So this is the stranger I was supposed to meet, Badru mused, staring at the Elexander look-alike, unaware that the canine lying under his bumper had gotten up unharmed from the street.
“Come, Nasiir,” Xander said to his friend, who quickly trotted to his side.
Badru blinked several times upon hearing the familiar sound. The stranger even sounded like Elexander. “Is your last name Manning by any chance?”
Badru had to ask that question. To his knowledge all of the Mannings were dead, including Elexander’s parents. His only comfort was in the fact that the older Mrs. Manning, his mother’s childhood friend, died believing that he was innocent of all charges against him. That had meant a lot to Badru and his mother, who died just last year – eight years after his father expired. Unfortunately, Juna’s parents were deceased, as well. However, along with the Mannings, the Harshals had bequeathed their sizable estates to a research foundation bearing Elexander and Juna’s names.
“I believe Manning was the surname of my birth parents,” Xander replied, keeping his voice low so as not to attract an even bigger crowd than they already had. Fortunately, the nearest uniformed officer was still a block and a half away.
Badru’s eyes bucked. “Your birth parents?!”
“Dr. Karson, is it possible that you could give me and my friend a lift to the edge of town?” Xander said, still talking low as he moved closer to the shocked man. He would not discuss what needed to be discussed here. Not in front of so many witnesses. Allowing his eyes to dart pointedly left and right, Xander could only hope that Dr. Karson got the hint and quickly came to the same conclusion.
“How do you know my…?” Badru began. Yet he prudently allowed his words to trail off upon noticing the young man’s expressive eyes and the message contained within them. This wasn’t the place to continue their meeting.
“Yes, I can give you a lift. It’s the least I can do for almost killing your…dog?” Dr. Karson said, becoming acutely aware of another thing he’d overlooked in his shock.
Not only was the brown and gray canine completely unharmed, he didn’t even have a limp. And this was after being car bumped really hard, too! Worse, the Doberman actually seemed to be smiling up at Badru.
Once they were in the car and safely away from onlookers, Badru started up again with his questions. “How did you know my name?” Dr. Karson didn’t even have on his work nametag. He’d taken that off before leaving the library. And even if he had left it on, it would have only shown his first name.
“I have known your full name for weeks now. I knew your first name years ago upon reviewing my birth parents’ digital logs,” Xander replied, sitting as comfortably as he could in the passenger seat of the small car. There was hardly any leg room in the front at all.
The compact vehicle Badru drove was yet another sign of the times. Earth vehicles that were destined for personal use were deliberately made small in order to discourage people from having large families. Only street buses, rail buses, and airbuses had any width or length to them.
“That’s another thing. What did you mean by the Mannings being your birth parents? And which Mannings would those be?” Badru asked, just getting started good with his inquiries.
Deciding to answer the last question first, Xander replied, “The Mannings I refer to are named Elexander and Juna. They were killed coming from the planet Hekima, though I believe you call it Nico-1.”
“But if they were killed, how can you be their son?” Badru looked in the rearview mirror to check on the dog in the backseat. He instantly noticed how attentively the canine listened. It was as if he understood exactly what was being said in his presence.
“The Mannings crashed on a planet called Katan after spending months teetering in space due to a computer malfunction. My birth mother bore me prematurely before she and my father died. Despite my low birth weight, I survived and was raised by a wonderful Katanian couple,” Xander replied, revealing things to this man that he would not to any other human. Yet the colors of Dr. Karson’s essence testified that he was indeed trustworthy.
Badru shook his head with disbelief at the things that had just been said to him. It all sounded too incredible to believe. Yet when he remembered Afua’s warning about it being essential for him to believe this stranger, he forced his logical mind to take a backseat for the moment.
“I have to admit, you do look just like your father, except with your mother’s coloring and lips,” Badru replied, trying to embrace the possibility that this could all actually be true. Yet to ease his mind he had to ask at least one more question. “I truly want to believe everything you say, young man, but I still need more proof. Can you tell me something else about your birth parents that only a true son of the Mannings would know?”
Xander thought for a moment. Then he smiled as just the right piece of evidence crossed his mind. “Based on the digital logs my birth mother left, I can tell you exactly how my parents met.”
“Excellent. Yes, tell me that,” Badru replied. He knew that only a handful of people knew how the Mannings’ met and most of them were dead now.
“They met in a church during a moment of deep despair. After being converted to Christ, they fell in love and went on their first date that very evening. I think the restaurant they went to was called Back to Africa,” Xander summarized.
If this didn’t convince Dr. Karson, Xander was prepared to show him pictures of his birth parents’ wedding rings. They were made of gold so he could not take them off the ship using the transporter. They were too precious sentimentally to catapult out of the hatch as they’d done the Katanian gold nuggets.
Upon hearing the exact events of the Mannings’ first meeting, Badru almost had another wreck as he swerved in the road. Fortunately, they were nearing the edge of town where the traffic was much lighter. When the small car was back on track, Badru began to ask more questions. These questions pertained to why the young man had come to earth now and why he’d deliberately sought him out. Badru also finally got Xander’s first name.
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