Though he would never admit it to some of the humans, Serix was beginning to enjoy working for them and helping them keep their underground society alive. His pleasure went beyond just performing the jobs to fit in. He found that he looked forward to his time in the fields, growing and harvesting crops for their meals. He also realized that he missed living in a community. Like humans, Lunairans were social creatures and, while he loved his time alone with Cassie, there was something about being part of a group that was just so fulfilling. The brief moments of casual banter with Quincy and Jerry were what made him feel accepted in the caves above everything else. So, when Serix and Cassie walked hand-in-hand to the dining hall for dinner, he didn’t get the usual twinge of anxiety in the pit of his stomach when any of the humans glanced at him. Even the gazes of the more hostile members of the society didn’t faze him.

Serix and Cassie sat down at a table with their usual group. The others were having a light conversation, so he just contented himself with eating and listening in silence. It wasn’t until Jerry mentioned Hunter’s name that Serix looked up to pay closer attention. The volatile human was the only one who still set him on edge. There was just something about Hunter that made him reluctant to trust the human.

“You know, Hunter’s been quieter than usual,” Jerry said. “Not that I’m complaining. Usually he just causes trouble when he opens his mouth, but it’s still weird.”

“Yeah,” Quincy nodded. “I wonder if Jake pulled him aside and scolded him.”

“Could be,” Jerry said between bites of food. “By the way, have you seen him lately? He disappeared halfway through work after lunch.”

“I told him to get some water from the river,” Sarah spoke up. “He’s probably slacking off and taking a bath or something. The guy stank to high heaven.”

The others just laughed at her comment, but Serix was still uneasy. He had been letting himself get too comfortable lately. How could he not have noticed Hunter go missing during work? And the fact that he was [i]still[/i] missing bothered him. Hunter didn’t seem like the type to ditch work for an early bath. But if he wasn’t doing that, then what was taking him so long to get back?

Serix’s thoughts were interrupted by a bloodcurdling scream from one of the tunnels. Everyone in the dining hall froze and turned towards the sound. Gunner drew a gun from his belt and held it up, his finger hovering over the trigger. Connor shifted so that he stood between the potential danger and Emily. Jerry did the same with his mate. Everyone else in the room was silent as they stared at the tunnel, waiting to see what had caused the scream. They didn’t have to wait long, because in the next moment Hunter appeared from the tunnel, dragging something behind him. Serix’s blood ran cold when he saw what, or rather [i]who[/i], it was.

“Hunter,” Ryan gasped. “What is this?”

Hunter threw the Pilot down on the ground in front of him, keeping a gun trained on the back of his head. The Lunairan was a bloody mess. He didn’t even try to get up as Hunter kicked him roughly in the side and looked up to address his stunned audience, “I found [i]this[/i] hiding out by the river.” His eyes swept over the crowd. “It got in through an unmarked passage that leads up to the surface. As we all know: There’s no way an alien could get in here without help, but guess what?” His eyes fell on Serix, giving him such a potent look of malice that he cringed. “This alien confessed the identity of its partner in crime.” Hunter kicked the Pilot again. “Go on; tell them what you told me.”

The Lunairan weakly raised his head to first shoot Hunter a venomous glare, and then turned next to Serix, “Him. He is part of my patrol. His orders were to infiltrate your barracks and gain your trust, all while finding a secure passage for me to bring the rest of my patrol and eliminate the rest of you pathetic Earthlings. Of course, this plan is nullified now that I and the rest of my patrol have been wiped out. Your work here is done, Scout.” He met Serix’s eyes and Serix felt his final, chilling words in his mind, [i]If I am to die here, then I swear I will take you down with me. Come, join me in the netherworld, traitor.[/i]

“Is this true?” Ryan said sternly, whirling around to glare at Serix. “Were you working for him?”

“No,” Serix turned to him, wide-eyed. “Well… I used to, but I left him long before I came here! I disagree with his ideology. I don’t think we need to kill off every single human in order to live on Earth.”

“Ryan,” Quincy spoke up. “He has an alibi. He’s only left Cassie’s side once since they got here, and even then he was with the rest of us in this room.”

“Wait,” Monty said from the other side of the dining hall. “I remember seeing him wander off to the hills last night.”

“Me too,” a few of the others murmured, looking at Serix warily.

“I did,” Serix admitted reluctantly. “But I was with Charlie. He wanted me to help him look for Sally.”

“I didn’t leave the fire,” Sally said slowly, looking confused. Charlie nodded.

“Then…” Serix fumbled for an explanation, but he could already tell the humans were turning against him. He was beginning to realize all too late that Hunter had planned all of this out somehow. He must have told Charlie to take him into the hills the night before so he would look guilty. Just how long had he been laying the snares for this trap?

“I should have known this would happen,” Ryan growled, raking his hands through his hair. “This is what I get for trusting one of them. Someone could have gotten hurt, or worse.” He turned to Hunter. “Take this one outside and dispose of it.” When Hunter dragged the Pilot back out of the room, Ryan turned next to Serix. “Someone take that one to the hold. I’ll decide what to do with it later.”

“Wait,” Serix took a step back, holding up his hands as Monty and Jake moved towards him. “I swear I had no part in this!”

“Hurry up,” Ryan snapped at the two humans who were slowly moving towards the Lunairan. He moved to stand by Cassie in case she tried to stop them while they seized hold of Serix’s arms and pinned them behind his back. He dug his heels into the ground as they tried to drag him towards one of the tunnels, “I had nothing to do with this! My old leader is just trying to get revenge because I left him. He even said so—err… well, he said it to me telepathically…” He faltered, knowing how fake his explanation sounded. He gritted his teeth in frustration. Hunter had planned everything out too well. He had no way out of this trap. He stopped struggling against Monty and Jake. At this point, his best option was to comply with them and hope they would realize the truth on their own. He looked at Cassie as they pulled on him again to force him towards the tunnel, “I love you.” He added through a quick mental link: [i]I’ll be okay. We’ll get through this somehow.[/i]