Alien Mind Control from Planet P Ch. 15

They ran down the stairs at breakneck speed. But as they did, in his mind Worth could somehow hear laughter. Feminine laughter.

Once they reached the ground floor, they ran out of the building, shot two guards, and made it to their air car even as a crowd of Infected surged towards them. Saoirse was relieved when Worth hit the activator and the air car surged out of the parking lot, leaving their pursuers behind.

But Worth had only driven for a few minutes when he stopped the air car on a small ssde street.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"I have to leave," said Worth.

"What?" said Saoirse.

"I have to leave," said Worth.

"Why?"

Worth didn't know any easy way to say it, so he just did. "Saoirse, I'm Infected."

"No you're not!" said Saoirse.

"I am," said Worth. "Gretchen McCallister Infected me." It pained him to say it.

"No!" said Saoirse. She grabbed his face again. "Worth, that was an ESPer dream. It wasn't real!"

"But she infected me-"

She stared into his eyes. "It wasn't real!" she repeated.

"I felt it, in my head-"

"It wasn't real!" she said again.

Worth was breathing rapidly. "Are... are you sure?"

"Yes," said Saoirse resolutely.

Worth nodded slowly and tried to calm himself. A moment later he started driving again.

They drove in silence for a while before Worth spoke again. "Gretchen... Gretchen is an ESPer of enormous power. She had a 98 rating."

"A 98? I've never heard of anyone that high!" said Saoirse.

Worth nodded. "In the... reality she created, she made me say things. Do things." He looked nervously at Saoirse as he drove. How much did she know?

"I don't care," said Saoirse firmly.

"But Saoirse-"

"Worth! I. Don't. Care." She leaned against him as he drove, and grabbed his right arm rightly. "I'm just glad you're safe."

Worth was enveloped in a warm glow all the way back to their base.

********

"So... the mysterious red headed chippie has a name now," said the holoimage of Anna. Anna looked particularly aggravated in the recorded message Worth was watching. Despite his growing affection for Saoirse, he still couldn't resist watching Anna's messages. The evening after they returned from their mission, Worth went to an isolated place to check for messages, and sure enough there was one from Anna.

"Suursha. Suuuursha. So that's the name of your little whore," said Anna. "Don't worry, Worth, Gretchen told me everything." Anna waved a dismissive hand as a holoimage of Saoirse appeared. "We know all about Doctor Saoirse McKenna, wife of Commander Ryan McKenna, and all our operatives have her likeness now. As well as yours, of course."

Worth's eyes went wide.

"Yes, Gretchen shared your sordid little secret. We're friends, really good friends, and good friends don't hold back anything. You know what I mean, Worth?" Anna said, giving a bitter smile. "I've long suspected you've had a secret whore in your life; why else would you not have come back to me? But tell me Worth, and be honest, what kind of name is Saoirse for a whore? Suursha. Suuuuursha," she said mockingly.

Anna wet her lips and looked especially bitter. "You know, Worth, for a long time I managed to convince myself that the reason you wouldn't come back to me was because you feared getting Infected, despite my guarantees. But then you come out and fuck my dear friend Gretchen. Do you realize how humiliated that made me feel?"

And then Anna's face tightened up and her eyes blazed with an anger that Worth had never seen before. "It's clear to me now that you'll fuck any red headed woman on the planet, any red headed woman at all as long as her name isn't Anna Rogers. Well, I won't stand for it, Worth! I'm going to find you and make you mine again!"

Anna was yelling now, her face full of red hot fury. "When I'm done with you you'll want me more than anything, like you used to when you were an honorable man! And when I'm done with you, you won't even look at Gretchen or Suuuursha or any of the other sorry redheaded bitches you've been cheating on me with ever again! Mark my words, Worth Rogers, you were mine before and you'll be mine again!"