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you.”  His fingers clenched in a fist against the stark white tablecloth.
    Elle's skin tingled . Oh, damn . Her senses told her Herman had discovered something important. “Have you reported it to the authorities?”
    “ Not yet.”  Herman's eyes pleaded with her to accept his invitation. Staring at the table, he mumbled under his breath and ran a hand through his thinning hair. “After I show you, we can call your dad.”
    “ I can't go anywhere right now,” Elle told him. “I have appointments and I have to get back to the salon.”  
    “ Meet me at my place when you get off work. I have proof.”  His voice hardened. “Proof the aliens are back and that they did abduct me.” 
    “ You do?”  Elle's stomach knotted as she hoped against hope that he did. “What kind of proof?”
    Herman's eyes glittered . “You'll see.”
    “ Okay, I'll come to your house soon as I can.”
    He leaned his arm on the table and pointed to Sara. “Bring her so we have a witness. If you trust her I. . . I guess, I do, too.”
    “ All right, we'll be there.”  Elle’s heart beat with a burst of excitement. She sensed Herman had some kind of link that could lead her to the truth about her own past. She gritted her teeth, realizing she had to follow every lead no matter where it took her.
    “ Good,” Herman said. Relief passed over his tired, sad features. “I'll be home.”
    “ Have you told anyone else?”  Elle settled back against the booth with her fingers nervously trailing along the edge of the tablecloth.
    “ Told the media about being abducted.”  Herman snorted. “They laughed at me. They think I'm some kind of nut.”  He gave Elle a piercing stare. “You know better.” 
    Her heart ached for him as he glanced around the restaurant, his paranoia obvious . Two men wearing the High Mountain Array uniforms came through the front door. One stood about six-feet tall with blonde hair and a dazed look on his face. The other was short with dark hair and tiny black beady eyes. He caught Elle’s attention. Herman lowered his eyes and wrapped his arms around his chest. The dark haired scowling man glared toward Herman. If looks could kill, Herman would be on the floor twitching.
    “ Who is that?”  Elle's skin crawled. An evil vibration flew off the man in waves. He’s dangerous.
    “ That’s Benny Savonti and Lee Bales. They’re mean ones. Every time I try to paint pictures of the columbines in the meadow out by the Array, they give me a hard time.”  Herman shivered. “I. . . I gotta go,” he stammered and hurried toward the rear of the restaurant.
    “ Now that’s interesting,” Sara said.
    “ I’m sure it had something to do with the two men who just came in. Herman seemed afraid of the one called Benny.”  Elle watched Herman's slumped shoulders disappear through the back exit.
    “ This is getting creepier by the minute.”  Sara showed Elle goose bumps on her arm. “Are you telling your dad?”
    “ With all the sightings, I'm sure he has his hands full. I'll call him later, after we see what Herman has to show us.”  Images of Herman being strapped to a metal table with gray men standing on each side of him flashed in her mind and she knew. An unwanted shiver wound up her spine. This time he has proof . 
    * * *
    From high on the ridge above Herman’s place, Kole sat with a wolf watching Elle and Sara pull into the long driveway. He was glad for the quiet, the undisturbed moments to gather his thoughts and come to grips with where he was and what he was feeling. With every fiber of his being, he wanted to help Elle with her quest. The intense urge to put his arms around her nearly pushed him down the side of the mountain. Sitting back, he realized that wouldn’t do either of them any good.
    He sighed in resignation . The Ancient One had given him strict orders to retrieve the Dropa stones and bring Elle back. He couldn’t get intimate with her. It wasn’t allowed, not