Read Online Quest For Earth by S E Gilchrist - Free Book Online Page A

stared past the woman and took in Sherise and her team.
    The nurse frowned. ‘You should have checked the roster. It was updated first thing this morning.’
    â€˜Yeah, sorry about that.’
    Sherise observed the man closely, noting how he kept shifting his weight from one foot to the other.
    â€˜Just finished,’ he said in a relieved voice and pressed a button on the counter and, leaning closer to the counter, spoke. ‘All good, er … Jasper.’
    Another man strolled through an open door on the far side of the room. Dressed in a beige tunic with a hood pulled low over his eyes and similarly coloured trousers he crossed the room and stalked out the door Sherise had entered through.
    The moment he walked past Sherise, his gaze flicked to her face. There was an awareness in his eyes, a power in the taut features of his face shadowed by his hood. The edges of his beautifully shaped mouth curved and deepened and Sherise felt the impact deep within her very essence.
    She gasped and almost reeled on her feet. The contact lasted only a fraction of a secton and yet it left her shaking and on edge, as if something momentous had happened.
    â€˜Okay. Let’s get this done with.’ The nurse’s voice broke through Sherise’s confused thoughts.
    She stared at the now empty doorway. What had just happened? But the man had gone.
    â€˜What I need you to do is stand over there on that conveyer belt, one at a time. It’ll take you through an area where you’ll be scanned and x-rayed, then further on through another area where an anti-bacterial gas will be doused over you. And that’s it. Once you’re through come back here and when everyone is finished, I’ll take you back to the front reception. Now who’s first?’
    ***
    Maaka pinched the bridge of his nose and gazed back at the room where the aliens were undergoing the cleansing ritual. His heart was still shuddering from the moment when his eyes had clashed with the female’s. Her image sprang up in his mind; long, glossy black hair, rich brown eyes and smooth golden-brown skin. But it had been the emotions he’d sensed seething inside her that had captured his attention, even while his body had instantly responded to the lushness of her body and the prettiness of her face.
    â€˜Get a move on, Maaka, before you’re recognised.’ The nurse, Jerry, burst through the door, practically running and grabbed his arm. ‘This way. I’ll take you out the back exit.’
    â€˜Who was that?’ Although, Maaka could take a pretty good guess at the answer. The strangeness of their clothes, especially the armour the male soldiers wore, was a dead giveaway. They were his quarry.
    â€˜Aliens. Can you believe it?’ Jerry hustled him along the corridor.
    â€˜What are they doing here?’
    â€˜Oh, man. Keep your voice down.’ Jerry stopped in front of a door bolted on the inside and sent a hunted glance back the way they’d come. ‘Good, no one’s followed us. Give me a sec while I disengage the alarm.’ He keyed code into the small panel on the wall. ‘That’s it.’
    Together, Maaka and he undid the bolts. Jerry pushed the door wide. But before Maaka could move he caught his sleeve. ‘Listen, Maaka. You’ve gotta stop coming into the city.’
    â€˜You know I won’t.’
    Jerry sighed. ‘Shit, I know it’s not fair, man. You’ve got the meds I gave you stashed somewhere safe, right?’
    â€˜Yes. Thank you. I have left a warthog tethered beyond the dome and will be able to deliver the meds to my people well before nightfall.’ It would not be the most comfortable of rides, but the creatures were sturdy and could run all day with limited water.
    â€˜Least I can do,’ Jerry said gruffly. ‘Take care out there. Before you go, I can tell you one thing. I heard from a friend of my sister who works in the temple that