Ghost Planet

by Sharon Lynn Fisher

  We were home.

  Julia came back with the mug and set it on a table. She raised the head of my bed so I could sit up.

  I bent my face to Murphy’s, touching his cheek. When I had felt a couple of his breaths on my face I sat up again.

  “I hope you’ve been comfortable,” said Julia, slipping a blanket around my shoulders. I realized I was completely naked. “We had to cut the bloody clothes off you. I was afraid to separate you. I remembered his broken ribs from before, and I knew you were healing him somehow.”

  “What happened?”

  “I don’t know exactly, but he should have died. He was dead for a minute or two. Then his heartbeat came back.” The blanket had slipped off one of my shoulders and Julia reached up to touch it. “By the time we got home your shoulder was healed too. Nothing but a little scar here.”

  The events of that night all came crowding into my head. “Where’s Mitchell? And Peter? The others from the—”

  Julia pushed the cup to my lips. “We can talk about that later. You need calories.”

  I took a couple of sips. It was salty and rich and stimulated my appetite. I drained the whole cup and handed it back to her.

  “Good girl. Now I want you to rest. Whatever it was you did, it depleted you completely. We’ll answer all your questions when you’re stronger.”

  “Wait, Julia. Please.”

  She crossed her arms, frowning.

  “Was it Mitchell that shot Murphy?”

  She nodded. “If he hadn’t been paying attention you’d probably both be dead.”

  “Where is she now?”

  Julia hesitated, studying my face. “Dr. Mitchell died, Elizabeth. Shot herself right after she shot Murphy.”

  “She—?” I broke off, astonished. According to my own assessment, Mitchell was too selfish to kill herself. But it was a hazard of a psychology education, using labels to explain a person’s behavior. Failing to appreciate their individuality.

  Had she felt remorse in the end? Not likely, considering her last act had almost taken out my entire family. But Mitchell had been duped by her enemy. Had been manipulated by a man she respected—maybe more than respected. And in losing him, she’d lost her protector. The idea of investigations into her ethics violations—the possibility of losing her position, and even her career—may have been too much for her.

  “Get some rest,” said Julia. “I’ll come back in a while with something more substantial for you to eat.”

  “Okay,” I agreed, lying back. As the broth digested I’d begun to feel heavy and sleepy. Julia lowered the bed and I curled up close to Murphy. “You’re sure he’s okay?”

  She laughed softly. “We’re far outside the scope of anything I’ve been trained for. But I can tell you his brain function looks normal, as do all his vitals. I think he’ll wake up when he’s ready.”

  She reached down to adjust our blankets and her hand grazed my arm. Despite Murphy’s lack of consciousness, our empathic link engaged, and I caught a glimpse of Julia’s emotional state. These impressions we received from others were not like telepathy—I could never actually hear thoughts like I could with Murphy. But if the emotions were strong enough, or familiar enough, I could sometimes interpret the cause. There was a happy excitement trilling through Julia that was unmistakable.

  I turned my head, smiling up at her. “Congratulations.”

  A smile spread over her face too. “Keep it to yourself, okay? Ian doesn’t know yet.”

  “You got it.”

  * * *

  I dreamed of a searching kiss. A kiss that plumbed down into me and touched my soul.

  I woke to find it wasn’t a dream.

  There you are. Murphy’s lips on mine. His voice in my head.

  Here I am.

  I opened my eyes. Raised my hands to his face. “How do you feel?”

  He rubbed his nose up and down my cheek. “Can’t you tell?”

  His body shifted on top of me, and suddenly yes, I could tell.

  “Seeing as how we have our clothes off already, do you suppose…?”

  “I do, Murphy.”

  I don’t think he’d expected it to be so easy. He grinned and kissed me again.

  Reaching down between us, I touched him, and he shivered and moaned. I held him a moment before adjusting the angle of my hips and guiding him inside me.

  “Mmm, thank you,” he murmured.

  “I don’t know how long we’ll be alone.” I was surprised Julia hadn’t already made an appearance to check on her second patient.

  “Then let’s not waste any time.”

  Our bodies shook with fatigue, and the sheer audacity of what we were trying to do started me giggling.

  “That’s enough, you,” he scolded. “I’m trying to concentrate.”

  He kept his movements slow and precise, bowing on the deepest string. The vibrations traveled into my belly, then spiraled around my spine to tickle up my neck. I slipped my legs around him, sweeping our blankets to the floor.

  “Are you warm enough, love?”

  “Oh yes.”

  There was a light rap on our door, and with no further warning it opened.

  “For the love of Christ. Hang out a sign or something.”

  Peter vanished as the door slid closed, and we both laughed so hard I thought we’d have to give it up. But Murphy bent his head and quieted me with another soul-stirring kiss, and soon we were back on track.

  The precise strumming gave way to deep thrusts. Finally one of these shattered me like crystal, and I came all at once with a cry of joy for being alive. Our gazes remained locked as our bodies quieted, and a tear slipped down onto his cheek. My breath caught.

  “You saved my life, Elizabeth.”

  I dried the tear with my thumb. “You are my life, Murphy.”

  * * *

  We dozed for a while, but hunger finally drove us out of bed. Our clothes were gone, so we wrapped ourselves in blankets and wandered outside, wincing at the bright sunlight.

  One flight of stairs down, across the landing, we slipped into the supply room and pawed through boxes until we found clothes that fit us. Murphy handed me a worn, cream-colored sundress and I rolled my eyes at him. But he said, “Please,” so I put it on.

  He pulled me onto his lap and fondled my breasts through the thin fabric.

  “What is wrong with you?” I said, laughing.

  “Two days of this I’ve missed,” he mumbled against my throat. “Three if you count the day we left—which reminds me!”

  I squealed as he jumped up and dragged me to my feet. Grabbing a shirt from our discard pile, he nudged me against a wall of shelves and used the sleeves to tie my arms above my head.

  “Hey! Don’t you know I’m pregnant?”

  “Oh, don’t even, love.” He pressed his body against my backside, running his hands up my stomach and ribs, over my breasts. “That’s exactly why you were supposed to stay here. I warned you.”

  “What are you going to do to me?” I tried to sound frightened and pitiful, but my voice came out husky.

  He whispered in my ear and a shiver ran up my spine.

  “A tad harsh, perhaps. But I’ll submit to it.”

  He nipped the back of my neck as he lifted my skirt. “Will you, now.”

  * * *

  Murphy untied my hands and massaged the blood back into them before kissing the inside of each wrist. “None the worse for wear, are you, love?”

  I leaned close to him and whispered, “You’re going to pay for that.”

  “Am I?”

  “Oh yes. But I need food first.”

  We left the supply room with no clear idea where we were going. It was a lovely, warm day, and as we walked out into the sunshine people turned to stare at us. I felt like we were sole survivors leaving the wreckage of a ship.

  “You’re all right, Dr. Murphy?” asked one woman.

  “I am, Anne, thank you. Have you seen Ian? Or Hank, or Gavin?”

 
She nodded, pointing. “Up on the ledge, in Blake’s old spot.”

  Scrambling up the rocks at the end of the overhang, we found all of them having lunch in the sun. Lex was there too, sitting between her father and Julia, and the twinge I felt at seeing her was very faint. More of a reflex.

  Ian called out a greeting and they all rose to welcome us.

  “Everybody relax,” insisted Murphy, shaking Ian’s outstretched hand. “Finish your lunch. Elizabeth and I are starving.”

  There was a round of questions about Murphy’s health, which gave me time to shovel down three boiled eggs and two pieces of bread. When they’d congratulated him on his recovery—including a few cracks that made it clear Peter had not been discreet about what he’d interrupted—Peter said, “We have some news for you both.”

  The relaxed mood of the picnic had led me to hope everything was okay—that we weren’t in imminent danger of a visit from planet security.

  “Let’s have it,” said Murphy.

  “I’ve gone public with our story. We debated about what was best, but there was bound to be some kind of investigation as a result of what happened. We thought planet administrators should hear from us first.”

  “Good,” I said. “I agree.”

  Peter fixed his eyes on me. “I included what we learned about John Ardagh. The last thing we needed were headlines blaming us for the death of the planet’s patron.”

  Murphy’s gaze moved between Peter and me. “What are you talking about?”

  Fortified with real food, I launched into an explanation of my dinner with Ardagh, omitting only the fact I had poisoned him.

  “Ardagh the ghost was no revolutionary,” said Peter. “He was interested in profiting from the planet’s resources, and that’s the way I spun the story. We don’t need the colonists to start speculating about ghost uprisings.” Again Peter looked at me. “I didn’t include anything about how he died, because I don’t know.”

  Murphy reached for my hand, and energy pulsed through me as our connection opened.

  What happened?

  He was worried, and I could feel him gently probing into my memory. I pushed him back. Later, I promise.

  “Where is the new John?” I asked Peter.

  “He and his wife are both here. She’s malnourished and weak, but recovering. John is—adjusting. The last thing he remembers is visiting the New Seattle Counseling Center when he arrived on the planet.”

  “He might like to see a familiar face,” I said to Murphy. I wondered whether this fresh start would give Ardagh a chance at becoming a decent human being. As with Blake, only time would tell.

  Murphy looked troubled, but he nodded. “I’ll go and speak to him.”

  “Peter hasn’t told you everything yet,” said Hank, glancing at him.

  “Right,” said Peter. “The biggest news is that the governor is coming to meet with the two of you in a week.”

  My jaw dropped, and Murphy said, “Coming here?”

  Peter nodded. “I pulled together all the pieces of our story on the transport, and as soon as we got back I sent it to my editor. I knew we’d get heavy promotion if I gave them an exclusive. It was on the Net and picked up by all the major news services in less than an hour. Governor Chen’s office contacted me through Pacific Media the next day.”

  “What kind of visit is this?” Murphy asked.

  “Chen said she was intrigued by our story, especially by the phenomena we’ve observed, and she’s anxious to see for herself. She also expressed concern about lack of oversight of the private contractors, and wanted to hear more about your dealings with Mitchell. Obviously she was telling me what I wanted to hear, but I think that’s a good sign. Means this meeting is important to her. This story is getting a lot of traction, and she can’t afford to ignore it.” Peter looked at Murphy. “I also told her we wanted Dr. Tobias, the ERP chief, to come with her.”

  “Brilliant, Peter,” Murphy replied. “Did she agree?”

  “She did. That’s why the meeting’s a week out. He’s in New Seattle right now.”

  “Good,” replied Murphy. “It’ll give us some time to prepare.”

  I smiled at Peter. “I’m impressed.”

  He winked. “You’re the one that made it all happen, sweetheart.”

  Murphy pulled my hand into his lap. Will you please stop looking at him that way?

  I’m going to make love to you for the next three days, Murphy.

  Murphy cleared his throat and stood up, helping me to my feet. “Since you’re all managing so well without us, I think we’ll knock off for the day.”

  “Before you go, we wanted to say thanks to you both,” said Ian, slipping an arm around Julia. His eyes settled on me. “Peter’s right, you made all this happen.”

  “All of us made this happen,” I replied.

  Murphy squeezed my hand, his gaze sweeping over the others. “Thank you for bringing us home.”

  * * *

  I filled my lungs with lavender-scented air as we walked in the door.

  “Come on,” said Murphy, guiding me to the bathroom.

  He stripped off his clothes, and mine, and turned on the shower. I picked up the soap, and he held out his hand. “Here, let me do it.”

  He soaped up a washcloth and worked it slowly over my body, scrubbing at the flecks of dried blood that still clung to my skin in places. When he finished I scrubbed him, and then he washed my hair.

  “Mmm.” I luxuriated in the feel of his fingers rubbing my scalp. “Can you do this every day?”

  “Absolutely, if you’ll let me.”

  We rinsed, dried, and crawled straight into bed.

  “Do you want to sleep?” he asked, pulling me close.

  “Not if you don’t. But before anything else, I need to tell you about Ardagh.”

  He hesitated, studying my face. “If you like, love.”

  My heart shied away from confession. Worried about my baby, worried about the man I loved, I had made a decision of the moment. I doubted I could convey the fear and urgency I had felt. The truth was I had killed someone. Intentionally.

  He raised his hand to my shoulder, caressing the tiny scar there.

  I opened our connection and took him back to Mitchell’s hotel. I had learned that I could shield things from him if I wanted to, and I did so sometimes out of embarrassment, or out of a fear he would misunderstand. But this time I held nothing back, from the moment Mitchell left me with Ardagh to the moment the guards flung me into the basement.

  His arms tightened around me as our connection closed. “You are a brave, amazing woman, Elizabeth. I’m so sorry you had to face that alone.”

  “Do you think I was wrong?” I pressed my face between his jaw and his collarbone. “Have I done something horrible? I mean, I have done something horrible. Was I justified?”

  “I would have done exactly the same.”

  I drew back and looked at him. “Do you mean that, Murphy?”

  “He was going to let Mitchell take our baby. I wouldn’t have poisoned him. I would have strangled him.”

  Murphy sat up and pulled back the blanket. Starting with the tips of my fingers, he proceeded to kiss every square inch of my skin. We left our connection closed this time, focusing all our attention on the moment. He made love to me slowly, working the last beads of tension from my body.

  * * *

  I lay across his chest, my chin resting on one fist. He gave me a sleepy smile, and I reached up and ran a finger down the bridge of his nose.

  “Someday, when we have time for lazing around in bed all day, I’m going to count every last one of these sweet little freckles.”

  “Mmm, when will that be, love? After the governor’s visit? After the baby, perhaps?”

  I frowned. “Good point. I better start now. One. Two. Three. Four—” My hand froze.

  “Only four, then?”

  “Murphy, I’ve just had an idea. I can’t believe I never thought of it before. The effect we have on t
his planet—I wonder what would happen if some of us went to Earth. I mean, do you think we could heal Earth, like—”

  I gasped as Murphy rolled suddenly and pinned me down under him. His mouth closed over mine and he kissed me until I stopped squirming.

  He drew back to look at me. “You have the best ideas. Better than anyone I know. But do you think we could finish saving this world before we start on Earth?”

  I stuck my tongue out. “I wasn’t suggesting we would go.”

  “No?”

  “Not right away, anyway.” My fingertips played over his chin. My voice trembled as I said, “But maybe their grandparents will want to meet them someday.”

  I held my breath through the beats of silence.

  “Them?” he said.

  I nodded, and he cleared his throat. “How many, love?”

  “Just two,” I said with a laugh. He sank against me, sighing with relief. “What did you think I was going to say?”

  “Look at this apartment! For all I know every time we make love another one digs in. There could be fifty of them in there.”

  I squealed with laughter. “Good God, bite your tongue, Murphy!”

  He rose on his elbow, weaving his fingers through my hair. “Have as many as you like. I’ll love them all.”

  I pulled him close and kissed him.

  “I want to ask you something, Elizabeth.”

  “Okay.”

  “In the memory you shared with me, you told Mitchell you were tired of people threatening your ‘family.’ Is that really how you think of me? Of us?”

  Blood rushed into my cheeks as my heart sped up. “Does that scare you?”

  He rolled his eyes. “For the love of God.”

  I scowled at him “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Since the day we left the institute I’ve been walking a tightrope, trying to let you see how much I love you without frightening you.” Shaking his head, he took my face in his hands. “Will you marry me?”

  I blinked at him, and slowly smiled. “You’re joking, right? Who’s going to marry us?”

  He covered my mouth with his hand, freezing me with blue-eyed intensity. “Will you please not answer such a question with two more? Now, I’m going to give you another chance.” He moved his hand. “Will you marry me?”