Her mouth hung slightly open, a soft growl marking each breath.

Gaelen approached the bed, wondering if this was Lucas's human girl.

Snort, snuffle.

Gaelen froze by the bed, his own breath suspended until the woman once again breathed rhythmically. There was enough trouble without letting himself be seen.

Kneeling by the bed, Gaelen leaned close to the woman's face. This close, he could see she was a mature woman, probably nearly fifty human years. A wry smile twisted his mouth. Lucas's tastes tended toward the more tender, younger women, but this one was very attractive for her age. Some familiarity in her face made him study her more closely. He knew he'd seen her before, but couldn't place her. Her auburn hair spread out on the pillow underneath her head, creating a halo of warm color glowing in the dim light.

A smile flitted across her mouth, softening her gentle features even more.

Gaelen reached into the woman's mind with his own and, finding trust there, gently probed for her name.

"Ah, Susan. What a lovely name. I am Gaelen."

"Hello, Gaelen," the woman said, her voice rough with sleep, her eyes still closed.

"Susan, do you know Lucas?"

"Yes."

"When was the last time you saw him?"

"Two days ago." She scratched her nose. Gaelen leaned back into the shadows, in case she woke suddenly. "He picked Erin up, and they went out." A frown creased her forehead.

Erin. He remembered Eochy mentioning that was the girl's name. Lucas's human girl. If he could find her, Lucas wouldn't be far away.

"Where is Erin, Susan?" he asked.

A sniff signaled her answer. "He hurt her."

"No, Susan. Lucas wouldn't hurt Erin." His certainty surprised him.

Susan shook her sleeping head. "I didn't think so, either." Another smile flitted across her mouth. "They are so lovely together." The smile disappeared, a bitter frown taking its place. "He hurt my little girl."

Erin's mother, he realized.

"Why did he hurt my daughter, Gaelen?"

"I don't know, Susan. But I do know he never meant to hurt her." The degree of trust Susan showed gave him the heart to ask her, "Can you help me find Lucas? He's in trouble. If I don't find him soon, he may be hurt before he can tell Erin he's sorry."

Susan shook her head. "No. I don't know where he is. Erin has been waiting for him since the aliens took him away."

Gaelen stifled a chuckle. Such a tale would go a long way to keeping this whole disaster quiet. Sensible people would laugh off any story smacking of things that couldn't be explained. In the privacy of her own conscious mind, Susan probably didn't think she believed it.

"Did Erin see where the aliens took Lucas?"

"No. They disappeared in a flash of light."

"Where is Erin?"

Susan sniffled again. "The hospital." A single tear slid from the corner of her eye.

Sensing her starting to waken, Gaelen withdrew from her mind, careful to place the suggestion that she'd had a lovely dream of a conversation with an incredibly handsome man about... He paused, trying to get just the right thing to leave with her.

Ah, he thought, perfect.

"Fireflies, Susan. The little point of light is a firefly flickering around in the dark."

She smiled. "I love fireflies."

"Yes, my sweet, I know you do." He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the back tenderly.