“Because crust-fish fever is so highly contagious for Alphas, the word quarantine has already been used. And to make matters even worse, Prudence’s aunt, Mrs. Westfall and one of her cousins, are showing signs of whatever this is.”
“Sounds like worst-case scenario already.”
“Yep. Let’s go.”
Ria followed Cam out of the bedroom, through the living room and outside for one last quick look at the view. He had a nervous feeling in his belly for the first time since about age eight and learning what truly being in bad trouble meant.
They both got in his vehicle without a word, but once belted in, Ria asked the obvious question blaring big red warning klaxons in his head. The one Axel had already figured out. “So, wait a minute. If Prudence is in the basement with her aunt and cousins, who’s been on theRoyal Caldera Fortefor the past week?”
“My brother Axel and I would both like to know the answer to that question. I’ll put you down on the list at third.”
“Oh.” She looked worried.
“And my very clever brother has also finally recognized you from the picture your mother gave us.”
“Oh no.”
“Oh, yes. I knew he’d figure it out eventually, but I was hoping for much later.” Cam stopped just past the gate and hopped out to close and lock it behind the SUV.
“On a scale of one to ten, how much trouble am I in?”
“If we were strangers and I was in charge, it would be a minimum of twenty.”
“Since Axel is in charge, how much?” she said as one corner of her mouth lifted.
“Nineteen,” he said in all seriousness. “If there is an outbreak of crust-fish fever in Alienn, lots of folks will be asking why Prudence was on Earth and not on the cruise ship.”
“If she’s sick, she would have gotten sick on the cruise ship, too.”
He shook his head. “Except that all cruise liners from Alpha-Prime have built-in ventilation systems to identify infectious diseases at the earliest detection level and quash them before they become a problem. Prudence being in Alienn when she shouldn’t have been, thereby possibly infecting all of the people she’s had contact with in town with her highly contagious green-spotted rash disease, is something that could have been prevented if she’d only been where she was supposed to be.”
“Space potato storm,” Ria said under her breath.
“Exactly.”
Chapter Fifteen
Ria closed her eyes against the problems they faced because of her bucket list and need to be free from a future she didn’t want. It wasn’t fair, but no one ever said life was supposed to be. The weight of her guilt increased with each mile closer they drove to Alienn. A cacophony of what-ifs filled her mind. Maybe she’d get out of this arranged marriage because she’d be brought up on penal—possibly even gulag-level—charges for aiding and abetting the introduction of a dangerous contagion on a colony planet that had been disease-free since its inception.
Cam got them to the Big Bang Truck Stop quickly. The mid-morning sun shone brightly in the light-blue sky. Ria held his hand as they descended into the basement, Cam leading her through a maze of hallways and rooms until they came to an area that held several offices.
Axel shot out of the center door as they entered the passage. “Finally.”
She barely knew him, and even she could see his intense agitation at the prospect of a widespread outbreak of crust-fish fever. She didn’t blame him. To his credit, he didn’t give her a dirty look or anything. In fact, he looked relieved to see them.
Cam said, “Is it crust-fish fever for certain?”
Axel shook his head. “They don’t know what it is. If it was, the green spots would have appeared by now.”
“What does that mean?”
“Gage and the others are talking about cellular mutations and say maybe this is something we’ve never seen before. Whatever it is, it must have come off the cruise liner. Right?”
“Not necessarily. Don’t borrow trouble.”
“Your middle name is Trouble.”
