Fractured Futures

by SY Thompson

  She had given her destination as Macon, Georgia, which was completely in the opposite direction from her true destination...Marathon, Florida. When they arrived in Marathon, she would drop off the vehicle in the parking lot of the rental car agency before they continued on to the small island near No Name Key.

  Anyone could run the plate to determine where the vehicle had originated from, but the false information would hopefully give the women the much-needed time to elude the hunters.

  Then she stopped at the Goodwill and bought each of them some fresh clothes. Her previous research on Sidney came to her rescue as far as sizes. Ronan bought jeans, t-shirts, fresh underwear and socks. It was nothing fancy, but it was preferable to the dirty garments they had and it was easy to remain anonymous by shopping at the second hand store.

  She quickly drove through the pickup lane of a fast food restaurant and heaved a sigh of exhaustion. Ruefully she acknowledged that she desperately needed sleep. She had been going almost nonstop for three days, staying awake to watch over Sidney while she slept and had barely managed to catch a few hours of rest a night. Finally, she pulled back into the parking lot and stopped the car directly in front of the main entrance. With her arms loaded with their supplies, she carefully walked to the doorway. Fortunately, a couple exiting the building held the door for her and she smiled her thanks.

  The young brunette elbowed her boyfriend who openly drooled at the sight of the tall, curvaceous blonde. He rubbed his sore ribs and forced his eyes away to mutter an apology before he walked away. Ronan could only shake her head and smile. The attention she received didn’t really bother her, she was used to it, but there was only one person whose opinion of her mattered. That woman was hopefully asleep in a room on the third floor.

  She had to put the bags down on the floor outside the room before she could unlock the door. Then she opened it as quietly as possible, picked up the bags, and placed them just inside the room. The lights were off and she smiled when she heard Sidney’s rhythmic breathing.

  Ronan set the food on the small table before she went into the bathroom for her own shower. The warm water felt heavenly as it washed away days of filth. When she finally emerged, pink and clean from the shower, she felt almost human again.

  She had little to change into and slipped into the new under things before she left the bathroom with the damp towel wrapped around her slender form. Even though Sidney was still fast asleep, Ronan somehow felt shy about walking around so scantily dressed.

  There was only one queen-sized bed in the room and she was nervous about sharing it. In order to delay the inevitable, she picked up the phone and scheduled a wake-up call at the desk for two hours later. They needed more rest than that, but it was the most they could afford. The delay tactic took only a moment and then Ronan

  realized she was out of excuses. With a strange mix of excitement and trepidation, she eased back the covers and slid in beside the woman of her dreams, who as it turned out, was dressed in only a hotel towel.

  Sidney seemed to sense the warmth of her body and turned toward her. She threw an arm over her and Ronan’s heart raced at the contact. Even after Sidney had settled her head against her shoulder, she had difficulty breathing. The weight of Sidney’s head was exquisite and something Ronan had never dreamed she would experience again once they left the swamps. With a happy smile, she drifted to sleep with Sidney in her arms.

  AN ANNOYING RINGING sound slowly pervaded the depths of sleep. It grudgingly drew her up from the incredibly erotic dreams. With a frown of disappointment at being disturbed and a small groan of exhaustion, Sidney opened her eyes to a darkened hotel room. It took a moment to realize that the sound she heard was the telephone ringing.

  Sidney glanced down, surprised to see that Ronan continued to sleep undisturbed by the call. The phone sat on the far side, leaving Sidney no choice but to lean over Ronan to reach for the handset. The warmth and scent of the clean form assaulted her senses and she almost didn’t hear the automated wake up message before she placed it back into the cradle. She would never know if the closeness of her own body was what did the trick, but suddenly Ronan was awake and staring up at her with a heavy, hooded expression. Her gaze smoldered as it riveted Sidney’s attention.

  Then they moved at the same time, surging against each other as mouths collided in a hungry kiss. Lips and tongues slipped and tasted. Sidney felt Ronan’s almost-naked body crushed beneath her. Ronan held her head firmly with both hands wound into her hair.

  It was the most amazing kiss Sidney had ever experienced. Her entire body came alive as electricity surged along her veins and fire ignited in her belly. Suddenly she found herself on her back with Ronan above her. Their mouths separated as Ronan planted searing kisses all over her face before trailing down Sidney’s throat. Ronan nibbled and sucked the tender flesh she found there, driving Sidney crazy with the sensations.

  Sidney moaned loudly, aroused to a fever pitch as she held Ronan tightly against her. Their lips met again as Ronan came back to taste her, seemingly unable to stop kissing her for very long. Eager hands explored Sidney’s body from shoulder to hip, then slowly back again until Ronan finally cupped a small breast in her hand and the nipple hardened almost painfully.

  Tearing her mouth away, Sidney could only gasp.

  The audible expression had the opposite effect Sidney intended. Ronan’s touch gentled, calming rather than inciting passion. After a few moments, she drew back, looked down into Sidney’s eyes and smiled.

  “Don’t you want to?” Sidney suddenly felt embarrassed at her passion. Afraid that she had overstepped her bounds and mortified at the possibility, she turned her head and tried to pull away.

  “Wait.”

  Ronan stopped her with a hand on the shoulder, but Sidney couldn’t meet her eyes. Full lips grazed her cheek and she closed her eyes.

  “Of course I want to. How could I not?”

  “Then, why did you stop?”

  “Believe me, Sidney, it’s not because I don’t want you. It’s because I want you so badly that I know that if I let myself go, I’ll never be able to stop.”

  Sidney looked up at Ronan through her lashes and asked the same question she had before. “Is that such a terrible thing?”

  Ronan could only gape at her in bewilderment. “Making love to you could never be anything but wonderful. And when it does happen, I don’t want to think about anything but you for days on end.”

  “Sweet talker.” Sidney grinned and suddenly felt a lot better.

  “Yes, well...” Ronan mumbled and looked down at where their bodies were intimately pressed together. “I think that we’d better get some clothes on before I change my mind.”

  Sidney flushed before Ronan rolled away. She kept her gaze on neutral objects with difficulty, afraid that if she looked before Ronan put clothes on that she wouldn’t be able to help herself.

  Ronan walked over to the bags she had brought in earlier. “I bought some clean clothing.”

  Sidney climbed out of bed and put on a robe that came with the room. Curious about everything Ronan had purchased she walked over beside her. That was when she saw a bucket of food. At the same time, the smell hit her so hard she salivated. Without thinking about anything else, she tore the cover off and dove into the unexpected treat. She groaned almost involuntarily, but was only aware of how erotic the sound was when Ronan turned to look at her devouring the drumstick. She mumbled around the food, “Finger lickin’ good.”

  Ronan shook her head and laughed before she reached back into the bags.

  The two dressed and ate quickly, before they decided to get moving as soon as possible. Sidney went to the restroom before they left and was thrilled to see a new toothbrush and toothpaste sitting on the sink. She tore the package open and happily scrubbed her teeth clean for the first time in three days. In the middle of brushing her teeth, she realized they’d been kissing passionately with morning breath and was flustered by the thought. Then she remembered
that Ronan hadn’t seemed to mind and decided to forget it.

  She was so thrilled at the clean clothes that she didn’t even question how Ronan knew her sizes or where they came from. Soon they were on the way with Sidney driving at Ronan’s direction. Ronan sat in the passenger seat and Sidney felt strangely protective when she suddenly yawned in exhaustion. She reached over and gently grasped Ronan’s hand where it lay in her lap.

  “Why don’t you try and get some sleep.”

  Ronan nodded once and held tighter to the smaller hand in her own before she said, “I will, but first I feel I owe you some answers. I think some of this will be hard to believe, but please trust me when I tell you that I would never lie to you. All I ask is that you hear me out.”

  Ronan took a deep breath before she launched into her story without looking at Sidney. Sidney didn’t know if Ronan was deliberately procrastinating or if she didn’t know where to start. When she finally did begin to speak, Sidney was shocked by what she heard.

  “I am from the year 2375.”

  At that little tidbit of information, the Buick lurched slightly left and drifted over the bumps in the center of the road. Sidney quickly regained her composure, let go of Ronan’s hand and pulled back into the proper lane, but didn’t comment or voice her surprise. Since she already suspected time travel might somehow be involved, her surprise truly stemmed from how far in the future.

  Ronan didn’t remark on the reaction. She paused for a moment so Sidney could adjust before she went on. “I told you the truth when I said that I was a homicide detective. The last case I was involved in concerned a serial killer who copycatted a very famous murder. Yours.”

  Sidney couldn’t prevent the swift intake of breath but Ronan continued without giving her a chance to speak. Sidney suspected that if Ronan didn’t finish this story now, she never would. Glancing from the corner of her eye, she saw that Ronan’s gaze was fixed on the darkened scenery visible through the passenger’s window.

  “After solving that case...I found myself obsessed with you. Your fire and compassion. I couldn’t think of anything else. My commanding officer thought I was overworked and sent me home. But it didn’t help. It only gave me more time to immerse myself in my obsession.”

  Her voice had started to tremble and Ronan took a steadying breath. “I funded many of Professor Horton’s scientific endeavors: warp propulsion, analyzers, you get the idea. He contacted me while I was on leave saying he had something he wanted to show me. It was a time gate. It sounded fantastic and I was so excited at first. Then I realized the potential it had for good and evil.”

  “You were concerned it would be used for nefarious purposes and decided to prevent it,” Sidney guessed.

  Perhaps a little disconcerted by her response, Ronan nevertheless attempted to answer. “Partly. By preventing your death, I could prevent the rise of the Neue Konservative Regime, but my main concern was not the prevention of a corrupt government.”

  Sidney wished the answer was that simple. Preventing such a government’s rise to power seemed like an extremely important issue. Hearing that Ronan’s primary concern was her safety made Sidney feel a little guilty.

  “I don’t understand,” Sidney interrupted. “Why was it so important to prevent my death? Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you decided it could fit into your plans, but you could have accomplished your objective without that. Yet from everything you’ve said you went out of your way to find me, be hired by me, and protect me. That’s more than just incidentally preventing my death.”

  “You are not incidental,” Ronan burst out hotly and turned to look at Sidney.

  Just as quickly, she looked away again. For a moment both were quiet as Ronan gathered her composure and Sidney sorted through what she said.

  Finally, Ronan went on. “I fell in love with you across time...through space. Even though I had never met you, your death devastated me, left me feeling hollow and numb. I saw the gate as the means to prevent that tragedy. I planned very carefully for several months before I approached you. I knew you’d be attending the party that night and hoped to be able to talk to you. Unfortunately, there were too many people and I couldn’t find a way to do so. Then, when you left, I saw the car follow you and I knew it was starting.”

  Ronan’s voice fell to silence and Sidney struggled to put things into prospective.

  She loves me.

  Sidney didn’t respond at first, but then she said, “Okay, I don’t want to seem like I’m making light of your feelings for me and trust me, we’re going to come back to that, but I think we need to save that for a time we can concentrate on it without any distractions. First, I need to ask you something else. You said Roger was in on this. How?”

  If Ronan was disappointed that they didn’t continue the discussion on a more personal level she hid it well. “Two years ago, from your point of view, individuals that wished to infiltrate this world’s government approached him.”

  “You’re not talking about aliens, are you?” she asked in amazement with just a hint of disbelief.

  “We are talking about three hundred years in the future, but no. I’m a little confused about the intricacies of time travel, but sometime after I left through the gate, someone else used it. I think they came back to a point in time that actually caused the problems that I came back to correct.”

  “I know that I need to give you some documented evidence so you’ll see this as something real versus science fiction, but bear with me. The information I am giving you will be important for you to understand where I am going.”

  Sidney nodded and agreed to keep quiet until she had all the facts.

  “I looked at the disc we found inside your briefcase while you were asleep on the plane. I remembered to take it with us before I threw the case away in the swamps.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” At her glance, Sidney looked back toward the road. “Sorry go ahead.”

  “One of the stops I made today was the local library. I found information that leads me to believe some of the more radical factions of my own government thought it would be a good idea to come back and set the world government on track for their own agendas. Maybe they thought our future economy would be in better condition if the Konservative party came to power sooner.”

  “You’re not sure?”

  “At least you aren’t asking me if I’m crazy,” Ronan said. “I didn’t really have time to go over it fully. Some people came in and I didn’t want to take a chance. We’ll have to take a closer look later.”

  “I believe you,” Sidney said simply. “Don’t get me wrong, time travel still sounds a little too far-fetched, but I’ve seen so much since you came into my life. It’s really the only explanation for everything.”

  Ronan let out a relieved sigh and looked at Sidney. “Thank you.”

  “The only question I have is if you think our current government is in on the plan with people from your time?”

  Ronan shrugged. “I don’t think so. From what I gathered looking at the data, I think members of the Black Guard are replacing them. It’s doubtful government officials would go along with that kind of thing. Before you ask, The Black Guard is my government’s version of the secret police, the enforcers.”

  “I see. So, Roger is in on all of this? Did he know these individuals were from another time when this started?”

  “I seriously doubt it. I think he didn’t find out until it was too late to back out of their arrangement. When he did find out, he made the disc as a form of insurance. Somehow it ended up in your possession and whoever is running things came to see you as a threat.”

  “But I never saw the information on that disc,” Sidney protested.

  “I know, but apparently they couldn’t take the chance.”

  “Why did they pick Roger?”

  “His thirst for power made him the perfect one to assist them and when the offer was presented he jumped to get in on the ground floor. He didn’t realize that he was simply a pawn
. The Guard had to begin slowly, so that if the public ever discovered what was happening it would be too late to resist.”

  “Such a project couldn’t happen overnight. They’d have to be very careful.”

  “True, it would take a long time before they’d be able to come to full power, but all they need is to start the ball rolling. After enough laws are passed, the eventual outcome would be predetermined.”

  “So what do we do now?”

  “I bought a little place near No Name Key. I think we should head out there and finish looking at the rest of the information on the disc. Depending on what we find, I was thinking you could use your contacts in Washington to let them know what’s happening. Once we reach Marathon, we’ll take a boat out to the island.”

  Sidney looked at her quickly. “What do you know about my contacts?”

  Ronan smiled and Sidney shifted her gaze back to the roadway. “I know that you’ve made friends with people in high places because of your marriage. You’ve interacted with very influential politicians at some of the more upscale parties and you’re not someone that’s easy to forget.”

  “Thank you. I think. I still think that you’re wrong about Roger, though. Even if he made the disc that may be as far as it went for him. In fact, he might have uncovered all of this but didn’t know who to inform.”

  Ronan didn’t respond directly. “Why don’t you pull over so we can switch drivers? Maybe you can try to sleep for a while. We’ll talk some more later.” Gently she reached over and squeezed Sidney’s hand before releasing her.

  “No that’s all right. You go ahead. I’m afraid I have too much to think about right now to sleep.”

  Ronan rested her head against the doorframe and settled in for a nap, trusting Sidney to get them to Marathon safely.

  Chapter Nineteen

  FOR A WHILE, Sidney listened to the gentle breathing of the woman beside her. She almost couldn’t believe the tenderness she felt for someone she’d only known for a few months. Everything Ronan did or said only added to these growing emotions. What was even more impressive was that stopping the infiltration of their world should be the most important thing on Ronan’s mind. The fact that it was something she considered a fringe benefit, and that saving Sidney was her main objective, left Sidney feeling humble. It was not a familiar sensation for an actress.