Subterfuge by J. W. Ferguson

Author:J. W. Ferguson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gay science fiction, gay fantasy, queer sci fi
Publisher: J. W. Ferguson
Published: 2019-05-28T00:00:00+00:00

SEVENTEEN

Ion followed after Ilaria with Gale and Riley by his side, but they all came up short when they saw Ilaria climb up the wreckage only to pull the Unnatural into a hug.

After that Ion sat dumbfounded as the Unnatural returned the hug and the pair spoke in low voices with each other. Looking over at Gale and Riley, he saw looks with varying degrees of apprehension. It seemed like he wasn’t the only one struggling to wrap their minds around what they were seeing.

Ion gave the man a hard look. Though there wasn’t much showing, the man’s skin was paled to a gray color. Even so, Ion couldn’t mistake the features the man shared with Ilaria. From the shape of his eyes, to his jaw, to his full lips – there was undeniably a familial resemblance.

Ilaria turned around, a wide, teary grin spread across her face. “It’s okay,” she called down to Ion and the two Earthborn. “Everything’s okay; this is my dad.”

Her what?

“Call me Robert,” the Unnatural said with a small wave, standing with one arm around Ilaria’s shoulders.

Ion found it hard to accept what she was telling him. “I don’t understand,” he said. “Didn’t your father die years ago?”

The Unnatural winced at Ion’s words. “It’s a long story,” he said.

“I bet,” Ion muttered. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something felt off. “What are you doing here, Robert?”

Gale and Riley sat stiffly in their saddles, watching the interaction closely. Ion noticed that Gale’s hand was inching closer to his sword.

Ilaria’s face fell as if she hadn’t considered to ask that and she looked back at her dad.

“I could ask you the same question,” Robert said coolly; there was a dangerous glint in his red eyes that warned Ion he should watch what he said next.

Ion narrowed his eyes in return; he’d never been great at heeding warnings. “We’re here to see if there’s a working computer inside that ship.”

The man smiled, the look in his eye wiped from his face as quickly as it appeared. “What a coincidence,” he said. “I’m here to see if there is a way of calling home.”

That seemed to put everyone else at ease except Ion. He was still struggling with how to process what was going on.

Ilaria threw her arms around Robert again. “I can’t believe it’s really you,” she said, acting unusually trusting.

Something about her father’s demeanor didn’t fit what was happening. He looked happy-ish, but Ion would have expected tears of joy similar to the ones Ilaria had shed –or at least more excitement than Ion could muster for an above average meal. Then again, Ilaria’s whole family was emotionally stunted, so maybe this was as gushy as he got.

He decided to put his doubts to the back of his mind, at least for the present. Now that they were here, they had things to take care of.

“Have you been able to check out the inside?” Ion asked, interrupting the reunion.

That earned him a wary look from Gale.

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