Fractured Futures

by SY Thompson

  Ronan rested her hand over her thundering heart and watched in fascination as Sidney’s nipples hardened under the silken material. She slid her hand down, brushing over the taut body until she reached the hem and eased underneath to caress the soft skin of Sidney’s inner thigh.

  “Please, don’t make me wait.”

  Ronan pushed the gown up until she could pull it over Sidney’s head and then dropped it to the floor. Lying down by Sidney’s side, Ronan kissed her again as she began to slowly explore her body. She could feel Sidney’s urgency but she had waited far too long to rush this incredible moment.

  Pulling away for only a moment, she whispered, “Relax, trust me. I’ll take care of you.”

  While she spoke, she moved her fingers to the juncture between Sidney’s legs, dipping into the heat and wetness she found there. Ronan caught the gasp of arousal in her own mouth and slowly penetrated Sidney with one long, slender finger. Hips lifted off the mattress as she tried to encourage Ronan to move.

  Sidney tore her mouth away. “Please...deeper.”

  Fingers dug painfully into Ronan’s shoulders and she decided to have mercy on Sidney, to give her what she so desperately needed. She slid another finger inside and pushed gently, gratified when Sidney’s pulsing body countered the rhythm and thrust strongly back against her. Their lovemaking became almost frenzied as each unleashed the passion they’d held back for days, causing them to thrash over the entire expanse of the bed in unguarded lust.

  Unconsciously, Ronan began to rub herself against a muscled thigh, becoming more excited when Sidney raised her leg to press firmly against her heated center. Suddenly, Sidney arched and cried out as the orgasm seized her. The rapture on her face as she peaked along with the feel of warm flesh that skidded deliciously against her swollen clitoris triggered Ronan’s own release. It carried her along on a tide of pleasure until she lay limp and unable to move.

  Finally, she felt Sidney stir beneath her and reluctantly pulled her fingers free. She smiled when Sidney immediately snuggled against her with tears shining in her eyes and declared, “My God, that was incredible.”

  The musky scent of sex in the air and the sweet stickiness of their intimate embrace was enough to stir Ronan’s passion once more.

  “Does that mean you’re finished?” she asked in a husky growl.

  Startled, Sidney looked up at her. “Not a chance.”

  She eagerly grabbed hold of her partner as Ronan crushed her in a passionate embrace.

  Chapter Twenty

  OVER THE NEXT few weeks, Ronan and Sidney spent lots of time working on how to deploy the transmitter and even more time making love and getting to know each other. Ronan was happier than she could ever remember being. But Sidney had yet to say that she loved her in return. Ronan tried to ignore the ache it caused in her heart and concentrated on the bliss of having her here, alive and in her arms. In any century, it was wonderful.

  “What are you thinking about?” Sidney walked out onto the back porch and paused to plant a kiss on her temple.

  Even though the morning was brisk, it was quite clear and sunny. The beautiful day made them decide to enjoy a morning outdoors rather than cooped up inside. Sidney carried a large pot of coffee and two mugs that she placed on the patio table. Ronan had just sat down after depositing their breakfast. Ronan realized she’d been very quiet this morning and from Sidney’s response, she was starting to pick up on it.

  “Ronan,” Sidney started, sitting down beside her. “Is something wrong? I mean with us?”

  Closing her eyes briefly, Ronan felt bad for making Sidney doubt her devotion. “I’m thinking about how soft and sweet your lips are.”

  Sidney almost dropped the coffee pot and smiled as she sat it on the table. “You always manage to surprise me.” She reached over and squeezed Ronan’s hand before picking up her cup and taking a sip. “How did you sleep?”

  “Wonderfully. I’ve never slept better in my life than I have for these past weeks.”

  Ronan watched as Sidney reach down to pet a male Doberman. The dogs were very friendly toward her, taking to her right away. Ronan never would have expected such behavior for watchdogs, but they were clearly smitten.

  “You know, I didn’t realize what a romantic you were when I met you.”

  “There were a lot of things you never realized when you met me.”

  “Too true.”

  Ronan loved Sidney more than she ever thought possible, but their physical relationship couldn’t be explained by sentiment alone. They were almost desperate when they were intimate, each trying to gain as much sensation as they could during their encounters. She realized that part of that intensity stemmed from the threat they faced. Whether subconscious or not, being the only ones who knew about the Black Guard and the potential for disaster that loomed before them was a heavy burden to bear.

  “So,” Sidney said. “What’s our next move?”

  They had a distinct difference of opinion as to how to go about bringing down the potential start of The Neue Konservative Regime. Sidney insisted that Ronan wouldn’t be able to get close enough to these people to do any good without placing herself in extreme danger, but Ronan thought she could. It had been the source of some very heated discussions over the last few days.

  “Sidney,” Ronan said, only to be interrupted.

  “Hold on.” Sidney raised a hand. “Just hear me out, please. I’ve been thinking about it and I have an idea.”

  After a tense moment, Ronan dipped her head to indicate that she was at least willing to listen. Sidney took another sip of her coffee, Ronan suspected it was a delay tactic and automatically assumed it wasn’t something she would want to hear.

  “As you mentioned before, the presidential inauguration is coming up. From the information you showed me from the disc, our president-elect is one of the replacements.”

  “Your point?” Ronan asked, not following the logic.

  “As you know, I am...acquainted with several top officials including the new vice president. What better time and place to expose these individuals for who they are?”

  Ronan shook her head in exasperation. “Why don’t you spell it out for me? The only way to get close enough during such an event is to be invited. How do you intend to do that? The ceremony takes place in only a few days.”

  “Oh, that’s easy. I can get David Abrams to invite me. His wife is expecting their first child and is very close to term. It would be unseemly for him to attend such a ceremony unaccompanied. So I give him a call and get us invited.”

  “Just like that?”

  “Just like that.”

  “Sidney, you’re not thinking this out.”

  Sidney argued, “Why? Because this isn’t your idea, I’m not thinking things out?”

  Ronan stood so quickly that her chair toppled over backward and crashed to the concrete so hard that both women started in surprise. “I can’t lose you.”

  Standing slowly, Sidney stepped up closer to her and cupped her cheek. “You’re not going to lose me.”

  Ronan leaned down to kiss her. She tried to absorb the taste and texture of the sweet mouth before resting her forehead against Sidney’s. “Okay, let’s hear the rest of your cockamamie plan.”

  “Great but first I need more coffee.”

  Sidney sat back down and watched Ronan pick up her chair. She waited until she settled before she shared the rest of her idea.

  “David can get us invited and I will be with him up on the platform. As tradition dictates, he will be sworn in first and then say something to the president-elect in front of the media. Since I will be with him, I’ll be able to expose him at that moment.”

  Sidney looked triumphant after her declaration but Ronan almost choked on a mouthful of scrambled eggs.

  “That’s it? Are you going to switch on the cloak jammer in his face and say ‘here, how does this feel’? Then how do you plan to get the rest of the Guard to expose themselves?”

  “No, that
’s not it,” Sidney declared heatedly. “All the rest of the Guards are in key positions. Secretary of Defense, directors of the FBI and CIA, and they should be there as well. Can’t you come up with some deployment method that would work within say...a thirty-foot radius?”

  Ronan carefully considered what she asked. She knew she had to come up with another method, but doubted Sidney would acquiesce. Instead, she tried to weigh the plan objectively.

  “Well, there are only six of them currently in place...that we know of. Their main strategy seems to be getting Angstrom in place as president before they begin the primary replacements. If we can stymie them publicly, and show that we have the means to defeat them, they should decide to forgo their plan. At least I hope so.”

  “If they have any sense of self-preservation you mean.”

  Ronan didn’t like to admit it, but she finally had no choice. “Your scheme does have merit.”

  “Great.” Sidney took a large self-congratulatory swig of coffee. “All we need to do now is make a phone call.”

  “Not from here,” Ronan stated emphatically. “This is the only safe haven we have at the moment. I will not risk a trace by the Guard or any of their agents. We’ll have to go to the mainland to place the call. There is one other thing we’ll need to do.”

  “What is it?”

  “We still have to go back to the hangar in Bridgeport for my motorcycle. I hope that it’s still there since it has a great deal of sophisticated equipment. I can’t let it fall into anyone’s hands.”

  “How sophisticated is it?”

  Ronan felt like a teenager, preparing to be chastised by her mother. She fiddled with the tablecloth, unable to meet Sidney’s eyes. “Oh nothing much, really. It has pulse cannons and onboard computer interface ...things like that.”

  “Why didn’t you say anything? We’ve got to get that bike.”

  “I wanted our trail to grow cold before we went back there. If we’d made a play to rush back to the hangar, someone might have caught on that there was something important hidden there.”

  “Okay, what about the airplane? Is there anything I need to know about that?”

  “No, the plane was never modified. Besides, someone probably discovered the wreckage soon after it crashed. We should make that call as soon as we can. You can let your friend know that you’re still alive and he can accidentally leak the information to the media.”

  “That’s a good idea. This should do wonders for my career. ‘Actress Survives the Everglades.’” Sidney mimicked reading headlines with a grin. “We should also consider arranging our travel plans for going to Washington. The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for four days from now.”

  “Are you sure it isn’t too short notice to pull this off?” Suddenly Ronan was a little unsure.

  “No, it’ll be fine. After all, you are talking about the next vice president of the United States and I think that between the two of us, we should be able to charter a plane. Don’t you?”

  That wasn’t all Ronan was concerned about, but she dropped the discussion for now. A few hours later they had pulled up to the main pier at Key West where Ronan kept a berth rented for times when she had to conduct business or purchase groceries. Sidney placed the call to Vice President-elect Abrams and he agreed to meet them that evening at a restaurant in Georgetown.

  Now all they had left to do was to charter the plane that would carry them to Washington, D. C. where they could rent a car. Ronan called the two women she kept on payroll to have them watch the dogs before she called the airport. She wasn’t happy to leave the Keys, but she was looking forward to putting this whole thing behind them. If the fates were willing, she would even be able to start a future with the fiery actress, but that was another uncertain factor in a sea of uncertainty.

  Would Sidney even want a future with her? Although she was extremely enthusiastic during lovemaking, that didn’t mean she wanted to spend her life with Ronan. She’d certainly never said as much. Ronan came out of her reverie briefly as they boarded the plane for Washington when Sidney reached out and grasped her hand.

  “You okay?”

  Ronan nodded and answered distractedly. “Yes, just thinking.”

  “Should I leave you alone?”

  “No, but I don’t see how you can make my fears disappear. I just have to deal with them myself.”

  The concerned expression on Sidney’s face caused Ronan to gentle her voice and squeeze the small hand lovingly. “It’s enough that you’re here with me, supporting me, and I love you for it.”

  “I...I’m glad I can do that for you.”

  It was clear Sidney was still unable to utter the words Ronan so desperately wanted to hear. She tried not to let her disappointment show at another missed opportunity to hear the precious words. Instead, she just nodded her head and boarded the plane.

  Ronan found David Abrams to be likeable enough, although he was confused by Sidney’s claims of time traveling secret police that had infiltrated the government. He was gratified and delighted that she was still alive after the publicized plane crash in the Everglades. Beyond that, Ronan saw the skepticism on his face when he heard all that had happened since Sidney disappeared from the public eye. It took a lot to convince him otherwise, but when Ronan presented the information they had obtained on the disc he slowly began to change his mind.

  “Well, I guess I have no choice,” he finally said, scratching his thinning hair absently. “At least the upside of this crazy scheme is that if it works, I get to be president.”

  Even though he sounded facetious, a little of his grief still came through and Ronan understood why. Angstrom, the real Angstrom, had been his colleague for a long time. Their families had been friends for years before that. Ronan knew from his online biography that Abrams was more than a politician. He had fought in Vietnam and had seen too much in the ways of death and destruction. Abrams had watched his entire squad cut down and been the only one to survive.

  He knew of duty and loss but from what she had heard, Ronan understood that he also knew of courage. She didn’t doubt that he would do what was necessary. Especially since this war was for the good of not only the nation, but also the entire world. Just speaking with him for such a short time gave her a feel for his character. Duty was clearly something very important to him.

  Ronan relaxed into her seat, relieved to have one obstacle overcome. She was preoccupied about the next step and almost didn’t realize the server had just deposited their dinner. Worried, she pushed the food around on her plate while Sidney caught up with her old friend and finalized the arrangements for their invitations to the ceremony.

  Sidney thought she would be making a decisive blow against the futuristic intruders when she stepped up onto that stage and set off a transmitter that would reveal the true identity of the next president and any of the others that were nearby. Unfortunately, Ronan knew that wouldn’t be good enough. Her jammer would only cover a four-foot radius at the most. There was no guarantee that the other Guards would be that close. For that reason, Ronan would have to come up with a backup plan. She already had one in the making, but doubted that Sidney would approve of what she had in mind.

  Looking across the table at Sidney’s animated features, she knew she would never tell her. The most she would accomplish would be

  to make Sidney worry. Since there was nothing positive in doing such a thing, she couldn’t see the point. Ronan wanted so much for everything to be perfect between them, but the next few days would be very hard. Not only would she scheme with Sidney and Abrams, but she also had plans of her own.

  Her hidden agenda was ambitious and dangerous, and she only hoped she could make full use of the time they had together before the ceremony. Especially since the chances were very good that she wouldn’t survive it. At least Sidney would be safe and they might thwart the Konservative Government’s plans. In the end, that was all that mattered.

  After dinner, Ronan and Sidney returned to their hotel room.
Sidney had just come out of the bathroom and stopped when she noticed Ronan had changed clothes. Ronan wore a pair of black, combat-style boots with heavy tread, a long-sleeved black sweater, and dark jeans.

  “What’s going on?” Sidney asked curiously.

  It was quite late and she would naturally wonder what could be so important at this time of night. Ronan stood up and began to pull her hair back into a ponytail to keep it out of her face.

  “I thought now might be a good time to get the motorcycle. I’ll take a cab to the hangar, get the bike, and be back here before you know it.”

  Sidney didn’t respond and Ronan turned to look at her. While she waited, Ronan finished off her outfit with a long black coat and a pair of gloves.

  “Don’t look at me like that.” Sidney looked like she might cry. Ronan walked over to her and took her into her arms. “It’ll be okay. You know we have to get that bike.”

  Sidney tightened her arms around Ronan’s waist. “I know we do. Just promise me that you’ll be careful.”

  “I will.” Ronan gave Sidney one last squeeze before she pulled away and walked to the door.

  “Why don’t you just call Jordy?” Sidney suggested before Ronan could leave. “It’s better than calling a cab. He can wait for you to make sure you get started back safely.”

  Ronan shook her head, touched by the gesture. “I want to get the bike before anyone can find out we’re here. Someone probably tapped your home line, as well as your employees’ phones. If we make a call to them, we could be endangering them needlessly. I’ll be back soon.”

  She’d told Sidney that everything would be fine, but walking to the elevator Ronan wasn’t so sure. These people seemed to know what they were going to do before they did it. When the stalker failed to eliminate Sidney, they’d managed to plant a homing device and an explosive on the plane before Ronan even thought to use the aircraft. Then they had a group of hunters ready to track them through the Everglades. Ronan and Sidney had barely managed to get away and left one of the assassins covered with deadly fire ants. She wasn’t about to delude herself that they’d managed anything except through blind luck.