretend to be their full crew, that way we may leave this place. We can all speak up for each other, saying that we are who we are supposed to be. If you KILL THEM NOW, and we don't get the other THREE, we FAIL!! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"
"Well Xenia," said Kyler, "If the human is a telepath, then doesn't he already know your plan to kill all of them and take over their identities?"
"It doesn't matter. If they know, they will come anyway, just to save their friends. In case they don't, I am going out now to retrieve them. Waiting will not kill you. We can't take any chances!"
The seven lifestealers looked at their four charges, plus one baby, and contemplated what it would be like to get off of Derez.
Part Nine: Voice Mail
The motel had one thing that came in handy when it came to a bunch of offworlders with temp jobs: it had voice mail.
When Harlan, Radu, and Rosie got back to the motel rooms, searched each one (finding nobody), locked all of the doors to the outside, and picked the locks on Rosie's manacles, Harlan noticed that the voice mail light on his phone (which had all of the voice mail for everyone on it and was accessible from all eight phones) was on. This is what his messages sounded like.
"Hello, this is Malok, looking for Harlan Band. Harlan, you didn't show up for your shift today. I'll need an explanation tomorrow, and it had better be good."
"Radu, this is Jale from work. You haven't shown up for two days, and your girlfriend wasn't here today either. Did you two skip town? Call me back, we need you."
"Seth, Teresa, I know you two are sleeping together but this is no time to play nookie hooky. You've got to call in if you're not going to show up! Get back to me or you're fired."
"Bova, this is Matty from the work crew. Where are you, man? I nearly got myself fried today doing the testing in a suit. You OK? I told the boss you were sick, what gives? Call me back."
"Catalina!!! Where are you! I have a million hyper kids on my hands and your little one isn't here to scream them into silence either! You've got to TELL me when you don't come in! Call me back, I really need some help here!"
[pic]
Radu, Rosie, and Harlan stared at the phone as the voice mail light blinked back on.
"They're all out of work," Rosie said. "Those people took them, didn't they."
"Yeah, Rosie... they did."
"We have to get them back."
"We will," said Harlan.
[pic]
"I want the one with the sparks," said Eithos, the Derezian with the good looks.
"No," said Xenia. "Not yet. We need the rest of them, the three that AREN'T in our possession!"
"I don't see why we can't kill them now, Xenia," said an attractive Malyb woman, Kyler. "Their friends will come for them whether they are dead or alive."
"That is NOT true," said Xenia. "That human with the brown skin must be a telepath. He *knew* I was not his friend, and I had the disguise down perfectly. Somehow, he knew. If he is a telepath then he will be able to tell that they are dead and he will not come. And then we will NEVER get off of this planet. We need to take the bodies of all of them and pretend to be their full crew, that way we may leave this place. We can all speak up for each other, saying that we are who we are supposed to be. If you KILL THEM NOW, and we don't get the other THREE, we FAIL!! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"
"Well Xenia," said Kyler, "If the human is a telepath, then doesn't he already know your plan to kill all of them and take over their identities?"
"It doesn't matter. If they know, they will come anyway, just to save their friends. In case they don't, I am going out now to retrieve them. Waiting will not kill you. We can't take any chances!"
The seven lifestealers looked at their four charges, plus one baby, and contemplated what it would be like to get off of Derez.