Fractured Futures

by SY Thompson

  Ronan surprised Sidney by reaching up to hug the man’s neck. “I missed you too, Professor.”

  The professor allowed the embrace for a second before he pulled away with a flushed face. He looked almost embarrassed and then he cleared his throat and put the medical instruments down on the worktable.

  “As far as what you were saying earlier, I did show you how to work the time machine, but that was just this evening. Then I showed you to the door. You said in the original time line the Regime had me killed. Since I know that many of them are a bunch of cowards that operate in the dead of night, I can only assume that they intended to finish me off after I went to bed. However, I still find it hard to believe they would contemplate such a thing.”

  “It’s true,” Ronan assured him.

  “But we’ve changed things,” Sidney said. “By attempting to stop the government three hundred years ago, they may operate differently now. Ronan said she’s come back once before to the basement. When she did, you were still dead, the basement was still rigged to explode, and she had to kill her partner with...some kind of a laser. There may not be an assassin this time around.”

  Professor Horton looked like he’d been stunned by the revelation of all this new information. “Well, you’ve certainly been busy, haven’t you? I think I’ll make some tea. Would you care to join me?”

  He led the way out of the basement saying, “After the tea is made I’ll expect you to start again from the beginning...slowly.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  THEY TALKED OVER tea and cookies for hours while Ronan attempted to tell her old friend everything she could remember. Sidney filled in a few details but for the most part was content to sit back and listen. Professor Horton, as a scientist, was a skeptic by nature but he’d known Ronan a long time. He easily believed what she told him she experienced, but it was much harder to convince him that the Neue Konservatives were responsible for everything she had been through.

  He pointed out that the government was capable of such a thing since political extremists made up the party, but the government was not the Guard and hadn’t even existed in Sidney’s century. He contended that the secret police might be acting without authorization. Lacking the disc that contained their intelligence on the infiltrators, they had no proof.

  “So what are you going to do? Do you have a plan or are you going to continue to play cowgirl without any consideration to your actions?”

  Ronan winced a little at the implied rebuke, but Sidney had learned over the course of the last few hours that the old man was only trying to get her to think. Sidney answered the question she thought the professor really wanted to ask.

  “Respectfully, I feel certain that the party leaders are behind this. What possible purpose would the Guard have for acting on their own? Where would they get the funding they need? We have to find out who is really pulling the strings and how far the government’s policies for population control have gone since they had an early start in my century. We believed we killed the initial recon team, but then realized we missed someone. That act probably slowed them down, but it obviously didn’t stop them or the Konservative government wouldn’t have come to power.”

  “Did you ever consider that it did work,” the professor argued. “Maybe this is what human destiny was meant to be. How can you be sure?”

  “We can’t, but Ronan and I have to know that all of this isn’t the result of our actions.”

  “Personally, I am sure the Konservatives are a hostile invasion force,” Ronan added. “Even if they have sugar-coated things, I refuse to believe our destiny is one of bigotry and hatred and casually murdering helpless old men in their sleep. I know you don’t want to believe it, Professor, but I know these things to be true, and I need to stop them.”

  Horton smiled at Ronan’s passionate words. “I would like to think we are better than that. What I see in the streets has disturbed me for years, but you’ll forgive me if I think that the Regime and the Guard are unrelated until I see some real proof. Still, speaking of casual murder there is something you should know before you leave. The police caught a group of rebels sneaking into the government headquarters last night with a bag of explosives. They were planning on leveling the building.”

  “What?” Ronan said, astounded. “You can’t sneak into the headquarters. It’s a fortress.”

  “So the Guard discovered them. They’re due for execution at three o’clock this afternoon. All citizens are mandated to watch as a reminder that treason will not be tolerated.”

  “An execution just like that? Don’t they even get a trial,” Sidney demanded and turned to Ronan. “You didn’t tell me this kind of thing happened.”

  “That’s because it doesn’t. This is the first time I’ve heard of a public execution although I’d begun to suspect the government of killing any outspoken dissenters in secret.”

  Professor Horton seemed surprised by her denial. “Ronan, how can you say that? Any insurgents caught by the Regime are always publicly executed.”

  “Maybe they are now. It seems we changed things for the worse by killing that Guard contingent.”

  “They realized the most effective way of dealing with open opposition was public slaying. People would think twice about rocking the boat,” Sidney speculated.

  Horton frowned as he began to come around to their position. “After you revealed those men on broadcast television, what was the public’s reaction?”

  “Pandemonium, chaos, rioting in the streets...” Sidney replied, ashamed of what had resulted from their actions.

  Ronan picked up the thread. “We were going to come back and see how strong a foothold the Konservatives had gotten or if we’d been successful in stopping them. Then we were going to try to go back and eliminate them some other way to avoid the mass hysteria created before. I just haven’t yet figured out how. We can’t go back to an earlier time because we’ve already been there.”

  Professor Horton reached out to rest a hand on the young detective’s shoulder. “Ronan, you are smarter than this. What were you thinking by acting so rashly?”

  Ronan looked at Sidney for support and Sidney realized she’d risk hell’s fury to protect her. The old man didn’t miss the look that passed between them.

  “Ah, I see. I love you like my own daughter, but I have always thought your sentimental heart would get you in trouble. I would ask you to plan carefully, but I may have answers to at least one of your problems. Excuse me for a moment.”

  Professor Horton left the room while Ronan and Sidney exchanged curious glances. A few seconds later, he came back with a strange-looking device. Sidney had seen the gadget on the workbench before, but not paid it any attention.

  “What is it?”

  “I call it a phase inducer. When I showed you the time machine, I explained that a person could not travel to a point in the past where they’d already been. This device takes the person slightly out of phase so that the paradox is eliminated.”

  “Two places at once?” Ronan asked with a smile. “It’s just like you to attempt what anyone else would consider impossible.”

  “More or less that is the answer,” he responded. “By being out of phase you would not be visible to anyone else. But might I suggest something?”

  Ronan nodded and Sidney looked intrigued.

  “When you go back, try for a time before all of this happened. I’m not denying what you say is true, but if it is you must take care of the problem quietly.” He turned to Sidney. “Come and see me later after you get some sleep. Perhaps by then I will have rigged another one for you.”

  Finally, he told them to let him think on the situation and offered them the use of his car to return to Ronan’s apartment. Sidney noticed that her lover already moved easier as they walked toward the front door, but she sensed some hesitation about leaving.

  “Ronan, is something wrong?”

  “It’s just that I might attract a little attention running around in scrubs and baref
oot.”

  Professor Horton snorted. “Wait just a moment.”

  He walked over to a closet and brought back a large black overcoat and a set of worn house shoes. “They might be a little big, but they should do until you get home.”

  Ronan hugged the man again and pulled on the garments. He handed her the keys to his car and surprised her when he hugged her too. “Be careful and don’t be stopped on the way to your apartment. You don’t have your papers on you and I don’t think you want to come under military scrutiny.”

  Ronan drove the battered old station wagon slowly over slick streets. Rain came down in steady sheets in the pitch-blackness and the street lamps did little to brighten the landscape. Everywhere she looked Sidney saw trash billowing along the deserted streets and things seemed ill kept and dreary. The city had a deserted air to it and no other cars passed on the road.

  “Is it always this quiet?” Sidney asked. Even though the weather was bad and it was quite late, she was accustomed to seeing other people out and about.

  Ronan’s expression looked pinched with worry, but she answered. “Yes, there is a curfew in effect. There is no one allowed on the streets after ten without special authority. I actually have that authority, but I don’t have my authorization papers on me.”

  “Where are they?”

  “I have a copy of them in the apartment. Let’s just hope we don’t run into a checkpoint.”

  “But wouldn’t you know where a checkpoint is?” Sidney asked. “Wouldn’t they always be in the same spot?”

  “What would be the point in that? If you knew where a checkpoint was always going to be, you could just avoid it.”

  Good point, Sidney thought. From that moment on, she was a nervous wreck and conversation was out of the question until they finally pulled into an underground structure and Ronan switched off the engine. A quick elevator trip and they stood outside Ronan’s penthouse apartment. Sidney could see from the plush décor that this definitely wasn’t a run-of-the-mill apartment structure. Large windows on one side of the hallway offered a view of the city and the bay. Up close, the city had looked dank and dirty but from the top floor where they stood, the lights gave it a magnificent glow.

  Plush carpet lined the floors. It was so thick Sidney could feel her feet sinking into the piles even with her shoes on. Paintings in gilt-edged frames lined the walls, and from the look of them, they were not reproductions. The inside of the apartment was even more spectacular and she could see that Ronan had wonderful taste. The house in the Florida Keys had been homey, comfortable, and beautiful, but this apartment was even more amazing.

  A large fireplace took up most of the outside wall next to another huge window. A leather sofa and chairs looked comfortable enough to sink into and sleep for days. The mix of blues and silvers made her feel soothed and she wondered if that was the intention of the decorator. After a long day of fighting crime in a dark and dreary city where crime was all many people had, it made sense that Ronan would want to leave that world outside when she came home.

  “This is wonderful.”

  She felt Ronan slide up behind her and then warm, strong arms embraced Sidney from behind. Gratefully, she leaned back against her lover and let her head fall back against Ronan’s shoulder. She hadn’t even known she needed the embrace until Ronan reached out to her. Sidney had felt overwhelmed since this whole joyride began, focused on simply defeating the futuristic imposters. Now she realized that this was what they were fighting for. Not just for their freedom, but for the right to love and live.

  The Guard invaders would take all of that and more from the people of the Earth if given half a chance. They would not get it, not if she had anything to say.

  “I’m going to shower,” Ronan said, and placed a kiss on the top of Sidney’s head. “Do you want to look around a little?”

  “Yes.” Sidney saw the monitor on the end wall and asked, “Is that a television?”

  Ronan looked over and grinned before she answered. “In a way. It’s also a communications panel, what you would call a telephone.”

  “That’s some phone.”

  “It is, but the main difference is that you can see who is calling and they can see you. It might be prudent for you not to answer any incoming calls while we’re here.”

  Sidney noticed that Ronan said “while we’re here.” It would seem that she intended to return to Sidney’s time with her. With all the technological marvels of this era, she felt very loved that Ronan would be agreeable to give all of that up just to be with her.

  “You’ll just have to make sure you show me how to use it.”

  Ronan stepped around Sidney so she could lean down and rest their foreheads together with her eyes closed. Sidney could feel the tension in her body and recognized it as the same emotion she had seen on her face in the car.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Ronan sighed gustily. “You’re very intuitive, you know that?”

  “If that was meant to be a distraction it didn’t work.”

  The chuckle in her ear made Sidney smile slightly but still Ronan didn’t answer. She had started to wonder if she would when she finally spoke.

  “What are we going to do about the rebels? We can’t just let them be killed.”

  Ronan’s voice was tortured and Sidney knew she somehow blamed herself for their capture. There was no point in verbalizing that. She tightened her arms around Ronan’s waist briefly and then pulled away.

  “Take your shower. I’ll just have a little look around.”

  “There’s coffee in the kitchen.”

  Coffee was one of Sidney’s favorite vices. It could help her calm down as easily as it could energize her, but it wasn’t anything she was interested in now.

  “How about after we both have a shower, you help me relax in other ways?”

  Ronan’s eyebrow rose sharply, but a feral grin curled the corner of her mouth. She suddenly leaned down and captured Sidney’s lips in a quick, hungry kiss. Then she pulled back and looked into her eyes.

  “I’ll hurry.”

  “You’d better.”

  Soon both had showered and climbed into Ronan’s queen-sized bed without clothes. Sidney started to shiver in anticipation. They hadn’t made love in almost a week, before Ronan’s courageous decision that almost ended up getting her killed. Sidney was dying to have her in her arms again.

  Ronan leaned over her on one elbow but instead of a kiss, Sidney watched her raise her face and say, “Computer, wake me up at 6 a.m.”

  A beep sounded overhead. Sidney glanced toward the headboard and saw some mechanical device, apparently their version of an alarm clock.

  “That’s handy.” She slipped her hands down Ronan’s naked back. Muscles rippled under her fingers and goose bumps broke out on Sidney’s arms as she shivered again in arousal. Ronan lowered her head to capture Sidney’s lips in a soft kiss.

  Sidney groaned as she slipped her tongue into Ronan’s mouth and felt the full breasts press against her. A hot, sizzling current of desire shuddered through her. She felt as if she were about to drown as she melted into Ronan’s sweet mouth.

  Answering the groan of desire, Ronan reached a long arm behind Sidney to cup her buttocks. She pulled her up, pressing closely to join their burning centers. Hungrily, blindly, Sidney sought Ronan’s lips again and again. Sidney moaned again, eager for her touch. Ronan bent to run her lips below the fringe of dark lashes as she kissed Sidney’s cheekbones. Sidney closed the gap between them. Their lips met tentatively, then with passion. Ronan’s tongue explored Sidney’s mouth and probed deeper as she demanded a response. Finally drawing away, Ronan stroked her hands slowly down Sidney’s body.

  Eyes glazed, stunned with passion, Ronan trembled. “Sidney.”

  They kissed again and suddenly Ronan’s hands were on her, hot and urgent. Sidney felt her body grow taut with need. Under the lips and tongue, her own mouth answered. A rush, fiery and wet, exploded from her core and she trembled. Sidney a
bsorbed the guttural cries of Ronan’s passion. She was a woman consumed, desperate to consume in return. Urgently she reached for Ronan’s shoulders as she kissed and tasted the strong, hot body. Ronan treated the bare flesh of her neck to light nipping and the fluttering of her tongue. Sidney arched her back in response.

  “I’ve missed touching you,” Ronan told her between kisses. “Let me love you, Sidney.”

  She began to kiss her way from Sidney’s neck down to her breasts. Sidney felt her nipples harden as Ronan’s lips and tongue suddenly found them. She held on to her as she groaned her pleasure, encouraging a stronger touch. Ronan’s tongue swirled downward and Sidney’s stomach muscles tightened at the caresses that teased. She realized that Ronan was making love to her as though it would be the last time and she grabbed hold of her shoulders to steady herself.

  “Ronan,” Sidney cried out when she felt the young woman’s hot breath at the juncture of her thighs.

  Then she shut her eyes as stars exploded in the darkness. Suddenly she felt the most sensitive part of her body smoothly enveloped in wet, searing heat as Ronan’s knowing mouth sucked her in and lovingly worshipped her.

  Sidney grasped at the comforter as she shivered violently. Ronan slowed and entered the pulsating opening below with one finger as she sought and found the place inside that made Sidney crazy. She pressed upward against Sidney’s core.

  “Oh,” Sidney cried out again, and arched her spine to give Ronan better access. Her body thrashed on the bed under her expert manipulation. Her hips responded instinctively and started to counter against Ronan’s hand.

  “Oh, yes, so good,” she groaned. “Please don’t stop. Don’t ever stop.”

  Ronan’s tongue pressed Sidney’s clit hard against her pelvis and she thrust deeply inside her lover. Sidney cried out repeatedly as her body burst into ecstatic release. Finally, her head lolled back against the pillows. Breathing heavily, she welcomed Ronan into her embrace as she hugged and kissed her as her heart finally began to slow down.