Jonathan A Countyman
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Chapter Fifty-Six Qei in Trouble
🕑 Added 2022-04-09 14:53:49 +0000 UTCQei had no idea how she was going to get out of this without getting revealed. Her path was blocked, the door closed again, and with it her only exit. A part of her was wishing she had Kiru’s luck right about now. Not that she had much time to think about that. She looked around the room. It didn’t seem that the Iniri girl was going to just let her go, and worse she saw no other exits. She backed away from the Iniri girl, as she didn’t feel comfortable being so close to her. It would be so helpful if she had something that would let her go through solid objects, but she didn’t.
The Iniri didn’t follow her. Still standing by the door said, “I can do this all day. So stop being shy, and show yourself.”
Her mind ran through her options once again. She could kill her, but that would just create new problems. Both immediate and long term. Qei then remembered that Kiru had brought a pistol with a stun setting, and suddenly she was kicking herself. She had followed the Iniri in here, but she didn’t bring a stun weapon with her. In fact Kiru had left her pistol back in the apartment, and Qei could have brought it with her. Now she was wishing she had brought it with her. As that would have given her a way out. Feeling pressed, she made a call for help to her cell with her location in it.
Kiru replied first with a text that said, Sorry I’m in the suburbs, and rather occupied at the moment. Can’t slip away.
Then May responded: At the bank. Might take a while before I am free. Can you wait?
Her heart sank. Kiru was one thing, but May too? She had left her at the apartment. What was she doing at the bank? This certainly couldn’t wait though. Once again her mind was furiously trying to work out how she was going to get out of this. The only thing that came to mind was trying to lure the Iniri away from the door. Only the question was how? She hadn’t followed her at all, but had stayed by the only door out of the office.
She looked around, there didn’t seem to be any other exit at all. Not in the main area anyway. There were a few windows by the beds, but they were high and narrow. She didn’t think she would be able to get out through them. The exam room didn’t have a way out. That left only the small office that she hadn’t been in. She suspected that the nurse’s terminal would be in there, but perhaps there would be a way out as well.
She glanced back at the door, the Iniri hadn’t moved. The girl was still looking in her direction with tentacles crossed. That door was definitely out. Trying the office it is. She headed for the door to the small office, and opened it slipping inside.
Looking around she sighed. There was indeed a terminal in here, along with a desk and a few cabinets. There was also a door. Hopefully, it was an exit. She moved towards it, even as she noted the Iniri girl was now moving towards her. It better be a way out or she would be cornered. In her mind the Iniri feeling the need to actually move was a sign that this was a way out.
Only for that feeling to be shattered a moment later when she opened the second door and came face to face with a closet. Filled mainly with clean sheets and bedding for the medical beds in the other room. She even noted a laundry machine in the closet, and several spare uniforms hanging in the closet. There wasn’t a way out though.
Turning around, the Iniri girl was now blocking the entrance to this little office. She should have tried the windows, but she had to be stupid. She tried the office. This just wasn’t her day. “Ready to show yourself yet?”
She didn’t reply to that, but instead looked at the door behind her. Qei had few options left. Do what the Iniri wants and decloak. Rush her, try and kill her, or simply see how long she really wanted to wait. She just didn’t see waiting as an option. Killing her was again risky, the plasma discharge would likely draw even more attention. A dead Iniri would also bring too many questions, and put them on guard. So she ruled that out as well. As she couldn’t carry the dead body with her. Her cloak wasn’t designed to take that much extra volume.
She tried to rush her. Only to be grabbed by several tentacles. They gripped her firmly in an instant. Qei tried to shake them off, but the Iniri held her firmly. She could have easily broken the girl’s grip but not without hurting her. The Iniri then proudly declared, “Got you!”
She slumped into her grip. So the girl did. Not that Qei was happy about it. She let out her breath and dropped her cloak. Sheepishly she looked over her shoulder where she caught the smug grin on the alien’s face. “There you can see me, happy now?”
The alien giggled, “you’re so cute!”
Qei felt her tail stiffen. That wasn’t the reaction she was expecting. She suddenly felt very worried for a different reason. The alien ignored her reactions and then said, “That was a neat trick though. How did you do it?”
Qei decided to play dumb. It just seemed to be the best play, “I don’t know, I uh disappear when I feel a certain way?”
The alien gave her a look. “Really? Hmm, well no matter. I’ll figure that little bit out later.”
That was one problem dodged for now anyway. There were others that she still needed to get out of now. If only she had been more careful, but she hadn’t seen any signs that the Iniri holding her right now had been aware of her. Qei couldn’t help but berate herself for this. She had taken a risk, and now here she was, being burned for that same risk. It was a mistake, she should have kept her distance. Now wasn’t the right time for what ifs though. She knew she had made a mistake. Now she had to fix things.
Worriedly she asked, “So uh, what happens now?
The Iniri girl chuckled, “Well let’s see. I had to catch you, so you have been a very naughty girl.”
She was a bit worried, but suddenly the Iniri girl released her. She straightened up. And glanced right at the door. “Oh, no you don’t. I haven’t said you can leave yet.” said the Iniri as a tentacle wrapped around her wrists.
She sighed. It seemed the Iniri wasn’t going to let her go until she was satisfied. “Fine, what do you want?”
The Iniri girl smiled, “Now we are getting somewhere. First take those off, let me see you.”
Qei let out a breath of course she would want to start with that. Well it wasn’t a problem, although she imagined Kiru would be blushing. That girl seemed to like being naked, but she was strangely resistant to being nude. Qei slipped out of her dress. Dropped her panties, and removed her shoes. She hadn’t bothered with a bra since she didn’t need one. The panties weren’t much needed either, but they came with the outfit.
“Happy?”
The Iniri nodded, and said, “Yes...”
Thankfully someone interrupted before she could be asked too many questions. This gave her time to consider any answers to the questions she was sure to ask. The interruption was someone coming by to let her know the assembly had been convened as requested, and Qei naturally ended up being dragged along to the thing. Apparently so that the Iniri could keep an eye on her. Qei had no doubt she wasn’t going to be let go until the Iniri was satisfied.
The assembly went just about how one would expect. With the Iniri girl giving the staff and students instructions. Instructions to not think about the missing students. The staff had also been ordered to forward everything they had on the students she took. Qei had an idea on why, they would need the data so that they knew where to follow up.
At the moment however, she now found herself sitting next to the Iniri girl in one of the trucks that had been sitting in the bus area as she suspected. They had been parked there to pick up the school girls. The vehicles had only recently departed the school, and the Iniri girl had turned her full attention back to Qei.
“Okay cutie, now that we have some time why don’t you introduce yourself. I am called Zalla, and you are?”
She hesitated for a moment before replying, “Qei. My name is Qei.”
Zalla smiled, “Well Qei, I have quite a few questions for you. Let’s start with what you were doing in the school?”
She felt being honest might go further here. Naturally there were things she couldn’t say, but truth wouldn’t hurt. She sighed, “I was taking a walk. I was trying to take my mind off something, when I caught sight of you entering the school.” She looked down, “I uh let my curiosity get the better of me.”
Zalla gave her a look, “So you just followed me on a whim?”
Qei nodded, that really was the case.
“I was hoping there would be more to it than that. So, uh, what were you trying to take your mind off of anyway?”
Qei glanced out the window, “Um, well. Someone important to me didn’t come home last night from work. She’s sent a few texts, but I get the feeling she isn’t telling me something. I’m kind of worried about her honestly.
Zalla leaned forward, “maybe I can help then. What’s her name? Or better yet her citizen id number? Maybe I can find her.”
Qei shook her head, “No it’s alright. I’m sure she will be home by the time I get back. I’ll ask her what’s up next time I see her.”
Zalla shrugged, and leaned back. “Have it your way then.”
Qei turned back to the window. Watching the scenery moving below them. It wasn’t hard for her to guess where they were going, and she noticed they were almost there. A part of her was worried about what would happen when they landed.
“So have you been in the city long?”
She blinked, surprised by the question, and looked back at her.
“I’d guess no, because I’m sure I would have heard mention of someone like you, if you had been here long. So what brought you to the city?”
Qei sighed, “ Yeah, I arrived a few days ago. As for what brought me here, well that is personal. I would prefer not to discuss it.”
Zalla gave her another look, “You make it kind of hard to get to know you. What with evading my questions and all.”
She didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything to say. As it was, she wanted to be anywhere but here. She turned back to the window again. Idly, she noted some movement but was surprised by Zalla’s next words.
“Well I have some business to attend to. So where do you live?”
Looking back she frowned, and opened her mouth to speak.
“Don’t worry I am just going to drop you off. Just don’t go anywhere. I’ll be checking up on you later.”
“You’re letting me go?” she said, somewhat not believing it.
