Alien Deception (47 page)

::Will we ever meet in a physical state? Do you have one?::
Greg somehow felt it important that they should.

::I can assume one if necessary. But for now, it is better for us to keep our contact on a mental level.::

::As you wish, Vague,::
Greg agreed, remembering at last that was what he had decided to name this alien.

::Precious time is wasting,::
his visitor said impatiently.
::Let us begin our next lesson. We shall go on a trip together today, but you must move yourself. I will not help you unless I really must. Do you understand?::

::Yes, I believe so. Where are we going?::

::A short trip around this solar system.::

::The solar system,::
Greg said incredulously.
::I can't possibly–::

::Yes, you can,::
Vague contradicted him sharply.
::You can do it and you must.::

::What if I can't?::

::There will be no more talk of it. If you think failure, then you will die!::

* * * *

"Where the hell does he get this stuff from?" Sarah said as she and Edward left the platform and headed backstage.

She was trying to control her voice and demeanor in front of the entourage of assistants and advisors milling about. Her legs still felt weak and she was grateful for his hold on her elbow as he guided her along to the Oval Office.

She was not a weak or timid person by any means, but this reporter had a way of asking the most pointed questions. And, she had to admit, she had been caught off-guard and had not expected this new tack he had taken, bringing Greg and their mysterious life/death experiences out in the open.

Edward maintained a casual look of impassivity as he quickly told his advisors he would meet with them shortly to discuss this new assertion after he spoke with Sarah for a few moments. He did not appear overly concerned, even though inside she knew he was steaming.

"He's really starting to piss me off," he snapped once he and Sarah had some privacy. "Every time we think we have things under control, he brings up another obstacle for us to jump over. We had this licked until he started making it personal with you and Greg. I'm getting real tired of performing for his private amusement."

"What're we going to do now?' Sarah asked.

"He's thrown down the gauntlet. We can ignore it or we can face it. Apparently, he has the information on Greg, so it's only a matter of time before others start to look for him now that his name is out in the open. You can bet the phone lines are buzzing for any background information they can find on him, and what they have in their files about what happened to you both. They'll have a circus with that one."

"Just more sensationalism." Sarah sighed. "But it's what people love to hear, mystery around controversy. They'll not rest now until we address these latest allegations."

"Notice how his attack has changed? He's moved from alien conspiracy to you. He's centered his attention on you and Greg."

"He couldn't go any further on the alien issue because there was nothing hard he could use against us."

"No, there's more to it than that. I can feel it. There's no pattern. It's like randomness running amok."

"Maybe he's just confused or something."

"Exactly," Edward said. "It's the way a confused or possibly unstable person might approach something. Moving from object to object with no explanation or rationale for doing so."

"Is that a polite way to say a crazy person?" Sarah asked sarcastically.

"Yes, it could be, now that you mention it," Edward replied.

"So you think he's crazy? I have no doubts in my own mind about that!"

"I don't know, but either he or whoever is feeding him this information might be. I've checked up on our friend, and in all honesty, he's just not smart enough to put it all together by himself or to be in the right spot every single time, as he has been lately." Edward breathed an exhausted sigh. "It has to be the contacts he's using, but we haven't been able to learn anything from his usual ones."

"That has us back to square one again. Trying to figure who's behind all this. They have us going crazy on several fronts all at once. This is a very effective war they're waging."

"Well, there isn't anything more we can do about this issue right now. I've got some other things to take care of. Why don't you brief Greg and see what he thinks. And find out if he has heard from Leumas yet. We'll get together later and see what we can come up with for a course of action."

"Good enough," Sarah said as she squeezed his arm affectionately and headed to her office. Once inside, she exhaled strongly and plopped heavily into her leather chair. She was exhausted and frustrated over the past couple of days' events, not to mention she was still very concerned about Greg. Her intercom sounded, interrupting her thoughts.

"Ms. McClendon, I have several calls from the press and—"

"Just tell them ‘no comment,' Mrs. Jones, and hold all calls for the next hour," she said and clicked off before her secretary could edge in another word.

Her thoughts returned to Greg. He had become terribly stressed and worn from his lack of rest and the disturbing dreams he was experiencing. She so much wanted to take care of him and she yearned for the closeness their duties prohibited. He would push his mental and physical capabilities to the limit often, but she had never seen him fail to rebound and come back after a while, looking renewed and ready to move on to the next problem. She felt something was wrong, and that he still was not telling her everything about the dreams.

She still had her other concerns about the way his abilities had been mutating ever since their indoctrination. Had the changes stopped? Even Greg didn't know that answer. How far would they go and what would they do to him and his mind? More questions without answers. This was turning into one of those times when she wondered what life would have been like if they had never gotten involved with the UCDW. However, she quickly rejected that question, for no matter what happened, their involvement was crucial to the development of this world and all its inhabitants. She couldn't think of just her own and Greg's feelings; there was too much at stake.

She closed her eyes and sent her thoughts to him.

::Greg, can you hear me?::

Several seconds passed without a response; she felt a cold chill shiver down her spine.

::Greg, are you there? Can you–::

::Yes, Sarah, I can hear you I was in the middle of a… Well, a bit of work and I had to finish… It's kind of hard to explain.::

::Is something wrong, Greg? Where are you? Do you feel okay?::
She sensed something unusual in his voice.

::Nothing's wrong, Sarah. I'm fine. I was just…wandering in my mind.::

::Huh?
::

::Nothing. Just woolgathering, I guess. What's going on at your end?::

::We need to talk.::

Chapter Twenty-one

“When all else fails…tell the truth.”

President Edward Samuel

"There's only one way to put this Schume's claims to rest," Greg told Sarah and Edward when they returned to the UCDW headquarters. All three of them were seated at the conference table in Greg's quarters. "I'll come to Washington and address the reporters. Otherwise, he'll continue to use a lack of a response as a way to keep his story going."

"What about the other reporters?" Sarah asked.

"They're riding his shirttail at the moment. He falls and they all follow," Edward inserted.

"But this going head-to-head worries me," she said.

"I see no other way to get him off our backs short of kidnapping this guy and hiding him away," Greg joked, but then quickly resumed a serious expression. "However, I won't do it with you two. I'll do it alone, claiming to be responding to the accusation I've disappeared."

"Why do it that way? I mean, not admitting to knowing us," Sarah asked.

"In case something goes wrong. I won't drag you two down with me. But I don't think that'll happen."

"And what about the photo he has of you and me?"

"I'll just say you and I met after the similar experience we had, and we agreed not to pursue any media exposure. After that, we went our separate ways. You became involved with the president's campaign. I decided to pursue my dream of becoming a writer and moved to a secluded area in West Virginia. It's plausible and based on historical data that most people who have a near-death experience turn to writing. And I do actually own a home here. We purchased it in case something like this ever happened."

"Sounds like a plan," Edward said. "And I concur with doing it away from the White House and all. Makes it appear you're on your own and acting of your own volition. But how are you going to approach it?"

"Simple," Greg replied. "I'm going to give Mr. Schume everything he wants."

Silence fell as Edward and Sarah considered what Greg had just said and tried to imagine what he meant.

"Look, don't worry. I have it all worked out," Greg said. "I'll make the announcements for the press conference before I leave for DC, and then you two need to be ready for the next accusation this reporter guy will come up with."

"I still think he's just a puppet for someone else. We need to get to his source to put an end to all this," Sarah stated, then shifted topics. "Any word from Leumas yet?"

"No, nothing yet." His concern was obvious. "But it's still too early to get worried. I'll wait a while longer before we take any action."

"Let us know if you hear anything," Edward said. "I have some other business I need to take care of. I'll talk to you later, Greg. Sarah, I'll wait for you at the shuttle."

"How are you feeling, Greg?" Sarah asked once they were alone. She moved close to him and brushed his hair away from his forehead "You sounded kind of strange before, especially the way you said that you were wandering around your mind. What was that all about?"

"Just a little joke. And I feel much better. I finally got a good night's sleep." He tried to make it sound like the truth, which in a way, it was.

He did feel better, but it was not from a good night's sleep. It was from the anticipation he might get some insight into what was happening to him, and possibly what lay ahead in the future. He gently grasped her hands and held them in his.

"Well, I'm glad to hear it. You really had me worried. You're not just telling me that to make me feel better, are you?"

"You're such a worry-wart. All this fussing over just a few dreams. It's just a reaction to all the stress we've been under lately. I'm fine."

"I just miss you," she said as she placed his hands around her waist. "We haven't been together for more than a few hours for weeks."

"I know. I miss you, too. Remember how it was before all of this? We spent days together—some really fun times." Greg kissed her gently on the lips. As he pulled back, he gazed into her eyes. He allowed himself to be drawn into their depth as he felt his love for her fuel his desire for her. He kissed her again, this time deeply. After some time, they slowly drew apart.

"Now, there's the Greg I remember," she said as she hugged him tightly.

"You remember when we were stargazing a few months ago, the bottle of—"

"Greg! Stop! You'll make me blush," she said, feigning embarrassment. "You bet I do. It was one of the most wonderful nights of my life. I wish every day could be like that."

"Me, too. I love you, Sarah," Greg said as he hugged her again.

He closed his eyes and remembered that night. It was a rare thing for the two of them to be together and even more rare to be alone from the UCDW and its mission. This particular night, they had snuck off like two schoolchildren and stayed away for hours. They lay upon a hill as darkness settled around them. They made love under the starlight while they forgot, for a little while, that they carried the weight of not just one world on their shoulders, but hundreds.

"And I love you," Sarah said.

"Next time you're my way, I'll buy you dinner. I'll get hold of another bottle of your favorite wine. How's that sound?"

"You can count on me being there. The only question is when?"

"I know it's hard, but we'll get through this and make the time somehow," Greg said. He felt so guilty at times for the way they attempted to manage their relationship through all of their responsibilities. He kissed her again and then they held each other. The chiming of the clock caught Greg's attention.

"Okay, then, I guess I need to make some travel arrangements and get on my way so we can settle this," he said, reluctantly letting her go.

"Greg, please be careful. This guy always seems to carry a bag of tricks with him. We'll be watching from our end in Washington." Sarah kissed him. She touched his face and smiled. Greg saw the moisture glisten in her eyes. "One day we'll be together, all the time," she said, then turned and headed to the shuttle.

Greg's earlier feeling of contentment slowly faded as he watched Sarah leave. He wondered if the day she mentioned would ever come.

::Greg,::
a voice called in his mind. He recognized it as Vague's.

::Yes.::

::Time to go.::

::Where?::

::Close your eyes and think about the planet Saturn.::

::But–::

::Just do it. It will be all right.::

Greg closed his eyes and began to replace the image of Sarah with that of the planet Saturn.

* * * *

Leumas arrived on the thirteenth floor and hesitated as the doors to the lift opened. He tried to dismiss the earlier sight of the body being carried out from his mind, but the image replayed itself over and over. If one wanted to ensure someone had an accident or vanished, this was definitely the place it could very easily happen. He wished he had brought someone along with him. Strength in numbers was definitely a psychological benefit at a time like this.