Free The Primal Connection by Alexander Dregon Page B

field emanations were exceedingly poor, at least as long as Charlie was interacting with them and making them appear so, it wasn’t hard to palm off on them.
    At the moment, though, Charlie had to present the idea to a sullen and isolated Terry. During the drive, he had been quiet to the point of rudeness during Charlie’s attempts to engage him in conversation. Finally unable to stand it any longer, he tried open shouting.
    “Are we going to play the strong, silent type all the way back to San Francisco, or are we going to at least pretend to be civil?”
     
    Terry pulled into a rest area and fumed for a second. He knew he was going to end up doing their celebration same as always. There was no getting around it, and to tell the truth, he enjoyed it just as much as Charlie. The trouble was he hated giving Charlie the green light to another of his voyeuristic pleasures. It always left him agitated and, worse, talkative. Extremely talkative.
    And afterward, for at least a day, there was no separation of them at all. While Charlie could and would isolate himself from Terry when he felt the need, and Terry had learned to as well, more by desire than design, it did not work after a night of sex, which, thanks to Charlie’s internal machinations, could last all night if he found a hooker capable of being influenced by her occupant. Or if the occupant wanted to stay longer but couldn’t influence her directly, they could increase her sensitivity, making the act so pleasurable, Terry got several offers of fealty and, in one case, even marriage.
    Then, it was like they were not just connected but merged as far as their minds went. Every thought, every feeling either of them had during that period was open to either. And Charlie’s were, by this time, increasingly erotic. And given his perfect digital memory, horrifically accurate.
    This, though, wasn’t like any other time.
    “You know, Charlie, the day we met, I thought we were gonna change the world. That was why I decided to join the CIA. I figured that with that kind of training and access to the hidden data the world kept off the grid, I…we could make a difference. And what did we get? First time we made a case, using your abilities, I got called on the carpet under suspicion of collusion because they couldn’t figure out how I made the connections. They figured I was a fucking double agent! That I was working against them! Agent Fuller kept pushing, trying to find out my secret. What the fuck was I going to tell him? You see, Fuller, I got this alien in my head that can contact others of his kind and pick up all kind of things, even read a computer chip manually. He can tell me when somebody is lying by reading their body language and electrical fields sometimes. I could go on, but what’s the point? How was I supposed to tell him that crazy bastard Kramer was an occupied as well and you were the one that told me where he was and I made up that crazy story to cover it?”
    Terry let his anger blossom for a minute as he continued. “If it hadn’t been for him, Benin wouldn’t be the shit that he is today. Fuller told him there was something wrong with me, and from then on, he’s been on my ass. And that ain’t about to change anytime soon.”
    Charlie could feel the rage bubbling just under the surface, trying to find a seam to burst or a weak spot to exploit. It was hard for him, especially knowing that he was the reason for all of this. If he hadn’t waited so long, if he hadn’t been so afraid of letting someone see even the small part that was visible, he might get a host that was more normal. At least, then, he could leave if or when he wanted. He had often wished he could get away from Terry, for Terry’s sake as well as his own.
    Then, his pragmatic nature came to the fore. There was nothing either of them could do. Whatever the reason, they were trapped in this arrangement until further notice. And given Terry’s limited medical training and