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down into his mug and then met her gaze again. “When you had your accident last night, my thought was that I could—that you could be the subject I brought to my superiors.”  
    Andrea raised an eyebrow, “Seriously? Was I going to have some kind of say in this?” Fear mingled with anger at the fact that Jan had said it so matter-of-factly.  
    “I would have convinced you,” Jan said. “I did convince you to—what is the term—to sleep with me?”  
    Andrea pressed her lips together as the blood rushed into her face. “We will discuss that part of this whole messed-up situation later.”  
    Jan smiled, “I think if I want to, we could discuss it now.”  
    Andrea gritted her teeth. “No, later.” She took a deep breath and another sip of her coffee, thinking uncomplimentary thoughts about kinky aliens who shanghaied helpless human women for scientific experiments. “You said I could be your subject?”  
    Jan shrugged, “I have changed my thinking. You would not be a good subject.”
    Andrea wasn’t sure whether or not she should be offended. On the one hand, she was glad she wasn’t going to be subjected to some kind of alien probe— oh, but sweetie, you’ve already been probed, her mind reminded her. On the other hand…“What do you mean I wouldn’t be a good subject?”  
    Jan’s gaze slid away from her face, and an expression of distaste crossed his features. “It would not be pleasant for you,” he said quickly. “You would—you would not enjoy.”  
    Andrea felt the blood rush out of her face, out of her head, all at once. “It’s—that doesn’t sound promising at all.”
    “You are…” He pondered his words for a moment before speaking again. “You are a woman of will. This is a rare thing, among my people. It is not all that common among your own people, from what I have seen.”  
    Andrea crossed her arms over her chest, thinking of the dominant, not-quite-aggressive way that Jan had come onto her the night before. “Just what kind of experiments are these?”  
    Jan took another sip of his coffee. “They are…” He pressed his lips together and set his mug down. “My superiors wish to see how human women are…sexually. The… reproduction, you understand? And the behavior. All of it.”  
    “So what you’re saying is that they would be…” Andrea’s eyes widened and she hugged herself tightly. “They would…”  
    Jan looked down at his hands. “They would not—not force you. But you would be… examined. And questioned. And eventually, convinced.” Jan shrugged. “They are curious as to whether a new—species, is the word? A new species could be made, with the qualities of your kind and our kind.” Jan shrugged again, looking almost sheepish. “There is some belief among my superiors that your race is—flawed. Almost… animals.” He shook his head. “We do not view you as animals but as…” he shrugged, “We have very limited knowledge of your kind.”
    Andrea shook her head. She drank down more of her coffee, her mind spinning with what Jan had told her. She frowned. “Why do they want to cross-breed humans and your kind?”
    “They believe that it would be a good opportunity. Create a new sub-species, which can be used for breeding purposes; there is a—your kind has strengths that we do not have. Our scientists, they are very much believers in the idea of…” He made a sound that must have been a word, but Andrea could not even think what it could be. “The combination of species, to make a stronger one.”
    “Hybrid vigor?” Jan looked at her in confusion. “Here—on this planet—we have discovered that when you combine certain animals, or plants, the offspring sometimes have the best of both their parents.” Andrea rubbed her arms to help eliminate the goose bumps she felt.
    Jan nodded, gesturing to indicate that was what he was referring to.  
    “Of course, they also often end up being sterile—unable to